Multiple roads lead to Rome: unique morphology and chemistry of endospores, exospores, myxospores, cysts and akinetes in bacteria.

ABSTRACT: The production of specialized resting cells is a remarkable survival strategy developed by many organisms to withstand unfavourable environmental factors such as nutrient depletion or other changes in abiotic and/or biotic conditions. Five bacterial taxa are recognized to form specialized resting cells: Firmicutes, forming endospores; Actinobacteria, forming exospores; Cyanobacteria, forming akinetes; the δ-Proteobacterial order Myxococcales, forming myxospores; and Azotobacteraceae, forming cysts. All these specialized resting cells are characterized by low-to-absent metabolic activity and higher resistance to environmental stress (desiccation, heat, starvation, etc.) when compared to vegetative cells. Given their similarity in function, we tested the potential

SUBMITTER: Corona Ramirez A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10197873 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature