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Microbiology · Chapter 3

Build the Bacterial Surface

Inside its wall a bacterium has everything it needs to live — but on its own it can't move, grip, hide, or share genes. Those powers come from structures on the outside. Toggle each one and watch the cell gain a survival skill.

A bacterial cell

Toggle the structures at right — the cell updates live.
The bacterial surfaceadd a structure to begin
🏊Motility
🧲Adhesion
🛡️Immune
evasion
🧬Gene
transfer
No external structures yet — a defenceless cell.
The outside mattersEverything that makes a microbe dangerous to a patient tends to live on its surface: the coat that hides it, the tails that carry it, the hairs that anchor it, and the tube that spreads its resistance genes. Add a structure to explore its job.