Académique Documents
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Table of contents
What are bacteria?..................................................................page 1
Archeabacteria....page 2
Eubacteria.page 3
Structure of Bacteria..pages 4-5
Identifying Bacteria-Gram stain.page 6
Reproduction Asexual and Sexual..page 7
Importance of Bacteria...pages 8-9
Disease causing Bacteria...page 10
Reference Page.page 11
Archaebacteria.
Archaebacteria are the oldest living organisms
on earth. They live in very extreme conditions, like
the bottom of the ocean and volcanic vents. Earths
early atmosphere was filled with poisonous gases
and was very hot. Archeabacteria were the only
organisms that could survive in this harsh
environment. As oxygen was introduced into Earths
atmosphere, archeabacteria gave way to more
modern organisms. There are three groups of
archeabacteria. None of which can live in oxygen
environments.
Methanogens are characterized by their ability
to obtain energy by converting H2 and CO2 into
methane gas. They are found in marshes and in the
intestinal tracts of humans and some animals.
Ancient methanogens are the source of natural gas.
The second group is halophiles. In Greek this
name means salt-loving. Salt kills most bacteria, but
halophiles have adapted to the salty environments.
They are found in the Dead Sea, the Great Salt Lake,
and other areas with a high salt content. In order to
survive the high salinities, halophiles have two
different strategies to prevent desiccation through
osmotic movement of water out of their cytoplasm.
In the first, organic compounds are accumulated in
the cytoplasm, known as compatible solutes. The
second, adaptation involves the selective influx of
potassium (K+) ions into the cytoplasm.
The third group is the thermoacidophiles. These
bacteria are found in extremely acidic conditions and
in areas with very high temperatures. They can
survive in areas with temperatures as high as 230
degrees Fahrenheit and with pHs below 2. It can
survive hydrochloric acid which is incredibly strong
and has a pH of 1. These locations include volcanic
vents and hydrothermal vents. Hydrothermal vents
are cracks in the ocean floor where scalding hot
water leaks out.
Eubacteria
Unlike the Archaea, the Eubacteria have been
known and studied for more than 150 years. Perhaps
more
importantly,
many
of
them
inhabit
environments that are easily studied and sampled.
Eubacteria have been separated into the Gram
positive and Gram negative groups, based upon a
standard stain technique. As it turns out, the way a
cell stains is related to the type and structure of the
cell wall. Gram positive cells have a single
membrane with a murien or peptidoglycan wall to
the outside of the single membrane. Gram negative
Structure of Bacteria
Bacteria have a well developed cell structure that
is responsible for many of their biological properties.
Many of their features are not found among
eukaryotes.
The cell structure of bacteria has been well
studied. The cell shape can be coccus (spherical),
bacillus (rod-like), spirillum (spiral), or filamentous.
Some bacteria have complex life cycles involving the
production of stalks and appendages and some
produce elaborate structures bearing reproductive.
These are often the first characteristics observed by
a microbiologist to determine the identity of an
unknown bacterium.
The primary function of the cell wall is to protect the
cell from internal pressure. The bacterial cell wall
differs from that of all other organisms by the
presence of peptidoglycan, which is located outside
of the cytoplasmic membrane. Peptidoglycan is
responsible for the rigidity of the bacterial cell wall
and for the determination of cell shape. Since the cell
wall is required for bacterial survival, but is absent in
eukaryotes, several antibiotics, penicillin and
cephalosporin, stop bacterial infections by interfering
with cell wall synthesis. This process has no effect on
human cells.
Fimbrae are protein tubes that extend out from
the outer. They are generally short in length and
present in high numbers about the entire bacterial
cell surface. Fimbrae aid in the attachment of
bacterium to a surface. Pili are similar in structure to
Binary fission
Importance of Bacteria
Bacteria are important in many ways:
Fermentation processes, such as brewing and
baking use bacteria.
Cheese and butter
manufacturing require the use of bacteria. Bacteria
have been used for thousands of years in the
preparation of foods such as cheese, pickles, soy
sauce, sauerkraut, vinegar, wine, and yogurt.
Bacteria can actually help to fight themselves.
Doctors and scientists have figured out how to use
dead or weakened bacteria to prevent other bacterial
diseases. This process is called vaccination.
Vaccination has helped us all become a lot healthier
then we were a hundred years ago. Bacteria also
make, or help to make, drugs, hormones, or
antibodies.
Some bacteria living in the gut of cattle, horses
and other herbivores secrete cellulose, an enzyme
that helps in the digestion of the cellulose contents
of plant cell walls. Cellulose is the major source of
energy for these animals.
Bacteria are used to decompose sewage wastes.
They break down organic matter to harmless, soluble
sludge in settling tanks. The methane gas produced
is used as energy source. Similarly toxic chemicals
synthesized by living organisms and those present in
the pesticides are disposed with the help of bacteria.
mastitis,
Reference page
www.earthlife.net/prokaryotes/disease.html
En.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bacteria
www.livescience.com/bacteria
www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/bacteria/bacteria.html
www.buzzle.com/articles/diferent-types-of-bacteria.html