Epidemiologic characteristics of Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates in ventilator-associated pneumonia in intensive care units

Klebsiella pneumoniae is a common pathogen that causes ventilator associated pneumonia (VAP) in intensive care units (ICUs). Strain typing is a useful tool in tracking the spread of these infections. Primary objective was to study different strains causing VAP in Anesthesia ICUs. Secondary objective was to determine role of health-care workers (HCWs) and ICU environment in the transmission of these strains. Endotracheal aspirates of 60 VAP patients, surveillance samples from the HCWs (18 )and the ICU environment (193)were collected. Antibiogram typing and enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus-polymerase chain reaction (ERIC-PCR) were used for comparison of the isolates from VAP patients and surveillance samples. Antibiogram showed 5 antibiotic susceptibility patterns that were designated A1-A5. ERIC-PCR yielded 1 to 5 amplification bands. All the isolates were typable by ERIC-PCR. Eight ERIC patterns were obtained ERIC(I)-ERIC(VIII). ERIC-PCR typing method gave higher discriminatory index (D) (0.7557) than antibiogram (0.6035). There was sharing of certain ERIC patterns among patient and HCWs or environmental sources. In Conclusion: K.pneumoniae is the most dominant pathogen in anesthesia ICUs. Throats and hands of HCWs are possible sources of pathogen transmission to patients. Surfaces with hand contact of the medical staff are often contaminated and may serve as vectors for cross transmission.Keywords: Ventilator-associated pneumonia, ICU environment, health-care workers, Klebsiella pneumoniae, antibiogram typing, ERIC-PC

Body appreciation around the world: Measurement invariance of the Body Appreciation Scale-2 (BAS-2) across 65 nations, 40 languages, gender identities, and age.

The Body Appreciation Scale-2 (BAS-2) is a widely used measure of a core facet of the positive body image construct. However, extant research concerning measurement invariance of the BAS-2 across a large number of nations remains limited. Here, we utilised the Body Image in Nature (BINS) dataset - with data collected between 2020 and 2022 - to assess measurement invariance of the BAS-2 across 65 nations, 40 languages, gender identities, and age groups. Multi-group confirmatory factor analysis indicated that full scalar invariance was upheld across all nations, languages, gender identities, and age groups, suggesting that the unidimensional BAS-2 model has widespread applicability. There were large differences across nations and languages in latent body appreciation, while differences across gender identities and age groups were negligible-to-small. Additionally, greater body appreciation was significantly associated with higher life satisfaction, being single (versus being married or in a committed relationship), and greater rurality (versus urbanicity). Across a subset of nations where nation-level data were available, greater body appreciation was also significantly associated with greater cultural distance from the United States and greater relative income inequality. These findings suggest that the BAS-2 likely captures a near-universal conceptualisation of the body appreciation construct, which should facilitate further cross-cultural research. [Abstract copyright: Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

The evolving SARS-CoV-2 epidemic in Africa: Insights from rapidly expanding genomic surveillance

INTRODUCTION Investment in Africa over the past year with regard to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) sequencing has led to a massive increase in the number of sequences, which, to date, exceeds 100,000 sequences generated to track the pandemic on the continent. These sequences have profoundly affected how public health officials in Africa have navigated the COVID-19 pandemic. RATIONALE We demonstrate how the first 100,000 SARS-CoV-2 sequences from Africa have helped monitor the epidemic on the continent, how genomic surveillance expanded over the course of the pandemic, and how we adapted our sequencing methods to deal with an evolving virus. Finally, we also examine how viral lineages have spread across the continent in a phylogeographic framework to gain insights into the underlying temporal and spatial transmission dynamics for several variants of concern (VOCs). RESULTS Our results indicate that the number of countries in Africa that can sequence the virus within their own borders is growing and that this is coupled with a shorter turnaround time from the time of sampling to sequence submission. Ongoing evolution necessitated the continual updating of primer sets, and, as a result, eight primer sets were designed in tandem with viral evolution and used to ensure effective sequencing of the virus. The pandemic unfolded through multiple waves of infection that were each driven by distinct genetic lineages, with B.1-like ancestral strains associated with the first pandemic wave of infections in 2020. Successive waves on the continent were fueled by different VOCs, with Alpha and Beta cocirculating in distinct spatial patterns during the second wave and Delta and Omicron affecting the whole continent during the third and fourth waves, respectively. Phylogeographic reconstruction points toward distinct differences in viral importation and exportation patterns associated with the Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Omicron variants and subvariants, when considering both Africa versus the rest of the world and viral dissemination within the continent. Our epidemiological and phylogenetic inferences therefore underscore the heterogeneous nature of the pandemic on the continent and highlight key insights and challenges, for instance, recognizing the limitations of low testing proportions. We also highlight the early warning capacity that genomic surveillance in Africa has had for the rest of the world with the detection of new lineages and variants, the most recent being the characterization of various Omicron subvariants. CONCLUSION Sustained investment for diagnostics and genomic surveillance in Africa is needed as the virus continues to evolve. This is important not only to help combat SARS-CoV-2 on the continent but also because it can be used as a platform to help address the many emerging and reemerging infectious disease threats in Africa. In particular, capacity building for local sequencing within countries or within the continent should be prioritized because this is generally associated with shorter turnaround times, providing the most benefit to local public health authorities tasked with pandemic response and mitigation and allowing for the fastest reaction to localized outbreaks. These investments are crucial for pandemic preparedness and response and will serve the health of the continent well into the 21st century

Pengaruh Ukuran Perusahaan, Klasifikasi Industri, Dan Audit Tenure Terhadap Audit Report Lag Dengan Kompleksitas Operasi Sebagai Variabel Moderasi (Studi Ada Perusahaan Bumn/D Yang Ercatat Di Ursa Efek Ndonesia Ahun 2020-2022)

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk membuktikan secara empiris pengaruh ukuran perusahaan, klasifikasi industri, dan audit tenure terhadap audit report lag dengan kompleksitas operasi sebagai variabel moderasi pada perusahaan BUMN/D yang tercatat di Bursa Efek Indonesia periode 2020-2022. Jenis penelitian ini adalah penelitian kuantitatif dengan metode dokumentasi melalui data sekunder dari laporan keuangan tahunan perusahaan yang telah dipublikasi pada website resmi Bursa Efek Indonesia. Sampel dalam penelitian ini diperoleh dengan menggunakan metode purposive sampling. Data observasi yang diolah dalam penelitian ini sebanyak 111 observasi dan diuji menggunakan analisis regresi linear berganda dan analisis regresi moderasi. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa ukuran perusahaan berpengaruh negatif dan klasifikasi industri berpengaruh positif terhadap audit report lag, dengan kompleksitas operasi yang mampu memoderasi pengaruh atas kedua variabel tersebut. Sementara hasil penelitian ini tidak dapat membuktikan adanya pengaruh antara audit tenure terhadap audit report lag, dan kompleksitas operasi tidak mampu memoderasi pengaruh audit tenure terhadap audit report lag

Use molecular techniques as an alternative tool for diagnosis and characterization of Theileria equi

The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of clinical, subclinical and chronic infection with the equine parasite T. equi in some Egyptian localities (Cairo and Giza governorates). A panel of 396 equine blood samples representing 141 horses, 250 donkeys and 5 mules was collected from equines during the period from April 2015 to March 2016 using microscopic examination and conventional PCR. Microscopically a twenty two (5.56%) of 396 were positive for T. equi merozoites that appeared as small rounded, pyriform shaped and maltase cross shaped merozoites. Among 8/141(5.67%) horses and 14/250 (5.60%) donkeys were found to have positive for T.equi. A one hundred blood samples (45 horses, 50 donkeys and 5 mules) selected randomly were also examined by PCR. The results of PCR showed 30/100(11/45 (24.4%) horses, 18/50 (36%) donkeys and 1/5 (20%) mule) were positive for T.equi. When the sequenced PCR amplicons (n=3) were aligned to the reference nucleotide sequences of T. equi accessed in Genbank, the horse isolate showed insertion of Thymine (T) base at position 23 and substitution of Thymine (T) base with Cytosine (C) base at position 91, while the donkey and mule isolates have no alterations when compared to the reference sequences. The phylogenetic analysis showed that the sequenced PCR isolates belonged to T. equi. The obtained sequences were deposited in the GeneBank database under accession numbers MF192854, MF192855 and MF192856

Controlling Geminiviruses before Transmission: Prospects

Whitefly (Bemisia tabaci)-transmitted Geminiviruses cause serious diseases of crop plants in tropical and sub-tropical regions. Plants, animals, and their microbial symbionts have evolved complex ways to interact with each other that impact their life cycles. Blocking virus transmission by altering the biology of vector species, such as the whitefly, can be a potential approach to manage these devastating diseases. Virus transmission by insect vectors to plant hosts often involves bacterial endosymbionts. Molecular chaperonins of bacterial endosymbionts bind with virus particles and have a key role in the transmission of Geminiviruses. Hence, devising new approaches to obstruct virus transmission by manipulating bacterial endosymbionts before infection opens new avenues for viral disease control. The exploitation of bacterial endosymbiont within the insect vector would disrupt interactions among viruses, insects, and their bacterial endosymbionts. The study of this cooperating web could potentially decrease virus transmission and possibly represent an effective solution to control viral diseases in crop plants