Kluyvera ascorbata sepsis in an extremely low birth weight infant.

Kluyvera ascorbata belongs to Enterobacteriaceae family and is a gram negative micro-organism. This bacteria is usually considered a commensal, however it can cause significant infections rarely. This organism is usually resistant to most commonly used antibiotics used as first line in neonatal units. Antimicrobial agents active against Kluyvera strains include third-generation cephalosporins, fluoroquinolones, and aminoglycosides. We report a case of an extremely low birth weight male infant who presented on day 4 of life with clinical features of sepsis, multi-organ dysfunction, shock and pulmonary haemorrhage. Neonatal sepsis was associated with marked elevation of C-reactive protein and a falling platelet count. Infant expired on day 5 of life in spite of aggressive supportive care and treatment with meropenem. with growth of Kluyvera ascorbataon blood culture.

Isolation and characterization of Kluyvera georgiana strain with the potential for acrylamide biodegradation.

Worldwide contamination by acrylamide, a neurotoxicant and carcinogen in animals, is becoming a significant problem. We isolated three novel acrylamide-degrading bacteria from domestic wastewater in Chonburi, Thailand. Using biochemical characteristics and 16S rRNA gene sequencing, the strains were identified as Klebsiella pneumoniae, Kluyvera georgiana and Enterococcus faecalis. K. georgiana strain No. 2 was selected for further characterization due to its degradation potential of high concentrations of acrylamide at the mesophilic temperatures. The strain grew well in the presence of acrylamide at concentrations to 0.5 % (w/v), pH 5.0 to 7.0 and 37°C. Degradation of acrylamide to acrylic acid began after 30 min of cultivation as a biomass-dependent manner. Mass balance analysis revealed 92.3 % conversion of acrylamide to acrylic acid and two lower polarity compounds. Strain No. 2 degraded many aliphatic amides but not iodoacetamide and thioacetamide. High degradation level (>80 %) was found with propionamide, cyanoacetamide and acetamide. Moderate degradation was obtained in the order of formamide > butyramide > lactamide > urea while sodium azide provided 34 % degradation. These findings render this novel bacterium attractive for biodegradation of acrylamide and other aliphatic amides in the environment.

Ethanol production from biodiesel-derived crude glycerol by newly isolated Kluyvera cryocrescens.

The rapidly expanding market for biodiesel has increased the supply and reduced the cost of glycerol, making it an attractive sustainable feed stock for the fuel and chemical industry. Glycerol-based biorefinery is the microbial fermentation of crude glycerol to produce fuels and chemicals. A major challenge is to obtain microbes tolerant to inhibitors such as salts and organic solvents present in crude glycerol. Microbial screening was attempted to isolate novel strain capable of growing on crude glycerol as a sole carbon source. The newly isolated bacteria, identified as nonpathogenic Kluyvera cryocrescens S26 could convert biodiesel-derived crude glycerol to ethanol with high yield and productivity. The supplementation of nutrients such as yeast extract resulted in distinguished enhancement in cell growth as well as ethanol productivity under anaerobic condition. When glycerol fermentation is performed under microaerobic condition, there is also a remarkable improvement in cell growth, ethanol productivity and yield, compared with those under strict anaerobic condition. In batch fermentation under microaerobic condition, K. cryocrescens S26 produced 27 g/l of ethanol from crude glycerol with high molar yield of 80% and productivity of 0.61 g/l/h.

A case of urinary tract infection caused by Kluyvera ascorbata in an infant: case report and review of the literature.

We experienced a case of urinary tract infection in a 3-month-old child caused by Kluyvera ascorbata. The authors report the case and review the literature regarding Kluyvera urinary tract infection exclusively in children. Kluyvera infection, which had been extremely rare, has increasingly been reported, including urinary tract infection. A prompt identification of Kluyvera species in clinical infections is important. Recognition of its disease-producing potential and the subsequent initiation of effective antimicrobial coverage are essential for appropriate management in the pediatric population.

[Kluyvera bacteriemia: an epidemic in a Moroccan teaching hospital]. / Bactériémies à Kluyvera: à propos d'une épidémie dans un CHU au Maroc.

Kluyvera Spp is an enterobacterium rarely isolated in medical microbiology, an opportunistic pathogen the clinical significance of which remains unclear. Four strains of Kluyvera Spp were isolated for the first time in the Ibn Rochd Teaching Hospital microbiology laboratory. These strains were isolated in hemocultures of four patients hospitalized in the same medical ward, at the same time, and presenting with bacteriemia. An antibiotic susceptibility study allowed identifying the wild phenotype in the first isolate, the three next isolates had acquired resistance to trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, gentamycin, tobramycin, and ciprofloxacin, and produced broad-spectrum betalactamase. The epidemiological investigation in the patients' environment made after isolating the fourth strain was negative. The four patients evolved uneventfully without antibiotic treatment. This raises the question of the real pathogenic capacity of these strains, their epidemic power, and their ability to acquire resistance.

Hickman Catheter-Related Bacteremia with Kluyvera cryocrescens: a Case Report.

This report describes a 2-year-old child with neuroectodermal tumor presenting with febrile neutropenia. Blood cultures drawn from the peripheral vein and Hickman catheter revealed Kluyvera cryocrescens growth. The Hickman catheter was removed and the patient was successfully treated with cefepime and amikacin. Isolation of Kluyvera spp. from clinical specimens is rare. This saprophyte microorganism may cause serious central venous catheter infections, especially in immunosuppressed patients. Clinicians should be aware of its virulence and resistance to many antibiotics.

Natural antimicrobial susceptibility patterns of Kluyvera ascorbata and Kluyvera cryocrescens strains and review of the clinical efficacy of antimicrobial agents used for the treatment of Kluyvera infections.

The natural susceptibility of 58 K. ascorbata and 24 K. cryocrescens strains to 71 antimicrobial agents was investigated. MIC values were determined with a microdilution procedure in cation-adjusted Mueller Hinton broth (for all strains) and IsoSensitest broth (for some strains). Both species were naturally sensitive or of intermediate susceptibility to tetracyclines, aminoglycosides, quinolones, antifolates, chloramphenicol, nitrofurantoin, fosfomycin, aminopenicillins plus beta-lactamase inhibitors, acylureidopenicillins, carbapenems, aztreonam and some cephalosporins. Uniform natural resistance was found with several macrolides, lincosamides, streptogramins, glycopeptides, rifampicin, fusidic acid, linezolid, penicillin G, oxacillin, and amoxicillin. To the latter agent, some strains of both species were also of intermediate susceptibility. Species-related differences in natural susceptibility affecting clinical assessment criteria were seen with azithromycin, cethromycin, telithromycin, ticarcillin and some cephalosporins, to which K. ascorbata was less susceptible than K. cryocrescens. Medium-related differences in susceptibility were restricted to a few antibiotics. A data base about the natural susceptibility of the two most common Kluyvera spp. to a wide range of antimicrobial agents is presented. It can be used for the validation of forthcoming susceptibility trials of these microorganisms. Although some susceptibilty patterns might be helpful for the phenotypical separation of K. ascorbata from K. cryocrescens, they do not allow a separation of these species. The literature dealing with the clinical efficacy of antimicrobial agents used for the treatment of Kluyvera infections is discussed.

Phylogenetic relationships of the genus Kluyvera: transfer of Enterobacter intermedius Izard et al. 1980 to the genus Kluyvera as Kluyvera intermedia comb. nov. and reclassification of Kluyvera cochleae as a later synonym of K. intermedia.

In order to assess the relationship between the genus Kluyvera and other members of the family Enterobacteriaceae, the 16S rRNA genes of type strains of the recognized Kluyvera species, Kluyvera georgiana, Kluyvera cochleae, Kluyvera ascorbata and Kluyvera cryocrescens, were sequenced. A comparative phylogenetic analysis based on these 16S rRNA gene sequences and those available for strains belonging to several genera of the family Enterobacteriaceae showed that members of the genus Kluyvera form a cluster that contains all the known Kluyvera species. However, the type strain of Enterobacter intermedius (ATCC 33110T) was included within this cluster in a very close relationship with the type strain of K. cochleae (ATCC 51609T). In addition to the phylogenetic evidence, biochemical and DNA-DNA hybridization analyses of species within this cluster indicated that the type strain of E. intermedius is in fact a member of the genus Kluyvera and, within it, of the species Kluyvera cochleae. Therefore, following the current rules for bacterial nomenclature and classification, the transfer of E. intermedius to the genus Kluyvera as Kluyvera intermedia comb. nov. is proposed (type strain, ATCC 33110T=CIP 79.27T=LMG 2785T=CCUG 14183T). Biochemical analysis of four E. intermedius strains and one K. cochleae strain independent of the respective type strains further indicated that E. intermedius and K. cochleae represent the same species and are therefore heterotypic synonyms. Nomenclatural priority goes to the oldest legitimate epithet. Consequently, Kluyvera cochleae Muller et al. 1996 is a later synonym of Kluyvera intermedia (Izard et al. 1980) Pavan et al. 2005.