Accessory gene regulator types of Staphylococcus aureus isolated in Gorgan, North of Iran

Background: Staphylococcus aureus is a gram-positive bacterium that has remained a persistent pathogen, causing infections such as endocarditis, meningitis, and toxic shock syndrome in humans. The accessory gene regulator (agr) system of Staphylococcus aureus is responsible for controlling the expression of many genes that code for virulence factors. In this study, we assessed the S.aureus agr Group, based on their source of isolation, in Gorgan, North of Iran. Materials and Methods: DNA of 194 S. aureus isolates was extracted by lysozyme-phenol chloroform method, which included 85 clinical samples, 58 samples which were isolated from noses of health care workers and 51 cases which were obtained from food products in Gorgan, northern Iran. PCR-based assays were used to evaluate agr locus nucleotide polymorphism for the identification of agr specificity Group. Distributions of each agr Group were determined and comparison between different sources was assessed by X2. A p-value of <0.05 was considered as significant. Results: The majority of isolates belonged to agr Group I (43.3%), followed by agr Group III (28.87%), agr Group II (22.68%), and agr Group IV (5.15%). In our study, a majority of S. aureus isolates were recovered from health care workers and food product specimens were of agr Group I and isolates which were recovered from patients were of agr Group III. These differences were statistically significant (P=0.005). There was no statistical difference between the source of isolation of clinical samples of S.aureus and agr type. Conclusion: Agr Group I was predominant among health care workers and food product specimens in Gorgan, North of Iran, but in strains which were isolated from patients, agr Group III was predominant. Investigating the possible role of agr Group III in Staphylococcus aureus infection in future studies is recommended

Serological diagnosis of Helicobacter pylori infection in patients with a polycystic ovary syndrome

Background: Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) is the most common endocrine disorder in 4 - 6 of women in the reproductive age and is a common cause of infertility. Even though the number of investigations is scarce, studies show that Helicobacter pylori infection may influence reproduction. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to determine and compare the levels of H. pylori specific antibodies IgA, IgG and anti-CagA at both PCOS and non-PCOS women with their spouses using the serological test. Patients and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 127 women with their spouses (age range, 30 - 60 years) were selected. These patient were referred to infertility center of Shariati Hospital in Tehran, Iran, with a diagnostic criteria of PCOS based on Androgen Excess Society (AES). The specific antibodies of IgA, IgG and anti-CagA were measured using the commercial Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) kit. Results: The positive titers of H. pylori antibodies IgA, IgG and anti-CagA in the PCOS group were 45 (35), 79 (62) and 77 (60.5), respectively, while in non-PCOS group were 38 (30), 76 (60) and 50 (39.5), respectively. The sera positive for IgA, IgG and anti-CagA antibodies in spouses of the non-PCOS group were 38 (30), 84 (66) and 79 (62) respectively, but in spouses of the PCOS group were 51 (40), 83 (66) and 48 (38), respectively. The results showed that H. pylori infection probably did not affect infertility or reproduction. Conclusions: Findings of this study demonstrate no significant difference between levels of H. pylori specific antibodies of IgA, IgG, anti-CagA and the presence of PCOS disorders, and also indicate that serologic testing is a sensitive method for the detection of H. pylori antibodies. The high prevalence of H. pylori positive antibody levels in both PCOS and non-PCOS patients can be probably associated with the high frequency of H. pylori infection. © 2015, Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine Research Center

Association between cytokine gene polymorphisms and human susceptibility to brucellosis

Background: Allelic single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in cytokine-encoding genes can affect the degree of cytokine production, and may be related to the tendency to infectious illnesses as well as various clinical consequences. Objectives: The aim of this work was to evaluate the possible role of SNPs in the regions of the IL-10 (-592), IL-15 (-367), IL-18 (-656), IL-12 (+1188), IFN-γ (+874), TNF-α (-308), and TNF-β (+252) genes in susceptibility or resistance to brucellosis and its crucial complications. Methods: In a period of one year, 125 patients with acute brucellosis referring to 3 large public teaching hospitals were enrolled in this study. We studied the SNPs of IL-10, IL-15, IL-18, IL-12, IFN-γ, and TNF-α/β genes using the allele specific polymerase chain reaction (AS-PCR) with sequence-specific primers. Results: Frequency of GG genotype in the TNF-α and TNF-β-encoding genes increased significantly by 52% and 31.2% in patient and control groups, respectively. For IFN-γ, TA genotype was found highly enhanced in patients (60%), while the frequency of AA and TT genotypes were higher in controls (23.2% and 26.4%, respectively). The AA and CC SNPs in IL-12 were dominant in both patient (78.4%) and control (14.4%) groups. In the patient group, the GG and TT genotypes had a higher frequency for genes encoding IL-15 (33.6%) and IL-18 (89.6%). Conclusions: Based on the present study, some SNPs within the several cytokine genes, including TNF-α/β (-308/+252), IFN-γ (+874), IL-15 (-367), IL-18 (-656), and IL-12 (+1188) are related to the susceptibility or resistance to brucellosis. In order to approve the biological consequence of our results, additional investigations should be carried out in larger population groups. © 2017, Archives of Pediatric Infectious Diseases