mycoplasma

Bacterium without walls

Mycoplasma is a genus of bacteria that lack a cell wall, making them resistant to antibiotics like penicillin that target cell walls.

They are among the smallest self-replicating organisms known.

Mycoplasmas cause various infections in humans, including a common form of pneumonia called "walking pneumonia": The doctor suspected mycoplasma after the chest X-ray came back.

diagnosis

culture

Collective social practices

serologyStudy of blood antibodies
PCRDNA amplification technique
sputumExpelled lung mucus

infection

pneumonia

Infected, inflamed lung tissue

bronchitisInflamed airway disease
pharyngitisInflamed upper airway lining
urethritisInflamed urinary tube

respiratory · contagious · fever · cough · malaise · myalgia · fatigue · extrapulmonary · arthritis · meningitis

treatment

antibiotics

Bacteria-destroying medicines

azithromycinMacrolide antibacterial medication
doxycyclineTetracycline-class antimicrobial medication
erythromycinMacrolide antimicrobial medication

tetracycline · fluoroquinolones · clarithromycin · resistance · self-limiting · outpatient

bacterium

prokaryote

Cell without nuclear membrane

self-replicatingAble to duplicate autonomously
fastidiousExcessively attentive to detail
filterableCan be separated out

parasitic · commensal · sterols · membrane-bound · species · contamination

Opposites

genome size among bacteria

mycoplasmasoil bacteria

Microorganisms inhabiting dirt

cellular complexity

mycoplasmaeukaryote

Organism with nucleated cells

protozoa · amoeba · paramecium

Family

plasma, cytoplasm, ectoplasm, mycelium, mycology, plasmas, mycologist, endoplasm, plasmic

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