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Cell shape is generally characteristic of a given bacterial species, but can vary depending on growth conditions. Some bacteria have complex life cycles involving the production of stalks and appendages (e.g. Caulobacter) and some produce elaborate structures bearing reproductive spores (e.g. Myxococcus, Streptomyces).
The Mycobacteria (acid-fast bacteria) have a cell envelope which is not typical of Gram-positives or Gram-negatives. The mycobacterial cell envelope does not consist of the outer membrane characteristic of Gram-negatives, but has a significant peptidoglycan-arabinogalactan-mycolic acid wall structure which provides an external permeability barrier.
Bacteria can be classified on the basis of cell structure, cellular metabolism or on differences in cell components, such as DNA, fatty acids, pigments, antigens and quinones. [118] While these schemes allowed the identification and classification of bacterial strains, it was unclear whether these differences represented variation between ...
In biology, quorum sensing or quorum signaling (QS) [1] is the process of cell-to-cell communication [2] that allows bacteria to detect and respond to cell population density by gene regulation, typically as a means of acclimating to environmental disadvantages.
Spiral bacteria are another major bacterial cell morphology. [2] [30] [31] [32] Spiral bacteria can be sub-classified as spirilla, spirochetes, or vibrios based on the number of twists per cell, cell thickness, cell flexibility, and motility. [33] Bacteria are known to evolve specific traits to survive in their ideal environment. [34]
Bacteria function and reproduce as individual cells, but they can often aggregate in multicellular colonies. [54] Some species such as myxobacteria can aggregate into complex swarming structures, operating as multicellular groups as part of their life cycle , [ 55 ] or form clusters in bacterial colonies such as E.coli .
The outer red layer in this diagram is the capsule, which is distinct from the cell envelope. This bacterium is gram-positive, as its cell envelope comprises a single cell membrane (orange) and a thick peptidoglycan-containing cell wall (purple). The bacterial capsule is a large structure common to many bacteria. [1]
The cell wall is important for cell division, which, in most bacteria, occurs by binary fission. This process usually requires a cell wall and components of the bacterial cytoskeleton such as FtsZ. The ability of L-form bacteria and mycoplasmas to grow and divide in the absence of both of these structures is highly unusual, and may represent a ...