Bacteria

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BACTERIA

The importance of microbes was not known until


their role in (i) fermentation (ii) disease causation
and (iii) degradation of dead decaying organic
matter. Pasteur said, ‘but for the work of microbes,
death itself would be incomplete’. The dead bodies
are broken down to elemental form by micro-
organisms, mainly bacteria.
Bacteria are a group of unicellular or multicellular,
microscopic, prokaryotic organisms usually lacking
chlorophyll. Because of the absence of chlorophyll
most bacteria are saprophytes or parasites.
However, a few bacterial obtain energy from light
in the presence of bacteriochlorophyll.
Important characteristics -
• Bacteria may be spherical, rod-like, spiral or of
many different shapes
• In size, they may range from 0.5 to 600 nm
• They may be motile (have flagella) or non-mobile
• Usually, bacteria multiply by fission but some forms
reproduce asexually by endospores
• Sexual reproduction has also been reported in
bacteria
• Bacteria are omnipresent
• Many diseases are caused by bacteria in plants. They
are also responsible for human diseases such as
tuberculosis, pneumonia, typhoid and diphtheria
• On the contrary they are also sources of important
antibiotics
MORPHOLOGICAL TYPES

A. UNICELLULAR BACTERIA
The unicellular forms may be spherical (coccus), rod-
shaped(bacillus), curved(vibrio) or spiral (spirillum). The stalked
bacteria and budding bacteria are also single celled.

• Coccus – They are spherical cells which exists singly or in groups


of two or more cells
Micrococcus – single cells
Diplococcus – when they are in pairs
Streptococcus – when cells adhere in chains
Staphylococcus – in clusters
Sarcina – when the cells form cubical masses
• Bacillus – these are small rods which may be flagellated or
non-flagellated. they may exist single or in chains.

• Vibrio – these are short, curved, comma shaped and


monotrichous (one flagellum).

• Spirillum – these are spirally twisted and flagellated or non-


flagellated.

• Stalked bacteria – these are single celled. flagella is present


on one side. on the other side is a narrow stalk. the base of
the stalk is knob-like and sticky. thus, several stalked cells
are joined by their knobs to form a rosette.

• Budding bacteria – the cells have a swollen part and a


thinner tube. the tube gradually increases in length and
swells to form a new globular cell. ultimately, a network of
cells formed.
Shapes of bacteria
Coccus
Bacillus
Spirillum
Vibrio
Stalked bacteria

Budding bacteria
B. MYCELIAL BACTERIA (ACTINOMYCETES)
For a long time, the Actinomycetes were included
under fungi but after the elucidation of their
prokaryotic cell structure, they were shifted to
bacteria. Compared to fungi, the filament is very
thin. Actinomycetes are present in the soil and are
the most important source of antibiotics. They form
asexual reproductive bodies. Conidia and
sporangiophores and also multiply by fragmentation.
Actinomycetes

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CLASSIFICATION BASED ON FLAGELLATION:
• Monotrichous -> single flagellum on one side
• Lophotrichous -> a tuft of flagella on one end
• Amphitrichous -> tuft of flagella on both ends
• Peritrichous -> flagella all over the cell
• Atrichous -> no flagella; non-mobile (coccal forms)
BACTERIAL CELL:
The bacterial cells are surrounded by a wall made
up of mucopeptide which is peculiar to bacteria.
Its amount varies in the cell walls of the two main
divisions of bacteria i.e., Gram +ve and Gram -ve.
In Gram +ve bacteria, it is the major cell wall
component (80%). However, in Gram -ve bacteria
it is present in small quantity, the major portion
being formed by lipoprotein and lipo
polysaccharide. In some bacteria, the cell wall is
surrounded by polysaccharide in the form of a
definite layer called capsule. When the
polysaccharide is more fluid in consistency, it
forms a loose mass of slime surrounding the wall.
Motile bacteria have flagella whose number and
position vary. Bacterial flagella are made up of
flagellin molecules. The pili which are minute hair
like superficial appendages all over the surface of
the bacterial cell. These pili are proteinaceous and
are helpful in holding the cells together during
conjugation. Inner to the cell wall is the cell
membrane which is lipo-proteinaceous. The
membrane shows invaginations at certain regions.
These invaginations are rich in respiratory enzymes
and are called the mesosomes. Mesosomes are the
‘power house’ of bacterial cells as mitochondria are
absent. In the centre of the bacterial cell is the
genetic material in the form of a long circular DNA
(incipient nucleus).
In the cytoplasm are reserve food materials like
glycogen and oil droplets, vacuoles, RNA, 70S
ribosomes, lamellae with pigments (in photosynthetic
bacteria), polysomes, cell organelles which lack proper
organization and are not double membrane bound.
The flagella and pili form the surface appendages and
capsule and slime forms the surface adherents.
FLAGELLA:

Flagella are the organs of locomotion in motile forms


and are many times longer than the bacterial cell.
The antigenic property (disease causing ability) of the
bacterium lies in the flagella.
The bacterial flagellum (120 - 150A0 in diameter) is a
cylindrical hollow strand made up of protein molecules
called flagellin. Each flagellin molecule is about 40A0 in
diameter. Several longitudinal chains of flagellin
molecules run longitudinally twining around each other
to form a rope like structure. A cross section of
flagellum reveals a central hollow space. The flagellum
consists of three parts – a basal body, a hook and
filament. The basal body is anchored in the plasma
membrane, the hook penetrates the wall and the
filament comes out.
BACTERIAL CELL WALL:
Bacterial cell wall is extremely thin (10-25nm thick),
provides rigidity and gives definite shape to the cell and can
be viewed only under electron microscope. The cell wall
constitutes a significant portion of total dry weight of cell.

The cell wall of bacteria differs from rest of plants in being


made up of mucopeptide and not cellulose. This difference
provides a site where bacterial pathogens can be attacked by
antibiotics without damaging the diseased eukaryotic plant or
animal.

Mucopeptide is a polymer made up of alternating units of NAG


(N-Acetyl glucosamine) and NAM (N-acetyl muramic acid).
The mucopeptide chains are laterally linked by short chains of
amino acids which originate from the muramic and
molecules. The NAG and NAM are amino sugars. The amino
acid chains are linked among themselves.
The cell walls of Gram +ve and Gram -ve bacteria
differ in their chemical composition. The wall of
Gram +ve bacteria is homogenous containing 80% or
more of mucopeptide and simple polysaccharide
like teichoic acids. Teichoic acids serve as antigens
and also regulate entry of ions. The cell wall of
Gram -ve bacteria contain only 3 – 12%
mucopeptide and more of lipoproteins and lipo
polysaccharides. The wall of Gram -ve bacteria
appears tripartite (3-layered).
Gram + ve Gram - ve

Appearance Homogenous Tripartite

Mucopeptide forms major Mucopeptide (3-12%)


Chemistry component (85%), rest being Major portion is lipoprotein
simple polysaccharides like and lipopolysaccharide
teichoic acids. No lipids. No teichoic acids

Rigidity Rigid due to mucopeptide Less rigid due to lipids


GRAM STAINING:

Christian Gram, a Danish physician divided bacteria by a


staining method into two major groups – the Gram +ve
and Gram -ve. Those retain the Gram’s stain after
alcohol treatment are called Gram +ve, while those that
lose the stain are designated as Gram -ve.
A bacterial suspension prepared from a young
culture is spread on a glass slide and fixed by
gentle heating. The slide is then dipped in
crystal violet and dilute iodine solution
successively. Iodine acts as a mordant (binder)
and fixes the purple stain. The preparation is
then treated with alcohol for decolourisation.
Gram +ve bacteria retain the stain while Gram -
ve get discolorised. When counterstained with
safranin, the Gram -ve become red while the
Gram +ve remain deep purple.
This is because of the chemical differences in
the cell wall. The high lipid content of cell
wall of Gram +ve bacteria due to absence of
lipids in the cell wall the alcohol fails to reach
inside. This proves that the wall serves as a
barrier to alcohol entry. Thus, Gram staining
is a good method to differentiate between 2
kinds of cell walls.
Gram negative Gram positive
Thank you

Dr. Lekha George


Mount Carmel College

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