The bacterium ( Clostridium botulinum) that causes botulism is-
- A facultative aerobe
- An obligate aerobe
- A facultative anaerobe
- An obligate anaerobe
Answer
(4) An obligate anaerobe
Solution
Clostridium botulinum is a rod-shaped, spore-forming bacterium that cannot tolerate oxygen.
⇒ It grows only in the absence of oxygen, e.g. in improperly canned or preserved food, where it releases the botulinum toxin.
∵ It can live only in an oxygen-free environment,
∴ it is an obligate anaerobe.
Answer: (4)