chemotroph








noun Bacteriology, Biology.

  1. any organism that oxidizes inorganic or organic compounds as its principal energy source.

  1. An organism that manufactures its own food through chemosynthesis (the oxidation of inorganic chemical compounds) as opposed to photosynthesis. The sulfur-oxidizing bacteria found at deep-sea hydrothermal vents and nitrifying bacteria in the soil are chemotrophs. Also called chemoautotroph Compare phototroph.
55 queries 0.610