Sunday, December 7, 2014

Cell Project

Leslie Gutierrez
Ms. Malonek
Biology 1/2
7 December 2014


Final Project: Create a Cell

The cell I chose to make a 3D model of was: the bacteria E. Coli

Although everyone has E.coli bacteria naturally in their intestines, people and animals infected with the strand of E. coli 0157:H7, which can sometimes be found in under cooked foods, contaminated water and feces. Symptoms of E. Coli include diarrhea, abdominal pain, vomiting, and low fever.

E. coli, short for the medical term Escherichia coli,  is a common type of bacteria that can get into food, like beef and vegetables . E coli  is not always harmful to our body and normally lives inside out intestines, where it helps the human body break down and digest the food we eat.  However, not all E. coli is good and certain types (called strains) of E. coli can get from the intestines into the blood. Although this is a rare illness it can cause a very serious infection. A person who has an E. coli infection may have symptoms such as bad stomach cramps and belly pain, vomiting, and diarrhea, sometimes with blood in it. One very bad strain of E. coli was found in fresh spinach in 2006 and some fast-food hamburgers in 1993. Beef can contain E. coli because the bacteria often infect cattle, and Cattle's   manure is used for fertilizer  (a common practice to help crops grow). Water as well  contaminated with E. coli may be used to irrigate the crops.

E. coli can be passed from person to person, but serious E. coliinfection is more often linked to food containing the bacteria, which occurs when the person eats the contaminated food and gets sick. E. coli poisoning can occur when you eat under cooked ground beef (used for hamburgers), vegetables grown in cow manure or washed in contaminated water, or fruit juice that isn't pasteurized (pasteurization is a process that uses heat to kill germs).
Heat can kill E. coli and washing and scrubbing vegetables can help get rid of E.coli before eating them. In some cases, E. coli poisoning can cause life-threatening kidney problems. Overall, the main method of preventing e.coli is to always wash and keep your hands clean! 


In addition, since E. coli is a type of bacteria, this means that it is a prokaryotic cell and lack a nucleus. Unlike animal and plant cells, E. coli have a capsule which protects the bacterial cell and serves as a barrier against phagocytosis by white blood cells, a flagellum  which serve as  long appendages" which rotate by means of a "motor" located just under the cytoplasmic membrane" moving the cell to where it desires to go, and a pili which are hollow, hair-like structures which allow bacteria to attach to other cells. In some cases E.coli is considered a pathogen, as it is known to cause diseases. Even though E.coli is known to have an extremely simple cell structure with only one chromosomal DNA and a plasmid, E.coli can perform complicated metabolism that helps it to maintain its cell growth and cell division. Plus, E.coli has been widely used to synthesize DNA and proteins. 

Furthermore, E. coli is a Gram-negative rod-shaped bacteria containing some strains which are "piliated"and able of accepting and transferring plasmid to and from other bacteria, enables E. coli under with bad stress conditions to survive. Interestingly as well, E.coli has a network of fibers that allow them to bind to their host cells. Although E.coli are unique,they are similar to most bacteria in many ways, such as the fact that "E. coli can transfer its DNA materials through bacterial conjugation with other related bacteria to produce more mutation and add more strains into the existing population." 

Unlike both animal and plant cells, E.coli has three "walls" or protection, the outer layer called the capsule, the layer inside that the cell wall, and within that the plasma membrane. Likewise, E.coli contains a ribosomes like animal cells, however, contains a flagellum that enables it move. The pili in E.coli which plant and animal cells do not have are protein filaments that facilitate cell adhesion and conjugation. The DNA of E.coli , also unlike plant and animal cells, is more unorganized and just a clump compared to the nucleus of both which contain a multitude of parts. 

Theodor Escherich, a scientist first discovered E. Coli in 1885. Overtime, E. coli was found to be a gram-negative, facultative anaerobic and non-sporulating.



Reference: http://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/e-coli-infection-topic-overview




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