The effects of anesthesia in neurodegenerative brain diseases: experimental study

The aim of my PhD Thesis was to verify the effects of isoflurane whenthis is used for the anesthesia of mice subjected to permanent occlusion of themiddle cerebral artery (pMCAO) alone or in combination with a well-knownneuroprotective agent, simvastatin. For this study C57BL/6J mice (n=40) wereselected and were subjected to pMCAO using coagulation. For the anesthesiaketamine/xylazine or isoflurane were used in the absence or presence ofsimvastatin. A comparative analysis among the various experimental groupsbased on quantitative and qualitative analyses was performed in order toevaluate the infarct size and neuronal death within them under the variableexperimental conditions. In summary results showed a similar effect of bothinjectable and inhalational anesthetics used on the size of infarction, and on thenumber of dying neurons within them. The administration of simvastatin had astrong neuroprotective effect as expected that was not affected by the use ofthe two different anesthetics. In conclusion, this study confirmed the safe use ofisoflurane as the preferential anesthetic for this model of ischemic injury in mice,specifically in studies where different neuroprotective agents are assessed inpre-clinical settings of ischemia.Ο σκοπός της διατριβής αυτής ήταν η διερεύνηση της επίδρασης τουισοφλουράνιου όταν αυτό χρησιμοποιείται για την αναισθησία μυών πουυποβάλλονται σε μόνιμη χειρουργική απόφραξη της μέσης εγκεφαλικήςαρτηρίας (permanent Middle Cerebral Artery Occlusion, pMCAO) μόνο του ήμετά από χορήγηση της νευροπροστατευτικής ουσίας σιμβαστατίνης σταεγκεφαλικά έμφρακτα.Για το σκοπό αυτό επιλέχθηκαν μύες της φυλής C57BL / 6J (n = 40) οιοποίοι υποβλήθηκαν σε χειρουργική μόνιμη απόφραξη της μέσης εγκεφαλικήςαρτηρίας (pMCAO) για την πρόκληση εγκεφαλικής ισχαιμίας. Για τηναναισθησία χρησιμοποιήθηκε είτε μίγμα ενέσιμων αναισθητικών ουσιών,κεταμίνη και ξυλαζίνη είτε εισπνευστικό ισοφλουράνιο, απουσία ή παρουσίασιμβαστατίνης.Ακολούθησε συγκριτική μελέτη των πειραματικών ομάδων με ποιοτικέςκαι ποσοτικές μεθοδολογίες για την αξιολόγηση των ισχαιμικών εμφράκτων καιτον θάνατο των κυττάρων του εγκεφάλου σε αυτά.Συνοπτικά τα αποτελέσματα έδειξαν παρόμοια επίδραση των δύοαναισθητικών σχημάτων στο μέγεθος των εμφράκτων καθώς και στο κυτταρικόθάνατο των νευρώνων εντός αυτών. Η χορήγηση σιμβαστατίνης είχε τοαναμενόμενο νευροπροστατευρικό αποτέλεσμα στο μοντέλο της pMCAO τοοποίο δεν δαφοροποιήθηκε χρησιμοποιώντας κεταμίνη/ξυλαζίνη ή ισοφουράνιο.Συμπερασματικά επιβεβαιώθηκε η ασφαλής χρήση του ισοφλουρανίουως αναισθητικού για την χειρουργική μόνιμη απόφραξη της μέσης εγκεφαλικήςαρτηρίας σε μύες ειδικά σε προκλινικές μελέτες αποτελεσματικότητας νευρο-προστατευτικών ουσιών στις οποίες το ισοφλουράνιο δεν «αλλοιώνει» με τηδράση του την δράση υπό εξέταση πιθανών νευροπροστατευτικών ουσιών

Sero-epidemiology investigation of Coxiella burnetii in domestic ruminants throughout most Greek regions

Q fever is not considered as a public health problem in Greece where most regions are considered asCoxiella burnetii free possibly because of the low interest for this agent. Our objective was to conduct a large-scale study to investigate the sero-epidemiology of C. burnetii in domestic ruminants throughout the most of Greek regions. We tested serum samples obtained from goats, sheep and bovines from different regions of Greece. All sera were tested forC. burnetiiIgG antibodies by a commercial ELISA according to the manufacturer's recommendations. We tested 1,173 goats and sheep obtained from 177 different herds and totally 194 (17%) animals from 78 (44%) herds were positive forC. burnetii. Positive animals were present in seven (88%) different regions and seropositivity varied widely among these regions. The highest percentage was observed in Peloponnese (44%), where all the tested herds presented animals withC. burnetiiantibodies. Iota n all Aegean Islands except the island of Limnos we detected goats and sheep positive forC. burnetiiwith seroposivity varying between 2% in Kos to 37% in Rhodes. Finally, in 22 (85%) Greek prefectures we foundC. burnetiiIgG-positive animals whereas in 14 (54%) prefectures more than 50% of tested herds had seropositive animals. We also tested 28 cows from five different herds in Macedonia and Aegean Islands and six (21%) of them, obtained from two (40%) herds were positive. Considering the importance ofC. burnetiifor public health, our data reflect the lack of awareness by veterinarians, physicians and competent authorities as we provide evidence ofC. burnetiiseropositivity in productive animals throughout the most of Greek territories. Due to the increased risk of inhalation of the bacterium by people who entered the affected farms we raise the question of Q fever emergence in Greece

Modelling Human Brucellosis Based on Infection Rate and Vaccination Coverage of Sheep and Goats

In this study, the vaccination coverage, serological sampling and infection rate of sheep and goats were evaluated as predictors for the modeling of human brucellosis in Greece. The human brucellosis disease frequency per local regional unit (RU) varied significantly (RR90) among consecutive years. The notification rate was higher (p p = 0.03) and higher vaccination coverage of the animals (estimate: −0.349 (−0.72; −0.07), p p = 0.001), limiting the reliable estimation of the infection rate in livestock and the design of an integrated One Health model for human disease

Modelling Human Brucellosis Based on Infection Rate and Vaccination Coverage of Sheep and Goats

In this study, the vaccination coverage, serological sampling and infection rate of sheep and goats were evaluated as predictors for the modeling of human brucellosis in Greece. The human brucellosis disease frequency per local regional unit (RU) varied significantly (RR90) among consecutive years. The notification rate was higher (p < 0.001) in the RUs with implementation of vaccination in sheep and goats (vaccination zone—VZ) with a median of 1.4 (IQR 0.0–3.1) compared with the RUs of the eradication zone (EZ) with a median of 0.0 (IQR 0.0–0.0). In VZ, the increased frequency of human cases was associated with delayed vaccine administration (estimate: 0.14 (0.04; 0.29), p = 0.03) and higher vaccination coverage of the animals (estimate: −0.349 (−0.72; −0.07), p < 0.01). However, the flock sampling rate was highly heterogenous among RUs (IQR 10.56–52.93), and inconsistent within RUs throughout the period of the study 2013–2017 (p = 0.001), limiting the reliable estimation of the infection rate in livestock and the design of an integrated One Health model for human disease

Sero‐epidemiology investigation of Coxiella burnetii

Q fever is not considered as a public health problem in Greece where most regions are considered asCoxiella burnetii free possibly because of the low interest for this agent. Our objective was to conduct a large-scale study to investigate the sero-epidemiology of C. burnetii in domestic ruminants throughout the most of Greek regions. We tested serum samples obtained from goats, sheep and bovines from different regions of Greece. All sera were tested forC. burnetiiIgG antibodies by a commercial ELISA according to the manufacturer's recommendations. We tested 1,173 goats and sheep obtained from 177 different herds and totally 194 (17%) animals from 78 (44%) herds were positive forC. burnetii. Positive animals were present in seven (88%) different regions and seropositivity varied widely among these regions. The highest percentage was observed in Peloponnese (44%), where all the tested herds presented animals withC. burnetiiantibodies. Iota n all Aegean Islands except the island of Limnos we detected goats and sheep positive forC. burnetiiwith seroposivity varying between 2% in Kos to 37% in Rhodes. Finally, in 22 (85%) Greek prefectures we foundC. burnetiiIgG-positive animals whereas in 14 (54%) prefectures more than 50% of tested herds had seropositive animals. We also tested 28 cows from five different herds in Macedonia and Aegean Islands and six (21%) of them, obtained from two (40%) herds were positive. Considering the importance ofC. burnetiifor public health, our data reflect the lack of awareness by veterinarians, physicians and competent authorities as we provide evidence ofC. burnetiiseropositivity in productive animals throughout the most of Greek territories. Due to the increased risk of inhalation of the bacterium by people who entered the affected farms we raise the question of Q fever emergence in Greece

Molecular Evidence of a Broad Range of Pathogenic Bacteria in Ctenocephalides spp.: Should We Re-Examine the Role of Fleas in the Transmission of Pathogens?

The internal microbiome of common cat and dog fleas was studied for DNA evidence of pathogenic bacteria. Fleas were grouped in pools by parasitized animal. DNA was extracted and investigated with 16S metagenomics for medically relevant (MR) bacteria, based on the definitions of the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (WHO). The MR bacterial species totaled 40, were found in 60% of flea-pools (N = 100), and included Acinetobacterbaumannii, Bacteroidesfragilis, Clostridiumperfringens, Enterococcusfaecalis, E. mundtii, Fusobacteriumnucleatum, Haemophilusaegyptius, Kingellakingae, Klebsiellapneumoniae, Leptotrichiabuccalis, L. hofstadii, Moraxellalacunata, Pasteurellamultocida, Propionibacteriumacnes, P. propionicum, Proteusmirabilis, Pseudomonasaeruginosa, Rickettsiaaustralis, R. hoogstraalii, Salmonellaenterica, and various Bartonella, Staphylococcus, and Streptococcus species. B. henselae (p = 0.004) and B. clarridgeiae (p = 0.006) occurred more frequently in fleas from cats, whereas Rickettsiahoogstraalii (p = 0.031) and Propionibacteriumacnes (p = 0.029) had a preference in fleas from stray animals. Most of the discovered MR species can form biofilm, and human exposure may theoretically occur through the flea-host interface. The fitness of these pathogenic bacteria to cause infection and the potential role of fleas in the transmission of a broad range of diseases should be further investigated

Sunbathing, a possible risk factor of murine typhus infection in Greece

International audienceBackgroundThere are few studies about the presence of murine typhus in Greece. Our objective was to conduct a large scale retrospective investigation to determine the clinical and epidemiological features of patients diagnosed with murine typhus in Greece.Methodology/Principal findingsFrom 2012 to 2019 serum samples from hospitalized patients and outpatients throughout Greece suspected for murine typhus infection were tested by immunofluorescence assay for Rickettsia typhi. Immunofluorescence positive samples obtained since 2016 were also tested by qPCR targeting R. typhi. Clinical and epidemiological data were retrospectively collected for the patients with confirmed murine typhus. Overall, we tested 5,365 different patients and, in total, 174 patients from all geographic regions of Greece were diagnosed with murine typhus. The most frequently reported sign or symptom was fever (89%), followed by headache (84%) and rash (81%). The classical triad of fever, headache, and rash was present in 72% of patients during their illness. Severe infections with complications including acute renal failure or septic shock were not recorded. The majority of cases (81%) occurred during May–October and peaked in June and September. Most of patients (81%) infected in Athens, recalled that their only activity the last weeks before symptoms onset was swimming on the beach and 59% of them also reported an insect bite while sunbathing.Conclusions/SignificanceOur results may reflect the reemergence of murine typhus in Greece and we highlight the importance of awareness of this difficult-to-recognize undifferentiated febrile illness