Phage Therapy as a New Approach in Treating Emerging Antibiotic Resistant Infections

Despite the progress in treatment of infectious diseases, ability of microorganisms to develop the resistance to routine antibiotics has still remained as a big global challenge in clinics. This subject matter keeps the infections top in the list of life threatening diseases especially in those individuals suffering from nosocomial infections. The importance of this global health challenge urges researchers to find an alternative solution with more efficacies to treat infections. There are some alternative approaches by which the global spread of resistant bacteria could be controlled. Through these ways, using bacteriophages instead of different generation of antibiotics brings many promises. According to results of different studies using bacteriophages in the management of infectious disease especially in nosocomial infections not only helps to reduce the spread of antibiotics resistance but also raises the hopes for the rescue of the suffering patients. Bacteriophages can open a new therapeutic window in the control and the treatment of the infectious disease with better efficacy.HIGHLIGHTS•Bacteriophage can be used as an antimicrobial agent for treatment of bacterial infection.•Bacterial resistance to routine antibiotics is a big challenge in the world.•Specificity toward bacteria is one of the important characteristic of phages

Ultrasound and Perforated Viscus; Dirty Fluid, Dirty Shadows, and Peritoneal Enhancement.

Early detection of free air in the peritoneal cavity is vital in diagnosis of life-threatening emergencies, and can play a significant role in expediting treatment. We present a series of cases in which bedside ultrasound (US) in the emergency department accurately identified evidence of free intra-peritoneal air and echogenic (dirty) free fluid consistent with a surgical final diagnosis of a perforated hollow viscus. In all patients with suspected perforated viscus, clinicians were able to accurately identify the signs of pneumoperitoneum including enhanced peritoneal stripe sign (EPSS), peritoneal stripe reverberations, and focal air collections associated with dirty shadowing or distal multiple reflections as ring down artifacts. In all cases, hollow viscus perforation was confirmed surgically. It seems that, performing US in patients with suspected perforated viscus can accurately identify presence of intra-peritoneal echogenic or dirty free fluid as well as evidence of free air, and may expedite patient management

Tumor-derived urinary exosomal long non-coding RNAs as diagnostic biomarkers for bladder cancer

Bladder cancer (BC) is the sixth most common malignancy in men and 17th in women. Exosomal long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been defined as a novel biomarker for BC. The aim of this study is to evaluate the clinical significance of urine exosomal PVT-1, ANRIL and PCAT-1 as a biomarker in BC patients with tumors classified as T1 or T2. Exosomes were isolated from urine of BC patients and healthy donors, then characterized according to their shape, size, and exosome markers by Electron Microscopy, Dynamic light scattering, and Western blotting. Exosomal lncRNAs extraction was done to determine the expression levels of PVT-1, ANRIL and PCAT-1 by qRT-PCR. ANRIL and PCAT-1 expression was significantly higher in BC patients compared to normal subjects. To evaluate the performance of the identified lncRNAs for BC detection, we performed ROC curves analysis. The diagnostic accuracy of ANRIL and PCAT-1, measured by AUC, was 0.7229 (sensitivity = 46.67 % and specificity = 87.5 %) and 0.7292 (sensitivity = 43.33 % and specificity = 87.5 %). Transcript levels of lncRNAs in urinary exosomes are potential diagnostic biomarkers in bladder cancer

Glucomannan enhanced the macrophage activity in exposure to methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA): in-vitro study

Background and Objectives: The increasing number of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus persuade the need for preventive measures. Glucomannan is a polysaccharide choice for developing immunological strategies. This study aimed to investigate changes in gene expression and phagocytic activity of macrophage cells in the presence of glucomannan. Materials and Methods: The effect of different concentrations of glucomannan (25, 50, and 100 µg/mL) on the phagocytic activity of macrophage cells was measured using the colony count method. The expression of Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha (TNF-α) and Inducible Nitric Oxide Synthase (iNOS) genes was evaluated by Real-Time PCR. Results: The concentrations of glucomannan significantly reduced the bacterial Colony-Forming Unit (CFU) and increased the phagocytic activity of macrophage cells. The maximum effect of glucomannan on iNOS and TNF-Α genes expression was 100 µg/mL. Conclusion: Glucomannan should be considered an adjuvant that stimulates the immune system. It may increase the expression of TNF-α and iNOS genes and the phagocytic activity of macrophage cells against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus

The Effect of Tramadol Addiction on Convulsion and Related Factors

Background: Tramadol is a drug used to control severe pain. Various side effects of this drug have been reported, one of the most important is seizures. The exact cause of tramadol-induced seizures is not known. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of tramadol addiction on convulsion and related factors in 2018. Methods: This cross-sectional study was performed on 216 patients with convulsion referred to Imam Hossain Hospital of Shahroud in 2018. After reviewing and stabilizing vital signs, a questionnaire containing demographic information, medical history, medication use (especially tramadol), and drugs was completed by patients. The association between recurrent convulsion and predictors were assessed using multivariable logistic regression. Data were analyzed and compared using SPSS statistical software, version 16 and related statistical tests. The significant level was set at 0.05. Results: In this study from 216 participants, 154 (71.3%) of them were male and the rest were female. The mean age of the all patients was 44.8±18.2 years (17-72 years) that was no significant difference between the two groups. Recurrent convulsion was significantly associated with history of opium use (Pvalue<0.032) and tramadol using (Pvalue<0.001) and there was no significant relationship with other variables. Tramadol using cans double your chances of having a recurrent convulsion [OR=2 (95% CI: 1.752 – 2.689)]. Conclusions: The results of this study showed that taking tramadol in opium users can increase the incidence of recurrent convulsion, but more research is needed to fully confirm this. Key words: Tramadol, Convulsion, Side effect

The Relationship between Uric Acid and Blood Glucose in Diabetic Patients

Background: some studies have shown that there is a correlation between serum uric acid and blood glucose levels so that these changes are not exactly clear. This study was conducted to determine the relationship between uric acid and blood glucose in diabetic patients. Methods: This cross-sectional study was performed on 190 type 2 diabetic (DM) patients in Shahroud by convenience sampling method. FBS, uric acid, triglyceride, and total cholesterol under standard conditions were measured. Patients were divided into four groups in terms of uric acid level. Results: In this study, 53.7% of patients were male. The average age of cases was 58.3 ± 13.5 years. There was a significant difference in uric acid between age groups (Pvalue<0.023), educational levels (Pvalue<0.041), BMI (Pvalue<0.012) and cholesterol (Pvalue<0.002) groups. Also, there was a significant reverse relationship between mean FBS (Pvalue<0.001), blood glucose two hours after feeding (Pvalue<0.001), and HbA1c (Pvalue<0.02) with different levels of uric acid. Conclusions: The results showed that there was a significant and reversal relationship between the levels of uric acid and glucose levels. In order to control the level of uric acid, the level of glucose in these patients is also to be measured and controlled. Keywords: Diabetes mellitus, Blood glucose, Uric acid.   &nbsp

The Sensitivity and Specificity of Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification and PCR Methods in Detection of Foodborne Microorganisms: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Abstract Background: The loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) method is frequently used for identifying many microorganisms. The present review aimed to evaluate the sensitivity and specificity of LAMP method for detection of food-borne bacteria and to compare these features with those of polymerase chain reaction (PCR), as an alternative molecular diagnostic procedure, and with cultivation method, as the gold standard method. Methods: The literature was searched in electronic databases (PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and EMBASE) for recruiting publications within Jan 2000 to Jul 2021. We used the combinations of keywords including foodborne disease, LAMP, PCR, Loop-mediated isothermal amplification, and polymerase chain reaction. Meta-analysis was used to adjust the correlation and heterogeneity between the studies. The efficiency of the methods was presented by negative likelihood ratio, positive likelihood ratio, sensitivity, specificity, and odds ratio using forest plots. A Pvalue less than 0.05 was considered as statistical significance cut off. The confidence intervals were presented at the 95% interval. Results: Overall, 23 relevant studies were analyzed. The sensitivities of LAMP and PCR methods were estimated to be 96.6% (95% CI: 95.0-97.7) and 95.6% (95%CI: 91.5-97.8), respectively. The specificities of LAMP and PCR were also estimated to be 97.6% (95%CI: 92.6-99.3) and 98.7% (95%CI: 96.5-99.5), respectively. Conclusion: The specificities of LAMP and PCR assays were determined by comparing their results with cultivation method as the gold standard. Overall, the specificity of both PCR and LAMP methods was low for detection of fastidious bacteria. Nevertheless, LAMP and PCR methods have acceptable specificities and sensitivities, and their application in clinical practice necessitates more studies. Keywords: Food-borne pathogen; Specificity; Sensitivity; Loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP); Polymerase chain reactio

Microbial Evaluation of Fresh, Minimally-processed Vegetables and Bagged Sprouts from Chain Supermarkets

The aim of this study was to evaluate the bacterial and fungal quality of minimally-processed vegetables (MPV) and sprouts. A total of 116 samples of fresh-cut vegetables, ready-to-eat salads, and mung bean and wheat sprouts were randomly collected and analyzed. The load of aerobic mesophilic bacteria was minimum and maximum in the fresh-cut vegetables and fresh mung bean sprouts respectively, corresponding to populations of 5.3 and 8.5 log CFU/g. E. coli O157:H7 was found to be absent in all samples; however, other E. coli strains were detected in 21 samples (18.1%), and Salmonella spp. were found in one mung bean (3.1%) and one ready-to-eat salad sample (5%). Yeasts were the predominant organisms and were found in 100% of the samples. Geotrichum, Fusarium, and Penicillium spp. were the most prevalent molds in mung sprouts while Cladosporium and Penicillium spp. were most frequently found in ready-to-eat salad samples. According to results from the present study, effective control measures should be implemented to minimize the microbiological contamination of fresh produce sold in Tehran, Iran

Weak or no association of TCF7L2 variants with Type 2 diabetes risk in an Arab population

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The rs7903146 and rs12255372 variants of <it>TCF7L2 </it>have been strongly associated with type 2 diabetes (T2D) risk in most populations studied to date. Meta-analysis of 27 different studies has resulted in a global OR of 1.46 [1.42–1.51] (rs7903146 variant). Thus far, despite a high incidence of T2D, the role of this variant in Arabs has not been established.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We performed a case-control association study using 522 Saudi T2D patients (WHO criteria), and 346 controls (age > 60; fasting plasma glucose < 7 mmol/L). Genotyping was performed by pyrosequencing. Statistical analyses were performed using SPSS version 13.0 for Windows (SPSS, Chicago, IL, USA).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>For rs7903146, the T allele frequency of the cases (0.415) was not different from that observed in the controls (0.405). The crude odds ratio (OR) was 1.04 with a 95% CI of 0.86–1.27 (P = 0.675). For rs12255372, the T allele frequency of the cases (0.368) was not different from that observed in the controls (0.355). Retrospective power calculations based upon an OR of 1.46 reported in a comprehensive meta-analysis of <it>TCF7L2 </it>risk, indicated this study was sufficiently powered (96.92%; α = 0.05) to detect an effect of similar magnitude to that reported for rs7903146.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our study is consistent with weak or no association of T2D in Arabs with the two <it>TCF7L2 </it>variants, however it cannot rule out an effect of other SNPs in this gene. Future studies in this population are required to confirm our findings and may indicate the presence of yet to be defined genetic risk factors for T2D.</p

Identification and characterisation of staphylococcal components expressed during human infection

EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo