Cefotaximase (CTX-M) and quinolone resistance genes (qnr) with additional antimicrobial resistance mechanisms in commensal Escherichia coli from healthy pigs

Concerning the importance of food producing animals as potential reservoirs of enteric bacteria with clinically relevant antimicrobial resistance traits, we tested the prevalence of extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)-producing and fluroquinolone resistant E. coli from pigs in order identify multiple resistance mechanisms circulating in pig farms in Hungary and Croatia with special regards to plasmid mediated genes encoding cefotaximases (CTX-M) and quinolone resistance (qnr). For this purpose, faecal samples were collected from pigs representing three farms from Hungary and six farms from Croatia with 45 and 60 samples respectively. Farms were located in separate regions of the countries. Cefotaxime or nalidixic acid resistance were used as prime markers for the isolation of multiresistant E. coli strains. A second selection was based on resistance to additional antimicrobials (i.e. gentamicin) aiming to reduce the collection to isolates with representative multiresistance phenotypes. In several cases more than two different multiresistance phenotypes have been isolated from the same pig, which were considered as independent E. coli isolates. This collection of multidrug resistant E. coli contained 139 strains and was tested for the presence of blaCTX-M and qnr genes by PCR. Selected isolates carrying genes blaCTX-M and/or qnr are being subjected for confirmation and further typing of antimicrobial resistance genes by using the PCR-microarray AMR05. Cefotaxim resistant E. coli have been detected in one Hungarian and one Croatian farm representing 17% of all pigs tested. In majority of the strains, the plasmid-related resistance phenotypes such as ampicillin, cefotaxim, gentamicin and tetracycline occurred in multiple combinations. In 11% of the strains the coexistence of Ctx-Nal phenotypes was detected, together with the presence of the cefotaximase gene blaCTX-M. E. coli strains with nalidixin resistance phenotype have been predominantly (70%) characterizing healthy pigs independently from the farm and country of isolation. Ciprofloxacin resistant strains occured on one farm only. The plasmid-mediated fluoroquinolone resistance gene qnrS was identified in 11% of the strains, with or without the nalidixin-ciprofloxacin resistant phenotype, while genes qnrA and qnrB were absent. Overall, our results lead to conclude that multiresistant commensal E. coli strains carrying plasmid-mediated CTX-M type cefotaximase and/or quinolone resistance genes in different combinations are widespread on some pig farms but much less on others, most likely reflecting differences in use of antimicrobials. Ama Szmolka is a holder of János Bolyai Stipend of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences

Government-Opposition Dynamics in Spain under the Pressure of Economic Collapse and the Debt Crisis

Government - opposition relations in Spain have been long characterised by a high level of consensus and cooperation. The question analysed here is whether the economic crisis initiated in 2008 has created unprecedented levels of conflict in the political system or whether opposition parties have maintained a cooperative strategy oriented to influence far-reaching policy decisions. Results illustrate that patterns of consensus have decreased significantly since the outbreak of the crisis, and this is partly explained by the rising amount of legislation with socio-economic content, variations in the government's popularity, and the type of government. The analysis also shows that the crisis has increased the incentives of opposition parliamentary groups to oppose European Union legislation, especially among left parties

Euclid preparation: XXIX. Water ice in spacecraft Part I: The physics of ice formation and contamination

Material outgassing in a vacuum leads to molecular contamination, a well-known problem in spaceflight. Water is the most common contaminant in cryogenic spacecraft, altering numerous properties of optical systems. Too much ice means that Euclid’s calibration requirements cannot be met anymore. Euclid must then be thermally decontaminated, which is a month-long risky operation. We need to understand how ice affects our data to build adequate calibration and survey plans. A comprehensive analysis in the context of an astrophysical space survey has not been done before. In this paper we look at other spacecraft with well-documented outgassing records. We then review the formation of thin ice films, and find that for Euclid a mix of amorphous and crystalline ices is expected. Their surface topography – and thus optical properties – depend on the competing energetic needs of the substrate-water and the water-water interfaces, and they are hard to predict with current theories. We illustrate that with scanning-tunnelling and atomic-force microscope images of thin ice films. Sophisticated tools exist to compute contamination rates, and we must understand their underlying physical principles and uncertainties. We find considerable knowledge errors on the diffusion and sublimation coefficients, limiting the accuracy of outgassing estimates. We developed a water transport model to compute contamination rates in Euclid, and find agreement with industry estimates within the uncertainties. Tests of the Euclid flight hardware in space simulators did not pick up significant contamination signals, but they were also not geared towards this purpose; our in-flight calibration observations will be much more sensitive. To derive a calibration and decontamination strategy, we need to understand the link between the amount of ice in the optics and its effect on the data. There is little research about this, possibly because other spacecraft can decontaminate more easily, quenching the need for a deeper understanding. In our second paper, we quantify the impact of iced optics on Euclid’s data

Euclid preparation. XXIX. Water ice in spacecraft part I: The physics of ice formation and contamination

Molecular contamination is a well-known problem in space flight. Water is the most common contaminant and alters numerous properties of a cryogenic optical system. Too much ice means that Euclid's calibration requirements and science goals cannot be met. Euclid must then be thermally decontaminated, a long and risky process. We need to understand how iced optics affect the data and when a decontamination is required. This is essential to build adequate calibration and survey plans, yet a comprehensive analysis in the context of an astrophysical space survey has not been done before. In this paper we look at other spacecraft with well-documented outgassing records, and we review the formation of thin ice films. A mix of amorphous and crystalline ices is expected for Euclid. Their surface topography depends on the competing energetic needs of the substrate-water and the water-water interfaces, and is hard to predict with current theories. We illustrate that with scanning-tunnelling and atomic-force microscope images. Industrial tools exist to estimate contamination, and we must understand their uncertainties. We find considerable knowledge errors on the diffusion and sublimation coefficients, limiting the accuracy of these tools. We developed a water transport model to compute contamination rates in Euclid, and find general agreement with industry estimates. Tests of the Euclid flight hardware in space simulators did not pick up contamination signals; our in-flight calibrations observations will be much more sensitive. We must understand the link between the amount of ice on the optics and its effect on Euclid's data. Little research is available about this link, possibly because other spacecraft can decontaminate easily, quenching the need for a deeper understanding. In our second paper we quantify the various effects of iced optics on spectrophotometric data.Comment: 35 pages, 22 figures, A&A in press. Changes to previous version: language edits, added Z. Bolag as author in the arxiv PDF (was listed in the ASCII author list and in the journal PDF, but not in the arxiv PDF). This version is identical to the journal versio