Explosives Precursors (Home – Made Explosives): Regulations and Supervision

Za izazivanje kriznih ili izvanrednih situacija, odnosno počinjenje najtežih kaznenih djela, počinitelj često rabi eksplozivne tvari vojne ili gospodarske namjene. Za potrebe nezakonite proizvodnje eksplozivnih naprava (eksploziva kućne izrade) sve se više rabe različite kemikalije, koje su u uporabi u različitim industrijskim granama; ali i kemikalije koje gotovo svakodnevno koriste građani (pojedinci). Kemikalije od kojih se nezakonito proizvode eksplozivi (eksplozivi kućne izrade) nazivaju se prekursori eksploziva, a veliki broj takvih kemikalija može se nabaviti u slobodnoj prodaji. Zbog velike sigurnosne ugroze koja je posljedica nezakonite proizvodnje eksplozivnih tvari, korištenjem različitih kemikalija, odnosno prekursora eksploziva, Europski parlament i Vijeće 15. siječnja 2013. godine donijeli su Uredbu (EU) br. 98/2013 od 15. siječnja 2013. o stavljanju na tržište i uporabu prekursora eksploziva (SL L 39, 9. 2. 2013.) kojom se uspostavljaju pravila o stavljanju na tržište i uporabu prekursora eksploziva. Vezano uz navedenu Uredbu, u Republici je Hrvatskoj 2016. godine donesen Zakon o njezinoj provedbi. Zbog vrlo široke legitimne primjene različitih eksplozivnih tvari, a posebno prekursora eksploziva te zbog brzog razvoja u zlouporabi tih tvari, potrebno je konstantno ulaganje napora za poboljšavanje sustava nadziranja proizvodnje, prometa i uporabe eksplozivnih tvari i prekursora eksploziva. Jedini način otežavanja, odnosno svođenja na najmanju moguću mjeru mogućnosti nezakonite proizvodnje eksploziva, stalni je nadzor nad tvarima od kojih se takvi eksplozivi proizvode.To cause crisis or emergency situations, or to commit the most serious crimes, the perpetrator often uses explosive substances of military or economic use. Various chemicals which are in use in various industries and also chemicals that are used almost daily by citizens (individuals) are increasingly used for the purposes of the illicit manufacture of explosive devices (home-made explosives). Chemicals used to make explosives (home-made explosives) are called explosives precursors, and a large number of such chemicals are commercially available. Due to the high-security risk resulting from the illicit manufacture of explosives by the use of various chemicals, i.e. precursors of explosives the European Parliament and the Council 15 January 2013 brought Regulation (EU) No 98/2013 on the marketing and use of explosives precursors (OJ L 39, 9.2.2013). Regulation (EU) No 98/2013 establish rules for the market placing and use of explosives precursors. In connection with the aforementioned Regulation, in 2016, the Law on its implementation was adopted in the Republic of Croatia. Due to the extensive legitimate use of various explosives, especially explosives precursors, and the rapid development in the misuse of these substances, constant efforts are needed to improve the control system for the production, traffic and use of explosive substances and explosives precursors. The only way to make it difficult, or to minimise the possibility of illicit production of explosives, is to monitor the substances from which such explosives are produced constantly

Specificity and sensitivity evaluation of novel and existing Bacteroidales and Bifidobacteria-specific PCR assays on feces and sewage samples and their application for microbial source tracking in Ireland

Three novel ruminant-specific PCR assays, an existing ruminant-specific PCR assay and five existing human-specific PCR assays, which target 16S rDNA from Bacteroidales or Bifidobacteria, were evaluated. The assays were tested on DNA extracted from ruminant (n = 74), human (n = 59) and non-ruminant animal (n = 44) sewage/fecal samples collected in Ireland. The three novel PCR assays compared favourably to the existing ruminant-specific assay, exhibiting sensitivities of 91 - 100% and specificities of 95 - 100% as compared to a sensitivity of 95% and specificity of 94%, for the existing ruminant-specific assay. Of the five human-specific PCR assays, the assay targeting the Bifidobacterium catenulatum group was the most promising, exhibiting a sensitivity of 100% (with human sewage samples) and a specificity of 87%. When tested on rural water samples that were naturally contaminated by ruminant feces, the three novel PCR assays tested positive with a much greater percentage (52 - 87%) of samples than the existing ruminant-specific assay (17%). These novel ruminant-specific assays show promise for microbial source tracking and merit further field testing and specificity evaluation.ERTD

Emergence of quinolone resistance among extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-producing Enterobacteriaceae in the Central African Republic: genetic characterization

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Cross-resistance to quinolones and beta-lactams is frequent in <it>Enterobacteriaceae</it>, due to the wide use of these antibiotics clinically and in the food industry. Prescription of one of these categories of antibiotic may consequently select for bacteria resistant to both categories. Genetic mechanisms of resistance may be secondary to a chromosomal mutation located in quinolone resistance determining region of DNA gyrase or topoisomerase IV or to a plasmid acquisition. The insertion sequence IS<it>CR1 </it>is often associated with <it>qnr </it>and may favour its dissemination in Gram-negative bacteria. The aim of this study was to determine the genetic mechanism of quinolone resistance among extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-producing <it>Enterobacteriaceae </it>strains in the Central African Republic.</p> <p>Findings</p> <p>Among seventeen ESBL-producing <it>Enterobacteriaceae </it>isolated from urine, pus or stool between January 2003 and October 2005 in the Central African Republic, nine were resistant to ciprofloxacin (seven from community patients and two from hospitalized patients). The ESBL were previously characterized as CTX-M-15 and SHV-12. Susceptibility to nalidixic acid, norfloxacin and ciprofloxacin, and the minimal inhibitory concentrations of these drugs were determined by disc diffusion and agar dilution methods, respectively. The presence of plasmid-borne IS<it>CR1-qnrA </it>region was determined by PCR and amplicons, if any, were sent for sequencing. Quinolone resistance determining region of DNA gyrase <it>gyrA </it>gene was amplified by PCR and then sequenced for mutation characterization. We found that all CTX-M-producing strains were resistant to the tested quinolones. All the isolates had the same nucleotide mutation at codon 83 of <it>gyrA</it>. Two <it>Escherichia coli </it>strains with the highest MICs were shown to harbour an IS<it>CR1-qnrA1 </it>sequence. This genetic association might favour dissemination of resistance to quinolone and perhaps other antibiotics among <it>Enterobacteriaceae</it>.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This study shows that at least two mechanisms might explain the emerging resistance of <it>Enterobacteriaceae </it>to quinolones in the CAR. Beside the classical topoisomerase mutation, the cause may be acquisition of a plasmid-borne <it>qnrA1</it>. Clinicians and bacteriologists should be made aware of possible dissemination of IS<it>CR1-qnrA1 </it>among <it>Enterobacteriacae</it>.</p

Efficacy and safety of electrochemotherapy combined with peritumoral IL-12 gene electrotransfer of canine mast cell tumours

Electrochemotherapy combined with peritumoral interleukin-12 (IL-12) gene electrotransfer was used for treatment of mast cell tumours in 18 client-owned dogs. Local tumour control, recurrence rate, as well as safety of combined therapy were evaluated. One month after the therapy, no side effects were recorded and good local tumour control was observed with high complete responses rate which even increased during the observation period to 72%. IL-12 gene electrotransfer resulted in 78% of patients with detectable serum IFN- and/or IL-12 levels. In the treated tumours vascular changes as well as minimal T-lymphocytes infiltration was observed. After 1week, the plasmid DNA was not detected intra- or peritumorally and no horizontal gene transfer was observed. In summary, our study demonstrates high antitumour efficacy of electrochemotherapy combined with IL-12 electrotransfer, which also prevented recurrences or distant metastases, as well as its safety and feasibility in treatment of canine mast cell tumours

Lymphocyte subsets and the role of Th1/Th2 balance in stressed chronic pain patients

Background: The complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) and fibromyalgia (FM) are chronic pain syndromes occurring in highly stressed individuals. Despite the known connection between the nervous system and immune cells, information on distribution of lymphocyte subsets under stress and pain conditions is limited. Methods: We performed a comparative study in 15 patients with CRPS type I, 22 patients with FM and 37 age- and sex-matched healthy controls and investigated the influence of pain and stress on lymphocyte number, subpopulations and the Th1/Th2 cytokine ratio in T lymphocytes. Results: Lymphocyte numbers did not differ between groups. Quantitative analyses of lymphocyte subpopulations showed a significant reduction of cytotoxic CD8+ lymphocytes in both CRPS (p < 0.01) and FM (p < 0.05) patients as compared with healthy controls. Additionally, CRPS patients were characterized by a lower percentage of IL-2-producing T cell subpopulations reflecting a diminished Th1 response in contrast to no changes in the Th2 cytokine profile. Conclusions: Future studies are warranted to answer whether such immunological changes play a pathogenetic role in CRPS and FM or merely reflect the consequences of a pain-induced neurohumoral stress response, and whether they contribute to immunosuppression in stressed chronic pain patients. Copyright (c) 2008 S. Karger AG, Basel

Midgut microbiota of the malaria mosquito vector Anopheles gambiae and Interactions with plasmodium falciparum Infection

The susceptibility of Anopheles mosquitoes to Plasmodium infections relies on complex interactions between the insect vector and the malaria parasite. A number of studies have shown that the mosquito innate immune responses play an important role in controlling the malaria infection and that the strength of parasite clearance is under genetic control, but little is known about the influence of environmental factors on the transmission success. We present here evidence that the composition of the vector gut microbiota is one of the major components that determine the outcome of mosquito infections. A. gambiae mosquitoes collected in natural breeding sites from Cameroon were experimentally challenged with a wild P. falciparum isolate, and their gut bacterial content was submitted for pyrosequencing analysis. The meta-taxogenomic approach revealed a broader richness of the midgut bacterial flora than previously described. Unexpectedly, the majority of bacterial species were found in only a small proportion of mosquitoes, and only 20 genera were shared by 80% of individuals. We show that observed differences in gut bacterial flora of adult mosquitoes is a result of breeding in distinct sites, suggesting that the native aquatic source where larvae were grown determines the composition of the midgut microbiota. Importantly, the abundance of Enterobacteriaceae in the mosquito midgut correlates significantly with the Plasmodium infection status. This striking relationship highlights the role of natural gut environment in parasite transmission. Deciphering microbe-pathogen interactions offers new perspectives to control disease transmission.Institut de Recherche pour le Developpement (IRD); French Agence Nationale pour la Recherche [ANR-11-BSV7-009-01]; European Community [242095, 223601]info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Composition and Similarity of Bovine Rumen Microbiota across Individual Animals

The bovine rumen houses a complex microbiota which is responsible for cattle's remarkable ability to convert indigestible plant mass into food products. Despite this ecosystem's enormous significance for humans, the composition and similarity of bacterial communities across different animals and the possible presence of some bacterial taxa in all animals' rumens have yet to be determined. We characterized the rumen bacterial populations of 16 individual lactating cows using tag amplicon pyrosequencing. Our data showed 51% similarity in bacterial taxa across samples when abundance and occurrence were analyzed using the Bray-Curtis metric. By adding taxon phylogeny to the analysis using a weighted UniFrac metric, the similarity increased to 82%. We also counted 32 genera that are shared by all samples, exhibiting high variability in abundance across samples. Taken together, our results suggest a core microbiome in the bovine rumen. Furthermore, although the bacterial taxa may vary considerably between cow rumens, they appear to be phylogenetically related. This suggests that the functional requirement imposed by the rumen ecological niche selects taxa that potentially share similar genetic features

High-level production of violacein by the newly isolated Duganella violaceinigra str. NI28 and its impact on Staphylococcus aureus

A violacein-producing bacterial strain was isolated and identified as a relative of Duganella violaceinigra YIM 31327 based upon phylogenetic analyses using the 16S rRNA, gyrB and vioA gene sequences and a fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) analysis. This new strain was designated D. violaceinigra str. NI28. Although these two strains appear related based upon these analyses, the new isolate was phenotypically different from the type strain as it grew 25% faster on nutrient media and produced 45-fold more violacein. When compared with several other violacein producing strains, including Janthinobacterium lividum, D. violaceinigra str. NI28 was the best violacein producer. For instance, the crude violacein yield with D. violaceinigra str. NI28 was 6.0 mg/OD at 24 hours, a value that was more than two-fold higher than all the other strains. Finally, the antibacterial activity of D. violaceinigra str. NI28 crude violacein was assayed using several multidrug resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Addition of 30 mu M crude violacein led to a 96% loss in the initial S. aureus population while the minimum inhibitory concentration was 1.8 mu M. Consequently, this novel isolate represents a phenotypic variant of D. violaceinigra capable of producing much greater quantities of crude violacein, an antibiotic effective against multidrug resistant S. aureusopen