Skip to main content

Proteus mirabilis Overview

  • Protocol
  • First Online:

Part of the book series: Methods in Molecular Biology ((MIMB,volume 2021))

Abstract

Proteus mirabilis, a Gram-negative bacterium, commonly causes catheter-associated urinary tract infections, wound infections, gastroenteritis and, in some cases, bacteremia. The phenotypic hallmarks of this bacterium include swarming motility, urease and hemolysin production, and synthesis of numerous adherence fimbriae. While routine bacteriological methodology may often be used to study this pathogen, frequently one requires specialized techniques to investigate the pathogenesis of this species. Here, a brief overview of the discoveries associated with this fascinating bacterium illuminates the need for the development of specialized techniques to further probe the biology of P. mirabilis.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.

Buying options

Protocol
USD   49.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD   89.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD   119.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD   169.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Learn about institutional subscriptions

Springer Nature is developing a new tool to find and evaluate Protocols. Learn more

References

  1. Warren JW, Tenney JH, Hoopes JM, Muncie HL, Anthony WC (1982) A prospective microbiologic study of bacteriuria in patients with chronic indwelling urethral catheters. J Infect Dis 146(6):719–723

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  2. Mobley HL, Warren JW (1987) Urease-positive bacteriuria and obstruction of long-term urinary catheters. J Clin Microbiol 25(11):2216–2217

    CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  3. Warren JW, Muncie HL Jr, Hall-Craggs M (1988) Acute pyelonephritis associated with bacteriuria during long-term catheterization: a prospective clinicopathological study. J Infect Dis 158(6):1341–1346

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Old DC, Adegbola RA (1982) Haemagglutinins and fimbriae of Morganella, Proteus and Providencia. J Med Microbiol 15(4):551–564. https://doi.org/10.1099/00222615-15-4-551

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. Pearson MM, Sebaihia M, Churcher C, Quail MA, Seshasayee AS, Luscombe NM, Abdellah Z, Arrosmith C, Atkin B, Chillingworth T, Hauser H, Jagels K, Moule S, Mungall K, Norbertczak H, Rabbinowitsch E, Walker D, Whithead S, Thomson NR, Rather PN, Parkhill J, Mobley HLT (2008) Complete genome sequence of uropathogenic Proteus mirabilis, a master of both adherence and motility. J Bacteriol 190(11):4027–4037

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  6. Braude AI, Siemienski J (1960) Role of bacterial urease in experimental pyelonephritis. J Bacteriol 80:171–179

    CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  7. Dienes L (1946) Reproductive processes in Proteus cultures. J Bacteriol 51:585

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  8. Alteri CJ, Himpsl SD, Pickens SR, Lindner JR, Zora JS, Miller JE, Arno PD, Straight SW, Mobley HL (2013) Multicellular bacteria deploy the type VI secretion system to preemptively strike neighboring cells. PLoS Pathog 9(9):e1003608. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.ppat.1003608

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  9. Gibbs KA, Urbanowski ML, Greenberg EP (2008) Genetic determinants of self identity and social recognition in bacteria. Science 321(5886):256–259. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1160033

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  10. Jones BD, Lockatell CV, Johnson DE, Warren JW, Mobley HL (1990) Construction of a urease-negative mutant of Proteus mirabilis: analysis of virulence in a mouse model of ascending urinary tract infection. Infect Immun 58(4):1120–1123

    CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  11. Armbruster CE, Mobley HLT, Pearson MM (2018) Pathogenesis of Proteus mirabilis infection. EcoSal Plus 8(1). https://doi.org/10.1128/ecosalplus.ESP-0009-2017

  12. Allison C, Lai HC, Hughes C (1992) Co-ordinate expression of virulence genes during swarm-cell differentiation and population migration of Proteus mirabilis. Mol Microbiol 6(12):1583–1591

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  13. Belas R, Erskine D, Flaherty D (1991) Proteus mirabilis mutants defective in swarmer cell differentiation and multicellular behavior. J Bacteriol 173(19):6279–6288

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Harry L. T. Mobley .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2019 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature

About this protocol

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this protocol

Mobley, H.L.T. (2019). Proteus mirabilis Overview. In: Pearson, M. (eds) Proteus mirabilis. Methods in Molecular Biology, vol 2021. Humana, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-9601-8_1

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-9601-8_1

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Humana, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4939-9600-1

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4939-9601-8

  • eBook Packages: Springer Protocols

Publish with us

Policies and ethics