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Actinomyces species may form endospores, and while individual bacteria are rod-shaped, Actinomyces colonies form fungus-like branched networks of hyphae. [3] The aspect of these colonies initially led to the incorrect assumption that the organism was a fungus and to the name Actinomyces, "ray fungus" (from Greek actis, ray or beam, and mykes ...
While this role is also played by fungi, Actinomycetota are much smaller and likely do not occupy the same ecological niche. In this role the colonies often grow extensive mycelia , as fungi do, and the name of an important order of the phylum, Actinomycetales (the actinomycetes), reflects that they were long believed to be fungi.
The Actinomycetaceae (often called actinomycetes or mycelial bacteria) are a family of bacteria in the order Actinomycetales that contains the medically important genus Actinomyces. These organisms are closely related to the mycobacteria, but were originally classified as fungi because they were thought to be transitional forms between bacteria ...
Some actinomycetes can form rod- or coccoid-shaped forms, while others can form spores on aerial hyphae. Actinomycetales bacteria can be infected by bacteriophages, which are called actinophages. Actinomycetales can range from harmless bacteria to pathogens with resistance to antibiotics.
The genus name, Actinomyces, borrows from the Greek words "aktinos" and "mykēs" which refer to ray and fungus, respectively. [3] When combined, Actinomyces translates to "ray fungus", reflecting the radial arrangement of filaments in addition to the presence of asexual spores, both of which are characteristic of filamentous fungus. [3]
The Greek prefix myco-means 'fungus', alluding to this genus' mold-like colony surfaces. [3] Since this genus has cell walls with a waxy lipid-rich outer layer containing high concentrations of mycolic acid, [ 4 ] acid-fast staining is used to emphasize their resistance to acids, compared to other cell types.
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Although they are members of the Bacteria kingdom, many actinomycetes share characteristics with fungi, including shape and branching properties, spore formation and secondary metabolite production. The mycelium branches in a manner similar to that of fungi; They form aerial mycelium as well as conidia.