''Providencia'' is
genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...
of
Gram-negative
Gram-negative bacteria are bacteria that do not retain the crystal violet stain used in the Gram staining method of bacterial differentiation. They are characterized by their cell envelopes, which are composed of a thin peptidoglycan cell wall ...
,
motile
Motility is the ability of an organism to move independently, using metabolic energy.
Definitions
Motility, the ability of an organism to move independently, using metabolic energy, can be contrasted with sessility, the state of organisms th ...
bacteria
Bacteria (; singular: bacterium) are ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one biological cell. They constitute a large domain of prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micrometres in length, bacteria were among ...
of the family
Morganellaceae
The Morganellaceae are a family of Gram-negative bacteria that include some important human pathogens formerly classified as Enterobacteriaceae. This family is a member of the order Enterobacterales in the class Gammaproteobacteria of the phylum ...
. It was named after
Providence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts Bay ...
, where C. A. Stuart and colleagues studied these bacteria at
Brown University
Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providenc ...
.
Providencia pathogens of humans
Some species are opportunistic
pathogen
In biology, a pathogen ( el, πάθος, "suffering", "passion" and , "producer of") in the oldest and broadest sense, is any organism or agent that can produce disease. A pathogen may also be referred to as an infectious agent, or simply a germ ...
s in humans. ''
Providencia stuartii
''Providencia stuartii'' (commonly ''P. stuartii''), is a Gram negative bacillus that is commonly found in soil, water, and sewage. ''P. stuartii'' is the most common of the 5 species found in the genus Providencia, with ''Providencia rettgeri' ...
'' can cause
urinary tract infection
A urinary tract infection (UTI) is an infection that affects part of the urinary tract. When it affects the lower urinary tract it is known as a bladder infection (cystitis) and when it affects the upper urinary tract it is known as a kidney ...
s, particularly in patients with long-term indwelling
urinary catheters
In urinary catheterization a latex, polyurethane, or silicone tube known as a urinary catheter is inserted into the bladder through the urethra to allow urine to drain from the bladder for collection. It may also be used to inject liquids used ...
or extensive severe
burns Burns may refer to:
* Burn, an injury (plural)
People:
* Burns (surname), includes list of people and characters
Business:
* Burns London, a British guitar maker
Places:
;In the United States
* Burns, Colorado, unincorporated community in Eagle ...
. Alternatively, ''
Providencia rettgeri
''Providencia rettgeri'' (commonly ''P. rettgeri''), is a Gram negative bacterium that is commonly found in both water and land environments. ''P. rettgeri'' is in the genus Providencia, along with '' Providencia stuartii'', '' Providencia alca ...
'' is a common cause of traveller's diarrhoea.
Providencia pathogens in insects
Many strains have been isolated from the
haemolymph
Hemolymph, or haemolymph, is a fluid, analogous to the blood in vertebrates, that circulates in the interior of the arthropod (invertebrate) body, remaining in direct contact with the animal's tissues. It is composed of a fluid plasma in which ...
of ''
Drosophila melanogaster
''Drosophila melanogaster'' is a species of fly (the taxonomic order Diptera) in the family Drosophilidae. The species is often referred to as the fruit fly or lesser fruit fly, or less commonly the "vinegar fly" or "pomace fly". Starting with Ch ...
'' fruit flies. These strains display different levels of virulence. For example ''
Providencia sneebia'' is highly virulent, and infection always results in fly mortality. Alternatively, ''
P. rettgeri'' displays an intermediate virulence wherein some individuals survive infection, while others perish. The susceptibility to ''P. rettgeri'' is strongly tied to an
allele
An allele (, ; ; modern formation from Greek ἄλλος ''állos'', "other") is a variation of the same sequence of nucleotides at the same place on a long DNA molecule, as described in leading textbooks on genetics and evolution.
::"The chro ...
of the
antimicrobial peptide
Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs), also called host defence peptides (HDPs) are part of the innate immune response found among all classes of life. Fundamental differences exist between prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells that may represent targets for an ...
gene
Diptericin
Diptericin is a 9 kDa antimicrobial peptide (AMP) of flies first isolated from the blowfly ''Phormia terranova''. It is primarily active against Gram-negative bacteria, disrupting bacterial membrane integrity. The structure of this protein inclu ...
. Surprisingly, the fly's defence against ''P. rettgeri'' seems to rely almost exclusively on Diptericin, as deletion of Diptericin leads to complete mortality. Meanwhile deletion of multiple other antimicrobial peptides has no effect on ''P. rettgeri'' virulence. Yet defence against ''P. burhodogranariea'' is determined by multiple antimicrobial peptides beyond just Diptericin. Why Diptericin is so specifically important in defence against one species of Providencia is not clear, but could yield insight into how bacterial species evolve resistance or susceptibility to antimicrobial compounds.
Trivia
* ''Providencia burhodogranariea'' is named after the "big red barn" in which conversations were held around its discovery.
* Some strains are sensitive to
ampicillin
Ampicillin is an antibiotic used to prevent and treat a number of bacterial infections, such as respiratory tract infections, urinary tract infections, meningitis, salmonellosis, and endocarditis. It may also be used to prevent group B strepto ...
.
References
Bacteria genera
{{Enterobacterales-stub