Question

Do bacteria have a cell wall?

Answer 1

Cell wall:

1. Is the outermost covering or layer present in a cell.
2. It separates the outer environment from the inner matrix of the cell and provides rigidity, structural and functional support to the cell.
3. Different cell walls are composed of different organic compounds like chitin, peptidoglycan, cellulose, pectin etc.
4. Examples include fungi, Euglena, plant cells, bacteria etc.

Bacteria:

1. They are simple and primitive unicellular organisms that lack a well-defined nucleus and other membrane-bound organelles.
2. Bacteria and archaea belong to prokaryotes.
3. Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas, Lactobacillus, streptococcus etc. are some examples of bacteria.
4. Bacteria have a well-defined cell wall composed of peptidoglycan.
5. It protects the bacteria from outer environment and can also confer pathogenicity.
6. Gram-negative bacteria have two layers of cell walls, one inner peptidoglycan layer, and one outer lipopolysaccharide layer.
7. Mycoplasma is the only prokaryote that lacks a cell wall.