| cryptic | Hidden; occult; larvate. Origin: G. Kryptikos (05 Mar 2000) |
|---|---|
| cryptic plasmid | A plasmid which has no apparent effect on the phenotype of its host cell and has no genes other than the ones needed for itself to replicate and spread to other cells. (09 Oct 1997) |
| prophage | The genome of a lysogenic bacteriophage when it is integrated into the chromosome of the host bacterium. The prophage is replicated as part of the host chromosome. (18 Nov 1997) |
| defective prophage | A temperate bacteriophage mutant whose genome does not contain all of the normal components and cannot become fully infectious virus, yet can replicate indefinitely in the bacterial genome as defective probacteriophage; many defective bacteriophage's are mediators of transduction. Synonym: defective phage. (05 Mar 2000) |