A whiplike motility appendage present on the surface cells. Prokaryote flagella are composed of a protein called FLAGELLIN. Bacteria can have a single flagellum, a tuft at one pole, or multiple flagella covering the entire surface. In eukaryotes, flagella are threadlike protoplasmic extensions used to propel flagellates and sperm. Flagella have the same basic structure as CILIA but are longer in proportion to the cell bearing them and present in much smaller numbers. (From King & Stansfield, A Dictionary of Genetics, 4th ed)
The posterior filiform portion of the spermatozoon (SPERMATOZOA) that provides sperm motility.
A protein with a molecular weight of 40,000 isolated from bacterial flagella. At appropriate pH and salt concentration, three flagellin monomers can spontaneously reaggregate to form structures which appear identical to intact flagella.
A genus GREEN ALGAE in the order VOLVOCIDA. It consists of solitary biflagellated organisms common in fresh water and damp soil.
A bundle of MICROTUBULES and MICROTUBULE-ASSOCIATED PROTEINS forming the core of each CILIUM or FLAGELLUM. In most eukaryotic cilia or flagella, an axoneme shaft has 20 microtubules arranged in nine doublets and two singlets.
A family of multisubunit cytoskeletal motor proteins that use the energy of ATP hydrolysis to power a variety of cellular functions. Dyneins fall into two major classes based upon structural and functional criteria.
A species of GREEN ALGAE. Delicate, hairlike appendages arise from the flagellar surface in these organisms.
The act, process, or result of passing from one place or position to another. It differs from LOCOMOTION in that locomotion is restricted to the passing of the whole body from one place to another, while movement encompasses both locomotion but also a change of the position of the whole body or any of its parts. Movement may be used with reference to humans, vertebrate and invertebrate animals, and microorganisms. Differentiate also from MOTOR ACTIVITY, movement associated with behavior.
Mature male germ cells derived from SPERMATIDS. As spermatids move toward the lumen of the SEMINIFEROUS TUBULES, they undergo extensive structural changes including the loss of cytoplasm, condensation of CHROMATIN into the SPERM HEAD, formation of the ACROSOME cap, the SPERM MIDPIECE and the SPERM TAIL that provides motility.
Proteins found in any species of bacterium.
Microscopy using an electron beam, instead of light, to visualize the sample, thereby allowing much greater magnification. The interactions of ELECTRONS with specimens are used to provide information about the fine structure of that specimen. In TRANSMISSION ELECTRON MICROSCOPY the reactions of the electrons that are transmitted through the specimen are imaged. In SCANNING ELECTRON MICROSCOPY an electron beam falls at a non-normal angle on the specimen and the image is derived from the reactions occurring above the plane of the specimen.
Movement characteristics of SPERMATOZOA in a fresh specimen. It is measured as the percentage of sperms that are moving, and as the percentage of sperms with productive flagellar motion such as rapid, linear, and forward progression.
Somewhat flattened, globular echinoderms, having thin, brittle shells of calcareous plates. They are useful models for studying FERTILIZATION and EMBRYO DEVELOPMENT.
Populations of thin, motile processes found covering the surface of ciliates (CILIOPHORA) or the free surface of the cells making up ciliated EPITHELIUM. Each cilium arises from a basic granule in the superficial layer of CYTOPLASM. The movement of cilia propels ciliates through the liquid in which they live. The movement of cilia on a ciliated epithelium serves to propel a surface layer of mucus or fluid. (King & Stansfield, A Dictionary of Genetics, 4th ed)
A hemoflagellate subspecies of parasitic protozoa that causes nagana in domestic and game animals in Africa. It apparently does not infect humans. It is transmitted by bites of tsetse flies (Glossina).
Descriptions of specific amino acid, carbohydrate, or nucleotide sequences which have appeared in the published literature and/or are deposited in and maintained by databanks such as GENBANK, European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), National Biomedical Research Foundation (NBRF), or other sequence repositories.
Proteins found in any species of protozoan.
Proteins that are involved in or cause CELL MOVEMENT such as the rotary structures (flagellar motor) or the structures whose movement is directed along cytoskeletal filaments (MYOSIN; KINESIN; and DYNEIN motor families).
Movement or the ability to move from one place or another. It can refer to humans, vertebrate or invertebrate animals, and microorganisms.
Constituent of 30S subunit prokaryotic ribosomes containing 1600 nucleotides and 21 proteins. 16S rRNA is involved in initiation of polypeptide synthesis.
Slender, cylindrical filaments found in the cytoskeleton of plant and animal cells. They are composed of the protein TUBULIN and are influenced by TUBULIN MODULATORS.
A species of gram-negative, halophilic bacteria, in the genus VIBRIO. It is considered part of normal marine flora and commonly associated with ear infections and superficial wounds exposed to contaminated water sources.
Any of the processes by which cytoplasmic or intercellular factors influence the differential control of gene action in bacteria.
Any detectable and heritable change in the genetic material that causes a change in the GENOTYPE and which is transmitted to daughter cells and to succeeding generations.
DNA sequences encoding RIBOSOMAL RNA and the segments of DNA separating the individual ribosomal RNA genes, referred to as RIBOSOMAL SPACER DNA.
The relationships of groups of organisms as reflected by their genetic makeup.
The relative amounts of the PURINES and PYRIMIDINES in a nucleic acid.
A genus of gram-negative, curved and spiral-shaped bacteria found in stagnant, freshwater environments. These organisms are motile by bipolar tufts of flagella having a long wavelength and about one helical turn. Some species of Spirillum cause a form of RAT-BITE FEVER.
Physicochemical property of fimbriated (FIMBRIAE, BACTERIAL) and non-fimbriated bacteria of attaching to cells, tissue, and nonbiological surfaces. It is a factor in bacterial colonization and pathogenicity.
Deoxyribonucleic acid that makes up the genetic material of bacteria.
Electron microscopy in which the ELECTRONS or their reaction products that pass down through the specimen are imaged below the plane of the specimen.
The functional hereditary units of BACTERIA.
Proteins found in any species of algae.
The movement of cells or organisms toward or away from a substance in response to its concentration gradient.
A multistage process that includes cloning, physical mapping, subcloning, determination of the DNA SEQUENCE, and information analysis.
A species of gram-negative, facultatively anaerobic, rod-shaped bacteria that may be pathogenic for frogs, fish, and mammals, including man. In humans, cellulitis and diarrhea can result from infection with this organism.
Genes, found in both prokaryotes and eukaryotes, which are transcribed to produce the RNA which is incorporated into RIBOSOMES. Prokaryotic rRNA genes are usually found in OPERONS dispersed throughout the GENOME, whereas eukaryotic rRNA genes are clustered, multicistronic transcriptional units.
The order of amino acids as they occur in a polypeptide chain. This is referred to as the primary structure of proteins. It is of fundamental importance in determining PROTEIN CONFORMATION.
A tomographic technique for obtaining 3-dimensional images with transmission electron microscopy.
A serotype of Salmonella enterica that is a frequent agent of Salmonella gastroenteritis in humans. It also causes PARATYPHOID FEVER.
A genus of flexible, spiral rods found in hydrogen sulfide-containing mud, sewage, and polluted water. None of the species properly referred to in this genus are pathogenic.
The middle piece of the spermatozoon is a highly organized segment consisting of MITOCHONDRIA, the outer dense fibers and the core microtubular structure.
A microtubule subunit protein found in large quantities in mammalian brain. It has also been isolated from SPERM FLAGELLUM; CILIA; and other sources. Structurally, the protein is a dimer with a molecular weight of approximately 120,000 and a sedimentation coefficient of 5.8S. It binds to COLCHICINE; VINCRISTINE; and VINBLASTINE.
A genus of microorganisms of the order SPIROCHAETALES, many of which are pathogenic and parasitic for man and animals.
An order of slender, flexuous, helically coiled bacteria, with one or more complete turns in the helix.
The salinated water of OCEANS AND SEAS that provides habitat for marine organisms.
Male germ cells derived from the haploid secondary SPERMATOCYTES. Without further division, spermatids undergo structural changes and give rise to SPERMATOZOA.
Thin, hairlike appendages, 1 to 20 microns in length and often occurring in large numbers, present on the cells of gram-negative bacteria, particularly Enterobacteriaceae and Neisseria. Unlike flagella, they do not possess motility, but being protein (pilin) in nature, they possess antigenic and hemagglutinating properties. They are of medical importance because some fimbriae mediate the attachment of bacteria to cells via adhesins (ADHESINS, BACTERIAL). Bacterial fimbriae refer to common pili, to be distinguished from the preferred use of "pili", which is confined to sex pili (PILI, SEX).
Self-replicating, short, fibrous, rod-shaped organelles. Each centriole is a short cylinder containing nine pairs of peripheral microtubules, arranged so as to form the wall of the cylinder.
A species of bacteria found in the marine environment, sea foods, and the feces of patients with acute enteritis.
A species of gram-negative, aerobic bacteria that consist of slender vibroid cells.
Dyneins that are responsible for ciliary and flagellar beating.
Ribonucleic acid in bacteria having regulatory and catalytic roles as well as involvement in protein synthesis.
The restriction of a characteristic behavior, anatomical structure or physical system, such as immune response; metabolic response, or gene or gene variant to the members of one species. It refers to that property which differentiates one species from another but it is also used for phylogenetic levels higher or lower than the species.
Microscopy in which the object is examined directly by an electron beam scanning the specimen point-by-point. The image is constructed by detecting the products of specimen interactions that are projected above the plane of the sample, such as backscattered electrons. Although SCANNING TRANSMISSION ELECTRON MICROSCOPY also scans the specimen point by point with the electron beam, the image is constructed by detecting the electrons, or their interaction products that are transmitted through the sample plane, so that is a form of TRANSMISSION ELECTRON MICROSCOPY.
One of the three domains of life (the others being BACTERIA and ARCHAEA), also called Eukarya. These are organisms whose cells are enclosed in membranes and possess a nucleus. They comprise almost all multicellular and many unicellular organisms, and are traditionally divided into groups (sometimes called kingdoms) including ANIMALS; PLANTS; FUNGI; and various algae and other taxa that were previously part of the old kingdom Protista.