Mesophile

A mesophile is an organism that grows

best in moderate temperature, neither too
hot nor too cold, with an optimum growth
range from 20 to 45 °C (68 to 113 °F).[1]
The optimum growth temperature for
these organisms is 37°C.[2] The term is
mainly applied to microorganisms.
Organisms that prefer extreme
environments are known as extremophiles.
Mesophiles have diverse classifications,
belonging to two domains: Bacteria,
Archaea, and to kingdom Fungi of domain
Eucarya. Mesophiles belonging to the
domain Bacteria can either be gram-
positive or gram-negative. Oxygen
requirements for mesophiles can be
aerobic or anaerobic. There are three basic
shapes of mesophiles: coccus, bacillus,
and spiral.
Habitat
The habitats of mesophiles can include
cheese and yogurt. They are often
included during fermentation of beer and
wine making. Since normal human body
temperature is 37 °C, the majority of
human pathogens are mesophiles, as are
most of the organisms comprising the
human microbiome.

Mesophiles vs. extremophiles

Mesophiles are the opposite of
extremophiles. Extremophiles that prefer
cold environments are termed
psychrophilic, those preferring warmer
temperatures are termed thermophilic or
thermotropic and those thriving in
extremely hot environments are
hyperthermophilic. A genome-wide
computational approach has been
designed by Zheng, et al. to classify
bacteria into mesophilic and
thermophilic.[3]
Adaptations
All bacteria have their own optimum
environmental surroundings and
temperatures in which they thrive. Many
factors are responsible for a given
organism's optimal temperature range, but
evidence suggests that the expression of
particular genetic elements ([alleles]) can
alter the temperature-sensitive phenotype
of the organism. A study published in 2016
demonstrated that mesophilic bacteria
could be genetically engineered to express
certain alleles from psychrophilic bacteria,
consequently shifting the restrictive
temperature range of the mesophilic
bacteria to closely match that of the
psychrophilic bacteria.[4]

Due to the less stable structure of

mesophiles, it has reduced flexibility for
protein synthesis.[5] Mesophiles are not
able to synthesize proteins in low
temperatures. It is more sensitive to
temperature changes, and the fatty acid
composition of the membrane does not
allow for much fluidity.[6] Decreasing the
optimal temperature of 37 °C to 0 °C to
8 °C leads to a gradual decrease in protein
synthesis. Cold-induced proteins (CIPs)
are induced during low temperatures,
which then allows cold-shock proteins
(CSPs) to synthesize. The shift back to the
optimal temperature sees an increase,
indicating that mesophiles are highly
dependent on temperature.[7] Oxygen
availability also affects microorganism
growth.[8]
There are two explanations for
thermophiles being able to survive at such
high temperatures whereas mesophiles
can not. The most evident explanation is
that thermophiles are believed to have cell
components that are relatively more stable
than the cell components of mesophiles
which is why thermophiles are able to live
at higher temperatures than mesophiles.[9]
"A second school of thought, as
represented by the writings of Gaughran
(21) and Allen (3), believes that rapid
resynthesis of damaged or destroyed cell
constituents is the key to the problem of
biological stability to heat."[9]

Oxygen requirements
Due to the diversity of mesophiles, oxygen
requirements greatly vary. Aerobic
respiration requires the use of oxygen and
anaerobic does not. There are three types
of anaerobes. Facultative anaerobes grow
in the absence of oxygen, using
fermentation instead. During fermentation,
sugars are converted to acids, alcohol, or
gases. If there is oxygen present, it will use
aerobic respiration instead. Obligate
anaerobes cannot grow in the presence of
oxygen. Aerotolerant anaerobes can
withstand oxygen.

Roles
Microorganisms play an important role in
decomposition of organic matter and
mineralization of nutrients. In aquatic
environments, the diversity of the
ecosystem allows for the diversity of
mesophiles. The functions of each
mesophile rely on the surroundings, most
importantly temperature range.[10] Bacteria
such as mesophiles and thermophiles are
used in the cheesemaking due to their role
in fermentation. "Traditional
microbiologists use the following terms to
indicate the general (slightly arbitrary)
optimum temperature for the growth of
bacteria: psychrophiles (15–20 °C),
mesophiles (30–37 °C), thermophiles (50–
60 °C) and extreme thermophiles (up to
122 °C)".[11] Both mesophiles and
thermophiles are used in cheesemaking
for the same reason; however, they grow,
thrive and die at different temperatures.
Psychrotrophic bacteria contribute to dairy
products spoiling, getting mouldy or going
bad due to their ability to grow at lower
temperatures such as in a refrigerator.

Examples
Some notable mesophiles include Listeria
monocytogenes, Staphylococcus aureus,
and Escherichia coli. Other examples of
species of mesophiles are Clostridium
kluyveri, Pseudomonas maltophilia,
Thiobacillus novellus, Streptococcus
pyogenes, and Streptococcus pneumoniae.
Different types of diseases and infections
typically have pathogens from mesophilic
bacteria such as the ones listed above.

Listeria monocytogenes

Listeria monocytogenes is a gram-positive

bacterium. It is closely related to Bacillus
and Staphylococcus. It is a rod-shaped,
facultative anaerobe that is motile by
peritrichous flagella. L. monocytogenes
motility is limited from 20 °C to 25 °C.[12]
At the optimal temperature, it loses its
motility. This bacterium is responsible for
listeriosis which derives from
contaminated food.[12]

Staphylococcus aureus

Staphylococcus aureus was first identified

in 1880.[13] It is responsible for different
infections stemming from an injury. The
bacterium overcomes the body's natural
mechanisms. Long lasting infections of S.
aureus includes pneumonia, meningitis,
and osteomyelitis. S. aureus is commonly
contracted in hospital settings.[13]

Escherichia coli

Escherichia coli is a gram-negative, rod-

shaped facultative anaerobic bacterium
that does not produce spores.[14] The
bacterium is a member of
Enterobacteriaceae. It is capable of
producing enterotoxins which are
thermolabile or thermostable.[14] Other
characteristics of E. coli are that it is
oxidase-negative, citrate-negative, methyl-
red positive, and Voges-Proskauer-
negative. To sum up E. coli, it is a coliform.
It is able to use glucose and acetate as a
carbon source for fermentation. E. coli is
commonly found in the gut of living
organisms.[15] E. coli has many capabilities
such as being a host for recombinant DNA
and being a pathogen.[15]
See also
Anaerobic digestion
Mesophilic digester
Mesophyte
Neutrophile
Reverse ecology

References
1. Willey, Joanne M., Linda Sherwood,
Christopher J. Woolverton, and Lansing M.
Prescott. Prescott, Harley, and Klein's
 Microbiology. New York: McGraw-Hill
Higher Education, 2008. Print.
2. Schiraldi, Chiara; De Rosa, Mario (2016),
Drioli, Enrico; Giorno, Lidietta (eds.),
"Mesophilic Organisms" (https://doi.org/10.
1007/978-3-642-40872-4_1610-2) ,
Encyclopedia of Membranes, Berlin,
Heidelberg: Springer, pp. 1–2,
doi:10.1007/978-3-642-40872-4_1610-2 (ht
tps://doi.org/10.1007%2F978-3-642-40872
-4_1610-2) , ISBN 978-3-642-40872-4,
retrieved 2022-05-22
3. Hao Zheng; Hongwei Wu (2010). "Gene-
centric association analysis for the
correlation between the guanine-cytosine
content levels and temperature range
conditions of prokaryotic species" (https://
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3
024870) . BMC Bioinformatics. 11 (Suppl
11): S7. doi:10.1186/1471-2105-11-S11-S7
(https://doi.org/10.1186%2F1471-2105-11-
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PMID 21172057 (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.
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4. Pankowski, Jarosław A.; Puckett, Stephanie
M.; Nano, Francis E. (15 March 2016).
"Temperature Sensitivity Conferred by ligA
Alleles from Psychrophilic Bacteria upon
Substitution in Mesophilic Bacteria and a
Yeast Species" (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.g
ov/pmc/articles/PMC4784036) . Applied
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ttps://doi.org/10.1128%2FAEM.03890-15) .
ISSN 0099-2240 (https://www.worldcat.or
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"Construction of Energy Based Protein
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Comparative Analysis of Thermophiles and
Mesophiles" Biophysical Journal, Volume
98 , Issue 3 , 387a
. Li, K.Y.; Torres, J. A. (1993). "EFFECTS of
TEMPERATURE and SOLUTE ON the
MINIMUM WATER ACTIVITY FOR GROWTH
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SELECTED MESOPHILES and
PSYCHROTROPHS". Journal of Food
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7. Perrot, F., Hébraud, M., Junter, G.-A. and
Jouenne, T. "Protein synthesis in
Escherichia coli at 4°C. Electrophoresis."
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doi:10.1002/(SICI)1522-
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LOW TEMPERATURES." The Journal of
Bacteriology, 1963, Vol. 85(1), p.164 [Peer
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9. Koffler, Henry (2016-11-28). "Protoplasmic
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thermophiles" (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.go
v/pmc/articles/PMC180904) .
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10. Ferroni, G.D., Kaminski, J.S. "Psychrophiles,
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14. Robinson, Richard K.. (2000). Encyclopedia
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3

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