Seroprevalence of cytomegalovirus infection in the population of Polish pregnant women

Objectives: Human cytomegalovirus is a common etiological agent of infections and is the most common cause of intrauterine infections. Due to the scale and importance of infections during pregnancy, in this study we investigated the incidence of specific IgG and IgM antibodies directed against HCMV in population of Polish pregnant women. Material and Methods: The retrospective study included 1332 pregnant women who were hospitalized at the DFMMG in Lodz between 1999 and 2009. In this group, 117 women had serological features of acute cytomegalovirus infections (study group) and 51 women were seronegative for IgG, IgM and IgA antibodies (control group). HCMV infections in pregnant women were diagnosed by serological assays (IgG, IgM, IgA, IgG avidity) and clinical symptoms. Results: Seroprevalence of CMV IgG was estimated to be 76.7% (n=985). Anti-HCMV immunoglobulin M antibodies were detected in 13% of pregnant women (n = 179). Conclusions: There was no significant correlation between the prevalence of IgG and IgM antibodies and factors such as maternal age, parity, a number of births, place of residence and marital status

Ocena wrażliwości na wybrane leki przeciwgrzybicze szczepów grzybów wyizolowanych od kobiet ciężarnych z cukrzycą oraz zdrowych

Abstract Objectives: An increase in the frequency of fungal infections is related with progress in mycology and decreased susceptibility of fungal strains to commonly used antifungal agents. Diabetes and pregnancy are two independent factors believed to be responsible for an increased risk of mycoses. The aim: The aim of the study was to assess the susceptibility of fungal strains isolated from pregnant women with diabetes as well as healthy pregnant women to ten antifungal agents. Material and methods: In the study 106 diabetic pregnant women and 102 healthy pregnant women were included. Susceptibility of the fungal strains was assessed in vitro by disk diffusion test. Results: Fungal strains were detected in 190 (30.4%) out of 624 samples obtained from vagina, rectum and oral cavity of 208 women. Fungi were found in 42.1% of pregnant women with diabetes and in 41.5% of health pregnant patients. Strains isolated from the diabetic women showed the highest susceptibility to pimaricin (34.4%), nystatin (31.3%) and tioconazole (31.3%) while those from healthy pregnant women were mostly susceptible to itraconazole (59.6%) and miconazole (53.2%). The comparison of the susceptibility of fungi to antifungal agents revealed that the strains isolated form healthy women were significantly more susceptible to clotrimazole (p=0.003), itraconazole (pStreszczenie Wstęp: Obserwowany wzrost częstości zarażeń grzybami jest związany z postępem diagnostyki mikologicznej oraz ze zmniejszona wrażliwością szczepów grzybów na powszechnie używane leki przeciwgrzybicze. Cukrzyca i ciąża są rozpatrywane jako niezależne czynniki zwiększające ryzyko zarażeń grzybami. Cel pracy: Celem pracy była ocena wrażliwości szczepów grzybów, wyizolowanych od kobiet ciężarnych z cukrzycą i zdrowych, na dziesięć leków przeciwgrzybiczych. Materiały i metody: Badania przeprowadzono wśród 102 ciężarnych z cukrzycą oraz 106 losowo wybranych zdrowych ciężarnych. Oznaczenia wrażliwości grzybów na leki dokonano metodą dyfuzyjno-krążkową. Wyniki: Spośród 624 próbek pobranych z pochwy, odbytu i jamy ustnej od 208 kobiet, grzyby wykryto łącznie w 190 (30,4%) próbkach, w tym u 42,1% ciężarnych z cukrzycą oraz u 41,5% zdrowych ciężarnych. Szczepy wyizolowane od ciężarnych z cukrzycą wykazywały największą wrażliwość na pimarycynę (34,4%), nystatynę (31,3%) oraz tiokonazol (31,3%), natomiast szczepy izolowane od zdrowych ciężarnych były najbardziej wrażliwe na itrakonazol (59,6%) i mikonazol (53,2%). Porównanie stopnia wrażliwości szczepów na poszczególne leki w obu badanych grupach wykazało, że grzyby izolowane od zdrowych ciężarnych wykazywały większą wrażliwość na działanie klotrimazolu (p=0,003), itrakonazolu (

Successful treatment of fetal bilateral primary chylothorax – report of the two cases

Primary fetal chylothorax is an uncommon complication, associated with high perinatal morbidity and mortality. In our report, we describe two cases of fetal bilateral primary chylothorax successfully treated with pleuro-amniotic In both cases, ultrasound scans showed bilateral, hypoechoic fluid in the pleural space without any associated structural malformations and features of infection and aneuploidy. Laboratory analysis of pleural fluids revealed 79% and 92% of lymphocytes, respectively, confirming chylothorax in both fetuses. In the first case, pleuro-amniotic shunts were successfully inserted at 31 weeks and 6 days of gestation. Ultrasound scan after two weeks showed expansion of the left lung and lack of fluid in both pleural cavities. At 39 weeks of gestation, a 2660 g baby boy was delivered by cesarean section (Apgar score: 9). The child did not require surgical intervention and was discharged home on day 16 of life. In the second case, the insertion of shunts (at 24 weeks and 6 days of gestation) also significantly reduced the amount of the fluid in the pleural cavities, but one shunt had to be surgically removed after birth. At 30 weeks and 2 days of gestation, a cesarean section was performed due to maternal cholestasis. A female weighing 1400 g was delivered (Apgar score: 7). The chest X-ray revealed only a small amount of fluid in the left pleural cavity. The infant was discharged on postnatal day 26, in good condition and with body weight of 2150g. Pleuro-amniotic shunt insertion is a method of choice in the treatment of confirmed primary fetal chylothorax

Ocena związku poziomu wiremii HCMV u matki z przebiegiem ciąży i stanem urodzeniowym noworodków

Congenital cytomegaly is caused by intrauterine mother-to-fetus HCMV transmission and constitutes the most common vertical infection. Objectives: The aim of the study was to analyze the viremia level in maternal blood and its influence on the course and duration of pregnancy, as well as newborn condition. Material and methods: The material included blood samples collected from 117 pregnant women with serological features of HCMV infection and from 29 neonates hospitalized at DFMMG in Lodz between 1999 and 2009. The presence of HCMV DNA in the maternal and fetal blood was tested using real-time PCR. Results: Prevalence of maternal viremia was observed to increase the risk of viremia in neonates, as compared to children born to mothers with no viremia. However, lack of HCMV DNA in maternal blood does not exclude fetal infection in utero. Newborn condition assessed by Apgar scores was significantly lower in the group of infants born to mothers with serological features of acute cytomegaly (pWrodzona cytomegalia wywołana transmisją wirusa cytomegalii (HCMV) od matki do płodu, jest najczęstszym zakażeniem wertykalnym. Cel pracy: Celem pracy była ocena poziomu wiremii u kobiet ciężarnych i jej wpływu na przebieg i czas trwania ciąży oraz stan urodzeniowy noworodków. Materiał i metody: Materiałem do badań była krew pobrana od 117 ciężarnych z serologicznymi cechami zakażenia HCMV oraz 29 noworodków hospitalizowanych w Klinice Medycyny Matczyno-Płodowej i Ginekologii Instytutu Centrum Zdrowia Matki Polki w latach 1999-2009. Liczba kopii DNA HCMV we krwi matek i dzieci oznaczana była metodą PCR w czasie rzeczywistym (real-time PCR). Wyniki: Stwierdzono, że występowanie wiremii HCMV u matki zwiększa ryzyko występowania wiremii u noworodków w porównaniu z ryzykiem u dzieci matek bez wiremii, jednakże brak DNA HCMV we krwi matki nie wyklucza zakażenia płodu in utero. Stan urodzeniowy noworodków oceniany w skali Apgar był istotnie niższy w grupie noworodków urodzonych przez matki z serologicznymi cechami ostrej cytomegalii (

Genes contributing to Porphyromonas gingivalis fitness in abscess and epithelial cell colonization environments

Porphyromonas gingivalis is an important cause of serious periodontal diseases, and is emerging as a pathogen in several systemic conditions including some forms of cancer. Initial colonization by P. gingivalis involves interaction with gingival epithelial cells, and the organism can also access host tissues and spread haematogenously. To better understand the mechanisms underlying these properties, we utilized a highly saturated transposon insertion library of P. gingivalis, and assessed the fitness of mutants during epithelial cell colonization and survival in a murine abscess model by high-throughput sequencing (Tn-Seq). Transposon insertions in many genes previously suspected as contributing to virulence showed significant fitness defects in both screening assays. In addition, a number of genes not previously associated with P. gingivalis virulence were identified as important for fitness. We further examined fitness defects of four such genes by generating defined mutations. Genes encoding a carbamoyl phosphate synthetase, a replication-associated recombination protein, a nitrosative stress responsive HcpR transcription regulator, and RNase Z, a zinc phosphodiesterase, showed a fitness phenotype in epithelial cell colonization and in a competitive abscess infection. This study verifies the importance of several well-characterized putative virulence factors of P. gingivalis and identifies novel fitness determinants of the organism

The outer-membrane export signal of Porphyromonas gingivalis type IX secretion system (T9SS) is a conserved C-terminal \beta-sandwich domain

In the recently characterized Type IX Secretion System (T9SS), the conserved C-terminal domain (CTD) in secreted proteins functions as an outer membrane translocation signal for export of virulence factors to the cell surface in the Gram-negative Bacteroidetes phylum. In the periodontal pathogen Porphyromonas gingivalis, the CTD is cleaved off by PorU sortase in a sequence-independent manner, and anionic lipopolysaccharide (A-LPS) is attached to many translocated proteins, thus anchoring them to the bacterial surface. Here, we solved the atomic structure of the CTD of gingipain B (RgpB) from P. gingivalis, alone and together with a preceding immunoglobulin-superfamily domain (IgSF). The CTD was found to possess a typical Ig-like fold encompassing seven antiparallel β-strands organized in two β-sheets, packed into a β-sandwich structure that can spontaneously dimerise through C-terminal strand swapping. Small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) revealed no fixed orientation of the CTD with respect to the IgSF. By introducing insertion or substitution of residues within the inter-domain linker in the native protein, we were able to show that despite the region being unstructured, it nevertheless is resistant to general proteolysis. These data suggest structural motifs located in the two adjacent Ig-like domains dictate the processing of CTDs by the T9SS secretion pathway

Tannic Acid Modified Silver Nanoparticles Show Antiviral Activity in Herpes Simplex Virus Type 2 Infection

The interaction between silver nanoparticles and herpesviruses is attracting great interest due to their antiviral activity and possibility to use as microbicides for oral and anogenital herpes. In this work, we demonstrate that tannic acid modified silver nanoparticles sized 13 nm, 33 nm and 46 nm are capable of reducing HSV-2 infectivity both in vitro and in vivo. The antiviral activity of tannic acid modified silver nanoparticles was size-related, required direct interaction and blocked virus attachment, penetration and further spread. All tested tannic acid modified silver nanoparticles reduced both infection and inflammatory reaction in the mouse model of HSV-2 infection when used at infection or for a post-infection treatment. Smaller-sized nanoparticles induced production of cytokines and chemokines important for anti-viral response. The corresponding control buffers with tannic acid showed inferior antiviral effects in vitro and were ineffective in blocking in vivo infection. Our results show that tannic acid modified silver nanoparticles are good candidates for microbicides used in treatment of herpesvirus infections.This work was supported by the Polish National Science Centre grant No. 2011/03/B/NZ6/04878 (for MK) and Centre for Preclinical Research and Technology (CePT) Project No. POIG.02.02.00-14-024/08-0 (for MG and MD). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscrip

Civil and penal aspects of author's economic rights protection.

W niniejszej pracy, po opisaniu krótkiego historycznego tła, stanowiącego podstawę dla obecnie obowiązujących regulacji prawnych w zakresie prawa autorskiego, przeprowadzona zostanie analiza cywilnoprawnej i prawnokarnej ochrony autorskich praw majątkowych, wprowadzonych do polskiego porządku prawnego ustawą o prawie autorskim i prawach pokrewnych z dnia 4 lutego 1994 roku oraz wieloma umowami międzynarodowymi, których Polska jest stroną już od początku XX wieku. Poruszone zostaną najbardziej aktualne problemy wskazanych regulacji, sygnalizowane w doktrynie i piśmiennictwie jako ważkie, a związanych ściśle z postępującym rozwojem nowych technologii. Obecnie w związku z postępującym rozwojem dostępności Internetu i jego użytkowania na masową skalę, zjawisko naruszania praw autorskich i pokrewnych stało się powszechne, a w literaturze podkreśla się, że nigdy dotąd bezprawne kopiowanie i rozpowszechnianie utworów nie było tak proste, jak w XXI wieku. Nie ponosząc żadnych kosztów, możemy teraz skopiować utwór i przesłać go gdziekolwiek, jak również i pobrać utwór z dowolnego źródła, niejednokrotnie w bardzo wysokiej jakości. O krok od potencjalnego naruszenia praw autorskich i pokrewnych dzieli nas jedynie kliknięcie. W związku z powyższym, na na ustawodawcy, zarówno na szczeblu krajowym, jak i międzynarodowym, ciąży zadanie stworzenia możliwie najpełniejszych mechanizmów ochrony praw przysługujących podmiotom uprawnionym z tytułu praw autorskich.In this thesis, after considering a historical background related to legal regulations being currently in force, the analysis of civil and penal aspects of author’s economic right protection will be identified. Polish act on copyright and related rights and many multilateral agreements signed by Poland are trying to establish a consistent legal system concerning protection of intellectual property rights. Nowadays, according to progressive development of the availability of the Internet and its use on a mass scale, the phenomenon of violations of copyright and related rights has become commonplace, literature emphasizes that illegal copying and distribution of works has never been as simple, as in the twenty-first century. Without incurring any costs, we can now copy a song and send it anywhere, and we can download a song from any source- even in a very high quality. A step of a potential breach of copyright and related rights separates us only by a click. Therefore, on to the legislators, at both national and international, incumbed by task of creating the most complete possible mechanisms to protect the rights of entities authorized under the copyright laws