FAMILY PARVOBACTERIACEAE 



581 



Diet. d. Bact. Path., 1937, 75.) From 

 cases of splenomegaly in Algeria. Patho- 

 genic. 



Pasteurella anaerohiontica Levinthal. 

 (Cent. f. Bakt., I Abt., Orig., 106, 1928, 

 195.) From the naso-pharj^nx of man. 



Streptobacillus gracilis Guillemot and 

 Hall^. (Guillemot and Hall4, Arch. 

 Med. Exp. et Anat. Path., 16, 1904, 598; 

 Bacteroides streptobacilliformis Haudu- 

 roy etal., Diet. d. Bact. Path., 1937, 76.) 

 From putrid pleurisies. 



Genus II. Fusobacterium Knorr.* 



(Knorr, Cent. f. Bakt., I Abt., Grig., 87, 1922, 53Q; Fusiformis Prevotand Fusocillus 

 Pr(5vot, Ann. Inst. Past., 60, 1938, 300.) 



Gram-negative, anaerobic rods, usually with tapering ends. Usually non-motile. 

 Stain with more or less distinct granules. 



The type species is Fusobacterium plauti-vincenti Knorr. 



Key to the species of genus Fusobacterixun. 

 I. Acid from maltose. 



A. No gas produced. 



1. Fusobacterium plauti-vincenti. 



B. Gas produced. 



2. Fusobacterium biacutum. 

 II. No acid from maltose. 



A. Disagreeable odor produced on cultivation. 



3. Fusobacterium nucleatum. 



B. No odor produced. 



4. Fusobacterium polymorphum. 



1. Fusobacterium plauti-vincenti 



Knorr. (Knorr, Cent. f. Bakt., I Abt., 

 Orig., 89, 1923, 16; Fusiformis plauti- 

 vincenti and Fusiformis vincenti Haudu- 

 roy etal., Diet. d. Bact. Path., 1937, 240.) 

 Named for H. C. Plaut and for H. Vincent 

 who studied diseases of the respiratory 

 tract. 



The relationships between this organ- 

 ism and the following have not been 

 clearly established: Fusiformis dentium 

 Hoelling, Arch. f. Protistenkunde, 19, 

 1910, 240; Bacillus fusiformis Veillon 

 and Zuber, Arch, de med. e.xper., 10, 

 1898, 517 {Corynebaclerium fusiforme 

 Lehmann and Neumann, Bakt. Diag., 

 4 Aufl., 2, 1907, 529); not Bacillus fusi- 

 formis Gottheil, Cent. f. Bakt., II Abt., 

 7, 1901, 724; Fusiformis fusiformis 

 Topley and Wilson, Princip. of Bact. 

 and Immun., 1st ed., 1, 1931, 300. 



Weinberg, Nativelle and Pr^vot (Les 

 Microbes Ana^robies, 1937, 804) and 



Prevot (Ann. Inst. Past., 60, 1938, 285) 

 make a distinction between Plaut *s 

 bacillus {Fusocillus plauti) and Vin- 

 cent's bacillus (Fusiformis fusiformis), 

 the former being actively motile and non- 

 pathogenic and the latter non-motile and 

 pathogenic. 



Rods: 0.5 to 1.0 by 8 to 16 microns, 

 occurring in pairs with blunt ends to- 

 gether and outer ends pointed, sometimes 

 in short, curved chains or long spirillum- 

 like threads. Granules present. Non- 

 motile. Gram-negative. 



Serum agar shake culture : After 36 

 hours, colonies spherical, up to 0.5 mm 

 in diameter, thin, j-ellowish-brown. 



Serum agar plate : Matted growth. 

 Medium around colonies becomes turbid 

 from the precipitation of protein. No 

 surface growth. 



Serum broth : Milkj^ turbidity. 



Liver broth: No turbidity. Grayish- 

 white, flakj^ precipitate. 



* Arranged by Prof. Robert S. Breed, New York State Experiment Station, Geneva, 

 New York, December, 1938; rearranged, December, 1945. 



