Editing Mesosome (section)

==Initial observations==
These structures are invaginations of the plasma membrane observed in [[gram-positive]] bacteria that have been chemically [[Fixation (histology)|fixed]] to prepare them for electron microscopy.<ref name=Silva/> They were first observed in 1953 by George B. Chapman and James Hillier,<ref name=Chapman1953>{{cite journal|author1=Chapman, George B. |author2=Hillier, James  |name-list-style=amp | year = 1953 | title = Electron microscopy of ultra-thin sections of bacteria I. Cellular division in Bacillus cereus | journal = J. Bacteriol. |volume=66 |issue=3 | pages = 362–373|doi=10.1128/JB.66.3.362-373.1953 |pmid=13096487 |pmc=357155 }}</ref> who referred to them as "peripheral bodies." They were termed "mesosomes" by Fitz-James in 1960.<ref name=Robertson1959>{{cite journal | author = Robertson, J.D. | year = 1959 | title = The ultra structure of cell membranes and their derivatives, Biochem | journal = Soc. Syrup | pages = 3}}</ref>

Initially, it was thought that mesosomes might play a role in several cellular processes, such as [[cell wall]] formation during [[cell division]], [[chromosome]] replication, or as a site for [[oxidative phosphorylation]].<ref>{{cite journal |author=Suganuma A |title=Studies on the fine structure of Staphylococcus aureus |journal=J Electron Microsc (Tokyo) |volume=15 |issue=4 |pages=257–61 |year=1966 |pmid=5984369}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Pontefract RD, Bergeron G, Thatcher FS |title=Mesosomes in Escherichia coli |journal=J. Bacteriol. |volume=97 |issue=1 |pages=367–75 |year=1969 |pmid=4884819 |url= |doi=10.1002/path.1710970223 |pmc=249612}}</ref> The mesosome was thought to increase the surface area of the cell, aiding the cell in cellular respiration. This is analogous to [[cristae]] in the [[mitochondrion]] in eukaryotic cells, which are finger-like projections and help eukaryotic cells undergo cellular respiration. Mesosomes were also hypothesized to aid in photosynthesis, cell division, DNA replication, and cell compartmentalisation.