BACTERIA

Bacteria are group of single-celled organisms which are microscopic and live largely in all
environments on Earth, from deep-sea vents, deep below Earth’s surface and to the digestive tracts
of humans.
They are a typical example of prokaryotic organisms which are the dominant living creatures on
Earth, having been present for perhaps three-quarters of Earth history and having adapted to almost
all available ecological habitats. They possess diverse metabolic capabilities and can utilize
organic and some inorganic compounds as a food source. Some are pathogenic, causing diseases
in humans, animals, or plants, while most are harmless and are beneficial ecological agents whose
metabolic activities sustain higher life-forms. Others are symbionts of plants and invertebrates,
performing important functions such as nitrogen fixation and cellulose degradation.
The bacterial cell
All living organisms on Earth are made up of one of two basic types of cells: eukaryotic cells, in
which the genetic material is enclosed within a nuclear membrane, and prokaryotic cells, in which
the genetic material is not separated from the rest of the cell.
Prokaryotic cells (i.e., Bacteria and Archaea) are generally simpler than the eukaryotic cells that
constitute other forms of life. Prokaryotes lack intracellular organelles and are usually much
smaller than eukaryotic cells. The small size, simple design, and broad metabolic capabilities of
bacteria allow them to grow and divide very rapidly and to inhabit and flourish in almost any
environment. Other difference between Prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells includes lipid
composition, metabolic enzymes, antibiotics and toxin patterns as well as gene expression.

Table 1: DIFFERENCES BETWEEN PROKARYOTIC AND EUKARYOTIC CELLS

Prokaryotes Eukaryotes
Type of Cell Always unicellular Unicellular and multi-cellular
Cell size Ranges in size from 0.2 μm – 2.0 μm Size ranges from 10 μm – 100 μm
in diameter in diameter
Cell wall Usually present; chemically complex When present, chemically simple
in nature in nature
Nucleus Absent. Instead, they have a nucleoid Present
region in the cell
Ribosomes Present. Smaller in size and spherical Present. Comparatively larger in
in shape size and linear in shape
DNA Circular Linear
arrangement
Mitochondria Absent Present
Cytoplasm Present, but cell organelles absent Present, cell organelles present
Endoplasmic Absent Present
reticulum
Plasmids Present Very rarely found in eukaryotes
Ribosome Small ribosomes Large ribosomes
Lysosome Lysosomes and centrosomes are Lysosomes and centrosomes are
absent present
Cell division Through binary fission Through mitosis
Flagella The flagella are smaller in size The flagella are larger in size
Reproduction Asexual Both asexual and sexual
Example Bacteria and Archaea Plant and Animal cell
Structure of bacteria
Despite being structurally smaller than eukaryotic cells, bacteria vary in size, shape, habitat, and
metabolism. A bacterium can possess one of three basic shapes: spherical (coccus), rodlike
(bacillus), or curved (vibrio). Also, Bacteria can form clusters. For example, some cocci are found
mainly in pairs known as diplococci whereas the staphylococci form random clumps. In addition,
some coccal bacteria occur as square or cubical packets known as tetrads or sarcina. Furthermore,
rod-shaped bacilli usually occur singly, but some strains can form long chains. Some bacilli have
pointed ends, whereas others have squared ends, and some rods are bent into a comma shape.
These bent rods are often called vibrios.
Bacteria are the smallest living cellular organisms with and average size 2 micrometres (μm;
millionths of a metre) long and 0.5 μm in diameter. Mycoplasma pneumoniae could be as small as
0.1 to 0.25 μm in width and roughly 1 to 1.5 μm in length. Also, some bacteria such as Azotobacter
are relatively large with average diameters of 2 to 5 μm or more. Bacteria are generally not
organized into tissues, each one growing and dividing independently.
Morphology of bacteria
The Gram stain
Bacteria are usually examined under light microscopes after staining with specialized dye. One of
commonly used staining reactions for bacteria is called the Gram stain, in which bacteria
suspension are fixed to a glass slide by brief heating and then exposed to two dyes that combine
to form a large blue dye complex within each cell. When the slide is flushed with an alcohol
solution, gram-positive bacteria retain the blue colour and gram-negative bacteria lose the blue
colour. The slide is then stained with a weaker pink dye that causes the gram-negative bacteria to
become pink, whereas the gram-positive bacteria remain blue. The Gram stain reacts to differences
in the structure of the bacterial cell surface, differences that are apparent when the cells are viewed
under an electron microscope.
Table 2: Difference between Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria
Parameter Gram-positive bacteria Gram-negative bacteria

Cell Wall A single-layered, smooth cell wall A double-layered, wavy cell-wall

Cell Wall thickness The thickness of the cell wall is 20 The thickness of the cell wall is 8

to 80 nanometres to 10 nanometres

Peptidoglycan Layer It is a thick layer/ also can be multi- It is a thin layer/ often single-

layered. layered.

Teichoic acids Teichoic acids are present. Teichoic acids are not present.

Lipopolysaccharide Lipopolysaccharide is not present. Lipopolysaccharide is present.

Outer membrane The outer membrane is not present. The outer membrane is mostly

present.

Lipid content The Lipid content is very low. The Lipid content is 20% to 30%.

Resistance to Antibiotic These are very susceptible to These are very resistant to

antibiotics. antibiotics.

The cell envelope

The bacterial cell surface (or envelope) plays a central role in the properties and capabilities of the
cell. The cytoplasmic membrane separates the inside of the cell from its external environment,
regulates the flow of nutrients, maintains the proper intracellular conditions, and prevents the loss
of the cell’s contents. The cytoplasmic membrane performs important cellular functions such as
energy generation, protein secretion, chromosome segregation, and efficient active transport of
nutrients.
The cell wall is on the outside of the cytoplasmic membrane which confers the shape of the
bacterial cell. The wall is composed of a huge molecule called peptidoglycan (or murein). In gram-
positive bacteria the peptidoglycan is usually a thick layer that retains the blue dye of the Gram
stain by trapping it in the cell while in gram-negative bacteria, the peptidoglycan layer is very thin
and the blue dye is easily washed out of the cell. Peptidoglycan occurs only in the Bacteria (except
for those without a cell wall, such as Mycoplasma). Peptidoglycan is a long-chain polymer of two
repeating sugars (n-acetylglucosamine and n-acetyl muramic acid), in which adjacent sugar chains
are linked to one another by peptide bridges that confer rigid stability.
In gram-positive bacteria the cell wall is composed mainly of a thick peptidoglycan interwoven
with other polymers called teichoic acids and some proteins or lipid while gram-negative bacteria
have a complex cell wall consisting of multiple layers of phospholipids and lipopolysaccharides.
Lipopolysaccharides, often called endotoxins, are toxic to animals and humans; their presence in
the bloodstream can cause fever, shock, and even death.
Capsules and slime layers
These are extracellular materials secreted by some Bacteria. A slime layer is loosely associated
with the bacterium and can be easily washed off, whereas a capsule is attached tightly to the
bacterium and has definite boundaries. Capsules are usually polymers of simple sugars
(polysaccharides) and mostly hydrophilic which helps in avoiding desiccation (dehydration) by
preventing water loss.
Flagella, fimbriae, and pili
Flagella is an organ of locomotion, helping motile bacteria to swim through a liquid medium or
glide or swarm across a solid surface. Flagella are the extracellular long appendages which are
made of a single type of protein and located either at the ends of rod-shaped cells or all over the
cell surface. The flagellum is attached at its base to a basal body in the cell membrane. The force
generated at the membrane is used to turn the flagellar filament, in the manner of a turbine driven
by the flow of hydrogen ions through the basal body into the cell. When the flagella are rotating
in a counterclockwise direction, the bacterial cell swims in a straight line; clockwise rotation
results in swimming in the opposite direction or, if there is more than one flagellum per cell, in
random tumbling. Chemotaxis allows a bacterium to adjust its swimming behaviour so that it can
sense and migrate toward increasing levels of an attractant chemical or away from a repellent one.

Arrangement basis for classification

Monotrichous: 1 flagellum

Lophotrichous: tuft at one end

Amphitrichous: both ends

Peritrichous: all around bacteria

Furthermore, Bacteria possess appendages that allow them to adhere to surfaces and keep from
being washed away by flowing fluids. These straight, rigid, spikelike appendages are called
fimbriae or pili which extend from the surface of the bacterium and attach to specific sugars on
other cells. Fimbriae are present only in gram-negative bacteria. Certain pili (called sex pili) are
used to allow one bacterium to recognize and adhere to another in a process of sexual mating called
conjugation
The cytoplasm
The cytoplasm of bacteria contains high concentrations of enzymes, metabolites, and salts. In
addition, the proteins of the cell are made on ribosomes that are scattered throughout the
cytoplasm. Bacterial ribosomes are smaller, have fewer constituents (consist of three types of
ribosomal RNA [rRNA] and 55 proteins, as opposed to four types of rRNA and 78 proteins in
eukaryotes), and are inhibited by different antibiotics than those that act on eukaryotic ribosomes.
There are numerous inclusion bodies, or granules, in the bacterial cytoplasm. These bodies are
never enclosed by a membrane and serve as storage vessels. Glycogen, which is a polymer of
glucose, is stored as a reserve of carbohydrate and energy. Volutin, or metachromatic granules,
contains polymerized phosphate and represents a storage form for inorganic phosphate and energy.
Nucleoid
The nucleoid is a region of cytoplasm where the chromosomal DNA is located. It is not a
membrane bound nucleus, but simply an area of the cytoplasm where the strands of DNA are
found. Most bacteria have a single, circular chromosome that is responsible for replication,
although a few species do have two or more. Smaller circular auxiliary DNA strands, called
plasmids, are also found in the cytoplasm.
Genetic content
The genetic information of all cells resides in the sequence of nitrogenous bases in the extremely
long molecules of DNA. Unlike the DNA in eukaryotic cells, which resides in the nucleus, DNA
in bacterial cells appears as a long coil distributed through the cytoplasm. In many bacteria the
DNA is present as a single circular chromosome, although some bacteria may contain two
chromosomes, and in some cases the DNA is linear rather than circular. A variable number of
smaller, usually circular (though sometimes linear) DNA molecules, called plasmids, can carry
auxiliary information.
Bacterial DNA contains four nitrogenous bases adenine (A), cytosine (C), guanine (G), and
thymine (T). The rules of base pairing for double-stranded DNA molecules require that the number
of adenine and thymine bases be equal and that the number of cytosine and guanine bases also be
equal.
Bacterial reproduction
Binary fission
Most prokaryotes reproduce by a process of binary fission, in which the cell grows in volume until
it divides in half to yield two identical daughter cells. Each daughter cell can continue to grow at
the same rate as its parent. In gram-positive bacteria, the septum grows inward from the plasma
membrane along the midpoint of the cell; in gram-negative bacteria the walls are more flexible,
and the division septum forms as the side walls pinch inward, dividing the cell in two.
Budding
A group of environmental bacteria reproduces by budding. In this process a small bud forms at
one end of the mother cell or on filaments called prosthecae. As growth proceeds, the bud enlarges.
When the bud is about the same size as the mother cell, it separates. The difference between fission
and budding is that, in budding, the mother cell often has different properties from the offspring.
Sporulation
Many environmental bacteria are able to produce stable, dormant or resting forms to enhance their
survival under adverse conditions. These forms are called endospores, cysts, or heterocysts
depending on the method of spore formation, which differs between groups of bacteria. The ability
to form endospores is found among gram-positive groups, including the aerobic rod Bacillus. The
formation of a spore occurs in response to nutritional deprivation. Consequently, endospores do
not possess metabolic activity until nutrients become available, at which time they are able to
differentiate from spores into vegetative cells. Only one spore is formed inside each bacterial cell
during sporulation.
Exchange of genetic information
Bacteria can be very active in the exchange of genetic information. The genetic information carried
in the DNA can be transferred from one cell to another through several mechanisms known as
Transformation, Transduction and Conjugation.
In transformation, bacteria take up free fragments of DNA that are floating in the medium thus
allowing the second organism to acquire new characteristics. Transduction is the transfer of DNA
from one bacterium to another by means of a bacteria-infecting virus called a bacteriophage.
Protecting the DNA from physical decay and attack by enzymes in the environment and is injected
directly into cells by the bacteriophage. Finally, Conjugation is the transfer of DNA by direct cell-
to-cell contact that is mediated by plasmids (non-chromosomal DNA molecules). Conjugative
plasmids encode an extremely efficient mechanism that mediates their own transfer from a donor
cell to a recipient cell.
Ecology of bacteria
Prokaryotes are ubiquitous on Earth’s surface. They are found in every accessible environment.
Some bacteria can grow in soil or water at temperatures near freezing (0 °C [32 °F]), whereas
others thrive in water at temperatures near boiling (100 °C [212 °F]). Each bacterium is adapted
to live in a particular environmental niche. The level of bacteria in the air is low but significant,
especially when dust has been suspended. In uncontaminated natural bodies of water, bacterial
counts can be in the thousands per millilitre; in fertile soil, bacterial counts can be in the millions
per gram; and in feces, bacterial counts can exceed billions per gram.
Although they are small in size, prokaryotes are important members of their habitats gaining
importance with their number. The result of their metabolism can be beneficial and sometimes,
harmful.
Soil bacteria are very active in effecting biochemical changes through the conversion of elements
that are central to life, such as carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur from inorganic gaseous compounds into
forms that can be used by plants and animals. Bacteria also convert the end products of plant and
animal metabolism into forms that can be used by bacteria and other microorganisms. The nitrogen
cycle can illustrate the role of bacteria in effecting various chemical changes. Nitrogen exists in
nature in several oxidation states, as nitrate, nitrite, dinitrogen gas, several nitrogen oxides,
ammonia, and organic amines (ammonia compounds containing one or more substituted
hydrocarbons). Nitrogen fixation is the conversion of dinitrogen gas from the atmosphere into a
form that can be used by living organisms.
Rhizobium organisms in the soil recognize and invade the root hairs of their specific plant host,
enter the plant tissues, and form a root nodule. This process causes the bacteria to lose many of
their free-living characteristics. They become dependent upon the carbon supplied by the plant,
and, in exchange for carbon, they convert nitrogen gas to ammonia, which is used by the plant for
its protein synthesis and growth.
In addition, many bacteria can convert nitrate to amines for purposes of synthesizing cellular
materials or to ammonia when nitrate is used as electron acceptor. Denitrifying bacteria convert
nitrate to dinitrogen gas. The conversion of ammonia or organic amines to nitrate is accomplished
by the combined activities of the aerobic organisms Nitrosomonas and Nitrobacter, which use
ammonia as an electron donor.
In the carbon cycle, carbon dioxide is converted into cellular materials by plants and autotrophic
prokaryotes, and organic carbon is returned to the atmosphere by heterotrophic life-forms. The
major breakdown product of microbial decomposition is carbon dioxide, which is formed by
respiring aerobic organisms.
Nutritional requirements
Bacteria differ with respect to conditions necessary for their optimal growth. In terms of nutritional
needs, all cells require sources of carbon, nitrogen, sulfur, phosphorus, numerous inorganic salts
(e.g., potassium, magnesium, sodium, calcium, and iron), and a large number of other elements
called micronutrients (e.g., zinc, copper, manganese, selenium, tungsten, and molybdenum).
Carbon is the element required in the greatest amount by bacteria since hydrogen and oxygen can
be obtained from water, which is a prerequisite for bacterial growth. Also required is a source of
energy to fuel the metabolism of the bacterium. One means of organizing bacteria is based on these
fundamental nutritional needs: the carbon source and the energy source.
There are two sources a cell can use for carbon: inorganic compounds and organic compounds.
Organisms that use the inorganic compound carbon dioxide (CO2) as their source of carbon are
called autotrophs. Bacteria that require an organic source of carbon, such as sugars, proteins, fats,
or amino acids, are called heterotrophs (or organotrophs).
There are three basic sources of energy: light, inorganic compounds, and organic compounds.
Phototrophic bacteria use photosynthesis to generate cellular energy from light energy,
Chemotrophs obtain their energy from chemicals (organic and inorganic compounds);
chemolithotrophs obtain their energy from reactions with inorganic salts; and chemoheterotrophs
obtain their energy from organic compounds. The primary form of energy that is captured from
the transfer of electrons is ATP. The metabolic processes that break down organic molecules to
generate energy are called catabolic reactions. In contrast, the metabolic processes that synthesize
molecules are called anabolic reactions. Other compounds of significance to bacteria include
phosphate, sulfate, and nitrogen. A particularly important nutrient of bacteria is iron. Iron is needed
for the growth of almost all organisms.

Bacterial metabolism
Heterotrophic metabolism
Heterotrophic bacteria derive energy from organic compounds. They are widely distributed and
most abundant forms. They may be aerobic or anaerobic. They are omnipresent and found in the
food, soil, water. They help in recycling of natural substances. Sugar metabolism produces energy
for the cell via two different processes, fermentation and respiration. Fermentation is an
anaerobic process that takes place in the absence of any external electron acceptor. However, more
energy is available to the cell from respiration which is a process in which the electrons from
molecules of sugar are transferred to an inorganic molecule. The most familiar respiratory process
(aerobic respiration) uses oxygen as the final electron acceptor.
Autotrophic metabolism
Autotrophic bacteria are those bacteria that can synthesize their own food. They perform several
reactions involving light energy (photons) and chemicals in order to derive energy for their
biological sustainability. In order to do so, they utilize inorganic compounds like carbon dioxide,
water, hydrogen sulfide.
Phototrophic metabolism
Phototrophic bacteria are those whose energy for growth comes from light and their carbon sources
come from carbon dioxide (CO2). The general process of photosynthesis makes use of pigments
called chlorophylls that absorb light energy from the sun and release an electron with a higher
energy level.