Search results for "lcsh:Infectious and parasitic diseases"

Effect of oligonucleotide primers in determining viral variability within hosts

2004

Abstract Background Genetic variability in viral populations is usually estimated by means of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) based methods in which the relative abundance of each amplicon is assumed to be proportional to the frequency of the corresponding template in the initial sample. Although bias in template-to-product ratios has been described before, its relevance in describing viral genetic variability at the intrapatient level has not been fully assessed yet. Results To investigate the role of oligonucleotide design in estimating viral variability within hosts, genetic diversity in hepatitis C virus (HCV) populations from eight infected patients was characterised by two parallel PC…

Use of ATP bioluminescence for assessing the cleanliness of hospital surfaces: A review of the published literature (1990–2012)

2014

Summary: Hospital cleanliness tends to be considered by patients and the public as an important indicator of the general quality of healthcare. Tests for detecting the presence of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) as a proxy of microbial contamination are increasing in popularity, and several studies have been conducted on this topic in the last few decades. The aim of the present study was to review the published literature on this topic and summarize and discuss the available results. The review focused on relevant English-language articles that were identified through searches of two databases [PubMed and Scopus (1990–2012)] by using the keywords “ATP”, “bioluminescence”, “hospital”, and “sur…

Lessons from the COVID-19 Pandemic—Unique Opportunities for Unifying, Revamping and Reshaping Epidemic Preparedness of Europe’s Public Health Systems

2020

Donor-derived Strongyloides stercoralis hyperinfection syndrome after simultaneous kidney/pancreas transplantation

2016

Most cases of strongyloidiasis associated with solid organ transplantation have been due to the reactivation of a latent infection in the recipient as a result of the immunosuppressive therapy; however, donor-derived infections are becoming increasingly frequent. The case of a patient who nearly died of a Strongyloides stercoralis hyperinfection after receiving simultaneous kidney/pancreas transplants is described herein. No specific parasitological tests were performed pre-transplantation, despite the fact that both the recipient and the donor originated from endemic areas. Serological analysis of the donor's serum performed retrospectively revealed the origin of the infection, which if it…

A case of visceral leishmaniasis and pulmonary tuberculosis in a post-partum woman

2015

AbstractVisceral leishmaniasis due to Leishmania infantum is a vector-borne zoonotic disease transmitted by sand fly bites endemic in rural or periurban areas of the Mediterranean basin. Pregnancy is accompanied by changes in immune response, mainly a decrease in cellular immunity and a proportional increase in humoral immunity. These physiological events result in increased risk of infection by pathogens whose immunity is based on a T-helper 1 predominant response. We describe a case of visceral leishmaniasis and pulmonary tuberculosis diagnosed in a post-partum woman four days after delivery. The diagnosis of leishmaniasis should be considered in pregnant women with fever and haematologic…

Listeria spp. in Street-Vended Ready-to-Eat Foods.

2011

Street-vended ready-to-eat food sold in Egypt, including sandwiches and dishes of traditional food, was examined for the presence ofListeriaspecies. Out of 576 samples, 24% were found to containListeriaspecies.L. monocytogenesandL. innocuawere isolated from 57% and 39% of the contaminated samples, respectively. OtherListeriaspp. were detected with lower frequency.L. monocytogenesof ≥103 CFU/g were detected in 7% of the total examined samples, which represent 49% of the contaminated food samples (meat, poultry, seafood, dairy products, and products of plant origin). Most of the samples contaminated byL. monocytogeneshad high levels of total viable bacterial counts. The results obtained may h…

Leishmaniasis in Norway Rats in Sewers, Barcelona, Spain.

2019

We detected Leishmania infantum in 98 Norway rats (Rattus norvegicus) trapped in parks and sewers of Barcelona, Spain. The 84 rats from the sewers showed a prevalence of 33.3% and up to 2,272 estimated parasites. These results, in the most abundant potential reservoir in cities, is of public health concern.

Cooking infected copepods: On the survival of Guinea worm larvae

2020

Genomic Changes of Chagas Disease Vector, South America

2004

We analyzed the main karyologic changes that have occurred during the dispersion of Triatoma infestans, the main vector of Chagas disease. We identified two allopatric groups, named Andean and non-Andean. The Andean specimens present C-heterochromatic blocks in most of their 22 chromosomes, whereas non-Andean specimens have only 4-7 autosomes with C-banding. These heterochromatin differences are the likely cause of a striking DNA content variation (approximately 30%) between Andean and non-Andean insects. Our study, together with previous historical and genetic data, suggests that T. infestans was originally a sylvatic species, with large quantities of DNA and heterochromatin, inhabiting th…

Novel Recombinant Norovirus in China

2006

To the Editor: Norovirus (NoV), the distinct genus within the family Caliciviridae, is a major cause of sporadic cases and outbreaks of acute gastroenteritis in humans (1). NoV possesses a positive-sense, single-stranded RNA genome surrounded by an icosahedral capsid. The NoV genome contains 3 open reading frames (ORFs). ORF1 encodes nonstructural proteins, ORF 2 encodes capsid protein (VP1), and ORF3 encodes a small capsid protein (VP2). NoV is still uncultivable by standard culture with different cell lines. However, expression of either VP1 or both VP1 and VP2 with recombinant baculoviruses formed viruslike particles that are morphologically and antigenically similar to the native virion…