7.5 Using biochemistry to identify microorganisms  (Page 2/7)

Microbes can also be identified by measuring their unique lipid profiles. As we have learned, fatty acids of lipids can vary in chain length, presence or absence of double bonds, and number of double bonds, hydroxyl groups, branches, and rings. To identify a microbe by its lipid composition, the fatty acids present in their membranes are analyzed. A common biochemical analysis used for this purpose is a technique used in clinical, public health, and food laboratories. It relies on detecting unique differences in fatty acids and is called fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) analysis . In a FAME analysis , fatty acids are extracted from the membranes of microorganisms, chemically altered to form volatile methyl esters, and analyzed by gas chromatography (GC) . The resulting GC chromatogram is compared with reference chromatograms in a database containing data for thousands of bacterial isolates to identify the unknown microorganism ( [link] ).

A related method for microorganism identification is called phospholipid-derived fatty acids (PLFA) analysis . Membranes are mostly composed of phospholipids, which can be saponified (hydrolyzed with alkali) to release the fatty acids. The resulting fatty acid mixture is then subjected to FAME analysis, and the measured lipid profiles can be compared with those of known microorganisms to identify the unknown microorganism.

Bacterial identification can also be based on the proteins produced under specific growth conditions within the human body. These types of identification procedures are called proteomic analysis . To perform proteomic analysis, proteins from the pathogen are first separated by high-pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC) , and the collected fractions are then digested to yield smaller peptide fragments. These peptides are identified by mass spectrometry and compared with those of known microorganisms to identify the unknown microorganism in the original specimen.

Microorganisms can also be identified by the carbohydrates attached to proteins (glycoproteins) in the plasma membrane or cell wall. Antibodies and other carbohydrate-binding proteins can attach to specific carbohydrates on cell surfaces, causing the cells to clump together. Serological tests (e.g., the Lancefield groups tests, which are used for identification of Streptococcus species) are performed to detect the unique carbohydrates located on the surface of the cell.

Resolution

Penny stopped using her new sunscreen and applied the corticosteroid cream to her rash as directed. However, after several days, her rash had not improved and actually seemed to be getting worse. She made a follow-up appointment with her doctor, who observed a bumpy red rash and pus-filled blisters around hair follicles ( [link] ). The rash was especially concentrated in areas that would have been covered by a swimsuit. After some questioning, Penny told the physician that she had recently attended a pool party and spent some time in a hot tub. In light of this new information, the doctor suspected a case of hot tub rash , an infection frequently caused by the bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa , an opportunistic pathogen that can thrive in hot tubs and swimming pools, especially when the water is not sufficiently chlorinated. P. aeruginosa is the same bacterium that is associated with infections in the lungs of patients with cystic fibrosis .

The doctor collected a specimen from Penny’s rash to be sent to the clinical microbiology lab. Confirmatory tests were carried out to distinguish P. aeruginosa from enteric pathogens that can also be present in pool and hot-tub water. The test included the production of the blue-green pigment pyocyanin on cetrimide agar and growth at 42 °C. Cetrimide is a selective agent that inhibits the growth of other species of microbial flora and also enhances the production of P. aeruginosa pigments pyocyanin and fluorescein, which are a characteristic blue-green and yellow-green, respectively.

Tests confirmed the presence of P. aeruginosa in Penny’s skin sample, but the doctor decided not to prescribe an antibiotic. Even though P. aeruginosa is a bacterium, Pseudomonas species are generally resistant to many antibiotics. Luckily, skin infections like Penny’s are usually self-limiting; the rash typically lasts about 2 weeks and resolves on its own, with or without medical treatment. The doctor advised Penny to wait it out and keep using the corticosteroid cream. The cream will not kill the P. aeruginosa on Penny’s skin, but it should calm her rash and minimize the itching by suppressing her body’s inflammatory response to the bacteria.

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Key concepts and summary

• Accurate identification of bacteria is essential in a clinical laboratory for diagnostic and management of epidemics, pandemics, and food poisoning caused by bacterial outbreaks.
• The phenotypic identification of microorganisms involves using observable traits, including profiles of structural components such as lipids, biosynthetic products such as sugars or amino acids, or storage compounds such as poly-β-hydroxybutyrate.
• An unknown microbe may be identified from the unique mass spectrum produced when it is analyzed by matrix assisted laser desorption/ionization time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF) .
• Microbes can be identified by determining their lipid compositions, using fatty acid methyl esters ( FAME ) or phospholipid-derived fatty acids ( PLFA ) analysis .
• Proteomic analysis , the study of all accumulated proteins of an organism; can also be used for bacterial identification.
• Glycoproteins in the plasma membrane or cell wall structures can bind to lectins or antibodies and can be used for identification.

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