K V Ramana^1,, G Vikram², P PadmaWali¹, Anand K¹, Mohan Rao¹, Sanjeev D Rao¹, Ratna Mani MS³, VenkataSarada CH³, Ratna Rao³

Aerobic, Gram positive, catalase positive and non-spore forming bacilli, which are morphologically similar to Corynebacterium diphtheriae are described as either diphtheroids or coryneform bacteria, resembling C diphtheriae. Corynebacteria are a group of bacteria placed under the family corynebacteriaceae, which come under the phylum, Actinobacteria. Among the members of genus Corynebacterium, only C diphtheriae is considered as a pathogen but other species are present either as normal flora in human or as saprophytes in the environment and have rarely been associated with human infections. Of late, there have been increased reports of both new species of genus Corynebacterium and their occurrence in various human infections. It is now imperative that clinical microbiologists and clinicians understand the potential role of NDC in human infections. Only few studies globally have characterized the human clinical isolates of NDC and their antimicrobial susceptibility patterns. This review tries toexamine? the potential pathogenic nature of NDC, which warrants their identification and prompt reporting when isolated from human clinical specimens.

clinical microbiology, Non-diptheritic Corynebacteria, Medically important Corynebacterial species