Micro: Bacterial Growth and Metabolism Flashcards
The growth rate of a particular organism depends on what 4 factors?
availability of nutrients, environmental pH, salinity and temperature
What are prototrophs?
bacteria that can synthesize all essential metabolites
What are auxotrophs?
bacteria that have acquired mutations that require them to obtain certain essential metabolites from the environment.
True or false, most bacteria are inhibited by acidic pH
True
True of false, high salinity is a common inhibitor of bacterial growth
True
Human pathogens are classified as __________ because they grow optimally between ____ Celsius and ___ Celsius.
Mesophiles; 30-37 Celsius
Bacteria that grow in extreme cold are called:
psychrophiles
Bacteria that can grow in extreme heat are called:
thermophiles
What necessary bacterial nutrient stands out because of its importance to growth and virulence?
Iron
How do bacteria counter iron limitation by the host (sequestration of free Fe)?
By secreting siderophores which chelate Fe and are then actively transported into the bacterial cell
Most bacteria take between ____ and ____ minutes to replicate.
30-60 minutes
The ____ phase of bacterial cell propagation is the period following initial inoculation in which essentially no growth occurs.
Lag phase
Why is there essentially no growth of bacteria during the lag phase?
The bacteria are adapting to the new nutrient environment, reprogramming gene expression to meet new standards.
Following the lag phase, bacterial growth enters the ______ phase, wherein bacteria begin to replicate and establish constant, optimal doubling times.
exponential (log) phase
During which phase of the bacterial growth curve are the bacteria most sensitive to antibiotic therapy and why?
Log phase, because the bacteria experience maximal DNA and protein synthesis.
During which phase of the cell growth curve is the best time to gram stain organisms?
log phase
What are two consequences of log growth that are dependent on the environment to prevent halting bacterial growth?
depletion of nutrients and accumulation of wastes