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Bacillus
Bacillus
Morphology:
• In smears from blood & tissues of infected animal=
organism usually in singly or in pairs
• Ends appear square, corners so sharp, when in chain,
leaving an oval opening between the organisms
•Encapsulated during growth in infected animal, but
capsules can’t be demonstrated in vitro unless
the organisms are cultured on a bicarbonate
containing medium in the presence of 6% CO2
Resistance:
•Due to spores, extremely resistant to adverse
chemical & physical environment
•Temp of 120°C for 15 mins. = inactivate the spores
•Spores remain viable for years in contaminated
pastures & remain a source of infection for long
periods of time
Antigenic Structure:
• 3 antigens:
a. capsular polypeptide = with high molecular wt
consisting exclusively of D-glutamic acid
b. polysaccharide somatic antigen = component of the
cell wall & contains equimolar amounts of N-
acetylglucosamine & D-galactose
c. complex protein toxin
Determinants of Pathogenicity:
• Depends on 2 impt. virulence factors:
a. poly (D-glutamic acid) capsule
b. exotoxin
• Capsules interfere with phagocytosis and impt in early
stages of infection
• Antibodies against the capsular antigen are produced,
but not protective against the disease
• Lethal effects of exotoxin consists of 3 distinct &
serologically active proteins:
a. protective antigen (PA)
b. edema factor (EF)
c. lethal factor (LF)
• Proteins act synergistically to produce systemic
effects of anthrax
• No toxic activity if functions individually
• Toxic effects appear when:
> PA + EF = produces localized edema in the skin of
test animals
>PA + LF = death in test animals
Clinical Infection:
Treatment:
• Penicillin = curative for cutaneous anthrax
• Pulmonary anthrax = diagnosis is usually made post-
mortem; same w/ GI anthrax
= if diagnosis is made in sufficient
time, give large doses of
Penicillin IV
= in patients allergic to penicillin, erythromycin or
tetracycline can
be given
Prevention:
Bacillus stearothermophilus
= spores are used to evaluate the efficacy
of autoclaving & other sterilization
procedures
Bacillus subtilis