The shortest length of time required to kill all test microbes at a specified temperature is the thermal death __________ whereas the lowest temperature required to kill all microbes in a sample within 10 minutes is the thermal death _________.
time; point
window; point
point; time
time; temperature
When a population of bacteria gets killed due to exposure to high temperatures then this is termed as thermal death.
The time taken to kill a specific microbe at a specific temperature is termed as the thermal death time. The length of the time taken depends on the nature of the target microbe and hence, varies from one to another.
The lowest temperature that will kill all the microbes in a sample within ten minutes is defined as the thermal death point. The temperature at which the microbes get killed within 10 minutes also varies from one microbe to another.
Thermal death results in the disruption of the cell membranes of the microbes and hence can kill the microbes.
