Prevotella micans
A Microbial Biorealm page on the genus Prevotella micans
Classification
Higher order taxa
Bacteria, Bacteroidetes/Chlorobi group, Bacteroidetes, Bacteroidia, Bacteroidales, Provotellaceae, Prevotella
Species
Prevotella micans sp. nov.
Description and significance
Prevotella micans is a gram-negative bacilli that is primarily an obligate anaerobe. The species was isolated from necrotic pulp in the human mouth. P. micans is saccarolytic, and produces a number of acids, such as acedic, isovaleric, succinic, as well as a small amount of isobutyric acid, all as an end product of fermentation (4). Bad breath can occur due to the fermentative nature and habit of this species. Prevotella micans accommodates other species including Prevotella buccalis, Prevotella nanceiensis, and Prevotella marshii. The specific type strain of Prevotella micans studied was E7.56(T) (=DSM 21469(T)=CCUG 56105(T)). (1)
Genome structure
The G+C content of the strain E7.56 is 46mol%. The total genomic length is 2.43529Mbp and includes 1,906 proteins. Other genomic structures have yet to be identified. (2)
Cell and colony structure
Prevotella micans is a non-motile, gram-negative bacilli. Cell size measures 1.5-5μm long by 0.7μm wide, and are normally arranged in end to end pairs. Electron microscope examination of a thin section shows a gram-negative cell wall with a thin peptidoglycan layer, as well as an outer membrane. Cell colony appearance is circular convex, pink/red-brown in color in the center and a cream colored outer edge. Colony sizes range from 1.2mm to 1.8mm in diameter. (1)
Metabolism
Prevotella micans is an obligate anaerobic microbe, it is also considered to be saccharolytic (breaks down sugars for energy), as well as produces acedic acid, isovaleric acid, succinic acid, and small amounts of isobutyric acid as an end product of fermentation. P. micans can also utilize lactose and sucrose. The ability of P. micans to degrade tryptophan is present with Indole testing (1), differing it from other Prevotella species that were not able to accomplish this.
Ecology
This species is found to occupy the human oral cavity. It compliments other Prevotella species including Prevotella baccalis, Prevotella nanceiensis, and Prevotella marshii. All species are found to habitat the human oral cavity. Gene sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene shows a relation to Prevotella baccalis (88%) and Prevotella marshii (91%) for base pair comparison. These numbers show a significant difference in shared genomic content to consider Prevotella micans as a new novel species.
Pathology
Prevotella micans is resistant to kanamycin and vancomycin, as well as sensitive to colistin antibiotics. No current pathological effects are known due to the relatively new discovery of this specific microbe. (1)
References
1.) Downes, Julia. "Prevotella Micans Sp. Nov., Isolated from the Human Oral Cavity." Microbiology Society Journals. 4 Jan. 2009. Web. 4 Nov. 2015.
2.) Wattam, A.R., D. Abraham, O. Dalay, T.L. Disz, T. Driscoll, J.L. Gabbard, J.J. Gillespie, R. Gough, D. Hix, R. Kenyon, D. Machi, C. Mao, E.K. Nordberg, R. Olson, R. Overbeek, G.D. Pusch, M. Shukla, J. Schulman, R.L. Stevens, D.E. Sullivan, V. Vonstein, A. Warren, R. Will, M.J.C. Wilson, H. Seung Yoo, C. Zhang, Y. Zhang, B.W. Sobral (2014). “PATRIC, the bacterial bioinformatics database and analysis resource.” Nucl Acids Res 42 (D1): D581-D591. doi:10.1093/nar/gkt1099. PMID: 24225323.
3.) "Prevotella Micans Sp. Nov., Isolated from the Human Oral Cavity." National Center for Biotechnology Information. U.S. National Library of Medicine. Web. 4 Nov. 2015.
4.) Prevotella micans sp. nov., isolated from the human oral cavity. (2009, April 1). Retrieved December 11, 2015, from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19329604
Edited by Brandon M Levesque of Dr. Lisa R. Moore, University of Southern Maine, Department of Biological Sciences, http://www.usm.maine.edu/bio
