infective
/ɪnˈfɛktɪv
/adjective
1Capable of causing infection: the infective eggs or larvae of the roundworm...
- He had no infective, gastrointestinal, or respiratory symptoms and no arthralgias.
- Our results suggest that the enzymatic, inflammatory, and infective pathogenic elements could be individually treated.
- The gravid segment of the adult tapeworm breaks off and disintegrates in the large bowel, releasing hundreds of infective eggs, which then pass out with the feces.
1.1 dated Infectious: infective hepatitis...
- Overall, I would summarise the position by saying that the potential for transmission of infective TSE prions to susceptible cattle, sheep and humans via environmental contamination is particularly unclear.
- Causes of chronic mitral regurgitation include infective endocarditis, degenerative valvular disease (mitral valve prolapse) and rheumatic fever.
- He was found to have severe mitral regurgitation associated with a ruptured mitral chord and infective endocarditis.
Derivatives
infectivity
- For farmers and vets, the most shocking aspect of the French outbreak was the virus's high infectivity, spreading in days to 80% of the 11,000-strong flock.
- It would take at least three months to wipe away ‘residual infectivity before we can get our disease-free status back’.
- If you can't get airborne infectivity, you can't use it as a weapon.
Origin
Late Middle English: from Latin infectivus, from inficere 'to taint' (see infect).