Fusobacterium

(fū″zō-bak-tēr′ē-ŭm )

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[L. fusus, spindle + bacterium ]
A genus of long, slender, gram-negative, anaerobic, non-spore-forming bacilli that is part of the resident flora of the intestines and oral cavity, esp. the gingival sulci. They are strict anaerobes and may infect necrotic tissue. F. nucleatum has been cultured from lesions of gangrenous stomatitis.

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