LooseLeaf Benson's Microbiological Applications Laboratory Manual-Concise Version
LooseLeaf Benson's Microbiological Applications Laboratory Manual-Concise Version
14th Edition
ISBN: 9781259705236
Author: Alfred E Brown Ph.D., Heidi Smith
Publisher: McGraw-Hill Education
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Chapter 21, Problem 1SAQ
Summary Introduction

To find: The chemical groups can the bacteriophage specific for Gram-positive cells attach.

Introduction: Virus is a small infectious agent that only replicates inside the living cells of an organism. It is made up of a core of genetic material, either RNA or DNA surrounded by a protective coat called capsid. A bacteriophage is a virus that infects and replicates within archaea and bacteria. Bacteriophage infects bacteria but is harmless to humans.

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Bacteriophage recognizes its host by its tail fibers binding to the chemical groups connected with receptors on the host cell surface. Other functions for the bacterial cells are also performed by these receptors. For example, lipopolysaccharide and pili in gram-negative bacteria and teichoic acids in Gram-positive bacteria. The teichoic acids are present in cell walls of most Gram-positive bacteria. It is a polymer of glycerol-phosphate or ribitol phosphate that can bind to the cytoplasmic membrane or peptidoglycan covalently. The teichoic acid is accountable for a net negative charge on Gram-positive cells and it functions in peptidoglycan expansion during growth of cell.

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What Is A Virus ? ; Author: Peekaboo Kidz;https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YS7vsBgWszI;License: Standard YouTube License, CC-BY