Escherichiacoli (E. coli)
was isolated and characterized, and consequently named
after a man named Escherich in 1885. All strains of
E.
coli are gram negative rods belonging to the bacterial
family Enterobacteriacae. E. coli is a common
member of the intestinal flora and is highly adaptive due
to the constantly changing natural environment.
Research & E.
coli
Because it is easily accessed, is not
highly virulent, and grows readily on defined media, E.
coli emerged as the "winner" for laboratory research in the 1930s.
Because of this, more is known about E. coli that
any other cellular form of life. Research involving
E.
coli has given most of our current knowledge about
most biosynthetic pathways. In regards to genetics,
E.
coli has refined the concept of the gene and yielded
the solution to the genetic code. The discovery of
molecular mechanisms of gene regulation and the molecular
portrayal of viral morphogenesis are also researchs of
researching E. coli.
