Microbiology and immunology
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Microbiol. Immunol. · Oct 2017
Expression of HLA-DRA and CD74 mRNA in whole blood during the course of complicated and uncomplicated Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia.
To improve management of Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia (SAB), better understanding of host-pathogen interactions is needed. In vitro studies have shown that S. aureus bacteria induce dose-dependent immunosuppression that is evidenced by reduced expression of major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class II on antigen presenting cells. Thus, the aim of this study was to determine whether expression of the MHC class II-related genes HLA-DRA and CD74 is more greatly reduced in complicated SAB, with its probable higher loads of S. aureus, than in uncomplicated SAB. ⋯ Additionally, they tended to have weaker CD74 expressions. Neutrophil, monocyte and leukocyte counts did not differ significantly between complicated and uncomplicated SAB. In conclusion, patients with complicated SAB show weaker HLA-DRA expression than those with uncomplicated SAB during the first week of bacteremia.
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Microbiol. Immunol. · Feb 2017
Comparative StudyEfficacy comparison of adjuvants in PcrV vaccine against Pseudomonas aeruginosa pneumonia.
Vaccination against the type III secretion system of P. aeruginosa is a potential prophylactic strategy for reducing the incidence and improving the poor prognosis of P. aeruginosa pneumonia. In this study, the efficacies of three different adjuvants, Freund's adjuvant (FA), aluminum hydroxide (alum) and CpG oligodeoxynucleotide (ODN), were examined from the viewpoint of inducing PcrV-specific immunity against virulent P. aeruginosa. Mice that had been immunized intraperitoneally with recombinant PcrV formulated with one of the above adjuvants were challenged intratracheally with a lethal dose of P. aeruginosa. ⋯ PcrV-alum immunization was associated with the greatest decrease in myeloperoxidase in infected lungs, and also decreased the number of lung bacteria to a similar number as in the PcrV-FA group. There was less neutrophil recruitment in the lungs of mice vaccinated with PcrV-alum or PcrV-CpG than in those of mice vaccinated with PcrV-FA or PcrV alone. Overall, in terms of mouse survival the PcrV-CpG vaccine, which could be a relatively safe next-generation vaccine, showed a comparable effect to the PcrV-alum vaccine.
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Microbiol. Immunol. · May 2016
Comparison of rates of fecal colonization with extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-producing enterobacteria among patients in different wards, outpatients and medical students.
Because asymptomatic carriage of extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL) producers is a risk factor for infection, data on colonization dynamics are important when planning infection control. This study investigated fecal colonization with ESBL producers among inpatients, outpatients and medical students and compares the characteristics of ESBL producers among these groups. Carriage rates were investigated in 5581 fecal samples; 4343 from inpatients (330, 1397, 619 and 1864 from adult ICUs [intensive care units], adult non-ICUs, pediatric ICUs and pediatric non-ICUs, respectively), 814 from outpatients and 424 from screening of medical students. ⋯ The epidemiology of colonization with ESBL producers differed between pediatric ICU, adult ICU and adult non-ICU patients. In adults, carriage of ESBL producers seems to be the consequence of infection, especially in ICU patients; the main source of colonization is nosocomial acquisition. In contrast, children are less likely to acquire colonizer strains in hospitals; importation of ESBL producers by colonized children seems to be significant.
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Microbiol. Immunol. · Apr 2016
Suppression of Mcl-1 induces apoptosis in mouse peritoneal macrophages infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis.
The effect of myeloid cell leukemia-1 (Mcl-1) inhibition on apoptosis of peritoneal macrophages in mice infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis was investigated and the primary signaling pathway associated with the transcriptional regulation of Mcl-1 was identified. Real-time PCR and western blotting indicated that Mcl-1 transcript and protein expression are upregulated during infection with virulent M. tuberculosis H37Rv and Xinjiang strains but not with attenuated M. tuberculosis strain H37Ra or Bacillus Calmette-Guérin. Mcl-1 transcript and protein expression were downregulated by specific inhibitors of the Janus kinase/signal transducer and activator of transcription (JAK/STAT), mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) and phosphoinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) pathways (AG490, PD98059 and LY294002, respectively). ⋯ Flow cytometry demonstrated that the rate of apoptosis in peritoneal macrophages is significantly higher in mice infected with M. tuberculosis and the rate of apoptosis is correlated with the virulence of the strain of M. tuberculosis. Apoptosis was found to be upregulated by AG490, PD98059 and LY294002, whereas inhibition of the MAPK pathway sensitized the infected macrophages to apoptosis. Taken together, these results suggest that specific downregulation of Mcl-1 significantly increases apoptosis of peritoneal macrophages and that the MAPK signaling pathway is the primary mediator of Mcl-1 expression.
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Microbiol. Immunol. · Dec 2015
The diagnostic potential of MPT63-derived HLA-A*0201-restricted CD8+ T-cell epitopes for active pulmonary tuberculosis.
MPT63 protein is found only in Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex, including M. tuberculosis and M. bovis. Detection of MPT63-specific IFN-γ-secreting T cells could be useful for the diagnosis of tuberculosis (TB) diseases. In the present study, the HLA-A*0201 restriction of ten predicted MPT63-derived CD8(+) T-cell epitopes was assessed on the basis of T2 cell line and HLA-A*0201 transgenic mice. ⋯ It is noticeable that the diagnostic sensitivity of the combination of five immunogenic peptides and T-SPOT. TB assay reached 100%. These MPT63-derived HLA-A*0201-restricted CD8(+) T-cell epitopes would likely contribute to the immunological diagnosis of M. tuberculosis infection and may provide the components for designing an effective TB vaccine.