PABA is then converted to DHFA which is converted inside the cell to THFA then folic acid.Ī gram stain is used as a quick way to check a sample under the microscope to look for bacteria. This chain starts with PABA, which is directly absorbed in to the cell across the cell membrane. Folic acid cannot be created or directly imported into the cell and requires a chain of intermediates to get in to the cell. Ribosomes are where bacteria proteins are synthesised within the bacterial cell.įolic acid is essential for synthesis and regulation of DNA within the bacteria. Nucleic acid is essential component of bacterial DNA. The cell wall is a structure that surrounds the outer cell membrane and is found on gram positive bacteria. There are some key components to learn about as they are the target of antibiotic treatment:

Rod shaped bacteria are called bacilli and circular shaped bacteria are called cocci. Atypical bacteria cannot be stained or cultured in the normal way.īacteria can also be classified based on their shapes. Gram negative bacteria don’t have this thick peptidoglycan cell wall and don’t stain with crystal violet stain but will stain with other stains. Gram positive bacteria have a thick peptidoglycan cell wall that stains with crystal violet stain. Learning where bacteria fall within these categories helps you work out which antibiotics will be effective against them.Īerobic bacteria require oxygen whereas anaerobic bacteria do not. They can be categorised into aerobic and anaerobic, gram positive and gram negative and atypical bacteria. These pathogenic bacteria are the most relevant to learning medicine. Most bacteria are not harmful however some are pathogenic and cause infectious diseases.

Bacteria shapes