Enterobacteriaceae is a large, heterogenous group of bacteria whose natural habitat is the intestinal

tract of human or animals

- Thus commonly known as, “enteric bacteria” or “enterobacteria”

They inhabit:

o Soil
o Water
o Vegetation
o Decaying matter

Most frequently encountered bacterial isolates recovered from clinical specimen both as normal flora
and agents of disease

Usually involve lung and urinary tract

Account for more than 50 % of isolates in nosocomial infections

The Enterobacteriaceae was originally the only family in the order enterobacteriales, however, it was not
validated according to the rules of the international codes of nomenclature of prokaryotes.

In 2016, the order was renamed eneterobacterales.

Enterobacteriaceae undergone considerable revisionsin recent years as a result of DNA hybridization and
relatedness studies. Changes published the years 2016 and 2017 include the major reorganization of the
family Enterobacteriaceae

Order Enterobacterales contains:

Plesiomonas shigelloides
 - Formerly Vibrionaceae
- Now: enterbacteriaceae

- Fermentation occurs vis glycolysis

- Pyruvic acid – serves as the final electron acceptor instead of oxygen
- Used for testing
o Ex: E.coli: mixed acid fermentation pathway
▪ Produce large amts of acids
▪ Drop pH
▪ Positive Methy Red test, a pH indicator (red in 4.4, yellow in 6.2, orange in
between)
o Ex: Klebsiella: pyruvic acid
▪ Positive voges-proskauer test
▪ In the presence of KOH and O2 – acetoin is converted to diacetyl and a-naphthol
will serve as a catalyst to produce a red complex
▪ Product: alcohol and only small amt of acid
• MR test is usually negative because the product is mostly alcohol
- The cleavage of formic acid produce H2 and Co2
o Organism that use butylene glycol pathway that are those VP positive, produce
abundant amount of CO2
- Durham and smith fermentation tube
o Gas= positive = bubbles
- Any bacterium that forms gas in carbs test must first form acid
o Some bacteria lack enzyme that cleaves formic acid = no CO2, NO bubbles (shigella)
-

Klebsiella
 - Demonstrate large capsule
- This capsule are responsible for distinctive mucoid colonies in culture of klebsiella
- K-antigens can also be identified by mixing it with anticapsular antibodies resulting to
agglutination in serotyping
- Capsules = swollen
o Neufeld’s quelling test
▪ Used in s. pneumoniae
▪ Preparateion of salmonella typhi and e coli, does not reveal capsule = capsule
usually collapse during preparation
• Capsule can be conserved by special techniques = stabilizing capsule
with antibody; electron microscopy

K and H antigen being outer to O antigen may interfere with agglutination by anti-O antibody, they
inhibit agglutination in O anti serum

- K antigen (heat labile) O is stable. So in the determination of O antigen, the inhibition of

agglutination by K-antigen is by heat treatment at 100 dec c for 30 mins. Then add O anti serum
for determination.

H antigen

Vi – K antigen
Thermotolerant – fecal coliform

35 to 37 – non fecal

- E. coli- most common facultative bacteria – colon bacillus

o Outnumbered by strict anaerobic bacteria in the intestine of man
o Ideal indicator organism for fecal contamination
o Always present in feces, not normally found in the environment
o Easy to isolate and identify
- Non-fecal
o Form normal flora in the intestine
o Soil, water, vegetation: not good index of fecal contamination

Non coliform

- Salmonella..Pathogens in man, not normal flora

- Proteus,,, normal flora of GI but opportunistic outside
Late lactose: serratia spp.