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Organism properties

Last reviewed dd mmm yyyy. Last edited dd mmm yyyy

Authoring team

Corynebacterium diphtheriae exhibits the following characteristics:

  • morphology: 'Chinese character' bacilli which bear metachromatic granules
  • cultural characteristics: grey colonies on tellurite agar
  • biochemical properties: sucrose negative, urease negative

Further, based on the morphology of the colonies and the presence of metachromatic granules, C. diphtheriae is divided into the following species in order of increasing virulence:

  • mitis
  • intermedius
  • gravis

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