Pneumonia caused by a previously undescribed bacterium

Abstract

A new and as yet unidentified bacterium was isolated from the lung tissue of a cancer patient with bilateral pneumonia. Clinically, the pneumonia was consistent with legionellosis; the organism cultured from the lung grew only on the charcoalyeast extract agar routinely used for Legionella isolation. Subsequent testing, however, showed the organism to be quite distinct from the known Legionella species in its biochemical, antigenic, and growth characteristics.