Chemoautotrophy, photo

autotrophy, growth of
microrganisms
All organisms, including microbes, can be
classified metabolically according to their
nutritional pattern—

source of energy
source of carbon
Source of energy

 Phototrophs: use light as their primary energy

source

 Chemotrophs: depend on oxidation-reduction

reactions of inorganic or organic compounds
for energy.
Source of carbon
Autotrophs (self-feeders): use carbon dioxide,
and. Autotrophs are also referred to as
lithotrophs (rock eating).

Heterotrophs (feeders on others): require an

organic carbon source. They are also referred
to as organotrophs.
If we combine the energy and carbon sources, we derive the
following nutritional classifications for organisms:

1. PHOTOAUTOTROPHS,
2. PHOTOHETEROTROPHS,
3. CHEMOAUTOTROPHS,
4. CHEMOHETEROTROPHS
A nutritional classification of organisms
1. Photoautotrophs:
Photoautotrophs use light as a source of energy and
carbon dioxide as their chief source of carbon.

• They include photosynthetic bacteria (green and

purple bacteria and cyanobacteria), algae, and green
plants.
• In the photosynthetic reactions of cyanobacteria,
algae, and green plants, the hydrogen atoms of water
are used to reduce carbon dioxide, and oxygen gas is
given off. Because this photosynthetic process
produces O2, it is sometimes called oxygenic.
Some bacteria such as anoxygenic photoautotrophs
(green and purple bacteria ) cannot use H2O to
reduce CO2 and cannot carry on photosynthesis when
oxygen is present (they must have an anaerobic
environment).
 Green bacteria -------Chlorobium
 purple bacteria--------Chromatium
Photosynthesis Compared in Selected Eukaryotes and
Prokaryotes
2. Photoheterotrophs:

• Photoheterotrophs use light as a source of

energy but cannot convert carbon dioxide to
sugar;
------But they use as sources of carbon organic
compounds (such as alcohols, fatty acids, other organic
acids, and carbohydrates).
• Photoheterotrophs are anoxygenic.
-------Ex- The green nonsulfur bacteria
(Chloroflexus), and purple nonsulfur bacteria
(Rhodopseudomonas)
3. Chemoautotrophs:

Chemoautotrophs use the electrons from

reduced inorganic compounds as a source of
energy, and they use CO2 as their principal
source of carbon.
• They fix CO2 in the Calvin-Benson Cycle.

Inorganic sources of energy for these organisms include:

 Hydrogen Sulfide (H2S) For Beggiatoa
 Elemental Sulfur (S) For Thiobacillus thiooxidans;
 Ammonia (NH3) For Nitrosomonas;
 Nitrite Ions (NO2) For Nitrobacter
 ;Ferrous Iron (Fe2+) For Thiobacillus ferrooxidans;
 Carbon Monoxide (CO) For Pseudomonas carboxydohydrogena.

• The energy derived from the oxidation of these

inorganic compounds is eventually stored in ATP, which
is produced by oxidative phosphorylation.
4. Chemoheterotrophs:

Chemoheterotrophs obtain chemical energy from

breaking down ready-made organic compounds
(such as glucose).

• Heterotrophs are further classified according to their

source of organic molecules:
 Saprophytes--- live on dead organic matter
Parasites--- derive nutrients from a living host.
 Most bacteria, and all fungi, protozoa, and animals,
are chemoheterotrophs
Bacterial Growth
Microbial growth is defined not in terms of cell
size but as the increase in the number of cells,
which occurs by cell division.

• Cell division in bacteria usually occurs by

binary fission or sometimes by budding
• In binary fission, a cell duplicates its
components and divides into two cells

• Cell division in yeast and a few bacteria occurs

through budding.
-----In this process, a small, new cell develops from the
surface of an existing cell and subsequently separates
from the parent cell
Budding in yeast
• The time required for a cell to divide (and its
population to double) is called the generation
time.
Phases of Growth

• When a few bacteria are inoculated into a

liquid growth medium and the population is
counted at intervals, it is possible to plot a
bacterial growth curve that shows the
growth of cells over time.
• There are four basic phases of growth: the
lag, log, stationary, and death phases
The Lag Phase

In the lag phase, the organisms do not increase

significantly in number, but they are
metabolically active—growing in size,
synthesizing enzymes, and incorporating
various molecules from the medium.
• During this phase the individual organisms
increase in size, and they produce large
quantities of energy in the form of ATP.
The Log Phase

Eventually, the cells begin to divide and enter a period of

growth, or logarithmic increase, called the log phase, or
exponential growth phase

•Cellular reproduction is most active during this period,

and generation time reaches a constant minimum.
•Because the generation time is constant, a logarithmic
plot of growth during the log phase is a straight line.
•The log phase is the time when cells are most active
metabolically and is preferred for industrial purposes
where, for example, a product needs to be produced
efficiently.
The Stationary Phase

When cell division decreases to the point that new

cells are produced at the same rate as old cells die,
the number of live cells stays constant. The culture is
then in the stationary phase, represented by a
horizontal straight line

• What causes exponential growth to stop is not

always clear. The exhaustion of nutrients,
accumulation of waste products, and harmful
changes in pH may all play a role
The Death Phase

• The number of deaths eventually exceeds the

number of new cells formed, and the
population enters the death phase, or
logarithmic decline phase.
• As conditions in the medium become less and
less supportive of cell division, many cells lose
their ability to divide, and thus the cells die
A standard bacterial growth curve
 SYNCHRONOUS GROWTH

• It is very desirable to have an entire population of cells

in the same stage of their growth cycle, for studying
cell growth, organization and differentiation. It is not
possible to analyze a single bacterial cell. Results from
analysis of culture wherein all cells are in same stage
of growth can be interpreted as that for a single cell.

A growth pattern wherein every cell in a culture is in

the same metabolic state and divides at one time is
defined as synchronous growth
 DIAUXIC GROWTH
• In a medium containing two carbon sources,
bacteria such as E. coli display a growth curve,
which is called ‘diauxic’. When E. coli is
supplied with a medium containing glucose
and lactose, glucose is utilized first and only
after depletion of glucose in the medium, the
second C source, lactose is utilized for its
growth.