ABSTRACT
Although bacteria are single-celled organisms that are less complex in some ways than eukaryotic cells, they are not inert cells. Bacterial cells are dynamic, undergoing physical changes in their composition and make-up of cellular components and proteins in response to their surroundings. For some bacteria, this involves responding to being in the soil, ocean, or other environments. Other bacteria adapt to being within host organisms, including making use of mechanisms to modulate host immune responses used by either animals or plants to control the presence of bacteria. Bacterial responses to their environment enable the bacterial cells to enhance their survival, to persist in the environment, and to potentially transmit to a new environment.
