Rossi, F.; Amadoro, C.; Colavita, G. Members of the Lactobacillus Genus Complex (LGC) as Opportunistic Pathogens: A Review. Microorganisms2019, 7, 126.
Rossi, F.; Amadoro, C.; Colavita, G. Members of the Lactobacillus Genus Complex (LGC) as Opportunistic Pathogens: A Review. Microorganisms 2019, 7, 126.
Rossi, F.; Amadoro, C.; Colavita, G. Members of the Lactobacillus Genus Complex (LGC) as Opportunistic Pathogens: A Review. Microorganisms2019, 7, 126.
Rossi, F.; Amadoro, C.; Colavita, G. Members of the Lactobacillus Genus Complex (LGC) as Opportunistic Pathogens: A Review. Microorganisms 2019, 7, 126.
Abstract
Microorganisms belonging to the Lactobacillus genus are naturally associated or deliberately added to fermented food products and are widely used in probiotic food additives and supplements. Moreover these bacteria normally colonize mouth, gastrointestinal (GI) tract and female genitourinary tract of humans. They exert multiple beneficial effects and are regarded as safe microorganisms. However, infections caused by lactobacilli, mainly endocarditis, bacteremia and pleuropneumonia occasionally occur. The relevance of Lactobacillus spp. as opportunistic pathogens in humans and related risk factors and predisposing conditions are illustrated in this review article with more emphasis on the species L. rhamnosus, that has been more often involved in infection cases. The methods used to identify this species in clinical samples, to distinguish strains and to evaluate traits that can be associated to pathogenicity, as well as future perspectives for improving the identification of potentially pathogenic strains are outlined.
Biology and Life Sciences, Immunology and Microbiology
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
