Organoids in modelling infectious diseases

Approaches based on animal and two-dimensional (2D) cell culture models cannot ensure reliable results in modeling novel pathogens or in drug testing in the short term; therefore, there is rising interest in platforms such as organoids. To develop a toolbox that can be used successfully to overcome current issues in modeling various infections, it is essential to provide a framework of recent achievements in applying organoids. Organoids have been used to study viruses, bacteria, and protists that cause, for example, respiratory, gastrointestinal, and liver diseases. Their future as models of infection will be associated with improvements in system complexity, including abilities to model tissue structure, a dynamic microenvironment, and coinfection.Teaser.Organoids are a flexible tool for modelling viral, bacterial and protist infections. They can provide fast and reliable information on the biology of pathogens and in drug screening, and thus have become essential in combatting emerging infectious diseases.     

The T2Bacteria Assay Is a Sensitive and Rapid Detector of Bacteremia That Can Be Initiated in the Emergency Department and Has Potential to Favorably Influence Subsequent Therapy

BackgroundBacteremia causes a major worldwide burden, in terms of financial and productivity costs, as well the morbidity and mortality it can ultimately cause. Proper treatment of bacteremia is a challenge because of the species-dependent response to antibiotics. The T2Bacteria Panel is a U.S. Food and Drug Administration–cleared and culture-independent assay for detection of bacteremia, including common ESKAPE pathogens—Escherichia coli, Enterococcus faecium, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa—and provides species identification in as little as 3.6 h directly from blood.ObjectiveOur aim was to evaluate the T2Bacteria assay performance and potential to affect patient care in the emergency department (ED).MethodsED patients from a Louisiana and Florida center were enrolled as part of the T2Bacteria Panel clinical study, which was prospective and noninterventional. Blood samples for blood culture (BC) and T2Bacteria were matched in time and anatomic location.ResultsData from 137 ED patients were evaluated. Relative to BC, T2Bacteria showed 100% positive percent agreement and 98.4% negative percent agreement. In addition, for species on the T2Bacteria Panel, the T2Bacteria assay detected 25% more positives associated with infection, and on average identified the infectious species 56.6 h faster. The T2Bacteria assay covered 70.5% of all species detected by BC. Finally, relative to actual care, the T2Bacteria assay could have potentially focused therapy in 8 patients, reduced time to a species-directed therapy in 4 patients, and reduced time to effective therapy in 4 patients.ConclusionsIn this ED population, the T2Bacteria assay was a rapid and sensitive detector of bacteremia from common ESKAPE pathogens and showed the theoretical potential to influence subsequent patient therapy, ranging from antibiotic de-escalation to faster time to effective therapy.     

Skin infection by Mycobacterium marinum – diagnostic and therapeutic challenge

The number of skin infections caused by atypical mycobacteria has increased in recent decades. They usually appear after contact with wounds and interruptions in the integrity of the skin. The present report describes a case of cutaneous infection by Mycobacterium marinum, in a young, immunocompetent patient, with a prolonged evolution, diagnosed through a skin lesion culture (from a spindle biopsy of the skin). The patient was treated with multidrug therapy, including clarithromycin, doxycycline, and rifampicin, due to the lesion extent, with satisfactory results. A brief review of the literature is also provided.     

Recombinant Mycobacterium bovis bacillus Calmette–Guérin expressing Ag85B-IL-7 fusion protein enhances IL-17A-producing innate γδ T cells

Interleukin 7 (IL-7) has an important function in the development and maintenance of IL-17A+ γδ T cells. We here constructed a recombinant Mycobacterium bovis bacillus Calmette–Guérin expressing antigen 85B (Ag85B)-IL-7 fusion protein (rBCG-Ag85B-IL-7). The Ag85B-IL-7 fusion protein and IL-7 were detected in the bacterial lysate of rBCG-Ag85B-IL-7. rBCG-Ag85B-IL-7 was the same in number as control rBCG expressing Ag85B (rBCG-Ag85B) in the lung at the early stage after intravenous inoculation, whereas the numbers of IL-17A+ γδ T cells and Ag-specific Th1 cells were significantly higher in the lungs of mice inoculated with rBCG-Ag85B-IL-7 than those inoculated with rBCG-Ag85B. The Ag-specific Th1 cell response was impaired in mice lacking IL-17A+ γδ T cells after inoculation with rBCG-Ag85B-IL-7. Thus, rBCG-Ag85B-IL-7 increases the pool size of IL-17A+ γδ T cells, which subsequently augment the Th1 response to mycobacterial infection.     

ROS清除剂在细菌抗生素耐受中的作用研究进展

活性氧簇(ROS)是生物在有氧环境中进行能量代谢时产生的一类分子的总称，ROS不仅在动物、植物以及细菌的生理过程中发挥着重要的作用，也在研究抗生素杀菌和细菌耐药性的产生上有着重要的功能，添加ROS清除剂有助于我们更好的研究ROS在细菌对抗菌剂耐受中的作用。本文主要通过对常见的ROS清除剂过氧化氢酶、硫脲、联吡啶、DMSO、褪黑素和其他较为常见的清除剂等化合物在抗生素杀菌过程中的作用机制、ROS清除剂添加对细菌耐受性的影响及其他生理作用进行综述，旨在对这些常见的ROS清除剂的不同功能和缺点进行一个更广泛和深入的了解，以便我们在选用相关ROS清除剂时对其作用机理有较为清楚的了解从而选取合适的ROS清除剂。     

牙周炎和慢性阻塞性肺疾病间共同危险因素及相关机制研究进展

慢性阻塞性肺疾病和牙周病两者都是感染引起的慢性炎症反应性疾病，两者的临床表现均涉及结缔组织的破坏。该文就两者的流行病学情况、共同危险因素、相关的生物学机制的研究进展进行综述。文献复习结果表明牙周炎与慢性阻塞性肺疾病两者之间可相互影响，感染细菌同源性，炎症因子和中性粒细胞都参与了两种疾病的过程，两者的共同危险因素有年龄增长、社会经济状况差、吸烟等，但仍需进一步研究来明确牙周炎和慢性阻塞性肺疾病之间相互作用的具体机制。