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Glite Dictionary
family Treponemataceae

family Treponemataceae

9.9
A group of thin spiral bacteria that sometimes cause disease in people and animals
  • noun
  • Specialized
: familia Treponemataceae
  • The family Treponemataceae includes the agent responsible for syphilis.

Examples

  • The family Treponemataceae includes various species of spirochetes.

  • Some bacteria in the family Treponemataceae are known to cause serious human diseases.

  • Researchers studied the role of the family Treponemataceae in animal infections.

  • Some members of the family Treponemataceae are pathogenic.

  • The family Treponemataceae includes various species of spirochetes that can infect both humans and animals.

  • Some bacteria in the family Treponemataceae are known to cause serious human diseases like syphilis and yaws.

  • Researchers studied the role of the family Treponemataceae in the spread of infections amongst livestock.

Synonyms

Treponemataceae
vsfamily Treponemataceae
  • Specialized
9.9

A group of small bacteria that sometimes cause disease in people and animals

describe them as parasitic or pathogenic rather than specifying hosts

Surface Forms

family Treponemataceae singular
families Treponemataceae plural

Morphology

family + Treponemataceae

This is a straightforward taxonomic NP: 'family' denotes a scientific grouping and combining it with a taxon name (Treponemataceae) transparently yields the biological family named Treponemataceae (a group of spirochete bacteria). The meaning is compositional and follows a common cross-linguistic pattern for naming taxonomic groups, so a learner who knows both constituents can infer the MWE meaning.

Etymology

Family Treponemataceae comes from Greek words trepo, meaning 'turn', and nema, meaning 'thread'. These bacteria look like tiny, twisted threads, and the word 'family' shows they are a group of related species, so the name fits a group of small, spiral bacteria, some of which can cause disease.