| Brevibacterium linens | |
|---|---|
 | |
| German Romadur cheese, with Brevibacterium linens causing "red smear" on its surface | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Bacteria |
| Kingdom: | Bacillati |
| Phylum: | Actinomycetota |
| Class: | Actinomycetes |
| Order: | Micrococcales |
| Family: | Brevibacteriaceae |
| Genus: | Brevibacterium |
| Species: | B. linens |
| Binomial name | |
| Brevibacterium linens (Wolff 1910) Breed 1953 (Approved Lists 1980) [1] | |
| Type strain | |
| ATCC 9172 [2] CIP 101125 DSM 20425 HAMBI 2038 IFO 12142 JCM 1327 NBRC 12142 NRRL B-4210 VKM Ac-2112 | |
| Synonyms [2] | |
| |
Brevibacterium linens is a gram-positive, rod-shaped bacterium. It is the type species of the family Brevibacteriaceae . [3]
Contents
Brevibacterium linens is ubiquitously present on the human skin, where it causes foot odor. The familiar odor is due to sulfur-containing compounds known as S-methyl thioesters. The same bacterium is employed to ferment several washed-rind and smear-ripened cheeses, such as Munster, Limburger, Tilsit cheese, Port-Salut, Raclette, Livarot, Pont l'Eveque, Époisses, Wisconsin Brick, Năsal, and Pálpusztai. It is also used in the production of blue cheese, in addition to the mold Penicillium roqueforti . Its aroma also attracts mosquitoes. [4]
The first comprehensive proteomic reference map of B. linens was published in 2013. [5]