BACILLUS THURINGIENSIS

Domain	Definition
Food & Agriculture	A sporulating bacterium which produces a toxin that destroys the insect gut and kills the pests. When an insect eats vegetation containing the spores, it remains alive for several days, but its gut becomes paralyzed and it cannot eat. Though death does not occur as quickly as in the case of chemical insecticides, intoxication by Bt causes a quick paralysis which halts insect feeding and thus prevents further economic loss soon after treatment. Source: European Union. (references)
Health	A species of gram-positive bacteria which may be pathogenic for certain insects. It is used for the biological control of the gypsy moth. (references)
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Specialty Definition: Bacillus thuringiensis

Bacillus thuringiensis is an aerobic spore-forming bacterium that lives in the caterpillars of some moths and butterflies. It seems that it is the same organism as Bacillus cereus, a soil bacterium, and Bacillus anthracis, the cause of anthrax; the three organisms only differ in their plasmids.

Bacillus thuringiensis produces toxin crystals that are lethal to the caterpillars, but considered harmless to most other organisms, including humans. Therefore, the bacterium and its toxin are used in crop protection. This is done by spraying plants with the bacterium itself, or with an insecticide that contains the bacterial spores. Another way to protect plants is to create transgenic plants that carry the gene for the bacterial toxin, as it is currently done in the USA and Australia for cotton (Bt-cotton), maize (Bt-Maize), and other crops.

There are strains of Bt that are effective against other insect larvae. Bt israelensis is effective against mosquito larvae and some midges.

Commercial Usage: BACILLUS THURINGIENSIS

Domain	Title
Books	Analytical Chemistry of Bacillus Thuringiensis (Acs Symposium Series, No 432) (reference) Bacillus Thuringiensis - Biology, Ecology & Safety (reference) Bacterial Control of Mosquitoes and Black Flies: Biochemistry, Genetics, and Applications of Bacillus Thuringiensis Israelensis and Bacillus sphaeric (reference) (more book examples)
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Frequency of Internet Keywords: BACILLUS THURINGIENSIS

Modern Translation: BACILLUS THURINGIENSIS

Language		Translations for "BACILLUS THURINGIENSIS"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses.
Dutch		Bt (Bt), Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt). (various references)

Finnish		Bacillus cereus-ruokamyrkytys (bacillus cereus food-borne infection, Bacillus thuringiensis food-borne infection). (various references)

French		toxi-infection due � Bacillus thuringiensis (bacillus cereus food-borne infection, Bacillus thuringiensis food-borne infection), toxi-infection due � Bacillus cereus (bacillus cereus food-borne infection, Bacillus thuringiensis food-borne infection). (various references)

Greek		γαστροεντερίτιδα από τον κηρώδη βάκιλλο (bacillus cereus food-borne infection, Bacillus thuringiensis food-borne infection). (various references)

Italian		Bt (Bt), Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt). (various references)

Pig Latin		acillusbay uringiensisthay
Source: compiled by the editor from various translation references.

Anagrams: BACILLUS THURINGIENSIS

Scrabble® YAWL-Verified Anagrams
	Words within the letters "a-b-c-e-g-h-i-i-i-i-l-l-n-n-r-s-s-s-t-u-u"
	-5 letters: uninsurabilities.
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro.