Evaluation of the relatedness ofThe relatedness of Brucella spp. and Ochrobactrum anthropi was studied by protein profiling, Western blot, immunoelectrophoresis and 16s rRNA analysis. Whole-cell and soluble proteins of brucellae and 0. anthropi showed serological cross-reactivities quantitatively and qualitatively more intense than those existing with similar extracts of Agrobacterium spp. Numerical analysis of Western blot profiles of whole-cell extracts showed that 0. anthropi LMG 3301 was closer to Brucella spp. than to 0. anthropi LMG 3331T, a result not obtained by protein profiling. These differences were not observed by Western blot with soluble fractions, and immunoelectrophoretic analyses suggested that this was due to destruction of conformational epitopes in Western blot procedures with the subsequent simplification of antigenic profile. Analysis of the 165 rRNA sequences of strains previously used in the species definition confirmed that strain LMG 3301, and also LMG 3306, were closer to the brucellae, and that LMG 3331T was in a separate cluster. The LMG 3301 and the LMG 3331T clusters could also be separated by their different colistin sensitivity and by PCR with 16s rRNA Brucella primers, and both methods showed strains of both clusters among clinical isolates classified as 0. anthropi by conventional tests. These results and those of previous DNA-DNA hybridization studies [Holmes, B. , Popoff, M., Kiredjian, M. & Kersters, K. (1988). Int J Syst Bacterial 38,4064161 show that the LMG 3301 cluster and related clinical isolates should be given a new species status for which the name Ochrobactrum intermedium sp. nov. is proposed (type strain is LMG 3301T = NCTC 12171' = CNS 2-75').

ResumenEl objetivo de esta investigación fue examinar la confiabilidad y validez de la versión adaptada al español de la Escala de Dificultades de Regulación Emocional (DERS-E), en población chilena. Este es un instrumento de auto-reporte que evalúa las dificultades en el proceso de regulación emocional en adultos. El estudio se realizó a partir de dos muestras: la primera compuesta por 1018 estudiantes universitarios y la segunda por 1161 adultos de población general. Los participantes completaron el DERS-E y una medida de ajuste socioemocional a través del Outcome Questionnaire OQ-45.2. Los índices de confiabilidad fueron adecuados en ambas muestras y la estructura factorial congruente con la versión adaptada al español. Además, hubo diferencias en las dificultades de regulación emocional en función del ajuste socioemocional. Los resultados confirmaron que el DERS-E es un instrumento confiable y válido en la evaluación de las dificultades de regulación emocional en adultos. Palabras clave: Regulación emocional, análisis psicométrico, confiabilidad, validez AbstractThis study sought to examine the validity and reliability of the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale Spanish version (DERS-S) in chilean population. This is a self-report instrument that measures difficulties in emotion regulation in adults. Two samples were evaluated: one composed of 1018 university students and the second one composed of 1161 participants from general population. Individuals completed the DeRSe and Outcome Questionnaire OQ-45.2. Reliability indices were adequate in both samples and the factor structure consistent with the spanish version adaptation. In addition, there were differences in emotional regulation difficulties according to socio-emotional adjustment. The results confirmed that the psychometric properties of the DERS-E make it a reliable and valid instrument to assess difficulties in emotion regulation. Key words: Emotion regulation, psychometric analysis, reliability, validity Correspondencia: Dra. Mónica Guzmán González. Escuela de Psicología, Universidad Católica del Norte. Avenida Angamos 0610, Antofagasta, Chile. correo electrónico: moguzman@ucn.cl Esta investigación ha sido financiada con la ayuda para proyectos de investigación concedida por el Fondo Nacional de Desarrollo Científico y Tecnológico del Gobierno de Chile (FONDECYT N° 11100141) a la primera autora.

In developed countries we tend to think of heart disease and the numerous forms of cancer as the main causes of mortality, but on a global scale infectious diseases come close, or may even be ahead: 14.9 million deaths in 2002 compared to cardiovascular diseases (16.9 million deaths) and cancer (7.1 million deaths) (WHO report 2004). The infectious agents responsible for human mortality have evolved as medical techniques and hygienic measures have changed. Modern-day acute infectious diseases caused by specialized bacterial pathogens such as diphtheria, tetanus, cholera, plague, which represented the main causes of death at the beginning of XX century, have been effectively controlled with antibiotics and vaccines. In their place, more than half of the infectious diseases that affect mildly immunocompromised patients involve bacterial species that are commensal with the human body; these can produce chronic infections, are resistant to antimicrobial agents and there is no effective vaccine against them. Examples of these infections are the otitis media, native valve endocarditis, chronic urinary infections, bacterial prostatitis, osteomyelitis and all the infections related to medical devices. Direct analysis of the surface of medical devices or of tissues that have been foci of chronic infections shows the presence of large numbers of bacteria surrounded by an exopolysaccharide matrix, which has been named the "biofilm". Inside the biofilm, bacteria grow protected from the action of the antibodies, phagocytic cells and antimicrobial treatments. In this article, we describe the role of bacterial biofilms in human persistent infections.

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Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is characterized by abnormal inflammatory responses and impaired airway immunity, which provides an opportunistic platform for nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae (NTHi) infection. Clinical evidence supports that the COPD airways present increased concentrations of glucose, which may facilitate proliferation of pathogenic bacteria able to use glucose as a carbon source. NTHi metabolizes glucose through respiration-assisted fermentation, leading to the excretion of acetate, formate, and succinate. We hypothesized that such specialized glucose catabolism may be a pathoadaptive trait playing a pivotal role in the NTHi airway infection. To find out whether this is true, we engineered and characterized bacterial mutant strains impaired to produce acetate, formate, or succinate by inactivating the ackA, pflA, and frdA genes, respectively. While the inactivation of the pflA and frdA genes only had minimal physiological effects, the inactivation of the ackA gene affected acetate production and led to reduced bacterial growth, production of lactate under low oxygen tension, and bacterial attenuation in vivo. Moreover, bacterially produced acetate was able to stimulate the expression of inflammatory genes by cultured airway epithelial cells. These results back the notion that the COPD lung supports NTHi growth on glucose, enabling production of fermentative end products acting as immunometabolites at the site of infection. Thus, glucose catabolism may contribute not only to NTHi growth but also to bacterially driven airway inflammation. This information has important implications for developing nonantibiotic antimicrobials, given that airway glucose homeostasis modifying drugs could help prevent microbial infections associated with chronic lung disease.