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From MicrobeWiki, the student-edited microbiology resource

Jessekah Butterworth Bench B Date [1]

Classification

Higher order taxa

Bacteria – Proteobacteria – Betaproteobacteria – Neisseriales – Neisseriaceae – Kingella

Species

Kingella oralis

Strain: strain UB-38 = ATCC 51147 = CCUG 30450 = CIP 103803.[1]

Description and significance

Kingella oralis is a gram-negative, bacilli bacteria that was first observed by Chen et al in 1989, who were investigating the presence of Eikenella corrodens in the human oral cavity.[2] This isolate was further investigated by Dewhirst et al in 1993, who identified several characteristics that distinguished the two species from each other including colony morphology on agar and acid production from sugars.

In early identification and research into K. oralis, the bacteria was successfully grown on Trypticase soy agar plates that contain 5% sheep blood, 5mg of hemin per litre and 0.5mg of menadione per litre at 37°C in a humidified anaerobic chamber containing 5% CO2.[3] However the specific growth requirements of K. oralis are still unknown.

K. oralis is found in both supragingival and subgingival plaque, as well as in mucosa and saliva.[4] There is a high association between K. oralis presence and periodontitis.[3][4] Therefore research into K. oralis can potentially aid in periodontitis prevention or treatment.

Genome structure

The representative K. oralis strain ATCC 51147, has a total genome size of 2.41Mb consisting of 2435 genes which encode approximately 2315 proteins and 6 rRNAs. [5] It has a GC% content of 54.3%.

The genome assembly consists of 5 scaffolds that contain no gaps in between and 12 contigs, with a contig N50 of 792,850.[6] K. oralis does not form chromosomes and contains no plasmids either.

Cell structure and metabolism

K. oralis is a gram negative, bacilli(rod)- shaped bacteria that consists of the usual cell was structure of plasma membrane, periplasmic space, thin peptidoglycan layer and an outer membrane containing lipopolysaccharide and proteins. Cells can reach sizes of approximately 0.6 to 0.7µm in diameter by 1 to 3µm in length and will either grow in pairs or chains within the colony.[3]

K. oralis do not have flagella and therefore do not move around very much. However the cells can form spreading colonies allowing the bacteria to have 'twitching motility'.[3]

K. oralis is oxidase positive, but catalase negative.[3] The bacteria has a weak ability to produce acid from glucose but is unable to utilize other sugar compounds, such as lactose, maltose, mannitol, sucrose and xylose, for the same purpose.[3] In addition to this, K. oralis does not reduce nitrate or nitrite, nor produce lysine, ornithine decarboxylase, indole and urease, nor hydrolyze esculin.[3]

Ecology

K. oralis is an aerobe or facultative anaerobe that is predominantly found in supragingival and subgingival dental plaque, but also in mucosa and saliva. [3], [4]



Aerobe/anaerobe, habitat (location in the oral cavity, potential other environments) and microbe/host interactions.

Pathology

As K. oralis is located in supragingival and subgingival plaque formation, it is logical that it is associated with the inflammatory diseases gingivitis and periodontitis.[4]

When biofilm/plaque formation occurs, the various metabolic products produced by the bacteria can cause a mild inflammation of the gums, known as gingivitis. [7] At this stage, daily brushing and flossing can remove the bacteria build up and reverse the gum disease. However, if left untreated, the gum disease can advance to a more severe form known as periodontitis.[8] At this stage, the inflammation moves to around the tooth and the gums can detach from the tooth creating pockets of space to which bacteria can spread. A combination of bacterial toxins and the host immune response can then lead to the degradation of oral bone and connective tissue surrounding the teeth.[8]

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

2. Chen, C., Dunford, RG., Reynolds HS., Zambon JJ. (1989) Eikenella corrodens in the human oral cavity. J Peridontal 60:611-616.

3. Dewhirst, FE., Chen, C., Paster, BJ., Zambon, JJ. (1993) Phylogeny of Species in the Family Neisseriaceae Isolated from Human Dental Plaque and Description of Kingella orale sp.nov. Internation Journal of Systematic Bacteriology 43:490-499.

4. Chen, C. (1996) Distribution of a newly described species, Kingella oralis, in the human oral cavity. Oral Microbiol Immunol 11:425-427.

5. NCBI Genome Assembly Annotation: Kingella oralis

6. NCBI Global Genome Statistics: Kingella oralis

7. NCBI: Gingivitis

8. NCBI: Periodontitis


  1. MICR3004

This page is written by Jessekah Butterworth for the MICR3004 course, Semester 2, 2016