Lactobacillaceae

The Lactobacillaceae are a family of lactic acid bacteria.[3] It is the only family in the lactic acid bacteria which includes homofermentative and heterofermentative organisms;[4] in the Lactobacillaceae, the pathway used for hexose fermentation is a genus-specific trait. Lactobacillaceae include the homofermentative lactobacilli Lactobacillus, Holzapfelia, Amylolactobacillus, Bombilactobacillus, Companilactobacillus, Lapidilactobacillus, Agrilactobacillus, Schleiferilactobacillus, Loigolactobacillus, Lacticaseibacillus, Latilactobacillus, Dellaglioa, Liquorilactobacillus, Ligilactobacillus, and Lactiplantibacillus; the heterofermentative lactobacilli Furfurilactobacillus, Paucilactobacillus, Limosilactobacillus, Fructilactobacillus, Acetilactobacillus, Apilactobacillus, Levilactobacillus, Secundilactobacillus, and Lentilactobacillus, which were previously classified in the genus Lactobacillus; and the heterofermentative genera Convivina, Fructobacillus, Leuconostoc, Oenococcus, and Weissella which were previously classified in the Leuconostocaceae.[2]

Lactobacillaceae
Lactobacillus near a squamous epithelial cell
Scientific classification
Domain:	Bacteria
Phylum:	Bacillota
Class:	Bacilli
Order:	Lactobacillales
Family:	Lactobacillaceae Winslow et al. 1917 (Approved Lists 1980)
Type genus
Lactobacillus Beijerinck 1901 (Approved Lists 1980)
Genera[1][2]
Acetilactobacillus Zheng et al. 2020 Agrilactobacillus Zheng et al. 2020 Amylolactobacillus Zheng et al. 2020 Apilactobacillus Zheng et al. 2020 Bombilactobacillus Zheng et al. 2020 Companilactobacillus Zheng et al. 2020 Convivina Praet et al. 2015 Dellaglioa Zheng et al. 2020 Fructilactobacillus Zheng et al. 2020 Fructobacillus Endo and Okada 2008 Furfurilactobacillus Zheng et al. 2020 Holzapfelia Zheng et al. 2020 Lacticaseibacillus Zheng et al. 2020 Lactiplantibacillus Zheng et al. 2020 Lactobacillus Beijerinck 1901 (Approved Lists 1980) Lapidilactobacillus Zheng et al. 2020 Latilactobacillus Zheng et al. 2020 Lentilactobacillus Zheng et al. 2020 Leuconostoc van Tieghem 1878 (Approved Lists 1980) Levilactobacillus Zheng et al. 2020 Ligilactobacillus Zheng et al. 2020 Limosilactobacillus Zheng et al. 2020 Liquorilactobacillus Zheng et al. 2020 Loigolactobacillus Zheng et al. 2020 Oenococcus Dicks et al. 1995 Paralactobacillus Leisner et al. 2000 Paucilactobacillus Zheng et al. 2020 Pediococcus Claussen 1903 (Approved Lists 1980) Schleiferilactobacillus Zheng et al. 2020 Secundilactobacillus Zheng et al. 2020 Weissella Collins et al. 1994
Synonyms[2]
Leuconostocaceae Schleifer 2010

The Lactobacillaceae are also the only family of the lactic acid bacteria which does not include pathogenic or opportunistic pathogenic organisms although some species, particularly Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus and Weissella spp. can cause rare infections in critically ill patients.[5][6]

With the exception of Lactococcus lactis, Streptococcus thermophilus and Tetragenococcus halophilus, most food fermenting lactic acid bacteria are now classified in the Lactobacillaceae.[2][7][8]

The grandfathered term lactobacilli refers to all bacteria classified in Lactobacillaceae prior to 2020, i.e. Lactobacillus sensu lato (pre-split), Pediococcus, and Sharpea.[2] Some authors use lactobacilli to refer to Lactobacillus sensu lato only.