New Microbiologica最新文献

Data from the literature indicates that the human ocular surface is inhabited by diverse commensal microbial communities, crucial for maintaining the homeostasis of healthy eyes. The ocular surface microbiome (OSM) plays a protective immunoregulatory role against pathogenic species, and any dysbiosis may contribute to disease onset. Traditional culture methods, employed in both clinical and research settings, have limitations. Certain pathogens are challenging to grow under routine conditions, leading to lower bacterial detection compared to next-generation sequencing (NGS). Despite the extensive use of NGS in published studies, variable results are observed. This variability may be attributed to factors such as limited sample size, differences in analytical procedures (from sampling to sequencing platforms), age and gender variations in included populations, diverse inclusion criteria, and geographical differences. These factors collectively impact the generated genomic data. Moreover, consistent reports on diversity indices are lacking in various published studies, whereas these indices could enhance the definition of OSM changes in disease states. Therefore, this review emphasizes the current imperative to standardize OSM sample collection, preparation, and analysis. This standardization is vital for accurately defining the composition of OSM in both healthy and pathogenic conditions and facilitating meaningful comparisons among studies.

Only toxigenic serogroups O1 and O139 Vibrio cholerae have been associated with widespread cholera epidemics. Other serogroups (non-O1/non-O139 Vibrio cholerae or NOVC) most often cause sporadic gastrointestinal manifestations. Rarely, NOVC can result in severe extraintestinal manifestations in immunocompromised hosts. Although the presence of Vibrio cholerae is well documented in Mediterranean waters, it is not routinely tested in food sources in European countries. Here we report the case of a 46-year-old woman with a history of Von Hippel-Lindau syndrome who had previously undergone major hepatic and pancreatic surgeries and was on Everolimus, which caused neutropenia and mucositis. She was admitted to our emergency department with fever, chills, nausea, and abdominal pain, and was diagnosed with sepsis and acute cholangitis. Empiric piperacillin/ tazobactam was started, and blood cultures later identified non-O1/non-O139 Vibrio cholerae, linked to recent oyster consumption. The ongoing therapy resulted in initial clinical stabilization and microbiological clearance. However, fever persisted, along with the onset of diarrhoea (with negative stool cultures), leukopenia, thrombocytopenia, and elevated CRP levels. Ciprofloxacin was then added to the regimen, resulting in improved condition, fever resolution, normalization of bowel function, relief from abdominal pain, and radiological resolution of cholangitis. She was discharged in stable condition after 15 days of treatment. NOVC systemic infections are rising globally. Physicians should think of this pathogen in patients with risk factors, suggestive symptoms, and seafood ingestion. The literature shows significant heterogeneity in antimicrobial strategies, but association of beta-lactam antibiotic with ciprofloxacin proved to be an effective choice.

Some members of the Chlamydiales order, particularly Chlamydia, Waddlia, and Parachlamydia, have been associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes in humans and animals. Recently, the existence of another Chlamydia-like bacterium, namely Simkania, has been confirmed in the genitalia of adult females, but its possible pathogenic role has not yet been examined. In comparison to other members of Chlamydiales, the presence of Parachlamydia in the urogenitalia of human females and its involvement in obstetrical complications is less convincingly investigated and still a matter of debate. This study aims to examine the existence of Parachlamydia and to assess its prevalence in the genital and urinary tracts of a population of women by using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based methodology. Endocervical and vaginal specimens were collected from 103 married females, while only 60 females agreed to give urine samples. Among the examined population, 29 women (about 28%) had experienced miscarriage. Clinical samples were tested for Parachlamydia DNA by species-specific PCR assay. Nucleic acids of P. acanthamoebae were not detected in any endocervical, vaginal, and urine specimens tested. This investigation could not bring evidence for the existence of Parachlamydia in the urogenitalia of the female cohort tested. The role of Parachlamydia as a probable emerging obstetrical agent remains to be explained in future controlled studies targeting a larger number of females with prior unsuccessful pregnancies.

Chlamydia pneumoniae is the etiologic agent of respiratory tract infections in humans, including community-acquired pneumonia, and has been associated with atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases. The present systematic review of reviews aimed at answering important questions on the involvement of C. pneumoniae in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis, its cellular and molecular mechanisms, and whether there is evidence of a causal relationship. The databases PubMed/Medline, Scopus, and Web of Science were searched for all review articles published from 2003 to the end of 2023. A total of 27 reviews, systematic reviews, and systematic reviews with metanalysis were included. Overall, current evidence suggests that C. pneumoniae is a biologically plausible candidate for the causation of atherosclerosis, albeit not all the 4 Koch postulates are fulfilled; oxidative stress and inflammation are the most likely pathogenic mechanisms mediated by C. pneumoniae. However, it is still unclear how the persistent form, responsible for chronic inflammation, fits into this etiopathogenetic scenario. In the future, the newly-designed transformation systems for the genomic manipulation of C. pneumoniae will surely help expand our knowledge on the role of this pathogen in atherogenesis.

Pre-exposure prophylaxis for COVID-19 with Tixagevimab/Cilgavimab in immunocompromised patients has reduced the risk of breakthrough infection, disease, hospitalization, and COVID-19 related mortality. However, the advent of the Kraken variant (XBB.1.5) has limited the use of this monoclonal antibody, based on poor efficacy in in vitro studies The objective of the study was to evaluate the risk of breakthrough infection, symptomatic disease, hospitalization, intensive care admission, and COVID-19 related death in kidney transplant recipients receiving pre-exposure prophylaxis with Tixagevimab/Cilgavimab for COVID-19 in the era of the Kraken variant (XBB.1.5). In a prospective, observational study, we enrolled kidney transplant patients undergoing pre-exposure prophylaxis for COVID-19 with Tixagevimab/Cilgavimab at the Division of Infectious Diseases of Federico II University of Naples from February 2023 to August 2023. Each patient subsequently underwent a six-month follow-up with symptom monitoring and surveillance nasopharyngeal swab for SARS-CoV-2 RNA detection every 30 days, regardless of symptoms. Thirty-four kidney transplant patients were enrolled, and in the follow-up period only one tested positive for the nasopharyngeal swab for SARSCoV-2 research with asymptomatic infection and virological recovery on the eighth day after diagnosis of infection. Therefore, no patient developed disease, no patient needed hospitalization, and no death occurred. No adverse drug reaction to Tixagevimab/Cilgavimab occurred. Our data, although derived from a limited and uncontrolled sample, show the potential of Tixagevimab/Cilgavimab as a valid and viable therapeutic strategy in pre-exposure prophylaxis for immunocompromised patients. These findings highlight the importance of conducting clinical studies on this topic.

The escalating global population poses formidable challenges to addressing pressing environmental concerns, hindering progress towards sustainable development goals. Unregulated human activities, particularly the excessive reliance on fossil fuels and unsustainable agricultural practices, contribute to pollution, climate change, and resource depletion. Inadequate waste management systems exacerbate environmental degradation and pose risks to public health. Leveraging biological resources and urban/industrial waste emerges as a promising solution. Various waste materials, such as food waste and agro-industrial by-products, have been efficiently repurposed into valuable bio-based products. This review explores the diverse applications of agricultural and food waste repurposing, including microbial production of biopolymers and biosurfactants, as well as the extraction of biologically active compounds for potential antimicrobial drugs.

Bacterial ocular infections represent a common public health problem affecting people of all age groups. These infections can lead to damage of ocular structures or even a loss of vision. The spectrum of isolated bacteria and their susceptibilities to antibiotics, however, shows geographical variabilities, which can affect the success of most empirically-administered antimicrobial therapies. The aim of this study was thus to analyse bacterial aetiology in culture-positive acute and chronic ocular infections and its antimicrobial susceptibility profile in a large cohort of patients in the Czech Republic. The study also focused on corynebacteria identification, particularly on the prevalence of Corynebacterium macginleyi. A total of 2500 bacterial isolates obtained from 2015 to 2020 in University Hospital Hradec Kralove were included in the study. A total of 2320 (92.8%) bacterial isolates were Gram-positive and 180 (7.2%) were Gram-negative. Staphylococcus aureus was the predominant pathogen, isolated from 15.3% of ocular infections, followed by Enterobacterales, Streptococcus pneumoniae and Haemophilus influenzae, isolated in 2.9%, 1.6% and 1.0%, respectively. Corynebacterium macginleyi was confirmed as the most prevalent species of corynebacteria. Most bacteria showed good susceptibility to fluoroquinolones, chloramphenicol, and aminoglycosides. Gram-positive bacteria were also susceptible to tetracycline. To conclude, this study presents a 5-year assessment of bacterial aetiology of ocular infections in the East Bohemian region. The survey showed clear differences in the susceptibilities of several bacteria to select antibiotics compared to studies from other geographical regions in Europe. This clearly shows that local surveillance of the aetiology and antimicrobial susceptibility of bacteria is essential for adequate empirical therapy of ocular infections.

The aim of this research was to define the prevalence of antibodies against hepatitis D virus (anti-HDV Ab) in a group of 26 outpatients with liver dysfunction in northeastern Bulgaria. Serum samples were obtained from April 2022 to December 2023 in the "Status" Medical Diagnostic Laboratory, Varna, Bulgaria. We found seroprevalence of anti-HDV Ab in 15.4% (CI: 4.3-34.8%) of the target population. Age and gender had no significant role in HDV seropositivity.

Herein, we aimed to investigate the antifungal susceptibility pattern of Candida auris clinical strains in our setting Bahrain Oncology Center-King Hamad University Hospital-Bahrain. C. auris strains isolated from different clinical specimens in the Microbiology Laboratory from October-2021 to November-2022 were evaluated. Species-level identification of fungi was performed by MALDI-TOF (Bruker, Germany). Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) was determined either by E-test strips or by MICRONAUT MIC system based on CDC guidelines for C. auris antifungal interpretation. Fluconazole, amphotericin-B, voriconazole, and caspofungin susceptibility data of the clinical strains were analyzed. A total of 40 clinical isolates were included: 25% were blood culture isolates, 65% were urinary, and 10% were soft tissue isolates. Only 29 strains could be tested for amphotericin-B and 32 for voriconazole. Overall resistance pattern was as follows: 100% resistance to fluconazole, 2.5% resistance to caspofungin, and 0% resistance to amphotericin b. Median voriconazole MIC was 0.015 ug/ml (min 0.08, max= 0.064 ug/ml). We had no fluconazole-sensitive strain and only one caspofungin-resistant strain. A single isolate (2.5%), which was associated with candidemia, demonstrated resistance to two antifungal agents: fluconazole and caspofungin. No triple or quadruple drug resistant strain existed.

Hepatitis E virus (HEV) infection is prevalent among domestic pigs and wild boar in Europe. This study focused on the genetic diversity of HEV subtypes 3c, 3e and 3f among swine and wild boar in Europe as well as their circulation. Phylogenetic analysis and Bayesian phylogenetic inference were applied on the selected ORF2 capsid HEV sequences to co-estimate the viral circulation, the mean evolutionary rates and the dated trees. The estimated mean values of the HEV ORF2 capsid gene evolutionary rate were 8.29 x 10-3, 5.96 x 10-3, and 1.107 x 10-2 substitutions/site/year, respectively for 3c, 3e and 3f. The majority of the HEV 3c and 3e supported clusters did not show intermixing between swine and wild boar. Thus, although the intermixing observed in a minority of HEV 3c and 3e supported clusters suggests that transmission/circulation of these subtypes between swine and wild boar can potentially occur, 3c and 3e European wild boar HEV populations remained mainly segregated. In contrast, one half of the HEV 3f supported clusters showed intermixing between swine and wild boar, providing evidence for transfer/circulation to swine. The data suggest that continued virologic surveillance in swine and wild boar is necessary, together with targeted measures to reduce the chance of HEV transmission to humans.