rhizobia

Variant of rhizobium

noun pl. rhizobia

any of a genus (Rhizobium) of rod-shaped, nitrogen-fixing bacteria found in nodules on the roots of certain leguminous plants, as the bean and clover

Origin: ModL < rhizo- + Gr bios, life: see bio-

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
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