Surface Structures of Gram-positive Bacteria

Although it would be out of place to give here an extensive account of the surface anatomy of bacteria, current interest in the exact location of compounds in the anatomical components of cells, for example, in membranes, granules, mitochondria, and ribosomes, requires a reasonably precise description of the location of teichoic acids. In its turn, this requires an understanding of the main features of the outer regions of bacteria. Gram-positive bacteria possess a rigid cell-wall which is responsible for 

The protoplast membrane differs markedly in properties and composition from the wall, and is characterized by a high content of lipid and by the virtual absence24 27 of the characteristic components of wall glycosamino- 

The application of electron microscopy to the study of fractionation of disrupted bacteria, and the subsequent isolation of homogeneous preparations of wall fractions, 2 have led to an increasing interest in their chemistry. This interest has been further stimulated by the recognition of the metabolic importance of the wall, and the discovery that the lethal action of such antibiotic substances as the penicillins is principally due to inhibition of wall synthesis (compare Ref. 33). 

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