spirilla

Twisted microscopic organisms

Spirilla is the plural of spirillum, a bacterium with a rigid, spiral-shaped body.

These corkscrew forms are distinguished from other spiral bacteria by their stiffness—they don't flex like the looser spirochetes.

The term appears mainly in microbiology: The sample revealed spirilla under the microscope.

morphology

helix

Spiraling three-dimensional curve

corkscrewTool for opening bottles
coilWound circular arrangement
twistRotating motion or surprise

curved · whorl · flagella · rigid · elongated · cell-wall · shape · winding · torsion · helical

motility

flagella

Whiplike locomotion appendages

swimmingLocomotion through water
propulsionForce driving movement forward
aquaticWater-inhabiting

twitching · undulating · chemotaxis · locomotion · movement · rotation

microbiology

bacteria

Nucleus-free single-celled organisms

prokaryotesOrganisms without membrane-bound nuclei
microorganismsMicroscopic living entities
culturesCollective human practices

microbiology · cytoplasm · ribosomes · plasmids · genomics · bacteriology · microscope · cellular · staining · cultivation

taxonomy

vibrio

Curved rod bacterium

bacilliCylindrical bacteria
cocciSphere-shaped bacteria
genusTaxonomic rank above species

species · classification · phylogeny · morphology

pathogenic

gastritis

Stomach lining inflammation

ulcerErosive tissue wound
foodborneSpread via consumed items
infectionPathogen invasion causing illness

disease · transmission · waterborne · zoonotic · contamination

Opposites

bacterial morphology

spirillacocci

Sphere-shaped bacteria

bacilli · rods · spheres · bacillus · streptococci

Family

spiral, spiraling, spiraled

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