| pilus | Hair like projection from surface of some bacteria. Involved in adhesion to surfaces (may be important in virulence) and specialised sex pili are involved in conjugation with other bacteria. Major constituent is a protein, pilin. (18 Nov 1997) |
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| f pilus | A long, narrow structure which protrudes from the surface of the male bacterial individual and connects the male to the female bacterial individual during the process of bacterial conjugation, when genetic material in the form of the f plasmid is transferred between individual bacterial cells. (09 Oct 1997) |
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