A Case of Gluconacetobacter liquefaciens Bacteremia Associated with Sugarcane Juice Ingestion

Gluconacetobacter liquefaciens is a Gram-negative bacterium that has previously been described as a plant pathogen. To the best of our knowledge, only one previous case of human infection with Gluconacetobacter species has been described and was associated with severe immunodeficiency. We describe a case of recurrent Gluconacetobacter liquefaciens bacteremia in a patient with advanced liver cirrhosis and propose that gut translocation in the setting of portal hypertension and frequent sugarcane juice ingestion may have been the etiology. This case expands on our knowledge of Gluconacetobacter liquefaciens as a potential emerging human pathogen in certain situations and describes the difficulty encountered in antimicrobial testing and management. J Microbiol Infect Dis 2020; 10(1):62-67.