BACTERIAL ANATOMY

JOSE R. VILLARINO, RMT

Learning Objectives:
At the end of the lecture, the students will be able to:
Distinguish between a Eukaryotic and Prokaryotic
cell ;
Enumerate the different anatomical parts of the
bacterial cell and its functions ;
Identify the different parts microscopically ;
Recognize the significance of these parts and its role in
the bacteria in disease production.
BACTERIAL ULTRASTRUCTURE
ESSENTIAL PARTS
EXTERNAL INTERNAL
STRUCTURES STRUCTURES
CAPSULE NUCLEAR BODY
CELL WALL RIBOSOMES
CELL MEMBRANE MESOSOME
FLAGELLA CYTOPLASMIC
PILI GRANULES
ENDOSPORES
CAPSULE
REGARDED AS ONE OF THE SURFACE
ADHERENTS
A STICKY, MUCILAGENOUS ENVELOPE
SURROUNDING THE BACTERIAL CELL SINCE
IT IS COMPRISED OF POLYSACCHARIDE
MATERIAL.
IN OTHER ORGANISMS, THE CAPSULE IS
MADE UP OF GLUTAMATE OR GLUTAMIC ACID
SUCH IN THE CASE OF BACILLUS ANTHRACIS.
MAKES UP AS THE MOST EXTERNAL
STRUCTURE AMONG ENCAPSULATED
BACTERIA SINCE NOT ALL BACTERIAL
POSESSS CAPSULES.
CAPSULE
PROVIDES ANTIGENIC PROPERTY THUS ITS
PRESENCE CAN BE USED IN THE IDENTIFICATION
OF CERTAIN ORGANISMS.
EX. Neufeld Quellung reaction (capsular swelling)
THE CAPSULE IS ALSO ASSOCIATED WITH THE
ORGANISM’S VIRULENCE ( PROPERTY OF BEING
ABLE TO CAUSE DISEASE). IT PROTECTS THE
BACTERIA FROM THE ACTION OF PHAGOCYTOSIS
THUS MAKING THE ORGANISM TO CAUSE
DISEASE AND REGARDED AS PATHOGENIC.
Example: STREPTOCOCCUS PNEUMONIAE
CELL WALL
PROVIDES THE BACTERIA ITS SHAPE AND
MAINTAINS THE CELL RIGIDITY PROTECTING
IT FROM EVENTUAL LYSIS OR DESTRUCTION.
CELL MEMBRANE
ALSO KNOWN AS CYTOPLASMIC MEMBRANE,
INNER MEMBRANE OR PLASMA MEMBRANE
DESCRIBED AS A SEMI-PERMEABLE
MEMBRANE WHICH ALLOWS THE PASSAGE OF
FOOD AND WASTES IN AND OUT OF THE CELL.
IT ALSO SERVES AS A SITE OR LOCATION FOR
THE RESPIRATORY ENZYMES AMONG
PROKARYOTIC ORGANISMS SUCH AS THE
BACTERIA.
FLAGELLA
LONG HAIRLIKE STRUCTURES THAT ARISE
FROM THE CELL MEMBRANE AND IS
RESPONSIBLE FOR THE MOTILITY OR
MOVEMENT OF THE BACTERIA.
MADE UP OF PROTEIN SUBSTANCES CALLED
FLAGELLIN .
ONLY SEEN AMONG THE BACILLI HOWEVER
NOT ALL THE BACILLI HAVE FLAGELLA.
CLASSIFICATION OF THE FLAGELLA WHEN
SEEN IN THE BACTERIA WOUD BE BASED ON
ITS NUMBER AND LOCATION IN THE
ORGANISM.
TYPES OF FLAGELLA
MONOTRICHOUS – ONE SINGULAR
FLAGELLUM
LOPOTRICHOUS – SEVERAL FLAGELLA
FOUND ON ONE END OF THE BACILLUS
AMPHITRICHOUS – SEVERAL FLAGELLA
FOUND ON BOTH ENDS OF THE BACILLUS
PERITRICHOUS – NUMEROUSB FLAGELLA
FOUND ALL OVER THE BODY OF THE
BACILLUS
ATRICHOUS – ABSENCE OF FLAGELLA
PILI ( PILUS )
SHORT, STRAIGHT HAIRLIKE STRUCTURE
MADE UP OF PROTEIN UNITS CALLED PILIN.
ALSO KNOWN AS FIMBRIAE OR MICROFIBRIL
ONLY SEEN AMONG THE GRAM-NEGATIVE
ORGANISMS.
EXIST IN 2 TYPES: A) COMMON PILI – OCCURS
MOST NUMEROUS AND HELPS THE ORGANISM
DURING THE ATTACHMENT TO HOST TISSUES
& B) SEX PILI - PRIMARILY INVOLVED
DURING BACTERIAL CONJUGATION.
NUCLEAR BODY
OBSERVED AS AN UNDEFINED MASS OF
CHROMOSOME WHICH IS NOT SURROUNDED
BY A DISTINCT NUCLEAR MEMBRANE.
CONSISTS OF 60% DNA, 30% RNA ,PROTEIN 10
%
INVOLVED DURING THE PROCESS OF
CONJUGATION
RIBOSOMES
DESCRIBED AS ROUGH, SPHERICAL
GRANULES IN THE CYTOPLAM
CONSIST OF 70% RNA AND 30% PROTEINS
PRIMARILY INVOLVED IN PROTEIN
SYNTHESIS
MESOSOME
AN IRREGULAR INVAGINATION OF THE CELL
MEMBRANE
COMES IN TWO FORMS A) LATERAL
MESOSOME WHICH INVOLVES DURING
SECRETION AND B. CENTRAL MESOSOME
WHICH IS INVOLVED DURING BACTERIAL
REPRODUCTION,
CYTOPLASMIC GRANULES
COMPRISED OF POLYPHOSPHATES OR
METAPHOSPHATE MATERIAL
THEY SERVED AS FOOD DEPOSITS
MAYBE KNOWN BY OTHER TERMS SUCH AS
BABES-ERNST GRANULES
SPORE / ENDOSPORE
SEEN AS OVAL, HIGHLY REFRACTILE STRUCTURES
IN THE CYTOPLASM OF THE ORGANISM
MADE UP OF CALCIUM DIPICOLINATE OR
DIPICOLINIC WHICH ALLOWS THE ORGANISM TO
TOLERATE HEAT OR THE ADVERSE EFFECTS OF
HEAT THUS IS HEAT-RESISTANT.
CLASSIFIED INTO THREE TYPES BASED ON ITS
LOCATION IN THE BACTERIAL CELL = CENTRAL,
SUBTERMINAL AND TERMINAL SPORES.
CENTRAL & SUBTERMINAL : Bacillus species
TERMINAL SPORE : Clostridium tetani
Prokaryot Vs. Eukaryot
BACTERIA ARE CLASSIFIED TOGETHER WITH
THE CYANOBACTERIA AS PROKARYOTS.
OTHER ORGANISMS THAT DO NOT BELONG TO
THE GROUP ARE CLASSIFIED AS EUKARYOTS
LIKE PLANTS AND ANIMALS INCLUDING
HUMANS.
EUKARYOTS ARE CAPABLE OF SEXUAL
REPRODUCTION WHILE PROKARYOTS
REPRODUCE ONLY BY ASEXUAL MEANS.
BACTERIA REPRODUCE BY AN ASEXUAL
MANNER CALLED BINARY FISSION WHICH
MEANS TO DIVIDE OR SPLIT. FROM ONE
BACTERIUM PRODUCING TWO PRODUCTS.
PROKARYOT VS. EUKARYOT
EUKARYOTS HAVE “ TRUE NUCLEUS” WHILE
THE PROKARYTOTS DON’T HAVE TRUE
NUCLEUS. TRUE NUCLEUS IS USED TO REFER
TO A NUCLEUS BEING BOUND/SURROUNDED
BY A DISTINCT NUCLEAR MEMBRANE. IN THE
BACTERIA IT IS CALLED AS A NUCLEAR BODY
OR THE NUCLEOID.
EUKARYOTS HAVE MITOCHONDRIA WHILE
THIS IS ABSENT AMONG THE PROKARYOTS
(BACTERIA).