A unique, encyclopaedic reference work covering the whole field of pure and applied microbiology and microbial molecular biology. This latest edition contains a vast amount of new and updated material - often to research level, and well beyond the coverage of current textbooks - making the dictionary even more valuable to lecturers, students, researchers and others in the biosciences and medicine. * Updates and extends current textbooks * 18,000 entries, from concise definitions to review-length articles * Extensive cross-referencing between topics * Thousands of references from mainstream journals and other specialist sources * Over 5000 taxa: algae, archaeans, bacteria, fungi, protozoa and viruses; prions * A 30-page Appendix of detailed metabolic pathways * A classic book with a lifetime's use!