Pantoea agglomerans: a mysterious bacterium of evil and good

Pantoea agglomerans is a ubiquitous Gram-negative bacterium of plant origin characterised by a strong metabolism and easy adaptation to environmental conditions. The book provides the first full characteristics of this unique organism with respect to its numerous deleterious and beneficial traits. P. agglomerans produces endotoxins and allergens that contaminate dusts from grain, cotton and other plant materials creating an occupational hazard for exposed workers. It also may cause opportunistic infections of humans, animals and plants. On the other hand, it was demonstrated that P. agglomerans can be used as an effective drug for treatment tumours and other diseases, as an efficient biocontrol agent suppressing plant pathogens and human disease vectors, as a biofertilizer and plant growth promoter, and as a bioremediator assuring a clean, human-friendly environment by effective waste degradation. The book is addressed to a wide audience including microbiologists, biotechnologists, academic educators, agricultural engineers, plant pathologists, food technologists, physicians, veterinarians, industrial hygienists, and those engaged in the protection of human environment.