Medical Microbiology

222 3 GeneralBacteriology

Table3. 9 Continued:OverviewoftheMedicallyMostImportantBacteria

Family

Genus,species

Characteristics Clinical

manifestations

Continued:Section4.

Nocardiaasteroides

Nocardiabrasiliensisand

furtherspecies

Infectionsinpatientswith

impairedcell-mediated

immunity

Pulmonary,systemic,and

dermalnocardioses

Section5.Mycobacteria(acid-fastrods)

Mycobacteriaceae Slenderrods,Ziehl-Neelsen

staining(Gram-positivecell

wall),aerobic,nonmotile

Mycobacterium

tuberculosis

Slowproliferation(culturing

3 – 6–8weeks)

Tuberculosis(pulmonary

andextrapulmonary)

Mycobacteriumleprae In-vitroculturenotpossible Leprosy(lepromatous,

tuberculoid)

Nontuberculous

mycobacteria(NTM)

(e.g.,Mycobacterium

avium/intracellulare

complex,andnumerous

otherspecies)

Ubiquitous.Lowlevelof

pathogenicity,opportunists

Pulmonarydisease,

lymphadenitis,infections

ofskin,softtissue,bones,

joints,tendons.

Disseminateddiseasein

immunosuppressed

patients(AIDS)

Section6.Gram-negativeaerobiccocciandcoccobacilli

Neisseriaceae Coffeebean-shaped

diplococci,nonmotile,

oxidase(+),catalase(+)

Neisseriagonorrheae Cocciofteninphagocytes,

acidfromfermentationof

glucose

Gonorrhea

Neisseriameningitidis Acidfromfermentationof

glucoseandmaltose

Meningitis/sepsis

Eikenellacorrodens HACEK-group.

Lowpathogenicity

Nosocomialinfections

Kingellakingae HACEK-group.

Lowpathogenicity

Nosocomialinfections

3

Kayser, Medical Microbiology © 2005 Thieme