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An endospore stain of the cell Bacillus subtilis showing endospores as green and the vegetative cell as red Phase-bright endospores of Paenibacillus alvei imaged with phase-contrast microscopy. An endospore is a dormant, tough, and non-reproductive structure produced by some bacteria in the phylum Bacillota.
Endospores can last for decades in multiple hard conditions, such as drying and freezing. This is because the DNA inside the endospore can survive over a long period. Most bacteria are unable to form endospores due to their high resistance, but some common species are the genera Bacillus ( over 100 species) and Clostridium (over 160 species). [2]
Endospores are bacterial survival structures that are highly resistant to many different types of chemical and environmental stresses and therefore enable the survival of bacteria in environments that would be lethal for these cells in their normal vegetative form.
B. subtilis can divide symmetrically to make two daughter cells (binary fission), or asymmetrically, producing a single endospore that is resistant to environmental factors such as heat, desiccation, radiation and chemical insult which can persist in the environment for long periods of time. The endospore is formed at times of nutritional ...
Asexual cells may vary in shape. [13] The shape of the cell may be informative in terms of detecting mode of reproduction or taxonomic placement to genera or species. Although not commonly known, some species form endospores (e.g.Candida species). [2] These are asexual spores that are formed within their mother cell (hyphal or single cell).
The normal, reproducing cells of Clostridium, called the vegetative form, are rod-shaped, which gives them their name, from the Greek κλωστήρ or spindle. Clostridium endospores have a distinct bowling pin or bottle shape, distinguishing them from other bacterial endospores, which are usually ovoid in shape.
Some genera of Gram-positive bacteria, such as Bacillus, Clostridium, Sporohalobacter, Anaerobacter, and Heliobacterium, can form highly resistant, dormant structures called endospores. [93] Endospores develop within the cytoplasm of the cell; generally, a single endospore develops in each cell. [94]
The Bacillaceae are a family of gram-positive, heterotrophic, rod-shaped bacteria that may produce endospores. [1] Motile members of this family are characterized by peritrichous flagella. Some Bacillaceae are aerobic, while others are facultative or strict anaerobes. Most are not pathogenic, but Bacillus species are known to cause disease in ...