EVERYDAY SCIENCE

Detailed explanation-1: -Pili (Fimbriae): Pili are slender, hairlike, proteinaceous appendages on the surface of many (particularly Gram-negative) bacteria. They are important in adhesion to host surfaces.

Detailed explanation-2: -Fimbriae are short, hair-like projections that attach a bacterium to a substrate or other cells. Pili are similar structures that can serve many functions, including helping the bacterium move or helping it transfer DNA to another bacterium.

Detailed explanation-3: -Pili are short, hair-like structures on the cell surface of prokaryotic cells. They can have a role in movement, but are more often involved in adherence to surfaces, which facilitates infection, and is a key virulence characteristic. Structure of a bacterial cell.

Detailed explanation-4: -Prokaryotes often have appendages (protrusions) on their surface. Flagella and some pili are used for locomotion, fimbriae help the cell stick to a surface, and sex pili are used for DNA exchange.

Detailed explanation-5: -Pili or fimbriae are protein structures that extend from the bacterial cell envelope for a distance up to 2 m (Figure 3). They function to attach the cells to surfaces. E. coli cells can have up to 300 of these organelles.