In this article we will discuss about the definition and locomotion of Flagella. Definition of Flagella: The motile bacterium may possess a flagellum (plural flagella). The flagellum is hair like helical and surface appendages emerging from the cell wall. It is of 20-30 nm in diameter and 15 µm long. It provides various types of motility to the bacterial cell. [...]
The structure of bacterial flagella have been described by Simon (1978), Doestsch and Sjoblad (1980) and Ferris and Beveridge (1985). A flagellum consists of three basic parts, the basal body, hook and filament (Fig. 4.3). (a) Basal body: M. L. De Pamphilis and J. Alder (1971) isolated the basal body of a flagellum of E. coli and B. subtilis and [...]
In this article we will discuss the structure and functions of pili and fimbriae. Structure of Pili and Fimbriae: Both fimbriae and pili are like flagella as both are the appendages on bacterial cell wall. They originate from cytoplasm that protrudes outside after penetrating the peptidoglycan layer of cell wall. Fimbriae are made up of 100% protein called fimbrilin or [...]