Bacteria

Bacteria
      are microscopic living organisms, usually one-celled, that can be found everywhere. They can be dangerous, such as when they cause infection, or beneficial, as in the process of fermentation (such as in wine) and that of decomposition.

Different kinds of Bacteria
    

    Bacillus

                      The type of bacteria that has a long shape similar to a rod is singularly called bacillus, bacilli when plural. This is a very common type of bacteria.

   Coccus

                  Bacteria that have a sphere shape are called coccus, or the plural cocci. Both gram positive cocci and gram negative cocci make up a large group of common bacteria.

   Spirillum

                  The bacteria that have a spiral or coil shape are called spirillum, spirilla when plural. This type of bacteria is more rare.

   Bacterial Diseases

                   Streptococci:

                      Not all streptococci are bad: many are neutral or beneficial. Streptococcus thermophilus (thermo = heat; philia = brotherly love) is one of the bacteria that help turn milk into yogurt. On the other hand, Streptococcus pyogenes causes strep throat (pyo = pus, inflammation; gen = bear, produce).

             Streptococcus pneumoniae:

This is a diplococcus (pneumo = lungs) which infects the lungs, causing pneumonia, and is spread by coughing. PHOTO

Because these bacteria have a lot of peptidoglycan in their cell walls, penicillin is effective for most of these, except where overuse has caused resistant strains. This is especially a problem with S. aureus in hospitals.

            Acinetobacter baumannii:

This is a Gram– bacillus that is short and almost round, almost halfway between a coccus and a bacillus. It is a normal part of the bacterial flora of soil, and typically does not bother healthy people. However, it is increasingly a problem in debilitated, immunocompromised (meaning, their immune systems aren’t doing a good job of fighting off infections) people, where is is an “opportunistic pathogen,” and is increasingly becoming a major problem in ICUs.

         Escherichia coli (E. coli):

This is a normal part of our intestinal flora, and is non-pathogenic if living in its normal environment in someone’s large intestine. However, if it gets elsewhere in the body, like the upper GI tract, lungs, bladder, bloodstream, etc., it can make a person sick. This usually happens by the “fecal-oral route,” in other words, when someone drinks water or eats food washed in water containing untreated sewage

Difference between gram positive and gram negative

-Gram Positive

Bacteria with simple cell-wall structure and more peptidoglycan are called gram positive. Staphylococcus and streptococcus bacteria are both gram-positive. They are benign, but there are pathogenic species that cause strep throat and other illnesses.

Gram Negative

• Gram-negative bacteria have less peptidoglycan and more complex cell walls, which make them more resistant to certain antibiotics, such as penicillin. Examples of gram negative are E. coli, salmonella and Haemophila influenzae, the bacteria that cause pneumonia.
• What I did

                  I research all about bacteria and study about them

What I learned
          I learned about the background of bacteria and their structures

I can apply my learning to...
              To my studies