We conducted
antimicrobial susceptibility testing of 267
isolates for 16 antibiotics from 2017 to 2022. The highest susceptibility was found for piperacillin-tazobactam (70%) and ...ceftazidime-avibactam (62%). Between 30% and 49% of strains were susceptible to tigecycline, ceftazidime, and meropenem. We applied species-specific Achromobacter xylosoxidans breakpoints for piperacillin-tazobactam, meropenem, and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole and EUCAST pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic (PK/PD) breakpoints for the others. A. xylosoxidans was the most frequently isolated species, followed by Achromobacter insuavis and Achromobacter ruhlandii.
Bordetella pertussis is the causative pathogen of whooping cough or pertussis, a contagious respiratory disease. Aside from serodiagnosis, laboratory confirmation of pertussis is done through PCR, as ...B. pertussis is difficult to culture.
The ELITe InGenius instrument (ELITechGroup, France) with accompanying Bordetella ELITe MGB Kit was evaluated against a laboratory-developed assay. Both assays combine two screening (IS481, IS1001) and two confirmation targets (recA, ptxA-Pr or IS1002) for optimal sensitivity and specificity.
The company's stated claims on sensitivity and reproducibility were confirmed. Accuracy testing showed full concordance between both assays for the screening targets. Minor discrepancies were seen for the B. pertussis confirmation target. Some cross-reactivity with other Bordetella species was observed for the IS481-target, however, none of these were confirmed in the ptxA-Pr target. These results show the suitability of the Bordetella ELITe MGB Kit for the detection and differentiation of B. pertussis, B. parapertussis and B. holmesii.
In recent years, the study of the human microbiome has surged, shedding light on potential connections between microbiome composition and various diseases. One specific area of intense interest ...within this research is the female reproductive tract, as it holds the potential to influence the process of embryo implantation. Advanced sequencing technologies have delivered unprecedented insights into the microbial communities, also known as microbiota, residing in the female reproductive tract. However, their efficacy encounters significant challenges when analyzing low-biomass microbiota, such as those present in the endometrium. These molecular techniques are susceptible to contamination from laboratory reagents and extraction kits, leading to sequencing bias that can significantly alter the perceived taxonomy of a sample. Consequently, investigating the microbiota of the upper female reproductive tract necessitates the exploration of alternative methods. In this context, the current review delves into the application of culturomics in unraveling the upper female reproductive tract microbiota. While culturomics holds value in research, its transition to routine clinical practice appears remote, at least in the foreseeable future.
Summary
Objective
Besides seizures, patients with epilepsy are affected by a variety of cognitive and psychiatric comorbidities that further impair their quality of life. The present study provides ...an in‐depth characterization of the behavioral alterations induced by 6 Hz corneal kindling. Furthermore, we correlate these behavioral changes to alterations in c‐Fos protein expression throughout the brain following kindling.
Methods
Adolescent male Naval Medical Research Institute (NMRI) mice were kindled via repetitive subconvulsive 6 Hz corneal stimulations until they reached the fully kindled state (defined as 10 consecutive generalized seizures). Afterwards we performed an elaborate battery of behavioral tests and we evaluated c‐Fos expression throughout the brain using immunohistochemistry.
Results
Fully kindled mice display an abnormal behavioral phenotype, characterized by basal and amphetamine‐induced hyperlocomotion, anhedonia, social withdrawal, and deficits in short‐ and long‐term memory. Moreover, 6 Hz corneal kindling enhances c‐Fos immunoreactivity in the visual, parahippocampal, and motor cortices and the limbic system, whereas c‐Fos+ cells are decreased in the orbital cortex of fully kindled mice.
Significance
The behavioral outcomes of 6 Hz corneal kindling cluster into 3 main categories: positive symptoms, negative symptoms, and cognitive impairment. These symptoms are accompanied by c‐Fos activation in relevant brain regions once the fully kindled state is established. Based on the face validity of this model, we speculate that 6 Hz corneal kindling can be used to model not only pharmacoresistant limbic seizures, but also several neurobehavioral comorbidities that affect patients with epilepsy.
Recently, Copan (Italy) introduced the Colibrí instrument for automated colony picking and preparation of matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight (MALDI-TOF) target plates. Our ...study aimed to validate this system for yeasts as such testing has not been performed yet and is a missing link needed to implement the system for routine use. Fifty-five
strains were selected to evaluate the accuracy of Colibrí. For each strain, a sheep blood agar plate supplemented with X and V factors (HEM) and a Sabouraud agar plate (SAB) were inoculated and incubated using the WASPlab specimen processing system (Copan). After 18 h and 36 h of incubation, the isolates were spotted in parallel using Colibrí and manually onto MALDI-TOF target plates with the addition of formic acid and identified using MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry. The reproducibility was evaluated using ATCC reference and clinical isolate-derived strains. The cumulative percentage of acceptable identification scores (IDs) after 36 h was 91% for strains cultured on HEM plates using both Colibrí and the manual method. The SAB plates showed inferior results for both Colibrí (76%) and the manual method (78%). We observed an overall agreement of 92% at 18 h for identification of the strains on the HEM plates between Colibrí and the manual method and 94% after 36 h. For the SAB plates, the agreement was 78% after 18 h and 84% after 36 h. Apart from Candida dubliniensis and Candida tropicalis, all
species were identified with 100% accuracy using Colibrí on HEM plates. We observed good agreement between Colibrí and the manual reference method. These results demonstrate that Colibrí is a reliable system for MALDI-TOF target preparation for yeast identification, allowing increased standardization and less hands-on time.
Limited data is available on Mpox breakthrough infections.
Investigate a Mpox breakthrough outbreak in three vaccinated individuals.
Study participants provided informed consent. Serology testing was ...performed in one involved individual (ID-1) using an in-house assay detecting anti-orthopoxvirus IgG. Whole genome sequencing (WGS) was carried out and compared to the reference sequence ON563414.3 (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/nuccore/ON563414.3/).
Three individuals vaccinated with modified vaccinia Ankara-Bavaria Nordic contracted Mpox following one sexual intercourse event. One of them (ID-1) had received only one vaccine dose, while the other two were fully vaccinated. ID-1 presented to the sexual health clinic of the Universitair Ziekenhuis Brussel with proctitis related to Mpox. Despite one vaccination, serology testing Three months post vaccine showed absence of Mpox virus (MPXV) specific antibodies in ID-1. In contrast, two weeks following the sexual intercourse, seroconversion occurred. WGS of the isolated MPXV showed, compared to the reference sequence, a total of seven single nucleotide variants with four of them indicating protein amino-acid changes.
Incomplete MPXV vaccination as well as MPXV variants might result in breakthrough infections. Preventive measures, such as MPVX vaccination, could maintain immunity in individuals with higher risk of MPXV infection, and might lower disease severity.
Quantification of EBV DNA is important in transplantation settings for the diagnosis of post-transplantation. We evaluated the performance of the AltoStar® EBV PCR Kit 1.5 on whole blood specimens: ...limit of detection, linearity, accuracy, and precision were determined using the WHO NIBSC 09/260 international standard. Results of 69 clinical samples were compared between the AltoStar® EBV PCR Kit 1.5 (altona Diagnostics) and the RealTime EBV assay (Abbott). The LoD of the AltoStar® Kit was 148 IU/mL and linearity was between 375 and 500000. A high concordance was found between nominal value of the NIBSC dilutions and the AltoStar EBV result. The total variation ranged from 2.2% to 9.6%. Out of 69 clinical samples tested, there was a high concordance between the 22 paired results within the overlapping linear ranges of both tests. The AltoStar® EBV assay is reliable and accurate for EBV viral load determination on whole blood samples.
Anaerobic infections are difficult to diagnose and treat, because of the often slow in vitro growth, the polymicrobial nature and the increasing antimicrobial resistance. Furthermore because of their ...fastidiousness, anaerobic bacteria often stay unrecognized in clinical practice. Clinical specimens potentially harboring these species require special handling to permit satisfactory recovery of these potential important pathogens. In a clinical setting, temporary storage and transportation to the laboratory are unavoidable before these specimens can be cultured. In the current study we expand the knowledge about the recovery of a wide range of clinically relevant anaerobic bacteria from an eSwab® container after different storage durations and temperatures. Our findings support the use of the eSwab® container as a relative short-term storage unit for anaerobic species. When stored at 2–4°C immediately after inoculation, all anaerobic species (except for Clostridium clostridioforme) can be recovered from the liquid Amies medium until 1day post-specimen collection. Because most samples in the clinical setting are processed in this time span, the eSwab® container is sufficiently capable of retaining viability in daily routine. However; because of inevitable centralization of clinical laboratories, adequate storage of these specimens for an extended period of time will be essential in the future. Therefore in certain cases, when viability is desired for longer periods (>1day), storage of the containers at 2–4°C is certainly advisable.
•Recovery of anaerobes from eSwab until at least 8h post-inoculum•50% of anaerobes are recovered until 1week post-inoculum.•Optimal recovery of anaerobes from eSwab at 2–4°C•Recovery independent of original inoculum
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