This is the first report on nasal carriage of pvl-positive MRSA among Egyptian health care personnel. High carriage rate of MRSA among health care personnel has been attributed mainly to poor hand hygiene compliance and non-judicious use of antibiotics. Improving compliance, reducing antibiotic overuse, screening for carriers, and decolonization are recommended strategies for reducing the spread of MRSA. Multiplex PCR could be used for confirmation of results obtained by conventional phenotypic methods.

Background Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic inflammatory disease of the gastrointestinal tract. We aimed to investigate, for the first time, the expression profile of serum level of LncRNA THRIL and MiR-125b in IBD patients and their relations with patient’s clinical and biochemical investigations. Methods Our study included 210 subjects divided into 70 healthy subjects considered as control group (male and female), 70 patients with ulcerative colitis (UC), and 70 patients with Crohn’s disease (CD). Blood samples were obtained from all subjects. Expression of LncRNA THRIL and MiR-125b in serum was detected by Quantitative real time PCR (qRT-PCR). Results Our results showed a significant increase in the fold change of LncRNA THRIL in UC patients (Median = 11.11, IQR; 10.21–12.45, P<0.001) and CD patients (Median = 5.87, IQR; 4.57–7.88, P<0.001) compared to controls. Meanwhile there was a significant decrease in the fold change of MiR-125b in UC patients (Median = 0.36, IQR; 0.19–0.61, P<0.001) and CD patients (Median = 0.69, IQR; 0.3–0.83, P<0.001) compared to controls. Furthermore, there was a negative significant correlation between LncRNA THRIL and MiR-125b in UC patients (r = -0.28, P = 0.016) and in CD patients (r = -0.772, P<0.001). ROC curve analysis was done showing the diagnostic value of these markers as predictors in differentiating between cases of UC, CD, and control. Conclusion Serum LncRNA THRIL and MiR-125b could be used as potential biomarkers for diagnosis and prognosis of ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease.

Introduction: Interpreting the interactions between M. tuberculosis and the host innate and adaptive immune defense mechanisms is mandatory for understanding the pathogenesis of active pulmonary TB (APTB). The aim was to describe the distribution of mononuclear cells in APTB and their relation to disease severity. Methodology: A case-control study of peripheral blood CD4+ T cells, CD8+ T cells, B-lymphocytes, NK cells, T regulatory lymphocytes (Tregs) and monocytes by flow cytometry. The patients had clinical presentations of APTB, positive tuberculin skin tests, acid-fast bacilli smears and sputum cultures using BACTEC 960. Results: There was a significant decrease in the haemoglobin level and the absolute lymphocytic count (p < 0.01), while both the neutrophil count and erythrocyte sedimentation rate showed significant increase in the APTB patients compared to HC with p-values < 0.001 and < 0.0001 respectively. Both the CD4+/CD8+ ratio and the percentages of CD3−CD19+ cells were significantly lower in APTB patients (p = 0.03 and p = 0.005 respectively). The percentages of CD4+, CD8+, CD3−CD19+, CD14+, and CD3−CD (16+56)+ cells showed no significant differences, when comparing either disease severity groups, or cavitated and non-cavitated groups of APTB patients. There was significant increase in the CD4+25+ lymphocytes in the advanced APTB patients than in the mild disease group (p < 0.05). Conclusions: B-lymphocytes and CD4/CD8 ratios were significantly lower in the APTB patients than controls with no association with disease severity. CD4+ CD25+hi Tregs were significantly higher in the advanced versus mild groups.

Background The most commonly utilized samples for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) detection using real-time quantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) are nasopharyngeal swabs (NPS) and oropharyngeal swabs. However, there are some drawbacks. For SARS-CoV-2 detection, induced sputum might be analyzed and may be equivalent to pharyngeal swabs. This study was done to assess the potential superiority of induced sputum over NPS for SARS-CoV-2 detection. Sixty symptomatic COVID-19 patients who attended Fayoum University Hospitals in Fayoum Governorate, Egypt, were included in this cross-sectional descriptive study. Paired NPS and induced sputum samples were collected from each subject on the third and tenth days after symptoms began for RT-qPCR SARS-COV2 diagnosis. Results At day 3, 52 (86.7%) of NPS and 48 (80.00%) of induced sputum specimens had positive RT-qPCR results with a significant statistical difference (P = 0.001). At day 10, 41 induced sputum samples (68.3%) were negative, while 19 (31.7%) were positive. Only three (5.0%) of the 19 positive induced sputum samples tested positive for NPS. NPS samples had a higher viral load than induced sputum samples at day 3 [25 (41.7%) vs. 23 (38.3%)]. At day 10, induced sputum samples had a higher viral load than NPS [9 (15.0%) vs. 6 (10.0%)]. A statistically significant positive correlation between the viral load value of the NPS and the induced sputum sample at day 3 (r = 0.497, p = 0.00) denoting similarity in the results of the two types of samples. By ROC analysis, the highest area under the curve for the overall CT value of the induced sputum was (0.604), with a statistically significant difference (p value = 0.0418). Conclusion In the early stages of the disease, induced sputum and NPS tests had comparable results, but NPS yielded more false negative results later in the disease course than an induced sputum sample, which yielded higher sample positivity and viral load than NPS. Furthermore, induced sputum collection is a straightforward, non-invasive, and risk-free method. As a result, induced sputum could be useful for COVID-19 confirmation in patients with radiologically or epidemiologically suspected COVID-19 who have a negative NPS or in difficult-to-diagnose COVID-19 patients.

Background Neonates with sepsis may have concurrent urinary tract infection (UTI), which may be asymptomatic or have nonspecific symptoms. Failure to diagnose UTI, resulting in a delay of appropriate therapy, has been reported to cause renal scarring, hypertension, and kidney failure among infants. This study aimed to determine the contribution of UTI to neonatal sepsis and to assess different risk factors that could be associated with UTI. This cross-sectional study was conducted at the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) of Fayoum University Hospital, Fayoum, Egypt, between March 2018 and January 2019. Neonates of both genders from birth to the 28th day of life with clinical features of either early- or late-onset sepsis (during or after the first 3 days of life, respectively) were enrolled in this study. All neonates were subjected to complete history taking from the parents, full clinical examination, and laboratory investigations including complete blood count, C-reactive protein, blood culture, and urine culture. Results The current study included 100 neonates admitted to the NICU with clinical and laboratory features of sepsis. Positive blood culture (proven sepsis) was detected in 60%, and the proportion of positive urine culture (UTI) in the entire study group was 11%. The incidence of UTI was 11.7% in proven sepsis compared to 10% in suspected sepsis, and it was 16.36% in late-onset sepsis (LOS) versus 4.44% in early-onset sepsis (EOS). There was a statistically significant association between poor feeding and feeding intolerance and positive urine culture (UTI). Leukopenia and expert panel criteria score showed high sensitivity (81.80% and 90.90%, respectively) but low specificity for the diagnosis of UTI. Conclusions Gram-negative bacteria have been highly suspected in cases of neonatal sepsis. Poor feeding and feeding intolerance have association with positive urine culture. Finally, urine culture for sepsis was recommended especially in the late type.