Haemophilus influenzae

Haemophilus influenzae (formerly called Pfeiffer's bacillus or Bacillus influenzae) is a Gram-negative, non-motile, coccobacillary, facultatively anaerobic, capnophilic pathogenic bacterium of the family Pasteurellaceae. The bacteria are mesophilic and grow best at temperatures between 35 and 37 °C. H. influenzae was first described in 1893 by Richard Pfeiffer during an influenza pandemic when he incorrectly identified it as the causative microbe, which is why the bacteria was given the name "influenzae". H. influenzae is responsible for a wide range of localized and invasive infections, typically in infants and children, including pneumonia, meningitis, or bloodstream infections. Treatment consists of antibiotics; however, H. influenzae is often resistant to the penicillin family, but amoxicillin/clavulanic acid can be used in mild cases. Serotype B H. influenzae have been a major cause of meningitis in infants and small children, frequently causing deafness and mental retardation. However, the development in the 1980s of a vaccine effective in this age group (the Hib vaccine) has almost eliminated this in developed countries. This species was the first organism to have its entire genome sequenced.