Inquilinus limosus in pulmonary disease: case report and review of the literature

Diagn Microbiol Infect Dis. 2016 Dec;86(4):446-449. doi: 10.1016/j.diagmicrobio.2016.09.006. Epub 2016 Sep 16.

Abstract

Inquilinus limosus is a slow growing, gram-negative, oxidase-positive, non-fermentative bacillus that is rarely isolated from clinical samples. When clinically identified, I. limosus is almost exclusively isolated from the respiratory tracts of patients with cystic fibrosis (CF). We report the first case of I. limosus isolation from a pulmonary specimen in an individual without a diagnosis of CF. A review of the English-language literature has been made and shows 33 cases (excluding the present report) in which I. limosus was isolated from the respiratory tracts of patients. Our patient, at 60years of age, is more than two decades older than the any previously reported patient. Similar to previous reports, the I. limosus isolated from her lungs demonstrated intrinsic multidrug resistance. The pathogenicity, clinical relevance, and optimal therapeutic management of I. limosus remains largely unknown due to its infrequent recovery from clinical samples.

Keywords: Bronchoalveolar lavage; Cystic fibrosis; Gram negative; Inquilinus limosus; Inquilinus spp.; Nonfermenter.

Publication types

  • Case Reports
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Anti-Bacterial Agents / pharmacology
  • Bacteriological Techniques
  • Cluster Analysis
  • DNA, Bacterial / chemistry
  • DNA, Bacterial / genetics
  • DNA, Ribosomal / chemistry
  • DNA, Ribosomal / genetics
  • Female
  • Gram-Negative Bacterial Infections / diagnosis*
  • Gram-Negative Bacterial Infections / microbiology*
  • Gram-Negative Bacterial Infections / pathology
  • Humans
  • Microbial Sensitivity Tests
  • Middle Aged
  • Molecular Sequence Data
  • Phylogeny
  • Pneumonia, Bacterial / diagnosis*
  • Pneumonia, Bacterial / microbiology*
  • Pneumonia, Bacterial / pathology
  • RNA, Ribosomal, 16S / genetics
  • Rhodospirillaceae / classification
  • Rhodospirillaceae / drug effects
  • Rhodospirillaceae / genetics
  • Rhodospirillaceae / isolation & purification*
  • Sequence Analysis, DNA

Substances

  • Anti-Bacterial Agents
  • DNA, Bacterial
  • DNA, Ribosomal
  • RNA, Ribosomal, 16S