glyserolilla

Glyserolilla is a fictional genus of bacteria created for educational purposes to illustrate glycerol metabolism and basic microbial physiology. It does not correspond to any verified organism in current taxonomic databases.

In typical textbook descriptions, Glyserolilla is portrayed as a small, Gram-negative rod that forms pale, translucent colonies on glycerol-rich media. Cells are often described as 0.8–1.5 μm long and motile by peritrichous flagella.

Metabolism and growth: Glyserolilla is described as able to utilize glycerol as a sole carbon and energy source. The organism is said to possess enzymes of the glycerol uptake and metabolism pathway, such as glycerol kinase and glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase, linking glycerol catabolism to the central carbon metabolism. Under aerobic conditions, growth is efficient; under microaerophilic or anaerobic conditions, Glyserolilla is depicted as performing partial fermentation, producing acids or alcohols such as acetate and ethanol.

Ecology and significance: In educational contexts, Glyserolilla is used to illustrate how microbes adapt to glycerol-rich environments, including industrial waste streams or natural settings with high glycerol availability. It serves as a model for discussing niche specialization, metabolism, and basic methods in microbiology such as isolation on glycerol-based media and basic genomic inferences.

Discovery and usage: The name and characteristics of Glyserolilla vary among textbooks and problem sets, reflecting its role as a didactic tool rather than a described natural organism.