Schaalia odontolytica (Actinomyces odontolyticus)

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Gram stain Culture

General information
- Actinomycosis, caused by Actinomyces israelii, less frequent by Actinomyces odontolyticus. (Schaalia odontolytica)
  
  Taxonomy
  Family: Actinomycetaceae,
  Genus: Schaalia odontolytica
  Formely: Actinomyces odontolyticus
  
  Natural habitats
  As with all other actinomycotic diseases, Schaalia odontolytica is an endogenous infection arising from the mucous membranes
  
  Clinical significance
  Clinical disease in patients with Schaalia odontolytica closely resembles disease caused by A. israelii and other actinomyces species.
  
  Infections by Schaalia odontolytica primarily involve the cervicofacial regions, the chest, abdomen, and pelvis with rare involvement of the central nervous system, bones, and joints
Gram stain
- Gram-positive rods,
  
  diphtheroid and may be arranged in palisades or
  
  thin filamental and pleomorphic, which are 0.4–1.0 μm wide.
  
  The filaments may be up to 50 μm in length with true branching.
Culture characteristics
- Facultative anaerobic
  
  BA: colonies are small, irregular, whitish and smooth to slightly granular and show a dark red pigment when mature (2–14 days).
  
  This pigmentation is most obvious when the cultures are left standing in air at room temperature after primary anaerobic isolation.
  
  BBAØ: growth
Characteristics
References
- James Versalovic et al.(2011) Manual of Clinical Microbiology 10th Edition