This article is about the bacterial class. For the genus, see
Bacillus. For rod-shaped bacteria in general, see
bacillus (shape).
refers to a
taxonomic class of
bacteria. It includes two orders,
Bacillales and
Lactobacillales, which contain several well-known pathogens such as
Bacillus anthracis (the cause of
anthrax).
Ambiguity
Several related concepts make use of similar words, and the ambiguity can create considerable confusion. The term "
Bacillus" (capitalized and italicized) is also the name of a
genus that, among many other genera, falls within the class Bacilli.
Also, "
bacillus" (or the plural "bacilli") can be a generic term to describe the
morphology of any rod-shaped bacterium. This general term does not mean that the subject is a member of class Bacilli or genus
Bacillus. Thus, it does not necessarily imply a similar group of characteristics. Not all members of class Bacilli are rod-shaped (
Staphylococcus is spherical), and many other rod-shaped bacteria that do not fall within that class (
Clostridium kamina dalla kotta is rod-shaped but very different taxonomically) exist. Moreover, the general term "bacillus" does not necessarily indicate the
Gram-positive staining common to class Bacilli. For example,
E. coli is a rod-shaped bacterium that could, therefore, be described as "a bacillus", but it stains
Gram-negative and does not belong to genus
Bacillus or class Bacilli. Some
microbiologists have forsaken the general "bacillus" term because of the confusion it can create.
Phylogeny
The currently accepted taxonomy is based on the
List of Prokaryotic names with Standing in Nomenclature:
[1] [2] and the phylogeny is based on 16S rRNA-based LTP release 106 by
'The All-Species Living Tree' Project [3]
Unclassified Bacillales
Notes:
♠ Strains found at the
National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) but not listed in the
List of Prokaryotic names with Standing in Nomenclature LPSN
Bacilli part 2 (continued)
References
- See the List of Prokaryotic names with Standing in Nomenclature. Data extracted from J.P. Euzéby. "Bacilli". Retrieved 2012-05-17.
- See the NCBI webpage on Bacilli Data extracted from Sayers et al. "NCBI Taxonomy Browser". National Center for Biotechnology Information. Retrieved 2012-05-17.
- See the 'The All-Species Living Tree' Project [1]. Data extracted from the "16S rRNA-based LTP release 106 (full tree)". Silva Comprehensive Ribosomal RNA Database. Retrieved 2012-05-17.
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