A primitive or developing cell that may differentiate into or relate to bacterial forms.
From bacteria + -blast (from Greek 'blastos' meaning bud or sprout, referring to a developing cell). This term is rarely used in modern microbiology but appeared in early bacterial classification systems.
This word is mostly historical—scientists realized that bacteria don't develop from 'bacterioblasts' but rather reproduce through division, so the term fell out of favor.
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