Anatomical Features of Vibrio fetus: Electron Microscopic Survey

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Abstract
Vibrio fetus was examined in shadow-cast, negative-contrast and thin-sectioned preparations. Four morphological types were noted in shadowed specimens: comma, coccoid, S-shaped and filamentous. In negative-contrast preparations organisms were differentiated into two types on the appearance of their cytoplasmic mass. A large spherical cytoplasmic inclusion was frequently evident at the flagellated role of freshly harvested organisms. Various morphological variants, "sports", e.g. multiflagellate, were easily detected. A non-motile isolate was either devoid of flagella or exhibited only a short stub at the pole. In thin-section preparations anatomical features noted were: a rugose loosely fitting membranous integument; a complex cytoplasmic membrane of honeycomb-like structure; a fibrillar nucleoplasm and fibrillar cytoplasmic ground substance with associated ribosomes; lamellated or cytoplasmic granules bounded by a smooth membrane. At the flagellated pole the cytoplasmic ground substance was generally rarefied and a cone-shaped flagellar basal granule was present. The flagella were enlarged at their proximal terminus. Mesosome-like elaborations of the cytoplasmic membrane were not observed. It was concluded that V. fetus closely resembles members of the genus Spirillum.