Question

What is the shape of the Mycoplasma, Spiroplasma?

Answer 1

Mycoplasma and Spiroplasma are both genera of bacteria that lack a cell wall, making them unique among bacteria. This absence of a cell wall gives them a pleomorphic (variable shape) appearance.

Step-by-step explanation:

Mycoplasma species can have various shapes, including spherical (coccus), filamentous, or irregular forms. They can be quite small and are flexible in their morphology due to the lack of a rigid cell wall. The absence of a cell wall makes them resistant to many common antibiotics that target bacterial cell walls.

Spiroplasma:

Spiroplasma bacteria are characterized by their helical or spiral shape. They have a unique helical morphology and are motile due to the twisting motion of their helical structure. This gives them a distinctive appearance under the microscope.

Answer 2

Spiroplasma bacteria are spiral-shaped, helical cells identified as spirochetes with flagella for motility, typically requiring darkfield microscopy for better visualization due to their slender form.

Step-by-step explanation:

The Spiroplasma bacterium is a member of the spirochete class, which is known for its distinctive spiral-shaped cells. These bacteria possess flagella that run lengthwise in the periplasmic space between the cell's inner and outer membrane, contributing to their motility. Unlike other bacterial shapes such as cocci (spheres) and bacilli (rods), spirochetes such as Spiroplasma are characterized by their helix form.

Due to their slender profile, they are often better viewed using darkfield microscopy rather than traditional brightfield microscopy techniques. They belong to a group of bacteria known as spirochetes. Spirochetes have long, spiral-shaped bodies that are typically very thin and difficult to observe under a conventional microscope. Instead, darkfield microscopy or fluorescent microscopy is used to view them.