Nocardia asteroides

Hi
My name is N. asteroides
I'm a Gram Positive rod.
I am aerobic (breathe oxygen) and can't make spores.
I'm part of a special group called actinomycetes.
We get the name because we look a lot like fungi.
We even grown little filamentous branches.
I grow slowly on a gram stain, where I look speckled.

I love to get into your skin through cuts, especially from thorns and plants.
I like causing infections in people with weak immune systems.
I cause Nocardiosis when I get into lungs.
I spread through your blood to get into your brain.