Screening of respiratory pathogens by Respiratory Multi Well System (MWS) r-gene™ assay in hospitalized patients

Novel respiratory viruses have been identified as possible agents of upper and lower respiratory tract infections. Multiplex real-time PCRs have been developed to identify clinically relevant respiratory pathogens. In this study, 178 respiratory samples already screened for influenza virus types A and B by Flu A/B ASR real-time PCR kit were retrospectively analyzed with the Respiratory Multi Well System (MWS) r-gene™ real-time PCR kit which detects a wide spectrum of respiratory pathogens. The goal was to demonstrate the importance of a wide spectrum screening compared to a single diagnostic request. The Flu A/B ASR kit detected influenza B virus in 1.7% of the samples (3/178) and no influenza A virus. The MWS r-gene™ kit detected influenza virus in 6.7% (12/178) of samples (0.6% influenza A, and 6.2% influenza B), while the overall detection rate for respiratory pathogens was 54% (96/178). Co-infections were detected in 8/178 (4.5%) samples. Adenovirus was the infectious agent detected most frequently, followed by respiratory syncytial virus. The risk of being infected by respiratory syncytial virus is almost threefold higher in patients older than 65 years compared to the younger age group (OR:2.7, 95% CI: 1.2-6.2). Wide spectrum screening of respiratory pathogens by real-time PCR is an effective means of detecting clinically relevant viral pathogens

Do best-selected strains perform table olive fermentation better than undefined biodiverse starters? A comparative study

Twenty-seven Lactobacillus pentosus strains, and the undefined starter for table olives from which they were isolated, were characterised for their technological properties: tolerance to low temperature, high salt concentration, alkaline pH, and olive leaf extract; acidifying ability; oleuropein degradation; hydrogen peroxide and lactic acid production. Two strains with appropriate technological properties were selected. Then, table olive fermentation in vats, with the original starter, the selected strains, and without starter (spontaneous fermentation) were compared. Starters affected some texture profile parameters. The undefined culture resulted in the most effective Enterobacteriaceae reduction, acidification and olive debittering, while the selected strains batch showed the lowest antioxidant activity. Our results show that the best candidate strains cannot guarantee better fermentation performance than the undefined biodiverse mix from which they originate

The effect of individual and classroom moral disengagement on antisocial behaviors in Colombian adolescents: A multilevel model

The present study examined the predictive effect of moral disengagement (within and between classrooms) on antisocial behaviors in Colombian adolescents, as well as the interaction of moral disengagement with classroom composition by age, socioeconomic status (SES), and perceived teacher–student relationship quality. Multilevel modeling was used to identify individual, compositional, and contextual effects on antisocial behaviors. The predictive variables were: (a) classroom mean score (i.e., between-classroom analysis), and (b) student deviation from the classroom mean score (i.e., within-classroom analysis). The sample included 879 students nested in 24 seventh-grade classrooms in three Colombian cities. The results showed that age, SES, and moral disengagement at the within-classroom level predicted antisocial behaviors. At the between-classroom level, antisocial behaviors were predicted by higher moral disengagement and lower aggregate SES. In addition, significant interactions were found between moral disengagement at the within-classroom level and SES at the between-classroom level. The findings expand our knowledge of the interdependence between individual and classroom contexts in the exercise of moral agency during adolescence

Promoting prosocial behaviour among Colombian adolescents: the evaluation of a universal school-based program using a multi-informant perspective

The present study evaluated the efficacy of an Italian school-based intervention programme adapted in three Colombian sites (Medellín, Manizales, and Santa Marta) in promoting prosocial behaviour among adolescents. Using a pre-test-post-test design with a multi-informant approach, the present study assessed 451 students (Mage = 12.77, SD = 1.06) of the intervention group and 428 students (Mage = 12.64, SD = 1.01) by using self-report and peer rating measures of prosocial behaviour. After establishing the measurement invariance across time and informants, a latent difference score model showed the positive effect of the intervention programme in improving prosocial behaviour evaluated by peers (Cohen’s d = .379) among Colombian adolescents, across all three sites. Implications of the study will be discussed

The steady-state transcriptome of the four major life-cycle stages of Trypanosoma cruzi

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Chronic chagasic cardiomyopathy is a debilitating and frequently fatal outcome of human infection with the protozoan parasite, <it>Trypanosoma cruzi</it>. Microarray analysis of gene expression during the <it>T. cruzi </it>life-cycle could be a valuable means of identifying drug and vaccine targets based on their appropriate expression patterns, but results from previous microarray studies in <it>T. cruzi </it>and related kinetoplastid parasites have suggested that the transcript abundances of most genes in these organisms do not vary significantly between life-cycle stages.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>In this study, we used whole genome, oligonucleotide microarrays to globally determine the extent to which <it>T. cruzi </it>regulates mRNA relative abundances over the course of its complete life-cycle. In contrast to previous microarray studies in kinetoplastids, we observed that relative transcript abundances for over 50% of the genes detected on the <it>T. cruzi </it>microarrays were significantly regulated during the <it>T. cruzi </it>life-cycle. The significant regulation of 25 of these genes was confirmed by quantitative reverse-transcriptase PCR (qRT-PCR). The <it>T. cruzi </it>transcriptome also mirrored published protein expression data for several functional groups. Among the differentially regulated genes were members of paralog clusters, nearly 10% of which showed divergent expression patterns between cluster members.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Taken together, these data support the conclusion that transcript abundance is an important level of gene expression regulation in <it>T. cruzi</it>. Thus, microarray analysis is a valuable screening tool for identifying stage-regulated <it>T. cruzi </it>genes and metabolic pathways.</p

CC9 Livestock-Associated Staphylococcus aureus Emerges in Bloodstream Infections in French Patients Unconnected With Animal Farming

We report 4 bloodstream infections associated with CC9 agr type II Staphylococcus aureus in individuals without animal exposure. We demonstrate, by microarray analysis, the presence of egc cluster, fnbA, cap operon, lukS, set2, set12, splE, splD, sak, epiD, and can, genomic features associated with a high virulence potential in human

Prophylaxis of chemotherapy-induced febrile neutropenia with granulocyte colony-stimulating factors: where are we now?

Updated international guidelines published in 2006 have broadened the scope for the use of granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) in supporting delivery of myelosuppressive chemotherapy. G-CSF prophylaxis is now recommended when the overall risk of febrile neutropenia (FN) due to regimen and individual patient factors is ≥20%, for supporting dose-dense and dose-intense chemotherapy and to help maintain dose density where dose reductions have been shown to compromise outcomes. Indeed, there is now a large body of evidence for the efficacy of G-CSFs in supporting dose-dense chemotherapy. Predictive tools that can help target those patients who are most at risk of FN are now becoming available. Recent analyses have shown that, by reducing the risk of FN and chemotherapy dose delays and reductions, G-CSF prophylaxis can potentially enhance survival benefits in patients receiving chemotherapy in curative settings. Accumulating data from ‘real-world’ clinical practice settings indicate that patients often receive abbreviated courses of daily G-CSF and consequently obtain a reduced level of FN protection. A single dose of PEGylated G-CSF (pegfilgrastim) may provide a more effective, as well as a more convenient, alternative to daily G-CSF. Prospective studies are needed to validate the importance of delivering the full dose intensity of standard chemotherapy regimens, with G-CSF support where appropriate, across a range of settings. These studies should also incorporate prospective evaluation of risk stratification for neutropenia and its complications

El conflicto entre cristianos y musulmanes en las relaciones de sucesos : la liberación de Buda

Este trabajo propone el análisis de una selección de textos escritos en romance sobre la derrota turca y la toma de la ciudad de Buda en 1686, que denuncian la exultante acogida popular de la noticia de las gestas cristianas en Centroeuropa, la percepción del eterno conflicto entre Oriente y Occidente y la proyección del imaginario colectivo del siglo xvii acerca de la lucha contra los infieles.This paper offers the analysis of a selection of texts, written in Romance languages, about the Turkish defeat and the conquest of the city of Buda in 1686, which provide evidence of the popular exultation at the news of the Christian achievements in Central Europe, the perception of the eternal conflict between East and West, and the projection of the seventeenth-century collective imagination regarding the struggle against the infidel