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Streptococcus pneumoniae
Streptococcus pneumoniae is a species of
Streptococcus that is a
major human pathogen.
It was recognized as a major cause of pneumonia in the 1880s, and is
the subject of many humoral immunity studies.
Morphology
The organism was originally named Diplococcus pneumonia in 1926
because of its characteristic appearance in Gram-stained sputum. It
was renamed Streptococcus pneumoniae in 1974 because of its growth in
chains in liquid media. Because of its role as the etiologic agent of
pneumonia, it has long been known informally as the pneumococcus.
Cultural characteristics
They grow on blood agar to produce a zone of
alpha-hemolysis
Pathogenesis
Pneumococcus does not produce toxins but owes its virulance to its
capsule which allows it to invade tissue and resist phagocytosis.
Diseases caused by pneumococcus
Despite the name, the organism causes many types of infection other
than pneumonitis, including acute sinusitis, otitis media, meningitis,
osteomyelitis, septic arthritis,
endocarditis, peritonitis,
pericarditis, cellulitis, and brain abscess.
S. pneumonia is the most common cause of bacterial meningitis in
adults, and is one of the top two isolates found in otitis media.
Pneumococcal pneumonia is more common in the very young and the very
old.
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