Reference entry
CFU
Plain-English definitions of microbiome research vocabulary — the terms you'll see across articles, testing services, and probiotic claims.
Glossary context
Defined
in the site-wide microbiome glossary
Definition
Colony-Forming Units. The standard measure of viable (living) bacteria in a probiotic product. A count of 1 billion CFU means approximately 1 billion live organisms capable of replicating.