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Micro World

How small is a Synechococcus cyanobacterium?

A typical Synechococcus cyanobacterium is about 1 µm across.

What is measured: single marine cyanobacterium cell, average diameter

Synechococcus Cyanobacterium (1 µm) drawn to scale beside a flu virus (100 nm) and an E. coli bacterium (2 µm)
Drawn to scale, from left to right: Flu virus (100 nm), Synechococcus Cyanobacterium (1 µm) and E. coli bacterium (2 µm).

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How big is that, really?

  • About 2 would fit end to end along an E. coli bacterium
  • About 7 would fit across a red blood cell
  • As wide as about 10 flu viruses side by side
  • About 40× as wide as a ribosome

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Facts about Synechococcus Cyanobacterium

Synechococcus is one of the most abundant photosynthetic organisms on Earth, contributing significantly to global oxygen production.

Source: NCBI Genome; Nature Reviews Microbiology - Marine Cyanobacteria

Micro World

NameSizeCompared with Synechococcus Cyanobacterium
Lysosome500 nm0.5×
Mimivirus750 nm0.75×
Neisseria gonorrhoeae800 nm0.8×
Pandoravirus1 µmsame size
Synechococcus Cyanobacterium1 µmthis page
Nitrosomonas europaea Bacterium1.5 µm1.5×
Micrococcus luteus1.5 µm1.5×
Listeria monocytogenes2 µm2×
Campylobacter jejuni2 µm2×
Klebsiella pneumoniae2 µm2×

Test your sense of scale

Which is bigger: Synechococcus Cyanobacterium or Neisseria gonorrhoeae?

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