Difference in gram positive and gram negative bacteria is due to
- A.
cell wall
- B.
cell membrane
- C.
ribosome
- D.
cytoplasm.
- Recall that the Gram stain technique, developed by Christian Gram, classifies bacteria into two groups based on whether they retain or lose a violet dye after treatment with alcohol.
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Recall that in Gram-positive bacteria, the cell wall has both horizontal and vertical peptide linkages forming a dense mesh (with an outer layer of teichoic acid), which traps the stain inside, so it is retained.
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Recall that in Gram-negative bacteria, the cell wall has a looser mesh (with an outer layer of lipopolysaccharides), allowing the stain to be washed out by alcohol.
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Since this staining difference arises directly from structural and compositional variations in the bacterial cell wall, this is the underlying cause of the Gram-positive/Gram-negative distinction.
Hence, the correct answer is Option A, cell wall.