We report the second human case of infection caused by an organism identified as the proposed Bartonella species, “ B . washoensis .” The organism was isolated from a blood sample from a patient presenting with meningitis and early sepsis. Oropsylla montana fleas were implicated as the vector for disease transmission in this case.

Two processing methods were examined for the recovery of Salmonella from naturally contaminated alfalfa seed. Seed samples, from each of three investigations, were processed by sprouting and shredding before preenrichment and culture. In lot A, Salmonella serotype Newport was isolated from 3 of 30 sample units with the sprouting method and 2 of 30 with the shredding method. In lot B, three serotypes in various combinations were isolated from 10 of 30 sample units with the sprouting method and 9 of 30 with the shredding method. In lot C, Salmonella group C1 was isolated from 27 of 30 sample units with the sprouting method and 24 of 30 with the shredding method. Additionally, serotype Newport was found in one lot C sample unit. Using shredded seed data, a most probable number (MPN) for Salmonella contamination per lot was calculated. Serotype Newport was estimated at 0.07 MPN/100 g in lot A; the concentration for three serotypes was estimated to be 0.36 MPN/100 g in lot B; Salmonella group C1 was estimated at 1.8 MPN/100 g in lot C. Our success in isolating Salmonella from alfalfa seeds was likely attributed to the volume of material tested and the quick acquisition of the seeds after the outbreak was identified. Shredding the seeds was easier and yielded definitive results more quickly than sprouting.

Over the past several decades, the appearance of pink-pigmented bacteria in clinical specimens has gone from being a microbiologic curiosity in the clinical laboratory to the recognition of these aerobic microorganisms as etiologic agents of human disease, most notably bloodstream infections. Advances in the fields of molecular taxonomy and phylogenetics indicate that at least four distinct genera and eight different species are associated with clinical infections in susceptible patient populations. However, these bacteria are slow growing and present multiple diagnostic challenges to the microbiology laboratory including culture, isolation, and identification to species rank. This article provides a current review of these unusual non-fermentative chromogenic bacteria including their disease spectrum, taxonomy, and laboratory identification. The review also highlights the pitfalls or shortcomings we currently have in our knowledge of these microbes and their disease-producing capabilities.

One hundred twenty-eight field samples of 25 potato stem sections were analyzed for detecting bacterial ring rot (BRR). Samples containing more than 105, between 105 and 104, and <104 immunofluorescing BRR cells per milliliter of sample, detected using immunofluorescence-antibody staining with MAb9A1, were used to compare the efficiency of two other detection methods. Samples were screened with a digoxigenin-labeled DNA probe (Bh1 2, 0.6 kbp) detected by chemioluminescence on nylon membrane. Samples also were screened with a PCR test using primers derived from the sequence of the Bh12 probe. DNA probe tests on these three bacterial concentrations showed a detection efficiency of 100%, 76.8%, and 8.0%, respectively, whereas detection efficiencies of 100%, 100%, and 84.5% were obtained with PCR tests. Almost all positive samples gave the expected 403 bases ethidium-bromide-stained band when the amplified products were analyzed on 1.4% agarose gel. Thus, the PCR test was a sensitive detection method for screening bacterial ring rot of potato.