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English: A Gram-negative bacterial flagellum. A flagellum (plural: flagella) is a long, slender projection from the cell body, whose function is to propel a unicellular or small multicellular organism. The depicted type of flagellum is found in bacteria such as E. coli and Salmonella, and rotates like a propeller when the bacterium swims.
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In some swarming bacteria, the flagellum can also function as a sensory organelle, being sensitive to wetness outside the cell. [6] Across the three domains of Bacteria, Archaea, and Eukaryota, the flagellum has a different structure, protein composition, and mechanism of propulsion but shares the same function of providing motility.
In polar flagellation, the flagella are present at one or both ends of the cell: if a single flagellum is attached at one pole, the cell is called monotrichous; if a tuft of flagella is located at one pole, the cells is lophotrichous; when flagella are present at both ends, the cell is amphitrichous.
The arrangement of flagella about the bacterial cell is unique to the species observed. Common forms include: Monotrichous – Single flagellum; Lophotrichous – A tuft of flagella found at one of the cell poles; Amphitrichous – Single flagellum found at each of two opposite poles
A flagellate is a cell or organism with one or more whip-like appendages called flagella. The word flagellate also describes a particular construction (or level of organization) characteristic of many prokaryotes and eukaryotes and their means of motion. The term presently does not imply any specific relationship or classification of the ...
Movement of the flagellum draws water through the collar, and bacteria and detritus are captured by the microvilli and ingested. [12] Water currents generated by the flagellum also push free-swimming cells along, as in animal sperm. In contrast, most other flagellates are pulled by their flagella. [citation needed]
The 16-cell Gonium colony shown in the diagram on the right is organized into two concentric squares of respectively 4 and 12 cells, each biflagellated, held together by an extracellular matrix. [51] All flagella point out on the same side: It exhibits a much lower symmetry than Volvox, lacking anterior-posterior symmetry.