Streptococcus pneumoniae: A Misunderstood Killer
Imagine your child coming home one day from school with a mild cough. You place your hand on their head and they feel a little warm. You call into their school and let them know they won't be in the next day. You child stays in bed and complains of chest pain and feeling fautigued, but you write it off as "just a bad cold". The next morning your child is not feeling any better so you take them to a doctor. A chest X-Ray indicates that your child has fluid in their lungs- highlighting the purpetrator, a pneumococcal infection.
Though Streptococcus pneumoniae infections are fairly common among healthy children and are usually treatable, it is among the most deadly of organisms. The severity of the infection is dependent on the particular strand of bacteria and the hosts immune capibilites. Streptococcus pneumoniae infections are one of the most common causes of pneumonia and is responsible for over one million child deaths every year, worldwide. S. pneumoniae is a threat to everyone, especially those living in close proximity with one another (ie. college students, children in daycare), the elderly, and those with compromised immune systems.
While pathogenic, this interesting organism has many features that make it differ from other types of bacteria. This website will illustrate not only the dangers of S. pnuemoniae but the classification, habitat, adaptation, nutrition, reproduction, interactions, and facts of this abundant organism. Because of the diverse impacts that this organism has, it inspires curiosity in any biologist.