Moraxella catarrhalis

Display:

Gram stain Culture

General information
- Taxonomy
  Family: Moraxellaceae
  
  Natural habitats
  Part of the normal flora of the upper respiratory tract, and sometimes colonize the female genitals.
  
  Clinical significance
  M. catarrhalis is an exclusively human pathogen and is common cause of otitis media in infants and children and they are an important cause of lower respiratory tract infections, particularly in adults with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
  They can cause a variety of severe infections, including pneumonia, endocarditis, septicemia and meningitis,
Gram stain
- Gram negative diplococci
  
  They occur intra- or extracellularly
Culture characteristics
- Obligate aerobic
  
  BA: colonies are 1-3 mm after 24 hours, gray to white, opaque, and smooth
  
  When they are pushed by a loop (öse), they remain intact and glide over the agar as a “hockey puck”
  
  McConkey: no growth
  
  BBAØ: no growth
Characteristics
References
- James Versalovic et al.(2011) Manual of Clinical Microbiology 10th Edition