Coccidioides

American  

[kok-sid-ee-oi-deez] / kɒkˌsɪd iˈɔɪ diz /

noun

Mycology.

1. a genus of fungi, occurring as both mold and yeast, with species especially present in the soil of the southwestern United States and parts of Mexico, Central America, and South America: Breathing in their microscopic spores can cause coccidioidomycosis.

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Etymology

Origin of Coccidioides

First recorded in 1900–05; coccidi(um) ( def. ) + New Latin -oīdēs, from Greek -oeidēs -oid ( def. )

Example Sentences

English said little attention has yet been paid to his group’s discovery on the site of the soil-dwelling fungus Coccidioides, which causes valley fever.

From Los Angeles Times • May 31, 2024

No one knows for sure whether wind is moving Coccidioides north or whether it has been there undisturbed until now.

From Scientific American • Sep. 23, 2023

Bridget Barker, a mycologist and geneticist at Northern Arizona University, has spent her decades-long career figuring out how to detect Coccidioides and understand its role in the larger ecosystem.

From Scientific American • Sep. 23, 2023

Coccidioides, the fungus that causes cocci, thrives in rain-soaked soil.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 4, 2022

Other fungi, such as Coccidioides immitis, which causes pneumonia when its spores are inhaled, thrive in the dry and sandy soil of the southwestern United States.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2015