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Arrangement of cocci bacteria:Staphylococcus bacteria. A coccus (plural cocci, from the Latin coccinus (scarlet) and derived from the Greek kokkos (berry)), is any microorganism (usually bacteria) [1] whose overall shape is spherical or nearly spherical.
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).
Bacteria display many cell morphologies and arrangements [9] Size. Bacteria display a wide diversity of shapes and sizes. Bacterial cells are about one-tenth the size of eukaryotic cells and are typically 0.5–5.0 micrometres in length.
The bacterial cell wall differs from that of all other organisms by the presence of peptidoglycan (poly-N-acetylglucosamine and N-acetylmuramic acid), which is located immediately outside of the cytoplasmic membrane. Peptidoglycan is responsible for the rigidity of the bacterial cell wall and for the determination of cell shape. It is ...
The genera Corynebacterium [9] and Coccobacillus [10] have been designated as a pleomorphic genera, diphtheroid Bacilli have been classified as pleomorphic nosocomial bacteria. [11] Additionally, in one study focused on agents involved in a non-infectious disease, pleomorphic bacteria were found to exist in the blood of healthy human subjects. [12]
[1]: 167–8 Bacteria that produce capsules often have a slimy (mucoid) consistency. [2]: 495 When certain microorganisms are grown on blood agar, they may digest the blood in the medium, causing visible hemolysis (destruction of red blood cells) on the agar plate. In colonial morphology, hemolysis is classified into three types: alpha-, beta ...
Bacterial morphological plasticity refers to changes in the shape and size that bacterial cells undergo when they encounter stressful environments. Although bacteria have evolved complex molecular strategies to maintain their shape, many are able to alter their shape as a survival strategy in response to protist predators, antibiotics, the immune response, and other threats.
The formation of patterns in the growth of bacterial colonies has extensively been studied experimentally. Resulting morphologies appear to depend on the growth conditions. They include well known morphologies such as dense branched morphology (DBM) or diffusion-limited aggregation (DLA), but much complex patterns and temporal behaviour can be fou