Distribution of the exfoliative toxin D gene in clinical Staphylococcus aureus isolates in France

Exfoliative toxin D (ETD) was identified recently as a new exfoliative toxin serotype. Like other exfoliative toxins, ETD induces intra-epidermal cleavage through the granular layer of the epidermis of neonatal mice. The distribution of ETD production was investigated in Staphylococcus aureus isolates from infected and colonised patients in France. The etd gene was found in 55 (10.5%) of 522 isolates tested. Isolates responsible for bullous impetigo and generalised staphylococcal scalded skin syndrome did not harbour etd, but etd was significantly more frequent in isolates causing cutaneous abscesses and furuncles. Most etd- and Panton-Valentine leukocidin-positive strains belonged to the clone of community-acquired methicillin-resistant S. aureus spreading currently throughout France.     

Possible role of IL-2 deficiency for hypogammaglobulinaemia in patients with common variable immunodeficiency.

Common variable immunodeficiency (CVID) patients are unable to produce specific immunoglobulins after antigen contact in vivo. The aim of this study was to investigate whether in some cases of CVID a decreased de novo synthesis of IL-2 might be the cause of immunodeficiency and whether this deficiency can be corrected by IL-2 supplementation in vitro. Mononuclear cells from 17 CVID patients and from 10 healthy controls were cultured with monoclonal anti-CD3 antibody OKT3, pokeweed mitogen (PWM) or tetanus toxoid (TT) to stimulate IL-2 synthesis. In parallel, in vitro IgG and IgM synthesis was stimulated with Staphylococcus aureus Cowan I (SAC), PWM or TT in the presence or absence of IL-2. While lymphocytes of 11 out of 17 patients produced low to normal amounts of IL-2 upon stimulation with anti-CD3, only three patients showed low IL-2 production in response to PWM and five in response to TT. Regarding immunoglobulin synthesis in vitro, five patients completely failed to produce IgM or IgG upon stimulation with PWM, SAC or TT irrespective of the addition of IL-2. By contrast, four patients did not show any defect in vitro and synthesized normal amounts of IgM and IgG with any of the three stimuli. Finally, eight patients could be reconstituted for PWM-, SAC- and TT-induced IgM and/or IgG synthesis in vitro, by adding IL-2 to the culture system. This enhancing effect of IL-2 could be blocked by adding anti-IL-2 receptor antibodies to the cultures. Our findings indicate that a defective IL-2 synthesis after antigen stimulation may be one reason for the impaired immunoglobulin production in some cases of CVID.     

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus: investigation of a hospital outbreak using a case-control study

A retrospective case-control study of 50 MRSA-positive patients was carried out during an outbreak of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) at an acute general hospital in London. Controls were randomly selected from MRSA-negative patients admitted during the outbreak period. Risk factors investigated included length of admission prior to screening, number of ward changes, main diagnosis, extent of staff contact, pressure sores, surgical and other invasive procedures and antibiotic treatment. Outcome variables examined were rates of infection (versus colonization) with MRSA and mortality. Patients with MRSA were in hospital longer before microbiological specimens were taken and moved wards more often than controls. In a logistic regression analysis, length of stay in hospital, pressure sores, physiotherapy and surgical procedures were associated with a significantly increased risk of acquiring MRSA. Odds ratios (and 95% confidence intervals) for having acquired MRSA were: 8·3 (1·02−71·43) if a patient had pressure sores; 3·7 (1·10−12·5) if they received physiotherapy; and 3·2 (1·82−10·0) if they underwent surgical procedures. The rate of clinical infection amongst patients with this strain of MRSA was 26% and included life-threatening infections such as septicaemia, underlining the potential virulence of MRSA. Surgery and physiotherapy may have been markers of debility. Physiotherapy was probably a marker of increased rates of contact with all hospital staff, and high standards of hand hygiene should be promoted amongst all staff as the most important factor in controlling an outbreak of MRSA. Good bed management is essential for hospital infection control.     

Adherence of Staphylococcus aureus to cultures of human peritoneal mesothelial cells

Strains of Staphylococcus aureus, isolated from the effluentof patients with peritonitis on CAPD (continuous ambulatoryperitoneal dialysis), adhered well to both cultured human mesothelialcells and to fibronectin, but not to laminin or gelatin. Mesothelialcells grown in medium M199 exhibited more surface fibronectincompared to cells grown in MEM-Dval and demonstrated higherlevels of S. aureus adherence. Soluble fibronectin concentrations up to lOµg/ml increasedthe adherence of S. aureusto cultured mesothelial cells. Thedose-response curve was consistent with the binding of fibronectinto a saturable receptor of apparent dissociation constant (K_D)= 1.7xlO^–10 M. This corresponds closely to the K_D (2xlO^–10M) of the staphylococcal fibronectin-binding protein. S. aureus adherence was increased following the preincubationof mesothelial cell monolayers with interleukin-1 and was maximalafter 6 h preincubation. Treating mesothelial cells with interferon-gammafor 48–72 h reduced the adherence of S. aureus.     

长、短链探针以链延伸反应提高基因传感器检测MRSA灵敏度的实验研究

目的：利用链延伸反应的原理延长引物链以提高石英谐振式基因传感器表面的质量负载，从而提高传感器检测MRSA的灵敏度。方法：以不对称PCR的反应产物做为长链探针，人工合成的寡核苷酸片段为短链探针，在基因传感器阵列表面分别固定上金黄色葡萄球菌mecA和femA的长链及短链探针共4种探针片段，与相应的靶序列杂交后，加入Klenow酶，37℃进行链延伸反应1h。结果：长、短链探针均有效地固定了传感器表面。mecA,femA短链探针在链延伸反应前的检测灵敏度为0.5nmol/L，但经链延伸反应后检测灵敏提高到了0.05nmol/L；而长链探针却无法与相应的基因组靶序列发生杂交。结论：短链探针链延伸反应有效地提高了石英谐振式基因传感器的灵敏度，但该法不适用于链探针。     

The effect of 2,4-diamino-6-hydroxy-pyrimidine on postburn Staphylococcus aureus sepsis in rats

GTP-cyclohydrolase I (GTP-CHI) is the first and rate-limiting enzyme for the de novo biosynthesis of biopterin. The present study was to observe the effect of 2,4-diamino-6-hydroxy-pyrimidine (DAHP),an inhibtor of GTP-CHI, on the development of postburn Staphylococcus aureus sepsis. Methods: 56 male Wistar rats were randomly divided into four groups as follows: normal control group (n= 10), scald control group(n= 10),pos tburn sepsis group (n= 20) and DA HP treatment group (n= 16). In the scald control group, rats were subjected to a 20% total body surface area (TBSA) Ⅲ° scald injury, then sacrificed at 24 hrs. In the postburn sepsis group (n=20), rats were inflicted with 20% TBSA Ⅲ° scald followed by Staphylococcus aureus challenge, and they were further divided into 2 and 6 hrs groups. In the DAHP treatment group (n= 16), animals were intraperitoneally injected with a dose of 1g/kg DAHP prior to Staphylococcus aureus challenge, and then further divided into 2, 6 hrs groups. Tissue samples from liver, kidneys, lungs and heart were collected to determine GTP-CHI, inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) mRNA expression. Meanwhile, biopterin and nitric oxide (NO) levels in these tissues were also measured. Results: After the scald injury followed by Staphylococcus aureus challenge, GTP-CHI mRNA expression and biopterin levels significantly elevated in various tissues such as liver, heart, kidneys and lungs, so did the values of iNOS mRNA expression and NO formation (P＜0.01). Pretreatment with DAHP could significantly reduce GTP-CHI/biopterin induction (P＜0. 05～0. 01), and the up-regulation of iNOS/NO was also suppressed. Furthermore, DAHP administration could also inhibit the gene expression of TNF-α. 2 hrs after septic challenge, TNF-α mRNA expression in liver, kidneys and lungs in DAHP-treated group were 35.7%, 37.3% and 33.0% of those in postburn septic group, respectively. Additionally, in animals without DAHP treatment, the 6-hour mortality was 55.6% (20/36), while it was only 25.0% in DAHP-treated animals (4/16, P=0. 08). Conclusions: Early treatment with DAHP might be a potential strategy to prevent the development of postburn Staphylococcal sepsis, which appears to be associated with down-regulation of biopterin and NO formation by DAHP.     

Mecillinam susceptibility as an indicator of β-lactamase production in Staphylococcus aureus

The use of direct susceptibility testing from specimens has led to the fortuitous observation that penicillin-susceptible strains have larger inhibition zones for mecillinam than do β -lactamase producers. The current study was, therefore, undertaken to test 179 Staphylococcus aureus isolates for mecillinam susceptibility by Rosco Neo-Sensitabs and to compare the results with commonly used tests for β -lactamase production, i.e. size and character of penicillin inhibition zones, chromogenic cephalosporin (nitrocefin) tests and clover leaf assays. Agreement between methods was reached for 175 of 179 strains when disregarding the results of the nitrocefin tests, 88 isolates being found susceptible and 87 being found to be β -lactamase producers. All 88 susceptible isolates had mecillinam zones of >22 mm, with the great majority being >25 mm; double zones did, however, occur. The 87 β -lactamase producers had zones <14 mm or no zones. Four isolates presenting problems in had mecillinam zones of ≤20 mm and were without tapering growth at the penicillin inhibition zone edge. In conclusion, the size of the mecillinam inhibition zone is found to be a useful supplementary test in the clinically important distinction between β -lactamase-producing and non-producing isolates of S. aureus .     

Efficacy and functionality of silver-coated textiles in patients with atopic eczema

BACKGROUND: Microbial skin colonization with Staphylococcus aureus is known to play an important role in atopic eczema (AE). Recently, an antibacterial effect of silver-coated textiles on S. aureus colonization has been demonstrated. OBJECTIVES: To investigate clinical efficacy and functionality of silver-coated textiles in AE, a multicentre, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial was conducted. PATIENTS/METHODS: From November 2001 to August 2002, 68 consecutive outpatients clinically diagnosed with generalized AE were included in the study. Inclusion criteria were the clinical diagnosis of AE with a moderate severity as measured by the scoring of atopic dermatitis (SCORAD) index with at least 20. Patients were instructed to wear either silver-coated (verum, 35 patients + 2 dropouts) or cotton garments (placebo, 22 patients + 9 dropouts) directly on the skin for 2 weeks. Only basic skin care and ongoing therapy with topical steroids or oral antihistamines was permitted. Clinical severity was assessed using the 'SCORAD' before, during and at the end of study. Quality of life (QOL), wearing comfort (WC) and functionality (FU) of study clothes were measured in parallel. Patients documented their subjective and objective symptoms daily. RESULTS: In the verum group, eczema improved significantly after 1 week with further enhancement until the end of study (P = 0.03 and P < 0.001). Silver-coated textiles were comparable to cotton in WC and FU. Pruritus and self-assigned skin condition improved significantly more than with placebo (P < 0.001 and P = 0.003). CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, silver-coated textiles are able to improve objective and subjective symptoms of AE significantly within 2 weeks, showing a good wearing comfort and functionality comparable to cotton.     

金黄色葡萄球菌CCC型及OC型质粒的检测

采用已报道的金黄色葡萄球菌质粒DNA的检测方法(简称LL法)。从1982年在南京地区临床分离的131株金黄色葡萄球菌中的125株(95.4%)中检出质粒,可分为21质粒谱。经单向及双向二步琼脂糖凝胶电泳法鉴别,按分子量共有16个CCC型质粒带(P_1～P_(16))。用改良的LL法制备E.coli V517菌株质粒DNA,建立了简便的测定金黄色葡萄球菌质粒DNA分子量的参考系统。结果表明:要本实验条件下,P_1～P_(16)的分子量为1.42 Md～22.24±0.73 Md;以含有14.88、2.66±0.06 Md质粒谱的菌株较常见,占总数的25.2%;2.66±0.06 Md的质粒最常见,在73.3%的菌株中检出。     

医院内感染病原菌及其对抗生素的耐药状况

调查1988年3月～5月我院591例住院病例,发生96例次院内感染,总发病率16.2％。院内感染病原菌中,革蓝氏阴性杆菌占72.9％,革蓝氏阳性球菌占12.9％,念珠菌属占14.1％。院内感染病原菌的耐药性明显高于院外菌株。绿脓杆菌对庆大霉素和羧苄青霉素的耐药率分别为63.6％和54.5％。其它革蓝氏阴性杆菌院内株对常用抗生素如氨苄青霉素、羧苄青霉素、庆大霉素和妥布拉霉素的耐药率分别为82.5％、 67.5％、47.5％和45％。革蓝氏阳性球菌院内株的耐药性也很严重,表葡菌对多种半合成青霉素类、红霉素、复方新诺明甚至万古霉素的耐药率达60％以上。同时分离出耐甲氧西林金葡菌。