ABSTRACT
The genus Escherichia is a member of the family Enterobacteriaceae, 1 and the species Escherichia coli as part of this genus, is widely distributed in nature. It was first described in 1885 by the German pediatrician Theodore von Escherich, who called it Bacterium coli. 2 The taxonomical name of Escherichia coli was later adopted to honor its discoverer.
