Is <i>Lactobacillus</i> Gram-Positive? A Case Study of <i>Lactobacillus iners</i>
<i>Lactobacillus iners</i> is the most prevalent bacterial species in the human vaginal microbiome, and there have been few reports of its Gram-negative stain appearances despite the fact that the genus <i>Lactobacillus</i> is universally described as Gram-positive. Here, usi...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2020-06-01
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| Series: | Microorganisms |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/8/7/969 |
| _version_ | 1797563870930272256 |
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| author | Hyaekang Kim Taehyun Kim Jaeku Kang Younghoon Kim Heebal Kim |
| author_facet | Hyaekang Kim Taehyun Kim Jaeku Kang Younghoon Kim Heebal Kim |
| author_sort | Hyaekang Kim |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | <i>Lactobacillus iners</i> is the most prevalent bacterial species in the human vaginal microbiome, and there have been few reports of its Gram-negative stain appearances despite the fact that the genus <i>Lactobacillus</i> is universally described as Gram-positive. Here, using transmission electron microscopy, we reveal that the thinness of the cell wall (17.39 ± 0.8 nm) gives the Gram-negative stain appearance, which can lead to over-diagnosis of bacterial vaginosis. Moreover, comparative genome analysis identified four genes commonly absent in <i>L.</i> <i>iners</i> genomes that might contribute to this phenotypic difference. We suggest that, along with the several niche-specific attributes identified, this unique feature may contribute to the species’ distinguished capability to thrive as the predominant species in the fluctuating vaginal environment as well. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T18:49:18Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-4d9d323d5d9d47d5b27df08ce46c5de9 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-2607 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T18:49:18Z |
| publishDate | 2020-06-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Microorganisms |
| spelling | doaj.art-4d9d323d5d9d47d5b27df08ce46c5de92023-11-20T05:14:38ZengMDPI AGMicroorganisms2076-26072020-06-018796910.3390/microorganisms8070969Is <i>Lactobacillus</i> Gram-Positive? A Case Study of <i>Lactobacillus iners</i>Hyaekang Kim0Taehyun Kim1Jaeku Kang2Younghoon Kim3Heebal Kim4Department of Agricultural Biotechnology and Research Institute of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul 08826, KoreaDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Konyang University Hospital, Daejeon 35365, KoreaPriority Research Center, Myunggok Medical Research Institute, College of Medicine, Konyang University, Daejeon 35365, KoreaDepartment of Agricultural Biotechnology and Research Institute of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul 08826, KoreaDepartment of Agricultural Biotechnology and Research Institute of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul 08826, Korea<i>Lactobacillus iners</i> is the most prevalent bacterial species in the human vaginal microbiome, and there have been few reports of its Gram-negative stain appearances despite the fact that the genus <i>Lactobacillus</i> is universally described as Gram-positive. Here, using transmission electron microscopy, we reveal that the thinness of the cell wall (17.39 ± 0.8 nm) gives the Gram-negative stain appearance, which can lead to over-diagnosis of bacterial vaginosis. Moreover, comparative genome analysis identified four genes commonly absent in <i>L.</i> <i>iners</i> genomes that might contribute to this phenotypic difference. We suggest that, along with the several niche-specific attributes identified, this unique feature may contribute to the species’ distinguished capability to thrive as the predominant species in the fluctuating vaginal environment as well.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/8/7/969<i>Lactobacillus iners</i>TEMpeptidoglycangram-negative |
| spellingShingle | Hyaekang Kim Taehyun Kim Jaeku Kang Younghoon Kim Heebal Kim Is <i>Lactobacillus</i> Gram-Positive? A Case Study of <i>Lactobacillus iners</i> Microorganisms <i>Lactobacillus iners</i> TEM peptidoglycan gram-negative |
| title | Is <i>Lactobacillus</i> Gram-Positive? A Case Study of <i>Lactobacillus iners</i> |
| title_full | Is <i>Lactobacillus</i> Gram-Positive? A Case Study of <i>Lactobacillus iners</i> |
| title_fullStr | Is <i>Lactobacillus</i> Gram-Positive? A Case Study of <i>Lactobacillus iners</i> |
| title_full_unstemmed | Is <i>Lactobacillus</i> Gram-Positive? A Case Study of <i>Lactobacillus iners</i> |
| title_short | Is <i>Lactobacillus</i> Gram-Positive? A Case Study of <i>Lactobacillus iners</i> |
| title_sort | is i lactobacillus i gram positive a case study of i lactobacillus iners i |
| topic | <i>Lactobacillus iners</i> TEM peptidoglycan gram-negative |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/8/7/969 |
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