Klebsiella granulomatis (Granuloma inguinale, Donovanosis)

Noreen A. Hynes, M.D., M.P.H., D.T.M.&H.
Klebsiella granulomatis (Granuloma inguinale, Donovanosis) is a topic covered in the Johns Hopkins ABX Guide.

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MICROBIOLOGY

  • Klebsiella granulomatis (formerly known as Calymmatobacterium granulomatis) is a member of the family Enterobacteriaceae.
    • Reclassification is based upon nucleotide relatedness to other Klebsiella spp. especially to K. rhinoscleromatis, another tropical infection (nasal).
      • Pleomorphic, intracellular (macrophages > neutrophils), Gram-negative bacillus surrounded by a well-defined bipolar staining capsule (seen with Wright, Giemsa or Leishman stain)
      • The organism has a safety-pin appearance with stain under microscopy.
  • The organism is difficult to demonstrate microbiologically because it does not grow on any standard microbiological laboratory media.
  • Culture achieved in the research settings using peripheral blood mononuclear cells cultivated with fetal calf serum after exposure to vancomycin and metronidazole for decontamination.
    • Culture also has been successful on cycloheximide-treated Hep-2 cell monolayers in RPMI 1640 medium, supplemented with fetal calf serum, penicillin, and vancomycin.

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MICROBIOLOGY

  • Klebsiella granulomatis (formerly known as Calymmatobacterium granulomatis) is a member of the family Enterobacteriaceae.
    • Reclassification is based upon nucleotide relatedness to other Klebsiella spp. especially to K. rhinoscleromatis, another tropical infection (nasal).
      • Pleomorphic, intracellular (macrophages > neutrophils), Gram-negative bacillus surrounded by a well-defined bipolar staining capsule (seen with Wright, Giemsa or Leishman stain)
      • The organism has a safety-pin appearance with stain under microscopy.
  • The organism is difficult to demonstrate microbiologically because it does not grow on any standard microbiological laboratory media.
  • Culture achieved in the research settings using peripheral blood mononuclear cells cultivated with fetal calf serum after exposure to vancomycin and metronidazole for decontamination.
    • Culture also has been successful on cycloheximide-treated Hep-2 cell monolayers in RPMI 1640 medium, supplemented with fetal calf serum, penicillin, and vancomycin.

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Last updated: May 11, 2022