Definition of "archaea" []

• Plural form of archaeon. (noun)

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• "Therefore entertaining any hypothesis for a common ancestor of bacteria and archaea is supported by extrapolation from the vast amounts of existing evidence of common ancestry."
• "Gordon, the director of the Center for Genome Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, studies bacteria and ancient forms of single-celled life called archaea -- and no matter how clean you think you are, your gut would make him a pretty good laboratory."
• "Simple, single-celled organisms called archaea that often live in extreme conditions were thought to be responsible for much of the dark ocean's carbon fixation."