In general highly acidic (i.e.: low pH) and highly basic (i.e.: high pH) environments stunt, limit or prevent biologic activity. Neutral environments (i.e.: pH around 7) tend to favor more lifeforms. Thinking of food preservation, adding vinegar brine (low pH) severally limits growth of harmful bacteria in food items. Similarly adding caustic (high pH) to food can also preserve it (think lutefisk, hominy, etc. So the trick is to avoid neutral or nearly neutral conditions in food preservation unless you're otherwise addressing it. Similar concepts are at play in anatomy. BTW - your user name is highly appropriate in this discussion!