Susceptibility patterns and molecular identification of Trichosporon species

The physiological patterns, the sequence polymorphisms of the internal transcriber spacer (ITS), and intergenic spacer regions (IGS) of the rRNA genes and the antifungal susceptibility profile were evaluated for their ability to identify Trichosporon spp. and their specificity for the identification of 49 clinical isolates of Trichosporon spp. Morphological and biochemical methodologies were unable to differentiate among the Trichosporon species. ITS sequencing was also unable to differentiate several species. However, IGS1 sequencing unambiguously identified all Trichosporon isolates. Following the results of DNA-based identification, Trichosporon asahii was the species most frequently isolated from deep sites (15 of 25 strains; 60%). In the main, other Trichosporon species were recovered from cutaneous samples. The majority of T. asahii, T. faecale, and T. coremiiforme clinical isolates exhibited resistance in vitro to amphotericin B, with geometric mean (GM) MICs >4 mug/ml. The other species of Trichosporon did not show high MICs of amphotericin B, and GM MICs were <1 mug/ml. Azole agents were active in vitro against the majority of clinical strains. The most potent compound in vitro was voriconazole, with a GM MIC </=0.14 mug/ml. The sequencing of IGS correctly identified Trichosporon isolates; however, this technique is not available in many clinical laboratories, and strains should be dispatched to reference centers where these complex methods are available. Therefore, it seems to be more practical to perform antifungal susceptibility testing of all isolates belonging to Trichosporon spp., since correct identification could take several weeks, delaying the indication of an antifungal agent which exhibits activity against the infectious strain.S

Elaboració de material docent per a assignatures d'estadística industrial

La finalitat del projecte és elaborar material d'ajuda i suport a la docència per assignatures relacionades amb l'estadística industrial. Ens centrem fonamentalment en les assignatures “Mètodes estadístics de l’enginyeria 1”, d’enginyeria industrial, i “Estadística”, d’enginyera química, per la gran repercussió que tenen els canvis en aquestes assignatures (un total de 500 estudiants matriculats per any). El projecte es pot entendre com la continuació d’un altre projecte que va rebre un ajut de l’ICE i que es va desenvolupar durant el curs 2007-2008, titulat “Elaboració de material docent per a assignatures de control i millora de la qualitat” i coordinat per Lourdes Rodero de Lamo. La necessitat de creació de nou material sorgeix a partir de decidir canvis – alineats amb l’enfocament de l’EEES – en la metodologia docent. Els canvis venen motivats no només pel fet que aquestes dues assignatures entren en la fase pilot d’implantació de l’EEES a l’ETSEIB, sinó també – i sobretot – a partir de la constatació de fets que no ens agradaven als professors: poca assistència a classe, sensació de que els estudiants “no segueixen” l’assignatura, oblit ràpid del que s’ha aprés, etc.Peer Reviewe

Antifungal drug susceptibility profile of Pichia anomala isolates from patients presenting with nosocomial fungemia

In vitro susceptibility of 58 isolates of Pichia anomala to five antifungal drugs using two broth microdilution methods (CLSI and EUCAST) was analyzed. Low susceptibility to itraconazole was observed. Fluconazole, voriconazole, amphotericin B, and caspofungin showed good antifungal activity, although relatively high drug concentrations were necessary to inhibit the isolates.Inst Adolfo Lutz Registro, São Paulo, BrazilUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, Div Infect Dis, São Paulo, BrazilUniv Estadual Campinas, Fac Med Sci, Div Infect Dis, Campinas, SP, BrazilUniv Catolica Argentina, Fac Med, Buenos Aires, DF, ArgentinaUniv São Paulo, Hosp Clin, Lab Clin Micorbiol, São Paulo, BrazilUniv São Paulo, Hosp Clin, Hosp Infect Control Dept, LIM 54, São Paulo, BrazilHosp Sirio Libanes, São Paulo, BrazilUniv Fed Rio de Janeiro, Dept Internal Med, Rio de Janeiro, BrazilUniv São Paulo, Hosp Clin, Dept Infect Dis, São Paulo, BrazilUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, Div Infect Dis, São Paulo, BrazilWeb of Scienc

Sostenibilidad y consumo responsable: el huerto universitario ecológico como instrumento para la enseñanza del cambio climático

Memoria ID-215. Ayudas de la Universidad de Salamanca para la innovación docente, curso 2019-2020

Sostenibilidad y consumo responsable: el huerco universitario ecológico como instrumento para la enseñanza del cambio climático

Memoria ID-215. Ayudas de la Universidad de Salamanca para la innovación docente, curso 2019-2020

Toward a Comprehensive and Integrated Strategy of the European Marine Research Infrastructures for Ocean Observations

Research Infrastructures (RIs) are large-scale facilities encompassing instruments, resources, data and services used by the scientific community to conduct high-level research in their respective fields. The development and integration of marine environmental RIs as European Research Vessel Operators [ERVO] (2020) is the response of the European Commission (EC) to global marine challenges through research, technological development and innovation. These infrastructures (EMSO ERIC, Euro-Argo ERIC, ICOS-ERIC Marine, LifeWatch ERIC, and EMBRC-ERIC) include specialized vessels, fixed-point monitoring systems, Lagrangian floats, test facilities, genomics observatories, bio-sensing, and Virtual Research Environments (VREs), among others. Marine ecosystems are vital for life on Earth. Global climate change is progressing rapidly, and geo-hazards, such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and tsunamis, cause large losses of human life and have massive worldwide socio-economic impacts. Enhancing our marine environmental monitoring and prediction capabilities will increase our ability to respond adequately to major challenges and efficiently. Collaboration among European marine RIs aligns with and has contributed to the OceanObs’19 Conference statement and the objectives of the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021–2030). This collaboration actively participates and supports concrete actions to increase the quality and quantity of more integrated and sustained observations in the ocean worldwide. From an innovation perspective, the next decade will increasingly count on marine RIs to support the development of new technologies and their validation in the field, increasing market uptake and produce a shift in observing capabilities and strategies.Peer reviewe

EMSO ERIC: A challenging infrastructure to monitor Essential Ocean Variables (EOVs) across European Seas

The European Multidisciplinary Seafoor and water Column Observatory (EMSO, www.emso.eu) is a distributed research infrastructure (RI), composed of fxed-point deep-sea observatories and shallow water test sites at strategic environmental locations from the southern entrance of the Arctic Ocean all the way through the North Atlantic through the Mediterranean to the Black Sea. Working as a single powerful system, it is a valuable new tool for researchers and engineers looking for long time series of high-quality and high-resolution data to study and continuously monitor complex processes interactions among the geosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere and atmosphere, as well as to test, validate and demonstrate new marine technologies.Peer Reviewe

An imported case of vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2, Spain in the context of the ongoing polio Public Health Emergency of International Concern, September 2021

The monthly retrospective search for unreported acute flaccid paralysis (AFP) cases conducted as a complementary component of the Spanish AFP surveillance system identified a case of AFP in a child admitted in Spain from Senegal during August 2021. Vaccine-derived poliovirus 2 was identified in the stool in September 2021. We present public health implications and response undertaken within the framework of the National Action Plan for Polio Eradication and the Public Health Emergency of International Concern.S

Disk diffusion method for fluconazole susceptibility testing of Candida spp. isolates

Fil: Rodero, L. ANLIS Dr.C.G.Malbrán. Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Infecciosas. Departamento de Micología; Argentina.Fil: Córdoba, Susana. ANLIS Dr.C.G.Malbrán. Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Infecciosas. Departamento de Micología; Argentina.Fil: Vivot, W. ANLIS Dr.C.G.Malbrán. Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Infecciosas. Departamento de Micología; Argentina.Fil: Campo, M. Universidad Católica Argentina. Cátedra de Microbiología; Argentina.Fil: Corfield, P. Universidad Católica Argentina. Cátedra de Microbiología; Argentina.Fil: Olguín, C. ANLIS Dr.C.G.Malbrán. Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Infecciosas. Departamento de Micología; Argentina.Fil: Cuirolo, A. ANLIS Dr.C.G.Malbrán. Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Infecciosas. Departamento de Micología; Argentina.Fil: Soria, M. ANLIS Dr.C.G.Malbrán. Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Infecciosas. Departamento de Micología; Argentina.Fil: Guelfand, L. Universidad Católica Argentina. Cátedra de Microbiología; Argentina.Fil: Canteros, C. E. ANLIS Dr.C.G.Malbrán. Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Infecciosas. Departamento de Micología; Argentina.Fil: Davel, Graciela Odelsia. ANLIS Dr.C.G.Malbrán. Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Infecciosas. Departamento de Micología; Argentina.Fil: Red de Vigilancia de la Resistencia a los Antimicrobianos WHONET; Argentina.Se estudiaron 1193 aislamientos clínicos para estandarizar y evaluar un método de difusión con discos de fluconazol de lectura visual, que permita detectar levaduras sensibles al antifúngico. Las especies analizadas fueron: Candida albicans (n=584), Candida parapsilosis (n=196), Candida tropicalis (n=200), Candida glabrata (n=113), Candida krusei (n=50), Candida spp. y otras levaduras oportunistas (n=50). Los discos fueron manufacturados en el INEIANLIS “Dr. Carlos G. Malbrán”. Se midieron los halos de inhibición del crecimiento producidos por fluconazol y la concentración inhibitoria mínima (CIM) por el método de referencia M27-A2 modificado por EUCAST. Se establecieron los valores de corte del método de difusión en: ³ 16 mm para levaduras sensibles a fluconazol (CIM £ 8 μg/ml), entre 9 y 15 mm para sensibles dependientes de la dosis (CIM = 16-32 mg/ml) y £ 8 mm para resistentes (CIM ³ 64 μg/ml). El método de difusión tuvo 94,7% de concordancia con el de referencia, con 0,2% de errores very major y 0,3% de errores major. La reproducibilidad inter e intralaboratorio fue muy buena. Para detectar aislamientos sensibles a fluconazol, este método resulta confiable y de bajo costo; sin embargo, es conveniente que los aislamientos con halos £ 15 mm sean reevaluados por el método de referencia. (EN) In order to standardize and evaluate a disk diffusion method with visual reading to detect in vitro fluconazole susceptibility of yeast, 1193 clinical isolates were tested. These included 584 Candida albicans, 196 Candida parapsilosis, 200 Candida tropicalis, 113 Candida glabrata, 50 Candida krusei and 50 Candida spp. and other opportunistic yeasts. The disks were manufactured in the INEI-ANLIS “Dr. Carlos G. Malbrán”. The disk diffusion method results were compared to MIC results obtained by the reference CLSI M27-A2 broth microdilution method modified by EUCAST. The interpretative breakpoints for in vitro susceptibility testing of fluconazole were established at: zone diameter ³ 16 mm for MIC £ 8 μg/ml (susceptible isolates), between 9 and 15 mm for MIC = 16-32 mg/ml (susceptible dose-dependent isolates), and £ 8 mm for MIC ³ 64 μg/ml (resistant isolates). Overall agreement between the two methods was 94.7%, with 0.2% very major errors, and 0.3% major errors. Inter - and intralaboratory agreement was good. The disk diffusion method for drug susceptibility testing of Candida spp. isolates is inexpensive, reliable and reproducible. However, when the inhibition zone diameter is £ 15 mm, it is advisable to test the isolate by the reference microdilution method