Publications

[non-toxic corynebacterium diphtheriae septicemia with endocarditis in an earlier healthy adult. first case and review of the literature].	corynebacterium diphtheriae septicaemia is rarely encountered, usually in very particular situations: children with severe congenital heart disease or after heart surgery. rare cases have been reported in immunodepressed adults or drug addicts. we observed a case in a formerly healthy 41-year-old woman who was hospitalized for fever unresponsive to bacampicillin. in this patient, no portal of entry could be identified; there was no history of past surgery nor drug abuse. the patient was not immu ...	1994	7899317
[a familial case of diphtheria of the skin].		1994	7900013
molecular evidence of person-to-person transmission of a pigmented strain of corynebacterium striatum in intensive care units.	during a 14-month period, a unique strain of corynebacterium striatum that produces a diffusible brown pigment was isolated from purulent sputa of nine patients and from nonrespiratory sites of two additional patients. seven nonpigmented clinical isolates from the same period and three reference strains of c. striatum were compared with the brown isolates. most patients had multiple sputum cultures with no coryneforms before the brown strain emerged, suggesting that the organism was hospital acq ...	1994	7907342
[detection by molecular biology techniques of diphtheria toxin production in corynebacteria].	the ability to secrete a potent protein-toxin called diphtheria toxin (dt) is of outstanding importance for the outcome of diphtheria epidemics. rapid molecular-biological screening methods are shown that can improve the differentiation between toxinogenic and non-toxinogenic corynebacterium diphtheriae strains. the recently reported infection with an endemic, putative toxinogenic corynebacterium diphtheriae strain in lower saxony is discussed.	1994	7919700
determination of the minimal essential nucleotide sequence for diphtheria tox repressor binding by in vitro affinity selection.	the expression of diphtheria toxin in lysogenic toxigenic strains of corynebacterium diphtheriae is controlled by the heavy metal ion-activated regulatory protein dtxr. in the presence of divalent heavy metal ions, dtxr specifically binds to the diphtheria tox operator and protects a 27-bp interrupted palindromic sequence from dnase i digestion. to determine the consensus dna sequence for dtxr binding, we have used gel electrophoresis mobility-shift assay and polymerase chain reaction (pcr) ampl ...	1994	7937822
[laboratory diagnosis of diphtheria].		1994	7953125
[the level of antidiphtheria and antitetanus immunity in the population of 18 counties of southern romania and of the city of bucharest].		1994	7981528
crystallization and preliminary x-ray studies of the diphtheria tox repressor from corynebacterium diphtheriae.	crystals of the diphtheria tox repressor (dtxr) from corynebacterium diphtheriae suitable for structure determination have been obtained. dtxr activated with transition metal ions represses the expression of the structural gene for the diphtheria toxin, tox, which is encoded on the genome of a family of closely related corynebacteriophages. the space group of the obtained crystals is trigonal p3(1)21 or its enantiomorph p3(2)21 with a = b = 64.2 a, c = 220.5 a, alpha = beta = 90 degrees, gamma = ...	1994	7990147
[sorbed animal immunoglobulins--a reserve for increasing the output of therapeutic antitoxic and diagnostic sera].	conditions for the desorption of immunoglobulins from the surface of blood cells of animals used for the production of antitoxic therapeutic and diagnostic sera have been established. the possibility of obtaining, in principle, additional amounts of immunoglobulins and specific antibodies (in comparison with their initial content in sera) without increasing the number of producer animals has been demonstrated. the possibility of using desorbed immunoglobulins and specific antibodies in the produ ...	1994	7992550
[endocarditis due to corynebacterium diphtheriae cause by contact with intravenous drugs: report of 5 cases].	the clinical features of 5 patients with invasive disease due to nontoxigenic corynebacterium diphtheriae are presented. 4 patients had proven left sided endocarditis, and one had probable endocarditis of the mitral valve. 4 patients were intravenous drug abusers, and one had a girl friend who was also an iv-drug abuser. only one patient had antibodies against human immunodeficiency virus. 2 patients with endocarditis of the mitral or the aortic valve, and one patient with endocarditis of a pros ...	1994	7997860
corynebacterium diphtheriae endocarditis in an adult with congenital heart disease: a case report.	a rare case of septicaemia and endocarditis due to corynebacterium diphtheriae is presented. the patient had underlying congenital heart disease and died despite high-dose penicillin therapy. the implications for diagnosis and identification and some public health issues brought to the fore by the case are discussed.	1994	8007061
[is extensive diphtheria vaccination necessary?].		1994	7555743
in vitro assays for detection of diphtheria toxin.	subunit-specific antipeptide antibodies have been used to develop a dot blot immunoassay for detection of diphtheria toxin (dt) produced by toxigenic strains of corynebacterium diphtheriae. a detection limit of 0.1-1.0 ng dt/ml was obtained. dt is cytotoxic to cultured vero cells and cell viability if conveniently assessed using a tetrazolium dye, mtt. this has been used as the basis of a cytotoxicity assay for dt, which has a detection limit of 20 pg/ml of biologically active toxin. sixty isola ...	1994	20692989
cutaneous corynebacterium diphtheriae: a traveller's disease?	a canadian soldier incurred a nonhealing traumatic skin ulcer while on duty in somalia. the diagnosis of localized cutaneous diphtheria was confirmed by isolation of a toxigenic strain of corynebacterium diphtheriae from the ulcer. the patient was placed in isolation and treated with erythromycin and penicillin for 10 days without antitoxin. he was released when two consecutive daily cultures were negative. public health officials evaluated his wife, two children and close contacts for carriage, ...	1995	22514388
treatment of infection caused by toxigenic and non-toxigenic strains of corynebacterium diphtheriae.		1995	7559184
the return of corynebacterium diphtheriae: the rise of non-toxigenic strains.	with the decline in incidence of diphtheria in europe and the usa, many laboratories no longer routinely culture throat swabs for corynebacterium diphtheriae. however, there is an outbreak of infection with toxigenic strains in russia and most adults do not have protective levels of antibody. non-toxigenic strains are known to cause local disease and lysogenic conversion probably occurs in vivo as well as in vitro. non-toxigenic c. diphtheriae var. gravis, formerly quite rare, has been isolated ...	1995	7560966
[endocarditis caused by corynebacterium diphtheriae tolerant to amoxicillin].		1995	7567828
structures of the apo- and the metal ion-activated forms of the diphtheria tox repressor from corynebacterium diphtheriae.	the diphtheria tox repressor (dtxr) of corynebacterium diphtheriae plays a critical role in the regulation of diphtheria toxin expression and the control of other iron-sensitive genes. the crystal structures of apo-dtxr and of the metal ion-activated form of the repressor have been solved and used to identify motifs involved in dna and metal ion binding. residues involved in binding of the activated repressor to the diphtheria tox operator, glutamine 43, arginine 47, and arginine 50, were locate ...	1995	7568230
the erythromycin resistance gene of the corynebacterium xerosis r-plasmid ptp10 also carrying chloramphenicol, kanamycin, and tetracycline resistances is capable of transposition in corynebacterium glutamicum.	the clinical isolate corynebacterium xerosis m82b carries the 50-kb r-plasmid ptp10 that confers resistance to the antibiotics chloramphenicol, kanamycin, erythromycin, and tetracycline. a detailed restriction map of ptp10 was constructed by cloning and analyzing restriction fragments of ptp10 in escherichia coli. the resistance determinants of ptp10 were located by studying the phenotype of the recombinant plasmids in e. coli and corynebacterium glutamicum. restriction patterns of fragments enc ...	1995	7568464
a simple "universal" dna extraction procedure using sds and proteinase k is compatible with direct pcr amplification.		1995	7580932
diphtheria disaster relief.		1995	7585198
[seroepidemiological surveillance and methodological study of pertussis, diphtheria and tetanus].	in this paper, we studied the diagnostic method of dpt using pa method developed by japanese national institute of health (nih) in 1993-1994, meanwhile we surveyed the antibody level of dpt. we collected 900 sera samples and 300 sera samples from hebei province in 1993 and 1994. the result showed that pa method was simple, reliable and easy to observe, which can make up the shortages existed in pha method. the antitoxin titers obtained by the pa method correlated well with the pha method, while ...	1995	7585903
characterization of an iron-dependent regulatory protein (ider) of mycobacterium tuberculosis as a functional homolog of the diphtheria toxin repressor (dtxr) from corynebacterium diphtheriae.	the dtxr protein from corynebacterium diphtheriae is an iron-dependent repressor that regulates transcription from the tox, irp1, and irp2 promoters. a gene from virulent mycobacterium tuberculosis h37rv was recently shown to encode a protein, here designated iron-dependent regulator (ider), that is almost 60% homologous to dtxr from c. diphtheriae. a 750-bp pcr-derived dna fragment carrying the m. tuberculosis ider allele was subcloned to both high- and low-copy-number vectors. in escherichia c ...	1995	7591059
polymerase chain reaction for the detection of toxigenic corynebacterium diphtheriae.	several conventional methods have been described for the detection of corynebacterium diphtheriae toxin, including elek immunodiffusion, tissue culture using vero cells and guinea pig inoculation. all these methods have the disadvantage of being either slow to complete or technically demanding, particularly when performed infrequently. we examined 64 strains of c. diphtheriae by pcr and elek immunodiffusion, and strains showing a positive result in either assay were inoculated into guinea pigs. ...	1995	7603758
molecular epidemiology of corynebacterium diphtheriae from northwestern russia and surrounding countries studied by using ribotyping and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis.	a selection of 100 corynebacterium diphtheriae isolates from asymptomatic carriers and clinical cases from five regions in northwestern russia were examined. six additional isolates from patients in finland and estonia with epidemiological links to russia were also examined. all isolates were characterized by biotyping, toxigenicity testing, ribotyping, and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (pfge). hybridization of genomic dna digested with bsteii revealed five ribotype patterns among the biotype ...	1995	7615709
[immunity to diphtheria in young adults in spain].		1995	7623498
transition metal ion activation of dna binding by the diphtheria tox repressor requires the formation of stable homodimers.	the diphtheria tox repressor (dtxr) is a transition metal ion-dependent regulatory element that controls the expression of diphtheria toxin and several genes involved in the synthesis of siderophores in corynebacterium diphtheriae. in the presence of transition metal ions apo-dtxr becomes activated and specifically binds to its target dna sequences. we demonstrate by glutaraldehyde cross-linking that monomeric apo-dtxr is in weak equilibrium with a dimeric form and that upon addition of activati ...	1995	7624323
corynebacterium diphtheriae osteomyelitis in an immunocompetent child: a case report.	septic osteomyelitis of the hip in a previously healthy child is described. a weakly toxigenic corynebacterium diphtheriae strain was isolated from the bone aspirate. the results of the treatment were rapidly satisfactory, after surgical drainage and antibiotic therapy with pristinamycin. conclusion: this case report shows that c. diphtheriae has not disappeared in the developed world and can be responsible of systemic infections.	1995	7641771
[corynebacterium diphtheriae endocarditis complicated by septic arthritis and cerebral abscess].	the authors report a rare case of the mitis type corynebacterium diphteriae endocarditis on a prosthetic valve complicated by septic arthritis and cerebral abscess. the authors underline the importance of regular transoesophageal echocardiographic control and underline the diagnostic value of ultrafast computed tomography for the diagnosis of aortic annular and interventricular septal abscesses in patients with mechanical prosthetic valves.	1995	7646303
cutaneous diphtheria in a homeless man.		1995	7651047
farnesylation of caax-tagged diphtheria toxin a-fragment as a measure of transfer to the cytosol.	diphtheria toxin binds to receptor-positive cells through its b-fragment, the toxin is then endocytosed, and the low ph in endosomes triggers the translocation of the enzymatically active a-fragment to the cytosol. a synchronous release of a-fragments into the cytosol can be induced by exposing cells with surface-bound toxin to low ph. we have used this protein translocation system to develop a novel method to study whether or not a protein is exposed to the cytosol. protein farnesylation is a c ...	1995	7669773
cerebral infarction in a case of diphtheria.		1995	7673755
[diphtheria in poland. epidemiologic situation of diphtheria in poland before 1992].		1995	7676054
effect of neonatal immunization with diphtheria and tetanus toxoids on antibody responses to haemophilus influenzae type b conjugate vaccines.	we randomly assigned 150 newborn infants to receive diphtheria and tetanus toxoids (dt) or hib oligosaccharide conjugate (hboc) at birth to determine whether exposure to the haemophilus influenzae type b (hib) conjugate vaccines' carrier proteins would enhance immune responses to subsequent administrations of hboc or prp-tetanus toxoid conjugate (prp-t) at 2, 4, and 6 months of age. their antibody responses were compared with those of 100 children immunized with hboc or prp-t beginning at 2 mont ...	1995	7844665
molecular cloning, dna sequence analysis, and characterization of the corynebacterium diphtheriae dtxr homolog from brevibacterium lactofermentum.	a homolog of the corynebacterium diphtheriae dtxr gene was isolated from brevibacterium lactofermentum. the product of the b. lactofermentum dtxr gene was immunoreactive with polyclonal anti-dtxr antibodies and functioned as an iron-activated repressor capable of regulating the expression of beta-galactosidase from a diphtheria tox promoter/operator transcriptional fusion in recombinant escherichia coli. the extents of induction by increasing concentrations of the chelator 2,2'-dipyridyl were id ...	1995	7814338
three-dimensional structure of the diphtheria toxin repressor in complex with divalent cation co-repressors.	when corynebacterium diphtheriae encounters an environment with a low concentration of iron ions, it initiates the synthesis of several virulence factors, including diphtheria toxin. the diphtheria toxin repressor (dtxr) plays a key role in this iron-dependent, global regulatory system and is the prototype for a new family of iron-dependent repressor proteins in gram-positive bacteria. this study aimed to increase understanding of the general regulatory principles of cation binding to dtxr.	1995	7743135
[method of immunoenzyme analysis in the diagnosis of diphtheria].	enzyme immunoassay (eia) was used for the diagnosis of diphtheria. the data indicate the specificity and reliability of the method and prove the necessity of its use for the diagnosis of diphtheria and with prophylactic purposes in screening of certain populations.	1995	7757365
high-yield production of diphtheria toxin mutants by high-density culture of c7 (beta)tox+ strains grown in a non-deferrated medium.	a high-density growth approach was utilized to produce mutated diphtheria toxin from two strains of corynebacterium diphtheria: c7 (beta)(tox-201,tox-9) and c7 (beta)(tox-107). the cross-reacting mutants (crm) of the diphtheria toxin are crm9 and crm107; both of them carry the mutation in their binding site and, as a result, have 1/300 of the systemic toxicity of the wild-type diphtheria toxin. since iron inhibits diphtheria toxin production, the traditional approach has been to grow the bacteri ...	1995	7766139
cloning of a corynebacterium diphtheriae iron-repressible gene that shares sequence homology with the ahpc subunit of alkyl hydroperoxide reductase of salmonella typhimurium.	to understand how corynebacterium diphtheriae responds to iron limitation, we compared the sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (sds-page) protein profiles of both wild-type cells and iron uptake mutants grown in either high- or low-iron medium. the removal of iron by ethylene diamine di-(o-hydroxy-phenyl acetic acid) from the growth medium of wild-type cells resulted in induction of at least 14 polypeptides. dira, a major iron-repressible polypeptide, was purified from wild ...	1995	7768861
[the adsorbed-dtp-m vaccination of children with allergically altered reactivity].	immunization and booster immunization with adsorbed dpt-m vaccine was carried out, respectively, in 45 and 15 children with different severity of the course of an allergic disease, each child receiving simultaneously individually prescribed complex drug therapy. the postvaccinal period took a relatively favorable course. general and allergic reactions and complications observed after the injection of the preparation did not hinder the continuation of the course of immunization, while the appeara ...	1995	7778374
expanded programme on immunization. diphtheria immunity in the adult french population.		1995	7547210
are we ready for diphtheria? a report from the diphtheria diagnostic workshop, atlanta, 11 and 12 july 1994.		1995	7706801
effect of malnutrition in ecuadorian children on titers of serum antibodies to various microbial antigens.	the titers of serum antibodies to natural infection with enteric and respiratory pathogens, to a food antigen and to tetanus and diphtheria toxoid were evaluated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in 1,554 ecuadorian children younger than 5 years of age. the nutritional status of the children was assessed by anthropometry and measurement of biochemical status indicators. the children were enrolled in a representative national nutrition and health survey. antibody titers were analyzed as a func ...	1995	7719915
taxonomy of corynebacterium diphtheriae and related taxa, with recognition of corynebacterium ulcerans sp. nov. nom. rev.	levels of genomic dna relatedness were determined using a s1 nuclease procedure for reference bacteria identified as biotypes of corynebacterium diphtheriae, biovars of corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis, and 'corynebacterium ulcerans'. these results showed that the three species are separate taxa at the genomospecies level whereas biotypes and biovars are closely related genomically within each species. phylogenetic analyses of small-subunit rdna sequences revealed that 'corynebacterium ulceran ...	1995	7729671
diphtheria: changing patterns in the developing world and the industrialized world.	in the past, diphtheria was considered one of the most serious childhood diseases because it took a heavy toll in health and life among preschool-aged children. prior to the widespread availability of diphtheria toxoid, nearly 70% of cases were in children younger than 15 years of age. in the industrialized countries, immunization against diphtheria became widespread in the 1940s and 1950s. this led to a marked decrease in the incidence of diphtheria. there was also a decrease in circulating tox ...	1995	7489768
genomic organization of the mycobacterial sigma gene cluster.	we have previously described sigma a and sigma b and their structural genes, mysa and mysb, respectively, in mycobacterium smegmatis. we have now sequenced the corresponding regions in the m. tuberculosis and m. leprae chromosomes, and have found the two homologous genes. the chromosomal linkage and the deduced amino acid (aa) sequences of the two genes show very high similarity in the three species of mycobacteria. we also report the finding of two other open reading frames (orf) in these clust ...	1995	7489918
interchangeability of conjugated haemophilus influenzae type b vaccines in infants.	to evaluate the safety and immunogenicity of two haemophilus influenzae type b (hib) conjugate vaccines when administered in serial combination. these vaccines consisted of hib capsular polysaccharide polyribosyl-ribitol phosphate (prp) conjugated to the meningococcal outer membrane protein (omp) complex (prp-omp) and h influenzae oligosaccharide conjugated to a mutant toxin (crm197) isolated from corynebacterium diphtheriae (hboc).	1995	7869554
[the clinical manifestations, diagnosis and treatment of diphtheria in adults].	diphtheria morbidity among adult population of moscow is growing. the tests of different modes and schemes of heterogeneous antidiphtheria serum administration have found out that the highest efficacy of serotherapy was achieved with a single intravenous dose. another treatment of diphtheria is hemosorption. widely used in present-day clinical practice hemosorbents provide adequate elimination of the toxin from plasma. the authors analyse the present situation in clinical symptoms, complications ...	1995	8571240
[a diphtheria outbreak at a burn center].		1995	8553723
[the epidemiological and immunological efficacy of revaccination against diphtheria].		1995	8553753
the corynebacterium xerosis composite transposon tn5432 consists of two identical insertion sequences, designated is1249, flanking the erythromycin resistance gene ermcx.	analysis of the 50-kb r-plasmid ptp10 from the clinical isolate corynebacterium xerosis m82b revealed that the erythromycin resistance gene, ermcx, is located on a 4524-bp composite transposable element, tn5432. the ends of tn5432 are identical, direct repeats of an insertion sequence, designated is1249, encoding a putative transposase of the is256 family. is1249 consists of 1385 bp with 45/42 imperfect terminal inverted repeats. the nucleotide sequence of the 1754-bp tn5432 central region is 99 ...	1995	8559800
application of pcr for detection of toxigenic corynebacterium diphtheriae strains isolated during the russian diphtheria epidemic, 1990 through 1994.	a total of 250 corynebacterium diphtheriae isolates from clinical cases and carriers in russia were assayed by pcr directed at the a subunit of the diphtheria toxin gene to distinguish toxigenic from nontoxigenic strains; 170 strains were positive as indicated by the presence of the 248-bp amplicon. the results of this pcr assay were in complete concordance with those of the standard immunoprecipitation assay (elek), and the pcr assay is a useful tool for rapid identification in clinical laborat ...	1995	8576378
influence of high titers of maternal antibody on the serologic response of infants to diphtheria vaccination at three, five and twelve months of age.	diphtheria antitoxin was determined in serum from 44 pregnant women, of whom 26 had received one injection of diphtheria toxoid during pregnancy. their infants were vaccinated with a combined diphtheria-tetanus vaccine at 3, 5 and 12 months of age. this vaccination schedule has been used in sweden since 1986, replacing the old schedule of vaccination at 3, 4.5 and 6 months of age originally designed for diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis vaccine, which had not been used after cessation of general vacc ...	1995	8584309
evaluation of the applicability of amplified rdna-restriction analysis (ardra) to identification of species of the genus corynebacterium.	the 16s rrna genes (rdna) of 50 strains belonging to 26 different coryneform bacterial species and genomospecies and of the type strain of rhodococcus equi were enzymatically amplified. amplified rdna restriction analysis (ardra) with the enzymes alui, cfoi and rsai was carried out. the combination of the ardra patterns obtained after restriction with these three different enzymes enabled the differentiation between the following species: corynebacterium accolens (number of strains = 2), c. afer ...	1995	8584787
genetic relationships of corynebacterium diphtheriae strains isolated from a diphtheria case and carriers by restriction fragment length polymorphism of rrna genes.	in the present study we report the results of an analysis, based on ribotyping of corynebacterium diphtheriae intermedius strains isolated from a 9 years old child with clinical diphtheria and his 5 contacts. quantitative analysis of rflps of rrna was used to determine relatedness of these 7 c.diphtheriae strains providing support data in the diphtheria epidemiology. we have also tested those strains for toxigenicity in vitro by using the elek's gel diffusion method and in vivo by using cell cul ...	1995	8599056
antibiotic susceptibilities of 38 non-toxigenic strains of corynebacterium diphtheriae.		1995	8821618
an atypical case of corynebacterium diphtheriae endocarditis and subsequent outbreak control measures.	an atypical case of corynebacterium diphtheriae endocarditis with severe rhabdomyolysis and cerebral emboli is presented. the patient underwent successful mitral and aortic valve replacements and is only the third reported case with a successful outcome following surgery. outbreak control measures were complicated by an equivocal result from guinea pig toxin tests.	1995	8522837
cloning and sequence analysis of the corynebacterium diphtheriae dtxr homologue from streptomyces lividans and s. pilosus encoding a putative iron repressor protein.	the iron-regulated promoter involved in desferrioxamine b synthesis of streptomyces pilosus contains a region homologous to the iron repressor (dtxr)-binding site of the diphtheria toxin gene promoter in corynebacterium diphtheriae [günter et al., j. bacteriol. 175 (1993) 3295-3302]. here, we report the cloning and sequencing of the putative streptomyces iron repressor gene, homologous to dtxr of c. diphtheriae. the n-terminal 139 amino acids of the deduced protein are 73% identical to dtxr.	1995	8529874
epidemiology and molecular characterisation of toxigenic corynebacterium diphtheriae var mitis from a case of cutaneous diphtheria in manchester.	diphtheria is now an uncommon disease in britain. we describe an imported case of cutaneous diphtheria in a previously immunised adult cause by c. diphtheriae var mitis. the control measures adopted to deal with the index case and two secondary cases so as to limit further spread among household and school contacts are outlined. molecular typing was used to study the mode of spread of the organism among contacts.	1995	8666848
detection of corynebacterium diphtheriae in throat swab specimens from spanish patients infected with human immunodeficiency virus.		1995	8749665
toxigenic corynebacterium diphtheriae acquired in england.		1996	8754453
the new threats of gram positive pathogens: re-emergence of things past.		1996	8763254
extended host range of a beta-related corynebacteriophage.	unlike most beta-related phages isolated from corynebacterium diphtheriae, phage 782 readily plaqued on strains of c. ulcerans and c. pseudotuberculosis. the extended host range of phage 782 was not, however, due to a greater ability of the phage to absorb to bacterial surfaces. using chemical mutagenesis, a number of phage mutants were isolated which had diminished capacities to infect c. ulcerans, suggesting the existence of a locus (ehr) for extended host range. pre-lysogenization of c. ulcer ...	1996	8764484
[the polymerase chain reaction in the diagnosis of bacterial infections].		1996	8775783
identification of is1356, a new insertion sequence, and its association with is402 in epidemic strains of burkholderia cepacia infecting cystic fibrosis patients.	burkholderia cepacia is now recognized as an important opportunistic pathogen in cystic fibrosis (cf) and other compromised patients. epidemicity among cf patients has been attributed to at least one particularly infectious strain (strain et12), and both genetic evidence and anecdotal evidence suggest that this strain, currently endemic in ontario, and those causing an epidemic in the united kingdom, are indeed the same. our study was conducted to determine whether there was any association betw ...	1996	8784555
heterogeneity of diphtheria toxin gene, tox, and its regulatory element, dtxr, in corynebacterium diphtheriae strains causing epidemic diphtheria in russia and ukraine.	diphtheria toxin (tox) and its regulatory element (dtxr) from 72 corynebacterium diphtheriae strains isolated in russia and ukraine before and during the current diphtheria epidemic were studied by pcr-single-strand conformation polymorphism analysis (pcr-sscp). twelve sets of primers were constructed (eight for tox and four for dtxr), and three regions within tox and all four regions of dtxr showed significant variations in the number and/or sizes of the amplicons. two to four different sscp pa ...	1996	8784575
passive haemagglutination tests using purified antigens covalently coupled to turkey erythrocytes.	passive haemagglutination tests have been developed by covalent coupling purified antigens to turkey red blood cells. circulating antibodies can be assessed in 20 minutes using one drop of blood. false positive reactions are avoided by using highly purified antigens; sensitized erythrocytes are stable in the absence of freeze-drying and blood samples can be preserved on paper discs. this method, applied to the determination of circulating tetanus (t) and diphtheria (d) antibodies and titres comp ...	1996	8785953
enhanced surveillance of non-toxigenic corynebacterium diphtheriae infections.		1996	8821021
diphtheria: are we ready for it?		1996	9014615
[a rare combination of enteric diphtheria and dysentery].		1996	9036218
[isolation of corynebacterium diphtheriae subsp. belfanti from a cow with chronic active dermatitis].	diphtheria is an acute communicable disease of man caused by c. diphtheriae. pharyngeal and cutaneous forms are described, where from both toxigenic and nontoxigenic strains can be isolated. the occurrence of c. diphtheriae in dairy cattle has already been reported in the past. the pathogens were isolated from ulcerated teats and from the milk of cows with mastitis as well. these animals were considered to play a role in the transmission of the disease to man. this paper describes the isolation ...	1996	9045292
[an experimental study of the effect of immunomodulators on the immune response to the anatoxin components of adsorbed dpt vaccine against a background of poisoning].	an experiment of rabbits subjected to artificial lead intoxication revealed that after the immunization of the animals with adsorbed dpt vaccine myelopid and thymoptin exhibited practically the same immunomodulating activity with respect to antibody response to diphtheria and tetanus toxoids, exceeding that of rabbits without intoxication. still the immunomodulators used in this experiment did not completely compensate the negative effect of intoxication on antibody response to the toxoids. for ...	1996	9082731
[the genetic typing of corynebacterium diphtheriae strains by the polymerase chain reaction with universal primers].	the use of polymerase chain reaction (up-pcr with universal primers for the genetic typing of 85 c. diphtheriae strains, isolated from patients and carriers at the period of the epidemic, has shown that a single natural clone of biovar gravis seems to prevail in north western russia. up-pcr is an effective too for the rapid intraspecific typing of strains on the molecular-genetic level and for the study of the circulation of c.diphtheriae epidemic clones.	1996	9082736
loss of protective immunity to polio, diphtheria and haemophilus influenzae type b after allogeneic bone marrow transplantation.	immunity to poliovirus, diphtheria and haemophilus influenzae type b (hib) was studied in 16 adult recipients of a bone marrow transplant from an hla-identical sibling donor in order to evaluate the need for revaccinations. t-cell depletion was not done in any case. the donors and patients were studied before bone marrow transplantation (bmt) and the patients 1, 3, 6, and 12 months later. prior to the bmt 10 of 11 patients were immune (titre > or = 4) to all vaccine poliovirus types by a standar ...	1996	8703445
misidentification of toxigenic corynebacterium diphtheriae as a corynebacterium species with low virulence in a child with endocarditis.	a 6-year-old boy presented to a university hospital in malaysia with infective endocarditis complicating cyanotic congenital heart disease. blood cultures showed a gram-positive, aerobic, coryneform-like bacillus identified by the hospital laboratory as corynebacterium xerosis, but a reference laboratory identified the organism as a toxigenic strain of corynebacterium diphtheriae. the two laboratories concurred on all biochemical test results except for sucrose fermentation.	1996	8727917
diphtheria outbreak in st. petersburg: clinical characteristics of 1860 adult patients.	an epidemic of respiratory tract diphtheria began in russia in 1989. in 1994 more than 2,500 cases occurred in st. petersburg alone. we describe clinical findings in the 1,860 adult patients treated in botkin's hospital. the study is based on a retrospective review of patient records. in 98% of the patients the diagnosis was confirmed by a positive throat culture growing a toxin producing strain of corynebacterium diphtheriae. a catarrhal disease without membranes was present in 1,256 (67.5%) pa ...	1996	9122631
[seroepidemiological survey on diphtheria and tetanus immunization coverage in adolescents in calabria].		1996	9235011
experimental study on estimating the immunogenic potency of diphtheria and/or tetanus toxoids in monovaccines and associated vaccines.	the results obtained using the "classical" active immunoprotection tests on guinea pigs, biometrically interpreted by the regression analysis in "probit" systems revealed that the biopreparations of the cantacuzino institute meet the validity conditions related to the parallelism of the "slopes" enabling the calculation of ed50 and of the relative potencies against the reference preparations. the results also showed that the relative potencies of the biopreparations tested by the two methodologi ...	1996	9253238
[immunity to diphtheria in the croatian population in 1994].	the large outbreak of diphtheria in the former sssr countries, which has been linked, among others, to low herd immunity, has led us to determine the level of this immunity in the croatian population in view to undertake, if necessary, extra prophylactic measures (vaccination). for the purpose, c. diphtheriae serum antibody levels were determined in persons aged from 20 to above 60 years and coming from four major croatian towns (zagreb, rijeka, osijek and split). a commercial elisa test and neu ...	1996	9132520
[the morphological characteristics of diphtheria in adults under current conditions].	clinico-anatomical analysis of 112 lethal cases of diphtheria in adults showed a grave course of the disease in chronic alcoholics at the age of 40-49 years. the morphological changes were characterized by a complex of typical changes at the primary focus, intracanalicular and hematogenous dissemination with high bacteremia. the morphology of pneumonia caused by corynebacterium diphtheria is described for the first time. at the early stages of the disease infectious-toxic degeneration of the myo ...	1996	9139589
immunity to diphtheria in women of childbearing age in delhi in 1994: evidence of continued corynebacterium diphtheriae circulation.	blood samples from 171 full-term pregnant women (aged 18-38 years) of middle socioeconomic status from delhi were tested for diphtheria antitoxins by indirect hemagglutination (iha) test. history of primary immunization/clinical diphtheria during childhood was not ascertainable, but none had been revaccinated against diphtheria at any time. about 94% women had very high antitoxin titers (> or = 0.125 iu/ ml); none had antitoxin titer less than 0.015 iu/ml, the minimum protective level. the titer ...	1996	9279989
multiple sigma factor genes in brevibacterium lactofermentum: characterization of siga and sigb.	four rpod hybridizing signals have been identified in the chromosome of brevibacterium lactofermentum. two rpod-like genes, siga and sigb, have been cloned and sequenced, and they encode principal sigma factors of the rna polymerase. the deduced amino acid sequences of siga and sigb showed very high similarities to those of mycobacterium smegmatis mysa and mysb proteins, respectively, and also to those of hrdb proteins from different streptomyces species. siga and sigb maintain the conserved mot ...	1996	8550480
high-resolution structure of the diphtheria toxin repressor complexed with cobalt and manganese reveals an sh3-like third domain and suggests a possible role of phosphate as co-corepressor.	the crystal structure of diphtheria toxin repressor (dtxr) in complex with the corepressor co2+ has been determined at 2.0 a resolution and in complex with mn2+ at 2.2 a resolution. the structure of the flexible third domain could be determined at this high resolution. it appears to contain five antiparallel strands exhibiting a fold very similar to the sh3 domain. a superposition of 46 equivalent c alpha atoms of dtxr and alpha-spectrin sh3 resulted in an rms deviation of 3.0 a. the sequence id ...	1996	8823163
a cellular pertussis vaccine (infanrix-dtpa; sb-3). a review of its immunogenicity, protective efficacy and tolerability in the prevention of bordetella pertussis infection.	sb-3 (infanrix-dtpa) is one of a new generation of vaccines for immunisation against pertussis (whooping cough), diphtheria and tetanus. it is a 3-component (pertussis toxin, filamentous haemagglutinin and pertactin) chemically inactivated acellular pertussis pertussis-diphtheria-tetanus toxoid (dtap) vaccine, and it differs from conventional whole-cell pertussis-diphtheria-tetanus toxoid (dtwp) vaccines in that it comprises inactivated purified bordetella pertussis antigens rather than whole ce ...	1996	8841742
[the immunogenicity of vaccines against diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis and polio administered orally on the vaccinal calendar at the age of 2, 4 and 6 months and their coadministration with a hepatitis b vaccine at 0, 2 and 6 months].	the immunogenicity of oral diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, (dpt) and polio vaccines was examined. six hundred seventy-seven children (group i) were given hepatitis b vaccine at 0, 2, and 6 months of age and the oral dpt-polio vaccines were administered at 2, 4 and 6 months of age. a control group of 731 children (group ii) received only oral dpt-polio vaccines. in both groups the vaccine efficacy against poliomyelitis was 96% for serotype i and 100% for serotype ii. for serotype iii, the vaccine ...	1996	8849056
incidence of non-toxigenic corynebacteria diphtheria in british military personnel in germany.		1996	8890005
species identities and antimicrobial susceptibilities of corynebacteria isolated from various clinical sources.	over a 14-month period, 415 clinical isolates of coryneform gram-positive rods were recovered from various sources and identified to the species level according to recent identification schemes. corynebacterium urealyticum, corynebacterium striatum, corynebacterium amycolatum, and corynebacterium jeikeium predominated, accounting for 63% of all isolates. corynebacterium accolens, corynebacterium striatum, corynebacterium argentoratense, corynebacterium propinquum and corynebacterium pseudodiphth ...	1996	8894575
exacerbation of tracheobronchitis due to nontoxigenic corynebacterium diphtheriae.		1996	8894741
molecular epidemiology of diphtheria in russia, 1985-1994.	the largest diphtheria outbreak in the developed world since the 1960s began in the russian federation in 1990. one hundred fifty-six corynebacterium diphtheriae strains from throughout russia, selected for temporal and geographic diversity, were assayed by ribotyping and multilocus enzyme electrophoresis (mee). these tests showed significant genetic diversity within the c. diphtheriae species, and ribotyping and mee data generally correlated well with epidemiologic data. a distinct clonal group ...	1996	8896510
ukraine's diphtheria campaign.		1996	8898058
the gale gene encoding the udp-galactose 4-epimerase of brevibacterium lactofermentum is coupled transcriptionally to the dmdr gene.	the gale gene of brevibacterium lactofermentum, encoding udp-galactose 4-epimerase (ec 5.1.3.2), has been identified by dna sequencing downstream from the orf1-sigb-dmdr region. the arrangement of the sigb-dtxr-gale cluster is also conserved in corynebacterium diphtheriae. the deduced gale product was a protein of 329 aa residues (35.4 kda) that shared a high degree of identity to known udp-galactose 4-epimerase proteins from gram-positive microorganisms (streptomyces lividans and streptococcus ...	1996	8921853
an ider mutant of mycobacterium smegmatis has derepressed siderophore production and an altered oxidative-stress response.	the mycobacterial ider protein is a homologue of the diphtheria-toxin repressor dtxr. we have previously demonstrated that mycobacterium tuberculosis ider, like dtxr, represses transcription of corynebacterium diphtheriae iron-regulated promoters in vivo and binds to c. diphtheriae operators in a metal-dependent manner in vitro. we show here that ider mutants of m. smegmatis, constructed by allelic replacement, were defective in their ability to repress siderophore biosynthesis in the presence o ...	1996	8939436
screening tests for the presumptive identification of corynebacterium diphtheriae in a diagnostic laboratory.		1996	8940488
misidentification of corynebacterium diphtheriae.		1996	8940489
cutaneous and pharyngeal diphtheria imported from the indian subcontinent.	we report the case of a 32-year-old woman who presented upon returning from india with cutaneous ulcers on the feet and pharyngitis. microbiological testing showed the causative organism to be a toxigenic strain of corynebacterium diphtheriae. she was treated successfully with penicillin and diphtheria antitoxin. this case emphasises the importance of maintaining a high index of suspicion for such rare but significant infectious diseases.	1996	8977947
[a tropical ulcer; cutaneous diphtheria].	a 43-year-old woman, born in the netherlands, developed ulcers on her left foot during a holiday in gambia and senegal. she had been bitten bij insects. the ulcers were caused by corynebacterium diphtheriae. the patient was treated with antibiotics and recovered fully. a grey pseudomembrane covering the ulcer is a characteristic feature of cutaneous diphtheria. the treatment is with antibiotics and, after toxin tests have indicated that the bacterium is toxigenic, with antitoxin. in some cases s ...	1996	8984415
identification of the primary metal ion-activation sites of the diphtheria tox repressor by x-ray crystallography and site-directed mutational analysis.	the diphtheria tox repressor, dtxr, is a 226 amino acid transition metal ion-activated regulatory protein that controls the expression of diphtheria toxin in toxigenic corynebacterium diphtheriae. the previously solved three-dimensional dtxr structures have identified two potential metal ion binding sites which may play a role in the activation of dna binding by the repressor. we have used both x-ray crystallographic and site-directed mutational analysis of dtxr(c102d)-ni2+ complexes and dtxr to ...	1996	8599765
reactogenicity and immunogenicity of a protein-conjugated pneumococcal oligosaccharide vaccine in older adults.	healthy adults > or = 50 years old were immunized with either pentavalent corynebacterium diphtheriae c7 (beta197) cross-reactive material (crm197) protein-conjugated pneumococcal vaccine (cv) containing 10 microgram each of capsular oligosaccharides from serotypes 6b, 14, 18c, 19f, and 23f or with licensed (23-valent, 25 microgram/serotype) pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (pv). adverse reactions, predominantly local in nature, occurred in 20 of 23 cv recipients versus 13 of 23 pv recipients ...	1996	8603942
simultaneous quantitation of diphtheria and tetanus antibodies by double antigen, time-resolved fluorescence immunoassay.	a dual, double antigen, time-resolved fluorescence immunoassay (delfia) for the simultaneous detection and quantitation of diphtheria (d) and tetanus (t) antibodies in sera has been developed. in the double antigen format one arm of the antibody binds to antigen coated microtitre wells and the other arm binds to labelled antigen to provide a fluorescent signal. this assay was found to be functionally specific for igg antibodies and showed a good correlation with established toxin neutralization ...	1996	8621952
diphtheria outbreak--saraburi province, thailand, 1994.	following the introduction of diphtheria toxoid in thailand in 1978 and the acceleration of vaccination efforts by the expanded program on immunization (epi), the incidence of diphtheria in thailand decreased substantially. a total of 1021 diphtheria cases were reported nationwide in 1984, compared with 25 cases in 1993. however, on july 19, 1994, a cluster of cases of diphtheria was reported in saraburi province (1994 population: 565,067) to the division of epidemiology (doe), thailand ministry ...	1996	8596528