In: Biology
Do bacterial have cytoskeletons? Name them, and state the significance of cytoskeletons from medical microbiology point view?
Bacteria have filamentous structures called bacterial cytoskeletal elements. As Eukaryotic cytoskeletal elements bacterial cytoskeletal elements play important role in cell shape, cell division, cell polarity, etc,.
Examples:- Actin(MreB), Tubulin(FtsZ), Intermediate filament proteins (IF) are bacterial cytoskeletal elements homologous with Eukaryotic cytoskeleton. MinD-ParA group is unique to bacterial cytoskeletal elements.
Significance of bacterial cytoskeletal elements:-
1. Actin:- MreB and MreB homologs are actin elements. Helps in maintaining cell shape, chromosome segregation, cell polarity and organization of membranous organelles.
2. Tubulin;- FtsZ is a tubulin element which palys important role in bacterial cytokinesis( dividing cell into two).
3. MinD and ParA group:- These are non homologs of eukaryotic cytoskeleton and unique to bacteria. Organised filamentous structures. Mind helps in the determining of septal placement during cell division. ParA helps in the partition of DNA.