spirochete
or spi·ro·chaete
any of various spiral-shaped motile bacteria of the phylum Spirochaetes, distinguished by twisting flagella that run lengthwise between the bacterium’s inner and outer membranes, and inclusive of the family Spirochaetaceae, noted for certain pathogenic species that cause Lyme disease, syphilis, and other illnesses.
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Origin of spirochete
1Other words from spirochete
- spi·ro·chet·al, spi·ro·che·tic, adjective
Words Nearby spirochete
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use spirochete in a sentence
By far the most important of these is the spirillum or spirochete of Obermeier, which has been already carefully described.
Scientific definitions for spirochete
[ spī′rə-kēt′ ]
Any of various bacteria of the order Spirochaetales that are shaped like a spiral, such as Treponema pallidum, the pathogen that causes syphilis.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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