Prevalence of Catheter-associated bacteriuria in patients who received short-term catheterization in the northeast of Iran

Background: Catheter-associated (CA) bacteriuria is a result of the extensive usage of urinary catheterization. Once a catheter is placed, many patients achieve bacteriuria, even with the use of greatest consideration and care of the catheter. In this study, we decided to evaluate the prevalence of Catheter-associated bacteriuria in patients who received short-term catheterization in the northeast of Iran.Materials and Methods: In this cross-sectional study during one year (among 2014-2015) 275 patients who have admitted recently and have no history of catheterization and drug consumption were included. Three samples were taken from patients before, one day after catheterization and after removal of the catheter. The urine samples were analyzed and cultured on the suitable media. Antibiotics susceptibility testing was performed by disk diffusion method. Then, data analyzed using SPSS software by Student t-test. In addition, the p values less than 0.05 were considered as significant.Results: In general, the rate of catheter-associated bacteriuria in these hospitals was 68% (187 cases of 275). The mean age of the participants and patients with bacteriuria were 41±1.2 and 24.8±6.2 years old, respectively. The most common isolated bacteria were Escherichia coli (50.6%) followed by Staphylococcus aureus and Klebsiella pneumonia (21.6%). The highest sensitivity was reported against kanamycin (68.9%) and highest resistance was observed against ampicillin with a rate of 96.3%.Conclusion: For prevention of healthcare-associated UTI, correct catheterization and use of the closed catheter system is recommended. In addition, before prescribing any antibiotics it should be paying attention to the antibiotics susceptibility testing results

Study of drug resistance of Staphylococcus aurous and Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains isolated from environmental samples of Hamadan educational hospitals in 2017 using disk diffusion and minimum inhibitory concentration

Background: Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa are the most important bacteria causing the nosocomial infections, which are resistant to most of the antibiotics. The aim of this study was to evaluate the drug resistance of S. aureus and P. aeruginosa strains isolated from environmental samples of Hamedan educational hospitals using disk diffusion and minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) methods. Materials and Methods: In this descriptive cross-sectional study, 400 samples were collected from Hamedan educational hospitals. To assess the antibiotic susceptibility of 10 common antibiotics, the agar dilution (Kirby-Bauer) method was used. Also, to determine the MIC of S. aureus and P. aeruginosa, vancomycin and ciprofloxacin antibiotics were used. Results: From a total of 400 samples, 39 (9.7) isolates were P. aeruginosa and 28 (7) were S. aureus. Staphylococcus aureus showed the highest resistance to ofloxacin (82.1) and the highest drug resistance to P. aeruginosa was related to meropenem (82). Also, the highest MIC and maximum bactericidal concentration (MBC) for S. aureus to vancomycin were 128 and 256, respectively. In P. aeruginosa, the highest MIC and MBC to ciprofloxacin were 128 and 256, respectively. Conclusion: Staphylococcus aureus and P. aeruginosa showed the highest resistance to ofloxacin and meropenem, respectively. Considering the rapid increase of antibiotic resistance, accurate evaluation of the antibiotic resistance pattern of the bacteria is required

Morphological study on biologically distinct vpx/vpr mutants of HIV-2

We have previously shown that human immunodeficiency virus type 2 (HIV-2) without functional vpx and vpr genes is severely defective for viral growth in lymphocytic cells, and suggested that the virions produced in the absence of Vpx and Vpr are critically damaged. To examine the nature of replication-defect for the vpx/vpr double mutant, we quantitatively and morphologically studied the virions produced in cells transfected or infected with wild type clone, single (vpx and vpr mutants) or the double mutant. While no significant difference in virion production was found for various virus clones in transfected cells, a major growth retardation in infected cells was readily observed for the vpx and vpx/vpr mutants. In particular, no viral growth was detected for the double mutant. By contrast to the very distinct growth characteristics of the three mutant clones, no appreciable difference in virion morphology was noted. These results indicated that Vpx and Vpr of HIV-2 may cooperatively contribute to virion infectivity without affecting virion morphogenesis

In vitro evaluation of inhibitory effect of Lactobacillus reuteri supernatant on the replication of herpes simplex virus type 1 and expression of UL54, UL52 and UL27 genes

Background and Objectives: Human herpes virus type 1 (HSV-1) is a neurotropic pathogen that is infected more than 70% of the world population. The increasing of viral resistance to antiviral drugs and the emergence of side effects has motivated researchers to study the use of probiotics as new antiviral agents. The aim of the present study was to study for the first time the potential antiviral activity of Lactobacillus reuteri (L. reuteri) supernatant against HSV-1. Materials and Methods: After measuring the cytotoxicity of L. reuteri supernatant by MTT assay, 1:16 dilution of it was added to HeLa cells before and after HSV-1 infection, after 1.5 hours incubation with HSV-1, and simultaneously with HSV-1 infection. After 48 hours of incubation at 37°C, the viral titer and expression levels of UL54, UL52 and UL27 genes were measured by tissue culture infectious dose 50 (TCID50) and Real-Time PCR methods, respectively. Results: HSV-1 titer in the treatment conditions before infection, incubation with HSV-1, simultaneously with infection and after infection was reduced by 0.42, 3.42, 1.83, and 0.83 log 10 TCID50/ml, respectively. When the bacterial supernatant was first incubated with the virus and then added to the cell, or when it was added simultaneously with the virus, the expression of the UL27, UL52, and UL54 genes decreased significantly (p0.05). Conclusion: The study findings indicated that the supernatant of L. reuteri has a potent anti-HSV-1 effect especially if it is incubated with the virus before inoculation into the cell. Its possible antiviral mechanism is to inhibit the virus by binding to it or changing the surface structure of the virus. Metabolites of L. reuteri can be considered as a novel inhibitor of HSV-1infection

Generation and characterization of APOBEC3G-positive 293T cells for HIV-1 Vif study

We have established a number of 293T cell lines that express a human anti HIV-1 factor APOBEC3G. Out of seven cell clones examined, four were readily demonstrated to express APOBEC3G by immunoblotting analysis. In particular, two clones (A3G-C1 and -C4) were found to produce a much higher level of functional APOBEC3G relative to that by pooled cell clones. The transfection efficiency of all these cell clones were similar to that of the parental cells, producing a comparable level of virions upon transfection of wild type and vif -minus proviral DNA clones. Furthermore, the expression level of APOBEC3G in the best cell line (A3G-C1) was far much higher than those of an APOBEC3G-positive lymphocyte cell line and peripheral blood mononuclear cells. We finally monitored the incorporation of APOBEC3G into virions produced in A3G-C1. APOBEC3G was easily detected in progeny viral particles upon transfection of vif -minus proviral clone but not of wild type. These results indicated that our new A3G-C1 cell line is eminently useful for various studies on the interaction of human APOBEC3G and HIV-1 Vif

Human herpesvirus type 6 in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus

Background and Objectives: Infectious agents are considered one of the possible etiological factors of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). It has been suggested that human herpesvirus type 6 (HHV-6) may trigger autoimmune disorders, but few studies have been conducted on the relationship between this virus and autoimmune diseases, especially SLE. The present study aimed to compare the frequency of HHV-6 infection between SLE patients and healthy individuals. Materials and Methods: Serum samples were collected from 60 healthy people and 60 SLE patients referred to the rheumatology clinic of Shahid-Beheshti Hospital, Kashan, Iran, from January 2020 to January 2021. The following data were collected from the medical records of patients: sex; age; duration of disease; SLE clinical manifestations; and disease activity. After the extraction of viral DNA from samples, a nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test was performed to detect HHV-6. Results: HHV-6 was detected in 12 SLE patients (20%) and in 8 healthy individuals (13.3%). A significant correlation was not obtained between SLE and the presence of HHV-6 (P = 0.09). There was no correlation between musculoskeletal involvements, skin lesions, renal manifestations, and hematological manifestations with the presence of HHV-6 (P˃0.05). HHV-6 was detected more frequently in patients with active lupus than in patients with quiescent disease, but this difference was not significant (P=0.08). Conclusion: Although patients with SLE had a higher prevalence of HHV-6 compared with healthy people, there is no strong link between HHV-6 infection and SLE. Future research is necessary because this data does not support the hypothesis that human herpesvirus 6 plays a role in the pathogenesis of SLE

Evaluation of natural killer cell activity in pre and post treated breast cancer patients

Aim: To evaluate natural killer (NK) cells activity in breast cancer patients and its comparison with normal individuals. Settings and Design: Breast cancer is the most prevalent type of spontaneous tumor in humans, and NK cells are the first line defense against such tumors. There is a reverse correlation between NK activity and metastasis and reducing the tumor mass by surgery may be monitoring the NK activity. In this study, we evaluate NK activity in pre and post mastectomy patients. Materials and Methods: Eighteen patients with invasive ductal carcinoma attended to cancer research institute were included in this study. NK cells were evaluated in pre and post mastectomy patients. PBMCs were isolated by ficoll hypaque. NK cell activity (% lysis of K562) was evaluated by flowcytometer. Statistical Analysis Used: One way analysis of variation (ANOVA) and KruskalWallis nonparametric test were employed using SPSS software. Results: While NK cell activity was greatly impaired in breast cancer patients (average lysis of K562 target cells: 24.4% vs. 62.5% in healthy controls, n = 18), it was found to be significantly increased after mastectomy (37.7%). Conclusions: Mastectomy may lead to increased activity of NK cells among patients suffering from breast cancer and their increased activity may produce positive therapeutic effect

Evaluation of natural killer cell activity in pre and post treated breast cancer patients

Aim: To evaluate natural killer (NK) cells activity in breast cancer patients and its comparison with normal individuals. Settings and Design: Breast cancer is the most prevalent type of spontaneous tumor in humans, and NK cells are the first line defense against such tumors. There is a reverse correlation between NK activity and metastasis and reducing the tumor mass by surgery may be monitoring the NK activity. In this study, we evaluate NK activity in pre and post mastectomy patients. Materials and Methods: Eighteen patients with invasive ductal carcinoma attended to cancer research institute were included in this study. NK cells were evaluated in pre and post mastectomy patients. PBMCs were isolated by ficoll hypaque. NK cell activity (% lysis of K562) was evaluated by flowcytometer. Statistical Analysis Used: One way analysis of variation (ANOVA) and KruskalWallis nonparametric test were employed using SPSS software. Results: While NK cell activity was greatly impaired in breast cancer patients (average lysis of K562 target cells: 24.4% vs. 62.5% in healthy controls, n = 18), it was found to be significantly increased after mastectomy (37.7%). Conclusions: Mastectomy may lead to increased activity of NK cells among patients suffering from breast cancer and their increased activity may produce positive therapeutic effect

Serum interleukin-6 level and its association with pulmonary involvement in progressive systemic sclerosis; a case-control study

Abstract Background Primary Systemic Sclerosis (PSS) is a connective tissue disorder characterized by excessive collagen deposition in the skin and internal organs. Interstitial lung disease (ILD) is a late demonstration of PSS and cytokines can contribute to the disease pathology. The purpose of the current study was to determine the association between serum interleukin-6 level and pulmonary involvement in progressive systemic sclerosis. Methods and materials Demographic data and serum interleukin-6 levels were measured for 30 PSS patients with pulmonary involvement (case group) and 30 PSS patients without pulmonary involvement (control group) following informed consent. The disease duration and activity, C-reactive protein (CRP), chest x-ray and highresolution CT scan (HRCT) findings, ejection fraction (EF) and echocardiography findings, and pulmonary artery pressure (PAP) were also determined in both groups. Results The age of patients in case and control groups was 52.5 ± 9.3 and 43.9 ± 9.7 years, respectively (p = 0.001). No significant difference was found between serum levels of IL-6 in case and control groups (73.1 ± 95.4 vs 46.7 ± 83.6 pg/ml, p = 0.267). However, IL-6 level was significantly higher in male case patients compared to male controls (p = 0.007). The duration of PSS was 11.6 ± 6.4 and 7.4 ± 4.2 years in case and control groups, respectively (p = 0.002). The quantitative CRP and PAP was also significantly higher in case patients (p = 0.01 and p < 0.001, respectively). There was found reticulonodular pattern in 20 (66.7%) of the cases, whereas 28 (93.3%) of the controls had normal Chest X-rays (CXR) (p < 0.001). EF was significantly lower in case patients compared to control patients (p = 0.001). Conclusion The serum level of IL-6 did not appear to have a relationship with pulmonary involvement, hence it could not be regarded as a potential therapeutic target

Determine relation between serum levels of interleukin-6 and CRP with pulmonary involvement in progressive systemic sclerosis

Background: Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is a connective tissue disorder characterized by excessive collagen deposition in skin and internal organs. Interstitial lung disease (ILD) is a late demonstration of SSc and cytokines can contribute to the disease pathology. This study aimed to determine relation between serum levels of interleukin-6 and CRP with pulmonary involvement in SSc. Materials and Methods: After obtaining consent, demographic data and serum levels of interleukin-6 were determined in 30 SSc with (case) and 30 without pulmonary involvement (control). Duration and activity status of disease, C-reactive protein (CRP), Chest x-ray and high resolution CT-scan (HRCT), ejection fraction (EF) and echocardiography findings and pulmonary artery pressure (PAP) were determined in two groups. Data analyzed with Mann-Whitney test, Chi-square test and Fisher’s exact test. Results: Mean age of case and control group ranged 52.5±9.3 and 43.9±9.7 years respectively (P=0.001). The serum levels of IL-6 in case and control groups were 73.1±95.4 and 46.7±83.6 pg/ml (P=0.267), respectively. IL-6 levels was significantly higher in male case compared to male control (P=0.007). Duration of SSc in case and control groups was 11.6±6.4 and 7.4±4.2 years (P=0.002). Also Quantitative CRP and PAP was significantly higher in case (P=0.01 and P<0.001, respectively). In the Case group 66.7% of them had reticulo-nodular pattern, whereas 28 (93.3%) of control had normal CXR (P<0.001). Conclusion: In SSc with pulmonary involvement serum, IL-6 levels is higher than without involvement but not statistically significant. Also, the CRP and PAP are benefit for evaluation of pulmonary involvement