Rickettsias

Rickettsia is a genus of nonmotile, Gram-negative, nonspore-forming, highly pleomorphic bacteria that can present as cocci (0.1 µm in diameter), rods (1–4 µm long), or thread-like (10 µm long). Being obligate intracellular parasites, the Rickettsia survival depends on entry, growth, and replication within the cytoplasm of eukaryotic host cells (typically endothelial cells).