The Serratia Genre

Serratia genre includes Gram negative rod- shape bacteria, aerobe facultative anaerobe and chemo-oganotrophic with low nutrional requirements. According to Bergey’s Manual of Systematic Bacteriology, Serratia genre belongs to the Enterobacteriaceae family and includes 12 species 1,2. They are widespread in the natural environment, being isolated from soil, water and different plants (vegetables, mushrooms, grasses, mosses, trees)1,2,3. Serratia marcescens grows at 37°C, but it can grow in temperatures that range from 5–40°C. They grow in pH levels that range from 5 to 9. These micro organisms are components of the intestinal flora in animals and humans. Serratia are opportunistic pathogens, healthy humans’ infections being rare1,3. S. marcescens was long time considered a non-pathogenic bacterial species but today is considered an important human pathogen in hospitals which leads to cause a significant agent of nosocomial infections with different severities3,4,5,6,7. …show more content…
This bacterial species causes outbreaks in various hospital wards, more frequently in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Neuro-surgery and Neurology4,10,11,12. Patients at risk are those with debilitating disorders, those treated with broad-spectrum antibiotics and those in intensive care who are subjected to instrumentation such as tracheostomy tubes or indwelling catheters8. Serratia marcescens infections are known to be transmitted through hand-to-hand contact by medical personnel. Solutions used for medical purposes can be contaminated and infect patients