bacteriolysis

American

[bak-teer-ee-ol-uh-sis] / bækˌtɪər iˈɒl ə sɪs /

noun

disintegration or dissolution of bacteria.

bacteriolysis British

/ bækˌtɪərɪəˈlɪtɪk, bækˌtɪərɪˈɒlɪsɪs /

noun

the destruction or disintegration of bacteria

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

bacteriolytic noun

Etymology

Origin of bacteriolysis

First recorded in 1890–95; bacterio- + -lysis

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

It can be shown that in many cases when bacteria are injected the serum of the treated animal has no bacteriolytic effect, and still an immune body is present, which leads to the fixation of complement; in this case bacteriolysis does not occur, because the organism is not susceptible to the action of the complement.

From Project Gutenberg

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023