Publications

TitleAbstractYear
Filter
PMID(sorted ascending)
Filter
antibacterial activity of aristolochia paucinervis pomel.several fractions of the methanolic extract of the rhizome or the leaves of aristolochia paucinervis pomel were screened for antibacterial activity using the agar dilution method against fourteen reference bacterial strains. only three fractions (defatted chloroformic rhizome fraction: aprc, rhizome ethyl acetate fraction: apre and leaf chloroform fraction: aplc) showed an activity against at least one of the microorganisms tested. the minimum inhibitory concentration (mic) determination showed ...199910616964
comparative in vitro activity of moxifloxacin against gram-positive clinical isolates.the in vitro activity of moxifloxacin was compared with that of 15 antibacterial agents against 513 gram-positive microorganisms. the mic(90) (mg/l) of moxifloxacin was 0.06 for quinolone-susceptible staphylococcus aureus and staphylococcus epidermidis, 0.12 for streptococcus pyogenes and streptococcus agalactiae; 0.25 for streptococcus pneumoniae, streptococcus mitis, streptococcus bovis, streptococcus anginosus and actinomyces pyogenes; 0.5 for streptococcus sanguis and listeria monocytogenes, ...200010629010
value of lysozyme agar incorporation and alkaline thioglycollate exposure for the environmental recovery of clostridium difficile.clostridium difficile is an increasingly prevalent nosocomial pathogen. environmental contamination by spores is believed to be a major factor propagating the spread of c. difficile. various approaches including the use of bile salts have been described to enhance the recovery of c. difficile from clinical and environmental specimens. we found that lysozyme (5 mg/l) incorporated into a selective medium containing bile salts significantly increased the recovery of c. difficile from swabs of 197 e ...200010633056
probiotics and gastrointestinal health.evidence for positive health benefits of lactobacilli applies to only a few strains used for commercial applications. it is generally agreed that a probiotic must be capable of colonizing the intestinal tract to influence human health; this requirement disqualifies many of the strains currently used in fermented dairy products. lactobacillus gg, a variant of l. casei sps rhamnosus, has been studied extensively in adults and children. when consumed as a dairy product or as a lyophilized powder, l ...200010634218
the effect of probiotics on clostridium difficile diarrhea.clostridium difficile is the leading cause of nosocomially acquired intestinal infection in the united states, affecting virtually all cases of pseudomembranous colitis and up to 20% of cases of antibiotic-associated diarrhea. even after receiving antibiotic treatment with either metronidazole or vancomycin, 20% of patients will have recurrent clostridium difficile diarrhea. an innovative approach to the problem involves the introduction of competing, nonpathogenic (probiotic) organisms into the ...200010634221
probiotics and infectious diarrhea.numerous probiotic agents have been studied for the management of diarrheal disease. in particular, the prevention and management of acute viral diarrhea, the treatment of recurrent clostridium difficile diarrhea, as well as the control of antibiotic-associated diarrhea seem to be areas of significant potential benefit. a few agents, including lactobacillus gg, lactobacillus reuteri, and saccharomyces boulardii, seem to be promising agents for the amelioration of the course of acute diarrhea in ...200010634223
[clostridium difficile]. 199910635809
pathophysiology, diagnosis and treatment of clostridium difficile infection.clostridium difficile infection has become in recent years an important nosocomial threat. prevention of the spread of c. difficile infection among long term hospitalized patients is a major challenge since c. difficile spores can persist indefinitely in the hospital environment. following antibiotic therapy that disrupts the normal bacterial flora of the colon, c. difficile can colonize the large intestine. the bacteria releases two large protein toxins that bind to colonocytes and mediate an a ...199910638139
the macrolide-lincosamide-streptogramin b resistance determinant from clostridium difficile 630 contains two erm(b) genes.the ermb macrolide-lincosamide-streptogramin b (mls) resistance determinant from clostridium difficile 630 contains two copies of an erm(b) gene, separated by a 1.34-kb direct repeat also found in an erm(b) determinant from clostridium perfringens. in addition, both erm(b) genes are flanked by variants of the direct repeat sequence. this genetic arrangement is novel for an ermb mls resistance determinant.200010639372
clostridium difficile toxin: cytoskeletal changes and lactate dehydrogenase release in hepatocytes.we have found that clostridium difficile toxins can evoke hepatocyte acute-phase protein synthesis, and that this effect is dependent on a functioning interleukin-1 (il-1) receptor. the present study was undertaken to determine if c. difficile toxicity, as determined by actin rearrangement and lactate dehydrogenase (ldh) release, also requires a functioning il-1 receptor.200010644484
identification of a novel genetic locus that is required for in vitro adhesion of a clinical isolate of enterohaemorrhagic escherichia coli to epithelial cells.enterohaemorrhagic escherichia coli (ehec) are food-borne intestinal pathogens with a low infectious dose. adhesion of some ehec strains to epithelial cells is attributed, in part, to intimin, but other factors may be required for the intestinal colonizing ability of these bacteria. in order to identify additional adherence factors of ehec, we generated transposon mutants of a clinical ehec isolate of serotype o111:h-, which displayed high levels of adherence to cultured chinese hamster ovary (c ...200010652089
high prevalence of diarrhea but infrequency of documented clostridium difficile in autologous peripheral blood progenitor cell transplant recipients.autologous peripheral blood progenitor cell (pbpc) transplant recipients frequently receive multiple antibiotics for neutropenic fever in addition to high-dose chemotherapy. although there are many possible causes for diarrhea in this population, empiric therapy for possible c. difficile colitis is common in some centers. this study sought to define the frequency of diarrhea and of a positive c. difficile toxin assay in pbpc transplant recipients. data were collected on 80 patients enrolled in a ...200010654017
pseudomembranous colitis: an update.clostridium difficile is the most common nosocomial infection of the gastrointestinal tract. most cases are associated with antibiotic therapy that alters the fecal flora, allowing overgrowth of c difficile with production of its toxins. diagnosis is made by detection of the organism or toxin in the stools. a variety of different tests can be used, but none is perfect. a stool culture can be positive in someone without diarrhea, ie, a carrier. while the cytotoxin is the gold standard, it is expe ...200010655027
polymeric iga is superior to monomeric iga and igg carrying the same variable domain in preventing clostridium difficile toxin a damaging of t84 monolayers.the two exotoxins a and b produced by clostridium difficile are responsible for antibiotic-associated enterocolitis in human and animals. when added apically to human colonic carcinoma-derived t84 cell monolayers, toxin a, but not toxin b, abolished the transepithelial electrical resistance and altered the morphological integrity. apical addition of suboptimal concentration of toxin a made the cell monolayer sensitive to toxin b. both toxins induced drastic and rapid epithelial alterations when ...200010657645
residential care and the elderly: the burden of infection.long term care facilities (ltcfs) include a variety of different types of healthcare settings, each with their own unique infectious disease problems. this report focuses on the epidemiological considerations, risk factors and types of infections that occur in elderly patients institutionalized in nursing home settings. in the us, the number of patients in nursing homes continues to grow as the population ages. today, patients in nursing homes have more complicated medical conditions than they d ...199910658754
bacterial resistance to disinfectants: present knowledge and future problems.bacterial resistance to antibiotics is a long-established, widely-studied problem. increasingly, attention is being directed to the responses of various types of microbes to biocides (antiseptics, disinfectants and preservatives). different groups of bacteria vary in their susceptibility to biocides, with bacterial spores being the most resistant, followed by mycobacteria, then gram-negative organisms, with cocci generally being the most sensitive. there are wide divergencies within this general ...199910658759
epidemiology of nosocomial clostridium difficile diarrhoea.clostridium difficile is a frequent and clinically important cause of diarrhoea that has been strongly but not exclusively associated with the hospital setting. the vast majority of cases of c. difficile diarrhoea are associated with antecedent treatment with antibiotics, of which cephalosporins and clindamycin appear to pose the highest risk. within hospitals and chronic-care facilities, cross-infection of c. difficile has been related to transient carriage on hands of healthcare workers and co ...199910658778
what should we do about patients with clostridium difficile? 199910658800
low prevalence of nosocomial clostridium difficile transmission, as determined by comparison of arbitrarily primed pcr and epidemiological data.an increased prevalence of patients with c. difficile-associated diarrhoea in a hospital setting suggested the possible existence of an endemic occurrence. a study was therefore designed to determine clonal relatedness among 173 isolates of c. difficile, collected consecutively during 1995 from 147 patients (89 inpatients and 58 outpatients) and to estimate the probability of nosocomial transmission. arbitrarily primed pcr (ap-pcr) with three different primers, ap1, ap2 and cld1, was used for fi ...199910658802
incidence of clostridium difficile infection: a prospective study in an indian hospital.clostridium difficile is the commonest cause of hospital-acquired diarrhoea. a prospective study comprising of 156 patients and 54 healthy controls was undertaken to assess c. difficile associated diarrhoea (cdad) incidence in an indian hospital. methods used included c. difficile culture and enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (elisa) for toxin a. attempts were made to type isolates by antibiogram and sds-page. of the 210 stool samples tested, 12 gave positive results in at least one assay. of th ...199910658803
an audit of the use of manual handling equipment and their microbiological flora--implications for infection control.a review of the use of manual handling aids in two hospitals found equipment was employed on a multi-patient basis with inadequate cleaning. sampling with a casella slit sampler demonstrated frequent contamination by methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus and clostridium difficile of fabric aids. recommendations for care of equipment are made.199910658808
screening for carriage and nosocomial acquisition of clostridium difficile by culture: a study of 284 admissions of elderly patients to six general hospitals in wales. 199910658811
asymptomatic carriage of clostridium difficile and serum levels of igg antibody against toxin a.clostridium difficile infection can result in asymptomatic carriage, mild diarrhea, or fulminant pseudomembranous colitis. we studied whether antibody responses to c. difficile toxins affect the risks of colonization, diarrhea, and asymptomatic carriage.200010666429
analysis of the pathogenicity locus in clostridium difficile strains.the genes for clostridium difficile toxins a and b (tcda and tcdb) are part of a 19.6-kb pathogenicity locus (paloc) that includes the genes tcdd, tcde, and tcdc. to determine whether the c. difficile paloc is a stable and conserved genetic unit in toxigenic strains, a multiplex polymerase chain reaction was used to analyze 50 toxigenic, 39 nontoxigenic, and 2 toxin-defective isolates. the respective amplicons were identified for tcda-e in the toxigenic isolates; these were absent in the nontoxi ...200010669352
polarization of chemoattractant receptor signaling during neutrophil chemotaxis.morphologic polarity is necessary for chemotaxis of mammalian cells. as a probe of intracellular signals responsible for this asymmetry, the pleckstrin homology domain of the akt protein kinase (or protein kinase b), tagged with the green fluorescent protein (phakt-gfp), was expressed in neutrophils. upon exposure of cells to chemoattractant, phakt-gfp is recruited selectively to membrane at the cell's leading edge, indicating an internal signaling gradient that is much steeper than that of the ...200010669415
new method to generate enzymatically deficient clostridium difficile toxin b as an antigen for immunization.the family of the large clostridial cytotoxins, encompassing clostridium difficile toxins a and b as well as the lethal and hemorrhagic toxins from clostridium sordellii, monoglucosylate the rho gtpases by transferring a glucose moiety from the cosubstrate udp-glucose. here we present a new detoxification procedure to block the enzyme activity by treatment with the reactive udp-2', 3'-dialdehyde to result in alkylation of toxin a and b. alkylation is likely to occur in the catalytic domain, beca ...200010678912
enhancement of the migration of metastatic human breast cancer cells by phosphatidic acid.phosphatidic acid (pa), lysophosphatidic acid (lpa), and sphingosine 1-phosphate (spp) are naturally occurring phospholipids which induce a variety of effects as extracellular messengers. in this study, we compared the effects of these phospholipid signaling molecules on the migration of invasive and noninvasive breast cancer cell lines, an index of the metastatic potential of these cells. as previously demonstrated, invasive mda-mb-231 breast cancer cells exhibited increased constitutive (nonst ...200010679229
in vitro activities of novel trans-3,5-disubstituted pyrrolidinylthio-1beta-methylcarbapenems with potent activities against methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus and pseudomonas aeruginosa.the in vitro activities of the novel 1beta-methylcarbapenems j-111, 225, j-114,870, and j-114,871, which have a structurally unique side chain that consists of a trans-3,5-disubstituted 5-arylpyrrolidin-3-ylthio moiety at the c-2 position, were compared with those of reference antibiotics. among isolates of both methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (mrsa) and methicillin-resistant coagulase-negative staphylococci (mrcons), 90% were inhibited by j-111,347 (prototype), j-111,225, j-114,870, ...200010681308
a severe case of post-antibiotic clostridium difficile colitis. 199910687784
antibiotics and clostridium difficile diarrhea in the ambulatory care setting.the goal of this study was to determine the prevalence of clostridium difficile diarrhea (cdd) and the risk for cdd associated with different oral antibiotics commonly used in the ambulatory care setting.200010688393
detection of the adp-ribosyltransferase toxin gene (cdta) and its activity in clostridium difficile isolates from equidae.clostridium difficile is an antibiotic-associated emerging pathogen of humans and animals. thus far three toxins of c. difficile have been described: an enterotoxin (toxa), a cytotoxin (toxb) and an adp-ribosyltransferase (cdt). in the present work we describe the first isolation of cdt producing c. difficile from equidae with gastro-intestinal disease. out of 17 c. difficile strains isolated from equidae, 11 were positive for the genes tcda and tcdb encoding toxa and toxb. in addition four of t ...200010689161
c. difficile epidemic raises difficult questions about antibiotic-prescribing practices. 200010691369
pseudomembranous colitis: report of a severe case with unusual clinical signs in a young nurse.we describe the case of a young and otherwise healthy nurse who developed pseudomembranous colitis ten days after receiving oral clindamycin for dental infection. her clinical course was particularly stormy and was characterized by severe diarrhea and vomiting, profuse ascites, pleural effusion, abdominal tenderness, peritoneal irritation, and systemic toxicity. the clostridium difficile assay was negative on two occasions. features compatible with pseudomembranous colitis were seen at sigmoidos ...200010696903
isolation and molecular characterization of clostridium difficile strains from patients and the hospital environment in belarus.toxigenic clostridium difficile is the most common etiologic agent of hospital-acquired diarrhea in developed countries. the role of this pathogen in nosocomial diarrhea in eastern europe has not been clearly established. the goal of this study was to determine the prevalence of c. difficile in patients and the hospital environment in belarus and to characterize these isolates as to the presence of toxin genes and their molecular type. c. difficile was isolated from 9 of 509 (1.8%) patients anal ...200010699022
reactive arthritis after helicobacter pylori eradication. 200010703805
rho and rac exert antagonistic functions on spreading of macrophage-derived multinucleated cells and are not required for actin fiber formation.multinucleated giant cells (mngc) derived from avian blood monocytes present, like osteoclasts, an unusual cytoskeletal organization characterized by (1) cortical rings of actin filaments, (2) unique adhesion structures called podosomes and (3) vinculin containing focal complexes which are not visibly connected to f-actin structures. the rho family of small gtpases plays an essential role in the regulation and organization of cellular cytoskeletal structures including f-actin and vinculin associ ...200010704369
factors associated with nosocomial diarrhea and clostridium difficile-associated disease on the adult wards of an urban tertiary care hospital.a prospective survey of the adult inpatient population of an urban tertiary care hospital was conducted to determine factors associated with the development of nosocomial diarrhea and the acquisition of clostridium difficile-associated disease. during the 3-month survey, 98 patients with nosocomial diarrhea were enrolled, and 38 controls were recruited. the controls were patients without diarrhea lying in beds adjacent to the affected patients. factors significantly associated with nosocomial di ...200010706173
clostridium difficile splenic abscess. 200010711482
the p42/p44 map kinase pathway prevents apoptosis induced by anchorage and serum removal.anchorage removal like growth factor removal induces apoptosis. in the present study we have characterized signaling pathways that can prevent this cell death using a highly growth factor- and anchorage-dependent line of lung fibroblasts (ccl39). after anchorage removal from exponentially growing cells, annexin v-fitc labeling can be detected after 8 h. apoptosis was confirmed by analysis of sub-g1 dna content and western blotting of the caspase substrate poly (adp-ribose) polymerase. growth fac ...200010712523
a rho-related gtpase is involved in ca(2+)-dependent neurotransmitter exocytosis.rho, rac, and cdc42 monomeric gtpases are well known regulators of the actin cytoskeleton and phosphoinositide metabolism and have been implicated in hormone secretion in endocrine cells. here, we examine their possible implication in ca(2+)-dependent exocytosis of neurotransmitters. using subcellular fractionation procedures, we found that rhoa, rhob, rac1, and cdc42 are present in rat brain synaptosomes; however, only rac1 was associated with highly purified synaptic vesicles. to determine the ...200010713089
divergent roles for ras and rap in the activation of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase by interleukin-1.we have found that lethal toxin from clostridium sordellii, which specifically inactivates the low molecular weight g proteins ras, rap, and rac, inhibits the activation of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (mapk) by interleukin-1 (il-1) in el4.nob-1 cells and primary fibroblasts. the target protein involved appeared to be ras, because transient transfections with dominant negative rasn17 inhibited p38 mapk activation by il-1. furthermore, transfections of cells with constitutively active ras ...200010713096
clostridium difficile toxin a excites enteric neurones and suppresses sympathetic neurotransmission in the guinea pig.evidence suggests that the intestinal actions of clostridium difficile toxin a-stimulation of secretion and motility, and an acute inflammatory response-have a neurally mediated component.200010716676
the role of probiotic cultures in the control of gastrointestinal health.the use of probiotics to enhance intestinal health has been proposed for many years. probiotics are traditionally defined as viable microorganisms that have a beneficial effect in the prevention and treatment of specific pathologic conditions when they are ingested. there is a relatively large volume of literature that supports the use of probiotics to prevent or treat intestinal disorders. however, the scientific basis of probiotic use has been firmly established only recently, and sound clinic ...200010721914
epidemiology of nosocomial infection and resistant organisms in patients admitted for the first time to an acute rehabilitation unit.the objectives of this study were to define the epidemiology of nosocomial bacterial colonization and infection and to define predictors of nosocomial infection among a cohort (n=423) of admissions to an acute rehabilitation unit. overall, methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (mrsa) and enterococci were the most commonly identified colonizing organisms. escherichia coli and pseudomonas aeruginosa were the most commonly identified colonizing gram-negative bacilli. during 70 (16.5%) of the ...200010722423
clostridium difficile recombinant toxin a repeating units as a carrier protein for conjugate vaccines: studies of pneumococcal type 14, escherichia coli k1, and shigella flexneri type 2a polysaccharides in mice.unlike the native protein, a nontoxic peptide (repeating unit of the native toxin designated raru) from clostridium difficile toxin a (cdta) afforded an antigen that could be bound covalently to the surface polysaccharides of pneumococcus type 14, shigella flexneri type 2a, and escherichia coli k1. the yields of these polysaccharide-protein conjugates were significantly increased by prior treatment of raru with succinic anhydride. conjugates, prepared with raru or succinylated (rarusucc), were a ...200010722615
evaluation of the clinical usefulness of c. difficile toxin testing in hospitalized patients with diarrhea.although numerous studies have evaluated the sensitivity and specificity of different assays for clostridium difficile toxin, none has evaluated how physicians utilize these tests or respond to test results. therefore, we assessed patient characteristics, clinical findings, and physician responses to positive and negative assay results at two university-affiliated hospitals, one of which used a cell cytotoxicity assay to test for c. difficile toxin and the other of which used an enzyme immunoass ...200010729659
rho family proteins modulate rapid apoptosis induced by cytotoxic t lymphocytes and fas.little is known about the role of rho proteins in apoptosis produced by stimuli evolved specifically to produce apoptosis, such as granzymes from cytotoxic t lymphocytes (ctls) and fas. here we demonstrate that all three rho family members are involved in ctl- and fas-induced killing. dominant-negative mutants of each rho family member and clostridium difficile toxin b, an inhibitor of all family members, strongly inhibited the susceptibility of cells to ctl- and fas-induced apoptosis. fas-induc ...200010734125
control of nosocomial clostridium difficile transmission in bone marrow transplant patients.this is a report of six cases of clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea (cdad) that occurred among cancer patients undergoing bone marrow transplantation in a tertiary-care cancer hospital. specific infection control measures that were taken to minimize the nosocomial spread of cdad also are discussed.200010738997
[joint manifestations related to clostridium difficile].reactional joint disease subsequent to digestive tract infections have been well studied for salmonella, shigella, yersinia and campylobacter. association with hla b27 is well documented. a review of the literature since 1976 disclosed 23 cases of articular and extra-articular inflammatory reactions following pseudomembranous clostridium difficile infection.200010745937
pseudomembranous colitis caused by a toxin a(-) b(+) strain of clostridium difficile.we report a case of severe pseudomembranous colitis due to a toxin a(-) b(+) strain of clostridium difficile in an immunosuppressed patient and discuss the implications for diagnostic testing in suspected c. difficile-associated diarrhea.200010747174
in vitro antibacterial spectrum of a new broad-spectrum 8-methoxy fluoroquinolone, gatifloxacin.the in vitro antibacterial spectrum of gatifloxacin was compared with those of ciprofloxacin and ofloxacin. gatifloxacin was two- to four-fold more potent than comparator quinolones against staphylococci, streptococci, pneumococci and enterococci (gatifloxacin mic90s, < or =1 mg/l, except 4 mg/l against methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus and enterococcus faecium). gatifloxacin was two-fold less potent than ciprofloxacin, and the same as or two-fold more potent than ofloxacin against ent ...200010747819
pseudomembranous colitis in a patient treated with paclitaxel for carcinoma of the breast: a case report.the concomitant antimicrobial properties of antineoplastic agents may play a role in causing pseudomembranous colitis, which has been documented for cisplatin, cyclophosphamide and 5-fluorouracil.200010748982
intestinal colonization leading to fecal urobilinoid excretion may play a role in the pathogenesis of neonatal jaundice.neonatal hyperbilirubinemia remains of concern because of the potential danger for the central nervous system. because urobilinogen is a nontoxic derivative of bilirubin, the current study was conducted to examine the fecal excretion of urobilinoids and bilirubin in healthy newborns and infants, as well as their intestinal bacteria capable of reducing bilirubin, to assess a possible relation to serum bilirubin levels during the first weeks of life.200010749414
inhibition of calcium release-activated calcium current by rac/cdc42-inactivating clostridial cytotoxins in rbl cells.using large clostridial cytotoxins as tools, the role of rho gtpases in activation of rbl 2h3 hm1 cells was studied. clostridium difficile toxin b, which glucosylates rho, rac, and cdc42 and clostridium sordellii lethal toxin, which glucosylates rac and cdc42 but not rho, inhibited the release of hexosaminidase from rbl cells mediated by the high affinity antigen receptor (fcepsilonri). additionally, toxin b and lethal toxin inhibited the intracellular ca(2+) mobilization induced by fcepsilonri- ...200010749865
gastric acid suppression does not promote clostridial diarrhoea in the elderly.gastric acid prevents bacterial colonization of the stomach and suppression of its secretion might predispose to clostridium difficile (cd) diarrhoea. we retrospectively studied elderly patients admitted to medical wards of an acute hospital to determine whether the incidence of cd diarrhoea was greater among those previously treated with gastric acid suppressants. from records of stool cd toxin tests undertaken in 1995 and 1996, we found 126 cases with positive results, and selected 126 control ...200010751237
evaluation of different methods for detection of clostridium difficile toxins in poland.the aim of this study was to compare different methods for c. difficile toxins detection. fifty three stool samples taken from patients with antibiotic-associated diarrhoea were studied. tcd toxin a eia (becton dickinson, usa), tox a/b elisa test (techlab, usa), cytotoxicity and neutralization assay on mccoy cells and pcr for detection of both toxin a and b genes were performed in vivo (in stool samples) and in vitro (in isolated strains). reference toxigenic and nontoxigenic and two japanese to ...199910756719
re: clinical characteristics and antibiotic utilization in surgical patients with clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea. 200010759208
re: kreiss et al.: pneumatosis intestinalis complicating c. difficile pseudomembranous colitis. 200010763988
recurrent clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea and colitis treated with saccharomyces cerevisiae (baker's yeast) in combination with antibiotic therapy: a case report. 200010764197
the small g-protein rac mediates depolarization-induced superoxide formation in human endothelial cells.superoxide anions impair nitric oxide-mediated responses and are involved in the development of hypertensive vascular hypertrophy. the regulation of their production in the vascular system is, however, poorly understood. we investigated whether changes in membrane potential that occur in hypertensive vessels modulate endothelial superoxide production. in cultured human umbilical vein endothelial cells, changes in membrane potential were induced by high potassium buffer, the non-selective potassi ...200010764736
comparison of the tox a/b test to a cell culture cytotoxicity assay for the detection of clostridium difficile in stools.the tox a/b test (techlab, blacksburg, va, usa) was compared to cell culture cytotoxicity assay on 1109 consecutive diarrheal stool samples collected from patients with the presumptive diagnosis of clostridium difficile disease. the tox a/b test is an enzyme immunoassay in a microtiter format that detects both toxins a and b. the procedure used for this study takes approximately 1.5 h to perform. cell culture cytotoxicity was performed by using a fibroblast cell line in a microtiter format read ...200010764962
fecal incontinence in hospitalized patients who are acutely ill.information about fecal incontinence experienced by patients in acute-care settings is lacking. the relationship of fecal incontinence to several well-known nosocomial or iatrogenic causes of diarrhea has not been determined.200010768587
ph-induced conformational changes in clostridium difficile toxin b.toxin b from clostridium difficile is a monoglucosylating toxin that targets substrates within the cytosol of mammalian cells. in this study, we investigated the impact of acidic ph on cytosolic entry and structural changes within toxin b. bafilomycin a1 was used to block endosomal acidification and subsequent toxin b translocation. cytopathic effects could be completely blocked by addition of bafilomycin a1 up to 20 min following toxin treatment. furthermore, providing a low extracellular ph co ...200010768933
p38 map kinase activation by clostridium difficile toxin a mediates monocyte necrosis, il-8 production, and enteritis.clostridium difficile toxin a causes acute neutrophil infiltration and intestinal mucosal injury. in cultured cells, toxin a inactivates rho proteins by monoglucosylation. in monocytes, toxin a induces il-8 production and necrosis by unknown mechanisms. we investigated the role of mitogen-activated protein (map) kinases in these events. in thp-1 monocytic cells, toxin a activated the 3 main map kinase cascades within 1 to 2 minutes. activation of p38 was sustained, whereas stimulation of extrace ...200010772660
systemic vancomycin overexposure in a patient with spinal cord injury who had staphylococcal sepsis and clostridium difficile colitis. 200010774640
acute abdomen and clostridium difficile colitis: still a lethal combination.with the steadily prevalent appropriate and inappropriate use of antimicrobial agents, clostridium difficile colitis has continued to be noticed as a common problem in hospitalized patients. the aim of this communication is to highlight a subset of c. difficile colitis patients who presented with an acute abdomen.200010781981
short-acting general anaesthesia facilitates therapeutic ercp in frail elderly patients with benign extra-hepatic biliary disease.to ascertain whether therapeutic endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ercp) for benign biliary disease in frail elderly patients with comorbid conditions can be safely undertaken in a district general hospital, and whether the procedure is facilitated by the use of short-acting general anaesthesia.200010784000
a clostridium difficile gene encoding flagellin.six strains of clostridium difficile examined by electron microscopy were found to carry flagella. the flagella of these strains were extracted and the n-terminal sequences of the flagellin proteins were determined. four of the strains carried the n-terminal sequence mrvntnvsal exhibiting up to 90% identity to numerous flagellins. using degenerate primers based on the n-terminal sequence and the conserved c-terminal sequence of several flagellins, the gene encoding the flagellum subunit (flic) w ...200010784054
epidemiology of antibiotic resistance.three biological processes contribute to the accumulation of bacterial drug resistance: new selection, gene epidemics and strain epidemics. new resistance emerges by (i) the advantaging of entire species, (ii) by mutation, and (iii) by the escape of resistance genes to mobile dna. organisms to have 'benefited' from modern patterns of cephalosporins and quinolone use include enterococci, clostridium difficile, coagulase-negative staphylococci and enterobacter spp. mutational resistance notoriousl ...200010786953
involvement of a conserved tryptophan residue in the udp-glucose binding of large clostridial cytotoxin glycosyltransferases.large clostridial cytotoxins catalyze the glucosylation of rho/ras gtpases using udp-glucose as a cosubstrate. by site-directed mutagenesis of clostridium sordellii lethal toxin and clostridium difficile toxin b fragments, we identified tryptophan 102, which is located in a conserved region within the catalytic domain of all clostridial cytotoxins, to be crucial for udp-glucose binding. exchange of trp-102 with alanine decreased the glucosyltransferase activity by about 1,000-fold and blocked cy ...200010788427
pseudomembranous enteritis after proctocolectomy: report of a case.intestinal pseudomembrane formation, sometimes a manifestation of antibiotic-associated diarrheal illnesses, is typically limited to the colon but rarely may affect the small bowel. a 56-year-old female taking antibiotics, who had undergone proctocolectomy for idiopathic inflammatory bowel disease, presented with septic shock and hypotension. a partial small-bowel resection revealed extensive mucosal pseudomembranes, which were cultured positive for clostridium difficile. intestinal drainage con ...200010789757
persistent clostridium difficile colitis: a possible etiology for the development of collagenous colitis. 200010795766
synchronous occurrence of collagenous colitis and pseudomembranous colitis.synchronous collagenous and pseudomembranous colitis has not been previously reported. a 73-year-old woman presented with chronic watery diarrhea and abdominal cramping of six weeks' duration. biopsies of the colon revealed findings of collagenous colitis involving the endoscopically normal right colon, and superimposed collagenous and pseudomembranous colitis involving the rectosigmoid colon. endoscopically, the left colon revealed discrete ulcerative plaques, and clostridium difficile toxin a ...200010799091
a role for the small molecular weight gtpases, rho and cdc42, in muscarinic receptor signaling to focal adhesion kinase.an enhanced tyrosine phosphorylation of focal adhesion kinase (fak) is elicited during neuronal growth cone remodeling and requires the maintenance of agonist-sensitive pools of phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (pip2). rho family gtpases are putative regulators of both pip2 synthesis and growth cone remodeling, including neurite outgrowth elicited by muscarinic cholinergic receptor (machr) stimulation. in this study, we investigated the interrelationships among rho family gtpases, pip2 synt ...200010800944
production of actin-specific adp-ribosyltransferase (binary toxin) by strains of clostridium difficile.in addition to the two large clostridial cytotoxins (tcda and tcdb) certain strains of clostridium difficile produce an actin-specific adp-ribosyltransferase, or binary toxin. pcr reactions were developed to detect genes encoding the enzymatic (cdta) and binding (cdtb) components of the binary toxin and 170 representative strains were tested to assess the prevalence of the toxin. positive pcr results (n=59) were confirmed by immunoblotting and adp-ribosyltransferase assay. pcr ribotype and toxin ...200010802189
rho proteins and the p38-mapk pathway are important mediators for lps-induced interleukin-8 expression in human endothelial cells.bacterial endotoxin (lipopolysaccharide, or lps) has potent proinflammatory properties by acting on many cell types, including endothelial cells. secretion of the cxc-chemokine interleukin-8 (il-8) by lps-activated endothelial cells contributes substantially to the inflammatory response. using human umbilical vein endothelial cells (huvecs), we analyzed the role of small gtp-binding rho proteins and p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (mapk) for lps-dependent il-8 expression in endothelial cell ...200010807767
clostridium difficile in patients with renal failure - management of an outbreak using biotherapy. 200010809792
autologous blood and marrow transplantation in patients 60 years and older.although many hematologic malignancies are more common in older patients, autologous blood and marrow transplantation (abmt) has traditionally been restricted to patients younger than 60 years because of concerns that older patients would be either unable to provide a graft or unable to tolerate the therapy. from june 1995 to may 1998, 30 patients > or = 60 years underwent abmt at our institution for low-grade lymphoma (4 patients), relapsed intermediate-grade lymphoma (17 patients), or multiple ...200010816029
enteropathogens in adult patients with diarrhea and healthy control subjects: a 1-year prospective study in a swedish clinic for infectious diseases.a 1-year prospective study was conducted to identify enteropathogens in adults with diarrhea (n=851) and in healthy control subjects (n=203) by use of conventional laboratory methods. virulence factor genes for diarrheagenic escherichia coli were detected by polymerase chain reaction. enteropathogens were identified in 56% of patients and 16% of control subjects. the isolation rate was 65% for patients with symptoms for <1 week and for travelers; >1 pathogen was found in 11% of patients. the mos ...200010816147
toxic megacolon secondary to infective colitis in children.toxic megacolon is a fulminating and potentially lethal complication of severe colitis. toxic megacolon secondary to infective colitis in children is rare. we analyzed the clinical course, pathology, treatment, and outcome of toxic megacolon secondary to infective colitis in children.200010820951
laboratory assessment of five enzyme immunoassay clostridium difficile toxin detection kits. 199910824330
clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea in human immunodeficiency virus infection--a changing scenario. 199910825082
convulsions induced by metronidazole treatment for clostridium difficile-associated disease in chronic renal failure.clostridium difficile-related diarrhea and colitis are common health problems, especially in elderly, frail hospitalized patients. the drug of choice is metronidazole, which can be associated, in long or high doses, with neurotoxic side effects. we report convulsions induced by short-term metronidazole therapy used in conventional doses for clostridium difficile colitis in an elderly patient with chronic renal failure.200010830559
activation of astroglial phospholipase d activity by phorbol ester involves arf and rho proteins.primary cultures of rat cortical astrocytes express phospholipase d (pld) isoforms 1 and 2 as determined by rt-pcr and western blot. basal pld activity was strongly (10-fold) increased by 4beta-phorbol-12beta,13alpha-dibutyrate (pdb) (ec(50): 56 nm), an effect which was inhibited by ro 31-8220 (0.1-1 microm), an inhibitor of protein kinase c (pkc), and by brefeldin a (10-100 microg/ml), an inhibitor of adp-ribosylating factor (arf) activation. pretreatment of the cultures with clostridium diffic ...200010832096
epidemiology of recurrences or reinfections of clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea.approximately 15 to 35% of patients with a first episode of clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea relapse within 2 months. between 1994 and 1997, strains from 93 hospitalized patients with c. difficile recurrences were fingerprinted by using both serotyping and pcr-ribotyping. the results showed that 48.4% of clinical recurrences were, in fact, reinfections with a different strain of c. difficile. rates of clinical recurrences could therefore be reduced by implementing strict isolation preca ...200010835010
characterization of surface layer proteins from different clostridium difficile clinical isolates.in a previous study we suggested that two surface proteins of a clostridium difficile strain were involved in the formation of a regularly assembled surface layer (s-layer) external to the cell wall. in the present paper six c. difficile strains isolated from cases and healthy carriers were studied. by using freeze-etching and negative staining techniques two superimposed structurally different lattices were detected on the cell surface of the different c. difficile strains. in each strain, the ...200010839973
hiv and diarrhea in the era of haart: 1998 new york state hospitalizations.this study reflects an attempt to identify the causes of diarrheal illness in hospitalized hiv patients in light of therapeutic advancements in hiv management.200010840348
inhibition of rho protein stimulates inos expression in rat vascular smooth muscle cells.inducible nitric oxide synthase (inos) in vascular smooth muscle cells (vsmcs) is upregulated in arterial injury and plays a role in regulating vsmc proliferation and restenosis. inflammatory cytokines [e.g., interleukin-1beta (il-1beta)] released during vascular injury induce inos. small gtp-binding proteins of the ras superfamily play a major role in il-1beta-dependent signaling pathways. in this study, we examined the role of rho gtpases in regulating inos expression in vsmcs. treatment of vs ...200010843870
hospital-acquired infections among chronic hemodialysis patients.the epidemiological characteristics of nosocomial infections among patients requiring chronic hemodialysis, a high-risk and rapidly growing population, have not been fully elucidated. during a 30-month cohort study, rates of bloodstream infections (bsis), urinary tract infections (utis), pneumonia, and diarrhea caused by clostridium difficile and the distribution of pathogens among hospitalized chronic hemodialysis patients were compared with hospitalized patients not requiring chronic hemodialy ...200010845821
clostridium difficile-associated diarrhoea in hospitalised patients.the aim of the present study was to evaluate the incidence, risk factors and cost implications of clostridium difficile-associated diarrhoea (cdad) in hospitalized adult patients.200010849187
[diagnosis of clostridium difficile infection in pseudomembranous colitis].c. difficile is known as the main cause of pseudomembranous colitis, however, some individuals may be asymptomatically colonized. in this paper two patients with diarrhoea had three respectively five negative stool cultures. endoscopically, one patient had severe colitis consistent with both pseudomembranous colitis and inflammatory bowel disease. in the other case the endoscopic findings were typical for pseudomembranous colitis. in both cases there were positive cultures for c. difficile from ...200010850214
characterization of the ends and target sites of the novel conjugative transposon tn5397 from clostridium difficile: excision and circularization is mediated by the large resolvase, tndx.tn5397 is a conjugative transposon that was originally isolated from clostridium difficile. previous analysis had shown that the central region of tn5397 was closely related to the conjugative transposon tn916. however, in this work we obtained the dna sequence of the ends of tn5397 and showed that they are completely different to those of tn916. tn5397 did not contain the int and xis genes, which are required for the excision and integration of tn916. instead, the right end of tn5397 contained ...200010850994
confirmation of transmission of the microsporidian parasite enterocytozoon bieneusi in south africa. 200010853401
ras mediates the camp-dependent activation of extracellular signal-regulated kinases (erks) in melanocytes.in melanocytes and melanoma cells, camp activates extracellular signal-regulated kinases (erks) and mek-1 by an unknown mechanism. we demonstrate that b-raf is activated by camp in melanocytes. a dominant-negative mutant of b-raf, but not of raf-1, blocked the camp-induced activation of erk, indicating that b-raf is the mek-1 upstream regulator mediating this camp effect. studies using clostridium sordelii lethal toxin and clostridium difficile toxin b have suggested that rap-1 or ras might tran ...200010856235
in vitro activity of rifaximin, metronidazole and vancomycin against clostridium difficile and the rate of selection of spontaneously resistant mutants against representative anaerobic and aerobic bacteria, including ammonia-producing species.rifaximin is a rifamycin derivative characterized by a wide antibacterial activity. this drug is neither absorbed by the gastrointestinal tract nor inactivated by gastric juices, and exerts its action entirely within the intestinal lumen.200010859431
fmlp-induced arachidonic acid release in db-camp-differentiated hl-60 cells is independent of phosphatidylinositol-4, 5-bisphosphate-specific phospholipase c activation and cytosolic phospholipase a(2) activation.in inflammatory cells, agonist-stimulated arachidonic acid (aa) release is thought to be induced by activation of group iv ca(2+)-dependent cytosolic phospholipase a(2) (cpla(2)) through mitogen-activated protein kinase (map kinase)- and/or protein kinase c (pkc)-mediated phosphorylation and ca(2+)-dependent translocation of the enzyme to the membrane. here we investigated the role of phospholipases in n-formylmethionyl-l-leucyl-l-phenylalanine (fmlp; 1 nm-10 microm)-induced aa release from neut ...200010860542
[isolation of toxigenic strains of clostridium difficile and enterotoxin producing bacteroides fragilis from fecal specimens of patients suspected of antibiotic associated diarrhoea].fifty faecal samples from patients suspected of aad (antibiotic associated diarrhoea) were studied for clostridium difficile and enterotoxin producing bacteroides fragilis (etbf). using tcd (becton-dickinson) and c. difficile toxin a test (oxoid) in 34% of specimens the presence of toxin a was detected. from all specimens 25 c. difficile strains were isolated. all isolated strains produced toxin b in vitro which was shown in mc coy cytotoxicity test. eighteen strains only were toxin a positive i ...199910865431
toxic megacolon: diagnosis and treatment challenges.in adults, toxic megacolon is a relatively uncommon but potentially lethal complication of inflammatory bowel disease (ibd), infectious colitis, or ischemic colitis caused by cancer chemotherapeutic agents. patients have distension of the colon and signs of toxicity such as elevated temperature, hypotension, decreased level of consciousness and electrolyte imbalances. factors thought to increase the risk include premature discontinuation of ibd medications; procedures that increase colon trauma, ...199910865533
clostridium difficile-associated diseases. the clinical courses of 18 fatal cases.severe cases of clostridium difficile-associated diseases with sepsis seem to be rare, as are case reports about the pathogen involved and sepsis. our objective was to investigate the frequency and the clinical courses of severe cases of c. difficile-associated diseases with a fatal outcome in our hospital.200010872133
modulation between aerobic and anaerobic metabolism in the mutant cell line cdtr-q.it has recently been shown that the cell line don q obtained by mutagenesis of wild type chinese hamster lung fibroblasts (don wt), presents a point mutation in the gene coding for udp-glucose pyrophosphorylase. the persistent low level of udp-glucose makes don q clone resistant to clostridium difficile toxin b. starting from the observation that don q cells exhibit many large hydrophobic cytoplasmic inclusions, that we have found to be made of neutral lipids, the aerobic metabolism of the two c ...199810874983
Displaying items 2501 - 2600 of 12134