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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. [2] [3] [4] Coccus refers to the shape of the bacteria and can contain multiple genera, such as staphylococci or streptococci. Cocci can grow in ...
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).
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.
Bacillus (Latin "stick") is a genus of Gram-positive, rod-shaped bacteria, a member of the phylum Bacillota, with 266 named species.The term is also used to describe the shape (rod) of other so-shaped bacteria; and the plural Bacilli is the name of the class of bacteria to which this genus belongs.
However, this is not true pleomorphism, as individual virions are not changing shape, but being succeeded by virions with different shapes. One example is the bacterial viruses of the Plasmaviridae family. [13] A group of haloarchaeal viruses has been shown to exhibit pleomorphism as well. [14]
A small number of other unusual shapes have been described, such as star-shaped bacteria. [47] This wide variety of shapes is determined by the bacterial cell wall and cytoskeleton and is important because it can influence the ability of bacteria to acquire nutrients, attach to surfaces, swim through liquids and escape predators. [48] [49]
Bacterial taxonomy is subfield of taxonomy devoted to the classification of bacteria specimens into taxonomic ranks. Archaeal taxonomy are governed by the same rules. In the scientific classification established by Carl Linnaeus , [ 1 ] each species is assigned to a genus resulting in a two-part name.
A spirochaete (/ ˈ s p aɪ r oʊ ˌ k iː t /) [4] or spirochete is a member of the phylum Spirochaetota (also called Spirochaetes [5] / ˌ s p aɪ r oʊ ˈ k iː t iː z /), which contains distinctive diderm (double-membrane) Gram-negative bacteria, most of which have long, helically coiled (corkscrew-shaped or spiraled, hence the name) cells ...