Question

Question 19:
A spherical mammalian cell of radius 'R' is infected by a single coccus bacterium having 100 times
smaller radius. Given that the host cell will lyse when 1/2 of the cell volume is taken up by the
bacterium, approximately how many times will the bacterium divide before the host cell is lysed?​

Answer 1

Answer:

The answer will be 19 (Option 1).

Explanation: Mammalian cell's radius = R, Bacterium's radius = R/100 (As radius of bacterium is 100 times smaller than radius of mammalian cell)

So, volume of mammalian cell = \frac{4}{3}\pi R^{3} , volume of bacterium = 4 , R 3 100

Now, host cell will lyse when 1/2 of the cell volume or \frac{2}{3}\pi {R}^{3} is taken up by the bacterium.