Theory 25/Cellular/Bacterial morphology
Shape Balances Wall and Turgor
The claim
Bacterial cell shape is set by the ratio of wall synthesis anisotropy to turgor pressure, so higher turgor rounds the cell.
01Mechanism
Turgor pushes outward uniformly while wall insertion is directional; the ratio determines whether elongation survives.
02Prediction
Shape should track the ratio.
03Refutation
Shape tracking wall composition would remove turgor.