TAXONOMY OF
BACTERIA(CLASSIFICATION,
IDENTIFICATION AND NOMENCLATURE)
Presenter: Dr Luciana Albert
FACILITATOR: Prof Abood
Group members:
Dr Francis Kamugisha
Dr Grace Matasha
Dr Joyce Fitina Scopas
Dr Safaa Chunga
CONTENTS
Introduction and definition of terms
Nomenclature of bacteria
Classification and identification
Levels of classification
Microbial properties used in classification
Burgey’s manual of systemic bacteriology
Bacteria subtyping and its application
References
INTRODUCTION AND DEFINITION OF TERMS
Nomeclature is naming of organisms using the
international rules and regulation basing on
their characteristics
Classification is the arrangement of organisms in
the groups basing on their similarities and
relationship.
Bacterial taxonomy is the rank-based
classification of bacteria.
Identification is a practical application of
classification scheme.(distinguish, isolate,
authenticity)
TAXONOMY
Is the science of classification of organisms.
Shows relationships/similarities among
organisms.
Is a way to provide identification of organisms.
TAXA:GROUP OF ORGANISMS
Examples
Spirochetes
Genus Borrelia, Leptospira, Treponema
Aerobic/microaerophilic, motile, helical/vibroid gram
negative bacteria
Geneus Camphylobacter
Gram negative aerobic/microaerophilic rods and cocci
Genus Agrobacterium, Alcaligenes, Pseudomonas
Facultative anaerobic gram negative rods
Genus Enterobater, Escherichia, Klebsiella, Serratia, Shigella, Yersinia,
Eikenella
Gram positive Cocci
Genus lactococcus, streptococcus, Staphylococcus
Endospore forming gram positive rods and cocci
Genus bacillus, clostridium
Regular, nonsporing gram positive rods
Genus Lactobacillus, listeria
TAXANOMY CONT:…
Bacterial taxonomy is composed of three parts:
(i) nomenclature
(ii) classification
(iii)identification
BACTERIA NOMENCLATURE
There are two ways bacteria can be named:
i. Binomial system of nomeclature
ii. Common descriptive names
BINOMIAL NOMECLATURE
This system uses two words i.e genus and specie
The names are in italics or underlined
Genus must start with capital letter and can
abbreviated. Can be used alone to represent a
group of genus e.g strepto species
Species name has to be in small letter, never
abbreviated and should not be used alone.
e.g. Actinomycosis actinomycetecomintants
COMMON OR DESCRIPTIVE NAMES
Naming of organisms that may have common
usage but not taxonomic names
e.g
Turbecle bacillus (Mycobacteria tuberculosis)
Meningococcus (Neisseria meningitis)
Group A streptococcus ( Streptococcus pyogenes)
CLASSIFICATION AND IDENTIFICATION OF
BACTERIA
Classification is the orderly arrangement of bacteria
into groups on the basis of shared properties
Identification is a practical use of classification
scheme. Is done after organisms have been classifies.
The first steps in identifying a bacterium include
examination of
― Whether the bacteria exist in specific groupings
― The shape of the individual bacterium
― The colony morphology (the appearance of a “colony”; a
group of millions of bacteria that arose from one single
parent cell).
CLASSIFICATION CONT….
Bacteria
Classification
Phenotypic Genotypic
Pattern/Finger
Biochemical print Sequence based
Morphology techniques
reactions techniques
PHENETIC CLASSIFICATION
• Classification which is based on the observable
characteristics of existing organisms regardless
of their ancestral lineage such as:
• Biochemical reactions.
• Morphology.
• cultural characteristics.
• susceptibility to antibiotics and inorganic
compounds.
₋ biochemical reactions whose results can be
observed.
Morphological characteristics include colony
morphology such as color, size, shape, opacity,
elevation, margin surface texture and consistency
These characters are observed after the
incubation period on the cultures on the solid
media
PHENETIC CLASSIFICATION CONT
e.g of bacteria morphology
Bacillus - rod
Coccus -spherical
Spirillum -Spiral
Coccobacilli -Ilongated cocco form
Filamentous bacili -Occurs as long threads
Vibrios -Short slightly curved rods
Fusiform -Bacilli with tap
PHYLOGENETIC/GENOTYPIC
CLASSIFICATION
Classification in which the aim is to group
organisms according to their
ancestral/evolutionary relationships.
Two broad categories:
⁻ pattern- or fingerprint-based techniques
⁻ sequence-based techniques
GENOTYPIC CONT:….
Pattern-based techniques: use a systematic
method to produce a series of fragments from an
organism’s chromosomal DNA.
Fragments are separated by size to generate a
profile or fingerprint that is unique to that
organism and its very close relatives.
When the profiles of two organisms match, they
can be considered very closely related, at the
strain or species level
GENOTYPIC CONT:….
The ideal means of identifying and classifying
bacteria would be to compare each gene sequence
in a given strain with the gene sequence for every
known species. This can't be done but
PHYLOGENETIC/GENOTYPIC CONT:…..
The total DNA of one organism can be compared with that
of another organism by the method called nucleic acid
hybridization or DNA hybridization
This method can be used to measure the number of DNA
sequences that 2 organisms have in common and then
estimate the percentage of divergence/convergence within
DNA sequences that are related but not identical.
PHYLOGENETIC…..
5 factors can be used to determine DNA
relatedness:
1. Genome size
2. Guanine+ cytosine content
3. DNA relatedness under conditions optimal for
DNA reassociation
4. Thermal stability of related DNA sequence and
5. DNA relatedness under supraoptimal
conditions for DNA reassociation.
LEVELS OF CLASSIFICATION
Hierarchical broad divisions are divided up into smaller
divisions:
Example
Kingdom Prokaryotae
Phylum Gracilicutes
Class Scotobacteria
Order Eubacteria
Family Enterobacteriaceae
Genus Escherichia
Species coli
5 KINGDOMS
Plantae
Multicellular photoautotrophs
Animalia
ingestive
Fungi
absorptive
Protozoa
Mostly singe celled
Prokaryotes
THE 3 DOMAINS
Eukarya: organisms with cells each with a
distinct nucleus within which the genetic
material is contained.
Plants, animals, fungi and protozoa
Bacteria
(with peptidoglycan)
Archaea
With unusual cell walls
PROPERTIES USED IN CLASSIFICATION
Colony morphology
Cell shape & arrangement
Cell wall structure
Special cellular structures
Biochemical characteristics
OTHER USEFUL PROPERTIES…..
Serological test
Use group specific antiserum isolated from the
plasma of animals that have been sensitized to the
organism
The antiserum contains antibody proteins that react with
antigens on the unknown organism.
The reaction can be detected by examining agglutination
or by using sera labeled with colorimetric or fluorescent
labels
SEROLOGICAL TEST….
Advantages:
Highly specific
Does not usually require the organism to be isolated into
pure culture
Can be used to identify organisms that can’t be grown on
medium
IDENTIFICATION OF BACTERIA
It can be done through various methods either by
physical methods or by methods based on
phylogeny/genotype.
The first steps in identifying a bacterium include
examination of
― Whether the bacteria exist in specific groupings
― The shape of the individual bacterium
― The colony morphology (the appearance of a “colony”;
a group of millions of bacteria that arose from one
single parent cell).
METHODS OF BACTERIA IDENTIFICATION:
Genotypic/phylogenetic techniques: based on
profiling an organism’s genetic material (primarily its
DNA).
Phenotypic/phenetic techniques: based on
profiling either an organism’s metabolic attributes or
some aspect of its chemical composition
Advantage of Genotypic techniques over
phenotypic:
⁻ They are independent of the physiological state of an
organism.
⁻ They are not influenced by the composition of the
growth medium or by the organism’s phase of growth.
PHENOTYPIC CONT……
Biochemical characteristics include enzyme
production, utilization of a particular sugar,
aerobic or anaerobic reactions
Eg: Gram staining which can indicate:
₋ the Gram reaction of the organism; whether it is
acid-fast
₋ its motility
₋ the arrangement of its flagella
₋ the presence of spores, capsules, and inclusion bodies
and its shape.
This information can allow identifying an
organism to the genus level or minimize the
possibility of it belongs to one or another group
BERGEY’S MANUAL OF DETERMINATIVE
BACTERIOLOGY
Bergey`s Manual first published in 1927 by
David Bergeys and colleagues
bacteria were grouped into phenetic groups.
It’s second edition gives the most up to date
phylogenic classification of prokaryotic
organisms ,including eubacteria and archaea.
It is considered by most microbiologists as the
best consensus for prokaryotic taxonomy.
BERGEY’S MANUAL OF DETERMINATIVE
BACTERIOLOGY
A well-known example of taxonomic
characterization is the kingdom, division, class,
family, genus, species, and strain divisions.
The Bergey’s Manual of Determinative
Bacteriology, is based on metabolic,
immunological, and structural characteristics
i.e
― Presence of various enzymes
― Morphological characteristics
― Serological tests
― Phage typing
― Fatty acid profiles
― DNA finger printing
― Sequence of ribosomal RNA
BERGEY’S MANUAL OF DETERMINATIVE
BACTERIOLOGY CONT..
Strains, for example, are all descended from the
same organism, but differ in an aspect such as
the antigenic character of a surface molecule.
Bergeys manual is used to identify bacteria not to
classify
The features used in differentiating various
organisms has little to do with the arrangement
used in taxonomic groups
MAJOR GROUPS AS IN BERGEYS MANUAL
1. Gram +ve bacteria with cell wall.
- about 12 different groups.
Eg Bacillus anthrus, gram +ve cocci
2. Gram –ve bacteria with cell wall.
-about 16 different groups
Eg E.coli, salmonella, shigella
3. Cell wall less eubacteria
-the mycoplasmas
4. Archaebacteria
Bacterial found in extreme conditions
Eg: sulfur loving bacteria found in the deep sea
BACTERIA SUBTYPING
Bacteria subtyping is done to distinguish
between strains of a given species or to identify a
particular species
It is commonly done in epidemic
Use characteristics that allow discrimination
below the species level
Must differentiate case from non case isolates
BACTERIA SUBTYPING….
Classically accomplished by;
-Biotyping
The determination of relatedness of different
organisms on the basis of their biological profile
-Serotyping
Serological typing or serotyping is based on the fact
that strains of same species can differ in the antigenic
determinants expressed on the cell surface
It is used for several gram-negative and gram-positive
bacteria identification.
BACTERIAL SUBTYPING CONT…
-Antimicrobial susceptibility test
Is a procedure used to determine which antibiotic
a specific organism or group of organisms are
susceptible to
-Bacteriophage typing
Is a process of identifying the species of bacteria
according to the type of virus attacking it
-Bacteriocin typing
Is the susceptibility of the isolate to various
bacteriocins, that is, toxins that are produced by
a collected set of producer strains.
REFERENCES
Identification and classification of microbes
Book · September 2012 (Cowan, 1965; Young et
al., 1992).
https://www.slideshare.net/bacteriocin-and-its-
typing
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