This study investigated 339 cases of feline mycobacterial disease from cats with cutaneous lesions or masses found at exploratory laparotomy. Tissue samples were submitted to the Veterinary Laboratories Agency for mycobacterial culture over a 4-year period to December 2008. The study assessed which species of culturable mycobacteria were involved, where the cats lived, and their clinical presentation (physical findings, serum biochemistry, radiography, feline leukaemia virus and feline immunodeficiency virus status). Mycobacterium microti was cultured from 19%, Mycobacterium bovis 15%, Mycobacterium avium 7%, non-M avium non-tuberculous mycobacteria 6%, with no growth in 53% of samples. M microti, M bovis and M avium were found in almost mutually exclusive clusters within Great Britain (GB) (ie, M bovis in South-West England/Wales/Welsh Border, M avium in eastern England and M microti south of London and in South-West Scotland). While differences were seen in the clinical presentation and distribution of lesions caused by the different infections, these were not sufficiently different to be diagnostic. Cats commonly presented with single or multiple cutaneous lesions (74%), which were sometimes ulcerated or discharging, located most frequently on the head (54%). Lymph nodes were usually involved (47%); typically the submandibular nodes. Systemic or pulmonary signs were rarely seen (10-16%). When a cat is suspected of having mycobacteriosis, accurate identification of the species involved helps to determine appropriate action. Our findings show that knowing the cat's geographic location can be helpful, while the nature of the clinical presentation is less useful. Most cases of feline mycobacterial disease in GB are cutaneous.
Malic acid, a petroleum-derived C4-dicarboxylic acid that is used in the food and beverage industries, is also produced by a number of microorganisms that follow a variety of metabolic routes. Several members of the genus Aspergillus utilize a two-step cytosolic pathway from pyruvate to malate known as the reductive tricarboxylic acid (rTCA) pathway. This simple and efficient pathway has a maximum theoretical yield of 2 mol malate/mol glucose when the starting pyruvate originates from glycolysis. Production of malic acid by Aspergillus oryzae NRRL 3488 was first improved by overexpression of a native C4-dicarboxylate transporter, leading to a greater than twofold increase in the rate of malate production. Overexpression of the native cytosolic alleles of pyruvate carboxylase and malate dehydrogenase, comprising the rTCA pathway, in conjunction with the transporter resulted in an additional 27 % increase in malate production rate. A strain overexpressing all three genes achieved a malate titer of 154 g/L in 164 h, corresponding to a production rate of 0.94 g/L/h, with an associated yield on glucose of 1.38 mol/mol (69 % of the theoretical maximum). This rate of malate production is the highest reported for any microbial system.
This study investigated 339 cases of feline mycobacterial infection, with histopathology findings from 225 cases, and treatment and outcome information from 184 cases. Tissue samples from cats with cutaneous lesions or suspicious masses at exploratory laparotomy were submitted to the Veterinary Laboratories Agency for mycobacterial culture over a 4-year period to December 2008. The study reviewed the files for information about histopathology, treatment and outcome, and blindly reviewed histopathological changes (including staining for acid-fast bacteria [AFB]) in a sub-set of 45 cases. When a cat is suspected of having a mycobacterial infection, accurate identification of the species involved helps to determine possible treatment options and prognosis. The study confirmed that histopathology and the presence of AFB are useful tools in the recognition of mycobacterial infection. Unfortunately, they did little to help determine the species of mycobacteria involved. The study identified a group of cats that were negative for AFB at the primary laboratory, but from which mycobacteria could be cultured; commonly Mycobacterium bovis or Mycobacterium microti. The study also identified a group of cats which where culture negative, despite typical signs of mycobacterial infection and positive AFB staining. Many cases responded favourably to treatment (56% of the cases where information was available), and many cats gained complete remission (42%). However, relapses were common (64%) and often followed by pulmonary and/or systemic spread that may have resulted from treatment with short courses of single drugs. This study shows that the diagnosis and treatment of feline mycobacteriosis is complex and challenging.
We postulated that a synergistic combination of two innate immune functions, pathogen surface recognition and lysis, in a protein chimera would lead to a robust class of engineered antimicrobial therapeutics for protection against pathogens. In support of our hypothesis, we have engineered such a chimera to protect against the Gram-negative Xylella fastidiosa (Xf), which causes diseases in multiple plants of economic importance. Here we report the design and delivery of this chimera to target the Xf subspecies fastidiosa (Xff), which causes Pierce disease in grapevines and poses a great threat to the wine-growing regions of California. One domain of this chimera is an elastase that recognizes and cleaves MopB, a conserved outer membrane protein of Xff. The second domain is a lytic peptide, cecropin B, which targets conserved lipid moieties and creates pores in the Xff outer membrane. A flexible linker joins the recognition and lysis domains, thereby ensuring correct folding of the individual domains and synergistic combination of their functions. The chimera transgene is fused with an amino-terminal signal sequence to facilitate delivery of the chimera to the plant xylem, the site of Xff colonization. We demonstrate that the protein chimera expressed in the xylem is able to directly target Xff, suppress its growth, and significantly decrease the leaf scorching and xylem clogging commonly associated with Pierce disease in grapevines. We believe that similar strategies involving protein chimeras can be developed to protect against many diseases caused by human and plant pathogens.
In this study we estimate the seroprevalence of foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) in wildlife from eastern and central Africa. Sera were sourced from between 1994 and 2002 from a rinderpest surveillance program. Our study compared a nonstructural protein enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (Cedi test) with a virus neutralization test. The study shows that there is only a low seroprevalence of FMDV in sampled nonbuffalo species. The seroprevalence in the Cape buffalo was high for SAT2, lower for SAT1, and lowest for SAT3. As the SAT2 serotype was most prevalent, the Cedi test largely reflected the occurrence of SAT2-positive animals. The results also suggest that SAT2 became dominant around 1998, with a large increase in seroprevalence. The sensitivity and specificity of the Cedi test were estimated by comparison to the combined virus neutralization test results from all three SAT tests. A Bayesian implementation of the Hui-Walter latent class model was used to estimate the test parameters. The model permits estimation in the absence of a gold standard test. The final model, using noninformative priors and assuming conditional independence of test performance, estimated Cedi test sensitivity at 87.7% and specificity at 87.3%. These estimates are similar to those for domestic bovines; they suggest that the Cedi test is a useful tool for screening buffalo for infection with the various serotypes of FMDV.
By 22 June 2022, 521 cases of monkeypox were notified in Germany. The median age was 38 years (IQR: 32–44); all cases were men. In Berlin, where 69% of all cases occurred, almost all were men who have sex with men. Monkeypox virus likely circulated unrecognised in Berlin before early May. Since mid-May, we observed a shift from travel-associated infections to mainly autochthonous transmission that predominantly took place in Berlin, often in association with visits to clubs and parties.
(IPTP, LMU). A secondary objective was to evaluate and compare the data in order to determine where efforts could be focused to optimise approaches for collection and use of information on animal poisonings. Materials and methods Poison centres Data on animal 9168 exposure calls to five German PCs were collected retrospectively for the time period January 1, 2012, to December 31, 2014. The date of inquiry, type of caller, animal details (species, age, sex) exposure reason (eg, accidental), type (eg, acute) and route (eg, oral) and main exposure agent were collected from all PCs; poisoning severity recorded at the time of inquiry was collected from one PC. Likelihood of exposure, causality and follow-up information were not collected.
A quantitative risk assessment was undertaken following the Codex Alimentarius principles in order to predict the exposure of consumers to hepatitis E virus (HEV) through food consumption. Taking into account the tropism of HEV, fresh liver and liver sausages were regarded as having a higher risk of contamination. The model entailed a hypothetical food pathway and was based on worst case scenario where the intake of contaminated food derived from a 100% HEV-infected pig population was estimated. As no data on the prevalence of infectious HEV was available, the HEV-RNA prevalence in food matrices and the seroprevalence of HEV-specific antibodies in swine were assessed and adjusted for diagnostic misclassification and sampling uncertainty. Considering a HEV prevalence of 100% in pigs and excluding further cross-contamination events, a food portion consisting of 130 gr of liver or of 32.5 gr of sausage (containing 30% of liver) yielded an estimated exposure of 8047 and 210 RNA copies (median values), respectively. These findings take into account the effect of thermal treatment on the HEV-RNA concentration of food. Due to the lack of information concerning the correlation between HEV-RNA concentration and the amount of infectious virus as well as the dose-response relationship of HEV, the calculated RNA copies do not allow direct conclusions to be drawn on the risk of infection following ingestion of these food types. The true prevalence was estimated for Switzerland and Germany, leading to an overall prevalence of HEV-RNA in food of 6.2% (90% Highest Density Intervals (HDIs): 2.5%-11.2%). In comparison with fresh liver, liver sausages showed a higher prevalence, most likely due to the presence of more than one liver within the same sausage. The true prevalence of anti-HEV IgG ranged between 59.4% (HDIs 56.5%-62.4%) and 62.6% (HDIs 58.8%-64.3%) and between 7.6% (HDIs 3.3%-13.2%) and 30.5% (HDIs 23.2%-38.2%) in pigs and wild boars, respectively. The high prevalence of antibodies support the evidence that these animals can act as reservoirs for HEV and can contribute epidemiologically to the maintenance of the virus in the surroundings. This study is a preliminary investigation and highlights the major existing gaps needed to be filled in order to enable a refined HEV risk assessment that can drive future decisions for the implementation of food safety and of control measures.
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