MICROBIAL CELL STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION
MCROBIO (Lecture)
BIOMED | PROF. ESPERANZA CABRERA | SEM 2 2023
MICROBIAL CELL STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION
CELL MORPHOLOGY
● Cell shape
● Distinguishes different microbial cells and has ecological
significance
MAJOR MORPHOLOGIES OF PROKARYOTIC CELLS
● Coccus: Spherical or ovoid
● Bacillus: cylindrical
● Spirilla: curved or loose spiral shapes
● Spirochetes: tightly coiled bacteria (long tubes/stalks)
● Filamentous: long, thin cells or chains of cells
SMALL WORLD
● Bacteria and archaea cells vary in size
● Surface-to-volume ratios, growth rates, and evolution
○ Small cells: larger surface area relative to cell
volume
○ Larger cells: higher surface-to-volume ratio
○ As cell size increases, S/V ratio decreases.
○ S/V ratio of cells control many of its properties like
growth rate and evolution
○ Higher S/V ratio of small cells: faster rate of nutrient
and waste exchange per unit of cell volume
● DNA replicates and occasional errors occur, called
mutations.
○ Mutation rates: roughly same in all cells
○ More chromosomal replications: greater total number
of mutations in cell population
○ Mutation: raw material of evolution – larger pool,
greater evolutionary possibilities
■ Prokaryotic cells: small, genetically haploid
hence mutations can be expressed
immediately
CELL MEMBRANE AND WALL
CYTOPLASMIC MEMBRANE
● Surrounds the cytoplasm
● Physically weak but an ideal structure for selective
permeability
BACTERIAL CYTOPLASMIC MEMBRANE
● Phospholipid bilayer containing embedded proteins
● Phospholipids: hydrophobic and hydrophilic components
● Bacteria + Eukarya
○ Hydrophobic component: fatty acids
○ Hydrophilic component: glycerol molecule containing
phosphate and another functional group bonded to
phosphate
1
MICROBIAL CELL STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION
MCROBIO (Lecture)
BIOMED | PROF. ESPERANZA CABRERA | SEM 2 2023
● Fatty acids: point inward towards each other to form
hydrophilic region
● Lipid bilayer/unit membrane: outer surface of cytoplasmic
membrane faces environment while inner surface faces
cytoplasm
● Proteins are attached/integrated to cytoplasmic membrane
which typically have hydrophobic domains that span the
membrane and hydrophilic domains that contact the
environment or the cytoplasm
○ Integral membrane proteins: significantly embedded
in the membrane
○ Peripheral membrane proteins: more loosely
attached; i.e. lipoproteins: proteins that contain
hydrophobic lipid tail that anchors protein into
membrane
ARCHAEAL MEMBRANES
● Lipids of Archaea contain ether bonds between glycerol and
a hydrophobic side chain that is not a fatty acid
● Hydrophobic region: formed from repeating units of
five-carbon hydrocarbon isoprene
● Constructed from phosphoglycerol diethers or diphospho
glycerol tetraethers
● Tetraether lipid structure: ends of inwardly pointing phytanyl
groups are covalently linked at their termini to form a lipid
monolayer membrane
CYTOPLASMIC MEMBRANE FUNCTION
● Major Functions
○ Cell’s permeability barrier: prevents passive leakage
of solutes in or out the cell
○ Anchors several proteins that catalyze a suite of key
cell functions
○ Plays a major role in energy conservation and
consumption
2
MICROBIAL CELL STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION
MCROBIO (Lecture)
BIOMED | PROF. ESPERANZA CABRERA | SEM 2 2023

● Barrier to diffusion of most substances, and most
substances that enter or leave must be carried by transport
proteins
○ Transport proteins function to accumulate solutes
against concentration gradient
○ Transport ensures that cytoplasm has sufficient
concentrations of nutrients needed to perform
biochemical reactions efficiently
○ Display high sensitivity and high specificity
■ Concentration of solute is high enough to
saturate the transporter, rate of uptake can
be near maximal
○ Transport proteins transport a single kind of molecule
or others carry related classes of molecules
● Major site of both energy conservation and consumption.
○ Cytoplasmic membrane is energized when protons
are separated from hydroxyl ions across membrane
surface and separation creates an energized state
called proton motive force
BACTERIAL CELL WALLS: PEPTIDOGLYCAN
● Cytoplasm of prokaryotic cells maintain a high concentration
of dissolved solutes that create significant osmotic pressure
○ Cell lysis: helps withstand pressure and prevent
bursting
● Divided into two major groups: gram positive and gram
negative
○ Gram negative cell wall/cell envelope: consists of at
least two layers
○ Gram positive cell wall: thicker and consists primarily
of a single type of molecule
STRUCTURE OF PEPTIDOGLYCAN

3
MICROBIAL CELL STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION
MCROBIO (Lecture)
BIOMED | PROF. ESPERANZA CABRERA | SEM 2 2023

● Peptidoglycan: rigid polysaccharide that is contained in the

GRAM NEGATIVE GRAM POSITIVE
cell walls of bacteria; confers structural strength
○ NOTE: Found in ALL bacteria but NOT PRESENT in ● Consists of at least two ● Thicker and consists
layers primarily of a single type
cell walls of Archaea and Eukarya ● No “interbridge” in crosslink molecule
Composed of alternating repeats of two modified glucose ● Small amount of total cell ● Cross-link often contains a
residues: N-acetylglucosamine and N-acetylmuramic acid wall consists of short peptide “interbridge”
peptidoglycan ● 90% consists of
along with amino acids: L-alanine, D-alanine, D-glutamic ● Most of cell wall is composed peptidoglycan
acid, and either L-lysine or diaminopimelic acid (DAP) of outer membrane
connected in an ordered way to form the glycan tetrapeptide ● Peptidoglycans can be destroyed by lysozyme
○ Lysozyme: enzymes that cleaves glycosidic bond
between N-acetylglucosamine and N-acetyl muramic
acid
○ Weakens and causes cell lysis
○ Present in human secretions including body fluids
○ Penicillin also blocks peptidoglycan biosynthesis
which weakens the molecule and leads to osmotic
lysis
● Peptidoglycans have the presence of two amino acids of the
D stereoisomer: D-alanine and D-glutamic acid.
○ Teichoic acids also contain D-amino acids
OVERVIEW OF GRAM-POSITIVE CELL WALL AND TEICHOIC
ACIDS
● Many gram positive bacteria produce acidic molecules
called teichoic acids
○ Composed of glycerol phosphate or ribitol phosphate
● Strands of peptidoglycan are biosynthesized adjacent to one with attached molecules of glucose and/or D-alanine
another to form a sheet surrounding the cell and individual ● Individual alcohol molecules are connected through
strands are connected by peptide cross-links that forms a phosphate groups to form long strands and are covalently
polymer strong in X and Y directions linked to peptidoglycan.

4
MICROBIAL CELL STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION
MCROBIO (Lecture)
BIOMED | PROF. ESPERANZA CABRERA | SEM 2 2023
● Teichoic acids also function to bind divalent metal ions
○ Some are covalently bonded to membrane lipids
rather than peptidoglycan which are called
lipoteichoic acids
● Few bacteria and archaea lack cell walls together.
○ Includes mycoplasmas, pathogenic bacteria, and
thermoplasmas
○ Cells would be expected to contain tough
cytoplasmic membranes.
LIPOPOLYSACCHARIDE: OUTER MEMBRANE
● Outer membrane of gram negative bacteria is considered
effectively a second lipid bilayer
○ However, is not solely constructed for phospholipid
and protein
○ Hence, outer membrane is called LPS or
lipopolysaccharide
● Confers modest structural strength on gram-negative cell
and acts as an effective barrier against many substances
such as lipophilic antibiotics and other harmful agents that
might penetrate the cytoplasmic membrane
○ Which makes antibiotics useful against gram positive
bacterial pathogens
STRUCTURE AND ACTIVITY OF LPS
● Polysaccharide of LPS is composed into: core
polysaccharide and O-specific polysaccharide
● Core Polysaccharide
○ Ketodeoxyoctanoate, various seven-carbon sugars
(heptoses), glucose, galactose, and
N-acetylglucosamine
● O-specific polysaccharide
○ Galactose, glucose, rhamnose, mannose, as well as
one or more dideoxyhexoses (abequose, colitose,
paratose, or tyvelose)
● Lipid portion of LPS (lipid A)
○ Fatty acids are bonded through the amine groups
from a disaccharide composed of glucosamine
phosphate
5
MICROBIAL CELL STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION
MCROBIO (Lecture)
BIOMED | PROF. ESPERANZA CABRERA | SEM 2 2023
○ Disaccharide is attached to the core polysaccharide
through ketodeoxyoctanoate
● Fatty acids commonly found in lipid A include caproic, lauric,
myristic, palmitic, and stearic acid
● LPS replaces much of phospholipid in outer half of outer
membrane
● Outer membrane: anchored to the peptidoglycan layer by
Braun lipoprotein
○ Molecule that spans the gap between the LPS layer
and peptidoglycan layer
● LPS is toxic to animals
○ Gram-negative pathogens include: Salmonella,
Shigella, Escherichia which some of gastrointestinal
symptoms that these pathogens exhibit are due to
toxic outer membrane components
● Outer membrane is impermeable to other proteins
○ Function: prevent cellular proteins whose activities
occur outside the cytoplasm from diffusing away
from the cell
○ Hence, these extracellular proteins reside in the
periplasm
PERIPLASM AND PORINS
● Periplasm: space located between the outer surface of the
cytoplasmic membrane and inner surface of the outer
membrane
● Can contain several different classes of proteins
○ Hydrolytic enzymes (function in the initial
degradation of polymeric substances)
○ Binding proteins (begin process of transporting
substrates)
○ Chemoreceptors (proteins that govern the
chemotaxis response)
○ Proteins that construct extracellular structures such
as peptidoglycan and outer membrane from
precursor molecules
● Periplasmic proteins: reach periplasm by a way of
protein-exporting system present in cytoplasmic membrane
● Outer membrane: relatively permeable to small molecules
because of porins
○ Porins: functions as channels for the entrance and
exit of solutes; transmembrane proteins composed of
three identical polypeptides
● Several porins are known: specific and nonspecific classes
6
MICROBIAL CELL STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION
MCROBIO (Lecture)
BIOMED | PROF. ESPERANZA CABRERA | SEM 2 2023

○ Nonspecific proteins: form water-filled channels ○ Halococcus: similar cell walls to Methanosarcina
through which virtually any small hydrophilic containing large amounts of sulfate
substance can pass
○ Specific porins: contain a binding site for one or a
group of structurally related substances

ARCHAEAL CELL WALLS

PSEUDOMUREIN AND OTHER POLYSACCHARIDE CELL
WALLS
● Cell walls of methane-producing Archaea: contain molecules
similar to peptidoglycan – polysaccharide called
pseudomurein
○ Murein: Latin for wall, old term for peptidoglycan
PSEUDOMUREIN PEPTIDOGLYCAN

● Backbone: ● Backbone: N-acetylmuramic

N-acetylglucosamine + acid + N-acetylglucosamine
N-acetyltalosaminuronic acid ● Glycosidic bonds: B-1,4
● Glycosidic bonds: B-1,3
● Amino acids are of the L
stereoisomer
● Immune from destruction by
lysozyme and penicillin

● Similarities between pseudomurein and peptidoglycan can

be that they are variants of a cell wall polysaccharide
present in the common ancestor between Bacteria and
Archaea.
● Cell walls of some other archaea lack pseudomurein
S-LAYERS
○ Methanosarcina: thick polysaccharide composed of
● Paracrystalline surface layer: S-layer
polymers of glucose, glucuronic acid, galactosamine
● Consists of interlocking molecules of protein or glycoprotein
uronic acid, acetate

7
MICROBIAL CELL STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION
MCROBIO (Lecture)
BIOMED | PROF. ESPERANZA CABRERA | SEM 2 2023

● Paracrystalline structures can form various symmetries

depending upon the number and structure of the subunits of
which it is composed
● Found in representatives of all major lineages of Archaea
and in some species of Bacteria
● Sufficiently strong to withstand osmotic pressure without any
other wall components
● In many organisms, these are present in addition to other
cell wall components
○ When accompanied by other wall components,
S-layer is the outermost wall layer (layer in direct
contact with environment)
● Serves as a selective sieve between the cell and its
environment
○ Allows passage of low-molecular-weight solutes,
excluding large molecules or structures
● Retains proteins near the cell surface that must function
outside the cytoplasmic membrane as much as the outer
membrane retains periplasmic proteins