Alkaliphile

Alkaliphiles are microbes classified as extremophiles that thrive in alkaline environments with a pH of 9 to 11 such as soda 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 membranes into their cytoplasm.

Examples include:
*"Geoalkalibacter ferrihydriticus" [cite journal
journal=Mikrobiologiia
year=2006
month=Nov-Dec
volume=75
issue=6
pages=775–85
title=Geoalkalibacter ferrihydriticus gen. nov., sp. nov., the first alkaliphilic representative of the family Geobacteraceae, isolated from a soda lake
author=Zavarzina DG
coauthors=Kolganova TV; Bulygina ES; Kostrikina NA; Turova TP; Zavarzin GA.
pmid=17205802 ]
* "Bacillus okhensis" [cite journal
journal=Int J Syst Evol Microbiol.
year=2006
month=May
volume=56
issue=Pt 5
pages=1073–7
title=Bacillus okhensis sp. nov., a halotolerant and alkalitolerant bacterium from an Indian saltpan
author=Nowlan B
coauthors=Dodia MS; Singh SP; Patel BK.
pmid=16627657
doi=10.1099/ijs.0.63861-0 ]
* "Alkalibacterium iburiense" [cite journal
journal=Int J Syst Evol Microbiol.
year=2005
month=Jul
volume=55
issue=Pt 4
pages=1525–30
title=Alkalibacterium iburiense sp. nov., an obligate alkaliphile that reduces an indigo dye
author=Nakajima K
coauthors=Hirota K; Nodasaka Y; Yumoto I
pmid=16014476
doi=10.1099/ijs.0.63487-0 ]

References

External links

* http://library.thinkquest.org/CR0212089/alk.htm