COMPEND OF BACTERIOLOGY 



CHAPTER I 



THE CLASSIFICATION, MORPHOLOGY, AND THE 

 BIOLOGY OF BACTERIA 



BACTERIA (fission fungi or schizomycetes) may be defined 

 as very minute unicellular vegetable organisms, almost always 

 devoid of chlorophyll, and generally unbranched, that reproduce 

 themselves asexually by means of direct division or fission, spores, 

 or gonidia. They are allied closely on the one hand to the higher 

 fungi, such as the moulds, and on the other to the algae. Many 

 forms in one phase of development closely resemble members of 

 other groups, and it has always been difficult to classify them. 

 Various botanical classifications have been employed by different 

 bacteriologists. The following one is based somewhat upon 

 Migula's, and that adopted by Lehmann and Neumann, which was 

 compiled from the systems of Flugge, Fischer, Ldffler, and Migula. 



CLASSIFICATION. Bacteria may be conveniently divided 

 into six families, according to their morphology or shape. 



I. COCC AC EJE. Spherical or spheroidal bacteria. Globular 

 in free state but usually seen with one axis slightly larger. 

 They do not have parallel sides like the bacilli. To mul- 

 tiply, the cell divides into halves, quarters, or eighths, each 

 of which grow again into perfect spheres. Endospores 

 and flagella are very rare (Lehmann and Neumann). If 

 mobile they are called Planococcus or Planosarcina. 



