Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Cytoskeletal Proteins in Bacteria01:29

Cytoskeletal Proteins in Bacteria

3.5K
Bacterial cells were initially considered simple, randomly organized structures lacking a cytoskeleton. However, the discovery of cytoskeleton homologs in bacteria led to the change of this opinion. Bacterial cytoskeletal filaments regulate the cell shape, cell polarity, cell division, and partitioning of plasmids during cell division. It was later discovered that bacterial cytoskeletal proteins, mainly actin and tubulin homologs, are diverse compared to their eukaryotic counterparts. On the...
3.5K
Microbial Morphologies01:29

Microbial Morphologies

858
Bacterial and archaeal cells exhibit remarkable diversity in shape and structure, critical in their adaptability and functionality. Among bacteria, the most commonly observed shapes include cocci and bacilli. Cocci are spherical and may exist singly or in groupings such as pairs (diplococci), chains (streptococci), clusters (staphylococci), or tetrads. Bacilli, in contrast, are rod-shaped and can also occur as single cells, in pairs, or chains, depending on their environmental and genetic...
858
Bacterial Phylum Actinobacteria01:30

Bacterial Phylum Actinobacteria

125
Coryneform bacteria are gram-positive, aerobic, nonmotile rods that exhibit irregular, club-shaped, or V-shaped arrangements. Their V-shape results from snapping division, where the inner cell wall layer forms the cross-wall, while the outer layer remains intact until it ruptures on one side, causing the daughter cells to bend away.The primary genera are Corynebacterium and Arthrobacter. Corynebacterium includes diverse species, ranging from saprophytes to pathogens like Corynebacterium...
125
Outer Layers of the Cell Envelope01:18

Outer Layers of the Cell Envelope

376
The outermost layers of prokaryotic cells play a critical role in their survival, virulence, and interaction with the environment. These layers, often composed of polysaccharides, polypeptides, or proteins, form protective and adhesive structures that vary in organization and function.Capsules and Slime LayersCapsules are highly organized, tightly bound layers that firmly attach to the bacterial cell wall. Capsules are usually made of polysaccharides, though some are made of polypeptides. These...
376
Bacterial Signaling01:30

Bacterial Signaling

34.3K
Bacterial signaling can occur within bacteria (intracellular) or between bacteria (intercellular). At times, a group of bacteria behaves like a community. To achieve this, they engage in quorum sensing, the perception of higher cell density that causes changes in gene expression. Quorum sensing involves both extracellular and intracellular signaling. The signaling cascade starts with a molecule called an autoinducer (AI). Individual bacteria produce AIs that move out of the bacterial cell...
34.3K
Bacterial Phylum Tenericutes01:24

Bacterial Phylum Tenericutes

95
The phylum Tenericutes, which includes the single class Mollicutes, comprises bacteria that lack cell walls. The term "Mollicutes" derives from the Latin word mollis, meaning "soft." These organisms are among the smallest known and are commonly referred to as mycoplasmas due to the prominence of the genus Mycoplasma, which includes well-known human pathogens. Despite their inability to stain gram-positively (a result of their lack of cell walls), mycoplasmas are phylogenetically related to the...
95

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Impaired envelope integrity in the absence of SanA is linked to increased lipid II availability and an imbalance of septal peptidoglycan synthesis.

mBio·2026
Same author

A novel mechanism for bacterial sporulation based on programmed peptidoglycan degradation.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2025
Same author

Milestones in the development of <i>Myxococcus xanthus</i> as a model multicellular bacterium.

Journal of bacteriology·2025
Same author

Mechanism of bacterial outer membrane exchange revealed by quantitative microscopy.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2025
Same author

A lytic transglycosylase connects bacterial focal adhesion complexes to the peptidoglycan cell wall.

eLife·2024
Same author

A lytic transglycosylase connects bacterial focal adhesion complexes to the peptidoglycan cell wall.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2024

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Sep 15, 2025

Fluorescence Live-cell Imaging of the Complete Vegetative Cell Cycle of the Slow-growing Social Bacterium Myxococcus xanthus
11:45

Fluorescence Live-cell Imaging of the Complete Vegetative Cell Cycle of the Slow-growing Social Bacterium Myxococcus xanthus

Published on: June 20, 2018

9.7K

Tissue-like structures formed by a bacterium.

Gillian M L Ampah1, Charles J Myers1, Carlos A Ramírez Carbó1

  • 1Department of Biology, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA.

Biorxiv : the Preprint Server for Biology
|July 16, 2025
PubMed
Summary

Bacteria can form complex, tissue-like structures when exposed to the antibiotic moenomycin. This stress response in *Myxococcus xanthus* involves cell shape changes and membrane fusion, suggesting ancient origins for tissue organization.

More Related Videos

Patterning of Microorganisms and Microparticles through Sequential Capillarity-assisted Assembly
10:17

Patterning of Microorganisms and Microparticles through Sequential Capillarity-assisted Assembly

Published on: November 4, 2021

3.3K
Author Spotlight: Studying Bacterial Growth in 3D Hydrogel Matrices
05:46

Author Spotlight: Studying Bacterial Growth in 3D Hydrogel Matrices

Published on: January 19, 2024

2.5K

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Sep 15, 2025

Fluorescence Live-cell Imaging of the Complete Vegetative Cell Cycle of the Slow-growing Social Bacterium Myxococcus xanthus
11:45

Fluorescence Live-cell Imaging of the Complete Vegetative Cell Cycle of the Slow-growing Social Bacterium Myxococcus xanthus

Published on: June 20, 2018

9.7K
Patterning of Microorganisms and Microparticles through Sequential Capillarity-assisted Assembly
10:17

Patterning of Microorganisms and Microparticles through Sequential Capillarity-assisted Assembly

Published on: November 4, 2021

3.3K
Author Spotlight: Studying Bacterial Growth in 3D Hydrogel Matrices
05:46

Author Spotlight: Studying Bacterial Growth in 3D Hydrogel Matrices

Published on: January 19, 2024

2.5K

Area of Science:

  • Microbiology
  • Cell Biology
  • Evolutionary Biology

Background:

  • Bacteria typically form simple multicellular structures without stable cell-cell connections.
  • Eukaryotic tissues are characterized by stable cell-cell connections, a feature generally absent in bacteria.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the impact of moenomycin on bacterial cell structure and organization.
  • To explore the potential for bacterial stress responses to induce tissue-like multicellularity.

Main Methods:

  • Treatment of *Myxococcus xanthus* with the antibiotic moenomycin.
  • Microscopic observation of cellular morphology and arrangement.
  • Analysis of cell wall synthesis modifications.

Main Results:

  • Moenomycin induced rod-shaped *Myxococcus xanthus* cells to become spherical.
  • Cells fused their outer membranes, forming stable, honeycomb-like lattices.
  • These structures exhibit characteristics reminiscent of eukaryotic tissues.

Conclusions:

  • Antibiotic-induced stress can trigger significant morphological changes in bacteria.
  • The formation of stable, tissue-like structures in *Myxococcus xanthus* suggests that complex multicellularity may have evolutionary roots in bacterial stress responses.