What does Citrobacter mean?
What does Citrobacter mean? Citrobacter is a genus of Gram-negative coliform bacteria in the family Enterobacteriaceae. Citrobacter species are differentiated by their ability to convert tryptophan to indole (C. koseri is the only citrobacter to be commonly indole-positive), ferment lactose (C. koseri is a lactose fermentor), and use malonate.
Are cocci bacteria harmful or beneficial?
While some cocci cause diseases in humans and animals, some are useful. This article discusses cocci in greater detail, with the help of some important facts about them, pertaining to their structure, organization, and reproduction, and also gives you examples of harmful and useful bacteria.
Can bacteria infect other bacteria?
Can Bacteria Infect Other Bacteria? Fermentation can make many types of bacteria live together, eat each other, and use a whole range of resources together. Any species or a group of species may compete with one another for the same resources.
How is Citrobacter freundii contracted?
Similarly, how is Citrobacter Freundii transmitted? MODE OF TRANSMISSION : Citrobacter may be spread by direct contact with hospital staff members, mother to child transmission or through ingestion of environmental sources (fecal-oral route) but person-to-person transmission is more prevalent 7 , 11 .
Can Citrobacter be cured?
Citrobacter freundii infection is usually treated with antibiotics like fluoroquinolones, carbapenems and cephalosporins. The treatment plan depends up on the vulnerability of the microbe to the antibiotics and the site of the infection.
Where is Citrobacter commonly found?
The genus Citrobacter was discovered in 1932 by Werkman and Gillen. These organisms are found in soil, water, intestinal tract of animals, and in human clinical samples.
How do you treat Citrobacter infection?
Any infection due to C. koseri mandates antimicrobial therapy based on the sensitivity of the pathogen microorganism. Various types of antibiotics, including aminoglycosides carbapenems, cephalosporins, chloramphenicol and quinolones, are used for the treatment of C.
How common is Citrobacter UTI?
UTIs caused by Citrobacter species have been described in 5 to 12% of bacterial urine isolates in adults.
What is the best antibiotic for Citrobacter?
Most effective antimicrobial agent against Citrobacter spp. was imipenem (100%) followed by amikacin. In other study, most effective drug was again imipenem (91.8%) followed by piperacillin-tazobactam (58.3% sensitive).
Is Citrobacter found in stool?
Citrobacter freundii is isolated from human and animal feces, as well as from extraintestinal specimens. It is also commonly found in soil water and food.
How do you get rid of Citrobacter naturally?
Treating Citrobacter Infections. A doctor will tell you to take antibiotics. A naturopath, functional medicine practitioner or holistic doctor might tell you to take grapefruit seed extract or oregano oil. Many times this kill focused approach may clear up your bacterial infection in the short term.
What does high Citrobacter mean?
What does it mean if your Citrobacter spp. result is too high? High levels may indicate increased intestinal inflammatory activity. Although considered a commensal, some Citrobacter isolates have virulent toxins, such as Shiga-like toxins, heat-stable toxins, and cholera B toxin B subunit homologs.
How did I get Citrobacter koseri?
The transmission of C. koseri could be vertical from mother to fetus (local vaginal infection, rupture of the membranes, chorioamniotis may occur between the seventh and 11th day prior to delivery) and other sources can be horizontal nosocomial transmission by asymptomatic nursery staff.
How serious is Citrobacter freundii UTI?
freundii strains have been associated with a higher rate of in-hospital mortality compared to susceptible strains. Although serious septicemias in neonatal patients have been reported, bacteremia due to Citrobacter is less common in adults.
How serious is Citrobacter koseri?
Low virulent Citrobacter koseri can cause life threatening infections. Neonates and other immunocompromised patients are particularly susceptible to infection from C. koseri.
What diseases does Citrobacter freundii cause?
In humans, C. freundii causes urinary tract infections, diarrhea, pneumonia, and, rarely, meningitis and intracranial abscesses. During the past few years, there have been reports indicating that C. freundii is associated with fatal infections in reptiles and aquatic animals.
Can Citrobacter be a contaminant?
Citrobacter spp. are facultative anaerobic, motile, gram-negative bacilli in the Enterobacteriaceae family that is widely distributed in environment and intestinal tracts of human and animals so these bacilli regarded as the environmental contaminants or harmless colonizers (2).
How can you tell the difference between Citrobacter and E coli?
The main features differentiating between Escherichia coli (E. coli) and Citrobacter freundii biogroup b are the citrate and KCN tests, and the citrate, malonate, and adonitol tests are the differentiating features between E. coli and Citrobacter (C. diversus).
Is Citrobacter koseri in urine?
The urinary tract is the most frequent site from which Citrobacter is cultured, often in association with an indwelling catheter. These bacteria may also be cultured from the respiratory tract, a finding that more often represents colonization than symptomatic infection.
How do you get Citrobacter koseri?
The transmission of C. koseri could be vertical from mother to fetus (local vaginal infection, rupture of the membranes, chorioamniotis may occur between the seventh and 11th day prior to delivery) and other sources can be horizontal nosocomial transmission by asymptomatic nursery staff.
What is a Citrobacter infection?
Citrobacter spp. Are opportunistic bacteria that can cause invasive illness in humans, including infections of the urinary tract, respiratory tract...
Is Mycobacterium smegmatis harmful to humans?
Mycobacterium smegmatis is a fast spreading environmental microorganism that is not thought to be a human disease. It can, however, cause problems...
What is the name of the disease-causing bacteria?
Pathogenic bacteria are harmful bacteria that cause bacterial illnesses and disorders. The two main types of pathogenic bacteria are gram-positive...
Where do Citrobacter infections stay?
In immunocompetent adults ( here the immune system is functioning properly) Citrobacter infections generally stay within the gut – either the small bowel or the large bowel. I like to look at this presentation as more of a bacterial overgrowth.
How to test for Citrobacter?
A second way to test for Citrobacter infections would be another DNA based stool test that gives you a more complete snapshot of the large bowel gut biome. These include Ubiome and Microba. Here you may have to dig a bit deeper into the results and possibly even download the raw data to see if you have a Citrobacter overgrowth. This is why it is important to work with a gut savvy clinician. In the long run it saves time and money.
What test can you do to see if you have a Citrobacter infection?
Stool tests will help to determine if you have a Citrobacter infection in the large bowel.
What happens to a baby's microbiome during Caesarean birth?
Caesarean birth – When babies are vaginally born they inherit their microbiome from their mother. This passing of beneficial microbes from mother to child has been happening for much of our evolution. When c-sections are born they inherit much of their gut microbiome from the skin of their mother.
What to take for bacterial infection?
A naturopath, functional medicine practitioner or holistic doctor might tell you to take grapefruit seed extract or oregano oil. Many times this kill focused approach may clear up your bacterial infection in the short term.
What are the complications of Citrobacter?
Central nervous system infections. Infectious arthritis. Sepsis (bloodstream infections). While these complications from a Citrobacter infection are very rare in healthy adults they are more common in immunocompromised individuals and in infants ( 3 ).
What is the product of Gram negative bacteria?
Gram negative bacteria have a product known as lipopolysaccharide found in their cell wall. Lipopolysaccharide, also known as LPS or endotoxin, is released when the bacterial cell is disrupted.
What page is antibiotic resistance in Citrobacterspp. isolated from urinary tract infection?
See the article "Antibiotic resistance in Citrobacterspp. isolated from urinary tract infection" on page 312.
What is the third most common urinary pathogen?
The authors have conducted a retrospective study and have reported Citrobacterspp . as the third most common urinary pathogen accounting for 9.4% of the total isolates. The isolation of this organism was associated with catheterization, genitourinary instrumentation, or obstructive uropathy. Also, the age group most affected was that of elderly hospitalized patients, especially males. Their finding emphasizes the role of this organism as a common health care associated pathogen. Recently, a study conducted in Nepal also reported Citrobacterspp. as the second most common urinary pathogen in their study.[4]
Is Citrobacterspp a nosocomial?
Although Citrobacterspp. are less commonly isolated, they are emerging as a common nosocomial multidrug-resistant pathogen, especially in developing countries. UTI caused by Citrobacterspp. have been seen in 12% patients in 1961, and since then, its prevalence has been increasing.[5] Invasive procedures like catheterization or genitourinary instrumentation seem to assist the organism in colonization and infection of urinary tract. Another matter of concern is the emergence of multidrug-resistant Citrobacterspp., resulting in reduced therapeutic options which further complicate the situation. The author also reported that most of the isolates were resistant to penicillins, cephalosporins, aminoglycosides, and fluoroquinolones, which are the commonly prescribed drugs in UTI. Resistance to many groups of antibiotics has been observed and many mechanisms of drug resistance have been demonstrated in Citrobacterspp. In a study concluded by Shobha et al., Citrobacterspp. was the third most common urinary pathogen and 30% of the isolates were extended spectrum beta lactamase (ESBL) producers.[6] Meher Rizvi et al. reported that 62.2% of Citrobacterisolates were producing ESBL.[7] High level carbapenem resistance was also reported in C. freundiidue to combination of Klebsiella pneumoniaecarbapenemase-2 (KPC-2) production and decreased porin expression.[8] Carbapenems are important antibiotics for the treatment of health care associated infections and have a special role in treating infection with ESBL-producing organisms. The emergence and spread of resistance to carbapenems will end all the treatment options available for treating multidrug-resistant pathogens.
How are citrobacter species differentiated?
Citrobacter species are differentiated by their ability to convert tryptophan to indole ( C. koseri is the only citrobacter to be commonly indole-positive), ferment lactose ( C. koseri is a lactose fermentor), and use malonate. Citrobacter shows the ability to accumulate uranium by building phosphate complexes.
What is the name of the genus of coliform bacteria?
Citrobacter. Citrobacter is a genus of Gram-negative coliform bacteria in the family Enterobacteriaceae . The species C. amalonaticus, C. koseri, and C. freundii can use citrate as a sole carbon source.
Where can bacteria be found?
These bacteria can be found almost everywhere in soil, water, wastewater, etc. They can also be found in the human intestine. They are rarely the source of illnesses, except for infections of the GI Tract, urinary tract and infant meningitis and sepsis.
What is the name of the species of Citrobacter?
Citrobacter Species. Members of the genus Citrobacter are named for their ability to use citrate as their sole carbon source. Of the dozen species, Citrobacter freundii, Citrobacter koseri (formerly Citrobacter diversus ), and Citrobacter amalonaticus are linked to human disease.
What are the characteristics of Citrobacter?
Members of the genus Citrobacter share all the general properties and biochemical characteristics of the family Enterobacteriaceae, including the following: gram-negative rod, catalase-positive and oxidase-negative, growth on MacConkey agar, reduction of nitrate to nitrite, growth both aerobically and anaerobically, and fermentation of glucose and other carbohydrates. Most isolates are motile and utilize citrate as a sole carbon source, but lack urease and lysine decarboxylase activity; production of hydrogen sulfide is variable, occurring with C. freundii and a few other species. On salmonella-shigella agar, lactose-negative/hydrogen-sulfide positive isolates of Citrobacter spp. produce black colonies resembling Salmonella spp. The lysine decarboxylase reaction allows for separation of the hydrogen sulfide-producing isolates of Citrobacter spp. from Salmonella spp.1–5 Select isolates of C. freundii have “O” (somatic) cell wall antigens closely related to the O antigens of Salmonella spp. and thus cross-react with Salmonella typing antisera. 5 In addition, rare isolates of C. freundii and C. braakii cross-react with some commercial Escherichia coli O157 typing antisera. 5 For this reason, it is always prudent to confirm the identification of suspected Salmonella spp. and E. coli O157 by the use of both biochemical and serologic methods. Although biochemical identification of the newer species can be accomplished through the use of conventional tests, most commercial identification systems do not include all species in their databases. This limitation hampers the correlation of the newer species with human disease.
What is the genus of a gram negative bacillus?
Organisms of the genus Citrobacter are gram-negative bacilli that are occasional inhabitants of the gastrointestinal tract and are responsible for disease in neonates and debilitated or immunocompromised patients. The genus has undergone frequent changes in nomenclature, making it difficult to relate the types identified in reports of newborn disease over the years. In 1990, Citrobacter koseri replaced Citrobacter diversus [ 147 ]. For the purposes of this chapter, C. koseri replaces C. diversus, even though the original article may refer to the latter name.
How many species are in the genus Citrobacter?
The genus Citrobacter has undergone significant taxonomic revision through the use of newer techniques based on DNA relatedness. The genus now contains 11 named species: Citrobacter freundii, C. koseri, C. amalonaticus, C. youngae, C. farmeri, C. braakii, C. werkmanii, C. sedlakii, C. gillenii, C. murliniae, and C. rodentium.1–5 Citrobacter koseri has replaced the taxon formerly known as Citrobacter diversus, and Citrobacter farmeri is the new taxon assigned to the former Citrobacter amalonaticus biogroup 1. All species except C. rodentium have been recovered from human clinical sources (some rarely) including blood and other normally sterile body sites, wounds, respiratory and urinary tract; however, C. freundii and C. koseri are the most important human pathogens. C. freundii, C. koseri, and C. amalonaticus appear to be distinct organisms; however, only C. koseri appears to be genetically homogeneous. Several other named species form a closely related group and are difficult to differentiate biochemically; they are sometimes referred to as C. freundii -complex organisms.
What is the cause of neonatal meningitis?
Citrobacter koseri is another classic bacterium described in neonatal neurologic infections, in particular as a cause of devastating neonatal meningitis characterized by the formation of multiple brain abscesses.
What are the most common pathogens in neonates?
In neonates, the most common pathogens are group B streptococci ( Streptococcus agalactiae ), gram-negative bacilli ( Escherichia coli, Enterobacter species, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Citrobacter diversus ), and Listeria monocytogenes ( Mulder and Zanen, 1984; Saez-Llorens and McCracken, 1990; Moreno et al., 1994; Synnott et al., 1994 ). Beyond the neonatal period, S. pneumoniae is the most common causative organism of community-acquired meningitis ( Schuchat et al., 1997 ). In children and adolescents aged 2–18 years, Neisseria meningitidis and Streptococcus pneumoniae are the most common pathogens of bacterial meningitis. L. monocytogenes is the most common cause of bacterial meningitis in patients with defective cell-mediated immunity (i.e., hematological malignancy, pregnancy, organ transplantation, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection, chronic corticosteroid therapy) ( Armstrong and Wong, 1982; Brouwer et al., 2006 ). L. monocytogenes is an intracellular parasite, the eradication of which depends on an intact T-lymphocyte-macrophage system.
What is the pathogenesis of Citrobacter koseri?
The pathogenesis of Citrobacter infections has not been characterized fully. Most C. koseri isolates produce hemolysins, are piliated, and are resistant to killing by pooled human sera. Tropism for the central nervous system may be due to specific outer membrane proteins. In one study, 79% of strains of C. koseri isolated from CSF had a unique 32-kd outer-membrane protein, which was found in only 9% of isolates from other kinds of specimens. 6 Citrobacter koseri also has the ability to enter macrophages, survive phago-lysosomal fusion, and replicate intracellularly. These infected macrophages then infiltrate blood vessels in the brain, which may be one of the main mechanisms of infecting brain microvascular endothelial cells, thus starting the process leading to brain abscess. 5,7,8
What antibiotics are used for C. koseri?
Various types of antibiotics, including aminoglycosides carbapenems, cephalosporins, chloramphenicol and quinolones, are used for the treatment of C. koseri infections. The rational choice of antimicrobial therapy for Citrobacter infections is a challenge for clinicians because there is a sustained increase in antibacterial resistance.
Can neonates get C. koseri?
Neonates and other immunocompromised patients are particularly susceptible to infection from C. koseri. Any infection due to C. koseri mandates antimicrobial therapy based on the sensitivity of the pathogen microorganism. Various …. Low virulent Citrobacter koseri can cause life threatening infections. Neonates and other immunocompromised patients ...
Can Citrobacter Koseri cause infection?
Low virulent Citrobacter koseri can cause life threatening infections. Neonates and other immunocompromised patients are particularly susceptible to infection from C. koseri. Any infection due to C. koseri mandates antimicrobial therapy based on the sensitivity of the pathogen microorganism.
