Binary IS Typing for Staphylococcus aureus

Background: We present an easily applicable test for rapid binary typing of Staphylococcus aureus: binary interspace (IS) typing. This test is a further development of a previously described molecular typing technique that is based on length polymorphisms of the 16S-23S rDNA interspace region of S. aureus. Methodology/Principal Findings: A novel approach of IS-typing was performed in which binary profiles are created. 424 human and animal derived MRSA and MSSA isolates were tested and a subset of these isolates was compared with multi locus sequence typing (MLST) and Amplified Fragment Length Polymorphism (AFLP). Binary IS typing had a high discriminatory potential and a good correlation with MLST and AFLP. Conclusions/Significance: Binary IS typing is easy to perform and binary profiles can be generated in a standardized fashion. These two features, combined with the high correlation with MLST clonal complexes, make the techniqu

Organic Agriculture

Consumers are increasingly aware of the health- and safety-related implications of the food which they can buy in the market. At the same time, households have become more aware of their environmental responsibilities. Regarding the production of food, a crucial and multifunctional role is played by agriculture. The way vegetables, fruits, and other crops are grown and how livestock is raised has an impact on the environment and landscape. Operations performed by farmers, such as water management, can be dangerous for the soil and the whole ecosystem. Consequently, there is a search for natural ways of sustaining the impact of agriculture on the environment. In this context, one of the most popular ideas is organic agriculture. In the literature on the subject, there are many concepts that some authors consider to be synonymous even as others argue that these terms are not interchangeable. There is, for example, "organic agriculture," "alternative agriculture," "sustainable agriculture," "ecological agriculture," "biological agriculture," "niche farming," "community-supported agriculture," and "integrated pest management." Very often, techniques and products related to organic agriculture are described by marketing experts with the use of abbreviations such as "bio" and "eco." Products with such markings and labels are increasingly popular in stores that often give them separate shelves for their sale. Despite the higher price compared to conventional products, they are increasingly sought by consumers. The entry examines the various impacts of organic agriculture with a view to these trends

Prevalence and molecular characteristics of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) among pigs on German farms and import of livestock-related MRSA into hospitals

The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence and molecular characteristics of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) among pigs and estimate the impact of this animal reservoir on human healthcare. Nasal swabs were derived from 1,600 pigs at 40 German farms. The MRSA were characterized using S. aureus protein A (spa) typing, multilocus sequence typing (MLST) and detection of toxin genes. In a retrospective case control study, we compared risk factors for the carriage of MRSA between patients carrying spa types found among regional pigs and patients with other MRSA molecular types. Pigs carrying MRSA were identified on 70% of the farms (spa types t011, t034, t108, t1451 and t2510, all associated with MLST sequence type ST398). Contact to pigs and cattle were independent risk factors for the carriage of these spa types in patients at hospital admission. Our results indicate that livestock represents a relevant reservoir for the import of MRSA into regional German hospitals

Diversity of Staphylococcus aureus Isolates in European Wildlife

Staphylococcus aureus is a well-known colonizer and cause of infection among animals and it has been described from numerous domestic and wild animal species. The aim of the present study was to investigate the molecular epidemiology of S. aureus in a convenience sample of European wildlife and to review what previously has been observed in the subject field. 124 S. aureus isolates were collected from wildlife in Germany, Austria and Sweden; they were characterized by DNA microarray hybridization and, for isolates with novel hybridization patterns, by multilocus sequence typing (MLST). The isolates were assigned to 29 clonal complexes and singleton sequence types (CC1, CC5, CC6, CC7, CC8, CC9, CC12, CC15, CC22, CC25, CC30, CC49, CC59, CC88, CC97, CC130, CC133, CC398, ST425, CC599, CC692, CC707, ST890, CC1956, ST2425, CC2671, ST2691, CC2767 and ST2963), some of which (ST2425, ST2691, ST2963) were not described previously. Resistance rates in wildlife strains were rather low and mecA-MRSA isolates were rare (n = 6). mecC-MRSA (n = 8) were identified from a fox, a fallow deer, hares and hedgehogs. The common cattle- associated lineages CC479 and CC705 were not detected in wildlife in the present study while, in contrast, a third common cattle lineage, CC97, was found to be common among cervids. No Staphylococcus argenteus or Staphylococcus schweitzeri-like isolates were found. Systematic studies are required to monitor the possible transmission of human- and livestock- associated S. aureus/MRSA to wildlife and vice versa as well as the possible transmission, by unprotected contact to animals. The prevalence of S. aureus/MRSA in wildlife as well as its population structures in different wildlife host species warrants further investigation

An Intelligent Marketspace Mobile Application for Marketing Organic Products

Sustainable food security (Sfs) desires not only that people always have passage to ample and nutritious food, but also that this food be formed with minimum environmental impact. This research is aimed at developing a mobile application for marketing organic farm products with the functionality of automated geo-location services, preferred goods delivery services, easy access to different organic farm produce. The mobile user platform consists of the Presentation, Business, Data and Data storage which is a slight variation of the Model-View-Controller architecture. It also takes into deep awareness the configuration, security and communications aspect as these are the underlying factors for the robustness of mobile application. The Presentation Tier consists of the user interface and the logic used to navigate around the user interface meaningfully. It modifies and shows information into a human distinct pattern. The Business Logic tier is essentially efficient for information transfer between the user interface and the database of the project. The last layer of the three-tiered architecture is the Data Access tier, which is made up of the Database servers. The application was implemented in Java, SQLite (local) and PHP for the backend server and Amazon Web Services for cloud infrastructure. Farmers were engaged in cursory testing. Users find the application concept very interesting

Elbasvir/Grazoprevir

Each month, subscribers to The Formulary Monograph Service receive 5 to 6 well-documented monographs on drugs that are newly released or are in late phase 3 trials. The monographs are targeted to Pharmacy & Therapeutics Committees. Subscribers also receive monthly 1-page summary monographs on agents that are useful for agendas and pharmacy/nursing in-services. A comprehensive target drug utilization evaluation/medication use evaluation (DUE/MUE) is also provided each month. With a subscription, the monographs are available online to subscribers. Monographs can be customized to meet the needs of a facility. Through the cooperation of The Formulary, Hospital Pharmacy publishes selected reviews in this column. For more information about The Formulary Monograph Service, contact Wolters Kluwer customer service at 866-397-3433. The September 2016 monograph topics are barictinib, buprenorphine implants, sarilumab, sofosbuvir/velpatasvir, and cholera vaccine, live, oral. The Safey MUE is on sofosbuvir/velpatasvir