Topic
Metabolism
Framing Question
How does the survival and growth of any microorganism in a given environment depend on its metabolic characteristics?
Learning Objectives
- Define cardinal temperature, maximum temperature, and minimum temperature for an organism.
- Define thermophilic, psychrophilic, psychrotolerant, mesophilic, halophilic, acidophilic, alkalophilic, etc., organisms.
- Explain the concept of diauxic growth.
- Describe how very high (or low) temperatures, pH, or salt concentration inhibit growth (e.g., membrane stability, enzyme activity, proton motive force, etc.).
- Name the four phases of prokaryotic growth, and describe what the cells are doing during each phase.
- Describe how oxygen affects the growth of aerobes, obligate anaerobes, and facultative anaerobes.
- Given the starting concentration of a culture and the number of generations that occur, calculate the final concentration of the culture.
- Explain in general terms what a chemostat is and for what it is used.
