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Micro World

How small is Klebsiella pneumoniae?

Klebsiella pneumoniae is about 2 µm long.

What is measured: rod-shaped bacterium, cell length

Klebsiella pneumoniae (2 µm) drawn to scale beside an E. coli bacterium (2 µm) and a red blood cell (7.5 µm)
Drawn to scale, from left to right: Klebsiella pneumoniae (2 µm), E. coli bacterium (2 µm) and Red blood cell (7.5 µm).

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How big is that, really?

  • About the same length as an E. coli bacterium
  • About 3 would fit across a red blood cell
  • About 20× the width of a flu virus
  • About 80× the width of a ribosome

Learn

Facts about Klebsiella pneumoniae

Klebsiella pneumoniae is encased in a thick polysaccharide capsule that helps it resist the immune system.

Source: CDC, Klebsiella; ASM Journals

Micro World

NameSizeCompared with Klebsiella pneumoniae
Pandoravirus1 µm0.5×
Nitrosomonas europaea Bacterium1.5 µm0.75×
Micrococcus luteus1.5 µm0.75×
Listeria monocytogenes2 µmsame size
Campylobacter jejuni2 µmsame size
Klebsiella pneumoniae2 µmthis page
Deinococcus radiodurans2 µmsame size
Shigella flexneri2.5 µm1.3×
Penicillium Spore3 µm1.5×
Aspergillus niger Spore4 µm2×

Test your sense of scale

Which is bigger: Klebsiella pneumoniae or Shigella flexneri?

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