Proteus vulgaris
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| Proteus vulgaris Hauser 1885 |
Proteus vulgaris is a rod-shaped Gram negative bacterium (a chemoheterotroph) that inhabits the intestinal tracts of animals and can be pathogenic. Proteus vulgaris is in the Proteobacteria.
The term Proteus signifies changeability of form, as personified in the Homeric poems in Proteus, "the old man of the sea," who tends the sealflocks of Poseidon and has the gift of endless transformation. The first use of the term “Proteus” in bacteriological nomenclature was made by Hauser (1885) who described under this term three types of organisms which he isolated from putrefied meat. One of the three species Hauser identified was Proteus vulgaris so this organism has a long history in Microbiology.
Over the past two decades the genus Proteus, and in particular P. vulgaris, has undergone a number of major taxonomic revisions. In 1982, P. vulgaris was separated into three biogroups on the basis of indole production. Biogroup one was indole negative and a represented a new species: P. penneri; while biogroup two and three remained together as P. vulgaris.
In humans, it can cause urinary tract infections and wound infections.
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