Microbiology 1.1

prion

A concocted word to denote "proteinaceous infectious agent"; a cytopathic protein associated with the slow-virus spongiform encephalopathies of humans and animals.

protozoa

A group of single-celled, eukaryotic organisms.

microorganism

A living thing ordinarily too small to be seen without magnification; an organism of microscopic size.

Microbiology

A specialized area of biology that deals with living things ordinarily too small to be seen without magnification, including bacteria, archaea, fungi, protozoa, and viruses.

helminth

A term that designates all parasitic worms.

microscopic

Invisible to the naked eye.

fungi

Macroscopic and microscopic heterotrophic eukaryotic organisms that can be uni- or multicellular

virus

Microscopic, acellular agent composed of nucleic acid surrounded by a protein coat.

archaea

Prokaryotic single-celled organisms of primitive origin that have unusual anatomy, physiology, and genetics and live in harsh habitats; when capitalized, the term refers to one of the three domains of living organisms as proposed by Woese.

Bacteria

When capitalized can refer to one of the three domains of living organisms proposed by Woese, containing all nonarchaea prokaryotes.