Taxonomy of the Genus Veillonella Prevot

Abstract

Results of deoxyribonucleic acid homology studies of 116 strains of Veillonella Prkvot, representing t,he two species and seven subspecies currently recognized in this genus, showed seven deoxyribonucleic acid homology groups distinct at the species level. Because the type strains of V . parvula subsp. parvula and V . alcalescens subsp. alcalescens had high homology, we regard V . alcalescens Prevot 1933 as a later subjective synonym of V . parvula (Veillon and Zuber, 1896) Prevot 1933. The species V . parvula, V . dispar (Rogosa) comb. nov., V . atypica (Rogosa) comb. nov., V. rodentium (Rogosa) comb. nov., V . ratti (Rogosa) comb. nov., V . criceti (Rogosa) comb. nov., and V. caviae sp. nov. (type strain, ATCC 33540) are recognized. Because most strains of V . criceti produced acid in peptone-yeast extract-fructose media, the genus description is emended to include strains that ferment fructose.Organisms in the genus Veirlonella PrCvot are anaerobic, nonmotile, nonsporulating, small, gram-negative cocci arranged as diplococci, masses, and short chains. By electron microscopy, the basic arrangement appears to be diplococcal. Members of the genus generally do not attack carbohydrates but produce propionate and acetate from lactate, pyruvate, and peptones. The type species was first described by Veillon and Zuber (25) in 1898 and was designated Staphylococcus parvulus. The genus Veillonella, proposed in 1933 by Prevot (17), included small, anaerobic, gram-negative cocci occurring in irregular masses. Two species, V . parvula (Veillon and Zuber) Prevot and V . alcalescens (Prevot), were included.The current taxonomy of Veillonella, most recently reviewed by Rogosa in 1964 (18), is based on the results of extensive cultural, nutritional, biochemical, and serological studies of a large number of isolates (4, 18, 19,[21][22][23]. V . parvula, with three subspecies ( V . parvula subsp. parvula, V . parvula subsp. rodentium, and V . parvula subsp. atypica), and V. alcalescens, with four subspecies ( V . alcalescens subsp. alcalescens, V . alcalescens subsp. ratti, V . alcalescens subsp. criceti, and V . alcalescens subsp. dispar), are currently recognized. The species and subspecies are differentiated serologically by whole-cell tube-agglutination reactions and on the basis of an absolute requirement for putrescine or cadaverine or of the decomposition of hydrogen peroxide by V . alcalescens, or both of the latter.Preliminary deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) homology results (T. D. Mays and J. L. Johnson, Abstr. Annu. Meet. Am. SOC. Microbiol. 1977, 1147 showed that the type strains of the two species, V . parvula and V . alcalescens, had relatively high homology with each other and that some of the type strains of the various subspecies had little or no homology with each other or with the type strains of the species.The purpose of this investigation was to ascertain the genetic groups of veillonellae by means of their DNA homologies. Many of the extant organisms investigated by Rogosa, strains from other culture collecti...

Quantitative Bacteriology of the Vaginal Flora in Genital Disease

“…The most common species are listed separately. All gram-negative anaerobic cocci that produced acetic and propionic acids as the major fermentation products were identified as Veillonella parvula, whether they were catalase-positive or -negative (Mays et al, 1982).…”

Veillonella magna sp. nov., isolated from the jejunal mucosa of a healthy pig, and emended description of Veillonella ratti

“…The taxonomy of the genus is based on extensive genotypic DNA-DNA hybridization studies performed by Mays et al (1982) and reaffirmed recently by Byun et al (2007). At the time of writing, the genus comprises the type species Veillonella parvula (Veillon & Zuber, 1898;Prévot, 1933;Mays et al, 1982) and ten other species: Veillonella alcalescens [Lewkowicz, 1901;Prévot, 1933; subsequently reclassified as a later heterotypic synonym of V. parvula (Mays et al, 1982)], V. atypica, V. criceti, V. dispar, V. ratti, V. rodentium (Rogosa, 1965;Mays et al, 1982), V. caviae (Mays et al, 1982), V. montpellierensis (Jumas-Bilak et al, 2004), V. denticariosi (Byun et al, 2007) and V. rogosae (Arif et al, 2008).…”

“…Emended description of Veillonella ratti (Rogosa 1965) Mays et al 1982 The description remains as given by Rogosa (1984), except that the strain V. ratti DSM 20736 T is capable of fructose fermentation.…”

Veillonella denticariosi sp. nov., isolated from human carious dentine

“…Presently, the genus Veillonella belongs to the family 'Acidaminococcaceae' of the phylum Firmicutes, and is represented by eight species, Veillonella parvula, V. dispar, V. atypica, V. caviae, V. rodentium, V. ratti, V. criceti (Mays et al, 1982;Rogosa, 1965), V. montpellierensis (Jumas-Bilak et al, 2004) and the recently identified 'V. rogosae ' (Arif et al, 2008).…”