''Oxalobacter aliiformigenes'' is a

Gram negative Gram-negative bacteria are bacteria that, unlike gram-positive bacteria, do not retain the crystal violet stain used in the Gram staining method of bacterial differentiation. Their defining characteristic is that their cell envelope consists of ...

, non-

spore In biology, a spore is a unit of sexual reproduction, sexual (in fungi) or asexual reproduction that may be adapted for biological dispersal, dispersal and for survival, often for extended periods of time, in unfavourable conditions. Spores fo ...

-forming,

oxalate Oxalate (systematic IUPAC name: ethanedioate) is an anion with the chemical formula . This dianion is colorless. It occurs naturally, including in some foods. It forms a variety of salts, for example sodium oxalate (), and several esters such as ...

-degrading

anaerobic Anaerobic means "living, active, occurring, or existing in the absence of free oxygen", as opposed to aerobic which means "living, active, or occurring only in the presence of oxygen." Anaerobic may also refer to: *Adhesive#Anaerobic, Anaerobic ad ...

bacterium Bacteria (; : bacterium) are ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one biological cell. They constitute a large domain of prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micrometres in length, bacteria were among the ...

that was first isolated from human fecal samples. ''O. aliiformigenes'' consumes oxalate as its main carbon source but is negative for indole production and negative for sulfate and nitrate reduction. Cells appear rod shaped, though occasionally present as curved, and do not possess flagella. ''O. aliiformigenes'' is found in the

gastrointestinal tract The gastrointestinal tract (GI tract, digestive tract, alimentary canal) is the tract or passageway of the Digestion, digestive system that leads from the mouth to the anus. The tract is the largest of the body's systems, after the cardiovascula ...

of humans, and is typically isolated from human feces. ''O. aliiformigenes'' is believed to have roles in mitigating

calcium oxalate Calcium oxalate (in archaic terminology, oxalate of lime) is a calcium salt of oxalic acid with the chemical formula or . It forms hydrates , where ''n'' varies from 1 to 3. Anhydrous and all hydrated forms are colorless or white. The monohydr ...

kidney stone disease Kidney stone disease (known as nephrolithiasis, renal calculus disease, or urolithiasis) is a crystallopathy and occurs when there are too many minerals in the urine and not enough liquid or hydration. This imbalance causes tiny pieces of cry ...

and

primary hyperoxaluria Primary hyperoxaluria is a rare condition (autosomal recessive) resulting in increased excretion of oxalate (up to 600 mg a day from normal 50 mg a day), with oxalate stones being common. Signs and symptoms Primary hyperoxaluria is an a ...

because of its unique ability to utilize

as its primary carbon source and prevent absorption of oxalate.

Taxonomy

''Oxalobacter aliiformigenes'' was originally thought to be a subgroup of ''

Oxalobacter formigenes ''Oxalobacter formigenes'' is a Gram-negative bacteria, Gram negative oxalate-degrading Anaerobic organism, anaerobic bacterium that was first isolated from the gastrointestinal tract of a sheep in 1985. To date, the bacterium has been found to ...

'' based on

fatty acid In chemistry, in particular in biochemistry, a fatty acid is a carboxylic acid with an aliphatic chain, which is either saturated and unsaturated compounds#Organic chemistry, saturated or unsaturated. Most naturally occurring fatty acids have an ...

profile,

16S ribosomal RNA 16S ribosomal RNA (or 16 S rRNA) is the RNA component of the 30S subunit of a prokaryotic ribosome ( SSU rRNA). It binds to the Shine-Dalgarno sequence and provides most of the SSU structure. The genes coding for it are referred to as 16S ...

sequencing, and DNA probes specific to the ''oxc'' ( oxalyl-CoA decarboxylase) gene and ''frc'' (

formyl-CoA transferase In enzymology, a formyl-CoA transferase () is an enzyme that catalyzes the chemical reaction :formyl-CoA + oxalate \rightleftharpoons formate + oxalyl-CoA Thus, the two substrates of this enzyme are formyl-CoA and oxalate, whereas its two prod ...

). However, full genomes were sequenced and based on

average nucleotide identity Bacterial genomes are generally smaller and less variant in size among species when compared with genomes of eukaryotes. Bacterial genomes can range in size anywhere from about 130 kbp to over 14 Mbp. A study that included, but was not limited to ...

calculation, digital DNA-DNA hybridization, and

phylogenetic tree A phylogenetic tree or phylogeny is a graphical representation which shows the evolutionary history between a set of species or taxa during a specific time.Felsenstein J. (2004). ''Inferring Phylogenies'' Sinauer Associates: Sunderland, MA. In ...

analyses, ''O. aliiformigenes'' was determined to be a distinct species.

Antibiotic resistance and susceptibility

''Oxalobacter aliiformigenes'' demonstrates ''in vitro'' resistance to

amoxicillin Amoxicillin is an antibiotic medication belonging to the aminopenicillin class of the penicillin family. The drug is used to treat bacterial infections such as middle ear infection, strep throat, pneumonia, skin infections, odontogenic inf ...

ampicillin Ampicillin is an antibiotic belonging to the aminopenicillin class of the penicillin family. The drug is used to prevent and treat several bacterial infections, such as respiratory tract infections, urinary tract infections, meningitis, s ...

ceftriaxone Ceftriaxone, sold under the brand name Rocephin, is a third-generation cephalosporin antibiotic used for the treatment of a number of bacterial infections. These include middle ear infections, endocarditis, meningitis, pneumonia, bone and joi ...

cephalexin Cefalexin, also spelled cephalexin, is an antibiotic that can treat a number of bacterial infections. It kills gram-positive bacteria, gram-positive and some gram-negative bacteria by disrupting the growth of the bacterial cell wall. Cefalexi ...

streptomycin Streptomycin is an antibiotic medication used to treat a number of bacterial infections, including tuberculosis, Mycobacterium avium complex, ''Mycobacterium avium'' complex, endocarditis, brucellosis, Burkholderia infection, ''Burkholderia'' i ...

, and

vancomycin Vancomycin is a glycopeptide antibiotic medication used to treat certain bacterial infections. It is administered intravenously ( injection into a vein) to treat complicated skin infections, bloodstream infections, endocarditis, bone an ...

; and ''in vitro'' sensitivity to

clarithromycin Clarithromycin, sold under the brand name Biaxin among others, is an antibiotic used to treat various bacterial infections. This includes strep throat, pneumonia, skin infections, '' H. pylori'' infection, and Lyme disease, among others. Clari ...

clindamycin Clindamycin is a lincosamide antibiotic medication used for the treatment of a number of bacterial infections, including osteomyelitis (bone) or joint infections, pelvic inflammatory disease, strep throat, pneumonia, acute otitis media (mi ...

ciprofloxacin Ciprofloxacin is a fluoroquinolone antibiotic used to treat a number of bacterial infections. This includes bone and joint infections, intra-abdominal infections, certain types of infectious diarrhea, respiratory tract infections, skin ...

doxycycline Doxycycline is a Broad-spectrum antibiotic, broad-spectrum antibiotic of the Tetracycline antibiotics, tetracycline class used in the treatment of infections caused by bacteria and certain parasites. It is used to treat pneumonia, bacterial p ...

gentamicin Gentamicin is an aminoglycoside antibiotic used to treat several types of bacterial infections. This may include bone infections, endocarditis, pelvic inflammatory disease, meningitis, pneumonia, urinary tract infections, and sepsis amo ...

, and

tetracycline Tetracycline, sold under various brand names, is an antibiotic in the tetracyclines family of medications, used to treat a number of infections, including acne, cholera, brucellosis, plague, malaria, and syphilis. It is available in oral an ...

Genome

The genome of ''O. aliiformigenes'' has been sequenced and is 2.2 – 2.4 Mb with a G+C content of 50.9 - 51.5%.

Beta-lactamase Beta-lactamases (β-lactamases) are enzymes () produced by bacteria that provide multi-resistance to beta-lactam antibiotics such as penicillins, cephalosporins, cephamycins, monobactams and carbapenems ( ertapenem), although carbapene ...

genes present in the genome may provide resistance to beta-lactam antibiotics.

Growth in Culture

''O. aliiformigenes'' grows in CO₂-bicarbonate buffered oxalate media and is typically cultivated in anaerobic Hungate tubes or an anaerobic chamber. Oxalate is supplemented at 20 – 100 mM (depending on desired cell density) and bacteria are grown at 37 °C for 24 – 72 hours. Acetate is required for cultivation but does not support growth alone. Bacteria can grow adequately in pH ranges of 7.0 - 2.0. Higher concentrations of bile salts impair growth but lower concentrations are tolerated. The species can tolerate some levels of oxygen but cell numbers are diminished. Bacteria are isolated using anaerobic roll tubes, which are Hungate tubes filled with opaque oxalate agar media that display zones of clearance upon successful ''Oxalobacter'' cultivation.

References

External links

NCBI taxonomy browser
* https://www.atcc.org/products/tsd-348 * https://www.dsmz.de/collection/catalogue/details/culture/DSM-115068 {{Taxonbar, from=Q116263385 Burkholderiales