Coxiella burnetii
| Coxiella burnetii | |
|---|---|
| A dry fracture of a Vero cell exposing the contents of a vacuole where Coxiella burnetii is growing | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Bacteria |
| Phylum: | Pseudomonadota |
| Class: | Gammaproteobacteria |
| Order: | Legionellales |
| Family: | Coxiellaceae |
| Genus: | Coxiella |
| Species: | C. burnetii |
| Binomial name | |
| Coxiella burnetii (Derrick 1939) Philip 1948 | |
Coxiella burnetii is an obligate intracellular bacterial pathogen, and is the causative agent of Q fever. The genus Coxiella is morphologically similar to Rickettsia, but with a variety of genetic and physiological differences. C. burnetii is a small Gram-negative, coccobacillary bacterium that is highly resistant to environmental stresses such as high temperature, osmotic pressure, and ultraviolet light. These characteristics are attributed to a small cell variant form of the organism that is part of a biphasic developmental cycle, including a more metabolically and replicatively active large cell variant form. It can survive standard disinfectants, and is resistant to many other environmental changes like those presented in the phagolysosome.