Bacterial Meningitis Caused by Bacillus subtilis var. natto

A 67-year-old woman with a 2-day history of a fever, headache and disturbed consciousness was admitted to our hospital. Bacillus subtilis was isolated from both the cerebrospinal fluid and blood. She was cured by the administration of vancomycin. Next-generation sequencing identified the strain as B. subtilis var. natto, the same strain found in natto, which this patient ate daily. We suspected that some of the B. subtilis that caused the infection may have actually been B. subtilis var. natto.

Automated summary

A 67-year-old woman with fever, headache, and disturbed consciousness for 2 days was admitted to the hospital. Bacillus subtilis was isolated from both her cerebrospinal fluid and blood. She was successfully treated with vancomycin. Next-generation sequencing identified the strain as B. subtilis var. natto, the same strain found in the fermented soybean product natto, which the patient consumed daily. We suspect that some of the B. subtilis causing the infection might actually be B. subtilis var. natto.