The first reported catheter-related Brevibacterium casei bloodstream infection in a child with acute leukemia and review of the literature

Abstract

Brevibacterium spp. are catalase-positive, non-spore-forming, non motile, aerobic Gram-positive rods that were considered apathogenic until a few reports of infections in immunocompromised patients had been published. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of B. casei catheter-related bloodstream infection in a child with acute leukemia. We aim to enhance the awareness of pediatric hematology and infectious disease specialists about this pathogen and review of the literature.

The in vitro Antimicrobial Activity and Chemometric Modelling of 59 Commercial Essential Oils against Pathogens of Dermatological Relevance

“…form part of the Coryneform bacteria and are involved in foul body odour . They have previously been considered apathogenic, until a few cases where systemic infections have been reported . Noteworthy inhibition was observed by 41 essential oils against all three Brevibacterium spp.…”

Draft whole-genome sequence of Brevibacterium casei strain isolated from a bloodstream infection

“…The detection of the beta-lactamase blaTEM-116 encoding gene most probably corresponding to the identified phenotypic resistance against penicillin G has drawn our particular attention. Although B. casei has been reported to be uniformly sensitive to tetracycline, gentamicin, glycopeptides, and rifampin [2,3,5,6,25], decreased susceptibility of the species to beta-lactam agents or clindamycin has been described in previous publications [2,6,26].…”

“…Moreover, these bacteria are considered a part of the microbiota of the human skin and adjacent structures. Presently, the genus Brevibacterium includes 40 identified species [https:// www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/Taxonomy/Browser/wwwtax.cgi?id= 1696], with B. casei as the most frequently isolated species from otherwise sterile human sites [3].…”

“…suffering from severe underlying diseases such as malignancies or endocarditis. Important risk factors for Brevibacterium infections include indwelling foreign materials, prosthetic heart valves, or continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis catheters [2][3][4][5][6].…”

“…According to the available literature data, Brevibacteria are uncommon but important opportunistic pathogens. Starting from 1991, 15 cases of bacteremia caused by this group of bacteria have been reported [3,5,6,[13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23]. The predominant species, responsible for 10 out of 15 cases, was B. casei.…”