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Ultrastructural Changes Associated with Activation and Germination of Bacillus cereus T Spores

¹ Department of Microbiology, Loyola University (Chicago) Stritch School of Medicine, Maywood, Illinois 60153
Department of Microbiology and Department of Botany, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky 40506

ABSTRACT

The ultrastructural changes occurring during defined stages of the transition of dormant Bacillus cereus T spores into heat-sensitive forms were investigated. The coat of the heat-activated spores displayed conspicuous striations across its middle layer. Electron microscopy of thin sections of heat-activated spores revealed the presence in the spore of a layer consisting of hexagonally oriented subunits. It was demonstrated that the subcoat region, but not the cortex, disappears rapidly during germination of B. cereus T spores. The fibrous structures apparently associated with the spore coat remain virtually unchanged during the entire course of activation and germination.