First report of coexistence of AmpC beta-lactamase genes in Klebsiella pneumoniae strains isolated from burn patients

Klebsiella spp. are among the most frequently isolated bacteria from burn wounds. These organisms are among the most important opportunistic pathogens, causing hospital-acquired and healthcare-associated infections worldwide. Limited information is available about prevalence of AmpC-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae from burn patients. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the characterization of AmpC beta-lactamase among K. pneumoniae isolated from burn patients. Samples were collected from wound specimens of patients with burn injury from a burn hospital in Tehran during 18 months (March 2015 to August 2016). For phenotypic detection of AmpC beta-lactamase, disk diffusion method with cefoxitin was used for screening, AmpC disk test and boronic acid inhibitor-based method were used as confirmatory tests. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was performed to screen all isolates with AmpC genes including ACCM, DHAM, EBCM, FOXM, MOXM, and CITM. Finally, PCR products were validated using sequencing. During this study, 102 isolates of K. pneumoniae were collected. Among these isolates, 52.9% suspected as AmpC producer by disk agar diffusion cefoxitin screening method. By confirmatory phenotypic methods, 19.6% of isolates considered as AmpC producer. Molecular analysis revealed 43.1% of cefoxitin-resistant isolates harbored at least one of the AmpC genes including CITM (22.5%), EBCM (21.5%), DHAM (7.8%), and FOXM (0.98%). In addition, 5.8% of isolates harbored two AmpC genes and 2.9% harbored three AmpC genes. In conclusion, K. pneumoniae is becoming a serious problem in burn patients. Accurate and precise methods and guidelines should be designed for detection of antibiotic-resistant mechanisms. Our data showed the high rate of AmpC beta-lactamase among K. pneumoniae isolated from burn patients, which limit the treatment options. Therefore, the results of this study can provide evidence to help for appropriate treatment of burn patients

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Inhibitory Effect of Phenol on Ammonia Removal by Nitrification of High Ammonia and Phenol Contaminated Coke Wastewater from Isfahan Steel Company (ISCO)

In this study, the nitrification process using enriched ammonia oxidizing bacteria was used for ammonium removal from coke wastewater of Isfahan Steel Company (ISCO). Influent and effluent samples containing ~600 mg l-1 ammonium and 2530-550 mg l-1 phenol were collected. For comparative assessment, ammonia removal was performed on artificial media in which removal of ammonium took a shorter time (8 days) than in the real wastewater. Ammonium removal efficiency from the effluent was higher than that from the influent due to the reduced phenol content in the former. The best result occurred in the treatment composed of effluent, enriched nitrifiers, and bicarbonate for which a record ammonium removal of 14 days was observed. MPN method was used to count and compare colonies of nitrifying bacteria in the samples. The enriched nitrifier sample containing 4.6×103 cell ml-1 was the best. The results show that phenol has inhibitory effects on nitrification. Carbonate ions and enriched nitrifying bacteria have positive effects on ammonium removal in all samples

Removal of Ammonium from Ammonium-Contaminated Effluent of Isfahan Steel Company (ESCO) by Activated Sludge and Compost

Removal of ammonium is very important due to its toxicity to the environment and human being. The wastewater of Isfahan Steel Company (ESC) Contains high concentration of phenol (maximum 3000 mg/l) and ammonium (maximum 2000 mg/l). Therefore its effluent In the range of 1400 mg/l was used in this study as a feed. Synthetic wastewater also used for the comparison of removal efficiency. The bioremediation of ammonium in wastewater treatment of Isfahan Steel Company is very low. In this study activated sludge and compost were used to remove ammonium from effluent of Steel Company and synthetic wastewater. The results showed the maximum removal of ammonium by using activated sludge and compost in combination with mineral salts and glucose and CaCl2 in the effluent of ESC and synthetic wastewater were found 38.7% and 75.7% of respectively. The application of activated sludge and compost in effluents containing low ammonium and toxicity is very significant. Overall, due to considerable efficiency and low cost, this process could be used for ammonium removal in industrial wastewater

Energy, Exergy, and Economic Analysis of Cryogenic Distillation and Chemical Scrubbing for Biogas Upgrading and Hydrogen Production

Biogas is one of the most important sources of renewable energy and hydrogen production, which needs upgrading to be functional. In this study, two methods of biogas upgrading from organic parts of municipal waste were investigated. For biogas upgrading, this article used a 3E analysis and simulated cryogenic separation and chemical scrubbing. The primary goal was to compare thermoeconomic indices and create hydrogen by reforming biomethane. The exergy analysis revealed that the compressor of the refrigerant and recovery column of MEA contributed the most exergy loss in the cryogenic separation and chemical scrubbing. The total exergy efficiency of cryogenic separation and chemical scrubbing was 85% and 84%. The energy analysis revealed a 2.07% lower energy efficiency for chemical scrubbing. The capital, energy, and total annual costs of chemical absorption were 56.51, 26.33, and 54.44 percent lower than those of cryogenic separation, respectively, indicating that this technology is more economically feasible. Moreover, because the thermodynamic efficiencies of the two methods were comparable, the chemical absorption method was adopted for hydrogen production. The biomethane steam reforming was simulated, and the results indicated that this method required an energy consumption of 90.48 MJkgH2. The hydrogen production intensity equaled 1.98 kmoleH2kmolebiogas via a 79.92% methane conversion

Analyzing the Concept, Status and Nature of Buy-out Clause in Professional Football Player’s Employment Contract; the FIFA Regulations and Iranian Law Perspective

As for the buy-out clause, if the player pays the buy-out fee, he/she can terminate the contract prematurely without specifying any cause. The current research principally aims to analyze the legal nature of the buy-out clause and what are its legality conditions in FIFA regulations and Iranian law. Regarding the nature of the buy-out clause, different perspectives have been raised. From a perspective, the buy-out clause can be classified as a liquidated damage clause and is subject to prohibition of exorbitant and unfair liquidation damage provision. According to another perspective, the nature of the buy-out clause is a contractual right. The buy-out fee is in consideration for the exercise of contractual rights. Currently, the latter opinion is preferred by FIFA. Under Iranian law, basically, the nature of buy-out is valid and acceptable, but according to the Iranian Football League’s new charter of registration of employment contracts for the season 2023-2024, the use buy-out clause in the contract of Iranian players is prohibited. The findings of the present study with the analytical-descriptive approach indicate that the nature of the buy-out clause is a conditional opt-out right. Termination by this method should be deemed to be based on the parties’ (prior) consent. The player can trigger the buy-out clause and terminate his/her contractual relationship unilaterally and prematurely upon the unconditional and complete payment of the buy-out fee

Data supporting the comparative life cycle assessment of different municipal solid waste management scenarios

Environmental assessment of municipal solid waste (MSW) management scenarios would help to select eco-friendly scenarios. In this study, the inventory data in support of life cycle assessment of different MSW are presented. The scenarios were defined as: anaerobic digestion (AD, Sc-0), landfilling combined with composting (Sc-1), incineration (Sc-2), incineration combined with composting (Sc-3), and AD combined with incineration (Sc-4). The current article contains flowcharts of the different scenarios. Additionally, six supplementary files including inventory data on the different scenarios, data on the different damage assessment categories, normalization, and single scores are presented (Supplementary files 1–6). The analysis of the different scenarios revealed that the most eco-friendly scenario to be implemented in the future would be the combination of AD and incineration (Sc-4)

The Impact of Existing and Potential Competition of Product Market on Disclosure Quality of Companies Listed on Tehran Stock Exchange Using Factor Analysis on Competition Variables

This study investigated the relationship between product market competition and disclosure quality of 131 companies listed on Tehran stock exchange within 17 industries and during the period of 2007-2013. First, in order to assess the market more accurately, eight common competition indicators were used. Then using factor analysis technique, these indicators were summarized into three factors: potential competition, existing competition and industry profitability. Finally, the research hypotheses were tested using panel data with fixed effects. Results suggest that there is a significant positive relationship between potential competition and disclosure quality, while the relationship between existing competition and disclosure quality is significant and negative. In other words, the level of disclosure quality regarding these two dimensions of competition was determined. This means that if potential competition is stronger than existing competition, companies are forced to disclose reliable and timely information. Meanwhile, if existing competition is stronger than their potential competition, it is not essential for companies to disclose the reliable and timely information. Therefore, the tendency to increase the level of disclosure quality in these companies is low

Antimicrobial combination effects against multidrug‐resistant Acinetobacter baumannii and Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains: A cross‐sectional study

Abstract Background and Aims Emergence of multidrug resistance in non‐fermenting Gram‐negative bacilli is a threat to public health. Combination therapy is a strategy for the treatment of antibiotic‐resistant infections. Methods In this cross‐sectional study, a total of 63 nonduplicate clinical isolates of Acinetobacter baumannii and Pseudomonas aeruginosa were collected from various specimens. Identification of bacterial isolates was performed by phenotypic and molecular tests. Antibiotic susceptibility patterns and detection of β‐lactamase genes were determined using the broth microdilution and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) techniques, respectively. Then, the combined effects analysis was determined by the checkerboard method. Based on the status of resistance to carbapenems (imipenem and meropenem), 25 isolates of each genus were selected for further investigation. Results For A. baumannii, blaOXA‐23, blaOXA‐58, and blaOXA‐48 genes were positive in 21 (84%), 17 (68%), and 11 (44%) of isolates, respectively. In P. aeruginosa isolates, blaVIM was the most common gene (44%) and other genes including blaIMP, blaNDM, and blaOXA‐23 were found in nine (36%), six (24%), and three (12%) isolates, respectively. Meropenem (MER)‐tigecycline (TIG) had a significant synergistic effect against 20 (80%) A. baumannii (p value < 0.001). This combination was also efficient against 5 (20%) P. aeruginosa isolates. Moreover, the other combination, tigecycline‐amikacin (TIG‐AMK) was effective against 10 (40%) A. baumannii isolates. The combination of colistin (COL) and MER showed a significant synergistic effect against 21 (84%) A. baumannii (p value < 0.001) and 17 (68%) P. aeruginosa isolates (p value < 0.001). Conclusion The MER‐TIG and COL‐MER combinations are promising options against resistant bacteria. Our study could be helpful for the development of a new treatment recommendation

Untapped Opportunities in Additive Manufacturing with Metals: From New and Graded Materials to Post-Processing

Metal additive manufacturing (AM) is an innovative manufacturing method with numerous metallurgical benefits, including fine and hierarchical microstructures and enhanced mechanical properties, thanks to the utilization of a local heat source and the rapid solidification nature of the process. High levels of productivity, together with the ability to produce complex geometries and large components, have added to the versatile applicability of metal AM with applications already implemented in various sectors such as medicine, transportation, and aerospace. To further enhance the potential benefits of AM in the context of small- to medium-scale bulk production, metallurgical complexities should be determined and investigated. Hence, this review paper focuses on three significant metallurgical aspects of metal AM processes: in situ alloying, functionally graded materials, and surface treatments for AM parts. The current text is expected to offer insights for future research works on metal AM to expand its potential applications in various advanced manufacturing sectors