Macrococcus
Encyclopedia
Macrococcus is a genus of Gram
positive cocci belonging to the family Staphylococcaceae
. The genus was created in 1998
negative and catalase
positive. They can be distinguished phenotypically from most staphylococci on the basis of their cellular morphology being are 2.5 – 4 times larger in diameter compared to Staphylococcus aureus
and their positive cytochrome c oxidase
reaction. Species in this genus are resistant to bacitracin
and lysozyme
and sensitive to furazolidone
. The DNA
base content is 38–45 mol% G+C. The cell walls lack teichoic acid
. They are usually unencapsulated.
The type species is Macrococcus equipercicus.
genus, the closest relations of the Macrococci appear to be the Staphylococcus scuri group.
A methicillin resistance gene has been identified in this genus. The significance of this discovery is not yet clear.
New latin
noun composed of the Greek adjective macros (μάκρος) meaning "large" and the Neolatin masculine noun coccus intended to mean a coccus shaped bacterium
, as it comes from the Greek masculine noun kokkos (κόκκος) meaning "berry", consequently the noun Macrococcus, means "large coccus".
The eymology of the epithet of the 7 species contained in the genus are:
Gram
The gram is a metric system unit of mass....
positive cocci belonging to the family Staphylococcaceae
Staphylococcaceae
The Staphylococcaceae is a family of Gram positive bacteria that includes the genus Staphylococcus, noted for encompassing several medically significant pathogens....
. The genus was created in 1998
History
The first recognised species in this genus (Macrococcus caseolyticus) was initially named Micrococcus caseolyticus by Evans in 1916. It was then renamed Staphylococcus caseolyticus by Schleifer et al in 1982. It received its current designation in 1998 by Kloos et al.Description
Members of the genus Macrococcus are Gram positive, non motile, non spore forming, cocci that are coagulaseCoagulase
Coagulase is a protein produced by several microorganisms that enables the conversion of fibrinogen to fibrin. In the laboratory, it is used to distinguish between different types of Staphylococcus isolates. Coagulase negativity excludes S. aureus. That is to say, S...
negative and catalase
Catalase
Catalase is a common enzyme found in nearly all living organisms that are exposed to oxygen, where it catalyzes the decomposition of hydrogen peroxide to water and oxygen...
positive. They can be distinguished phenotypically from most staphylococci on the basis of their cellular morphology being are 2.5 – 4 times larger in diameter compared to Staphylococcus aureus
Staphylococcus aureus
Staphylococcus aureus is a facultative anaerobic Gram-positive coccal bacterium. It is frequently found as part of the normal skin flora on the skin and nasal passages. It is estimated that 20% of the human population are long-term carriers of S. aureus. S. aureus is the most common species of...
and their positive cytochrome c oxidase
Cytochrome c oxidase
The enzyme cytochrome c oxidase or Complex IV is a large transmembrane protein complex found in bacteria and the mitochondrion.It is the last enzyme in the respiratory electron transport chain of mitochondria located in the mitochondrial membrane...
reaction. Species in this genus are resistant to bacitracin
Bacitracin
Bacitracin is a mixture of related cyclic polypeptides produced by organisms of the licheniformis group of Bacillus subtilis var Tracy, isolation of which was first reported in 1945....
and lysozyme
Lysozyme
Lysozyme, also known as muramidase or N-acetylmuramide glycanhydrolase, are glycoside hydrolases, enzymes that damage bacterial cell walls by catalyzing hydrolysis of 1,4-beta-linkages between N-acetylmuramic acid and N-acetyl-D-glucosamine residues in a peptidoglycan and between...
and sensitive to furazolidone
Furazolidone
Furazolidone is a nitrofuran antibacterial. It is marketed by Roberts Laboratories under the brand name Furoxone and by GlaxoSmithKline as Dependal-M.-Uses:It is used to treat diarrhoea and enteritis caused by bacteria or protozoan infections....
. The DNA
DNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...
base content is 38–45 mol% G+C. The cell walls lack teichoic acid
Teichoic acid
Teichoic acids are bacterial polysaccharides of glycerol phosphate or ribitol phosphate linked via phosphodiester bonds.-Location and structure:...
. They are usually unencapsulated.
The type species is Macrococcus equipercicus.
Evolution
This genus is the closest known relation of the genus Staphylococcus. Within the StaphylococcusStaphylococcus
Staphylococcus is a genus of Gram-positive bacteria. Under the microscope they appear round , and form in grape-like clusters....
genus, the closest relations of the Macrococci appear to be the Staphylococcus scuri group.
Clinical
This genus is not known to cause human disease.A methicillin resistance gene has been identified in this genus. The significance of this discovery is not yet clear.
Etymology
The name Macrococcus is a masculineGrammatical gender
Grammatical gender is defined linguistically as a system of classes of nouns which trigger specific types of inflections in associated words, such as adjectives, verbs and others. For a system of noun classes to be a gender system, every noun must belong to one of the classes and there should be...
New latin
New Latin
The term New Latin, or Neo-Latin, is used to describe the Latin language used in original works created between c. 1500 and c. 1900. Among other uses, Latin during this period was employed in scholarly and scientific publications...
noun composed of the Greek adjective macros (μάκρος) meaning "large" and the Neolatin masculine noun coccus intended to mean a coccus shaped bacterium
Coccus
Coccus can be used to describe any bacterium that has a spherical shape. It is one of the three distinct types of bacteria shapes, the other two being bacillus and spirillum cells...
, as it comes from the Greek masculine noun kokkos (κόκκος) meaning "berry", consequently the noun Macrococcus, means "large coccus".
The eymology of the epithet of the 7 species contained in the genus are:
- For M. bovicus ( Kloos et al. 1998), the epithet is the masculine form of bovicus, -a, -um, a Neolatin adjective derived from the LatinLatinLatin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
noun bos, bovis meaning "cow", given that the type strain was isolated from a cow. - For M. brunensisMacrococcus brunensisMacrococcus brunensis is a species of bacteria belonging to the genus Macrococcus.-Description:The cells are coccoid, Gram positive, catalase positive, oxidase positive with a diameter is 0·89–1·21 micrometres....
( Mannerová et al. 2003), the Latin masculine adjective brunensis meaning from Bruna, the Roman name of the city of Brünn in the Czech Republic, where the type strain was isolated. - For M. carouselicus ( Kloos et al. 1998), the Neolatin adjective carouselicus meaning "pertaining " to a carousel".
- For M. caseolyticus ((Schleifer et al. 1982) Kloos et al. 1998), the epithet is a Neolatin adjective which is a combination of the Latin noun caseus meaning "cheese" and the Neolatin adjective lyticus (from the Greek adjective lutikos (λυτικός)) meaning "able to dissolve", to mean "casein-dissolving".
- For M. equipercicus ( Kloos et al. 1998), the epithet is a Neolatin adjective, meaning "pertaining to Percy, the horse", composed of the Latin noun equus, -i meaning "horse" and the Neolatinised English proper name "Percy" to Percus, -i, which is the name of the Irish thoroughbred horse from which the species was isolated (In Kloos et al. 1998 the component equus is said to be in the genitive case, but more correctly equi" is the root equ-" plus a joining "-i-" as first word is a Latin word,"c.f.").
- M. hajekii ( Mannerová et al. 2003) New LatinNew LatinThe term New Latin, or Neo-Latin, is used to describe the Latin language used in original works created between c. 1500 and c. 1900. Among other uses, Latin during this period was employed in scholarly and scientific publications...
genitive caseLatin declensionLatin is an inflected language, and as such has nouns, pronouns, and adjectives that must be declined in order to serve a grammatical function. A set of declined forms of the same word pattern is called a declension. There are five declensions, which are numbered and grouped by ending and...
noun hajekii, of Hájek, named after Wenceslaus HajekWenceslaus HajekWenceslaus Hajek of Libočan was a Bohemian chronicler, author of the Annales Bohemorum .-External links:* digitalised copy...
, a Czech microbiologist. - M. lamae ( Mannerová; et al. 2003) New LatinNew LatinThe term New Latin, or Neo-Latin, is used to describe the Latin language used in original works created between c. 1500 and c. 1900. Among other uses, Latin during this period was employed in scholarly and scientific publications...
feminine genderGrammatical genderGrammatical gender is defined linguistically as a system of classes of nouns which trigger specific types of inflections in associated words, such as adjectives, verbs and others. For a system of noun classes to be a gender system, every noun must belong to one of the classes and there should be...
genitive caseLatin declensionLatin is an inflected language, and as such has nouns, pronouns, and adjectives that must be declined in order to serve a grammatical function. A set of declined forms of the same word pattern is called a declension. There are five declensions, which are numbered and grouped by ending and...
noun lamae, of Lama, the zoological genus name of the llamaLlamaThe llama is a South American camelid, widely used as a meat and pack animal by Andean cultures since pre-Hispanic times....
.
External links
- Summary of the genome data http://biocyc.org/MCAS458233/organism-summary?object=MCAS458233