What would most likely result if an exponentially growing culture of Lactobacillus spp. fermenting glucose was accidentally transferred into a highly aerated environment?
A) Aerobic catabolism of glucose would begin rather than aerobic degradation, due to the presence of O₂.
B) Fermentation of glucose would continue, because the cells are insensitive to O₂ despite lacking aerobic metabolism capabilities.
C) The cells would halt their metabolism due to the presence of N₂, which acts as a global repressor of fermentation in this group.
D) The population would die due to the presence of O₂, because it is a strict anaerobe.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Lactobacillus spp. are facultative anaerobes, meaning they can perform both anaerobic (fermentative) and aerobic metabolism. However, their metabolism is optimized for anaerobic conditions, so they may not be able to fully utilize the oxygen in a highly aerated environment. Nevertheless, they are insensitive to O2 and can continue to perform fermentation under aerobic conditions. Therefore, fermentation of glucose would likely continue in this scenario.

What Would Most Likely Result If an Exponentially Growing Culture