Acinetobacter is a genus of Gram-negative bacteria belonging to the wider class of Gammaproteobacteria. Acinetobacter species are oxidase-negative, exhibit twitching motility, and occur in pairs under magnification.
Wolbachia is a genus of gram-negative bacteria that can either infect many species of arthropod as an intracellular parasite, or act as a mutualistic microbe in filarial nematodes. It is one of the most common parasitic microbes of arthropods, and is possibly the most common reproductive parasite in the biosphere. Its interactions with its hosts are often complex. Some host species cannot reproduce, or even survive, without Wolbachia colonisation. One study concluded that more than 16% of neotropical insect species carry bacteria of this genus, and as many as 25 to 70% of all insect species are estimated to be potential hosts.
Colistin, also known as polymyxin E, is an antibiotic medication used as a last-resort treatment for multidrug-resistant Gram-negative infections including pneumonia. These may involve bacteria such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Klebsiella pneumoniae, or Acinetobacter. It comes in two forms: colistimethate sodium can be injected into a vein, injected into a muscle, or inhaled, and colistin sulfate is mainly applied to the skin or taken by mouth. Colistimethate sodium is a prodrug; it is produced by the reaction of colistin with formaldehyde and sodium bisulfite, which leads to the addition of a sulfomethyl group to the primary amines of colistin. Colistimethate sodium is less toxic than colistin when administered parenterally. In aqueous solutions it undergoes hydrolysis to form a complex mixture of partially sulfomethylated derivatives, as well as colistin. Resistance to colistin began to appear as of 2015.
The bacterial capsule is a large structure common to many bacteria. It is a polysaccharide layer that lies outside the cell envelope, and is thus deemed part of the outer envelope of a bacterial cell. It is a well-organized layer, not easily washed off, and it can be the cause of various diseases.
Imipenem is a synthetic β-lactam antibiotic belonging to the carbapenems chemical class. developed by Merck scientists Burton Christensen, William Leanza, and Kenneth Wildonger in the mid-1970s. Carbapenems are highly resistant to the β-lactamase enzymes produced by many multiple drug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria, thus playing a key role in the treatment of infections not readily treated with other antibiotics. It is usually administered through intravenous injection.
Micrococcus is a genus of bacteria in the Micrococcaceae family. Micrococcus occurs in a wide range of environments, including water, dust, and soil. Micrococci have Gram-positive spherical cells ranging from about 0.5 to 3 micrometers in diameter and typically appear in tetrads. They are catalase positive, oxidase positive, indole negative and citrate negative. Micrococcus has a substantial cell wall, which may comprise as much as 50% of the cell mass. The genome of Micrococcus is rich in guanine and cytosine (GC), typically exhibiting 65 to 75% GC-content. Micrococci often carry plasmids that provide the organism with useful traits.
Acinetobacter baumannii is a typically short, almost round, rod-shaped (coccobacillus) Gram-negative bacterium. It is named after the bacteriologist Paul Baumann. It can be an opportunistic pathogen in humans, affecting people with compromised immune systems, and is becoming increasingly important as a hospital-derived (nosocomial) infection. While other species of the genus Acinetobacter are often found in soil samples, it is almost exclusively isolated from hospital environments. Although occasionally it has been found in environmental soil and water samples, its natural habitat is still not known.
Beta-lactamases are a family of enzymes involved in bacterial resistance to beta-lactam antibiotics. In bacterial resistance to beta-lactam antibiotics, the bacteria have beta-lactamase which degrade the beta-lactam rings, rendering the antibiotic ineffective. However, with beta-lactamase inhibitors, these enzymes on the bacteria are inhibited, thus allowing the antibiotic to take effect. Strategies for combating this form of resistance have included the development of new beta-lactam antibiotics that are more resistant to cleavage and the development of the class of enzyme inhibitors called beta-lactamase inhibitors. Although β-lactamase inhibitors have little antibiotic activity of their own, they prevent bacterial degradation of beta-lactam antibiotics and thus extend the range of bacteria the drugs are effective against.
The enzyme diaminobutyrate decarboxylase (EC 4.1.1.86) catalyzes the chemical reaction
Phloroglucinol carboxylic acid is a trihydroxybenzoic acid, a type of phenolic acid.
Acinetobacter haemolyticus is a species of bacterium. Its type strain is ATCC 17906. It is potentially pathogenic.
Acinetobacter junii is a species of bacteria. Its type strain is ATCC 17908. It can be pathogenic. This bacterium has been linked to nosocomial infections including catheter-related blood stream infections and cellulitis.
Acidobacterium capsulatum is a bacterium. It is an acidophilic chemoorganotrophic bacterium containing menaquinone. It is gram-negative, facultative anaerobic, mesophilic, non-spore-forming, capsulated, saccharolytic and rod-shaped. It is also motile by peritrichous flagella. Its type strain is JCM 7670.
Acinetobacter nosocomialis is a gram-negative, strictly aerobic bacterium from the genus Acinetobacter isolated from a patient at MetroHealth in Cleveland, Ohio. Acinetobacter nosocomialis belongs to the Acinetobacter calcoaceticus-baumannii complex.
Acinetobacter pittii is a Gram-negative, oxidase-negative, catalase-positive, strictly aerobic, nonmotile, diplococcoid rod bacterium from the genus Acinetobacter. DNA-DNA hybridization studies have been used to identify DNA groups within the genus Acinetobacter and A. pittii belongs to the Acinetobacter calcoaceticus-baumannii complex. The specific epithet pittii is named after the British microbiologist Tyrone Pitt.
Acinetobacter lwoffii, formerly known as Mima polymorpha or Acinetobacter calcoaceticus var. lwoffii, is a non-fermentative Gram-negative bacillus bacterium that is a member of the genus Acinetobacter. It is considered as normal skin flora and can also inhabit the human oropharynx and perineum of up to 25% of the population. In addition to that, it can cause infections in human hosts, particularly catheter-associated infections in immunocompromised patients. It has also been associated with at least one case of gastroenteritis. Due to its ability to survive dry conditions, low pH, and a wide range of temperatures, A. lwoffii, along with A. johnsonii, has been found in frozen food, bacon, eggs, pasteurized milk, and fish. It is also resistant to many disinfectants, irradiation, and desiccation. There are also many environmental A. lwoffii strains originating for instance from a permafrost or former gold mine.
Acinetobacter seifertii is bacterium from the genus Acinetobacter which has been isolated from human clinical specimens.
Acinetobacter dijkshoorniae is a bacterium from the genus of Acinetobacter.
Acinetobacter baylyi is a bacterial species of the genus Acinetobacter. The species designation was given after the discovery of strains in activated sludge in Victoria, Australia, in 2003. A. baylyi is named after the late Dr. Ronald Bayly, an Australian microbiologist who contributed significantly to research on aromatic compound catabolism in diverse bacteria, including strains of Pseudomonas, Alcaligenes, and Acinetobacter. This strain was previously designated Acinetobacter sp. and Acinetobacter calcoaceticus. The new species designation in 2003 was found to apply to an already well-studied Acinetobacter strain known as ADP1, a derivative of a soil isolate characterized in 1969. Research has established A. baylyi as a model organism.
Sulbactam/durlobactam, sold under the brand name Xacduro, is a co-packaged medication used for the treatment of bacterial pneumonia caused by Acinetobacter baumannii-calcoaceticus complex. It contains sulbactam, a beta-lactam antibacterial and beta-lactamase inhibitor; and durlobactam, a beta-lactamase inhibitor.
