BACTERIAL INFECTIONS

- Bacteria are microscopic single-celled organisms that thrive in diverse environments.

- They can live within soil, in the ocean and inside the human gut.
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- Sometimes they lend a helping hand, by curdling milk into yogurt, or helping with our
digestion. At other times they are destructive, causing diseases like pneumonia and
MRSA.
Morphology of bacteria

When bacteria are visualized under light microscope, the following morphology are seen:

1. Cocci (singular coccus): Round or oval bacteria measuring about 0.5-1.0μmb in diameter. They are
found in single, pairs, chains or clusters.

2. Bacilli (singular bacillus): Stick-like bacteria with rounded, tapered, square or swollen ends; with
a size measuring 1-10μm in length by 0.3-1.0μm in width.

3. Coccobacilli (singular coccobacillus): Short rods.

4. 4. Spiral: Spiral shaped bacteria with regular or irregular distance between twisting.

E.g. Spirillum and spirochetes

 BACTERIAL INFECTIONS

Different classes of Bacteria are responsible for diverse infections

Gram-Positive Bacterial Infections

Common gram-positive pathogen includes: Staphylococcus, Streptococcus and Enterococcus

A. Staphylococcus Infections

1. S. Areus- Causes a myriad of skin lesions (boils, carbuncles, impetigo and scalded-skin syndrome)
as well as abscesses, sepsis, osteomyelitis, pneumonia, endocarditis, food poisoning and toxic
shock syndrome.
- Form clusters resembling bunches of grapes.
- Expresses surface receptors for fibrinogen (called clumping factor), fibronectin, and vitronectin
and uses thee molecules to bind to host endothelial cells.

Antibiotic Resistance- growing problem in treatment of S. Areus infections.

*Staphylococcal scalded-skin syndrome- or Ritter disease

- Most frequently occurs in Children with S. Areus infection of the nasopharynx or skin.
- Sunburn-like rash that spreads over the entire body -> evolves to fragile bullae that lead to partial
or total skin loss.

B. Streptococcal and Enterococcal Infection

Streptococci- causes suppurative infections of the skin, nasopharynx, lungs and heart valves. It is a
common cause of community-acquired pneumonia in older adults and meningitis in children and
adults.

1. S. pyogenes- causes pharyngitis, scarlet fever, erysipelas, impetigo, rheumatic fever, toxic shock
syndrome and glomerulonephritis.
2. S. agalactiae- colonizes the female genital tract and causes sepsis and meningitis to neonates and
chorioamnionitis in pregnancy.

Enterococci- grow in chains. They are often resistant to commonly used antibiotic and are a significant
cause of endocarditis and UTIs.

*Streptococcal pharyngitis

- Marked by edema, epiglottic swelling and punctuate abscess of the tonsillar crypts sometimes
accompanied by cervical lymphadenopathy. Swelling associated with severe pharyngeal infection may
encroach on the airways if there is peritonsillar or retropharyngeal abscess formation.

*Anthrax

- Necrotizing inflammatory lesions in the skin or GI Tract or systemically.

- Caused by Bacillus, anthracis found in environmental sources.

 - Livestock become infected by spores in their environment or feed. Humans usually become
infected by eating or handling meat products from infected animals.

- Causes numerous foci of hemorrhage in the mediastinum and hemorrhagic lymphadenitis of hilar
and peribronchial lymph nodes.

- Lungs show a perihilar interstitial pneumonia with infiltration of macrophages and neutrophils
and pulmonary vasculitis.

- B. Anthracis is most likely to be found in alveolar capillaries and venules.

- In fatal cases, may be found in multiple organs (spleen, liver, intestines, kidneys, adrenal gland
and meninges)

Gram- Negative Bacterial Infections

A. Neisserial Infections

Neisseria- flattened on adjoining sides, giving the pair the shape of a coffee bean.

1. N. Meningitidis- significant cause of bacterial meningitis, particularly among adolescents and

young adults. It is a common colonizer of the oropharynx and is spread by respiratory route.
2. N. Gonorrhoeae- important cause of STD. Infection in men cause urethritis and in women, it is
often asymptomatic and may go unnoticed. Untreated gonorrhea may lead to pelvic inflammatory
disease which can cause infertility or ectopic pregnancy.
- Disseminated infection of adults and adolescents usually causes septic arthritis
accompanied by rash of hemorrhagic papules or pustules.

*Pertussis or whooping cough

- Caused by coccobacillus Bordetella pertussis.

- An acute, highly communicable illness characterized by paroxysms of violent coughing followed

by a loud inspiratory “whoop”.

*Plague

- Yersinia pestis is a facultative intracellular bacterium that causes invasive, frequently fatal,
infection called Plague or Black Death.

- Transmitted to humans by fleabites or less often from rodents to humans by aerosols.

- Spread from site of inoculation to lymphoid tissues, where they proliferate and inhibit the host
from mounting an effective response.

*Chancroid (Soft Chancre)

- Sexually transmitted, ulcerative infection caused by Haemophilus ducreyi.

- Common in tropical and subtropical areas among lower socioeconomic groups and mean who
have frequently sex with prostitutes.
- Most common causes of genital ulcers in Africa and South East Asia, where it probably serves as
an important cofactor in the transmission of HIV infection.

*Granuloma Inguinale or Donovanosis

- A sexually transmitted chronic inflammatory disease caused by Klebsiella granulomatis.

- Untreated cases are characterized by the development of extensive scarring, often associated
with lymphatic obstruction and lymphedema.

- Begins as a raised popular lesion on the moist stratified squamous epithelium of the genitalia,
rarely, the oral mucosa or pharynx.

- The lesion eventually ulcerates and develops abundant granulation tissue, which manifests
grossly as protuberant, soft, painless mass.