Culture-based and genomics methods provide different insights into the nature and behavior of bacteria. Maximizing the usefulness of both approaches requires recognizing their limitations and ...employing them appropriately. Genomic analysis excels at identifying bacteria and establishing the relatedness of isolates. Culture-based methods remain necessary for detection and enumeration, to determine viability, and to validate phenotype predictions made on the bias of genomic analysis. The purpose of this short paper is to discuss the application of culture-based analysis and genomics to the questions food microbiologists routinely need to ask regarding bacteria to ensure the safety of food and its economic production and distribution. To address these issues appropriate tools are required for the detection and enumeration of specific bacterial populations and the characterization of isolates for, identification, phylogenetics, and phenotype prediction.
In recent years, autoimmune encephalitis associated with antibodies against neuronal cell surface proteins has become a well-recognized phenomenon. Here, we describe clinical features and diagnosis ...of these conditions before turning to the mechanisms by which autoantibodies are generated and cause disease. The clinical syndrome typically evolves in a subacute fashion and is quite variable, although short-term memory loss, behavioral changes, and seizures are common. Laboratory and imaging parameters of inflammation are typically less overtly deranged than in infectious encephalitis. While the most common antibodies found are to the NMDA receptor or LGI1 protein, a growing number of autoantibodies have been described. Established triggers include tumors and infections, although in many cases neither is identified. It is becoming increasingly clear that host immunogenetics can play a part in disease susceptibility, with a prominent role of HLA haplotype in certain syndromes. Antibodies cause disease by several mechanisms, including direct blocking of ligand binding sites, receptor internalization, and activation of complement, governed in part by the subtype of IgG antibody present. Although in vitro and in vivo models have contributed to our understanding of the mechanisms of disease, numerous gaps in our knowledge of the immunopathogenesis remain, and newer disease models are needed. Insights gained from such approaches will inform our basic understanding of disease and will likely also translate into diagnostic and therapeutic advances.
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•Autoimmune encephalitis (AIE) can present with a broad range of clinical symptoms.•Tumors and infection can trigger development of anti-neuronal surface antibodies.•Immunogenetic factors contribute to clinical risk in some cases of AIE.•Anti-neuronal antibodies can cause neuronal dysfunction through several mechanisms.•Novel AIE models are needed to further dissect underlying pathomechanisms.
There has been a specific national policy for culture in Sweden since 1974. Since then, the issue of public access to culture has been a central political objective. The ambition to provide the whole ...population with access to culture includes knowledge about the past. Making sure that the results of development-led archaeology are beneficial for the general public has therefore been an important issue in Sweden for quite some time.
When the Swedish Historic Environment Act was amended in 2014, it became possible to safeguard specific sites of archaeological interest from the 19th and 20th centuries. However, since 2014, few ...younger sites have received protection. The most likely reason for this is related to a scarcity of resources at the county administrative boards.
This scientific commentary refers to ‘Diverse injury responses of human oligodendrocytes to mediators implicated in multiple sclerosis’ by Pernin et al. (https://doi.org/10.1093/brain/awac075).
We evaluated the relative response of generic Escherichia coli (GEC), Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) and Salmonella enterica to heat, alkaline or acid treatments. GEC included strains from ...carcasses (n = 24) and trim (n = 25) at a small beef plant where no decontamination interventions are used and at a large plant where multiple decontamination interventions are used (carcass n = 25 and trim n = 25). STEC strains belonging to nine serogroups, included isolates from cattle (n = 53), beef (n = 16) and humans (n = 44). S. enterica strains belonging to 29 serotypes, included isolates from humans (n = 30), poultry (n = 26), pork (n = 10) and beef (n = 33). Strains were grown in Brain Heart Infusion (BHI) broth and subjected to the following treatments: 60 °C for 2 min, 5% lactic acid (pH 2.9) for 1 h at 4 °C, or NaOH (pH 11.0) for 2 h at 4 °C. Median log reductions of the GEC populations after heat, alkaline and acid treatment ranged from 2.3 to 3.8, 0.7 to 2.2 and 0.7 to 1.2 log CFU/mL, respectively. No statistically significant difference in reductions was observed between carcass GEC or trim GEC from the large or small plant, except for a greater reduction in trim GEC from the small plant. Median reductions of the STEC populations ranged from 3.3 to 3.5, 0.0 to 0.6, and 0.3 to 0.5 log CFU/mL after heat, alkaline and acid treatment, respectively. The median reductions were not dependent upon isolation source, except between STEC cattle and human isolates after alkaline treatment, where the reduction of the former was higher by 0.6 log unit. For the Salmonella populations, median log reductions ranged from 3.5 to 4.0, 1.7 to 2.4 and 3.7 to 4.1 log CFU/mL after heat, alkaline and acid treatment, respectively. The reductions were not isolation source related. The median log reductions were in the order GEC < STEC < Salmonella after heat treatment and STEC < GEC < Salmonella after alkaline or acid treatment. Overall, the relative response of GEC, STEC and Salmonella in the model system suggests that exposure to heat or pH-based decontamination interventions in meat plants is not associated with increased resistance among E. coli strains in these environments, and total E. coli counts on beef can be indicative of treatment efficacy for the control of Salmonella by heat, lactic acid and alkaline treatment and for the control of STEC subjected to heat.
•GEC, STEC and Salmonella from various sources were exposed to heat, alkaline or acid.•Exposure to these interventions is not associated with increased resistance of GEC.•Bacterial reductions were not isolation source related.•Reductions were in the order GEC < STEC < Salmonella after heat treatment.•Reductions were in the order STEC < GEC < Salmonella after acid or alkaline treatment.
The advent of highly effective disease modifying therapy has transformed the landscape of multiple sclerosis (MS) care over the last two decades. However, there remains a critical, unmet need for ...sensitive and specific biomarkers to aid in diagnosis, prognosis, treatment monitoring, and the development of new interventions, particularly for people with progressive disease. This review evaluates the current data for several emerging imaging and liquid biomarkers in people with MS. MRI findings such as the central vein sign and paramagnetic rim lesions may improve MS diagnostic accuracy and evaluation of therapy efficacy in progressive disease. Serum and cerebrospinal fluid levels of several neuroglial proteins, such as neurofilament light chain and glial fibrillary acidic protein, show potential to be sensitive biomarkers of pathologic processes such as neuro‐axonal injury or glial‐inflammation. Additional promising biomarkers, including optical coherence tomography, cytokines and chemokines, microRNAs, and extracellular vesicles/exosomes, are also reviewed, among others. Beyond their potential integration into MS clinical care and interventional trials, several of these biomarkers may be informative of MS pathogenesis and help elucidate novel targets for treatment strategies.
Graphical : Several emerging imaging and liquid biomarkers reflecting underlying immunopathology have potential to aid in the diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment monitoring in people living with multiple sclerosis. Of particular note are novel MRI techniques and quantification of relevant neuroglial proteins in the blood.
The spice oil components eugenol and cinnamaldehyde possess activity against both gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria, but the mechanisms of action remain obscure. In broth media at 20 degrees ...C, 5 mM eugenol or 30 mM cinnamaldehyde was bactericidal (>1-log reduction in the number of CFU per milliliter in 1 h) to Listeria monocytogenes. At a concentration of 6 mM eugenol was bactericidal to Lactobacillus sakei, but treatment with 0.5 M cinnamaldehyde had no significant effect. To investigate the role of interference with energy generation in the mechanism of action, the cellular and extracellular ATP levels of cells in HEPES buffer at 20 degrees C were measured. Treatment of nonenergized L. monocytogenes with 5 mM eugenol, 40 mM cinnamaldehyde, or 10 micromolar carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone (CCCP) for 5 min prevented an increase in the cellular ATP concentration upon addition of glucose. Treatment of energized L. monocytogenes with 40 mM cinnamaldehyde or 10 micromolar CCCP caused a rapid decline in cellular ATP levels, but 5 mM eugenol had no effect on cellular ATP. Treatment of L. sakei with 10 mM eugenol prevented ATP generation by nonenergized cells and had no effect on the cellular ATP of energized cells. CCCP at a concentration of 100 micromolar had no significant effect on the cellular ATP of L. sakei. No significant changes in extracellular ATP were observed. Due to their rapidity, effects on energy generation clearly play a major role in the activity of eugenol and cinnamaldehyde at bactericidal concentrations. The possible mechanisms of inhibition of energy generation are inhibition of glucose uptake or utilization of glucose and effects on membrane permeability.
The persistence of chronic immune activation and oxidative stress in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected, antiretroviral drug-treated individuals are major obstacles to fully preventing HIV ...disease progression. The immune modulator and antioxidant dimethyl fumarate (DMF) is effective in treating immune-mediated diseases and it also has potential applications to limiting HIV disease progression. Among the relevant effects of DMF and its active metabolite monomethyl fumarate (MMF) are induction of a Th1 to Th2 lymphocyte shift, inhibition of pro-inflammatory cytokine signaling, inhibition of NF-κB nuclear translocation, inhibition of dendritic cell maturation, suppression of lymphocyte and endothelial cell adhesion molecule expression, and induction of the Nrf2-dependent antioxidant response element (ARE) and effector genes. Associated with these effects are reduced lymphocyte and monocyte infiltration into psoriatic skin lesions in humans and immune-mediated demyelinating brain lesions in rodents, which confirms potent systemic and central nervous system (CNS) effects. In addition, DMF and MMF limit HIV infection in macrophages in vitro, albeit by unknown mechanisms. Finally, DMF and MMF also suppress neurotoxin production from HIV-infected macrophages, which drives CNS neurodegeneration. Thus, DMF might protect against systemic and CNS complications in HIV infection through its effective suppression of immune activation, oxidative stress, HIV replication, and macrophage-associated neuronal injury.
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