Bacteria

Proteus Mirabilis

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Proteus Mirabilis, Proteus

  • See Also
  1. Enterobacteriaceae
  2. Gram Negative Bacteria
  • Definitions
  1. Proteus
    1. Genus in the Enterobacteriaceae family
    2. Facultatively anaerobic Gram-negative rod
    3. Proteus species are found in animal GI Tract, as well as in manure, soil, and polluted water
    4. Proteus Mirabilis is the most common human pathogen, and the focus of this page
  • Pathophysiology
  1. Proteus Mirabilis is a facultatively anaerobic, highly motile Gram-negative rod in Enterobacteriaceae family
  2. Grouped with EKP Gram Negative Bacteria (Escherichia coli, Klebsiella Pneumoniae, Proteus Mirabilis)
  3. Colonizes the normal, human Gastrointestinal Tract
  4. Virulence Factors
    1. Flagella (H Antigen)
      1. Highly motile organism
      2. Swarming motility (rapidly re-distributes to fill a specimen slide)
    2. Urease activity (urea-splitting)
      1. Results in an alkaline Urine pH (due to urea metabolism into NH3 and CO2)
      2. Proteus survival increases in an alkaline environment
      3. Urease activity is also associated with a higher risk of Pyelonephritis and Struvite Nephrolithiasis
    3. Polysaccharide capsule
      1. Cloaks surface Opsonins (immune targets), thereby avoid Phagocytosis by Macrophages
    4. Lipopolysaccharide (LPS)
      1. Triggers a severe inflammatory response
    5. Fimbriae
      1. Allows organism to adhere to host surfaces and devices (e.g. catheters)
  • Associated Conditions
  1. Urinary Tract Infection (esp. Complicated or hospitalized UTI)
    1. Pyelonephritis
    2. Urinary Catheter associated Urinary Tract Infection (CAUTI)
  2. Struvite Nephrolithiasis
  3. Wound Infections
  4. Gastroenteritis
  5. Nosocomial Infection
  • References
  1. Gladwin, Trattler and Mahan (2014) Clinical Microbiology, Medmaster, Fl, p.75
  2. Schaffer (2015) Microbiol Spectr 3(5):10 +PMID: 26542036 [PubMed]