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m Reverted edit by 172.254.174.154 (talk) to last version by Sadbunny3
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[[File:E coli at 10000x, original.jpg|thumb|upright=1.15|right|A [[Colony (biology)#Microbial colonies|cluster]] of ''[[Escherichia coli]]'' [[bacteria]] magnified 10,000 times]]
{{TopicTOC-Biology}}
A '''microorganism''', or '''microbe''',{{efn|The word ''microorganism'' ({{IPAc-en|ˌ|m|aɪ|k|r|oʊ-|ˈ|ɔːr|g|ə|n|ɪ|z|əm}}) uses [[classical compound|combining forms]] of ''[[wikt:micro-#Prefix|micro-]]'' (from the {{lang-el|μικρός}}, ''mikros'', "small") and ''[[organism]]'' from the {{lang-el|ὀργανισμός}}, ''organismós'', "organism"). It is usually written as a single word but is sometimes [[hyphen]]ated (''micro-organism''), especially in older texts
The possible existence of unseen microbial life was suspected from ancient times, such as in [[Jain scriptures]] from sixth century BC India. The scientific study of microorganisms began with their observation under the [[microscope]] in the 1670s by [[Anton van Leeuwenhoek]]. In the 1850s, [[Louis Pasteur]] found that microorganisms caused [[food spoilage]], debunking the theory of [[spontaneous generation]]. In the 1880s, [[Robert Koch]] discovered that microorganisms caused the diseases [[tuberculosis]], [[cholera]], [[diphtheria]], and [[anthrax]].
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