Photosynthetic pigments such as carotenoids and phycobiliproteins that aid chlorophyll in trapping light energy.
Acetyl-CoA pathway A biochemical pathway used by methanogens to fix C02 and by acetogenins to generate acetic acid.
Acetyl-coenzyme A (acetyl-CoA) A combination of acetic acid and coenzyme A that is energy-rich; it is produced by many...
Acid-fast staining A staining procedure that differentiates between bacteria based on their ability to retain a dye when washed...
acidic dyes Dyes that are anionic or have negatively charged groups such as carboxyls.
A microorganism that has its growth optimum between about pH 0 and 5.5.
Acquired immune tolerance The ability to produce antibodies against nonself antigens while “tolerating” (not producing antibodies against) self antigens....
Actin filaments One of the proteinaceous components of the eukaryotic cytoskeleton; also called microfilaments.
Actinobacteria (ak0tĭ-no-bak-tēr-e-ah) A group of Gram-positive bacteria containing actinomycetes and their high G 1 C relatives.
Actinomycete (ak0tĭ-no-mi9sēt) An aerobic, Gram-positive bacterium that forms branching filaments (hyphae) and asexual spores.
Actinorhizae Associations between actinomycetes and plant roots.
Activated sludge Solid matter or sediment composed of actively growing microorganisms that participate in the aerobic portion of a...
Allosteric enzyme An enzyme whose activity is altered by the noncovalent binding of a small molecule (allosteric effector) at...
Antimicrobial categories are classifications of antimicrobial agents based on their mode of action and specific to target organisms