E. Coli

[Botaras]

guys i have one question for you... E coli grows in neutral environment.what do you think that will happen to these bacteria if the ph of the growth medium is not neutral? exlain your answer. pls help me

[ennui]

How detailed does it have to be?

 

It could be a good idea to first consider how a high or low pH would affect the E.coli. What would a high or low pH do to any cell? Think about the molecules in the cell and how these might change if put in an acidic or alkaline environment.

 

Cells are mainly lipids, proteins and DNA. How might these be affected by, say, acid?

 

Then you will need to think about the changes the cell will have to make to compensate for the non-neutral pH. There are some fantastic journals out there on this stuff. Here's one I found in about 10 seconds: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15494746

 

Just do a PubMed search and you'll have more information than you can shake a stick at. Stick to reviews as they're easier..

[CharonY]

E coli grows in neutral environment.

 

This is only partially right. E. coli grows within a certain pH range. Which (hint: take a peek on the paper ennui posted)?

I assume that the answer is supposed to be very simple because the reaction of cells to pH is quite complex (and up to a certain point, poorly understood).