Noun | 1. | ![]() immune reaction, immune response, immunologic response - a bodily defense reaction that recognizes an invading substance (an antigen: such as a virus or fungus or bacteria or transplanted organ) and produces antibodies specific against that antigen bioremediation - the act of treating waste or pollutants by the use of microorganisms (as bacteria) that can break down the undesirable substances microorganism, micro-organism - any organism of microscopic size acidophil, acidophile - an organism that thrives in a relatively acid environment probiotic, probiotic bacterium, probiotic flora, probiotic microflora - a beneficial bacterium found in the intestinal tract of healthy mammals; often considered to be a plant bacteroid - a rodlike bacterium (especially any of the rod-shaped or branched bacteria in the root nodules of nitrogen-fixing plants) eubacteria, eubacterium, true bacteria - a large group of bacteria having rigid cell walls; motile types have flagella Calymmatobacterium, genus Calymmatobacterium - a genus of bacterial rods containing only the one species that causes granuloma inguinale Francisella, genus Francisella - a genus of Gram-negative aerobic bacteria that occur as pathogens and parasite in many animals (including humans) gonococcus, Neisseria gonorrhoeae - the pus-producing bacterium that causes gonorrhea legionella, Legionella pneumophilia - the motile aerobic rod-shaped Gram-negative bacterium that thrives in central heating and air conditioning systems and can cause Legionnaires' disease nitrobacterium - any of the bacteria in the soil that take part in the nitrogen cycle; they oxidize ammonium compounds into nitrites or oxidize nitrites into nitrates penicillin-resistant bacteria - bacteria that are unaffected by penicillin pus-forming bacteria - bacteria that produce pus rod - any rod-shaped bacterium diplococcus - Gram-positive bacteria usually occurring in pairs superbug - a strain of bacteria that is resistant to all antibiotics resistance - the degree of unresponsiveness of a disease-causing microorganism to antibiotics or other drugs (as in penicillin-resistant bacteria) microphage - a neutrophil that ingests small things (as bacteria) microbiology - the branch of biology that studies microorganisms and their effects on humans |