Lecture 12

Bacterial growth
 Bacterial growth

• Bacterial growth is defined as an increase in the number of bacteria in a

population rather than in the size of individual cells.

• The growth of a bacterial population occurs in a exponential manner

• Bacteria normally reproduce by binary fission, but few bacterial species

reproduce by budding

• Some filamentous bacteria reproduce by producing chains of conidiospores

carried externally at the tips of the filaments.

• A few filamentous species simply fragment, and the fragments initiate the growth
of new cells
Bacterial division (Binary fission)
Binary fission
Cell division by Budding
Yeast cell division (Budding)
 Generation time
•Generation time (G) is the time it takes for a population of bacteria to double in
number.
•G=t/n is the equation to calculate generation time. Generation time (G), the time (t),
number of generations (n)
•It varies among organisms and with environmental conditions, such as temperature.

•For many common bacteria, the generation time is short, 20-60 minutes under
optimum conditions; others require more than 24 hours per generation
•Generation time of E. coli is approx. 20 minutes, while slow the slow-growing
Mycobacterium tuberculosis requires 12 to 16 hours to get double
 How much bacteria after growth?

• The relationship between the number of bacteria in a population at a given time

(Nt), the original number of bacterial cells in the population (No), and the number

of divisions those bacteria have undergone during that time (n) can be expressed
by the following equation:

Nt = No × 2n
• For example, If one started with only 10 E. coli (No = 10) and allowed them to

grow for 12 hours, the number of bacteria after 12 hours (Nt) would be

10 × 236 = Nt= 687,194,767,360 E.coli

 Microbial growth curve
• When microbes are inoculated into a liquid growth medium (broth) and the
population is counted at intervals, it is possible to plot a microbial growth curve
• Population growth of microbes reproducing by binary fission in a batch culture
can be plotted as the logarithm of the number of viable cells versus the
incubation time
• There are four basic phases of growth:

• Lag phase

• Log

• Stationary

• Death phases
 Lag phase

• During the lag phase growth is relatively flat and the population appears either
not to be growing or growing quite slowly

• In this phase the newly inoculated cells are adapting to their new environment
and synthesizing the molecules they will need in order to grow rapidly

• Eventually, the cells begin to replicate their DNA, increase in mass, and divide. As
a result, the number of cells in the population begins to increase.
 Log phase

• Log phase is also known as exponential phase in which microorganisms are

growing and dividing exponentially, as long as there is sufficient food and space
present for growth 

• Growth rate of microbes are constant during this phase

• Population is most uniform in terms of chemical and physiological properties

during this phase
 Stationary phase

• In a closed system, population growth eventually ceases and the growth curve
becomes horizontal

• In stationary phase, the total number of viable microorganisms remains constant

• Because of several reasons microbes enter the stationary phase:

• Nutrient limitation

• O2 availability for aerobic organisms

• Accumulation of toxic waste product

 Death phase
• The growth cycle enter into death phase, when the number of deaths eventually
exceeds the number of new cells formed
• Different detrimental environmental factors are assumed to caused irreparable
harm to the cells. No cellular growth observe even after transferring cells to fresh
medium
• Loss of viability and total cell number/mass?
• Two alternative hypothesis explaining the process during cell death
• Viable but nonculturable (VBNC)
• Programmed cell death
Growth curve
 Long-Term Stationary Phase

• Different experiments revealed that after a period of exponential death some

microbes have a long period where the population size remains more or less
constant, known as long-term stationary phase (also called extended stationary
phase)

• This phase can last for several months to years

• In this period, bacterial population continually evolves so that actively

reproducing cells are those best able to use the nutrients released by their dying
brethren and best able to tolerate the accumulated toxins