Further Electron Microscope Characterization of Spore Appendages of <i>Clostridium bifermentans</i>

Abstract

Two distinct spore appendage types of Clostridium bifermentans, a pinlike appendage and a tubular appendage, were studied by electron microscopy. The pinlike appendage is characterized by a shaft, about 100 A in diameter, which has a lobed caplike structure. The tubular appendage, 500 to 600 A in diameter, is characterized by a hirsute region consisting of small filaments or fibrils. Gross morphology and ultrastructural features of both types are described.