Haemophilus influenzae

Haemophilus influenzae is a non-motile, Gram-negative coccobacillus first identified in 1892 by Dr. Robert Pfeiffer during an influenza pandemic. This bacterium is generally aerobic but can also thrive as a facultative anaerobe. It is associated with a variety of clinical diseases, ranging from mild respiratory infections to severe invasive conditions such as meningitis and sepsis.

Notably, the genome of Haemophilus influenzae was the first to be sequenced and assembled for a free-living organism, marking a significant milestone in genomic research. Its genome comprises approximately 1.8 million base pairs and encodes an estimated 1,740 genes, providing valuable insights into its biology and pathogenicity.