Describe features of prokaryotes that enable them to thrive in a wide range of different environments.

Question

Want to see more full solutions like this?

Answer 1

Textbook Question

Chapter 27, Problem 27.1CR

Describe features of prokaryotes that enable them to thrive in a wide range of different environments.

Expert Solution & Answer

Summary Introduction

To describe: The features of prokaryotes to enable them to thrive in varied environments.

Introduction: Prokaryotes are small unicellular organisms that exhibit peculiar features in their structural organization that make them adapt to a varied range of different environments. These features include the presence of peptidoglycans cell wall, flagella, endospore formation, and resistant genes in plasmids.

Explanation of Solution

The cell walls of prokaryotes are peptidoglycan in nature, which protect the cell, maintain its shape, and prevent it from bursting into the hypotonic environment. In many prokaryotes, the cell wall is surrounded by a sticky coat of polysaccharides or protein, which is known as a capsule. The capsule and slime layers protect the organisms against dehydration and attack their host immune system. Certain bacteria exhibit the property of endospore formation, which enables them to cope up with scarcity of water and nutrients. During the endospore formation, the entire water content is removed to halt the metabolism of bacteria, so that they can survive in the extreme environment in a dormant stage and regain viability even after centuries when they resume their metabolism in a favorable environment. The prokaryotes exhibit short generation time with a large population size, which results in the new mutations to increase the genetic diversity to adapt the variations in a local environment, and thus leading to the evolution. Although the bacteria contain a single chromosome, they may also contain plasmids to carry few genes that provide them antibiotic resistance.

Conclusion

There are several features that help the prokaryotes to survive in extreme conditions.

Want to see more full solutions like this?

Subscribe now to access step-by-step solutions to millions of textbook problems written by subject matter experts!

Students have asked these similar questions

Describe features of prokaryotes that enable them to thrive in a widerange of different environments.

List and briefly define the prokaryotic shapes and spatial arrangements

Describe two adaptations that enable prokaryotes to survive in environments too harsh for other organisms.

Answer 2

Textbook Question

Chapter 27, Problem 27.1CR

Describe features of prokaryotes that enable them to thrive in a wide range of different environments.

Expert Solution & Answer

Summary Introduction

To describe: The features of prokaryotes to enable them to thrive in varied environments.

Introduction: Prokaryotes are small unicellular organisms that exhibit peculiar features in their structural organization that make them adapt to a varied range of different environments. These features include the presence of peptidoglycans cell wall, flagella, endospore formation, and resistant genes in plasmids.

Explanation of Solution

The cell walls of prokaryotes are peptidoglycan in nature, which protect the cell, maintain its shape, and prevent it from bursting into the hypotonic environment. In many prokaryotes, the cell wall is surrounded by a sticky coat of polysaccharides or protein, which is known as a capsule. The capsule and slime layers protect the organisms against dehydration and attack their host immune system. Certain bacteria exhibit the property of endospore formation, which enables them to cope up with scarcity of water and nutrients. During the endospore formation, the entire water content is removed to halt the metabolism of bacteria, so that they can survive in the extreme environment in a dormant stage and regain viability even after centuries when they resume their metabolism in a favorable environment. The prokaryotes exhibit short generation time with a large population size, which results in the new mutations to increase the genetic diversity to adapt the variations in a local environment, and thus leading to the evolution. Although the bacteria contain a single chromosome, they may also contain plasmids to carry few genes that provide them antibiotic resistance.

Conclusion

There are several features that help the prokaryotes to survive in extreme conditions.

Want to see more full solutions like this?

Subscribe now to access step-by-step solutions to millions of textbook problems written by subject matter experts!

Answer 3

Textbook Question

Chapter 27, Problem 27.1CR

Describe features of prokaryotes that enable them to thrive in a wide range of different environments.

Expert Solution & Answer

Summary Introduction

To describe: The features of prokaryotes to enable them to thrive in varied environments.

Introduction: Prokaryotes are small unicellular organisms that exhibit peculiar features in their structural organization that make them adapt to a varied range of different environments. These features include the presence of peptidoglycans cell wall, flagella, endospore formation, and resistant genes in plasmids.

Explanation of Solution

The cell walls of prokaryotes are peptidoglycan in nature, which protect the cell, maintain its shape, and prevent it from bursting into the hypotonic environment. In many prokaryotes, the cell wall is surrounded by a sticky coat of polysaccharides or protein, which is known as a capsule. The capsule and slime layers protect the organisms against dehydration and attack their host immune system. Certain bacteria exhibit the property of endospore formation, which enables them to cope up with scarcity of water and nutrients. During the endospore formation, the entire water content is removed to halt the metabolism of bacteria, so that they can survive in the extreme environment in a dormant stage and regain viability even after centuries when they resume their metabolism in a favorable environment. The prokaryotes exhibit short generation time with a large population size, which results in the new mutations to increase the genetic diversity to adapt the variations in a local environment, and thus leading to the evolution. Although the bacteria contain a single chromosome, they may also contain plasmids to carry few genes that provide them antibiotic resistance.

Conclusion

There are several features that help the prokaryotes to survive in extreme conditions.

Want to see more full solutions like this?

Subscribe now to access step-by-step solutions to millions of textbook problems written by subject matter experts!

Answer 4

Textbook Question

Chapter 27, Problem 27.1CR

Describe features of prokaryotes that enable them to thrive in a wide range of different environments.

Expert Solution & Answer

Summary Introduction

To describe: The features of prokaryotes to enable them to thrive in varied environments.

Introduction: Prokaryotes are small unicellular organisms that exhibit peculiar features in their structural organization that make them adapt to a varied range of different environments. These features include the presence of peptidoglycans cell wall, flagella, endospore formation, and resistant genes in plasmids.

Explanation of Solution

The cell walls of prokaryotes are peptidoglycan in nature, which protect the cell, maintain its shape, and prevent it from bursting into the hypotonic environment. In many prokaryotes, the cell wall is surrounded by a sticky coat of polysaccharides or protein, which is known as a capsule. The capsule and slime layers protect the organisms against dehydration and attack their host immune system. Certain bacteria exhibit the property of endospore formation, which enables them to cope up with scarcity of water and nutrients. During the endospore formation, the entire water content is removed to halt the metabolism of bacteria, so that they can survive in the extreme environment in a dormant stage and regain viability even after centuries when they resume their metabolism in a favorable environment. The prokaryotes exhibit short generation time with a large population size, which results in the new mutations to increase the genetic diversity to adapt the variations in a local environment, and thus leading to the evolution. Although the bacteria contain a single chromosome, they may also contain plasmids to carry few genes that provide them antibiotic resistance.

Conclusion

There are several features that help the prokaryotes to survive in extreme conditions.

Want to see more full solutions like this?

Subscribe now to access step-by-step solutions to millions of textbook problems written by subject matter experts!

Answer 5

Textbook Question

Answer 6

Textbook Question

Answer 7

Expert Solution & Answer

Summary Introduction

To describe: The features of prokaryotes to enable them to thrive in varied environments.

Introduction: Prokaryotes are small unicellular organisms that exhibit peculiar features in their structural organization that make them adapt to a varied range of different environments. These features include the presence of peptidoglycans cell wall, flagella, endospore formation, and resistant genes in plasmids.

Explanation of Solution

The cell walls of prokaryotes are peptidoglycan in nature, which protect the cell, maintain its shape, and prevent it from bursting into the hypotonic environment. In many prokaryotes, the cell wall is surrounded by a sticky coat of polysaccharides or protein, which is known as a capsule. The capsule and slime layers protect the organisms against dehydration and attack their host immune system. Certain bacteria exhibit the property of endospore formation, which enables them to cope up with scarcity of water and nutrients. During the endospore formation, the entire water content is removed to halt the metabolism of bacteria, so that they can survive in the extreme environment in a dormant stage and regain viability even after centuries when they resume their metabolism in a favorable environment. The prokaryotes exhibit short generation time with a large population size, which results in the new mutations to increase the genetic diversity to adapt the variations in a local environment, and thus leading to the evolution. Although the bacteria contain a single chromosome, they may also contain plasmids to carry few genes that provide them antibiotic resistance.

Conclusion

There are several features that help the prokaryotes to survive in extreme conditions.

Answer 8

Expert Solution & Answer

Summary Introduction

To describe: The features of prokaryotes to enable them to thrive in varied environments.

Introduction: Prokaryotes are small unicellular organisms that exhibit peculiar features in their structural organization that make them adapt to a varied range of different environments. These features include the presence of peptidoglycans cell wall, flagella, endospore formation, and resistant genes in plasmids.

Explanation of Solution

The cell walls of prokaryotes are peptidoglycan in nature, which protect the cell, maintain its shape, and prevent it from bursting into the hypotonic environment. In many prokaryotes, the cell wall is surrounded by a sticky coat of polysaccharides or protein, which is known as a capsule. The capsule and slime layers protect the organisms against dehydration and attack their host immune system. Certain bacteria exhibit the property of endospore formation, which enables them to cope up with scarcity of water and nutrients. During the endospore formation, the entire water content is removed to halt the metabolism of bacteria, so that they can survive in the extreme environment in a dormant stage and regain viability even after centuries when they resume their metabolism in a favorable environment. The prokaryotes exhibit short generation time with a large population size, which results in the new mutations to increase the genetic diversity to adapt the variations in a local environment, and thus leading to the evolution. Although the bacteria contain a single chromosome, they may also contain plasmids to carry few genes that provide them antibiotic resistance.

Conclusion

There are several features that help the prokaryotes to survive in extreme conditions.

Answer 9

Expert Solution & Answer

Answer 10

Expert Solution & Answer

Answer 11

Summary Introduction

To describe: The features of prokaryotes to enable them to thrive in varied environments.

Introduction: Prokaryotes are small unicellular organisms that exhibit peculiar features in their structural organization that make them adapt to a varied range of different environments. These features include the presence of peptidoglycans cell wall, flagella, endospore formation, and resistant genes in plasmids.

Answer 12

Explanation of Solution

The cell walls of prokaryotes are peptidoglycan in nature, which protect the cell, maintain its shape, and prevent it from bursting into the hypotonic environment. In many prokaryotes, the cell wall is surrounded by a sticky coat of polysaccharides or protein, which is known as a capsule. The capsule and slime layers protect the organisms against dehydration and attack their host immune system. Certain bacteria exhibit the property of endospore formation, which enables them to cope up with scarcity of water and nutrients. During the endospore formation, the entire water content is removed to halt the metabolism of bacteria, so that they can survive in the extreme environment in a dormant stage and regain viability even after centuries when they resume their metabolism in a favorable environment. The prokaryotes exhibit short generation time with a large population size, which results in the new mutations to increase the genetic diversity to adapt the variations in a local environment, and thus leading to the evolution. Although the bacteria contain a single chromosome, they may also contain plasmids to carry few genes that provide them antibiotic resistance.

Answer 13

Conclusion

There are several features that help the prokaryotes to survive in extreme conditions.

Answer 14

Ch. 27.1 - Describe two adaptations that enable prokaryotes...Ch. 27.1 - Contrast the cellular and DNA structures of...Ch. 27.1 - Prob. 3CC Ch. 27.2 - Although rare on a per gene basis, new mutations...Ch. 27.2 - Distinguish between the three mechanisms by which...Ch. 27.2 - In a rapidly changing environment, which bacterial...Ch. 27.3 - Distinguish between the four major modes of...Ch. 27.3 - A bacterium requires only the amino acid...Ch. 27.3 - WHAT IF? Describe what you might eat for a...Ch. 27.4 - Explain how molecular systematics and metagenomics...

Describe features of prokaryotes that enable them to thrive in a wide range of different environments.

Videos

Explanation of Solution

Want to see more full solutions like this?

Chapter 27 Solutions