chemoautotrophic

adjective

che·​mo·​au·​to·​tro·​phic ˌkē-mō-ˌȯ-tə-ˈtrō-fik 

 also  ˌke-

: being autotrophic and oxidizing an inorganic compound as a source of energy

chemoautotrophic bacteria

chemoautotrophy

ˌkē-mō-ȯ-ˈtä-trə-fē 

 also  ˌke-

noun

Word History

Etymology

chemo- + autotrophic

Note: The word is presumably based on German Chemoautotrophie, whence chemoautotrophy, attested later than chemoautotrophic. The German noun was apparently introduced by the biochemist Hans Pringsheim (1876-1940) in "Neues über Purpurbakterien," Naturwissenschaften, Band 20 (1932), p. 479.

First Known Use

1936, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

chemoautotrophic

adjective

che·​mo·​au·​to·​tro·​phic -ˌȯt-ə-ˈtrō-fik 

: being autotrophic and oxidizing some inorganic compound as a source of energy

chemoautotrophic bacteria

chemoautotrophy

-ȯ-ˈtä-trə-fē 

noun

plural chemoautotrophies