A contaminated hospital environment has been identified as an important reservoir of pathogens causing healthcare-associated infections. This study is to evaluate the efficacy of bacteria killing nanotechnology Bio-Kil on reducing bacterial counts in an intensive care unit (ICU). Two single-bed rooms (S-19 and S-20) in the ICU were selected from 7 April to 27 May 2011. Ten sets of new textiles (pillow cases, bed sheets, duvet cover, and patient clothing) used by patients in the two single-bed rooms were provided by the sponsors. In the room S-20, the 10 sets of new textiles were washed with Bio-Kil; the room walls, ceiling, and air-conditioning filters were treated with Bio-Kil; and the surfaces of instruments (respirator, telephone, and computer) were covered with Bio-Kil-embedded silicon pads. Room S-19 served as the control. We compared the bacterial count on textiles and environment surfaces as well as air samples between the two rooms. A total of 1,364 samples from 22 different sites in each room were collected. The mean bacterial count on textiles and environmental surfaces in room S-20 was significantly lower than that in room S-19 (10.4 vs 49.6 colony-forming units [CFU]/100 cm(2); P < 0.001). Room S-20 had lower bacterial counts in air samples than room S-19 (33.4-37.6 vs 21.6-25.7 CFU/hour/plate; P < 0.001). The density of microbial isolations was significantly greater among patients admitted to room S-19 than those to room S-20 (9.15 vs 5.88 isolates per 100 patient-days, P < 0.05). Bio-Kil can significantly reduce bacterial burden in the environment of the ICU.
Oral cefixime or ceftriaxone injections were used as first-line drugs for the treatment of gonorrhea from 2006 to 2013 because gonorrhea isolates had low minimum inhibitory concentrations for these two drugs. The abrupt emergence of ST4378 (closely related to the notorious ST1407) since 2009 is a cause for alarm. Changes in sexual behavior, including an increase in sexual activity without the use of condoms, may have contributed to the peak in gonorrhea in 2010. Further molecular epidemiological investigations are required.
Scuticociliatosis, caused by ciliated protozoa in the subclass Scuticociliatia of the phylum Ciliophora, can cause fatal disease in teleost fish species. However, information on scuticociliatosis in elasmobranchs is still scarce. In this report, we describe a case of locally extensive meningoencephalitis caused by Miamiensis avidus (syn. Philasterides dicentrarchi) in a 2 yr old captive zebra shark Stegostoma fasciatum. Granulocytic meningoencephalitis was observed through histological assessment. Inflammation was confined to the ventral aspect of the brain with a large number of ciliated protozoa, transforming into non-suppurative meningitis in the lateral aspect, and gradually vanished in the dorsal aspect. No histopathological and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) evidence of systemic dissemination of M. avidus was found. PCR targeting the gene coding the small-subunit ribosomal RNA (SSUrRNA) of M. avidus was performed on the brain, liver, and gill tissues, and only brain tissue yielded a positive result. The DNA sequences from amplicons of the protozoal SSUrRNA gene were completely matched to that of M. avidus. The distribution of protozoa in the current case was mainly located in the brain and suggests the possibility of a direct neural invasive pathway of M. avidus through the nasal cavity/ampullary system and/or a unique tissue tropism of M. avidus specific to the brain in zebra sharks. Further investigations on the pathogenesis of M. avidus in elasmobranchs, especially zebra sharks, are needed.
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