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Increased human pathogenic potential of Escherichia coli from polymicrobial urinary tract infections in comparison to isolates from monomicrobial culture samples
The current diagnostic standard procedure outlined by the Health Protection Agency for urinary tract infections (UTIs) in clinical laboratories does not report bacteria isolated from samples containing three or more different bacterial species. As a result many UTIs go unreported and untreated, particularly in elderly patients, where polymicrobial UTI samples are especially prevalent. This study reports the presence of the major uropathogenic species in mixed culture urine samples from elderly patients, and of resistance to front-line antibiotics, with potentially increased levels of resistance to ciprofloxacin and trimethoprim. Most importantly, the study highlights that Escherichia coli present in polymicrobial UTI samples are statistically more invasive (P<0.001) in in vitro epithelial cell infection assays than those isolated from monomicrobial culture samples. In summary, the results of this study suggest that the current diagnostic standard procedure for polymicrobial UTI samples needs to be reassessed, and that E. coli present in polymicrobial UTI samples may pose an increased risk to human health
Phenotypic microarrays suggest Escherichia coli ST131 is not a metabolically distinct lineage of extra-intestinal pathogenic E. coli
Extraintestinal pathogenic E. coli (ExPEC) are the major aetiological agent of urinary tract infections (UTIs) in humans. The emergence of the CTX-M producing clone E. coli ST131 represents a major challenge to public health worldwide. A recent study on the metabolic potential of E. coli isolates demonstrated an association between the E. coli ST131 clone and enhanced utilisation of a panel of metabolic substrates. The studies presented here investigated the metabolic potential of ST131 and other major ExPEC ST isolates using 120 API test reagents and found that ST131 isolates demonstrated a lower metabolic activity for 5 of 120 biochemical tests in comparison to non-ST131 ExPEC isolates. Furthermore, comparative phenotypic microarray analysis showed a lack of specific metabolic profile for ST131 isolates countering the suggestion that these bacteria are metabolically fitter and therefore more successful human pathogens
Proximate drivers of spatial segregation in non-breeding albatrosses
Many animals partition resources to avoid competition, and in colonially-breeding species this often leads to divergent space or habitat use. During the non-breeding season, foraging constraints are relaxed, yet the patterns and drivers of segregation both between and within populations are poorly understood. We modelled habitat preference to examine how extrinsic (habitat availability and intra-specific competition) and intrinsic factors (population, sex and breeding outcome) influence the distributions of non-breeding grey-headed albatrosses Thalassarche chrysostoma tracked from two major populations, South Georgia (Atlantic Ocean) and the Prince Edward Islands (Indian Ocean). Spatial segregation was greater than expected, reflecting distinct seasonal differences in habitat selection and accessibility, and avoidance of intra-specific competition with local breeders. Previously failed birds segregated spatially from successful birds during summer, when they used less productive waters, suggesting a link between breeding outcome and subsequent habitat selection. In contrast, we found weak evidence of sexual segregation, which did not reflect a difference in habitat use. Our results indicate that the large-scale spatial structuring of albatross distributions results from interactions between extrinsic and intrinsic factors, with important implications for population dynamics. As habitat preferences differed substantially between colonies, populations should be considered independently when identifying critical areas for protectio
Comparing [CII], HI, and CO dynamics of nearby galaxies
The HI and CO components of the interstellar medium (ISM) are usually used to
derive the dynamical mass M_dyn of nearby galaxies. Both components become too
faint to be used as a tracer in observations of high-redshift galaxies. In
those cases, the 158 m line of atomic carbon [CII] may be the only way to
derive M_dyn. As the distribution and kinematics of the ISM tracer affects the
determination of M_dyn, it is important to quantify the relative distributions
of HI, CO and [CII]. HI and CO are well-characterised observationally, however,
for [CII] only very few measurements exist. Here we compare observations of CO,
HI, and [CII] emission of a sample of nearby galaxies, drawn from the HERACLES,
THINGS and KINGFISH surveys. We find that within R_25, the average [CII]
exponential radial profile is slightly shallower than that of the CO, but much
steeper than the HI distribution. This is also reflected in the integrated
spectrum ("global profile"), where the [CII] spectrum looks more like that of
the CO than that of the HI. For one galaxy, a spectrally resolved comparison of
integrated spectra was possible; other comparisons were limited by the
intrinsic line-widths of the galaxies and the coarse velocity resolution of the
[CII] data. Using high-spectral-resolution SOFIA [CII] data of a number of star
forming regions in two nearby galaxies, we find that their [CII] linewidths
agree better with those of the CO than the HI. As the radial extent of a given
ISM tracer is a key input in deriving M_dyn from spatially unresolved data, we
conclude that the relevant length-scale to use in determining M_dyn based on
[CII] data, is that of the well-characterised CO distribution. This length
scale is similar to that of the optical disk.Comment: Accepted for publication in the Astronomical Journa
Dissecting the origin of the submillimeter emission in nearby galaxies with Herschel and LABOCA
We model the infrared to submillimeter spectral energy distribution of 11
nearby galaxies of the KINGFISH sample using Spitzer and Herschel data and
compare model extrapolations at 870um (using different fitting techniques) with
LABOCA 870um observations. We investigate how the differences between
predictions and observations vary with model assumptions or environment. At
global scales, we find that modified blackbody models using realistic cold
emissivity indices (beta_c=2 or 1.5) are able to reproduce the 870um observed
emission within the uncertainties for most of the sample. Low values
(beta_c<1.3) would be required in NGC0337, NGC1512 and NGC7793. At local
scales, we observe a systematic 870um excess when using beta_=2.0. The
beta_c=1.5 or the Draine and Li (2007) models can reconcile predictions with
observations in part of the disks. Some of the remaining excesses occur towards
the centres and can be partly or fully accounted for by non-dust contributions
such as CO(3-2) or, to a lesser extent, free-free or synchrotron emission. In
three non-barred galaxies, the remaining excesses rather occur in the disk
outskirts. This could be a sign of a flattening of the submm slope (and
decrease of the effective emissivity index) with radius in these objects.Comment: 31 pages (including appendix), 7 figures, accepted for publication in
MNRA
Discovery and Observations of ASASSN-13db, an EX Lupi-Type Accretion Event on a Low-Mass T Tauri Star
We discuss ASASSN-13db, an EX Lupi-type ("EXor") accretion event on the young
stellar object (YSO) SDSS J051011.01032826.2 (hereafter SDSSJ0510)
discovered by the All-Sky Automated Survey for SuperNovae (ASAS-SN). Using
archival photometric data of SDSSJ0510 we construct a pre-outburst spectral
energy distribution (SED) and find that it is consistent with a low-mass class
II YSO near the Orion star forming region ( pc). We present
follow-up photometric and spectroscopic observations of the source after the
5.4 magnitude outburst that began in September 2013 and ended
in early 2014. These data indicate an increase in temperature and luminosity
consistent with an accretion rate of yr,
three or more orders of magnitude greater than in quiescence. Spectroscopic
observations show a forest of narrow emission lines dominated by neutral
metallic lines from Fe I and some low-ionization lines. The properties of
ASASSN-13db are similar to those of the EXor prototype EX Lupi during its
strongest observed outburst in late 2008.Comment: 14 pages, 4 figures, 1 table. Updated May 2014 to reflect changes in
the final version published in ApJL. Photometric data presented in this
submission are included as ancillary files. For a brief video explaining this
paper, see http://youtu.be/yRCCrNJnvt
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