Anaplasma phagocytophilum

1 9.9

A germ spread by ticks that causes disease in people and animals

noun
/ˌænəˈplæzmə ˌfæɡəʊˈsɪtəˌfɪləm/

Specialized

: Anaplasma phagocytophilum

Ticks can transmit Anaplasma phagocytophilum to both humans and animals during feeding.

Examples

Doctors test for Anaplasma phagocytophilum when patients show symptoms of tick-borne illness.
Livestock infected with Anaplasma phagocytophilum may develop fever and other health problems.
The Anaplasma phagocytophilum bacterium is transmitted by ticks.
Have you heard about Anaplasma phagocytophilum infection?
Ticks can transmit Anaplasma phagocytophilum to both humans and animals during feeding.
Doctors test for Anaplasma phagocytophilum when patients show symptoms of tick-borne illness.
Livestock infected with Anaplasma phagocytophilum may develop fever and other health problems.

Surface Forms

Anaplasma phagocytophilum singular

Anaplasma phagocytophila singular

Morphology

Anaplasma + phagocytophilum

This is a scientific Latin binomial (genus + species) rather than a compositional English phrase; even if a learner knows 'Anaplasma' as a bacterial genus, the species epithet 'phagocytophilum' is non‑transparent and not interpretable from everyday English. Taxonomic names are specialised and follow Latin morphology, so a B1 learner would not be able to derive the full meaning from the constituents alone.

Etymology

Anaplasma phagocytophilum comes from old scientific words that describe what the bacteria do: Anaplasma refers to changes in blood cells, and phagocytophilum breaks into phagocyto ('cells that eat') and philum ('loving'), so it 'likes' those cells. That's why the name points to a bacterium that lives in and affects 'white blood cells' and causes tick-borne disease.