Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture ProCon Money Videos

Bacteria: Quick Facts

Written and fact-checked by
The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

The Information Architects maintain a master list of the topics included in the corpus of  Encyclopædia Britannica, and create and manage the relationships between them.
The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Last updated

News •

Phage protein study opens new path for future antibiotics • Nov. 9, 2026, 8:16 PM ET (News-Medical)
Scientists discover a bacterial defense so strange they thought it was broken • Oct. 31, 2026, 6:40 AM ET (Science Daily)
Scientists discover a plastic-eating “Pac-Man” enzyme with a surprising secret • Oct. 16, 2026, 6:33 AM ET (Science Daily)

Facts

Also Known As Schizophyta • bacterium

Photos and Videos

Mycobacterium tuberculosis
Illustration comparing three cell types: a round animal cell and an irregularly shaped plant cell, both showing labeled organelles, and an elongated bacteria cell with labeled structures such as flagella and capsule.
Labeled diagram of a bacillus-shaped bacterial cell showing capsule, cell wall, cell membrane, cytoplasm, nuclear matter, pili, and a single long flagellum extending from one end.
Streptococcus mutans
Klebsiella pneumoniae in pneumonia
Staphylococcus aureus
Peptidoglycan layer of Bacillus coagulans
Peptidoglycan layer of Aquaspirillum serpens
Acinetobacter calcoaceticus
Illustration of Streptococcus mutans bacteria as linked, round purple cells forming chains on a textured, pinkish surface representing tissue in the mouth.
Diagram showing a microscope with a magnified view of a large, rod-shaped bacterium next to a much smaller, round virus particle.
What are potential benefits of harvesting ocean bacteria?
How does a robotic pipeline for bacterial genetics help scientists at University College Cork?
How bacteria exchange genetic information
How bacteria growth affects food spoilage and diseases
See All Videos and Images →

Related Topics and References

Topics
Dig Deeper: More Articles That Discuss This Topic

Key People

Joshua Lederberg, 1958.
Joshua Lederberg
American geneticist
Robert Koch
Robert Koch
German bacteriologist
Oil painting by Jan Verkolje showing Antonie van Leeuwenhoek seated at a table with a globe, papers, inkstand, and a compass in hand, wearing a brown robe and white shirt.
Antonie van Leeuwenhoek
Dutch scientist
Ferdinand Cohn
Ferdinand Cohn
German botanist
default image
Frances Arnold
American chemical engineer
default image
George P. Smith
American biochemist
default image
Edward L. Tatum
American biochemist
François Jacob, 1965.
François Jacob
French biologist
default image
René Dubos
American microbiologist
default image
Robert Huber
German biochemist
default image
David Hendricks Bergey
American bacteriologist
default image
Johann Deisenhofer
German American biochemist
default image
Hans Buchner
German bacteriologist
default image
Hartmut Michel
German biochemist

Related Quizzes

Mushrooms growing in forest. (vegetable; fungus; mushroom; macrofungi; epigeous)
Science at Random Quiz
Adult Caucasian woman with hand on her face as if in pain. lockjaw, toothache, healthcare and medicine, human jaw bone, female
Viruses, Bacteria, and Diseases