Clostridium hathewayi sp. nov., from Human Faeces

doi:10.1078/0723-2020-00044

Systematic and Applied Microbiology

Volume 24, Issue 3, 2001, Pages 353-357

https://doi.org/10.1078/0723-2020-00044 Get rights and content

Summary

A strictly anoxic, Gram-positive, sporeforming, rod-shaped bacterium was isolated from a chemostat inoculated with human faeces. The bacterium used carbohydrate as fermentable substrates, producing acetate, ethanol, carbon dioxide and hydrogen as the major products of glucose metabolism, and possessed a G + C content of 50.7 to 50.9 mol%. Comparative 16S rRNA gene sequencing showed that the unidentified bacterium represents a previously unrecognised sub-line within the Clostridium coccoides rRNA group of organisms. The nearest relatives of the unknown bacterium corresponded to Clostridium algidixylanolyticum, C. aerotolerans, C. celerecrescens, C. indolis, C. sphenoides, C. methoxybenzovorans and C. xylanolyticum but 16S rRNA sequence divergence values of >4% demonstrated that it represents a novel species. Based on the presented findings a new species, Clostridium hathewayi, is described. The type strain of Clostridium hathewayi is DSM = 13479^T (= CCUG 43506^T).

References (20)

S. Bengmark
Econutrition and health maintenance - a new concept to prevent GI inflammation, ulceration and sepsis
Clin. Nutr.
(1996)
G.R. Gibson et al.
Dietary modulation of the human colonic microbiota: introducing the concept of prebiotics
J. Nutr.
(1995)
A. Barcenilla et al.
Phylogenetic relationships of butyrate-producing bacteria from the human gut
Appl. Environ. Microbiol.
(2000)
D.M. Broda et al.
Clostridium algidixylanolyticum sp. nov., a psychrotolerant, xylandegrading, spore-forming bacterium
Int. J. Syst. Evol. Microbiol.
(2000)
M.D. Collins et al.
The phylogeny of the genus Clostridium: proposal of five new genera and eleven new species combinations
Int. J. Syst. Bacteriol.
(1994)
J.H. Cummings et al.
Colonic microflora: nutrition and health
Nutrition
(1997)
J. Felsenstein
Phylip - Phylogeny inference package (version 3.2)
Cladistics
(1989)
E. Graf et al.
Dietary suppression of colonic cancer: fiber or phytate?
Cancer
(1985)
N.O. Van Gylswyk et al.
Clostridium aerotolerans sp. nov., a xylanolytic bacterium from corn stover and from the rumina of sheep fed corn stover. Int
J. Syst. Bacteriol.
(1987)
L.V. Holdeman et al.
Anaerobe Laborotory Manual
(1977)

There are more references available in the full text version of this article.

Cited by (66)

Hungatella hathewayi bacteremia due to acute appendicitis: A case report and a narrative review
2024, Anaerobe
Hungatella species, including Hungatella hathewayi and Hungatella effluvii, previously identified as part of the Clostridium genus, are anaerobic bacteria primarily residing in the gut microbiome, with infrequent implications in human infections. This article presents the case of an 87-year-old Asian male admitted for a hyperosmolar hyperglycemic state with septic shock secondary to Hungatella hathewayi bacteremia originating from acute appendicitis. Remarkably, the bacterium was detected in the blood 48 hours before the emergence of clinical and radiographic evidence of acute appendicitis. Additionally, we conducted a literature review to identify all documented human infections caused by Hungatella species. Timely microbial identification in such cases is essential for implementing targeted antibiotic therapy and optimizing clinical outcomes.
Intestinal gas production by the gut microbiota: A review
2023, Journal of Functional Foods
Citation Excerpt :
The most abundant bacterial genera responsible for H2 production in the colon are Bacteroides, Ruminococcus, and Roseburia (Duncan et al., 2002; Zheng et al., 2014). Other colonic taxa known to be associated with H2 production include Anaerostipes caccae, Clostridium spp., Eubacterium rectale, Enterococcus, and Victivallis vadensis (Table 1) (Duncan & Flint, 2008; Ivan V. Kushkevych, 2013; Schwiertz et al., 2002; Steer, Collins, Gibson, Hippe, & Lawson, 2001; Zoetendal, Plugge, Akkermans, & de Vos, 2003). The most common pathway used by bacteria to produce H2 is the Embden–Meyerhof–Parnas pathway, also known as glycolysis.
In addition to causing embarrassment, intestinal gas can be associated with more serious symptoms. This review provides an overview of gas production by the human gut microbiome and outlines foods associated with intestinal gas. Bacteroides, Ruminococcus, Roseburia, Clostridium, Eubacterium, Desulfovibrio, and Methanobrevibacter are among the most abundant microbes responsible for intestinal gas. More than 99% of intestinal gas is composed of hydrogen, carbon dioxide, and methane, while less than 1% is composed of other odiferous compounds. Food groups associated with intestinal gas include pulses, vegetables, fruits, grains, and, for some individuals, dairy. These foods are rich in non–digestible carbohydrates such as raffinose family oligosaccharides, fructans, polyols, and, for sensitive individuals, lactose. These carbohydrates are fermented by colonic bacteria and produce gases directly or by cross–feeding. Additional research on gas production by the gut microbiota and foods associated with gas may help mitigate the symptoms linked to intestinal gas.
A Hungatella effluvii isolate in blood culture of a patient with hematochezia
2020, Anaerobe
Citation Excerpt :
Approximately 200 species of the genus Clostridium are known, but they are not phylogenetically consistent. The genus Hungatella is reported to be present in the human gut microbiome [2–4]. To date, six cases of infection caused by H. hathewayi have been reported [5–10].
Hungatella spp. are anaerobic bacteria, are known members of the gut microbiome and very rarely cause human infection. Hungatella effluvii was isolated from an effluent treatment plant in 2014. We report a case of bacteremia due to H. effluvii that occurred after hematochezia in a patient with prostate cancer. It was misidentified by the VITEK 2 system (bioMérieux, France) and matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) and was correctly identified by 16S rRNA gene sequencing.
Chemical Derivatization Enables MALDI-TOF-Based High-Throughput Screening for Microbial Trimethylamine (TMA)-Lyase Inhibitors
2019, SLAS Discovery
Microbial-dependent trimethylamine (TMA) generation from dietary precursors such as choline was recently linked to cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) as well as chronic kidney disease (CKD). Inhibition of TMA-generating enzymes in gut bacteria would be an innovative approach to treat these diseases. The potential to accurately quantify secreted TMA levels highlights the capacity of mass spectrometry (MS) for tracking microbial TMA-lyase activity. However, high-throughput screening (HTS) by conventional MS instrumentation is hampered by limited sample throughput. Recent advancement in liquid handling and instrumentation of matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF) MS provides an HTS-compatible MS technology. The deciphering of enzymatic reactions using this label-free readout has been successfully applied but has thus far been limited to peptide/protein-centric activity assays. Here, we demonstrate the versatile applicability of MALDI-TOF by tracking a small molecule within a highly complex sample background. The key to success for this concept was chemical derivatization of the target molecule enabling quantitative assessment of microbial TMA formation. Further, its potential was demonstrated in a side-by-side comparison to RapidFire-MS in a primary screen and subsequent dose–response experiments. Overall, the established assay enables the screening for microbial TMA-lyase inhibitors and serves as a proof of concept for the applicability of MALDI-TOF for demanding assay concepts per se.
The importance of matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization–time of flight mass spectrometry for correct identification of Clostridium difficile isolated from chromID C. difficile chromogenic agar
2017, Journal of Microbiology, Immunology and Infection
Degradation of chondroitin sulfate by the gut microbiota of Chinese individuals
2016, International Journal of Biological Macromolecules
Citation Excerpt :
This suggests that strain specificity an important characteristic that should be considered in drug metabolism studies of human gut microbiota. C. hathewayi was first isolated from human feces in 2001 as a species of obligate anaerobes capable of producing endospores [42]. As a human opportunistic pathogen, C. hathewayi is responsible for a wide range of human infections or illness including bacteremia [43], fatal septicemia [44] and acute gangrenous appendicitis [45].
Oral preparations of chondroitin sulfate (CS) have long been used as anti-osteoarthritis (anti-OA) drugs. However, little is known about the degradation of CS by human gut microbiota. In the present study, degradation profiles of CSA (the main constituent of CS drugs) by the human gut microbiota from six healthy subjects were investigated. Each individual’s microbiota had differing degradation activities, but ΔUA-GalNAc4S was the end product in all cases. To elucidate the mechanisms underlying this phenomenon, different CSA-degrading bacteria were isolated from each individual’s microbiota and tested for CSA degradation. In addition to Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron J1, Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron 82 and Bacteroides ovatus E3, a new CSA-degrading bacterium, Clostridium hathewayi R4, was isolated and characterized. Interestingly, at least two different CSA-degrading species were identified from each individual’s gut microbiota. Predictably, these functional bacteria also had differing degradation rates, but still generated the same end product, ΔUA-GalNAc4S. In addition, the human fecal isolates produced different degradation profiles for CSC, CSD, and CSE, suggesting that CS could be readily metabolized to varying extents by diverse microbial consortiums, which may help to explain the poor bioavailability and unequal efficacy of CS among individuals in OA treatment.

View all citing articles on Scopus

View full text

Article preview

Systematic and Applied Microbiology

Summary

References (20)

Econutrition and health maintenance - a new concept to prevent GI inflammation, ulceration and sepsis

Clin. Nutr.

Dietary modulation of the human colonic microbiota: introducing the concept of prebiotics

J. Nutr.

Phylogenetic relationships of butyrate-producing bacteria from the human gut

Appl. Environ. Microbiol.

Clostridium algidixylanolyticum sp. nov., a psychrotolerant, xylandegrading, spore-forming bacterium

Int. J. Syst. Evol. Microbiol.

The phylogeny of the genus Clostridium: proposal of five new genera and eleven new species combinations

Int. J. Syst. Bacteriol.

Colonic microflora: nutrition and health

Nutrition

Phylip - Phylogeny inference package (version 3.2)

Cladistics

Dietary suppression of colonic cancer: fiber or phytate?

Cancer

Clostridium aerotolerans sp. nov., a xylanolytic bacterium from corn stover and from the rumina of sheep fed corn stover. Int

J. Syst. Bacteriol.

Anaerobe Laborotory Manual

Cited by (66)

Hungatella hathewayi bacteremia due to acute appendicitis: A case report and a narrative review

Intestinal gas production by the gut microbiota: A review

A Hungatella effluvii isolate in blood culture of a patient with hematochezia

Chemical Derivatization Enables MALDI-TOF-Based High-Throughput Screening for Microbial Trimethylamine (TMA)-Lyase Inhibitors

The importance of matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization–time of flight mass spectrometry for correct identification of Clostridium difficile isolated from chromID C. difficile chromogenic agar

Degradation of chondroitin sulfate by the gut microbiota of Chinese individuals