Corynebacterium diphtheriae

from WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006)

Corynebacterium diphtheriae
    n 1: a species of bacterium that causes diphtheria [syn:
         {Corynebacterium diphtheriae}, {C. diphtheriae}, {Klebs-
         Loeffler bacillus}]

from The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

corynebacterium \co`ry*ne`bac*ter"i*um\, n. (MIcrobiol.)
   Any member of the genus {Corynebacterium}, consisting of
   gram-positive usually nonmotile irregularly rod-shaped
   bacteria, some of which are pathogenic or parasitic in humans
   and domestic animals, such as {Corynebacterium diphtheriae},
   which causes diphtheria.
   [PJC]