Mechanisms of Adaptation (PDF)

The Bacteria: Volume VII: Mechanisms of Adaptation explores the mechanisms of bacterial adaptations and covers topics ranging from bacterial spores, cysts, and stalks to nitrogen fixation, bacterial chemotaxis, bacteriophage growth, and the structure and biosynthesis of bacterial cell walls. The roles of appendages and surface layers in adaptation of bacteria to their environment are also considered, along with cell division in Escherichia coli.
This volume is comprised of nine chapters and begins with a discussion on the structure, properties, formation, and regulation of spores, cysts, and stalks in actinomycetes, blue-green bacteria, myxobacteria, Bacillus, Azotobacter, and Caulobacter. The reader is then introduced to the biochemistry, regulation, genetics, and evolution of nitrogen fixing in organisms; the receptors involved in bacterial chemotaxis and the nature of the sensing mechanism; the outer membrane of gram-negative bacteria; and bacterial functions involved in nutrient detection and acquisition. The roles played by organelles and surface layers in the adaptation of bacteria to their environment are also examined. The final chapter deals with the regulation of, and coordination between, the multitude of events involved in cell division in Escherichia coli.
This monograph will be a useful resource for microbiologists, bacteriologists, biochemists, and biologists.