Intracellular crystalline deposits by bacteria grown in urine from a stone former

Several species of bacteria were found to form an intracellular crystalline material when grown in urine obtained from a subject with a history of infrequent renal calculi formation. The following species: Proteus mirabilis, Proteus rettgeri, Providencia stuartii, Enterobacter aerogenes, Enterobacter cloacae, Escherichia coli, and Candida albicans formed crystals of hydroxyapatite. Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Proteus vulgaris produced crystals of calcite -II. Several of these bacteria have been isolated from the kidneys of patients with renal caculi indicationg that microorganisms may be involved in the nucleation process during calculogenesis.