Treating Antibiotic Resistance Genes in Proteus Spp. were Isolated from Renal Stone Patients by Crataegus rhipidophylla and Adiantum capillus

Nine isolates of Proteus spp. were isolated from 100 urine samples of renal stone patients which were the urine specimens obtained directly from Sulaimani Teaching Hospital Laboratory, and identified according to the cultural characteristic, morphological, biochemical examination. The antibiotic susceptibility test for all isolates were conducted to nine antimicrobial agents including (Ciprofloxacin (Cip), Tetracycline(TE), Neomycin (N), Gentamicin (CN), Erythromycin (E), Nitrofurantoin (F), Naldixic acid (NA), Imipenem (IPM), Amoxicillin (AX). Plasmid analysis of these isolates showed presence are (22) Kb plasmid. Curing of antibiotic resistance genes by using methanol extracts for leave of Crataegus rhipidophylla  and Adiantum capillus was performed. The minimum inhibitory concentration of these medicinal plants through methanol extracts which were 5000 µg/ml and 1000 µg/ml for Ailanthus altissima and Adiantum capillus respectively. The Sub minimum inhibition concentration (SMIC) was also determined. The results of transformation and curing experiments revealed that SMIC of Ailanthus altissima extract was cured or eliminated plasmid completely, and (SMIC) of Adiantum capillus was cured (CN, E, and AX) resistant genes

Characterization and partial purification of Candida albicans Secretory IL-12 Inhibitory Factor

© 2008 Wang et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Licens

The glyoxylate cycle enzyme activities in the pathogenic isolates of Candida albicans obtained from HIV/AIDS, diabetic and burn patients

Recently it has been found that Candida albicans harbours enzymes involved in the glyoxylate cycle (GC), which have a role in its virulence, especially the two key enzymes, isocitrate lyase (ICL) and malate synthase (MS). There are however, few studies on the GC enzyme activities isolated in the clinical isolates. Samples were collected from three groups of patients namely, HIV/AIDS, diabetic and burn patients suffering from candidiasis at different body locations. Isolation, identification and the antifungal susceptibility test of all the isolates of C. albicans were followed by the standard techniques. Measurements of all the GC enzyme activities were also carried out by the standard methods. Levels of the principal GC enzymes showed significant changes when calculated and compared taking control strains of C. albicans. The activity of the two key enzymes of the GC, ICL and MS were significantly higher in the isolates from diabetic patients. No significant relationship between the drug susceptibility and the level of enzymes of the GC was observed. As GC activity is absent in mammalian cells, a specific inhibitor for the GC could be developed and these enzymes therefore can be used as a new antifungal target

Allelic variants of ABC drug transporter Cdr1p in clinical isolates of Candida albicans

Candida drug resistance protein (Cdr1p) is a major drug efflux protein, which plays a key role in commonly encountered clinical azole resistance in Candida albicans. We have analyzed its sequence in several azole resistant clinical isolates to evaluate the allelic variation within CDR1gene and to relate it to its functional activity. The sequence analysis revealed 53 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), out of which six were non-synonymous single nucleotide polymorphisms (NS-SNPs) implying a change in amino acid and were found in two or more than two allelic combinations in different sensitive or resistant isolates. We have identified three new NS-SNPs namely, E948P, T950S, and F1399Y, in isolates wherein F1399Y appeared to be unique and was present in one of the naturally occurring azole resistant isolates obtained from Indian diabetic patients. However, site-directed mutagenesis showed that the residue F1399 in between TMS 11 and TMS 12 does not affect the functionality of Cdr1p. Taken together, our SNPs analyses reveal that unlike human P-gp, the naturally acquired allelic variations are mostly present in non-conserved regions of the protein which do not allow Cdr1p to genetically evolve in a manner, that would allow a change in its functionality to affect substrate recognition, specificity, and drug efflux activity of C. albicans cells

Pattern of Candida species isolated from patients with diabetes mellitus and vulvovaginal candidiasis and their response to single dose oral fluconazole therapy

Objective: Patients with diabetes mellitus are at increased risk of vulvovaginal candidiasis (VVC). Besides Candida albicans, they often have infection due to non-C. albicans Candida species such as C. glabrata. Oral single dose fluconazole (150 mg) is commonly used to treat VVC in non-diabetic individuals with response rate varying from 70 to 90%. However, there is paucity of related information in diabetic women with VVC. Present study has been conducted to systematically assess the effect of fluconazole therapy among diabetic patients with clinically symptomatic VVC. Methods: Study subjects included 85 consecutive patients with diabetes mellitus (type 2=70 and type 1=15) and 62 non-diabetic women who had clinical signs and symptoms of VVC and in whom evidence of candidiasis was documented by presence of yeast on direct microscopy followed by culture. Single dose fluconazole (150 mg) was given orally to all the subjects in a supervised manner. Subjects were reassessed on 14th day after fluconazole therapy and a repeat high vaginal swab was taken for direct microscopy and fungal culture. Total glycosylated haemoglobin (HbA1) was measured to assess glycaemic control. Results: There were no significant differences in the frequency of pruritus (55.9 vs. 56.7%), vaginal discharge (63.8 vs. 69.0%), dyspareunia (25.0 vs. 20.0%), and percentage yeast positivity (67.5 vs. 54.7%) between diabetic and control groups before the start of fluconazole therapy. Following fluconazole therapy, vaginal discharge on examination and yeast positivity on direct microscopy continued to remain positive in higher percentage of subjects in the diabetic group as compared to non-diabetic subjects (52.5 vs. 36.4%; P =0.22 and 50.7 and 29.0%, respectively, P =0.07, respectively). Overall 67.1% of patients with diabetes and 47.3% of controls continued to show persistence of Candida growth on high vaginal swab culture following fluconazole treatment (P=0.042). Candida glabtara was the most common species isolated in patients with diabetes mellitus and its frequency was significantly higher in them when compared to control group (54.1 vs. 22.6%, P< 0.001). C. albicans was the most common species isolated in controls. Species-specific response to fluconazole showed that 81.3% of patients in the diabetic group and 78.6% of the non-diabetic controls continued to show fungal growth when C. glabrata was the organism grown (P=0.99). However, in case of C. albicans, 45.4% of the patients in the diabetic group and only 21.5% of the controls had persistent Candida growth following fluconazole therapy (P=0.22). Conclusion: Overall only one third of patients with diabetes mellitus and VVC respond to single dose 150 mg of fluconozole therapy. Limited response in the clinical symptoms and culture negativity following single dose fluconazole therapy in diabetic subjects with VVC is explained by the high prevalence of C. glabrata in them. The present study involved only 85 patients and majority of them had type-2 diabetes mellitus. There is need to perform similar study in large number of diabetics subjects including patients with type-1 diabetes mellitus and assess various alternative treatment protocol which are also effective in C. glabrata infection

Susceptibility Pattern and Molecular Type of Species-Specific Candida in Oropharyngeal Lesions of Indian Human Immunodeficiency Virus-Positive Patients

A study of oropharyngeal candidiasis (OPC) in Indian human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/AIDS patients was conducted over a period of 15 months. This study revealed that 75% of the HIV/AIDS patients had OPC. MIC testing revealed that 5% of the Candida isolates were fluconazole resistant. A correlation between CD4(+)-T-cell counts and development of OPC in HIV/AIDS patients was also observed. Molecular typing of C. albicans isolates showed that all were genetically unrelated

Characterization and partial purification of Secretory IL-12 Inhibitory Factor-2

H IFN-γ and LPS for 40 h, their supernatants were collected, and the cytokines present in these supernatants were measured using the preprinted human cytokine antibody arrays 5 (Ray Biotech, Inc.). differentially expressed cytokines/chemokines with value less than 0.05 (= 3). representative images of cytokine array membranes. cytokine map of the membrane used, showing location of cytokines on the membrane.<p><b>Copyright information:</b></p><p>Taken from "Characterization and partial purification of Secretory IL-12 Inhibitory Factor"</p><p>http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2180/8/31</p><p>BMC Microbiology 2008;8():31-31.</p><p>Published online 19 Feb 2008</p><p>PMCID:PMC2289826.</p><p></p

Characterization and partial purification of Secretory IL-12 Inhibitory Factor-1

from the peritoneum of C57Bl/6 mice 5 days after elicitation. 2 × 10/ml macrophages were cultured in the presence or absence of LPS (50 ng) and IFN-γ (0.5 ng) stimulation for 16 h with or without 1 mg CA-SIIF. Next, IL-12 levels were measured in the supernatant by ELISA using antibodies specific for murine IL-12 p70. LPS (100 ng) was administered intraperitoneally immediately followed with or without 1 mg CA-SIIF in mice 1 h prior to intravenous injection of LPS (1 μg) to stimulate IL-12 production. Serum IL-12 levels were then measured. Macrophages alone served as controls for base line IL-12 production.<p><b>Copyright information:</b></p><p>Taken from "Characterization and partial purification of Secretory IL-12 Inhibitory Factor"</p><p>http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2180/8/31</p><p>BMC Microbiology 2008;8():31-31.</p><p>Published online 19 Feb 2008</p><p>PMCID:PMC2289826.</p><p></p