These are commensals of the upper airways of humans and animals that are sometimes responsible for chest infections and septicemia, often on land debilitated.
1 – CHARACTER BACTERIOLOGICAL (Table I):
These are cocci Gram (-) diplococci associates or tetrads in oxidative metabolism.
N. elongata is a bacillus Gram (-) which is attached to the Neisseria on genetic and biochemical data.
Neisseria grown at 20 ° C and may be isolated in the usual media. They produce a greening of blood agar. Both species grow on selective medium (resistance colimycin) and acidify glucose and maltose, and can make a differential diagnosis with N. meningitidis Neisseria lactamica is the only species which acidifies lactose and N.polysacchareae has no y GT and synthesized polysaccharides on sucrose medium. N. cinerea can be isolated on selective medium but did not grow on this medium transplanting. Moreover, only a small number of strains from otherNeisseria species have this characteristic.
II – PATHOGENICITY:
These species are exceptionally responsible characterized infections. Bronchopulmonary infections are the most common and can isolate N. perflava, N. sicca, N. mucosa.
Of sepsis have been reported, sometimes with endocarditis (N. sicca mostly); meningitis is rare.
III – BACTERIOLOGICAL DIAGNOSIS:
Several types of samples may allow the isolation of Neisseria:
– Smear nose and throat
– Sputum
– Pleural fluids
– Blood cultures
– Possibly CSF.
Bacteriological diagnosis should not be a problem.
– A direct examination: presence of cocci Gram (-) (if sampling is purulent, presence of intracellular diplococci).
– The appearance in culture is useful for diagnosis (pigment, hemolysis, dry mucous colonies, …).
The biochemical characteristics allowing identification is low: ONPG, acidification of sugars, nitrate reduction, YGT.Differential diagnosis with meningococcal do not generally pose.
IV – ANTIBIOTIC SENSITIVITY:
These species resistant to penicillins M and lincosamides are generally sensitive to the antibiotics as cocci Gram (+).
