Advances in Rapid Detection and Antimicrobial Susceptibility Tests: A Review

The rise of antibiotic resistance is an emerging problem of the millennium. Clinical microbiology plays an important role in combating the problem by facilitating diagnostics and therapeutics thus managing infection in patients. Diagnostic failures are a major limiting factor during bacterial infection that causes inappropriate use of antibiotics, delay in start up of treatment and decrease in the survival rate during septic conditions. Thus rapid and reliable detection is highly relevant during such bacterial infections and also at the time of disease outbreak as many such pathogens can be used as biothreat agents or bioweapons affecting human health and posing risk to national security. This review highlights the importance of various methods for fast pathogen detection and antimicrobial susceptibility determination. These methods have the potential to provide very precise and rapid ways for bacterial screening and identifying the correct antibiotics to cure infectio

Andrographolide inhibits chikungunya virus infection by up-regulating host innate immune pathways

Objective: To investigate the therapeutic efficacy of andrographolide, a plant derived compound, against chikungunya virus (CHIKV) infection. Methods: Using flow cytometry and immunoblotting assay, in vitro viral protein expression was studied in THP-1 cells line. In Balb/c mouse neonates, viral RNA copy number was determined by real time PCR. Results: The results showed reduced CHIKV protein expression on andrographolide treatment in CHIKV-infected human peripheral blood mononuclear cells, Vero cells and THP-1 cell line. In vivo, andrographolide treatment to CHIKV-infected neonates reduced viral RNA copy number. Further, andrographolide also increased cytotoxic T lymphocytes both in vitro and in vivo. Andrographolide also activated host innate immune pathways, viz., protein kinase R, phosphorylated eukaryotic initiation factor 2α , retinoic acid inducible gene-I and interferon regulatory factor 3/7, thereby increasing IFN- α secretion. CHIKV-induced nuclear factor κ light chain enhancer of activated B cells and tumor necrosis factor- α was also reduced on andrographolide treatment. Conclusion: Andrographolide inhibits CHIKV by suppressing viral protein expression and up-regulating host innate immunity and hence could be an effective therapeutic agent against CHIKV infection