sulfur bacteria
- noun
- /ˈsʌlfər bækˈtɪəriə/
- Specialized
:
bacterias de azufre
- " Actually, cyanobacteria evolved from an even more archaic form of primitive one-celled life: green sulfur bacteria."
- green sulfur bacteria
Examples
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During the experiment, they observed that sulfur bacteria can help convert toxic compounds into less harmful substances.
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John's research at Brookhaven National Laboratory focused primarily on green sulfur bacteria.
Academic text (2018) -
Besides the work on green sulfur bacteria, cytochrome redox reactions were analyzed in several purple bacteria.
Academic text (2018) -
The green sulfur bacteria have the largest light-gathering antenna system of any known photosynthetic organism, which permits them to live in extremely low light intensities.
Academic text (2018) -
Sulfur bacteria play a crucial role in the sulfur cycle by oxidizing sulfur compounds.
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The researchers discovered that sulfur bacteria thrive in environments rich in sulfur and low in oxygen.
Surface Forms
Morphology
The noun-noun compound is directly compositional: 'sulfur' specifies the type or association of 'bacteria', so it denotes bacteria related to or using sulfur. A B1 learner who knows both constituent words can reliably infer the general meaning (bacteria connected with sulfur), even if the precise metabolic details are technical.
Etymology
Sulfur bacteria describes bacteria that use sulfur or sulfur compounds for energy. Imagine tiny bacteria in smelly mud or near hot vents that 'eat' the rotten-egg chemicals, so the name means 'bacteria that get energy from sulfur'.
