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Imogen McDougall Bench B 31/08/2016 [1]
Classification
Higher order taxa
Bacteria - Proteobacteria - Neisseriales - Neiseeriaceae - Kingella
Species
Species: Kingella oralis [2]
Type strain: UB-38 [1]
Description and significance
‘’Kingella oralis’’ was first discovered in a 1989 study conducted by Chen et al. The study focussed on ‘’Eikenella corrodens’’ found in human oral samples [3] . It was noticed that during culturing and biochemical studies that there was a larger than expected level of variation for one species [3] . In 1990 Chen et al investigated these variants further and identified three Eikenella like species; UB-38, UB-204 and UB-294 [4] . Further studies on UB-38, ‘’Kingella oralis’’ (originally ‘’Kingella orale’’) was conducted by Dewhirst et al. in 1993.
‘’K.oralis’’ has been found in a range of sites in the human oral cavity. It has been found in saliva, on mucosal surfaces and in dental plaque of both sub and supra-gingival origin [5] . In peridontally healthy individuals ‘’K. oralis’’ is more prominent in subgingival plaques however in both adult and juvenile periodontitis cases, ‘’k. oralis’’ is more common in the supraginigval [5] .
This gram negative rod shaped bacteria has been successfully cultured using a trypticase soy agar plate with 5% sheep blood and incubated in conditions designed to replicate the human oral cavity (37o C, aerobic, 5% CO2) [3].
Due to ‘’K. oralis’’ presence in subgingival and supragingival plaque and its potential association to periodontitis as described by Chen in 1996, this microorganism is important to study. A better understanding of ‘’K.oralis’’ interactions with its host and other microorganisms as well as its biochemical pathways and lifestyle could lead to a better understanding of its association with periodontitis. This in turn could lead to advancements in diagnosis and treatments of this condition.
Genome structure
Select a strain for which genome information (e.g. size, plasmids, distinct genes, etc.) is available.
Cell structure and metabolism
Cell wall, biofilm formation, motility, metabolic functions.
Ecology
Aerobe/anaerobe, habitat (location in the oral cavity, potential other environments) and microbe/host interactions.
Pathology
Do these microorganisms cause disease in the oral cavity or elsewhere?
Application to biotechnology
Bioengineering, biotechnologically relevant enzyme/compound production, drug targets,…
Current research
Summarise some of the most recent discoveries regarding this species.
References
1. List of Prokaryotic names with standing in nomenclature
References examples
- ↑ MICR3004
This page is written by Imogen McDougall for the MICR3004 course, Semester 2, 2016