Different Size, Shape and Arrangement of Bacterial Cells
Bacteria are prokaryotic, unicellular microorganisms, which lack
chlorophyll pigments. The cell structure is simpler than that of other
organisms as there is no nucleus or membrane bound organelles.
Due to the presence of a rigid cell wall, bacteria maintain a definite
shape, though they vary as shape, size and structure.
When viewed under light microscope, most bacteria appear in
variations of three major shapes: the rod (bacillus), the sphere (coccus)
and the spiral type (vibrio). In fact, structure of bacteria has two
aspects, arrangement and shape. So far as the arrangement is
concerned, it may Paired (diplo), Grape-like clusters (staphylo) or
Chains (strepto).
Size of Bacterial Cell
The average diameter of spherical bacteria is 0.5-2.0 µm. For rod-
shaped or filamentous bacteria, length is 1-10 µm and diameter is 0.25-
1 .0 µm.
● E. coli , a bacillus of about average size is 1.1 to 1.5 µm wide by
2.0 to 6.0 µm long.
● Spirochaetes occasionally reach 500 µm in length and the
cyanobacterium
● Oscillatoria is about 7 µm in diameter.
● The bacterium, Epulosiscium fishelsoni , can be seen with the
naked eye (600 µm long by 80 µm in diameter).
● One group of bacteria, called the Mycoplasmas, have individuals
with size much smaller than these dimensions. They measure
about 0.25 µ and are the smallest cells known so far. They were
formerly known as pleuropneumonia-like organisms (PPLO).
● Mycoplasma gallicepticum, with a size of approximately 200 to
300 nm are thought to be the world smallest bacteria.
● Thiomargarita namibiensis is world’s largest bacteria, a gram-
negative Proteobacterium found in the ocean sediments off the
coast of Namibia. Usually it is 0.1—0.3 mm (100—300 µm) across,
but bigger cells have been observed up to 0.75 mm (750 µm).
Thus a few bacteria are much larger than the average eukaryotic cell
(typical plant and animal cells are around 10 to 50 µm in diameter).
Shape of Bacterial Cell
The three basic bacterial shapes are coccus (spherical), bacillus (rod-
shaped), and spiral (twisted), however pleomorphic bacteria can
assume several shapes.
of Bacterial Cell
● Cocci (or coccus for a single cell) are round cells, sometimes
slightly flattened when they are adjacent to one another.
● Bacilli (or bacillus for a single cell) are rod-shaped bacteria.
● Spirilla (or spirillum for a single cell) are curved bacteria which can
range from a gently curved shape to a corkscrew-like spiral. Many
spirilla are rigid and capable of movement. A special group of
spirilla known as spirochetes are long, slender, and flexible.
Arrangement of Cocci
Cocci bacteria can exist singly, in pairs (as diplococci ), in groups of four
(as tetrads ), in chains (as streptococci ), in clusters (as stapylococci ), or
in cubes consisting of eight cells (as sarcinae). Cocci may be oval,
elongated, or flattened on one side. Cocci may remain attached after
cell division. These group characteristics are often used to help identify
certain cocci.
1. Diplococci
The cocci are arranged in pairs.
Examples: Streptococcus pneumoniae, Moraxella catarrhalis, Neisseria
gonorrhoeae, etc.
2. Streptococci
The cocci are arranged in chains, as the cells divide in one plane.
Examples: Streptococcus pyogenes, Streptococcus agalactiae
3. Tetrads
The cocci are arranged in packets of four cells, as the cells divide in two
plains.
Examples: Aerococcus, Pediococcus and Tetragenococcus
4. Sarcinae
The cocci are arranged in a cuboidal manner, as the cells are formed by
regular cell divisions in three planes. Cocci that divide in three planes
and remain in groups cube like groups of eight.
Examples: Sarcina ventriculi, Sarcina ureae, etc.
5. Staphylococci
The cocci are arranged in grape-like clusters formed by irregular cell
divisions in three plains.
Examples: Staphylococcus aureus
Arrangement of Bacilli
The cylindrical or rod-shaped bacteria are called ‘bacillus’ (plural:
bacilli).
1. Diplobacilli
Example of Single Rod: Bacillus cereus
Examples of Diplobacilli: Coxiella burnetii, Moraxella bovis, Klebsiella
rhinoscleromatis, etc.
2. Streptobacilli
The bacilli are arranged in chains, as the cells divide in one plane.
Examples: Streptobacillus moniliformis
3. Coccobacilli
These are so short and stumpy that they appear ovoid. They look like
coccus and bacillus.
Examples: Haemophilus influenzae, Gardnerella vaginalis,
and Chlamydia trachomatis
4. Palisades
The bacilli bend at the points of division following the cell divisions,
resulting in a palisade arrangement resembling a picket fence and
angular patterns that look like Chinese letters.
Example: Corynebacterium diphtheria
Arrangement of Spiral Bacteria
Spirilla (or spirillum for a single cell) are curved bacteria which can
range from a gently curved shape to a corkscrew-like spiral. Many
spirilla are rigid and capable of movement. A special group of spirilla
known as spirochetes are long, slender, and flexible.
Vibrio
They are comma-shaped bacteria with less than one complete turn or
twist in the cell.
Example: Vibrio cholera
2. Spirilla
They have rigid spiral structure. Spirillum with many turns. They do not
have outer sheath and endoflagella, but have typical bacterial flagella.
Example: Campylobacter jejuni, Helicobacter pylori
3. Spirochetes
Spirochetes have a helical shape and flexible bodies. Spirochetes move
by means of axial filaments, which look like flagella contained beneath
a flexible external sheath but lack typical bacterial flagella.
Examples: Leptospira species, Treponema pallidum, Borrelia recurrentis,
etc.
Others Shapes and Arrangements of Bacteria
1. Filamentous Bacteria
They are very long thin filament-shaped bacteria. Some of them form
branching filaments resulting in a network of filaments called
‘mycelium’.
Example: Candidatus Savagella
2. Star Shaped Bacteria
Example: Stella
3. Rectangular Bacteria
Examples: Haloarcula spp (H. vallismortis, H. marismortui)
4. Pleomorphic Bacteria
These bacteria do not have any characteristic shape unlike all others
described above. They can change their shape. In pure cultures, they
can be observed to have different shapes.
Examples: Mycoplasma pneumoniae, M. genitalium, etc.
