Acute Morphology of Streptococcus pyogenes
Abstract: Streptococcus pyogenes is a gram positive coccus bacterium that is extremely common bacteria. This bacterium is part of group A streptococci, which meant that it has a certain type of polysaccharide antigen on its cell surface. It is commonly known as pharyngitis, or strep throat and produces over twenty exotoxins. Even though this bacterium has been around for thousands of years it still has a susceptibility to penicillin and there have only been a few cases of resistance.
Streptococcus pyogenes is a gram positive bacteria that is associated with multiple types of diseases. Streptos means a chain of links and coccus means a round object. Together this describes the shape of Streptococcus pyogenes, a round chain of ten or more cocci, each measuring 0.5 to 0.75 μm in diameter. This bacterium can cause scarlet fever, streptococcal pharyngitis and erysipelas in humans. It is identified mainly by its ability to create β-haemolysis in blood agar plates.
Streptococci can be separated into groups by a polysaccharide antigen that is deep inside the cell wall. The groups are labeled by the letters ranging from A to R, each group represents a different type of organism that it mostly infects. Group A is mainly pathogenic to humans, while group B is found in cattle. Groups C to R infect animals of lesser complexity. Streptococcus pyogenes is part of group A, which means that the polysaccharide antigen is composed of rhamnose and N-acetylglucosamine and its main host is in humans.
The morphology of S. pyogenes is a chain of cocci that are normally in groups of ten and each cocci range in diameter from 0.5 to 0.75 μm. They are nonmotile, which means that they
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...agar plates. S. pyogenes produces many extracellular products, they are called streptococcal pyrogenic exotoxins and are classified into three serotypes, A-C. SPE B is the most unique of the three and is responsible for multiple diseases, including toxic shock syndrome. This bacteria does have a weak point, almost all streptococci are susceptible to penicillin.
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Works Cited
Christie, A. B. (1987). Infectious Diseases (Vol. 2, 4th ed.). New York: Churchill Livingstone.
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Kaplan, E. L. (2000). Streptococcal Infections (Vol. 1). New York: Oxford University Press.
Todar, K. (2002). Streptococcus pyogenes (Vol. 1). Madison: University of Wisconsin-Madison Department of Bact. Retrieved July 30, 2008, from http://www.textbookofbacteriology.net/streptococcus.html
The Gram positive bacteria has been nicknamed Posi. The Gram positive species’ morphology includes having an opaque opacity with a smooth margin. The moisture content of the Gram positive species is shiny and the pigmentation is gold. The Gram positive species grows at an optimal temperature of 37°C. The shape of the Gram positive species is a cocci, with an arrangement of grapelike clusters. The Gram positive species’ size ranges from .5-1.5 µm. Oxygen requirement of the Gram positive species is facultative, and has complete lysis of red blood cells. All results are summarized in Table
It is not unusual for some healthy women to harbor Group B streptococcus bacteria in their rectum and vagina. These microorganisms do not usually cause disease when few in number, but when they grow in number and colonize these areas, bacterial infection can become severe.
My disease is Streptococcal pneumonia or pneumonia is caused by the pathogen Streptococcus pneumoniae. Streptococcus pneumoniae is present in human’s normal flora, which normally doesn’t cause any problems or diseases. Sometimes though when the numbers get too low it can cause diseases or upper respiratory tract problems or infections (Todar, 2008-2012). Pneumonia caused by this pathogen has four stages. The first one is where the lungs fill with fluid. The second stage causes neutrophils and red blood cells to come to the area which are attracted by the pathogen. The third stage has the neutrophils stuffed into the alveoli in the lungs causing little bacteria to be left over. The fourth stage of this disease the remaining residue in the lungs are take out by the macrophages. Aside from these steps pneumonia follows, if the disease should persist further, it can get into the blood causing a systemic reaction resulting in the whole body being affected (Ballough). Some signs and symptoms of this disease are, “fever, malaise, cough, pleuritic chest pain, purulent or blood-tinged sputum” (Henry, 2013). Streptococcal pneumonia is spread through person-to-person contact through aerosol droplets affecting the respiratory tract causing it to get into the human body (Henry, 2013).
L. pneumophila belongs to the genus Legionella. This genus also causes Pontiac Fever, a milder illness resembling the flu. Infections by Legionella bacterium, separately or together, is sometimes called legionellosis. L. pneumophila is a ubiquitous organism which thrives in warm, moist places – including water pipes. It is thin, pleomorphic, flagellated and Gram-negative. It is the primary human pathogen of its genus. It does not have endospores or a capsule and morphologically it is a rod-like bacteria. Although, it is considered Gram-negative, it stains poorly because of its lipopolysaccharide outer layer of the outer cell membrane. It is non-acid-fast, aerobic and non-fermentative. It is not pigmented but it is oxidase and catalase positive. Its optimum temperature is around 35 degrees Celsius or 95 degrees Fairinheight and it is capable of surviving temperature ran...
those that correlate to the flesh-eating bacteria now known as streptococcus pyogenes. Due to Hippocrates’ acts as a pioneer in the medical field, these chronicles are the first recordings we have of the existence of the bacteria.
Being a gram-negative bacterium, L. pneumophila has lipopolysaccharides (LPS) that act as endotoxin within a human host. The presence of a flagella is thought to mediate adherence to human lung cells, thereby causing infection, since flagella-less strains do not cause disease. Once attached to human cells, the organism is engulfed by a macrophage where is utilizes the internal environment to multiply.
Clinical Infectious Diseases, 49(3), 438-443. Doi:10.1086/600391. See full address and map. Medicare.gov/Hospital Compare - The Official U.S. Government Site for Medicare (n.d).
... and quickly grow. Secondly, invasins help the bacteria spread in the host’s tissues. An invasion is a protein that acts locally to damage host cells to facilitate the growth and spread of the pathogen. More simply, Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus pyogens have a small army of invasins that basically attack the host very quickly and spread the bacteria out far – into the blood and organs. Another virulence factor of both Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus pyogens is their cellular secretions. The secretions include antigens, enzymes, and toxins that assist with various functions needed to feed the bacteria and fend off the host’s immune defences.
Necrotizing Fasciitis (flesh eating bacteria ) from an essay by Katrina Tram Duong, edited by S.N. Carson M.D.
"Bloodborne Pathogens : MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia." U.S National Library of Medicine. U.S. National Library of Medicine, n.d. Web. 09 Feb. 2014.
E. Coli 0157, written by Mary Heersink, is a nerve-racking, adrenaline-filled story of a mother's experience with a then unknown deadly bacteria. The book brings up many reactions in its readers, especially the questioning of the practice of doctors in hospitals. The reader's knowledge base of scientific procedures in emergency centers was widened as well as the knowledge of how to the human body reacts to different agents in its system.
S. pyogenes is a bacterium that permeates our society. Today it is commonly known as the cause of “Strep. throat,” or Streptococcal pharyngitis. Modern medicine has caused the eradication of most of its advanced infections, while this most common form of infection still thrives. It is very contagious, and pyogenes travels quickly through places where bacteria flourish, such as schools and health institutions. The body cannot fight this bacterium very well without help, and S. pyogenes was a common cause of death until the introduction of antibiotics in the twentieth century. It has a number of ways to subdue the immune system, but it is almost completely vulnerable to penicillin, even after decades of exposure. While generally no more than a nuisance, this bacterium continues to be an interesting topic of discussion. (6,3,2)
In the documentary, Hunting the Nightmare Bacteria, reporter David Hoffman investigates this new untreatable infection along two individuals and a bacterial virus within a hospital. The first individual Hoffman investigates is Addie Rerecich of Arizona, she was treated for a staph infection with antibiotics, but other complications arise. Addie had a lung transplant, she was given several different antibiotics, but her body became pan-bacteria, non-resistance to the bacteria. Addie’s life was on the edge, she had to be on life support, and finally she received new lungs. The transplant helped Addie but it would take years before could go back to normal before the infection. The second individual is David Ricci; he had his leg amputated in India after a train accident. The antibiotic treatment he received became toxic to his body increasing problems. While in India, he underwent surgery almost every day because of infections he was developing. Back in Seattle, doctors found the NDM-1 resistance gene in his body; NDM-1 gene is resistance to almost all antib...
Streptococcal pharyngitis (colloquially known as strep throat) is an infection caused by a Streptococcus pyogenes bacterium, which also forms a category called Group A Beta Hemolytic Strep (GABHS). They are responsible for various diseases, however strep throat is the most epidemic. S. pyogenes is the causative agent of over 10 million of skin and throat infections reported every year.
Ford-Jones, E. L., & Kellner, J. D. (1995). " CHEAP TORCHES": An acronym for congenital and perinatal infections. The Pediatric infectious disease journal, 14(7), 638-639.