The term capsule in microbiology refers to a layer that lies outside the cell wall of bacteria. This layer is well organized and not easily washed off. It is usually composed of polysaccharides, but could be composed of other materials. Capsules help protect bacteria against phagocytosis. Capsules also contain water which protects bacteria against desiccation. They also exclude bacterial viruses and most hydrophobic toxic materials such as detergents. An agar plate streaked with microorganisms Microbiology is the study of microorganisms, which are unicellular or cell-cluster microscopic organisms. ... A cell wall is a fairly rigid layer surrounding a cell, located external to the cell membrane, that provides the cell with structural support, protection, and a filtering mechanism. ... Phyla/Divisions Actinobacteria Aquificae Bacteroidetes/Chlorobi Chlamydiae/Verrucomicrobia Chloroflexi Chrysiogenetes Cyanobacteria Deferribacteres Deinococcus-Thermus Dictyoglomi Fibrobacteres/Acidobacteria Firmicutes Fusobacteria Gemmatimonadetes Nitrospirae Omnibacteria Planctomycetes Proteobacteria Spirochaetes Thermodesulfobacteria Thermomicrobia Thermotogae Bacteria (singular, bacterium) are a major group of living organisms. ... Polysaccharides (sometimes called glycans) are relatively complex carbohydrates. ... Steps of a macrophage ingesting a pathogen: a. ... Desiccation is the state of extreme dryness, or the process of extreme drying. ... Stop editing pages god ... In chemistry, hydrophobic or lipophilic species, or hydrophobes, tend to be electrically neutral and nonpolar, and thus prefer other neutral and nonpolar solvents or molecular environments. ... A detergent is a compound, or a mixture of compounds, intended to assist cleaning. ...