What is a Bacterial Endospore?
Endospores are dormant bodies produced only by certain genera of bacteria, namely members of Bacillus, Clostridium and Sporosarcina. These types of bacteria essentially have two phases to their life cycle, vegetative cells and endospores. When the living, vegetative cells of these genera are exposed to harsh environmental conditions, they undergo a process called sporulation and ultimately generate endospores. As one of the hardiest life forms, endospores are able to withstand high temperatures, drying out, freezing, radiation, chemicals and many other environmental conditions that would easily kill a vegetative cell. Endospores are metabolically inactive, like a seed that is able to wait for the environment to again become favorable. Once environmental conditions improve, the endospore then germinates back into a living, vegetative cell that can grow and thrive. Medical Impact of Bacterial Spores Although only a few groups of bacteria are able to form spores, people do frequently come
