IntroductionOsteoarthritis (OA) is the most common type of arthritis and proinflammatory cytokines have been considered as the main etiologic factor in the pathogenesis of the disease. Serum levels of cytokines, that are associated with innate immunity and TH1 cells, have been analyzed in OA patients, however, there is limited research that profiles cytokines associated with Th17 cells and their relation to vitamin D3 and pain.Material and methodsThe sera from 131 patients with OA and 262 healthy controls were evaluated for serum levels of IL-17A, IL-21, IL-23 and vitamin D3 using ELISA.ResultsSerum levels of IL-17A, and IL-23 were statistically higher in OA patients than in healthy controls, while IL-21 and vitamin D3 were significantly lower in OA patients when compared to controls. A significant positive correlation was found between the serum levels of IL-17A and IL-23 using WOMAC pain scores and vitamin D3 serum levels.DiscussionThe results suggest that IL-17A plays a significant role in OA pathogenesis and the induction of pain. Decreased serum levels of vitamin D3 may reflect a positive role played by the factor in the regulation of immune responses in OA patients.

Burn intensive care unit (BICU) patients are specifically exposed to deep-seated nosocomial infections due to Candida albicans. Superficial carriage of C. albicans is a potential source of infection and dissemination, and typing methods could be useful to trace the different isolates. Multilocus sequence typing is a powerful genotyping method for pathogenic micro-organisms, including Candida albicans. Thirty clinical isolates of C. albicans obtained from 22 patients that were admitted to the BICU from a burn hospital at Sari, Mazandaran state, Iran, were studied epidemiologically by multilocus sequence typing (MLST). Seventy-five variable nucleotide sites were found. Sixty-two alleles were identified among the seven loci of the C. albicans isolates and one new allele was obtained. Eighteen diploid sequence types (DSTs) were identified, and among those 10 were new. These isolates belonged to nine clonal clusters (CCs) while two isolates occurred as singletons. Eleven (36.7 %) isolates belonged to CC 124 after eBURST analysis and 13 isolates (43.3 %) were assigned to clade 4. Approximately 17 % of the 30 isolates belonged to clade 1 (CC 69 and CC 766). Isolates from several patients with burns were found to be related genetically. Some patients yielded multiple isolates with identical DSTs, suggesting colonization or infection caused by cross-contamination between patients. Isolates that show identical or similar allelic profiles are presumed to be identical or closely related and may be used to evaluate the genetic relationships between isolates from a specific environment such as the BICU.

A series of new triazole alcohol antifungals were designed by replacing one of the triazolyl moiety from fluconazole with a distinct 4-amino-3-mercapto-1,2,4-triazole motif, which is found in some antimicrobial agents. The antimicrobial susceptibility testing of target compounds demonstrated that the direct analogs of fluconazole (difluorophenethyl-triazoles) were less active against fungi, while compound 10h containing dichloro substitutions on both phenyl rings of the molecule had potent activity against yeasts including Candida albicans (four strains) and Cryptococcus neoformans (MICs = 2-8 μg/mL). Also, compound 10h was active against Candida parapsilosis, Epidermophyton floccosum, and Trichophyton mentagrophytes, while it showed no activity against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. Finally, a molecular docking study suggested that compound 10h interacts suitably with lanosterol 14α-demethylase, which is the key enzyme in ergosterol biosynthesis.

Although Cyberlindnera fabinaii is a rare opportunist yeast species, its ability to cause septicemia, produce biofilm, and rapid acquisition of resistance to fluconazole and voriconazole, reinforced the urge for its identification from its closely related species. Widely used biochemical assays mainly identify Cyberlindnera fabinaii as Cyberlindnera jadinii and Wickerhamomyces anomalus, resulting in underestimation of this yeast in clinical settings. Moreover, the urge for a reliable molecular means of identification remains unsolved for 28 years. In order to unequivocally differentiate Cy. fabianii, Cy. mississipiensis, Cy. jadinii, and W. anomalus, we designed a dual-function multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay. Challenging our dual-function multiplex PCR assay with 30 most clinically important yeast species, proved its specificity. Although conventional PCR could differentiate four target species, the real-time PCR counterpart due to Tm overlap misidentified Cy. mississipiensis as Cy. jadinii. Alongside of presenting a comprehensive literature review of published cases of Cy. fabianii from 1990 to 2018, we collected various clinical isolates from Tehran, Shiraz, and Fasa (July 1, 2017, to December 31, 2017) to find a passive relative distribution of these closely-related species in Iran. Subjecting our Iranian collection of yeast isolates to matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization–time of flight (MALDI-TOF) MS and LSU and ITS rDNA sequencing revealed six isolates of Cy. fabianii (central venous catheter n = 2 and vaginal swabs n = 4) and one isolate of Cy. jadinii (vaginal swabs). Due to the use of biochemical assays in global ARTEMIS study, we encourage reidentification of clinical isolates of Cy. jadinii and Cy. jadinii using MALDI-TOF or Sanger sequencing that might lead to correcting the distribution of this fungus.

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