Alkaliphile

Alkaliphilie is the property of living beings, to an alkaline environment (ie high pH) prefer. Living things with this property are called alkaliphilic. Often the linguistically incorrect form Alkalophilie is used (or alkalophilic ).

The pH optimum alkali Microorganisms lies partially at 10 to 11 alkali Audiophile organisms are usually present in a highly basic biotopes such as carbonate-containing soils and alkaline soda lakes. The alkaliphilic microorganisms include, for example, the bacteria Spirulina and Nitrobacter. Extremely alkaliphilic bacteria are found especially in the genus Bacillus, such as Bacillus alcalophilus.

Alkali Audiophile bacteria are able to change their environment by alkalize neutral medium or acidify highly alkaline medium and thus optimize the pH for their growth. Your extracellularly secreted enzymes have their optimum in the strongly alkaline range. Such enzymes have an important technical significance for example in the detergent industry.

The energy metabolism of alkali- philic organisms has a special feature, since use in their cells for their ATP synthase no proton gradient, but a Na gradient. Because in a highly alkaline environment ( partially pH> 10 ), it could only be a "normal" pH gradient ( outside acidic than inside ), when her cell interior would be even more alkaline. This possibility is ruled out, however, since at such high pH values ​​some enzyme systems would not be functional. In fact, keep alkaliphilic bacteria her cell Affairs broadly neutral. You have a sodium - driven ATP synthase and its respiratory chain acts as a sodium pump.

• Ecological property