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Definition

‘’noun, plural: fastidious organisms‘’

An organism that has complex nutritional requirements.

Usage

The term is a commonly used in microbiology in which it describes an organism that grows only in a specially fortified artificial culture media under specific culture conditions.

Example of an extremely fastidious organism is Leuconostoc mesenteroides, a facultative anaerobe requiring complex growth factors and amino acids.

Miscellaneous

Word origin: French fastidieux, Latin fastidiosus, from fastidium (“loathing”). See also: culture medium