Ralstonia pickettii

Ralstonia pickettii is a Gram-negative rod soil bacterium.

Ralstonia pickettii is a gram-negative, rod shaped beta proteobacteria found in moist environments such as soils, river and lakes. It has also been identified in biofilms in plastic water pipes. It is an oligotrophic organism, making it capable of surviving in areas with a very low concentration of nutrients. Several strains have shown an ability to survive in environments highly contaminated with metals. The ability to persist in these harsh conditions makes R. picketti a unique candidate for bioremediation.

Ralstonia pickettii and Ralstonia insidiosa are emerging pathogens in hospital settings. Ralstonia pickettii pathology does not follow an easy definition; although no fully healthy human has ever become ill from R. pickettii, the bacteria has seriously affected humans with poor health. Several hospitals have reported outbreaks - in particular, patients with cystic fibrosis and Crohn’s Disease have been shown to be infected R. pickettii. Of the 55 reported cases of infection by R. pickettii, the majority are due to contaminated solutions such as water, saline and sterile drugs. These solutions are usually contaminated when the product is manufactured, due to the fact that R. pickettii has the ability to pass through 0.45 and 0.2mm filters that are used to sterilize medicinal products. The majority of the R. pickettii and R. insidiosa isolates showed susceptibility to most of the antibiotics tested in this study below . The most effective were found to be the quinolones and sulfamethoxazole/trimethoprim.

J Med Microbiol. 2013 Jul;62(Pt 7):1025-31. doi: 10.1099/jmm.0.054759-0. Epub 2013 Apr 11. The antibiotic susceptibility of water-based bacteria Ralstonia pickettii and Ralstonia insidiosa. Ryan MP1, Adley CC.