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The Enterococcus

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2015

Robert M. Gullberg
Robert M. Gullberg*
Affiliation:
Northwestern University Medical School, Section of Infectious Disease, Department of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois
*
Racine Medical Clinic, 5625 Washington Avenue, Racine, Wisconsin 53406
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Extract

In 1899, Thiercilin used the term “enterococcus” to describe microscopic organisms seen in pairs or short chains in feces. Later (in the 1930s) the name was used in a more restrictive sense for streptococci that had the hardy capacity to survive under extreme conditions.

Enterococci belong to a group D family of streptococci, as characterized by Lancefield in 1938. In contrast to other groups of streptococci, the group D antigen is not a wall carbohydrate but a glycerol teichoic acid containing glucose and D-alanine. This antigen appears to be related directly to the cytoplasm or plasma membrane.

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Special Sections
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Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology , Volume 7 , Issue 12 , December 1986 , pp. 600 - 606
Copyright
Copyright © The Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America 1986

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