Bacterial etiology and antibiotic susceptibility pattern of female patients with urinary tract infection referred to Imam Khomeini Hospital, Ahvaz, Iran, 2019

 Urinary tract infection (UTI) is one of the most frequent infections among women, and if untreated could lead to severe complications. The treatment of UTI is difficult due to the appearance of pathogens with increasing resistance to antimicrobial agents. This study thus aimed to determine the bacterial etiological pathogens of UTI and the antibiotic sensitivity pattern of the pathogens isolated. This descriptive cross-sectional study was performed from March to September 2019 on a total of 339 women referred to Imam Khomeini Teaching Hospital in Ahvaz, Iran. Mid-stream urine samples were collected from the patients and were cultured. The presence of significant bacteriuria was determined using the plate count method. The antimicrobial susceptibility test was done by the standard disk diffusion method. The most frequently isolated pathogens were Escherichia coli (54.8%), Klebsiella (18.2%), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (9.9%), Proteus (8%), and Acinetobacter (5.1%). E. coli, as the most common pathogen of UTIs, showed the most resistance to cephalosporins and the least resistance to imipenem. According to the findings, E. coli was the most common cause of UTI in our region. Considering the rate of UTI, and the importance of preventing its severe complications, a survey of regional resistance patterns and timely treatment can control the development of its resistant bacteria

Prevalence and antibiotic resistance of uropathogens in children with urinary tract infections referring to Abuzar hospital in Ahvaz

Urinary tract infection (UTI) is a prevalent disease among children. This study is an attempt to find the bacterial agents of UTI and antibiotic resistance in children. A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out on 1316 clinical samples of children at Abuzar Hospital in Ahvaz that had positive urine culture. The strains were determined through biochemical tests and differential culture media. The pattern of antibiotic resistance of the studied strains was determined by the disk diffusion method. Out of the 1316 children surveyed, 821 were girls and 495 were boys. The most isolated strains from urine cultures were Escherichia coli (57.52%) followed by Enterococcus (12.15%). E. coli isolates demonstrated the highest resistance to ampicillin (57.06%) and amikacin was recognized as the most effective antibiotic with a sensitivity of 91.94%. E. coli was the most common causative agent of UTI in children. Amikacin was recognized as the appropriate choice against urinary tract pathogens. Because, in different regions and over time, the frequency distribution of antibiotic resistance varies, it is recommended to carry out periodic monitoring of antibiotic resistance for infection control

Mechanism of action, resistance, interaction, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, and safety of fostemsavir

Abstract The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has licensed many antiretroviral medications to treat human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1), however, treatment options for people with multi-drug resistant HIV remain limited. Medication resistance, undesirable effects, prior tolerance, and previous interlacement incapacity to deliver new drug classes all lead to the requirement for new medication classes and drug combination therapy. Fostemsavir (FTR) is a new CD-4 attachment inhibitor medicine that was recently authorized by the United States FDA to treat HIV-1. In individuals with multidrug-resistant (MDR) HIV-1, FTR is well tolerated and virologically active. According to recent investigations, drug combination therapy can positively affect MDR-HIV. The mechanism of action, resistance, interaction, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, and safety of FTR has been highlighted in this review

The Burden of Likely Rubella Infection among Healthy Pregnant Women in Abakaliki, Ebonyi State, Nigeria

The first 140 days of pregnancy are critical as regards rubella virus infection because of the likelihood of a poor pregnancy outcome. This study was undertaken to investigate the likelihood of exposure to poor pregnancy outcomes due to seroprevalence of rubella among selected pregnant women attending Mile Four Hospital, Abakaliki, Ebonyi State, Nigeria. The seroprevalence of rubella immunoglobulin M (IgM) antibodies was investigated among pregnant women. A total of 187 sera samples collected from the women were screened for rubella virus IgM antibody using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The results obtained were analyzed using SPSS. The chi square test was performed at a P value of 0.05 significance and at a 95% confidence interval. Of the 187 pregnant women, 35 (18.72%) were positive for the rubella virus. Pregnant women within 26–30 years of age had the highest prevalence (26.15%), while those aged 35–40 years had the least prevalence. Married women had the highest prevalence (20.0%), followed by singles (16.67%) and widows (15.38%), while divorced pregnant women recorded the least prevalence (9.20%). Pregnant women with no formal education were more predisposed to rubella virus (22.22%) infection compared to their educated counterparts. Occupationally, full-time housewives had the highest prevalence (24.26%). The infection rates seemed to wane as pregnancy advanced. The first trimester had the highest prevalence (21.88%), followed by the second trimester (18.84%) and the third trimester (17.44%). Pregnant women living in urban areas had higher IgM seroprevalence (20.18%) than those in rural areas (16.67%). Furthermore, grand multigravidas were more infected (22.73%) than primigravidas (14.52%) and multigravidas (20.39%). The seroprevalence of rubella in this study was high, and it calls for general surveillance and mass immunization of children and females of childbearing age in the area to help reduce the incidence of congenital rubella syndrome

Occurrence of some common carbapenemase genes in carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates collected from clinical samples in Tabriz, northwestern Iran

Abstract Objectives This study aimed to evaluate the antibiotic resistance patterns and prevalence of carbapenemase genes in Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates in different clinical samples from Tabriz city, northwestern Iran. Results This cross-sectional study was conducted in the Department of Microbiology, Islamic Azad University, Ahar Branch, Iran, in 2020. K. pneumoniae isolates were collected from different clinical samples, including blood, wounds, sputum, and urine. The isolates were identified using a series of standard bacteriological tests. Antibiotic resistance was determined by the disc diffusion method. The presence of bla VIM, bla NDM, bla KPC, bla OXA, and bla IMP genes were screened by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). A total of 100 non-duplicated K. pneumoniae isolates were collected from 57 urine samples, 27 blood samples, 13 wound samples, and 3 sputum samples. Overall, 70.0% of the samples were from inpatients, while 30.0% were from outpatients. The most resistance rate was related to ampicillin (94.0%), while the lowest resistance rate was related to imipenem (18.0%) and meropenem (20.0%). Overall, 25.0% of the isolates were carbapenem-resistant, of which 13.0% were resistant to both imipenem and meropenem. The PCR showed the total prevalence of 23.0% for carbapenemase genes, including 18.0% for bla KPC, 3.0% for bla VIM, 1.0% for bla IMP, and 1.0% for bla OXA gene. The bla NDM gene was not detected in any isolate. The prevalence of carbapenemase-producing K. pneumoniae isolates was relatively lower in northwestern Iran than in other regions of the country. However, special attention should be paid to the proper use of antibiotics, particularly carbapenems, to prevent further spread of antibiotic resistance and its related genes

Seroprevalence of antibodies to herpes simplex virus 1 and 2 in patients with HIV positive from Ebonyi State, Nigeria: a cross-sectional study

Objectives To assess the seroprevalence of herpes simplex virus (HSV) types 1 and 2 in patients infected with HIV in Nigeria.Design Cross-sectional design from January to June 2019.Setting Federal Teaching Hospital, Ebonyi State, Nigeria.Participants A total of 276 patients with HIV were analysed using ELISA method for the presence of HSV-1 and HSV-2 specific IgG antibodies.Outcomes Fisher’s exact test was used to determine the association between the seroprevalence of HSV and demographic variables (statistically significant=p value ≤0.05).Results Totally, 212 (76.8%) and 155 (56.2%) patients with HIV were seropositive for HSV-1 and HSV-2 IgG antibodies, respectively. The seroprevalence of HSV-1 was significantly higher than the HSV-2 in patients with HIV (p value <0.0001). HSV-1 and HSV-2 seroprevalence were higher in patients aged more than 30 years. The seroprevalence of HSV-1 was significantly higher (p=0.01) in females (82.4%, 131/159) than males (69.2%, 81/117), but there was no significant difference in seroprevalence of HSV-2 in females (57.9%, 92/159) compared with males (53.8%, 63/117) (p=0.51). Professional drivers had a higher seroprevalence of HSV-1 and HSV-2 and there was a significant association between the occupation and the HSV-1 and HSV-2 seropositivity (p>0.05). The seroprevalence of HSV-1 was significantly higher in the singles (87.4%, 90/103) than the married patients with HIV (p=0.001). However, HSV-2 seroprevalence was significantly higher in the married patients with HIV (63.6%, 110/173) (p=0.001).Conclusions Prevalence of 76.8% for HSV-1 and 56.2% for HSV-2 among patients with HIV was seen. The HSV-1 was significantly higher in the singles while HSV-2 seroprevalence was significantly higher in the married patients with HIV with HSV-1 and HSV-2 coinfection rate of 7.6%. This study became very imperative to provide an important insight into the hidden dynamics of HSV infections

Postbiotics as the key mediators of the gut microbiota-host interactions

The priority of the Sustainable Development Goals for 2022 is to reduce all causes related to mortality. In this regard, microbial bioactive compounds with characteristics such as optimal compatibility and close interaction with the host immune system are considered a novel therapeutic approach. The fermentation process is one of the most well-known pathways involved in the natural synthesis of a diverse range of postbiotics. However, some postbiotics are a type of probiotic response behavior to environmental stimuli that usually play well-known biological roles. Also, postbiotics with unique structure and function are key mediators between intestinal microbiota and host cellular processes/metabolic pathways that play a significant role in maintaining homeostasis. By further understanding the nature of parent microbial cells, factors affecting their metabolic pathways, and the development of compatible extraction and identification methods, it is possible to achieve certain formulations of postbiotics with special efficiencies, which in turn will significantly improve the performance of health systems (especially in developing countries) toward a wide range of acute/chronic diseases. The present review aims to describe the fundamental role of postbiotics as the key mediators of the microbiota-host interactions. Besides, it presents the available current evidence regarding the interaction between postbiotics and host cells through potential cell receptors, stimulation/improvement of immune system function, and the enhancement of the composition and function of the human microbiome