Isolation of bacteroides corrodens and Eikenella corrodens from human clinical specimens

Summary

In the course of a systematic search for Bacteroides corrodens and Eikenella corrodens in clinical specimens submitted for microbiological analysis, 61% of the specimens from anal abscesses, 6% of the vaginal specimens and none of the pharyngeal specimens yielded B. corrodens, whereas E. corrodens was recovered from only 9% of the pharyngeal specimens. Some characteristics were found to be useful in differentiating between the two species: B. corrodens strains were strictly anaerobic, cytochrome-oxidase-negative, urease-positive and gelatinase-positive; they were sensitive to lincomycin but resistant to vancomycin. E. corrodens strains on the other hand were facultatively anaerobic, oxidase-positive, urease-negative and gelatinase-negative; they were resistant to lincomycin but sensitive to vancomycin. The pathogenicity of the two species was difficult to assess as in most cases they were recovered from mixed cultures.

Zusammenfassung

Im Laufe einer systematischen Suche nach Bacteroides corrodens und Eikenella corrodens in klinischem Untersuchungsmaterial, das zur Untersuchung kam, enthielten 61% der Proben von Analabszessen, 6% von Vaginalabstrichen und keiner von Rachenabstrichen B. Corrodens. Hingegen wurden 9% von E. corrodens bei Rachenabstrichen nachgewiesen. Einige Charakteristika wurden als besonders brauchbar für die Differenzierung beider Species gefunden. B. corrodens-Stämme waren streng anacrob, cytochromoxidase-negativ, urease-positiv, und gelatinase-positiv; sie waren lincomycin-empfindlich, aber vancomycin-resistent. Andererseits waren E. corrodens-Stämme fakultativ anaerob, oxydase-positiv, urease-negativ, lincomycinresistent aber vancomycin-empfindlich. Es war schwierig, die Pathogenizität der beiden Species zu beurteilen, da sie in den meisten Fällen aus Mischkulturen isoliert wurden.