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Any of various spore-forming, chiefly filamentous bacteria of the order Actinomycetales that are abundant in soil. Some species produce natural antibiotics, and some are human pathogens.
(Microbiology) any bacterium of the group Actinomycetes, usually filamentous in form
[C20: from actino- + -mycete]
ac•tin•o•my•cete(ækˌtɪn oʊˈmaɪ sit, -maɪˈsit, ˌæk tə noʊ-)
any of several rod-shaped or filamentous, aerobic or anaerobic bacteria of the phylum Chlamydobacteriae, or in some classification schemes, the order Actinomycetales, certain species of which are pathogenic for humans and animals.
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|Noun||1.||actinomycete - any bacteria (some of which are pathogenic for humans and animals) belonging to the order Actinomycetales|
animal, animate being, beast, creature, fauna, brute - a living organism characterized by voluntary movement
eubacteria, eubacterium, true bacteria - a large group of bacteria having rigid cell walls; motile types have flagella
streptomyces - aerobic bacteria (some of which produce the antibiotic streptomycin)