Micro 20: Bacillus

Clinical Deep Dives · Feb 17, 2026 · 38m

This episode introduces the Gram-positive, spore-forming rods of the genus Bacillus. Drawing from Murray’s chapter, it explores their defining biological trait: the ability to form endospores that withstand heat, desiccation, radiation, and chemical insult.

The episode centres primarily on Bacillus anthracis, the agent of anthrax, examining its capsule, tripartite toxin system (protective antigen, oedema factor, lethal factor), and the pathophysiology of cutaneous, inhalational, and gastrointestinal disease. The clinical patterns - painless black eschar, mediastinal widening, fulminant sepsis…