[Phenotype characteristics of 100 strains of Pseudomonas cepacia. Proposition of a biovars classification (author's transl)].

The authors compared the phenotype characteristics of 100 strains of Pseudomonas cepacia mostly of hospital origin to those of the typical mother strain (ATCC 25416). The morphological, cultural and biochemical characteristics (oxidase characteristics, ONPG, LDC, gelatinase and esculine were generally positive), nutritional characteristics (use of numerous organic compounds) and the antibiotypes (usually resistant to betalactamines, aminosides, polymyxins, tetracycline and furans) are reported, together with the differential diagnostic problems between P. cepacia and P. maltophilia (TTR+ methionine requirement). P. pseudomallei (LDC-, ODC-, ADH+, ONPG-) and Agrobacterium sp (urease+, LDC-, ODC-, absence of exoenzymes and use of citrate and malonate). An original classification in 8 biovars (characteristics used : esculine, nitratase, ONPG) permitted epidemiological marking of the strains and a study of their distribution.