Micrococcus luteus

Micrococcus luteus
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Bacteria
Phylum:	Actinobacteria
Order:	Actinomycetales
Family:	Micrococcaceae
Genus:	Micrococcus
Species:	M. luteus
Binomial name
Micrococcus luteus (Schroeter 1872) Cohn 1872

Micrococcus luteus is a Gram-positive, spherical, saprotrophic bacterium that belongs to the family Micrococcaceae.^[1] An obligate aerobe, M. luteus is found in soil, dust, water and air, and as part of the normal flora of the mammalian skin. The bacterium also colonizes the human mouth, mucosae, oropharynx and upper respiratory tract.

Considered a contaminant in sick patients.M. luteus is resistant to reduced water potential and can tolerate drying and high salt concentrations.

M. luteus is coagulase negative, bacitracin susceptible, and forms bright yellow colonies on nutrient agar. To confirm it is not Staphylococcus aureus, a bacitracin susceptibility test can be performed.

M. luteus has been shown to survive in oligotrophic environments for extended periods of time. Recent work by Greenblat et al. demonstrate that Micrococcus luteus has survived for at least 34,000 to 170,000 years on the basis of 16S rRNA analysis, and possibly much longer. ^[2]

Micrococcus luteus was formerly known as Micrococcus lysodeikticus ^[3].

Micrococcus luteus reclassify as Kocuria rhizophila.^[4]

References

1. ^ Madigan M; Martinko J (editors). (2005). Brock Biology of Microorganisms (11th ed.). Prentice Hall. ISBN 0131443291. 
2. ^ Greenblat, C.L., Baum, J., Klein, B.Y., Nachshon, S., Koltunov, V., Cano, R.J., (2004). "Micrococcus luteus – Survival in Amber". Microbial Ecology 48 (1): 120–127. doi:10.1007/s00248-003-2016-5. PMID 15164240. 
3. ^ Biochemistry 1993,32, 11929-1 1933, http://pubs.acs.org/cgi-bin/abstract.cgi/bichaw/1993/32/i44/f-pdf/f_bi00095a024.pdf
4. ^ Tang, Jane. "Reclassification of ATCC 9341 from Microccus luteus to Kocuria rhizophila". http://ijs.sgmjournals.org/cgi/reprint/53/4/995.pdf. Retrieved 2 March 2011. 

External links

• MicrobeWiki