Bacterial Pneumonia
Streptococcus pneumoniae
Streptococcus isn’t a new
bacteria.
• 1881 – first isolated and grown by Louis
Pasteur, and then demonstrated to be a cause
of pneumonia.
• 1913 – Discovery of type-specific antibodies!
The bacteria Streptococcus
pneumoniae is the most common
cause of pneumonia.
Streptococcus is the leading
bacterial cause of respiratory tract
infection, which can develop into
meningitis, peritonitis , and
sepsis.
In the U.S. alone, streptococcus
causes…
• 3,300 meningitis cases
• 60,000 invasive disease cases
• 135,000 pneumonia hospitalizations
Worldwide, pneumonia kills 1.8
million children under 5 years
old every year!
Bacteria is aerolized
Inhaled into lungs
Alveolar cells penetrated
Choline, a component of the
cell wall, allows S. pneumoniae
to enter host cells.
Pneumococcus invades epithelial
cell tissues, but…
S. pneumoniae has a capsular
polysaccharide that surrounds
the whole bacteria.
• Functions as the bacteria’s major protective antigen
• “Mops up” the host’s antibodies before they even
reach the bacterial surface!
Capsular
polysaccharide
Over 100 strains of this
bacteria exist!
Streptococcus interferes with the
host’s antibody activity by
producing “IgA Proteases”.
The bacteria also has a natural
transformation system that is the
reason for its antibiotic resistance.
The symptoms of bacterial
Pneumonia are cold/flu-like.
•
•
•
•
•
Rapid/difficult breathing
Cough
Fever
Chills
Loss of appetite
Streptococcus pneumonia can be
diagnosed by an X-ray or being
isolated from body fluids like
blood, spinal fluid, urine, or
sputum.
People most at risk for being
infected are young and old,
immuno-compromised, and
those with inadequate spleen
function.
Environmental conditions also affect the
risk of bacterial pneumonia infection,
such as indoor pollution from biomass
fuels, living in crowded homes, and
first/second-hand smoking.
The preventative treatment for
streptococcus pneumoniae is a 23valent vaccine.
Prevention and proper treatment
of bacterial pneumonia could
avert 11 million children’s
deaths every year!
• Treatment alone could avert 600,000
children’s deaths.
Antibiotics are the treatment of
choice for bacterial
pneumonia.
• Penicillin or Amoxicillin for regions without
resistance
• Various antibiotics are used in regions where
local strains are resistant to amoxicillin or
other drugs.
S. pneumoniae causes about 3
million deaths per year in young
children in developing countries.
There are global discrepancies
in infection rate due to:
•
•
•
Socio-economic status
Genetics
Prior infections
$600 million would cover the cost of
treating all children in the world with
bacterial pneumonia in 42 of the
world’s poorest countries.
• This includes antibiotics AND the cost of
training health workers to strengthen health
systems
The Global Action Plan for the
Prevention and Control of
Pneumonia (GAPP) was created to
accelerate pneumonia control for
child survival.
• Promotes immunization,
case management guidelines,
reduction in indoor air
pollution, and preventative
antibiotic treatment in HIV kids.
The goal is to implement the
GAPP plan in the 68 highprevalence countries by 2015.
• The cost of doing this would be $39 billion
Strategy:
• Providing low-risk environments
• Preventing contraction by vaccines
• Treating infected children with antibiotics
1.
http://www.textbookofbacteriology.net/S.pneumoniae.ht
ml
2.
http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dbmd/diseaseinfo/streppne
um_t.htm
3.
http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dhqp/ar_spneumoniae_data
.html
4.
http://cme.medscape.com/viewarticle/451448
5.
http://www.jstor.org/stable/4481571?seq=1
6.
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs331/en/in
dex.html
7.
http://www.brown.edu/Courses/Bio_160/Projects1999/b
menin/spneu.html