BACTERIOLOGY (STM 311) First Lecture.

BACTERIOLOGY FIRST LECTURE

          Bacteriology is the study of bacteria, shape, their characteristics and their involvement in everyday activity of man. Since discovery of bacteria, man has carried out series of experiment and research to determine their nature and contribution to environmental processes. Today, it is a now known that bacteria can be very friendly and hazardous. Though the help of advanced instrument, the various properties of bacteria have been studied and more facts are emerging everyday about them.

          Bacteria can be beneficial and the beneficial form can be used extensively in food processing, industrial processes as well as in environmental matter to remove either naturally occurring pollutant or those that are synthetically produced and discharged into the environment to increase it pollution Regine. Bacteria are also known to be responsible for various forms of diseases of which some have abated and some which are defied medical solutions.

          Nevertheless with increasing Knowledge of the genetic property of bacteria, it has become possible to produce drugs to treat infections of bacterial origin which hitherto has been the scourge of man.

ANATHOMY AND MORPHOLOGY OF BACTERIA SHAPE AND SIZE OF BACTERIA

          The shape of bacteria are governed by Rigid cell wall, it is not understood the type of contribution that the rigid cell wall make towards a particular shape of bacterial: Typical bacteria cell are spherical (cocci=singular, coccus=plural); rod (Bacilli=singular, Bacillus=plural) they can also be spiral (spirilli=singular, spirillum=plural). Although those bacterial cell have very constant and characteristics shape, the cell of some exhibit pleomorphism (i.e. pleomorphic) this group exhibit variety of shapes.

          Bacterial cell are arranged in a manner characteristics of their particular species, although it is rare that the cell of the species are arranged in the same, it is the predominant arrangement that is the major important features.

          The coccus group appears in several characteristics depending on the plane of division and whether the daughter cells on division still attached together.

          Bacilli on the other hand are not arranged in pattern as complex as those cocci and most of them occur singly or pairs (diplobacilli). However, some species like Bacillus substilis from chains (strepto bacilli) other still like Beggiatoa and saprosore from trichomes which are similar to chain but have a much smaller area of contact between the adjacent cells. In other bacillus species such as (Oryne bacteriumdiptheriae) the cells are line side by side like match sticks (palisade arrangement) and at angles to one another.

          In other like Streptomyces species they characteristically from long, multi-nucleate filament called hyphae: hypha which collectively from mycelium, this same type of arrangement is found in fungi. Some other bacterial are usually curved with a twist. Bacteria with less than one or more complete twist turn have a Vibroid shape where as those with one complete curve have a letical bacterial whereas spirocci are highly flexible.

          Apart from the different shapes, bacterial also display other varieties of shapes from pair shape (pasteuria) lebosphere (sulfobolus) rods with square rather than the normal lemispherical ends (bacillus anthraus); those arranged like stalks of coin e.g. (caryophanon); rods with spherically sculptured surfaces e.g. (selibera) etc.

Images of some shapes of bacteria