Alkaliphile
Encyclopedia
Alkaliphiles are microbes classified as extremophiles that thrive in alkaline environments with a pH
of 9 to 11 such as playa lakes and carbonate
-rich soils. To survive, alkaliphiles maintain a relatively low alkaline level of about 8 pH
inside their cells by constantly pumping hydrogen
ions (H+) in the form of hydronium
ions (H3O+) across their cell membrane
s into their cytoplasm
.
Examples include:
PH
In chemistry, pH is a measure of the acidity or basicity of an aqueous solution. Pure water is said to be neutral, with a pH close to 7.0 at . Solutions with a pH less than 7 are said to be acidic and solutions with a pH greater than 7 are basic or alkaline...
of 9 to 11 such as playa lakes and carbonate
Carbonate
In chemistry, a carbonate is a salt of carbonic acid, characterized by the presence of the carbonate ion, . The name may also mean an ester of carbonic acid, an organic compound containing the carbonate group C2....
-rich soils. To survive, alkaliphiles maintain a relatively low alkaline level of about 8 pH
PH
In chemistry, pH is a measure of the acidity or basicity of an aqueous solution. Pure water is said to be neutral, with a pH close to 7.0 at . Solutions with a pH less than 7 are said to be acidic and solutions with a pH greater than 7 are basic or alkaline...
inside their cells by constantly pumping hydrogen
Hydrogen
Hydrogen is the chemical element with atomic number 1. It is represented by the symbol H. With an average atomic weight of , hydrogen is the lightest and most abundant chemical element, constituting roughly 75% of the Universe's chemical elemental mass. Stars in the main sequence are mainly...
ions (H+) in the form of hydronium
Hydronium
In chemistry, a hydronium ion is the cation , a type of oxonium ion produced by protonation of water. This cation is often used to represent the nature of the proton in aqueous solution, where the proton is highly solvated...
ions (H3O+) across their cell membrane
Cell membrane
The cell membrane or plasma membrane is a biological membrane that separates the interior of all cells from the outside environment. The cell membrane is selectively permeable to ions and organic molecules and controls the movement of substances in and out of cells. It basically protects the cell...
s into their cytoplasm
Cytoplasm
The cytoplasm is a small gel-like substance residing between the cell membrane holding all the cell's internal sub-structures , except for the nucleus. All the contents of the cells of prokaryote organisms are contained within the cytoplasm...
.
Examples include:
- Geoalkalibacter ferrihydriticus
- Bacillus okhensis
- Alkalibacterium iburiense