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Preferred Term:

Cyanobacteria

Definition:
A phylum of oxygenic photosynthetic bacteria comprised of unicellular to multicellular bacteria possessing chlorophyll a and carrying out oxygenic photosynthesis. Cyanobacteria are the only known organisms capable of fixing both carbon dioxide (in the presence of light) and nitrogen. Cell morphology can include nitrogen-fixing heterocysts and/or resting cells called akinetes. Formerly called blue-green algae, cyanobacteria were traditionally treated as algae.
Concept Schemes:
NALT Core
Broader Concept:
Narrower Concepts:
Entry Terms:
  • Cyanochloronta
  • blue-green bacteria
  • blue green bacteria
  • blue-green algae
  • blue green algae
  • Cyanophyta
URI:
https://lod.nal.usda.gov/nalt/72
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RDF/XMLCreated 2006-01-19, last modified 2020-04-14