Biology

Types of bacteria and their characteristics

types of bacteria
types of bacteria

Types of bacteria

there are four types of bacteria on the basis of their shape.

  • COCCI

These are spherical (rounded) bacteria. Due to the arrangement, these bacteria are of four kinds.

  • Monococc-us: single rounded bacteria.
  • Diplo-Cocci: these are in groups of two rounded bacteria.
  • Strepto-Cocci: these bacteria are arranged in a chainlike manner.
  • Staphylo-Cocci: these bacteria are present in groups or bundles.

When bacteria are in the group of four cells they are called Tetrad or sarcina and when in the group of eight cells they are called octant.

  • BACILLI

These are rod-shaped bacteria. These are also of different types.

  • Mono-bacillus: single rod-shaped bacteria.
  • Diplo-bacilli: group of two rod-shaped bacteria.
  • Strepto-bacilli: chain like rod-shaped bacteria.
  • Staphylo-bacilli: groups of many rod-shaped bacteria.
  • Spiral

These are spiral-shaped bacteria. They are never found in groups. They are single bacteria.

4. VibroThey are comma-shaped.they are also not found in groups. They are single bacteria.

Structure of a bacterial cell

A typical bacterial cell shows the following structure.

  1. Flagella
  2. Pilli
  3. Capsule
  4. Cell wall
  5. Cell membrane
  6. Nuclear Material

1.Flagella

Flagella are the locomotor’s organs of bacteria. These are thread-like structures; arise from the outer surface of bacterial cells. The flagella are found in Bacilli bacteria.

2.Pilli

These are hollow filament-like structures present on their body. The Pilli do not take part in locomotion. They are involved in the process of conjugation (reproduction).

3.Capsule

It is the outer additional protective layer present around the cell wall. It is made up of polysaccharides. It is found only in some bacteria.

4.Cell wall

It is the layer around the bacterial cell. It protects the inner parts of the cell and also provides a definite shape to the bacterial cells. It is composed of sugars, amino acids, and chitin. Cellulose is absent. The cell wall also has a compound, called Peptidoglycan. It provides strength to bacterial cells and helps to maintain the shape.

5.Cell Membrane (Plasma membrane)

On the inner side of the cell wall, around the cytoplasm cell membrane is present. It is semi-permeable and controls the osmotic properties of cells. The cell membrane is composed of proteins and lipids.

6.Cytoplasm

The inner substance of bacterial cells is called cytoplasm. It contains granules of glycogen and fats and proteins as reserve food. It does not have Endoplasmic reticulum, Mitochondria, Golgi bodies, Plastids, etc, but it contains ribosomes

for protein synthesis.

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