It has a commensal relationship within the intestinal tract.
Morganella morganii is a species of Gram-negative bacteria.
It has a commensal relationship within the intestinal tract.
M. morganii has a wide distribution, it is considered an uncommon cause of community-acquired infection, and it is most often encountered in postoperative and other nosocomial infections, such as urinary tract infections.
Morganella morganii is facultatively anaerobic and oxidase-negative.
Its colonies appear off-white and opaque in color, when grown on agar plates. M. morganii cells are straight rods, about 0.6–0.7 μm in diameter and 1.0–1.7 μm in length.
This organism moves by way of peritrichous flagella, but some strains do not form flagella at 30 °C (86 °F).
It has two subspecies: M. morganii subsp. morganii and M. morganii subsp. sibonii.
M. morganii can produce the enzyme catalase, and is able to convert hydrogen peroxide to water and oxygen.
This is a common enzyme found in most living organisms. In addition,
M. morganii is indole test-positive, meaning that this organism can split tryptophan to indole, pyruvate, and ammonia.
M. morganii also produces urease, allowing it to break down urea.
Methyl red tests positive in M. morganii, an indicator dye that turns red due to the bacterium’s acid production during fermentation.
Rarely M. morganii has been reported as a cause of urinary tract infections, nosocomial surgical wound infections, peritonitis, central nervous system infection, endophthalmitis, pneumonia, chorioamnionitis, neonatal sepsis, pyomyositis, necrotizing fasciitis, and arthritis.
Numerous cases of nosocomial infection have been described, usually as postsurgical wound infections or urinary tract infections.
M. morganii bacteremia develops are typically immunocompromised, diabetic, or elderly, or have at least one serious underlying disease.
M. morganii has been regarded as a normally harmless opportunistic pathogen, but there are reports indicating M. morganii can cause cause sepsis, ecthyma, endophthalmitis, and chorioamnionitis, and more commonly urinary tract infections, soft tissue infections, septic arthritis, and meningitis.
Treatment of M. morganii infections may include: Ticarcillin Piperacillin Ciprofloxacin Third-generation and fourth-generation cephalosporins
There is a 92% success rate in the use of these antibiotics.[13]
However, some M. morganii strains are resistant to penicillin, ampicillin/sulbactam, oxacillin, first-generation and second-generation cephalosporins, macrolides, lincosamides, fosfomycin, colistin, and polymyxin B.
The emergence of highly resistant strains of M. morganii have been associated with use of third-generation cephalosporins.
Polymicrobial infections are most abundantly caused by this microbe which additionally damages the skin, soft tissues, and urogenital tract.