alleryStart learning →How does oxygen affect an obligate anaerobe such as Clostridia?
AIt poisons and kills them on exposure
BIt has no measurable effect on them
CIt forces them into a resting state
DIt speeds up their growth rate
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: A. It poisons and kills them on exposure
1. Obligate anaerobes live and grow in the absence of molecular oxygen.
2. Oxygen is a poison to these microorganisms.
3. It kills them on exposure rather than merely slowing them.
4. A facultative anaerobe would simply switch pathways, which is what makes the two categories different.
_Source: OpenStax Biology (1st ed., CC BY 4.0), Ch 7 "Cellular Respiration", section 7.5 Metabolism without Oxygen_
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