Coliforme bakterier

Coliforme bakterier defineres som stavformede Gramnegative ikke-sporedannere (se billederne), der kan forgære laktose med syre- og gasproduktion ved 35-37°C.^[1] Visse coliforme bakterier lever i pattedyrs tyktarm. Er de til stede i f.eks. drikkevand, er det udtryk for fækal forurening.

Der er ca. ti gange så mange coliforme bakterier i menneskets tarm som antallet af menneskets celler. Det store antal bakterier i dyr og mennesker medfører derfor at coliforme bakterier er vidt udbredt overalt i naturen.^{[2][3][4][5][6]}

De coliforme bakterier har flere gavnlige funktioner i tarmen som produktion af K-vitamin, men de kan give infektioner på andre slimhinder, hvis de utilsigtet kommer her. Nogle varianter som VTEC er patogene.

Typiske slægter omfatter:^[7]

• Citrobacter,
• Enterobacter
• Escherichia (Escherichia coli udgør mængdemæssigt typisk 10% i menneskers tyktarm)
• Hafnia
• Klebsiella
• Serratia

1. ^ American Public Health Association (APHA), Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Wastewater (19th ed.), APHA, Washington, DC (1995).
2. ^ American Society for Microbiology (2008, June 5). Humans Have Ten Times More Bacteria Than Human Cells: How Do Microbial Communities Affect Human Health?. ScienceDaily Citat: "...Instead of any one particular organism associated with inflammatory bowel diseases, they observed significant shifts in microbial populations between healthy subjects and those with disease, including a loss of normally protective bacterial populations...."
3. ^ University of Wisconsin-Madison (2008, July 30). Symbiotic Microbes Induce Profound Genetic Changes In Their Hosts. ScienceDaily Citat: "..."We have thousands of bacteria that live with us, and yet there are only around 100 bacterial pathogens," she says. Given the numbers, "it seems like these pathways and these molecules are likely to be 'symbiosis' pathways more than 'anti-pathogen.'"..."
4. ^ Karolinska Institutet (2011, February 1). Bacteria in the gut may influence brain development. ScienceDaily
5. ^ 28. sep 2010, ekstrabladet.dk: Lort kan behandle diabetes-patienter
6. ^ "09.11.10, fpn.dk: Afføring virker mod diarré". Arkiveret fra originalen 16. december 2010. Hentet 16. juni 2011.
7. ^ The Microbiology of Drinking Water (2002) – Part 1 – Water Quality and Public Health; Department of the Environment