Jundishapur Journal of Microbiology
Volume:15 Issue: 10, Oct 2022

 Human T-cell lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1) is the etiological agent of adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATLL) without any specific antiviral.

 This study aimed to evaluate the expression level of inflammatory chemokines and pro-inflammatory cytokines in ATLL patients, asymptomatic carriers (ACs), and healthy individuals to assess the role of these inflammatory markers in ATLL pathogenicity.

 This study was conducted from May 2021 to August 2022. The ATLL blood samples were collected from the oncology wards of Imam Khomeini, Shariati, and Imam Hossein hospitals, in Tehran, Iran. The blood samples of ACs and normal control subjects were collected from blood donors referred to blood transfusion centers of Tehran and Alborz provinces, Iran. RNA extraction, complementary DNA (cDNA) synthesis, and real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) were done in targeted sample groups to investigate the correlation and expression rate of C-C motif chemokine ligand 3 (CCL3), C-C motif chemokine ligand 4 (CCL4), C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 8 (CXCL8), interleukin 23 subunit alpha (IL-23A), and interleukin 17 A (IL-17A).

 A total of 30 samples were collected from 3 groups. The CCL3, CCL4, CXCL8, and IL-17A messenger RNA (mRNA) expression levels were significantly upregulated in the ATLL groups. There was a significant difference between CCL3 expression between the ACs and ATLL groups. In addition, CCL4 and CXCL8 expression levels were more significant in the ATLL group than in the normal control group. The IL-17A expression level significantly increased between groups. The IL-23A expression levels had no significant differences between the ATLL, ACs, and normal control groups.

 This study showed significant upregulation of pro-inflammatory cytokines and chemokines mRNAs in HTLV-1–associated ATLL compared to the ACs and normal control groups. Conducting more experiments to investigate the therapeutic effect of chemokines/cytokines in ATLL is essential.

 Herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) causes serious illness in humans, especially in newborns and immunocompromised hosts. Public health requires the development of new, less toxic anti-HSV-1 drugs.

 This study aimed to evaluate the potential anti-herpesvirus activity of natural products in an extensive library of 133 compounds by examining viral titers and the number of viral plaques.

 (S)-10-hydroxycamptothecin (10-HCPT) as an inhibitor against viral DNA replication in the lowest concentration ranges from a set of natural products consisting of screening 133 compounds. Each step of the viral replication cycle of HSV-1 on A549 cells was evaluated with different assays, including adsorption, penetration, time-of-addition assay, and quantitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The respective antiviral effects on HSV-1AN95 infection were assessed in vitro.

 10-HCPT was found to be a potent inhibitor of HSV-1 infection in the lowest concentration range from screening of a natural product library. The results showed that 10-HCPT significantly affects HSV-1 viral plaque formation inhibition, with a half maximal effective concentration (EC50) of 0.07 μM. The time of addition assay suggested that 10-HCPT had a viral inhibitory effect when added 8 hours after infection. It was further confirmed by reducing the expression of late viral genes including glycoprotein (g) and viral protein (VP) (gB, gD, gH, VP1/2, and VP16) 4 hours after infection in the 10-HCPT treatment group compared to positive controls by quantitative real-time PCR. The Western blotting results are inconsistent with other reported results. It showed that 10-HCPT did not affect gD and ICP4 during HSV-1 infection, and 10-HCPT appeared to affect other genes in the immediate-early (IE) and late (L) steps.

 10-HCPT demonstrated anti-HSV activity on HSV-1. Their dose-dependent antiviral activity showed that specific cellular components might mediate their function rather than cytotoxicity. This survey suggests a new outlook in exploring effective treatment options for HSV-1 infections.

 The genus Proteus is a Gram-negative bacterium with a unique characteristic of swarming. Mainly three species are involved in initiating urinary tract infections in the community and in immunocompromised patients, particularly in patients going through long-term catheterization. Due to their strong virulence factors like biofilm formations, protease, and hemolysin, they can lead to lengthening infections in affected individuals. Probiotics are live bacteria and yeasts that are beneficial to human health and can be used as an alternative for the control of nosocomial diseases. Lactobacilli are one of the common probiotics mostly found in yogurt and other fermented foods that have been used as a substitute for infection control.

 The current study was designed to screen potential probiotic bacteria to encounter antibiotic-resistant and virulent Proteus species.

 In the current study, using probiotics, already known antibiotic-resistant isolates (n = 25) of Proteus were processed to characterize their virulence factors and their inhibition. Biofilm formation, protease, and hemolysin activities were studied using different phenotypic detection methods. Further, their virulence genes zapA, flg, hmpA, mrp, and rsbA were explored using their genomic DNA. These isolates were found resistant to different classes of antibiotics, and a strategy was designed to inhibit their growth by using probiotic bacteria isolated from the soil.

 Virulence factors first, all isolates were subjected to biofilm detection, and they were 32% (n = 8) strong, 40% (n = 10) moderate, 16% (n = 4) weak, and 12% (n = 3) non-biofilm producers. All isolates were positive for swarming activity by showing a differentiated ring form of growth. Protease activity showed 56% (n = 14) isolates. Only 24% (n = 6) of isolates were positive for hemolysin. Virulence factors and molecular mechanisms were studied, and gene rsbA responsible for swarming was amplified in 17 (68%) Proteus isolates, and mrp responsible for fimbria was detected in 19 (76%) bacterial isolates. Further, these isolates were subjected to flagella, protease, and hemolysin, and it was revealed that flg 11 (44%), 13 (52%) protease coding zapA, and hmA gene coding hemolysin were amplified in 2 (8%) Proteus isolates. Probiotic bacteria isolated from soil samples were probed for antagonistic activity against Proteus species. The probiotic bacteria were identified as Lactobacillus plantarum, Bacillus subtilis, and B. licheniformis. Due to their strong growth inhibitory effects against Proteus, it is crucial to characterize further the metabolites that have shown suppressive results against Proteus.

 Findings from the current study will provide new avenues for drug development and also help clinicians manage resistant pathogens in healthcare settings. Probiotic applications for infection control can be useful in treating resistant pathogens. Further purification and characterization of metabolites will provide alternative options for managing resistance issues in microbes.

 Helicobacter pylori infection is one of the most prevalent infections in many areas of the world, which is treated with different combinations of medications.

 This study aimed to investigate the response rate and outcomes of H. pylori-infected Iranian patients treated with triple therapy.

 The current study examined the records of patients with dyspepsia referred to Imam Reza hospital's gastroenterology clinic in Mashhad, Iran, diagnosed with H. pylori from 2017 to 2019. The patients received the triple therapy for H. pylori and were divided into responsive and non-responsive groups.

 Out of the 750 patients, 477 were included in the study. The response rate to H. pylori standard triple therapy was 79% after 14 days of treatment. Patients aged 30 - 39 years had the highest rate of treatment response. There was no significant relationship between the response rate to treatment and smoking (P = 0.74), alcohol consumption (P = 0.91), opium addiction (P = 0.89), history of aspirin (P = 0.46) or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) use (P = 0.66), diabetes (P = 0.18), renal failure (P = 0.054), and family history of GI malignancies (P = 0.51). Furthermore, patients with gastric ulcer (P = 0.43), duodenal ulcer (P = 0.66), and gastric precancerous lesions (P = 0.93) showed no significant difference in response to treatment.

 The H. pylori triple therapy regimen can be an effective medication strategy for H. pylori infection in the Iranian population.

 COVID-19 is associated with dangerous thromboembolic complications, such as stroke, heart attack, pulmonary embolism, and arterial and venous thromboembolism (VTE). Early diagnosis and even prediction of thromboembolic complications using biomarkers could facilitate the treatment and decrease the mortality rate.

 This study evaluated and compared the clinical and laboratory findings of COVID-19 patients with thrombotic events with other COVID-19 patients.

 A total of 114 confirmed COVID-19 patients referred to Taleghani Hospital, Tehran, Iran, between February and September 2020 were included in this cross-sectional study. Those with a history of thromboembolic disease were excluded. The laboratory data, including the levels of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), D-dimer, C-reactive protein (CRP), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), and counts of lymphocyte and neutrophil, along with clinical findings (such as oxygen saturation and lung involvement percentage), were retrospectively collected from the patients’ clinical files. The incidence of thrombotic events was evaluated in patients.

 The prevalence of thrombosis in the right and left main pulmonary arteries, right and left sub-segmental pulmonary arteries, and right and left deep veins was 2.7%, 3.5%, 7%, 7.9%, 4.4%, and 1.8% of all patients, respectively. The results showed that thromboembolic complications were significantly associated with mortality (P < 0.001). Besides, it was found that LDH (P < 0.001) and neutrophil (P = 0.002) levels in thromboembolic COVID-19 patients were respectively higher and lower than those without thromboembolic manifestations.

 High LDH and neutropenia might serve as biomarkers for thromboembolism in COVID-19 patients.

 Due to the increasing antibiotic resistance, treating infections caused by Klebsiella pneumoniae has become more challenging.

 The present study aimed to investigate the prevalence of blaOXA-48 and blaNDM producing carbapenem-resistant K. pneumoniae isolated from clinical samples in Shahid Rajaei hospital in Tehran, Iran.

 Various clinical samples were collected from 1,186 patients admitted with open heart surgery in two wards (ICU and surgery) in Shahid Rajaei Heart Hospital in Tehran, Iran. Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates were identified by standard microbiologic tests. Antimicrobial susceptibility of isolates were determined by disk diffusion and E-test methods. A modified carbapenem inactivation method (mCIM) was performed to detect the presence of carbapenemase. Antibiotic resistance genes were detected using conventional polymerase chain reaction (PCR) by primers targeting blaOXA-48, blaSPM, blaIMP, blaVIM, and blaNDM genes.

 A total of 131 clinical isolates of K. pneumoniae were isolated and 45.8% (60/131) of them were resistant to carbapenem. Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates showed the highest resistance rate (100%) to ceftriaxone, ceftazidime, cefazolin, and cefepime and the maximum sensitivity to tigecycline (96.7%). The carbapenemase-encoding blaOXA-48 and blaNDM-1 genes were detected in 96.7% and 66.7% of isolates, respectively. Eight different clusters of the isolates, considering a ≥ 80% homology cut-off, were shown with the same rep-PCR pattern. Clusters A, B, C, D, E, F, G, and H included 20, 11, 7, 6, 6, 3, 2, and 2 members, respectively.

 The RAPD-PCR method reveals the clonal relationship between isolates and may help improve infection control procedures.