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Erysipelothrix
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<p><i>Erysipelothrix</i> is a <a href="/facts/Genus/m8EFjSms">genus</a> of <a href="/facts/Bacteria/wC8xSCsU">bacteria</a> containing four described species: <i><a href="/facts/Erysipelothrix_rhusiopathiae/tYojaINX">Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae</a></i>, <i>Erysipelothrix tonsillarum</i>, <i>Erysipelothrix inopinata</i> and <i>Erysipelothrix larvae</i>. Additional species have been proposed based on DNA-DNA hybridization studies. "The hallmark of <i>Erysipelothrix</i> is the presence of a type B cell wall, in which the peptide bridge is formed between amino acids at positions 2 and 4 of adjacent peptide side-chains and not, as in the vast majority of bacteria, between <a href="/facts/Amino_acid/WDxYwBny">amino acids</a> at positions 3 and 4." </p><p>The best-known species within the genus is <i><a href="/facts/Erysipelothrix_rhusiopathiae/tYojaINX">Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae</a></i>, which is the cause of <a href="/facts/Erysipelas/c9SMNUWw">erysipelas</a> of <a href="/facts/Domestic_pig/r8rtDBIH">domestic pigs</a>, <a href="/facts/Poultry/u8hUQ64j">poultry</a> and other animal species. In humans, <i>E. rhusiopathiae</i> infections are termed <a href="/facts/Erysipeloid/PPCEYrJB">erysipeloid</a>. <i>Erysipelothrix tonsillarum</i> has been described as a <a href="/facts/Pathogen/axMXtV1M">pathogen</a> for dogs and has been isolated from the <a href="/facts/Tonsils/hvvkLnCA">tonsils</a> of healthy pigs and cattle. Disease caused by <i>E. inopinata</i> or <i>E. larvae</i> has not been described. </p><p>Bacteria of genus <i>Erysipelothrix</i> are straight or slightly curved, slender, nonmotile <a href="/facts/Bacillus_(shape)/0rGR5vvU">rods</a> that may exist singly, in V-shaped pairs, or in short chains. Some strains have a tendency to form long filaments. The bacteria are <a href="/facts/Gram-positive_bacteria/H6WYQ17e">Gram-positive</a> but can be mistaken for <a href="/facts/Gram-negative_bacteria/S1PbVtp4">Gram-negative bacteria</a> during analysis because they lose their <a href="/facts/Crystal_violet/CgcGjkra">staining</a> easily. They are <a href="/facts/Cellular_respiration/kb6gpsvL">aerobic</a> to <a href="/facts/Facultative_anaerobic_organism/YS9tdh8N">facultatively anaerobic</a> but not <a href="/facts/Acid-fast/BYFNQREt">acid-fast</a>. </p>