Abstract
Kingella negevensis is a newly described gram-negative bacterium in the Neisseriaceae family and is closely related to Kingella kingae, an important cause of pediatric osteoarticular infections and other invasive diseases. Like K. kingae, K. negevensis can be isolated from the oropharynx of young children, although at a much lower rate. Due to the potential for misidentification as K. kingae, the burden of disease due to K. negevensis is currently unknown. Similarly, there is little known about virulence factors present in K. negevensis and how they compare to virulence factors in K. kingae. Using a variety of approaches, we show that K. negevensis produces many of the same putative virulence factors that are present in K. kingae, including a polysaccharide capsule, a secreted exopolysaccharide, a Knh-like trimeric autotransporter, and type IV pili, suggesting that K. negevensis may have significant pathogenic potential.
Highlights
The genus Kingella in the family Neisseriaceae contains the species K. kingae, K. oralis, K. denitrificans, K. potus, and the novel species K. negevensis
To determine whether K. negevensis produces an exopolysaccharide that is dependent on the pamABCDE locus, a pamABC deletion was created in strain BB526, generating strain BB526pam
Silver-stained material in the 100–130 kDa molecular weight range was detected in strains KK01 and BB526 but was absent in stains KK01pam and BB526pam. These results indicate that K. negevensis strain BB526 produces an exopolysaccharide that is dependent on the pamABCDE locus
Summary
The genus Kingella in the family Neisseriaceae contains the species K. kingae, K. oralis, K. denitrificans, K. potus, and the novel species K. negevensis. In the course of epidemiological studies examining carriage of K. kingae in the upper respiratory tract in healthy children in Israel, a small colony variant was identified with microbiological characteristics resembling K. kingae [3,4]. Further analysis of these isolates revealed significant differences relative to K. kingae, resulting in assignment to a novel species designated K. negevensis [4,5]. PCR assays that target rtxA and rtxB are unable to differentiate between K. negevensis and K. kingae, raising the possibility that some infections attributed to K. kingae might instead be due to K. negevensis [10,11]. El Houmami et al developed a novel PCR-based test targeting
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