, refers to a specific genus of bacteria. The name Bacilli, capitalized but not italicized, can also refer to a less specific taxonomic group of bacteria that includes two orders, one of which contains the genus Bacillus. When the word is formatted with lowercase and not italicized, 'bacillus', it will most likely be referring to shape and not to the genus at all.
Ambiguity
Several related concepts make use of similar words, and the ambiguity can create considerable confusion. The term "Bacillus" (capitalized and italicized) is also the name of a genus (Bacillus anthracis) that, among many other genera, falls within the class Bacilli.
The word "
Gram-negative and does not belong to the genus Bacillus or the class Bacilli. Some microbiologists
have forsaken the general "bacillus" term because of the confusion it can create.