bacteriaceæ

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. A group of the simplest microscopic fungi, more usually called Schizomycetes, the achlorophyllous division of the Schizosporeæ of Cohn, or of the Schizophyta of more recent authorities. They exhibit a great variety of forms, and are subdivided accordingly into— Sphærobacteria, which are spherical, as in Micrococcus; Microbacteria, which are elliptical or shortly cylindrical, as in Bacterium, the only genus; Desmobacteria, which consist of straight filaments, as in Bacillus; Spirobacteria, in which the filaments are more or less coiled, as in Spirillum.