Bacterium
Enterobacter cloacae
Motile enteric rod with inducible AmpC
en-ter-oh-BAK-ter klo-AY-see
High-yield clue
Lactose-fermenting enteric rod that can express inducible AmpC beta-lactamase, so susceptibility can shift while on certain cephalosporins.
Overview
A motile Gram-negative enteric rod in Enterobacterales used in coursework to anchor the concept of inducible chromosomal AmpC beta-lactamase and healthcare-associated opportunistic infection vocabulary.
Classification
- Gram-negative
- Rod
- Enterobacterales
- Facultative anaerobe
- Motile
Lab & identification clues
- Lactose fermenter on MacConkey vocabulary
- Motile teaching distinction
- Inducible AmpC beta-lactamase vocabulary
- Ornithine decarboxylase positive concept
Associations
- Healthcare-associated bloodstream infection vocabulary
- Ventilator-associated pneumonia study association
- AmpC-mediated cephalosporin resistance framing
Commonly confused with
- Klebsiella pneumoniae
- Citrobacter freundii
Your notes
Original student-study summary. Sources checked: OpenStax Microbiology 2e, NCBI Bookshelf Medical Microbiology, and CDC topic pages where applicable; reviewed 2026-06. Educational only; no diagnosis, treatment, dosing, or specimen-handling guidance.