Halophilic microbial resources
Halophilic microorganisms

Hypersaline environments are characterized by high salt concentrations and a characteristic ionic composition. Ions include anions (chlorine Cl^–, bromide Br^–, fluorine F^–, sulfate SO₄^2–, ...), cations (calcium Ca²⁺, iron Fe²⁺ and Fe³⁺, magnesium Mg²⁺, potassium K⁺, sodium Na⁺, lithium Li⁺, ...) and organic molecules (acetate, carbonate, citrate, nitrate). The two main ions are Na⁺ and Cl^–, which combine to form sodium chloride (NaCl), the main constituent of sea salt. An environment is considered hypersaline when the concentration of salts is higher than that of seawater, which is around 35 g · L^–1