Habitat and Morphology of Streptococcus pyogenes

Habitat of Streptococcus pyogenes

1. They are found in throat and skin of human.
2. They are commensals of upper respiratory tract.
3. Carrier rate of S. pyogenes in the respiratory tract is only few in adults, over 10% in children attending kindergarten.
4. Opportunistic pathogens
5. May survive in dust for some times.

Morphology of Streptococcus pyogenes

1. Gram +ve bacteria
2. Spherical or oval cocci in chains.
3. 5 to 1 μm in diameter.
4. Non-motile
5. Non-sporing
6. Some of the strain are capsulated, best seen in young cultures.
7. Cell wall contains important component, group specific carbohydrates.
8. Fimbriated
9. It has a protein called Protein F.

Genome of Streptococcus pyogenes

1. Base pair: 1,852,442
2. Protein encoding genes: 1752
3. G+C Content: 38.5%