The Prokaryotes: Domains of Bacteria

and Archaea

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The Prokaryotes

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Domain Bacteria

 Pseudomonadata: Proteobacteria
 Largest taxonomic group of bacteria
 Nucleotide sequence homology

 Includes most Gram-negative

 Chemoheterotrophic

 Separated into five classes:

 Alpha, beta, gamma, delta, epsilon proteobacteria

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 The Alphaproteobacteria

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The Alphaproteobacteria

Some have unusual morphologies

 Protrusions: stalks or buds known as prosthecae,
extension of cell membrane and used in adherence

Require very low levels of nutrients

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The Alphaproteobacteria

 Human pathogens
 Bartonella
 B. henselae, gram negative rod: cat-scratch disease
 Estimated 22,000 plus cases annually in USA
 Risk group: close proximity to cats
 Transmission is by scratch
 Benign infection in immune competent individuals
 Disease is self limiting
 But severe cases may warrant antibiotic therapy

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Electron micrograph showing the location of Bartonella henselae within a red blood cell.

Pore
RBC

B. henselae

Cat red blood cells

• Transmission to cats is by flea

• Exposure to humans is by scratch

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 Symptoms
• Papule
• Chilles
• Lymphadenopathy
• Fatigue
• Muscle pain
• General flu like

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Lectures prepared by Christine L. Case
 https://www.acep.org/Clinical---Practice-Management/Consider-Cat-Scratch-Disease-in-Fever-of-Unknown-Origin
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The Alphaproteobacteria

 Obligate intracellular parasites

 Genus: Ehrlichia: tickborne, ehrlichiosis
 Flu like illness
 More common in males
 Kidney, heart, respiratory failure
 Rickettsia: arthropod-borne (fleas), spotted fevers
 R. prowazekii: epidemic typhus, lice
 R. typhi: endemic murine typhus, rat flea
 R. rickettsii: Rocky Mountain spotted fever, ticks
 Gram negative rod-shaped bacteria or coccobacilli
 Can damage the permeability of blood capillaries
resulting in a spotted rash!!!
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Rickettsias.

Slime layer Chicken

Scattered embryo
rickettsias cell
Nucleus

Masses of
rickettsias
in nucleus

A rickettsial cell that has Rickettsias grow only within a host cell,
just been released from a such as the chicken embryo cell shown
host cell here. Note the scattered rickettsias within
the cell and the compact masses of
rickettsias in the cell nucleus.

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R. prowazekii: epidemic typhus
 Rickettsia prowazekii is primarily maintained in human
populations
 Spreads between people by human body lice.
 Infected people develop an acute, mild to severe illness
 Neurological signs, shock, gangrene of the fingers and toes
 Approximately 10-30% of untreated clinical cases are fatal

 Historically, R. prowazekii regularly caused extensive

outbreaks, killing thousands or even millions of people,
epidemic typhus
 Treatment: treated with tetracyclines and Chloramphenicol

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R. prowazekii:(Pediculus humanus
corporis).

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SEM of R. prowazekii

• Obligate intracellular
• Pleomorphic rods
• Susceptible to heat and disinfection

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R. prowazekii: Sympotoms

 Fever and chills

 Headache
 Body and muscle aches
 Rash
 Cough
 Nausea
 Flu like

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Rocky Mountain spotted fever: R.
rickettsii
 Tick borne disease

 Reservoir: wild rodents

 Bacterial is an intracellular pathogen

 Infects endothelial cells

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Rocky Mountain spotted fever: R.
rickettsii
 Reproduction:
 The bacteria enters host cell by phagocytosis
 Reproduce in the cytoplasm by binary fission
 Host cell ruptures/burst
 Bacterial is pleomorphic dependent upon environment

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Symptoms: RMSF

 Fever
 Headache
 Rash
 Nausea
 Vomiting
 Stomach pain
 Muscle pain
 Lack of appetite
 General flu like

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Classic Rash: RMSF

• maculopapular rash/
erythematous macular rash
• Develops 2-4 days post fever

• Treatment: Early treatment with

the antibiotic doxycycline can
prevent death and severe illness

https://www.consultant360.com/content/rocky-mountain-spotted-fever

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Late stage

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 The Betaproteobacteria

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 Betaproteobacteria

• Some Betaproteobacteria can derive energy from light

• Others can use inorganic compounds to make energy

• While many Betaproteobacteria in environmental soil

and water

• Some are obligate pathogens and can cause disease

in a variety of hosts

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The Betaproteobacteria

 Bordetella
 Chemoheterotrophic; rods
 B. pertussis
 Can develop a clinical whooping cough

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Pertussis (Whooping Cough)
 Bordetella pertussis
 Gram-negative coccobacillus
 Capsule
 Tracheal cytotoxin, cell wall derived damages
ciliated cells and paralyzes cilia so they no longer
beat properly
 Pertussis toxin: can impair cellular function and
alter immune responses
 inhibit phagocytosis, a process whereby white blood cells
ingest and kill bacteria
 Prevented by DTaP vaccine (acellular Pertussis cell
fragments)
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Rod Shaped

http://www.iliadbio.com/pertussis/bpertussis.html

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B. pertussis

 Gram negative bacteria

 Bordetella Pertussis (B. pertussis) is a highly
contagious gram-negative bacterium
 Transmission by aerosolized droplet: cough, sneeze
or simple exhalation
 Secreted adherence factors and toxins
 B. pertussis adapted for nasopharyngeal
colonization

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Ciliated cells of the respiratory system infected with Bordetella pertussis.

B. pertussis

Cilia

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Early symptoms

 Duration: 1 to 2 weeks and usually include:

 Runny nose
 Low-grade fever
 Mild, occasional cough
 Apnea – a pause in breathing (in babies)

 Sometimes mistaken for the common cold

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Late Symptoms

 fits of many, rapid coughs followed by a high-pitched

“whoop” sound

 Vomiting during or after coughing fits

 Exhaustion (very tired) after coughing fits

 Many babies with the disease do not cough at all:

They may stop breathing

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Prevention Vs. Treatment

 Erythromycin destroy B. pertussis bacteria

 Caveat: short window of time after infection in which

antibiotics are effective.

 Once whooping cough symptoms are present,

severe coughing fits persist for months
 Why? B. pertussis pathology results not from the bacteria
itself, but from the variety of toxins it produces and
secretes.

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Neisseria gonorrhoeae

 Aerobic gram-negative cocci

 Inhabit the mucous membranes of host

 Sexually transmitted

 Uses fimbriae to attach to host cells

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The gram-negative coccus Neisseria gonorrhoeae.

Capsule

Fimbriae

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A smear of pus from a patient with gonorrhea.

Leukocyte nuclei

Neisseria gonorrhoeae

Phagocytic leukocytes
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Pearson Education,
Education, Inc.
Inc.
 Gonorrhea

 Caused by Neisseria gonorrhoeae

 Attaches to oral or urogenital mucosa by fimbriae
 Anal gonorrhea, pharyngeal gonorrhea

 Opa proteins facilitates host cell interaction and

prevent proliferation of CD4+ T cells

 If left untreated, may result in

 Endocarditis
 Meningitis
 Arthritis
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Symptoms

 In women:
 Painful or burning sensation when urinating;
 Increased vaginal discharge;
 Vaginal bleeding between periods.

 In men:
 A burning sensation when urinating;
 A white, yellow, or green discharge from the penis;
 Painful or swollen testicles

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Treatment

 Gonorrhea can be cured with the right treatment

dual therapy, or using two drugs
 Example: a single dose of 250mg of intramuscular
ceftriaxone and 1g of oral azithromycin.
 Comply: take all of the medication prescribed to cure
gonorrhea
 Multi-drug resistance has been demonstrated
 it will not repair any permanent damage
 Fertility issue

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 40
Percentage or resistant isolates

KEY
35
Penicillin

30 Tetracycline
Fluoroquinolone
s
25 Azithromycin

20

15

10

0
1988 1998 2005 2008
Antibiotic resistance to N. gonorrhoeae

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The U.S. incidence and distribution of gonorrhea.
500

450
Reported cases per 100,000 population

400

350

300

250

200

150

100

50

0
’41 ’46 ’51 ’56 ’61 ’66 ’71 ’76 ’81 ’86 ’91 ’96 ’01 ’06 ’10

Year
Incidence of gonorrhea in the United States, 1941–2010
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Bacterial Meningitis

 Initial symptoms of fever, headache, and stiff neck

 Followed by nausea and vomiting
 May progress to convulsions and coma
 Diagnosis by Gram stain and latex agglutination of
cerebral spinal fluid (CSF)

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Neisseria meningititdis

 Agent of meningococcal meningitis

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Neisseria Meningitis

 Also called meningococcal meningitis

 Caused by N. meningitidis
 Gram-negative, aerobic cocci with a capsule
 10% of people are healthy nasopharyngeal carriers
 Begins as throat infection, rash
 Serotypes B, C, Y, W-135
 Serotype B & C in United States
 Serotype A in Africa
 Vaccination (A, C, Y, W-135 capsule) recommended
for college students
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Neisseria meningitis.

N. meningitidis
Cilia

N. meningitidis

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 The Gammaproteobacteria

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Gammaproteobacteria

• Pathogens belong to this class, Salmonella spp.: enteritis and

typhoid fever
• Weakness, abdominal pain, constipation, and headaches also commonly
occur, diarrhea is not common and vomiting is not usually severe
• Prevention: hygiene and sanitation
• Treatment: fluoroquinolone such as ciprofloxacin

• Yersinia pestis(plague): Black death 14th century Eurasia

• 30-60% of population loss

• Vibrio cholerae (cholera)

•
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 Plague

Three types:
• Bubonic plague infects your lymphatic
system (the immune system), inflammation
• Untreated, it can move into the blood and
cause septicemic plague, or
• To the lungs, causing pneumonic plague
• Most lethal and transfers from person to person by
aerosolization

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 “Plague Doctor”

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Bubonic plague symptoms

• appear suddenly, usually after 2 - 5 days of

exposure to the bacteria
Chills
General ill feeling (malaise)
High fever
Muscle pain
Severe headache
Seizures
Smooth, painful lymph gland swelling called a
bubo

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Pneumonic plague symptoms

• appear suddenly, typically 2 - 3 days after

exposure

• Difficulty breathing
• Frothy, bloody sputum
• Severe cough

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 Septicemic plague
• may cause death even before its symptoms occur
• Abdominal pain
• Bleeding due to blood clotting problems
• Diarrhea
• Fever
• Low blood pressure
• Nausea
• Organ failure
• Vomiting

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Treatment

• Antibiotics such as streptomycin, gentamicin,

doxycycline, or ciprofloxacin are used to treat
plague

• Must be administered within 24 hrs of

symptomology

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Gammaproteobacteria

• Pseudomonas aeruginosa (lung infections in

hospitalized or cystic fibrosis patients)

• Escherichia coli (food poisoning)

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The Gammaproteobacteria

 Pseudomonadales
 Pseudomonas
 Opportunistic pathogens
 Metabolically diverse
 Aerobic, gram negative rods
 Motile
 Polar flagella
 Ubiquitous
 Pseudomonas aeruginosa: Can cause sepsis,
infections in burns wound, urinary tracts, meningitis

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Pseudomonas.

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The Gammaproteobacteria

 Legionellales
 Legionella
 Found in streams, warm-water pipes, cooling towers
 L. pneumophilia
 Gram-negative, nonencapsulated, aerobic bacillus with
a single, polar flagellum often characterized as being a
coccobacillus
 invades and replicates inside macrophages

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Legionellosis

 Legionella pneumophila
 Gram-negative rod
 Found in water
 Transmitted by inhaling aerosols; not transmitted
from human to human

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Legionellosis

 Symptoms: potentially fatal pneumonia that tends

to affect older men who drink or smoke heavily
 Diagnosis: culture on selective media, DNA probe
 Treatment: erythromycin

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Legionella

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The Gammaproteobacteria

 Order: Vibrionales
 Found in coastal water
 Vibrio cholerae causes cholera
 Severe vomiting and diarrhea
 Lost of fluid and electrolytes imbalances
 Like other Vibrio, V. parahawmolyticus is
 Curved rod shaped
 Motile with a single, polar flagellum

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Vibrio cholerae.

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 Vibrios

 Cholera
 Vibrio cholerae serotypes that produce cholera toxin
 Toxin causes host cells to secrete Cl−, HCO−, and
water

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 Disease Cholera Noncholera Vibrios
Pathogen Vibrio V. V. vulnificus
cholerae O:1 parahaemolyticus
and O:139
Symptoms Diarrhea with Cholera-like Rapidly
large water diarrhea, but spreading
loss generally milder tissue
destruction
Intoxication/ Cholera toxin Infection, Infection,
Infection (exotoxin) enterotoxin siderophores

Diagnosis Isolation of Isolation of Isolation of

bacteria bacteria bacteria
Treatment Rehydration; Rehydration; Antibiotics
doxycycline antibiotics
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The Gammaproteobacteria

 Enterobacteriales
(enterics)  Enterobacter
 Peritrichous flagella;  Erwinia
facultatively anaerobic  Escherichia
 Klebsiella
 Proteus
 Salmonella
 Serratia
 Shigella
 Yersinia

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Escherichia coli Gastroenteritis

EPEC Stimulate host-cell actin to form

pathogenic pedestals beneath attachment site

EIEC Access intestinal submucosa through

Invasive M cells (mucosa-associated lymphoid tissues)

EAEC Not invasive; enterotoxin causing a

Aggregative watery diarrhea

EHEC Phage-encoded Shiga toxin

Hemorrhagic
(STEC)
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Pedestal formation by Enterohemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC) O157:H7.

Insert Fig 25.12

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Escherichia coli Gastroenteritis

 Intoxication/Infection: infection; endotoxin

 Diagnosis: PFGE Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis of
sorbitol-negative E. coli
 Treatment: oral rehydration

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Traveler’s Diarrhea

 ETEC: Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (E. coli)

 EAEC: Enteroaggregative Escherichia coli
 Salmonella
 Shigella
 Campylobacter

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E. coli: O157:H7

 Enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC)

serotype O157:H7
 A human pathogen responsible for outbreaks of
bloody diarrhea and hemolytic uremic syndrome
(HUS) worldwide: affects the blood and blood
vessels and may cause kidney damage

 Antimicrobials trigger promotes the release of the

potent Shiga toxin
 Responsible for much of the morbidity and mortality

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 The Epsilonproteobacteria

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The Epsilonproteobacteria

 Slender gram negative rods

 Helical or curved
 Motile by way of flagella
 Microaerophilic

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The Epsilonproteobacteria

 Campylobacter
 One polar flagellum
 some are pathogenic
 C. jejuni: Gastroenteritis

 Helicobacter
 Multiple flagella
 Peptic ulcers
 Stomach cancer

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Campylobacter jejuni

 One of the most common causes of food poisoning

in the United States and in
 Found in animal feces
 Campylobacter is a helical-shaped, Gram-negative,
microaerophilic, nonfermenting bacterium
 Oxidase-positive and grow optimally at 37 to 42°C
 Causes a form of Gastroenteritis
 Associated with subsequent development of
Guillain–Barré syndrome

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Campylobacter jejuni

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Campylobacter jejuni

 Illness is generally self limiting

 But maintenance of electrolyte balance, hydration

and not antibiotic treatment, is the cornerstone of
treatment for Campylobacter

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Heliobacter pylori

 In persons with chronic gastritis and gastric ulcers

 80% of individuals infected with the bacterium are
asymptomatic
 Therefore, may be opportunistic
 H. pylori associated with colorectal polyps and
colorectal cancer
 First-line therapy is a one-week:
 "triple therapy" consisting of proton pump inhibitors
omeprazole and antibiotics clarithromycin and amoxicillin

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Heliobacter pylori.

Flagella

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 Nonproteobacteria Gram-Negative
Bacteria

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Nonproteobacteria Gram-Negatives

Bacteroidetes
Anaerobic
Bacteroides are found in large intestine
1 billion per gram of feces
Infections are usually from puncture
wounds and in perforated bowels
Fusobacterium
Are found in the mouth
May be involved in dental diseases

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Chlamydias

• Intracellular parasites
• Three species are pathogenic in humans
• Chlamydia trachomatis
• Chlamydophila pneumoniae
• Chlamydophila psittaci

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Chlamydias.

The elementary bodies are Elementary body

The bacterium’s infectious
released from the host cell.
form, the elementary
body, attaches to a host
The reticulate bodies cell.
begin to convert back Nucleus
into elementary bodies.
Host cell The host cell
phagocytizes
Vacuole forming the elementary
body, housing
it in a vacuole.
Vacuole
Reticulate body

The reticulate body divides

successively, producing The elementary body
multiple reticulate bodies. reorganizes to form a
reticulate body.
Life cycle of the chlamydias, which takes
about 48 hours to complete.

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Chlamydias

Chlamydia trachomatis
Trachoma: The infection causes a roughening of the
inner surface of the eyelids may lead to blindness
STI, urethritis
Lymphogranuloma venereum
Chlamydophila pneumoniae (mild) in young adults
Chlamydophila psittaci
Psittacosis

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 Lymphogranuloma Venereum (LGV)

Causative agent: Chlamydia trachomatis

Initial lesion on genitals heals
Bacteria spread through lymph
Symptoms: swelling in lymph nodes in groin
Diagnosis: microscopic identification and culture
Treatment: doxycycline

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 Pelvic Inflammatory Disease (PID)

• Pelvic inflammatory disease is an infection of a

woman’s reproductive organs
• Polymicrobic, usually:
• N. gonorrhoeae
• C. trachomatis
• Salpingitis (infection of uterine tubes)
• Symptoms: chronic abdominal pain
• Treatment: doxycycline and cefoxitin

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Spirochetes

• These have a coiled morphology

• Motile by way of two or more axial filaments or
endoflagella
• Rotation of the filaments allows for a corkscrew
movement

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Spirochetes.

Axial filaments

Sheath

This cross section of a spirochete shows

numerous axial filaments between the dark
cell and the outer sheath.

Sheath This micrograph of a

portion of Treponema
pallidum shows the sheath,
which has shrunk away
from the cell, and two axial
filaments attached near one
of the cell under the sheath.

Axial filaments

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 Treponema pallidum : Syphilis

Caused by Treponema pallidum

Invades mucosa or through skin breaks
Tends to stain gram negative

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Treponema pallidum, the cause of syphilis.

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 The U.S. incidence and distribution of primary and secondary syphilis.

70

60
Reported cases per 100,000 population

50

40

30

20

10

0
’41 ’46 ’51 ’56 ’61 ’66 ’71 ’76 ’81 ’86 ’91 ’96 ’01 ’06 ’10
Year
Incidence of syphilis in the United States, 1941–2010
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 Syphilis

Primary stage: chancre at site of infection

Secondary stage: skin and mucosal rashes
Latent period: no symptoms
Tertiary stage: gummas on many organs
Treatment: benzathine penicillin
Congenital: neurological damage

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 The Gram-Positive Bacteria

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Gram-Positive Bacteria

• These can be divided into two groups:

• Those with a high G+C ratio
• Those with a low G+C ratio

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Phylum: Firmicutes

 Low G + C
 Gram-positive

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Clostridiales

 Clostridium
 Endospore-producing
 Obligate anaerobes

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Clostridium difficile.

Endospore

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 Tetanus

 Caused by Clostridium tetani

 Gram-positive, endospore-forming, obligate
anaerobe
 Grows in deep wounds
 Tetanospasmin released from dead cells blocks
relaxation pathway in muscles
 Prevention by vaccination with tetanus toxoid
(DTaP) and booster (Td)
 Treatment with tetanus immune globulin (TIG)

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An advanced case of tetanus.

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Botulism

 Caused by Clostridium botulinum

 Gram-positive, endospore-forming, obligate
anaerobe
 Intoxication comes from ingesting botulinal toxin
 Botulinal toxin blocks release of neurotransmitter,
causing flaccid paralysis
 Prevention
 Proper canning
 Nitrites prevent endospore germination in sausages

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Botulism

 Treatment: supportive care and antitoxin

 Infant botulism results from C. botulinum
growing in intestines
 Wound botulism results from growth of
C. botulinum in wounds

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Bacillales

 Bacillus
 Endospore-producing rods
 Staphylococcus
 Cocci

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Bacillus.

Endospore case

This Bacillus cereus cell is shown emerging from the

endospore.

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Anthrax

 Bacillus anthracis
 Gram-positive, endospore-forming aerobic rod
 Found in soil
 Cattle are routinely vaccinated
 Treated with ciprofloxacin or doxycycline

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Anthrax

 Cutaneous anthrax
 Endospores enter through minor cut
 20% mortality
 Gastrointestinal anthrax
 Ingestion of undercooked, contaminated food
 50% mortality
 Inhalational (pulmonary) anthrax
 Inhalation of endospores
 100% mortality

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 Diversity within the Archaea
 Distinct taxonomic grouping; lack peptidoglycan
 Extremophiles
 Halophiles
 Require salt concentration >25%
 Thermophiles
 Require growth temperature >80°C
 Methanogens
 Anaerobic and produce methane

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 Archaea That Thrive in Extreme Conditions

Characterized Archaea thrive in extreme environments

 High heat, acidity, alkalinity, salinity
 Methanogens
 Many others detected in non-extreme environments using
molecular techniques
Group/Genera Characteristics Phylum
Methanogens— Generate methane when they oxidize hydrogen Euryarchaeota
Methanospirillum, gas as an energy source, using CO2 as a terminal
Methanosarcina electron acceptor.
Extreme halophiles— Found in salt lakes, soda lakes, and brines. Most Euryarchaeota
Halobacterium, Halorubrum, grow well in saturated salt solutions.
Natronobacterium,
Natronococcus
Extreme thermophiles— Found near hydrothermal vents and in hot Crenarchaeota,
Methanothermus, Methanopyrus, springs; some grow at temperatures above 100 Euryarchaeota,
Pyrodictium, Pyrolobus, degrees Celsius. Includes examples of methane- and
Sulfolobus, Thermophilus, generating, sulfur-reducing, and sulfur-oxidizing Nanoarchaeota
Picrophilus, Nanoarchaeum archaea, as well as extreme acidophiles.

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 Figure 11.27 Archaea

Pyrodictium occultum, has an optimum temperature

of about 105°C and cannot grow below 82°C.

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 Microbial Diversity
 PCR indicates perhaps 10,000 or more bacterial
species per gram of soil
 Many bacteria have not been identified
 Have not been cultured
 Are a part of complex food chains requiring the
products of other bacteria

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Stop!

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