Archaea and Bacteria Reviewer

I. GENERAL DESCRIPTION

a. both are diverse organisms

b. only 1% of newly discovered species have been cultured in laboratories
c. most species are known as distinctive molecular sequences
d. both are prokaryotes
i. no nuclei
ii. lack other features typical of eukaryotes
e. they evolved from a common ancestor

II. DOMAIN ARCHAEA

a. DISTINCTIVE CHARACTERISTICS

i. share several common features with the eukaryotic nucleus and

cytoplasm suggesting common ancestry
ii. have different membrane linkages from those of the eukaryotes or
bacteria
iii. Extremophiles

- resistant to heat and other extreme conditions

- can occupy habitats with very high salt content,
acidity or methane levels, or high temperatures

b. MODE OF REPRODUCTION

i. Binary Fission
- splitting of a cell into two

c. IDENTIFICATION

i. Kingdom Crenarchaeota

- grow in extreme hot or cold conditions

- Sulfolobus grows in hot springs with a pH of 3

ii. Kingdom Euryachaeota

- methane producers and extreme halophiles

iii. Kingdom Korarchaeota

- most grow in hot springs

Prepared by: Kristine M. Cabigas

December 2017
Biology Core 3
Philippine Science High School- Central Visayas Campus
 iv. Kindom Nanoarchaeota

- hyperthermophiles or grow in conditions with very

high temperature

III. DOMAIN BACTERIA

a. DISTINCTIVE CHARACTERISTICS

- there are 50 or so bacterial phyla

- only half of discovered species have known structural
and metabolic features
- most of them favor moderate conditions

b. PROTEOBACTERIA

i. α-proteobacteria

- ancestors of mitochondria, Rhizobium,

Agrobacterium

ii. β-proteobacteria

- Nitrosomonas, Neisseria

iii. δ-proteobacteria

- Myxobacteria, bdellovibrios

iv. ε-proteobacteria

- Helicobacter

v. γ-proteobacteria

- Vibrio, Salmonella, Escherichia coli

c. CYANOBACTERIA

- photosynthetic bacteria
- abundant in fresh waters, oceans, wetlands, and
surfaces of arid soils
- named for its blue-green or cyan color
- only prokaryotes that generate oxygen as a product of
photosynthesis
- gave rise to plastids of eukaryotic algae and plants
- greatest structural diversity found among bacterial
phyla

Prepared by: Kristine M. Cabigas

December 2017
Biology Core 3
Philippine Science High School- Central Visayas Campus
 - essential ecological roles in producing organic carbon
and fixing nitrogen

d. MODE OF REPRODUCTION

i. Horizontal Gene Transfer

- also known as lateral gene transfer or conjugation

- movement of one or more genes from one species to
another
- contrasts with vertical gene transfer from parent to
progeny
- increase genetic diversity
- influences the methods used to infer the phylogeny of
bacteria and archaea
- result to large genetic changes
- at least 17% of the genes of E. coli came from other
bacteria
- allow new metabolic processes despite lacking sexual
processes
- has the potential to interfere with human efforts of
deducing evolutionary relationships

ii. Binary Fission

- cells split into two

- basis for widely used method of detecting and
counting bacteria in samples

e. GRAM STAIN

i. Positive

- relatively thick peptidoglycan layer

- purple dye held in thick layer
- cells are stained purple
- vulnerable to penicillin that interferes in cell wall
synthesis

ii. Negative

- less peptidoglycan and a thin outer envelope of

lipopolysaccharides
- lose purple stain but retain final pink stain
- cells are stained pink
- resists penicillin and requires other antibiotics

Prepared by: Kristine M. Cabigas

December 2017
Biology Core 3
Philippine Science High School- Central Visayas Campus
 f. STRUCTURE AND MOTILITY

- both are small that could grow into a size of 1-5μm in diameter
- grows rapidly, and has a simple cellular structure
- limits the amount of materials that can be stored within cells but
allows faster cell division
- move to favorable conditions
- respond to chemical signals

i. Flagella

- used in swimming
- different from eukaryotic flagella
- like an outboard boat motor
- differ in number and location of flagella

ii. Pili

- twitching or gliding
- threadlike cell surface structures

iii. Gas Vesicles

- found in cyanobacteria
- adjust buoyancy
- move vertically in water column

iv. Akinetes

- develop when stressed

- can germinate into metabolically active cells under
favorable conditions
- commonly occurs in aquatic filamentous
cyanobacteria
v. Endospores

- made up of tough protein coat

- amazingly long dormant span
- some species are Bacillus anthracis, Clostridium
botulinum, Clostridium tetani

g. OBTAINING GENETIC MATERIAL

i. Transduction
- via viral vector
ii. Transformation
- via uptake of DNA from environment
iii. Conjugation
- via mating with another cell

Prepared by: Kristine M. Cabigas

December 2017
Biology Core 3
Philippine Science High School- Central Visayas Campus
 h. NUTRITION AND METABOLISM

- more diverse types of metabolism than any other

group of organisms

i. Nutrition Classification

1. Phototrophs
- produce all or most of their own organic compounds

2. Photoautotrophs
- uses light as energy source for synthesis of organic
compounds from CO2 or H2S

3. Chemoautotrophs
- use energy obtained from chemical modification of
inorganic compounds to synthesize organic compounds

4. Heterotrophs
- organisms that require at least one organic compound,
and often more

5. Photoheterotrophs
- able to use light energy to make ATP but they must
take in organic compounds from the environment

6. Chemoorganotrophs
- must obtain organic molecules for both energy and
carbon source

ii. Classification by Oxygen Response

1. Obligate Aerobes
– require oxygen

2. Facultative aerobes
- can use oxygen or not

3. Obligate anaerobes
– cannot tolerate oxygen

4. Aerotolerant anaerobes
– do not use oxygen but are not poisoned by it

iii. Classification by special metabolism

1. Diazotrophs
- conduct nitrogen fixation

Prepared by: Kristine M. Cabigas

December 2017
Biology Core 3
Philippine Science High School- Central Visayas Campus
 - enzyme nitrogenase converts inorganic nitrogen gas
into ammonia
- plants depend on ammonia to make nitrogen
containing compounds
- Rhizobium
- Heterocysts (specialized cells)

IV. CELLULAR STRUCTURE

a. Prokaryotic Cells

- much simpler than eukaryotic cells

b. Thylakoids

- ingrowths of plasma membrane that increase surface

area for photosynthesis

c. Magnetosomes (Bacteria Only)

- compass-like magnetite crystals

- help in locating low-oxygen habitats

d. Cell Shape and Arrangement (Bacteria Only)

i. Spheres
- cocci
ii. Rods
- bacilli
iii. Comma-shaped
- vibrios
iv. Spiral-shaped
- flexible spirochaetes
- rigid spirilli
v. Others
- single cells, pairs, filaments

e. Others

i. nucleus-like bodies from plasma membrane invaginations

ii. cellular proteins similar to eukaryotic tubulin

V. CELL-WALL STRUCTURE

- maintain cell shape and help protect against attack

- help avoid lysis in hypotonic solutions
- archaea and some bacteria use protein

Prepared by: Kristine M. Cabigas

December 2017
Biology Core 3
Philippine Science High School- Central Visayas Campus
 - bacteria use peptidoglycan

VI. MUCILAGE
- composed of polysaccharides, protein, or both
- secreted from cells
- evade host defences
- hold colony together

VII. IMPORTANCE

a. Ecological Roles

- Carbon Cycle
- producers synthesize organic compounds used by other organisms as
food
- helps in decomposing other organisms
- Methanogens produce methane
- Methanotrophs consume methane

b. Symbiotic Roles

i. Mutualism

- association beneficial to both partners

- many aquatic protists depend on bacterial partners for
vitamins

ii. Parasitism

- one partner benefits at the expense of the other

- pathogens that may cause cholera, leprosy, tetanus,
pneumonia, Lyme Disease, etc.

c. Industrial and Other Roles

- dairy products (cheese and yogurt)

- vinegar, amino acids, enzymes, vitamins, insulin,
vaccines, antibiotics, etc.
- useful in treating wastewater, industrial effluent, and
other harmful substances
- Bioremediation
- Agriculture (Bacillus thuringiensis produces Bt-toxins)

Prepared by: Kristine M. Cabigas

December 2017
Biology Core 3
Philippine Science High School- Central Visayas Campus