New strategies to improve crop yield include the incorporation of plant growth-promoting bacteria in agricultural practices. The non-pathogenic bacterium
Pseudomonas putida
KT2440 is an excellent ...root colonizer of crops of agronomical importance and has been shown to activate the induced systemic resistance of plants in response to certain foliar pathogens. In this work, we have analyzed additional plant growth promotion features of this strain. We show it can tolerate high NaCl concentrations and determine how salinity influences traits such as the production of indole compounds, siderophore synthesis, and phosphate solubilization. Inoculation with
P. putida
KT2440 significantly improved seed germination and root and stem length of soybean and corn plants under saline conditions compared to uninoculated plants, whereas the effects were minor under non-saline conditions. Also, random transposon mutagenesis was used for preliminary identification of KT2440 genes involved in bacterial tolerance to saline stress. One of the obtained mutants was analyzed in detail. The disrupted gene encodes a predicted phosphoethanolamine-lipid A transferase (EptA), an enzyme described to be involved in the modification of lipid A during lipopolysaccharide (LPS) biosynthesis. This mutant showed changes in exopolysaccharide (EPS) production, low salinity tolerance, and reduced competitive fitness in the rhizosphere.
Based on eyewitness accounts of rituals conducted at the height of Inca rule, this is a key document that provides an unparalleled account of the prayers and religious celebrations of the Inca in a ...context of rapidly changing cultural practices.
Due to the poor eradication rates of standard triple therapy, the addition of bismuth salts has been proposed for first-line eradication of Helicobacter pylori. We assessed the effectiveness and ...safety of the combination of bismuth and the standard, clarithromycin-containing triple therapy in eradication of H pylori infection, using data from a large multi-center registry.
We performed an interim analysis of data from the European Registry on H pylori Management, a prospective trial registering clinical data and outcomes from infected patients from 27 countries in Europe since 2013. We extracted data on 1141 treatment-naïve patients who received first-line treatment with bismuth salts (240 mg) and a proton pump inhibitor (57% received esomeprazole, 18% received omeprazole, 11% received pantoprazole, and 14% received rabeprazole), amoxicillin (1 g), and clarithromycin (500 mg), all taken twice daily.
Intention to treat and per-protocol rates of eradication were 88% and 94%, respectively. Intention to treat eradication increased to 93% in patients who received 14-day treatments. Adverse events occurred in 36% of patients; 76% of these events were mild, with a mean duration of 6 days. In multivariate analysis, eradication was associated with treatment compliance (odds ratio OR, 13.0), a double dose (equivalent to 40 mg omeprazole) of proton pump inhibitor (OR, 4.7), and 14-day duration of treatment (OR, 2.0).
In an analysis of data from a large multi-center registry, we found the addition of bismuth to 14-day standard triple therapy with clarithromycin and amoxicillin to eradicate H pylori infection in more than 90% of patients, based on intention to treat analysis, with an acceptable safety profile and level of adherence. ClinicalTrials.gov no: NCT02328131.
Chilean law requires the assessment of air pollution control strategies for their costs and benefits. Here we employ an online weather and chemical transport model, WRF-Chem, and a gridded population ...density map, LANDSCAN, to estimate changes in fine particle pollution exposure, health benefits, and economic valuation for two emission reduction strategies based on increasing the use of compressed natural gas (CNG) in Santiago, Chile. The first scenario, switching to a CNG public transportation system, would reduce urban PM2.5 emissions by 229t/year. The second scenario would reduce wood burning emissions by 671t/year, with unique hourly emission reductions distributed from daily heating demand. The CNG bus scenario reduces annual PM2.5 by 0.33μg/m3 and up to 2μg/m3 during winter months, while the residential heating scenario reduces annual PM2.5 by 2.07μg/m3, with peaks exceeding 8μg/m3 during strong air pollution episodes in winter months. These ambient pollution reductions lead to 36 avoided premature mortalities for the CNG bus scenario, and 229 for the CNG heating scenario. Both policies are shown to be cost-effective ways of reducing air pollution, as they target high-emitting area pollution sources and reduce concentrations over densely populated urban areas as well as less dense areas outside the city limits. Unlike the concentration rollback methods commonly used in public policy analyses, which assume homogeneous reductions across a whole city (including homogeneous population densities), and without accounting for the seasonality of certain emissions, this approach accounts for both seasonality and diurnal emission profiles for both the transportation and residential heating sectors.
► Recent trends in air quality and emissions in Santiago, Chile are described. ► Health benefits of reducing wood burning and public transportation emissions are estimated. ► WRF-Chem and LANDSCAN are used to estimate changes in exposure to PM2.5. ► Heating degree days are used as a proxy to heating demand to estimate seasonality of emissions.
Background
Different bismuth quadruple therapies containing proton‐pump inhibitors, bismuth salts, metronidazole, and a tetracycline have been recommended as third‐line Helicobacter pylori ...eradication treatment after failure with clarithromycin and levofloxacin.
Aim
To evaluate the efficacy and safety of third‐line treatments with bismuth, metronidazole, and either tetracycline or doxycycline.
Methods
Sub‐study with Spanish data of the “European Registry on H pylori Management” (Hp‐EuReg), international multicenter prospective non‐interventional Registry of the routine clinical practice of gastroenterologists. After previous failure with clarithromycin‐ and levofloxacin‐containing therapies, patients receiving a third‐line regimen with 10/14‐day bismuth salts, metronidazole, and either tetracycline (BQT‐Tet) or doxycycline (BQT‐Dox), or single capsule (BQT‐three‐in‐one) were included. Data were registered at AEG‐REDCap database. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed.
Results
Four‐hundred and fifty‐four patients have been treated so far: 85 with BQT‐Tet, 94 with BQT‐Dox, and 275 with BQT‐three‐in‐one. Average age was 53 years, 68% were women. Overall modified intention‐to‐treat and per‐protocol eradication rates were 81% (BQT‐Dox: 65%, BQT‐Tet: 76%, BQT‐three‐in‐one: 88%) and 82% (BQT‐Dox: 66%, BQT‐Tet: 77%, BQT‐three‐in‐one: 88%), respectively. By logistic regression, higher eradication rates were associated with compliance (OR = 2.96; 95% CI = 1.01‐8.84) and no prior metronidazole use (OR = 1.96; 95% CI = 1.15‐3.33); BQT‐three‐in‐one was superior to BQT‐Dox (OR = 4.46; 95% CI = 2.51‐8.27), and BQT‐Tet was marginally superior to BQT‐Dox (OR = 1.67; 95% CI = 0.85‐3.29).
Conclusion
Third‐line H pylori eradication with bismuth quadruple treatment (after failure with clarithromycin and levofloxacin) offers acceptable efficacy and safety. Highest efficacy was found in compliant patients and those taking 10‐day BQT‐three‐in‐one or 14‐day BQT‐Tet. Doxycycline seems to be less effective and therefore should not be recommended.
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