20 nm diameter and 2-2.5 micrometer wavelength. Made of hook protein. At least 15 proteins are involved in the complex basal body structure, in the EM it looks like a rod inserted into rings imbedded in the membrane. The sequences of both proteins and rRNAs, and their secondary structure, are highly conserved among diverse species of bacteria. The unique body plan of bacteria allows simultaneous transcription of mRNA from genes and translation of the mRNA into protein, a speedy and efficient process.
Cells contain from one to several nucleoids, depending on their growth rate.
1 mm circumference, which is folded, supercoiled, and condensed into an incredibly compact structure which occupies only a small fraction of the interior of the cell. Some storage compounds, like glycogen or poly-betahydroxybutyrate, are made during starvation in the presence of excess carbon and are used for a carbon source upon subsequent carbon starvation.