FAMILY XII. CORYNEBACTERIACEAE 



599 



mined definitely, as Bacterium hepatis does 

 not ferment lactose, rhamnose, sucrose or 

 salicin while it does ferment xj'lose. Failure 

 to infect guinea pigs and chickens also indi- 

 cates a possible difference between the two 

 species. There may also be other species 

 (Sohier, Benazet and Piechaud, Ann. Inst. 

 Past., 74, 1948, 54). 



Source and habitat: Isolated from lesions 

 in organs, from meconium, and from blood 

 and cerebrospinal fluid of man and at least 

 twentj'-six species of other mammals and 



of birds, in all of which disease occurs. Many 

 cases have proved fatal. Suggested as a 

 cause of infectious mononucleosis in man 

 by Anton, Nj-feldt and others (see Girard 

 and Murra}^ Amer. Jour. Med. Sci., 221, 

 1951, 343). "Granulomatosis infantiseptica" 

 of Potel (Ztschr. f. Kinderheilk., 73, 1953, 

 113; also see Wissensch. Ztschr. der Martin- 

 Luther Univ., 3, 1953, 341). Isolated from 

 ferrets (Morris and Norman, Jour. Bact., 

 59, 1950, 313) without apparent disease. In 

 some species it causes metritis and abortion. 



Genus III. Erysipelothrix Rosenbach, 1909.* 



(Ztschr. f. Hyg., 63, 1909, 367.) 



E.ry.si.pe'lo.thrix. Gr. neut.n. erysipelas erysipelas; Gr. fem.n. thrix hair;M.L. fem.n. 

 Erysipelothrix erysipelas thread. 



Rod-shaped organisms with a tendency to form long filaments. The filaments may also 

 thicken and show characteristic granules. Non-motile. Gram-positive, older cultures having 

 a tendency to become Gram-negative. Acid but no gas from glucose and from certain other 

 carbohydrates. Catalase-negative. Esculin not hydrolyzed. Facultatively anaerobic. Par- 

 asitic on mammals, birds and fish. 



The type species is Erysipelothrix insidiosa (Trevisan) Langford and Hansen. 



1. Erysipelothrix insidio.sa (Trevisan, 

 1885) Langford and Hansen, 1953. (Bacillus 

 der Septicfimie bei Mausen, Koch, Aetiolo- 

 gie der Wundinfektionskrankheiten, Leip- 

 zig, 1878, 43; Bacillus insidiosus Trevisan, 

 Caratteri di alcuni nuovi generi di Batteri- 

 acee. Atti della Acad. Fisio-Medico-Sta- 

 tistica, Milano, Ser. 4, 3, 1885, 100; Bacillus 

 des Schweinerotlaufs, Loeffler, Arb. a. d. k. 

 Gesundheitsamte, 1, 1886, 46; Erysipelothrix 

 porci Rosenbach, Ztschr. f. Hyg., 63, 1909, 

 3Q7 ; Erysipelothrix Erysipeloides (sic) Rosen- 

 bach, loc. cit.; Erysipelothrix murisepticus 

 (sic) Rosenbach, loc. cit.; Erysipelothrix 

 rhusiopathiae Winslow et al.. Jour. Bact., 5, 

 1920, 198; Langford and Hansen, Riassunti 

 delle Comunicazioni, VI Congresso Inter- 

 naz. di Microbiol., Roma, 1, 1953, 18; also 

 see Antonie van Leeuwenhoek, 20, 1954, 87; 

 and Atti del VI Congresso Internaz. di Mi- 

 crobiol., Roma, 1, (1953) 1955, 21.) 



in.si.di.o'sa. L. adj. insidiosus deceitful, 

 dangerous. 



Description taken in part from Langford 



(Thesis, Univ. of Maryland, 1952) and 

 Byrne, Connell, Frank and Moynihan (Can. 

 Jour. Comp. Med. and Vet. Sc, 16, 1952, 

 129). 



Cells in smooth colonies are slender rods, 

 0.2 to 0.4 by 0.5 to 2.5 microns. Cells in 

 rough and in some smooth colonies vary 

 from short forms to long filamentous struc- 

 tures. Thick rods may be present singly, in 

 chains or in entangled masses. Non-motile. 

 Predominantly Gram-positive, although 

 some Gram-negative cells may be found, 

 particularly in old cultures or in unfavorable 

 media. 



Gelatin colonies: Hazy, bluish gray, ra- 

 cemose. 



Gelatin stab: Filiform at first; most 

 strains develop, in less than 48 hours, lat- 

 eral, radiating projections resulting in the 

 typical "test-tube brush" appearance. No 

 spreading on the surface. No liquefaction. 



Agar colonies: Pinpoint and transparent 

 in 24 hours at 33° C. increasing to about 

 1.0 to 1.5 mm in 48 to 72 hours. Fully devel- 



* Revised by Dr. G. C. Langford, University of Florida, Gainsville, Florida, U. S. A., 

 and Prof. P. Arne Hansen, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland, September, 

 1953. 



