Types of bacteria on the basis of oxygen requirement

Oxygen is indispensable for respiration as the body uses oxygen to ‘burn’ food molecules. Animals take oxygen in when inhaling and give off CO2 when exhaling. Oxygen makes up almost 21 percent of the total gases in the air, with most of the residual gas being physiologically inactive nitrogen. Besides humans and animals, oxygen is also play important role in the growth of bacteria and microbes. Some bacteria and microorganisms use oxygen for their growth and survival but some are not. In this article, you will know about the types of bacteria on the basis of oxygen requirement. You will also know about how oxygen affects the growth of microorganisms.

How oxygen affects the growth of microorganisms?

Oxygen has a significant effect on the growth of micro-organisms. According to the presence or absence of oxygen, the microbes have been classified into different types.

 Types of bacteria on the basis of oxygen requirement

Obligate aerobes:

• These types of microbes required oxygen for their growth.
• They only grow in the presence of oxygen and limited their growth in the absence of oxygen.
• Here, oxygen is needed as a terminal electron acceptor ETC in aerobic respiration.
• Examples of obligate aerobes are Nocardia asteroids and mycobacterium tuberculosis.

Facultative anaerobes:

• These types of microbes do or do not require oxygen for their growth.
• They grow in the presence or absence of oxygen but grow more efficiently when there is the presence of oxygen.
• An example of facultative anaerobes is lactobacillus ferment.

Microaerophilic bacteria:

• These types of bacteria need some quantity of oxygen for the biosynthesis of particular compounds but cannot grow at a normal concentration of oxygen meaning that needs a lower quantity of oxygen for their growth.
• Examples of these kinds of bacteria include H. Pylori, campylobacter, and legionella.

Aerotolerant anaerobes:

• These types of bacteria totally ignore oxygen and could grow both in the presence or absence of oxygen.
• Example of these aerotolerant anaerobes is lactobacilli and streptococci.

Obligate anaerobes:

• These types of bacteria cannot grow in the presence of oxygen instead they die on exposure to oxygen.
• Most organisms when exposed to oxygen interact and generate highly reactive toxic compounds.
• These highly reactive toxic products include hydroxyl radicals and hydrogen peroxides.
• If they aren’t detoxified, they could destructively react to any organic molecule they come across comprising protein, lipids, and nucleic acid.
• Groups of three enzymes mainly catalyze free radicals rendering them harmless namely catalase, superoxide dismutase, and peroxidases.

• Examples of these types of bacteria include clostridium, actinomyces, Bacteroides, and preyotella.

How important oxygen is to the human body?

Oxygen is important to the human body in that it gives our body the capability to rebuild itself. Oxygen purifies the blood and fortifies the immune system. It relocates deadly free radicals, counteracts environmental toxins, and kills anaerobic bacteria, parasites, microbes, and viruses.

Oxygen greatly improves the body’s absorption of vitamins, minerals, amino acids, proteins, and other imperative nutrients. It improves brain power and memory. Oxygen can helpfully affect a human’s learning ability. The ability to think, sense, and act are all-reliant on oxygen.

Oxygen also has the ability to calms the mind and soothe the nervous system. Oxygen intensifies concentration and alertness. Without oxygen, brain cells die and weaken quickly. As we age, and the deficiency of oxygen increases, it takes longer to learn, and your maintenance span is decreased. Oxygen also strengthens the heart.

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