Ugotavljanje indikatorskih bakterij fekalnega onesnaženja in prisotnosti vrste Escherichia coli, ki tvori encime β-laktamaze v črni vodi

The aim of this study was to identify and quantify faecal indicator bacteria in blackwater collected from a source separation unit and determine the amount of E. coli isolates resistant to antimicrobials and their potential to produce extended spectrum β-lactamases (ESβLs) and metallo-β-lactamases (MβLs), which hydrolyse the most important antibiotics used in clinical practice. Most of the isolates were resistant to amoxicillin with clavulanic acid (36.4 %), followed by ticarcillin with clavulanic acid (22.7 %) and tetracycline (18.2 %). ESβL-producing genes blaCTX-M and blaTEM were found in three (13.6 %) and four (18.2 %) E. coli strains, respectively, while MβL genes were found in two (9.1 %). By separating at source, this pilot study clearly shows that gastrointestinal bacteria of healthy people can be an important source of antibiotic resistance released into the environment through wastewaters. One way to prevent that is to treat wastewater with a combination of TiO2, UV light, or ozone, as successful methods to remove resistant bacteria and prevent their spread in the environment.V vzorcih črne vode, ki je ena od frakcij odpadne vode, smo ugotavljali prisotnost in število fekalnih indikatorskih bakterij, vključno z bakterijo Escherichia coli (E. coli). Pri osamljenih sevih E. coli smo ugotavljali njihovo odpornost proti izbranim antibiotikom in njihov potencial za tvorbo nekaterih β-laktamaz razširjenega spektra in metalo-β-laktamaz. Preizkušeni sevi so bili najpogosteje odporni proti amoksicilinu s klavulansko kislino (36,4 %), tikarcilinu s klavulansko kislino (22,7 %) in tetraciklinu (18,2 %). Nukleotidne sekvence za blaCTX-M in blaTEM smo našli pri treh (13,6 %) in štirih (18,2 %) sevih, medtem ko smo gene za izbrane metalo-β-laktamaze ugotovili pri dveh (9,1 %) sevih E. coli. Pilotna študija, z ločevanjem odpadne vode na viru nastanka, kaže, da so bakterije v prebavnem traktu zdravih ljudi lahko pomemben vir prenosa odpornosti proti antibiotikom v okolju preko odpadne vode. Eden izmed načinov za preprečevanje širjenja odpornosti proti antibiotikom je čiščenje odpadne vode z uporabo kombinacije TiO2, UV svetlobe in ozona, ki so se pokazale kot uspešne metode za odstranjevanje bakterij, odpornih proti antibiotikom

Targeting Gut Microbiota in Cancer Cachexia: Towards New Treatment Options

Cancer cachexia is a complex multifactorial syndrome whose hallmarks are weight loss due to the wasting of muscle tissue with or without the loss of adipose tissue, anorexia, systemic inflammation, and multi-organ metabolic alterations, which negatively impact patients’ response to anticancer treatments, quality of life, and overall survival. Despite its clinical relevance, cancer cachexia often remains an underestimated complication due to the lack of rigorous diagnostic and therapeutic pathways. A number of studies have shown alterations in gut microbiota diversity and composition in association with cancer cachexia markers and symptoms, thus supporting a central role for dysbiosis in the pathogenesis of this syndrome. Different tools of microbiota manipulation, including probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics, and fecal microbiota transplantation, have been investigated, demonstrating encouraging improvements in cachexia outcomes. Albeit pioneering, these studies pave the way for future research with the aim of exploring the role of gut microbiota in cancer cachexia more deeply and setting up effective microbiota-targeting interventions to be translated into clinical practice

Targeting Gut Microbiota in Cancer Cachexia: Towards New Treatment Options

Cancer cachexia is a complex multifactorial syndrome whose hallmarks are weight loss due to the wasting of muscle tissue with or without the loss of adipose tissue, anorexia, systemic inflammation, and multi-organ metabolic alterations, which negatively impact patients’ response to anticancer treatments, quality of life, and overall survival. Despite its clinical relevance, cancer cachexia often remains an underestimated complication due to the lack of rigorous diagnostic and therapeutic pathways. A number of studies have shown alterations in gut microbiota diversity and composition in association with cancer cachexia markers and symptoms, thus supporting a central role for dysbiosis in the pathogenesis of this syndrome. Different tools of microbiota manipulation, including probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics, and fecal microbiota transplantation, have been investigated, demonstrating encouraging improvements in cachexia outcomes. Albeit pioneering, these studies pave the way for future research with the aim of exploring the role of gut microbiota in cancer cachexia more deeply and setting up effective microbiota-targeting interventions to be translated into clinical practice

Macrovascular complication phenotypes in type 2 diabetic patients

Abstract Background Macrovascular diseases (MVD) in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) are often considered all together, without discriminating the areas involved. The aim of our study was to analyse MVD prevalence in a large population of T2DM patients by dividing the cases into subgroups according to MVD sites (NMVD, no MVD; NSCS, non-significant carotid stenosis; CBVD, cerebrovascular disease; CAD, coronary artery disease; PAD, peripheral artery disease; PVD, polyvascular disease) and studying the anthropometric, clinical and laboratory parameters in each group. Methods A diabetic outpatient cohort (n = 1199) was retrospectively studied. Demographic, clinical and laboratory parameters were included in analyses. A thorough cardiovascular history as documented by previous medical records (including medical and hospital records) and vascular laboratory studies (including standardised electrocardiogram, echocardiogram, provocative tests for cardiac ischaemia, ankle/brachial index, duplex ultrasonography of the carotid and lower limbs and, in selected cases, computed tomography angiography, carotid and peripheral arteriography and evaluation of transcutaneous oxygen pressure), was collected for all of the patients. Standardised procedures were used to assess microvascular complications as well as metabolic syndrome (Mets). Results The unadjusted MVD prevalence was 46.4% among the participants. The majority of patients with MVD were in the PVD group. In the multivariate analysis, age, male sex and diabetes duration were independent risk factors for PAD and PVD (P Conclusion Phenotypic heterogeneity is associated with different macrovascular complications in T2DM patients. These findings might have clinical implications for developing diagnostic and therapeutic strategies targeting type 2 diabetes.</p