MICR 2430 Chapter Notes - Chapter 5: Lipid Bilayer, Thermus Aquaticus, Membrane Fluidity
1 Feb 2017
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Syllabus topic 4 - environmental influences on microbial growth: 5. 1, 5. 2, 5. 4-5. 6, 5. 8. Hypothermophile vs thermophile: categorized based on temperature, hyperthermophiles grow above 80 c. Can grow at temperatures as high as 121 c which occur under extreme pressure such as the ocean floor. Flourish in hot environments such as composts or near thermal vents. Have specially adapted membranes and protein sequences. Their enzymes are stable because they have relatively low amounts of glycine which is a small amino acid that contributes to an enzymes flexibility. Also, the amino termini of their proteins are often tied down by hydrogen bonding to other parts of the protein, thus making it harder to denature. Thermophile genomes are packed with dna-binding proteins that stabilize dna. Also contain special enzymes that tightly coil the dna which makes it more thermostable and less likely to denature.
