C5 - Microbial Growth and Nutrition Flashcards
What are the two main categories of requirements for microbial growth?
Physical and Chemical
What physical factors are required for microbial growth?
Temperature, pH, and osmotic pressure
What chemical factors are necessary for microbial growth?
Sources of carbon, nitrogen, sulfur, phosphorus, oxygen, trace elements, and organic growth factors
Primary groups on the basis of their preferred range of temperature:
a. Psychrophiles/Cryophiles
b. Psychrotrophs
c. Mesophiles
d. Thermophiles
e. Hyperthermophilic
f. Extremophiles
What are cold-loving microbes that grow well between 0°C and 20°C called?
Psychrophiles/Cryophiles
What is an example of a psychrophile?
Listeria monocytogenes
Yersinia enterolitica
What temperature range do psychrotrophs prefer?
Optimum between 20°C and 30°C but can grow well at lower temperatures
What are moderate-temperature-loving microbes that grow well between 20°C and 40°C, with an optimal range of 30°C to 37°C, called?
Mesophiles
temperature optimum between 20°C and 30°C but grow well at lower temperatures
important cause of food spoilage
Psychrotrophs
What is an example of a mesophile commonly encountered in clinical laboratories?
pathogenic bacteria
What are heat-loving microbes that grow best at temperatures between 50°C and 60°C called?
Thermophiles
Name an example of a thermophile.
Bacillus stearothermophilus
What term describes microbes that can survive temperatures above the boiling point of water?
Hyperthermophilic
What are prokaryotes that are able to survive in extreme conditions such as high temperatures and the absence of oxygen called?
Extremophiles
What temperature range do psychrophiles/Cryophiles grow well in?
0°C to a maximum of 20°C
What is the temperature range that psychrotrophs grow optimally in?
20°C to 30°C
At what temperature range do mesophiles grow?
20°C to 40°C
What is the optimal temperature range for mesophiles?
30°C to 37°C
What temperature range do thermophiles prefer?
50°C to 60°C
What temperature range can hyperthermophilic microbes survive in?
Above the temperature of boiling water
What temperature range do psychrophiles/Cryophiles thrive in?
0°C to 20°C
What is the lowest temperature at which a species will grow called?
Minimum Growth Temperature
What is the temperature at which a species grows best called?
Optimum Growth Temperature
What is the highest temperature at which growth is possible for a species called?
Maximum Growth Temperature
What is the term for the lowest or minimum time required to kill an organism under a constant temperature?
Thermal Death Time
What is the lowest temperature required to kill a microorganism in a constant time called?
Thermal Death Point
What type of organisms are most commonly found in the temperature range of 30°C (35-37°C)?
Mesophilic organisms
At what temperature do diagnostic laboratories usually incubate cultures for bacterial growth?
35°C
Which two bacteria can grow at both 35°C and 42°C?
Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Campylobacter
What is the pH range where most bacteria grow best?
pH 6.5 to 7.5
What pH range do Neutralophiles grow best in?
pH 6.0–8.0
What is the internal pH maintained by Neutralophiles over an external range of 5.5–8.5?
About 7.5
What is the optimum pH range for Acidophiles?
As low as pH 3.0
What is the internal pH maintained by Acidophiles over an external range of 1.0–5.0?
About 6.5
pH REQUIREMENT classifications
Neutralophiles
Acidophiles
Alkaliphiles
What is the optimum pH range for Alkaliphiles?
As high as pH 10.5
What is the internal pH maintained by Alkaliphiles over an external range of 9.0–11.0?
About 9.5
What substances in media act as buffers for pH control?
Peptones and amino acids
What is the buffering effect of phosphate salts useful for?
In the pH growth range of most bacteria
To what final pH are culture media for bacterial isolation usually adjusted?
Between 7.0 to 7.5
OSMOTIC PRESSURE REQUIREMENT classifications
Osmophilic
Barophiles
Plasmolysis
Other physical factors
Salt concentration and Moisture
What term describes organisms that require high osmotic pressures?
Osmophilic
What term describes the shrinkage of the cell’s cytoplasm due to osmotic pressure?
Plasmolysis
What are organisms that grow rapidly in high-pressure environments (600 to 1100 atm) called?
Barophiles
Name an example of a Barophile.
Shewanella, Colwellia, Photobacterium
What term describes organisms that require high salt concentrations?
Halophilic
Name an example of a Halophilic organism.
Staphylococcus aureus, Listeria monocytogenes
Which Vibrio species are exceptions to the general rule for Halophilic organisms?
Vibrio mimicus and Vibrio cholerae
What term describes organisms that require high salt concentrations for growth?
Extreme Halophiles/Obligate Halophiles
What term describes organisms that can grow at salt concentrations up to 2% but do not require high salt concentrations?
Facultative Halophiles
What is vital for bacterial growth and susceptibility testing?
Moisture
Bacteria have three major nutritional needs for growth:
Source of Carbon
Source of Nitrogen
Source of Energy
What percentage of a bacterium’s dry weight is carbon?
50%
Primary role of carbon in bacteria
making cellular constituents
What percentage of the dry weight of a bacterium is nitrogen?
14%
What is the primary role of nitrogen in bacteria?
Making proteins
What is the primary source of energy for bacterial cellular functions?
ATP
What role does phosphate play in bacterial cells?
Nucleic acids and phospholipids of cell membranes
What role does sulfur play in bacterial cells?
Protein synthesis
What percentage of a bacterium’s weight is made up by phosphate and sulfur combined?
4%
Name some mineral ions important for bacterial growth.
Na+, K+, Cl−, and Ca
2 types of microorganisms that utilize carbon
Heterotrophs
Autotrophs
Heterotrophs example
Chemoheterotrophs