FACTORS AFFECTING
BACTERIAL GROWTH
SUBMITTED TO: DR. SAURABH DIXIT SIR AND DR. NAVNEET MA’AM
SUBMITTED BY: AMISHA (4)
HARSIFAT (36)
JAHNVI (38)
SAMREEN (65)
WHAT IS BACTERIAL GROWTH?
• Growth of bacteria is defined as an increase in the
number of bacteria in a population rather than in the
size of individual cells. The growth of a bacterial
population occurs in a geometric or exponential
manner: with each division cycle (generation), one
cell gives rise to 2 cells, then 4 cells, then 8 cells, then
16, then 32, and so forth. Thus, bacterial growth is
proliferation of bacterium into two daughter cells, in
a process called binary fission.
FACTORS AFFECTING GROWTH OF
BACTERIA
• Growth of bacteria is affected by many factors such as nutrition concentration and other
environmental factors. Some of the important factors affecting bacterial growth are:
• Nutrition concentration
• Temperature
• Gaseous concentration
• pH
• lons and salt concentration
• Available water
NUTRIENT CONCENTRATION
• If culture media is rich in growth promoting
substance, growth of bacteria occurs faster.
Decrease in nutrient concentration decreases the
growth rate.
• Different bacteria have different nutritional
requirement.
• The relationship between substrate
With increase in concentration
concentration (nutrition) and growth rate is nutrition, growth rate of bacteria
shown in figure. increases up to certain level and then
growth rate remains constant
irrespective of nutrition addition.
• micronutrient: an element or nutrient required in small quantities.
• macronutrients: any element or nutrient required in large amounts.
• The common nutrients which are found to be required in all living things include carbon,
nitrogen, sulfur, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium, calcium, oxygen, iron and additional
trace elements.
• Both and macro- and micro-nutrients are critical in proper organismal growth as they play
important roles in cellular and metabolic processes.
• The limiting nutrient is essential for growth and based on its concentration and presence or
absence can control growth.
TEMPERATURE
• Temperature affects the growth of bacteria by various ways.
The lowest temperature that allows the growth is called
minimum temperature and the highest temperature that
allows growth is called maximum temperature.
• There is no growth below minimum and above maximum
temperature.
• Below minimum temperature cell membrane solidifies and
become stiff to transport nutrients in to the cell, hence no
growth occurs.
• Above maximum temperature, cellular proteins and enzymes
denatures, so the bacterial growth ceases.
• The relationship between temperature and growth rate is
shown in figure below.
When temperature is increases Organisms can be classified
continuously from its minimum, growth according to their optimum growth
rate of bacteria increases because the rate temperature.
of metabolic reaction increases with PSYCHROPHILES grow best
increase in temperature. between0°C and 20°C
MESOPHILES grow best between
At certain temperature the growth rate 20°Cand 45°C
become maximum, this temperature is THERMOPHILES grow best at
known as optimal temperature. temperatures above 45°C.
On further increasing the temperature
above optimal, growth rate decreases
abruptly and completely ceases with
reaching maximum temperature.
PH
• pH affects the ionic properties of bacterial cell so it affects the growth of
bacteria.
• Most of the bacteria grow at neutral pH (6.5-7.5).
• However, there are certain bacteria that grow best at acidic or basic рн.
Relationship between pH and bacterial growth is given in figure below.
Neutrophiles- neutral pH values (6.5 -
• Microbes, such as bacteria are 7.0), e.g. Escherichia coli, staphylococci, and
sensitive to the hydrogen ion Salmonella spp.
Acidophilus- grow optimally at pH less
concentration they find in their
than 5.55 e.g. Sulfolobus spp.
environment. Alkaliphiles- grow best at pH between
• Large proteins, such as enzymes, 8.0 and 10.5. [Link] cholerae,
are affected by рн.
• Their shape changes (they
denature) and the very often
brings about an alteration of the
ionic charges on the molecule.
• Usually, the catalytic properties of
the enzymes are lost and
metabolism is halted.
IONS AND SALT
• All bacteria requires metal ions such as K+, Ca ++, Mg++, Fe+t,
Zn+t, Cu+t, Mn+t etc to synthesize enzymes and proteins.
• Most bacteria do not require NaCl in media however they can
tolerate very low concentration of salt.
• There is some halophilic bacteria such as Archeobacteria that
require high concentration of salt in media.
• Osmosis provides the primary
means by which water is
transported into and out of
cells.
• Osmoregulation is the
homeostasis mechanism of an
organism to reach balance in
osmotic pressure.
• If the medium is hypotonic, the
cells will gain water through
osmosis.
• If the medium is hypertonic, the
cells will lose water through
osmosis.
• Salt kills some types of bacteria, effectively by sucking water out of them.
• In a process known as osmosis, water passes out of a bacterium so as to
balance salt concentrations on each side of its cell membrane.
• Without water, bacterial proteins such as enzymes cannot function and
eventually the cell collapses in on itself.
• Some bacteria can tolerate salt; they are halotolerant.
• Certain strains of Staphylococcus, responsible for infections, blood poisoning,
and even death, are halotolerant.
• These pathogens have a salt alert system that uses spongelike molecules to
prevent water loss
AVAILABLE WATER
• Water is the most essential factor for bacterial growth.
• Available water in the culture media determines the rate of metabolic and
physiological activities of bacteria.
• Sugar, salts and other substances are dissolved in water and are made
available for bacteria.
