ObjectiveThe emergence of metallo-β-lactamase-producing Enterobacteriaceae is a worldwide health concern. In this study, the first evaluation of MBL genes, blaIMP and blaVIM, in Escherichia coli resistant to imipenem isolated from urine and blood specimens in Qom, Iran is described. Three hundred urine and blood specimens were analysed to detect the presence of E. coli. Resistance to imipenem and other antimicrobials was determined by disk diffusion and MIC. MBL production was screened using CDDT. PCR was also carried out to determine the presence of blaIMP and blaVIM genes in imipenem-resistant isolates.ResultsIn total, 160 E. coli isolates were collected from March to May 2016. According to disk diffusion, high-level of resistance (20%) to cefotaxime was observed, whereas the lowest (1%) was detected for tetracycline. In addition, five isolates showed resistance to imipenem with a MIC ≥ 4 µg/mL. CDDT test confirmed that five isolates were MBL-producing strains, but no blaIMP and blaVIM genes were detected. Results of this study show a very low level of resistance to imipenem in our geographical area.

Pneumococcal infections are a major cause of morbidity and mortality in developing countries. The introduction of pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCVs) has dramatically reduced the incidence of pneumococcal diseases. PCVs are not currently being used in Algeria. We conducted a prospective study from 2005 to 2012 in Algeria to determine antimicrobial drug resistance and serotype distribution of Streptococcus pneumoniae from children with pneumococcal disease. Among 270 isolated strains from children, 97 (36%) were invasive disease; of these, 48% were not susceptible to penicillin and 53% not susceptible to erythromycin. A high rate of antimicrobial nonsusceptibility was observed in strains isolated from children with meningitis. The serotype distribution from pneumococci isolated from children with invasive infections was (by order of prevalence): 14, 1, 19F, 19A, 6B, 5, 3, 6A and 23F. Multidrug resistance was observed in serotypes 14, 19F, 19A and 6B. The vaccine coverage of serotypes isolated from children aged <5 years was 55.3% for PCV7, 71.1% for PCV10 and 86.8% for PCV13. Our results highlight the burden of pneumococcal disease in Algeria and the increasing S. pneumoniae antibiotic resistance. The current pneumococcal vaccines cover a high percentage of the circulating strains. Therefore, vaccination would reduce the incidence of pneumococcal disease in Algeria.

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BACKGROUND Given that periapical bacterial infections are considered as one of the causes of endodontic treatment failure, and biomechanical methods may not be able to eliminate bacteria resistant to endodontic treatment, including Enterococcus faecalis; therefore, this study was conducted to compare the antibacterial effects of Golpar and Kakoti extracts with calcium hydroxide and chlorhexidine against E. faecalis. METHODS At first, Heracleum persicum (Golpar) and Ziziphora tenuior L. (Kakoti) plants were extracted by ethanol solvent using the cold maceration method and a vacuum distillation apparatus. E. faecalis ATCC 29212 was used as the standard strain in all stages of the experiment. Antibiogram, minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC), and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) tests were performed to evaluate the antibacterial activity of the prepared extracts. The anti-biofilm activity of the extracts was evaluated similar to MIC evaluation but with a longer incubation time and analyzed by ELISA at a wavelength of 492 nm. RESULTS The antibiogram test showed a growth inhibition zone diameter of 4 mm only for chlorhexidine. In addition, chlorhexidine exhibited the highest inhibitory and bactericidal activities in the MIC and MBC tests, respectively (MIC / MBC < 1.562 mg / mL). The MIC of Golpar, Kakoti, and Golpar + Kakoti extracts was determined to be 50 mg / mL. No significant inhibitory activity was observed for calcium hydroxide either alone or in combination with the plants' extracts. The MBC of Kakoti extract was 50 mg / mL, and the other compounds had an MBC greater than 100 mg / mL. CONCLUSIONS The present in vitro study showed that the highest inhibitory activity against E. faecalis was related to chlorhexidine; however, Golpar and Kakoti extracts at a concentration of 50 mg / mL exhibited a proper inhibitory activity compared to calcium hydroxide. Therefore, further studies are recommended to be conducted in the future. KEYWORDS Enterococcus faecalis, Ziziphora tenuior L., Heracleum persicum, Chlorhexidine, Calcium Hydroxide, Antibacterial effects.