In the soil exist bacteria so small that they balance on the border of the size expected to be minimal for the living organism ; o
These organisms are extremely fascinating because they are so small that their size is the limit at which the cell can still contain all the elements necessary to sustain life. Therefore, bacteria contain extremely densely packed DNA spirals and a fairly small number of ribosomes.
These bacteria have become the smallest known organisms in the world, because they have a volume of only 0.009 cubic microns, which means that within the colon of the Escherichia coli they will fit around 150, and on the top of human hair over 150,000.
They were discovered during routine tests, passing the collected water through ever thicker filters, up to 0.2 μm. Scientists expected that water would be deprived of all forms of life, but it did not happen. Bacteria were immediately cooled down to minus 272 degrees Celsius and transported to the laboratory, where they were further analyzed.
Then, using 2D and 3D electronic cryomicroscopy, it was checked whether the cells were dividing, and later their internal structure was described.
