MeSH

One of the three domains of life (the others being Eukarya and ARCHAEA), also called Eubacteria. They are unicellular prokaryotic microorganisms which generally possess rigid cell walls, multiply by cell division, and exhibit three principal forms: round or coccal, rodlike or bacillary, and spiral or spirochetal. Bacteria can be classified by their response to OXYGEN: aerobic, anaerobic, or facultatively anaerobic; by the mode by which they obtain their energy: chemotrophy (via chemical reaction) or PHOTOTROPHY (via light reaction); for chemotrophs by their source of chemical energy: CHEMOLITHOTROPHY (from inorganic compounds) or chemoorganotrophy (from organic compounds); and by their source for CARBON; NITROGEN; etc.; HETEROTROPHY (from organic sources) or AUTOTROPHY (from CARBON DIOXIDE). They can also be classified by whether or not they stain (based on the structure of their CELL WALLS) with CRYSTAL VIOLET dye: gram-negative or gram-positive.

Year introduced: 1963

The study of microorganisms such as fungi, bacteria, algae, archaea, and viruses.

Used with organs, animals, and higher plants and with diseases for microbiologic studies. For parasites, parasitology is used; for viruses, virology is used.

Year introduced: 1967

A genus of coccoid bacteria in the family PLANOCOCCACEAE. They are widely distributed in various habitats including sea water, freshwater ponds, cyanobacterial mats, and in marine animals.

Year introduced: 2011

A genus of gram-negative, obligate intracellular bacteria causing a proliferative enteritis in animals, especially pigs, deer, horses, and rabbits.

Year introduced: 2003(2000)

Widely distributed unicellular or multicellular bacteria. The CYANOBACTERIA use chlorophyll a and phycobilins for oxygenic photosynthesis while genera in the Prochlorales use both chlorophyll a and b but not phycobilins.

Year introduced: 1998

A group of gram-negative, anaerobic bacteria that is able to oxidize acetate completely to carbon dioxide using elemental sulfur as the electron acceptor.

Year introduced: 1992

Bacteria that form endospores and are gram-positive. Representative genera include BACILLUS; CLOSTRIDIUM; MICROMONOSPORA; SACCHAROPOLYSPORA; and STREPTOMYCES.

Year introduced: 1992

Bacteria which retain the crystal violet stain when treated by Gram's method.

Year introduced: 1984(1973)

A large group of bacteria including those which oxidize ammonia or nitrite, metabolize sulfur and sulfur compounds, or deposit iron and/or manganese oxides.

Year introduced: 1976

Bacteria which lose crystal violet stain but are stained pink when treated by Gram's method.

Year introduced: 1984(1973)

A large group of anaerobic bacteria which show up as pink (negative) when treated by the Gram-staining method.

Year introduced: 1976

A large group of aerobic bacteria which show up as pink (negative) when treated by the gram-staining method. This is because the cell walls of gram-negative bacteria are low in peptidoglycan and thus have low affinity for violet stain and high affinity for the pink dye safranine.

Year introduced: 1976

A group of rods or cocci whose taxonomic affinities are uncertain. They form endospores, thick-walled bodies formed within the vegetative cells of certain bacteria, able to withstand adverse environmental conditions for prolonged periods.

Year introduced: 1998

Bacteria that can survive and grow in the complete, or nearly complete absence of oxygen.

Year introduced: 1984

Bacteria which require oxygen in order to grow and survive.

Year introduced: 1984

Fluorescent antibody technique for visualizing antibody-bacteria complexes in urine. The presence or absence of antibody-coated bacteria in urine correlates with localization of urinary tract infection in the kidney or bladder, respectively.

Year introduced: 1991(1980)

Bacteria that are capable of NITROGEN FIXATION.

Year introduced: 2017

Bacteria resistant to high temperatures, as in PASTEURIZATION.

Year introduced: 2017

a DNA-binding protein from many bacteria that stimulates the enzymatic replication of duplex DNAs of recombinant phages & plasmids; do not confuse with vertebrate neuronal Hu protein

Date introduced: March 12, 1984