Peptostreptococcaceae Explained

The Peptostreptococcaceae are a family of Gram-positive anaerobic bacteria in the class Clostridia. A majority of members are identified as obligate anaerobes. The bacteria can be found in humans, vertebrates, manure, soil and hydrothermal vents. Peptostreptococcaceae metabolize via fermentation producing a variety of short-chain fatty acids. The bacteria are important in the digestion process of many ruminants, and in the oral health of vertebrates. Shape of the bacteria varies from cocci, rods or filaments, among species. Most strains fall within the size of 0.6-0.9 μm.[1]

Taxonomy

Origin of nomenclature is derived from the Greek "peptos", meaning digested, and Streptococcus, a bacterial genus name combine to form Peptostreptococcus—the "digesting streptococcus".

The type genus is Peptostreptococcus, originally described by Kluyver and van Niel in 1936.[2] Recent taxonomic revisions have added several other genera like Acetoanaerobium, Filifactor, Proteocatella, Sporacetigenium, and Tepidibacter to this family, with members largely characterized by their morphology and function.[3] More recent studies have also advocated the inclusion of new genera from a closely related clade, including Peptostreptococcus, Asaccharospora, Clostridioides, Intestinibacter, Paeniclostridium, Paraclostridium, Peptacetobacter, Romboutsia, and Terrisporobacter using 16rRNA gene sequences to support the addition.

Gut Microbiome

Several members of the Peptostreptococcaceae are well known inhabitants of the digestive tract. Microbiome studies of animal feces have corroborated this. Notably, an unclassified group of Peptostreptococcaceae has been reported making up a significant portion of the microbial community in domestic cats,[4] while other studies have not found a significant presence of Peptostreptococcaceae.[4] Peptostreptococcaceae have been found to be enriched in the gut microbiota of blood drinking species such as vampire bats and the vampire ground finch.[5]

Peptostreptococcus species occupy a specialized niche in the rumen of dairy cows, sheep, and deer as peptide- and amino acid-degrading microorganisms. By producing high levels of ammonia, these bacteria play a crucial role in nitrogen recycling within the rumen ecosystem.[6]

Pathogenesis in Humans

Clostridioides difficile is a notable human pathogen in this family. Peptostreptococcaceae have been of interest for several other bowel diseases as biological marker or causative agent. Decreased abundance has been reported for Crohn's disease,[7] while the genus Peptostreptococcus appears to be more common in patients diagnosed with colorectal cancer.[8]

Filifactor alocis has been isolated from human oral cavities with gingivitis and is responsible for biofilm formation of periodontitis.[9] An increased abundance of Peptostreptococcus genus can lead to increased risk of acute noma disease and necrotizing gingivitis.[10]

Notes and References

  1. Book: The Prokaryotes: Firmicutes and Tenericutes . 2014 . Springer Berlin Heidelberg . 978-3-642-30119-3 . Rosenberg . Eugene . Berlin, Heidelberg . en . 10.1007/978-3-642-30120-9 . DeLong . Edward F. . Lory . Stephen . Stackebrandt . Erko . Thompson . Fabiano.
  2. Parte . Aidan C. . 2013-11-15 . LPSN—list of prokaryotic names with standing in nomenclature . Nucleic Acids Research . 42 . D1 . D613–D616 . 10.1093/nar/gkt1111 . 0305-1048.
  3. Bello . Sarah . McQuay . Sarah . Rudra . Bashudev . Gupta . Radhey S. . February 2024 . Robust demarcation of the family Peptostreptococcaceae and its main genera based on phylogenomic studies and taxon-specific molecular markers . International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology . 74 . 2 . 10.1099/ijsem.0.006247 . 1466-5034 . 38319314.
  4. Bermingham EN, Young W, Butowski CF, Moon CD, Maclean PH, Rosendale D, Cave NJ, Thomas DG . 6 . The Fecal Microbiota in the Domestic Cat (Felis catus) Is Influenced by Interactions Between Age and Diet; A Five Year Longitudinal Study . Frontiers in Microbiology . 9 . 1231 . 2018 . 29971046 . 6018416 . 10.3389/fmicb.2018.01231 . free .
  5. Song . Se Jin . Sander . Jon G. . Baldassarre . Daniel T. . Chaves . Jaime A. . Johnson . Nicholas S. . Piaggio . Antoinette J. . Stuckey . Matthew J. . Nováková . Eva . Metcalf . Jessica L. . Chomel . Bruno B. . Aguilar-Setién . Alvaro . Knight . Rob . McKenzie . Valerie J. . 2019 . Is there convergence of gut microbes in blood-feeding vertebrates? . Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B . 374 . 1777 . 374(1777). 10.1098/rstb.2018.0249 . 31154984 . 6560276 .
  6. Paster . B. J. . Russell . J. B. . Yang . C. M. . Chow . J. M. . Woese . C. R. . Tanner . R. . January 1993 . Phylogeny of the ammonia-producing ruminal bacteria Peptostreptococcus anaerobius, Clostridium sticklandii, and Clostridium aminophilum sp. nov . International Journal of Systematic Bacteriology . 43 . 1 . 107–110 . 10.1099/00207713-43-1-107 . 0020-7713 . 8427801.
  7. Pascal V, Pozuelo M, Borruel N, Casellas F, Campos D, Santiago A, Martinez X, Varela E, Sarrabayrouse G, Machiels K, Vermeire S, Sokol H, Guarner F, Manichanh C . 6 . A microbial signature for Crohn's disease . Gut . 66 . 5 . 813–822 . May 2017 . 28179361 . 5531220 . 10.1136/gutjnl-2016-313235 .
  8. Ahn J, Sinha R, Pei Z, Dominianni C, Wu J, Shi J, Goedert JJ, Hayes RB, Yang L . 6 . Human gut microbiome and risk for colorectal cancer . Journal of the National Cancer Institute . 105 . 24 . 1907–1911 . December 2013 . 24316595 . 3866154 . 10.1093/jnci/djt300 .
  9. Moffatt . C.E. . Whitmore . S.E. . Griffen . A.L. . Leys . E.J. . Lamont . R.J. . December 2011 . Filifactor alocis interactions with gingival epithelial cells . Molecular Oral Microbiology . en . 26 . 6 . 365–373 . 10.1111/j.2041-1014.2011.00624.x . 2041-1006 . 3248241 . 22053964.
  10. Bolivar . Ignacio . Whiteson . Katrine . Stadelmann . Benoît . Baratti-Mayer . Denise . Gizard . Yann . Mombelli . Andrea . Pittet . Didier . Schrenzel . Jacques . Noma (GESNOMA) . The Geneva Study Group on . 2012-03-06 . Bacterial Diversity in Oral Samples of Children in Niger with Acute Noma, Acute Necrotizing Gingivitis, and Healthy Controls . PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases . en . 6 . 3 . e1556 . 10.1371/journal.pntd.0001556 . free . 1935-2735 . 3295795 . 22413030.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Peptostreptococcaceae".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2025, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.