Enterococcus innesii

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Classification

Domain: Bacteria; Phylum: Firmicutes; Class: Bacilli; Order: Lactobacillales; Family: Enterococcaceae.

Species

NCBI: [uid]

Enterococcus Innesii

Description and Significance

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Enterococcus innesii is a novel species of Enterococci isolated by researchers looking at the gut microbiome of the Greater Wax Moth, Galleria mellonella. This species is significant to the medical world as it is antibiotic resistant to vancomycin, a common antibiotic taken to treat enterococci infections. By studying this new species, researchers may be able to understand the way the bacteria has mutated and better understand how to combat bacterium evolution to build effective antibiotics.

Genome Structure

The enterococcus innesii genome is very similar among different strains. The genome is circular in shape and, in a study on 61 different strains of the species, the following data was acquired using 16S rRNA sequencing:

1. G+C Content (mol %) = 42.25 - 42.35%
2. BP Count = 3692254 - 3806372 bp's
3. rRNA = 15 - 22
4. tRNA = 63 - 69

"E. innesii GAL7T was phylogenetically positioned among E. casseliflavus , E. flavescens (re-classified as E. casseliflavus ) and E. gallinarum cluster due to its 16S rRNA sequence similarity (99.53–99.93 %)" (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8744253/).

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Cell Structure, Metabolism and Life Cycle

Structure

1. Gram positive
2. Coccoid cells
3. 1.0 - 1.5 micrometer in diameter
4. Commonly form chains or diplococci
5. Motile
6. Non-spore forming

Metabolism

1. Facultative anaerobe
2. Fermentate carbohydrates to lactic acid
3. Strict fermenter (lacks Kreb's cycle)

Life Cycle

Ecology and Pathogenesis

Habitat; symbiosis; biogeochemical significance; contributions to environment.

If relevant, how does this organism cause disease? Human, animal, plant hosts? Virulence factors, as well as patient symptoms.

Enterococcus innesii are regular inhabitants of the Greater Wax Moth bowel. Enterococci are the leading cause of hospital-acquired secondary infections. Enterococcus innesii is particularly deadly due to their resistance to vancomycin, a common antibiotic used to control Enterococci infections. Enterococcus innesii is a novel bacterium discovered recently in a UK laboratory. It has very little data concerning its interaction with humans, but it is likely similar in virulence to its genus Enterococci

References

[Sample reference] Takai, K., Sugai, A., Itoh, T., and Horikoshi, K. "Palaeococcus ferrophilus gen. nov., sp. nov., a barophilic, hyperthermophilic archaeon from a deep-sea hydrothermal vent chimney". International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology. 2000. Volume 50. p. 489-500.

1. https://www.tgw1916.net/Enterococcus/innesii.html
2. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/938777
3. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8744253/
4. https://www.news-medical.net/news/20211222/Newly-discovered-species-of-Enterococcus-bacteria-named-after-the-John-Innes-Centre.aspx
5. https://microbewiki.kenyon.edu/index.php/Enterococcus#:~:text=Enterococci%20are%20Gram%2Dposistive%20cocci,a%20Kreb's%20cycle%20respiratory%20chain.

Author

Page authored by Andrew Hall, student of Prof. Bradley Tolar at UNC Wilmington.