''Azomonas'' species are typically motile, oval to spherical, and secrete large quantities of
capsular slime. They are distinguished from ''
Azotobacter'' by their inability to form cysts, but like ''Azotobacter'', they can biologically fix nitrogen under aerobic conditions (
diazotrophs).
Bacteria
Bacteria (; : bacterium) are ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one Cell (biology), biological cell. They constitute a large domain (biology), domain of Prokaryote, prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micr ...
of the genus ''Azomonas'' are known to form intracellular inclusions of
polyhydroxyalkanoates under certain environmental conditions (e.g. lack of elements such as phosphorus, nitrogen, or oxygen combined with an excessive supply of carbon sources).
Etymology
The name ''Azomonas'' derives from:
:
New Latin noun ''azotum''
Greek prep. ά, ''a'', not;
Greek noun ζωή, ''zōē'', life; Greek language">Greek noun άζωη, ''azōē'', not sustaining life)">Ancient Greek language">Greek noun ζωή, ''zōē'', life; Greek language">Greek noun άζωη, ''azōē'', not sustaining life) nitrogen; New Latin ''azo''-, pertaining to nitrogen; Latin -monas, ''monas'' (μονάς), nominally meaning "a unit", but in effect meaning a bacterium; New Latin ''Azomonas'', nitrogen monad.
Members of the genus ''Azomonas'' can be referred to as azomonads (''viz.''
Trivialisation of names).
References
Pseudomonadales
Bacteria genera
{{Pseudomonadales-stub