| [4 cases of pseudomembranous colitis due to antituberculous agents]. | | 2004 | 15382708 |
| cdea of clostridium difficile, a new multidrug efflux transporter of the mate family. | the cdea gene, cloned from clostridium difficile clinical strain 714 under the control of its natural promoter made escherichia coli and clostridium perfringens resistant to ethidium bromide and acriflavin but had no effect on the susceptibility of the hosts to the following antibiotics: norfloxacin, ciprofloxacin, gentamicin, erythromycin, tetracyclin, and chloramphenicol. however, it was responsible for fluoroquinolone resistance in e. coli when it was cloned under the control of the plac prom ... | 2004 | 15383161 |
| rifalazil treats and prevents relapse of clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea in hamsters. | although vancomycin and metronidazole effectively treat clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea and colitis (cdad), their use is associated with a high incidence of relapsing c. difficile infection. rifalazil is a new benzoxazinorifamycin that possesses activity against mycobacterium tuberculosis and gram-positive bacteria. here we compared rifalazil and vancomycin for effectiveness in preventing or treating clindamycin-induced cecitis in a hamster model of cdad. golden syrian hamsters were in ... | 2004 | 15388461 |
| large clostridial cytotoxins. | the large clostridial cytotoxins are a family of structurally and functionally related exotoxins from clostridium difficile (toxins a and b), c. sordellii (lethal and hemorrhagic toxin) and c. novyi (alpha-toxin). the exotoxins are major pathogenicity factors which in addition to their in vivo effects are cytotoxic to cultured cell lines causing reorganization of the cytoskeleton accompanied by morphological changes. the exotoxins are single-chain protein toxins, which are constructed of three d ... | 2004 | 15449191 |
| quebec to report on clostridium difficile in 2005. | | 2004 | 15451825 |
| [characterization of an extracellular protease from clostridium difficile]. | clostridium difficile is an intestinal pathogen, which produces two main virulence factors, the exotoxins a and b. other bacterial structures have been implicated in the colonization of the gastrointestinal tract, which is the first step of the pathogenic process. c. difficile expresses adherence factors and also, displays some surface-associated proteolytic activity, which could play a role in the physiopathology of this bacterium. the aim of this work was to study the protein named cwp84 which ... | 2004 | 15465262 |
| performance of the techlab c. diff chek-60 enzyme immunoassay (eia) in combination with the c. difficile tox a/b ii eia kit, the triage c. difficile panel immunoassay, and a cytotoxin assay for diagnosis of clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea. | we compared a recently marketed enzyme immunoassay for glutamate dehydrogenase (gdh), techlab's c. diff chek-60 (tl-gdh), in combination with the c. difficile tox a/b ii enzyme immunoassay (tox-a/b) with (i) the triage c. difficile test, which detects both gdh (tr-gdh) and toxin a (tr-tox-a); (ii) an in-house cytotoxin assay (c-tox); and (iii) stool cultures for c. difficile. all c. difficile isolates were tested for the presence of the toxin genes by pcr. if a toxin gene-positive strain of clos ... | 2004 | 15472364 |
| outbreak of clostridium difficile infection and gatifloxacin use in a long-term care facility. | | 2004 | 15472828 |
| abdominal distention and diarrhea in a young female. | | 2004 | 15475089 |
| rho and rho kinase are involved in parathyroid hormone-stimulated protein kinase c alpha translocation and il-6 promoter activity in osteoblastic cells. | the role of small g-proteins in pth-stimulated pkc translocation and il-6 promoter expression in umr-106 cells was determined. the effects of pth(1-34) and pth(3-34) in stimulating pkcalpha translocation and il-6 were inhibited by agents that interfere with the activity of small g-proteins of the rho family and with the downstream kinase rho kinase. | 2004 | 15476589 |
| fulminant clostridium difficile colitis in a patient with spinal cord injury: case report. | in certain patients with clostridium difficile colitis (cdc), a life-threatening systemic toxicity may develop despite appropriate and timely medical therapy. | 2004 | 15478532 |
| basic and clinical aspects of clostridium difficile colitis. | clostridium difficile, a gram-positive anaerobic bacillus dubbed as the difficult clostridium because it resisted early attempts of isolation and culture. after some decades in the darkness, it became famous, when in 1978, a cytotoxin of the c. difficile was found the responsible of the pseudomembranous colitis. we review in this paper aspects of the epidemiology of the c. difficile in health and disease. also the importance of c. difficile as a cause of nosocomial infections. we review the char ... | 2004 | 15483687 |
| use of pulsed-field gel electrophoresis for a pseudoepidemic of clostridium difficile infections in a pediatric oncology and hematology department. | | 2004 | 15484791 |
| small-bowel infarction from disseminated aspergillosis. | despite the use of new, effective drugs, the disseminated invasive aspergillosis often remains lethal in neutropenic patients. diagnosis is difficult because early symptoms are nonspecific. new tools could help in diagnosis and lead to early surgery when needed. | 2004 | 15486750 |
| bloodstream infections: a trial of the impact of different methods of reporting positive blood culture results. | the impact of how positive blood culture results are reported on the evolution bloodstream infections (bsis) has not been assessed. | 2004 | 15486840 |
| contamination, disinfection, and cross-colonization: are hospital surfaces reservoirs for nosocomial infection? | despite documentation that the inanimate hospital environment (e.g., surfaces and medical equipment) becomes contaminated with nosocomial pathogens, the data that suggest that contaminated fomites lead to nosocomial infections do so indirectly. pathogens for which there is more-compelling evidence of survival in environmental reservoirs include clostridium difficile, vancomycin-resistant enterococci, and methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus, and pathogens for which there is evidence of pr ... | 2004 | 15486843 |
| severe ciprofloxacin-associated pseudomembranous colitis in an eight-year-old child. | clostridium difficile is the principal cause of antibiotic-associated diarrhea and pseudomembranous enterocolitis in children. a case of severe pseudomembranous colitis developing in an 8-year-old child who had received oral ciprofloxacin therapy as part of an investigational protocol is presented. the safety and efficacy of fluoroquinolones in children has not yet been established. use of these antibiotics in children outside investigational protocols ("off-label" use) as oral antipseudomonas a ... | 2004 | 15486915 |
| newer bugs causing gastro-intestinal infections. | | 2003 | 15490531 |
| comparative analysis of clostridium difficile clinical isolates belonging to different genetic lineages and time periods. | recent studies have shown that clostridium difficile strains with variant toxins and those with resistance to macrolide-lincosamide-streptogramin b (mlsb) are increasingly causing severe disease and outbreaks in hospital settings. here, the pathogenicity locus (paloc), the acquisition of binary toxin, and the genotypic and phenotypic characteristics of antibiotic resistance of 74 c. difficile clinical strains isolated from symptomatic patients in italy during different time periods were studied. ... | 2004 | 15496392 |
| impact of mandatory clostridium difficile surveillance on diagnostic services. | | 2004 | 15501344 |
| hemolytic uremic syndrome associated with clostridium difficile colitis. | | 2004 | 15503176 |
| clostridium difficile. | | 2004 | 15504208 |
| epidemiology and cost of nosocomial gastroenteritis, avon, england, 2002-2003. | healthcare-associated outbreaks of gastroenteritis are an increasingly recognized problem, but detailed knowledge of the epidemiology of these events is lacking. we actively monitored three hospital systems in england for outbreaks of gastroenteritis in 2002 to 2003. a total of 2,154 patients (2.21 cases/1,000-hospital-days) and 1,360 healthcare staff (0.47 cases/1,000-hospital-days) were affected in 227 unit outbreaks (1.33 outbreaks/unit-year). norovirus, detected in 63% of outbreaks, was the ... | 2004 | 15504271 |
| experimental clostridium difficile enterocolitis in foals. | despite empirical clinical association of infection with clostridium difficile with colitis in horses, a causal link has not been confirmed. the objective of this study was to develop a model of c. difficile-associated diarrhea in foals with normal transfer of passive immunity. nine 1-day-old pony foals were inoculated intragastrically with spores or vegetative cells of c. difficile. five foals were challenged with spores, with 2 receiving 10(5) colony-forming units (cfus) and concurrently 3 rec ... | 2004 | 15515592 |
| clostridium difficile diarrhea: infection control in horses. | c difficile has emerged as an important cause of diarrheic disease in horses. c difficile diarrhea is usually diagnosed in mature horses, mostly when they are treated with antimicrobials and hospitalized. it is important for clinicians at veterinary hospitals to have knowledge about the organism and the infection. to prevent c difficile diarrhea, judicious use of antimicrobials is important, as is minimizing different stress factors at the animal hospital or clinic. infected horses must be isola ... | 2004 | 15519822 |
| c. difficile: by the numbers. | | 2004 | 15523050 |
| non-antibiotic associated c. difficile diarrhea in a 7 week-old infant. | we describe a rare case of non-antibiotic associated severe c. difficile diarrhea in a 7-week-old boy. he had massive fluid loss and electrolyte imbalance. he required total parentral nutrition for 10 days and eventually recovered with oral metronidazole. most of the reported cases in literature are associated with prior antibiotic exposure or in hospitalized patients. | 2004 | 15523132 |
| angiotensin ii and epidermal growth factor induce cyclooxygenase-2 expression in intestinal epithelial cells through small gtpases using distinct signaling pathways. | colorectal carcinogenesis is a multistep process involving genetic mutations and alterations in rigorously controlled signaling pathways and gene expression that control intestinal epithelial cell proliferation, differentiation, and apoptosis. cyclooxygenase-2 (cox-2) is aberrantly expressed in premalignant adenomatous polyps and colorectal carcinomas and is associated with increased epithelial cell proliferation, decreased apoptosis, and increased cell invasiveness. currently, knowledge of the ... | 2005 | 15525649 |
| glycogen synthase kinase-3beta negatively regulates group iia phospholipase a2 expression in human aortic smooth muscle and hepg2 hepatoma cells. | the present study shows that the ifn-gamma-mediated upregulation of secretory phospholipase a2 of group iia (spla2-iia) in hasmc and hepg2 cells is synergistically increased after simultaneous inhibition of glycogen synthase kinase-3beta (gsk-3beta) by indirubin-3'-monoxime, 5-iodo or ar-a014418. the effect of gsk-3beta inhibition was dose- and time-dependent and can be further augmented by its concomitant incubation with clostridium difficile toxin b, an inhibitor of small rho proteins, or h-11 ... | 2004 | 15527765 |
| clostridium difficile toxin a induces expression of the stress-induced early gene product rhob. | clostridium difficile toxin a monoglucosylates the rho family gtpases rho, rac, and cdc42. glucosylation leads to the functional inactivation of rho gtpases and causes disruption of the actin cytoskeleton. a cdna microarray revealed the immediate early gene rhob as the gene that was predominantly up-regulated in colonic caco-2 cells after treatment with toxin a. this toxin a effect was also detectable in epithelial cells such as ht29 and madin-darby canine kidney cells, as well as nih 3t3 fibrob ... | 2005 | 15531589 |
| nosocomial diarrhea. | to study the occurrence of nosocomial diarrhea in pediatric wards and the role of infections in its causation. | 2004 | 15531828 |
| the role of the intestinal tract as a source for transmission of nosocomial pathogens. | the intestinal tract provides an important source for transmission of many nosocomial pathogens, including enterococcus species, clostridium difficile, candida species, enterobacteriaceae, and other gram-negative bacilli. recent data suggest that the intestinal tracts of hospitalized patients may also be an important reservoir of staphylococcus aureus. although the clinical manifestations of these pathogens are diverse, a common pathogenesis is involved in their colonization of and dissemination ... | 2004 | 15538978 |
| outcome after colectomy for clostridium difficile colitis. | clostridium difficile colitis is a relatively common entity, yet large series of patients with fulminant c. difficile colitis are infrequently reported. this study was designed to identify risk factors, clinical characteristics, and outcome of patients who required colectomy for fulminant c. difficile colitis. | 2004 | 15540290 |
| [comparative study of thermoresistance spores of clostridium difficile strains belonging to different toxigenicity groups]. | the thermoresistance of spores of clostridium difficile strains belonging to the different toxigenicity groups was compared in the study. among spores of toxigenicity c. difficile strains (26 c. difficile strains produced toxins a and b (tcda+tcdb+) and 32 c. difficile strains produced only toxin b (tcda-tcdb+) were high thermoresistant. between spores of non-toxigenic c. difficile strains much lower thermoresistance was observed. in conclusion, more studies are needed to clarify the importance ... | 2004 | 15544087 |
| development of an extensive set of 16s rdna-targeted primers for quantification of pathogenic and indigenous bacteria in faecal samples by real-time pcr. | the microbiota of the human intestinal tract constitutes a complex ecosystem. we report the design and optimization of an extensive set of 16s rdna-targeted species- and group-specific primers for more accurate quantification of bacteria from faecal samples with real-time pcr. | 2004 | 15546407 |
| [molecular epidemiology and laboratory diagnosis of clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea]. | | 2003 | 15552833 |
| risk factors and mortality associated with clostridium difficile-associated diarrhoea at a va hospital. | the objective of this study was to evaluate the risk of certain patient co-morbidities and antibiotics in the development of clostridium difficile-associated diarrhoea (cdad). hospitalized patients developing cdad during a specified period were compared with a cohort of patients, matched by age, without a diagnosis of cdad, who were hospitalized during the same time period. data collection included demographics, hospital ward, co-morbid conditions, antibiotics received, and mortality. gender and ... | 2004 | 15555878 |
| resistance determinants in strains of clostridium difficile from two geographically distinct populations. | ninety-three clinical isolates of clostridium difficile, comprising 65 from royal gwent hospital, newport and 28 from southmead hospital, bristol were examined to determine the prevalence of genes coding for macrolide resistance and to explore differences in susceptibility patterns. antibiogram testing produced similar results for both sets of strains with respect to amoxicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin and cefotaxime. results differed for rifampicin, where 53% of the bristol isolates were re ... | 2004 | 15555889 |
| a question of ethics. | | 2004 | 15557570 |
| clostridium difficile colitis: a marker for ischemic colitis? | | 2004 | 15557572 |
| novel evidence suggesting clostridium difficile is present in human gut microbiota more frequently than previously suspected. | prevalence rate of clostridium difficile in healthy human adults is believed to be very low. our rt-pcr system using glass powder, which can eliminate pcr inhibitors, detected c. difficile toxin b mrna in 16 of 30 fecal samples (53.3%) from healthy human adults. in contrast, we failed to detect toxin b in the same fecal samples by pcr using dna templates extracted with phenol-chloroform. our results suggest that pcr inhibitors in feces carried through phenol-chloroform extraction procedure might ... | 2004 | 15557747 |
| leukemoid reactions complicating colitis due to clostridium difficile. | we sought to describe the characteristics of patients who had clostridium difficile colitis complicated by leukemoid reactions (total leukocyte count greater than 35 x 10(9)/l) and to determine whether this complication is associated with higher morbidity or mortality than c difficile colitis without leukemoid reactions. | 2004 | 15558922 |
| ["in vitro" activity of ten antimicrobial agents against anaerobic bacteria. a collaborative study, 1999-2002]. | the antimicrobial activity of ampicillin, ampicillin-sulbactam, cefoxitin, ceftriaxone, imipenem, piperacillin, piperacillin-tazobactam, clindamycin, metronidazole, and azitromycin was assesed against 166 strains of anaerobic bacteria recovered from eight hospitals in buenos aires. the strains studied were bacteroides fragilis group (65), fusobacterium spp. (26), prevotella spp. (21), porphyromonas spp. (10), clostridium difficile (10), other clostridia (12), and gram-positive cocci (22). the mi ... | 2004 | 15559195 |
| [a case of pseudomembranous enterocolitis caused by methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus]. | a 47-year-old woman was hospitalized because of urinary-tract infection. she was treated with antibiotics for 6 days. however, severe watery diarrhea and pyrexia developed 6 days after stopping administration of antibiotics. stool, throat and blood cultures were positive for methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (mrsa) and negative for clostridium difficile di toxin. in spite of administration of vcm, she died of septic shock. at autopsy, macroscopic observation revealed a pseudomembrane i ... | 2004 | 15560381 |
| clostridium difficile: causes and interventions. | human infection with clostridium difficile can take many forms. it can exist in many patients who are relatively well or who have symptoms similar to irritable bowel syndrome. it can also infect the patient in the acute care facility. these patients typically have received antibiotics for more than 3 days and begin to experience foul-smelling, watery stools within a few days of initiation of antibiotic coverage. good hand washing and environmental cleanliness remain the primary ways of preventin ... | 2004 | 15571943 |
| clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea: risk factors, diagnostic methods, and treatment. | clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea (cdad) has become the most common cause of infectious diarrhea acquired in the hospital, with an estimated 3 million annual cases and an annual cost of $1 billion. risk factors for cdad include antibiotic use (especially ampicillin, clindamycin, and cephalosporins), advanced age, and gastrointestinal surgery. specific diagnosis of cdad is made with an enzyme immunoassay to detect toxins a and b. metronidazole remains the initial treatment of choice, with ... | 2004 | 15580153 |
| the laparoscopic repair of suprapubic ventral hernias. | the complexity of dissection and the close proximity of the hernia to bony, vascular, nerve, and urinary structures make the laparoscopic repair of suprapubic hernias (lrsph) a formidable operation. we performed a prospective evaluation of the outcomes of patients undergoing lrsph. | 2004 | 15580440 |
| multiplex pcr targeting tpi (triose phosphate isomerase), tcda (toxin a), and tcdb (toxin b) genes for toxigenic culture of clostridium difficile. | a multiplex pcr toxigenic culture approach was designed for simultaneous identification and toxigenic type characterization of clostridium difficile isolates. three pairs of primers were designed for the amplification of (i) a species-specific internal fragment of the tpi (triose phosphate isomerase) gene, (ii) an internal fragment of the tcdb (toxin b) gene, and (iii) an internal fragment of the tcda (toxin a) gene allowing distinction between toxin a-positive, toxin b-positive (a+b+) strains a ... | 2004 | 15583303 |
| inhibitory effects of mevastatin and a geranylgeranyl transferase i inhibitor (ggti-2166) on mononuclear osteoclast formation induced by receptor activator of nf kappa b ligand (rankl) or tumor necrosis factor-alpha (tnf-alpha). | we have previously reported that the statin mevastatin (compactin) reversibly inhibits the fusion of trap-positive mononuclear preosteoclasts (pocs) into multinucleated osteoclasts and disrupts the actin ring in mature osteoclasts through the inhibition of protein prenylation. protein geranylgeranylation, specifically, is known to be required for poc fusion and for the function and survival of mature osteoclasts. however, it has not been determined whether protein geranylgeranylation is involved ... | 2005 | 15588717 |
| a new periparturient disease in eastern europe, clostridium difficile causes postparturient sow losses. | postparturient sow losses caused by clostridium difficile have not been reported in the veterinary literature. recently in croatia, in a large outdoor production unit with suboptimal environmental conditions, a sudden increase in postparturient sow mortality was diagnosed. after postpartal application of enrofloxacine to postparturient mastitis metritis agalactia (mma) suffering sows, diarrhea, respiratory distress, and mortality of these sows were recorded. while 13% of mma suffering and treate ... | 2005 | 15589270 |
| saccharomyces cerevisiae fungemia in an elderly patient with clostridium difficile colitis. | saccharomyces boulardii is widely used as a probiotic compound and is generally thought to be safe. we report one case of fungemia caused by saccharomyces cerevisiae occurring in an elderly patient treated orally with s. boulardii in association with vancomycin for clostridium difficile colitis. we do not recommend administering this viable yeast particularly in debilited patient with active colitis. | 2004 | 15597730 |
| clostridium difficile-associated colitis. | to review the basic microbiology, pathogenesis of disease, and diagnosis of the nosocomial pathogen clostridium difficile and to examine therapies recommended by the canadian task force on preventive health care. quality of evidence medline: was searched using mesh headings. controlled trials for therapy were sought, but case-control studies and observational reviews were included. | 2004 | 15597970 |
| probiotics and gastrointestinal diseases. | there is increasing evidence indicating health benefits by consumption of foods containing microorganisms, i.e. probiotics. a number of clinical trials have been performed to evaluate the effects in the prevention and treatment of gastrointestinal diseases caused by pathogenic microorganisms or by disturbances in the normal microflora. gastrointestinal infections caused by helicobacter pylori, traveller's diarrhoea, rotavirus diarrhoea, antibiotic-associated diarrhoea (aad) and clostridium diffi ... | 2005 | 15606379 |
| inhibitory effects of various micro-organisms on the growth of helicobacter pylori. | to examine the in vitro influence of various bacteria species on helicobacter pylori (hp) growth. | 2005 | 15613007 |
| kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus modulates microtubule dynamics via rhoa-gtp-diaphanous 2 signaling and utilizes the dynein motors to deliver its dna to the nucleus. | human herpesvirus 8 (hhv-8; also called kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus), which is implicated in the pathogenesis of kaposi's sarcoma (ks) and lymphoproliferative disorders, infects a variety of target cells both in vivo and in vitro. hhv-8 binds to several in vitro target cells via cell surface heparan sulfate and utilizes the alpha3beta1 integrin as one of its entry receptors. interactions with cell surface molecules induce the activation of host cell signaling cascades and cytoskeleta ... | 2005 | 15613346 |
| comparative in vitro activities of xrp 2868, pristinamycin, quinupristin-dalfopristin, vancomycin, daptomycin, linezolid, clarithromycin, telithromycin, clindamycin, and ampicillin against anaerobic gram-positive species, actinomycetes, and lactobacilli. | a comparative study of the in vitro activities of xrp 2868, a new oral streptogramin, against 266 anaerobic gram-positive clinical isolates using the agar dilution method showed that the xrp 2868 mics for 95% (254 of 266) of isolates were < or =0.5 microg/ml. xrp 2868 mics for only two strains, one being clostridium clostridioforme (mic, 16 microg/ml) and the other being clostridium difficile (mic, 32 microg/ml), were >2 microg/ml. depending on its pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics, xrp 2868 ... | 2005 | 15616322 |
| interaction of bismuth subsalicylate with fruit juices, ascorbic acid, and thiol-containing substrates to produce soluble bismuth products active against clostridium difficile. | bismuth subsalicylate (bss), the active ingredient of pepto-bismol, has been used for many years to treat various disorders of the gastrointestinal tract. using mass spectrometry and the agar dilution method, we determined that insoluble bss interacts with certain dietary components and organic substrates to produce water-soluble products with activity against clostridium difficile. | 2005 | 15616328 |
| [risk factors for nosocomial clostridium difficile diarrhoea in an infectious and tropical diseases department]. | foreword: clostridium difficile associated diarrhea (cdad) accounts for 25% of all cases of diarrhea occurring in hospital. infectious diseases departments are considered as presenting with an important risk of cdad because of the large quantity of antibiotics used. objectives and method: the authors made a prospective study in the first 6 months of 2001, in order to identify the risk factors of cdad in their department. one hundred and fifty-two patients hospitalized for at least 6 days were in ... | 2004 | 15620015 |
| nurses and the control of infectious disease. understanding epidemiology and disease transmission is vital to nursing care. | epidemiology examines the distribution and source of a disease in a population. understanding epidemiology and disease transmission is vital to nursing care. infectious disease transmission requires three components: an agent (virus, bacterium, parasite or other microbe), a vulnerable host and a conducive environment. disease spread can occur through direct contact or via indirect methods (airborne droplets, vectors, fomites, water or food). intervention can occur by attacking the agent (e.g., u ... | 2004 | 15623008 |
| peptide antibiotic and actin-binding protein as mixed-type inhibitors of clostridium difficile cdt toxin activities. | cdt from clostridium difficile is an adp-ribosyltransferase that causes rapid actin disaggregation and cell death. for efficient catalysis, cdt required specific divalent cations and binding by nad which can be substituted by atp but not adp. increasing isolation of cdt-producing strains prompted our search for antagonists like the anti-c. difficile agents bacitracin and vancomycin which were effective cdt inhibitors. other cdt transferase and glycohydrolase inhibitors with consistently low ic50 ... | 2005 | 15629471 |
| characterization of the cleavage site and function of resulting cleavage fragments after limited proteolysis of clostridium difficile toxin b (tcdb) by host cells. | clostridium difficile toxin b (tcdb) is a single-stranded protein consisting of a c-terminal domain responsible for binding to the host cell membrane, a middle part involved in internalization, and the n-terminal catalytic (toxic) part. this study shows that tcdb is processed by a single proteolytic step which cleaves tcdb(10463) between leu(543) and gly(544) and the naturally occurring variant tcdb(8864) between leu(544) and gly(545). the cleavage occurs at neutral ph and is catalysed by a peps ... | 2005 | 15632438 |
| clonal spread of a clostridium difficile strain with a complete set of toxin a, toxin b, and binary toxin genes among polish patients with clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea. | clinically relevant clostridium difficile strains usually produce toxins a and b. some c. difficile strains can produce an additional binary toxin. we report clonality among five strains carrying all toxin genes from polish patients with c. difficile-associated diarrhea. in another strain, possible recombination between binary toxin genes is documented. | 2005 | 15635019 |
| "keeping each patient safe": quality safety teaching/learning packets. | background: university of pittsburgh medical center (upmc) mckeesport developed a tool, the upmc mckeesport quality safety teaching/learning packet, to provide physicians, nurses, and therapists with a common language to address complex safety issues. teaching/learning packets were developed to "keep each patient safe": by calling for help early; from falls and confusion; and from hospital-acquired infections (http://mckeesport.upmc.com/keepingpatientssafe.htm). teaching/learning packets: in jul ... | 2004 | 15646100 |
| 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme a reductase inhibitors attenuate beta-amyloid-induced microglial inflammatory responses. | alzheimer's disease (ad) is characterized by extracellular deposits of fibrillar beta-amyloid (abeta) in the brain, a fulminant microglial-mediated inflammatory reaction, and neuronal death. the use of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme a reductase inhibitors (statins) is associated with a reduced risk of ad, which has been attributed to the cholesterol-lowering actions of these drugs. statins have been reported recently to have anti-inflammatory actions in addition to their classic lipid-lower ... | 2005 | 15647473 |
| cytomegalovirus and clostridium difficile co-infection in severe ulcero-hemorrhagic colitis during induction chemotherapy for acute lymphoblastic leukemia. | here we describe the first case of a biopsy-proven cytomegalovirus ulcero-hemorrhagic colitis, associated with clostridium difficile co-infection, occurring during standard induction chemotherapy for common b cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia. we discuss the case and focalize clinical management and diagnostic issues arising from it. | 2005 | 15653455 |
| 2-hydroxyisocaproyl-coa dehydratase and its activator from clostridium difficile. | the hadbc and hadi genes from clostridium difficile were functionally expressed in escherichia coli and shown to encode the novel 2-hydroxyisocaproyl-coa dehydratase hadbc and its activator hadi. the activated enzyme catalyses the dehydration of (r)-2-hydroxyisocaproyl-coa to isocaprenoyl-coa in the pathway of leucine fermentation. the extremely oxygen-sensitive homodimeric activator as well as the heterodimeric dehydratase, contain iron and inorganic sulfur; besides varying amounts of zinc, oth ... | 2005 | 15654892 |
| a hospital outbreak of clostridium difficile disease associated with isolates carrying binary toxin genes. | the binary toxin genes cdt and cdtb have been detected in approximately 5% of clostridium difficile strains. severe c. difficile disease (cdd) may be associated with strains that carry the binary toxin genes. | 2004 | 15655746 |
| analysis of the fecal microbiota of irritable bowel syndrome patients and healthy controls with real-time pcr. | the gut microbiota may contribute to the onset and maintenance of irritable bowel syndrome (ibs). in this study, the microbiotas of patients suffering from ibs were compared with a control group devoid of gastrointestinal (gi) symptoms. | 2005 | 15667495 |
| steroid-refractory ulcerative colitis treated with corticosteroids, metronidazole and vancomycin: a case report. | increasing evidence elucidating the pathogenic mechanisms of ulcerative colitis (uc) has accumulated and the disease is widely assumed to be the consequence of genetic susceptibility and an abnormal immune response to commensal bacteria. however evidence regarding an infectious etiology in uc remains elusive. | 2005 | 15667650 |
| quantification of bifidobacterium spp., escherichia coli and clostridium difficile in faecal samples of breast-fed and formula-fed infants by real-time pcr. | to determine the influence of either exclusive breast-feeding or formula feeding on both composition and quantity of the gut microbiota in infants, we have developed real-time, quantitative pcr assays for the detection of bifidobacterium spp. and clostridium difficile. furthermore, we have monitored the prevalence and counts of escherichia coli by applying a previously described real-time pcr assay. we found all 100 infants tested to be colonized by bifidobacterium spp. the bifidobacterial count ... | 2005 | 15668012 |
| alternative treatments for clostridium difficile disease: what really works? | vancomycin and metronidazole have been used for treating clostridium difficile-associated disease (cdad) for the past 25 years, but approximately 20 % of patients develop recurrent disease. the increasing incidence of nosocomial outbreaks, cases of recurrent cdad and other complications (toxic megacolon, ileus, sepsis) has fuelled the search for different types of treatments. as the understanding of the pathogenesis of this disease has matured, newer treatment strategies that take advantage of t ... | 2005 | 15673502 |
| revised nomenclature of clostridium difficile toxins and associated genes. | several different nomenclatures have been applied to the clostridium difficile toxins and their associated genes. this paper summarizes the new nomenclature that has been agreed to by the research groups currently active in the field. the revised nomenclature includes c. difficile toxins and other related large clostridial toxins produced by clostridium sordellii and clostridium novyi, and corresponding toxin genes, as well as toxin production types of c. difficile strains. | 2005 | 15673503 |
| quorum sensing in clostridium difficile: analysis of a luxs-type signalling system. | the increasing incidence of clostridium difficile-associated disease, and the problems associated with its control, highlight the need for additional countermeasures. the attenuation of virulence through the blockade of bacterial cell-to-cell communication (quorum sensing) is one potential therapeutic target. preliminary studies have shown that c. difficile produces at least one potential signalling molecule. through the molecule's ability to induce bioluminescence in a vibrio harveyi luxs repor ... | 2005 | 15673504 |
| effect of phage infection on toxin production by clostridium difficile. | infection with clostridium difficile and subsequent production of toxins a and b may result in c. difficile-associated diarrhoea and pseudomembranous colitis in hospital patients. the effect of four temperate phages, obtained by induction of clinical c. difficile isolates, on toxin production by c. difficile was determined. none of these phages converted a lysogenized non-toxigenic c. difficile strain to toxin production. one of the accessory toxin genes, tcde, was detected in three phages, phic ... | 2005 | 15673505 |
| generation of an erythromycin-sensitive derivative of clostridium difficile strain 630 (630deltaerm) and demonstration that the conjugative transposon tn916deltae enters the genome of this strain at multiple sites. | erythromycin resistance in clostridium difficile strain 630 is conferred by a genetic element termed tn5398 which contains two erm(b) genes: erm1(b) and erm2(b). an erythromycin-sensitive derivative of strain 630 (designated 630deltaerm) was generated by spontaneous mutation after continuous subculture for 30 days. this strain had lost the erm2(b) gene from within tn5398 but retained erm1(b). however, the strain could revert to erythromycin resistance at a frequency of 2.79 x 10(-8), although it ... | 2005 | 15673506 |
| detection of binary-toxin genes (cdta and cdtb) among clostridium difficile strains isolated from patients with c. difficile-associated diarrhoea (cdad) in poland. | clostridium difficile a+ b+ and a- b+ strains isolated from stool samples of patients with c. difficile-associated diarrhoea (cdad) were selected from the university hospital warsaw collection. the binary-toxin genes cdta and cdtb were detected by pcr in five of the 41 a+ b+ strains tested, but in none of the 17 a- b+ strains tested, giving 8.6 % prevalence (5/58) of binary-toxin-positive strains. all of the strains that were positive for binary-toxin genes were grouped into toxinotype iv, sugge ... | 2005 | 15673507 |
| prevalence and characteristics of bacteria and host factors in an outbreak situation of antibiotic-associated diarrhoea. | antibiotic-associated diarrhoea (aad) represents a clinical entity leading to prolonged hospital stays and diagnostic and therapeutic procedures, and results in additional costs. the aim of the present study was to assess the prevalence and characteristics of different bacteria in stools of patients with aad. the reliability of diagnostic procedures under routine conditions was evaluated. host factors were also analysed. from june 2002 to april 2003 89 cases of diarrhoea were reported at a hospi ... | 2005 | 15673508 |
| an improved protocol for pulsed-field gel electrophoresis typing of clostridium difficile. | pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (pfge) is the 'gold standard' technique for bacterial typing and has proved to be discriminatory and reproducible for typing clostridium difficile. nevertheless, a high proportion of strains are non-typable by this technique due to the degradation of the dna during the process. the introduction of several modifications in the pfge standard procedure increased typability from 40% (90 isolates) to 100% (220 isolates) while maintaining the high degree of discriminat ... | 2005 | 15673509 |
| toxigenic status of clostridium difficile in a large spanish teaching hospital. | the aim of this study was to evaluate the toxigenic status of circulating strains of clostridium difficile in a large teaching hospital. overall 220 isolates were studied of which 199 (90.5 %) produced both large clostridial toxins detected by conventional methods. ten more strains (4.5 %) had toxin a and b genes detectable by pcr. eleven (5.0 %) variant strains (a- b+) were detected among the isolates studied and 10 strains (4.5 %) had the binary toxin genes (cdta and cdtb). | 2005 | 15673510 |
| pcr ribotyping of clostridium difficile isolates originating from human and animal sources. | molecular typing of clostridium difficile isolates from animals and humans may be useful for evaluation of the possibility for interspecies transmission. the objective of this study was to evaluate c. difficile isolates from domestic animals and humans using pcr ribotyping. isolates were also tested using pcr for the presence of genes encoding toxins a and b. one hundred and thirty-three isolates of c. difficile from dogs (n = 92), horses (n = 21) and humans (n = 20), plus one each from a cat an ... | 2005 | 15673511 |
| typing by sequencing the slpa gene of clostridium difficile strains causing multiple outbreaks in japan. | previous reports have documented that a surface layer protein (slpa) varies among clostridium difficile isolates. the typing system by sequencing the variable region of the slpa gene was applied to typing c. difficile strains belonging to one pcr ribotype, type smz, which has been identified as frequently causing outbreaks in japan. the pcr ribotype smz strains recovered from patients at different hospitals in japan were examined. among 10 type smz strains tested, three subtypes, smz-1, -2 and - ... | 2005 | 15673512 |
| coexistence of multiple pcr-ribotype strains of clostridium difficile in faecal samples limits epidemiological studies. | clostridium difficile is an important cause of antibiotic-associated diarrhoea. the simultaneous presence of different strains in individual faecal samples has not yet been established, but is important for epidemiological studies. recurrences of clostridium difficile-associated diarrhoea (cdad) are observed in 15-20 % of patients and have been reported as relapses or reinfections with a new strain. in a period of 1 year, 28 faecal samples from 23 patients with a first episode of cdad were colle ... | 2005 | 15673513 |
| clinical features of clostridium difficile-associated diarrhoea due to binary toxin (actin-specific adp-ribosyltransferase)-producing strains. | toxins a and b are known to be the primary virulence factors of clostridium difficile. other potential virulence factors have been identified such as binary toxin (actin-specific adp-ribosyltransferase toxin, or cdt). a retrospective case-control study was performed in order to identify clinical features and risk factors of c. difficile-associated diarrhoea due to binary toxin-producing strains. each case (a patient with diarrhoea due to binary toxin-producing strain) was compared with two contr ... | 2005 | 15673514 |
| laboratory diagnosis of clostridium difficile-associated diarrhoea: a plea for culture. | a routine protocol for diagnosing clostridium difficile-associated diarrhoea (cdad) based on both faecal-cytotoxin detection and toxigenic culture was adopted by the microbiology laboratory of the st luc-ucl university hospital in brussels in 1997. a toxigenic culture is a faecal culture followed, in the case of positivity, by a direct immunoassay on colonies to detect toxin a production. the results obtained over the past 7 years in the hospital are reviewed here. a total of 10,552 diarrhoeal s ... | 2005 | 15673515 |
| immunological properties of surface proteins of clostridium difficile. | sera from patients with clostridium difficile-associated disease (cdad) and sera from a control group were analysed by an elisa to detect antibodies directed against four surface proteins and toxins a and b of c. difficile. the surface proteins were the flagellar cap protein flid, the flagellin flic, the adhesin cwp66 divided into two domains, cwp66-nterminal and cwp66-cterminal, and the fibronectin-binding protein fbp68. for each antigen, antibody levels in the cdad patient group and in the con ... | 2005 | 15673516 |
| bovine antibody-enriched whey to aid in the prevention of a relapse of clostridium difficile-associated diarrhoea: preclinical and preliminary clinical data. | in a pilot study, the feasibility of immune whey protein concentrate (40%; immune wpc-40) to aid the prevention of relapse of clostridium difficile diarrhoea was evaluated. immune wpc-40 was made from milk after immunization of holstein-frisian cows with c. difficile-inactivated toxins and killed whole-cell c. difficile. immune wpc-40 contained a high concentration of specific siga antibodies, and was effective in neutralizing the cytotoxic effect of c. difficile toxins in cell assays in vitro. ... | 2005 | 15673517 |
| antibiotic treatment for clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea in adults. | clostridium difficile (c. difficile) is recognized as a frequent cause of antibiotic-associated diarrhea and colitis. | 2005 | 15674956 |
| [bacteremia due to clostridium difficile]. | we describe a case of bacteremia due to clostridium difficile, which was successfully treated by intravenous vancomycin. a 69-year-old woman was admitted to our hospital because of third degree burn injuries. she was treated with cefazolin for two weeks followed with flomoxef for one week before the operation (debridement and grafting of skin). on the third postoperative day high fever (temperature 40 degrees c), abdominal pain and severe watery diarrhea developed. antibiotic-associated colitis ... | 2004 | 15678979 |
| pseudomembranous colitis in children. | this review presents the microbiology, management and prevention of pseudomembranous colitis (pmc) in children. pmc is commonly associated with prior antibiotic exposure and hospitalization. it is caused almost exclusively by toxins produced by clostridium difficile. the clinical spectrum of this disease may range from a mild, non-specific diarrhea to severe colitis with toxic megacolon, perforation, and death. pmc may affect all age groups, although a lower incidence has been noted in children. ... | 2005 | 15683418 |
| strains and toxins of clostridium. | | 2005 | 15684103 |
| the relationship between hospital infection surveillance and control activities and antibiotic-resistant pathogen rates. | antibiotic-resistant pathogen rates are rising in canada and the united states with significant health and economic costs. the examination of the relationship of surveillance and control activities in hospitals with rates of nosocomial methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (mrsa), clostridium difficile -associated diarrhea (cdad), and vancomycin-resistant enterococcus (vre) may identify strategies for controlling this growing problem. | 2005 | 15685127 |
| [what is so difficult ... with c. difficile?]. | | 2005 | 15686207 |
| transcription activation of a uv-inducible clostridium perfringens bacteriocin gene by a novel sigma factor. | expression of the plasmid-encoded clostridium perfringens gene for bacteriocin bcn5 was shown to depend in vivo and in vitro on the activity of uvia protein. uvia, also plasmid-encoded, proved to be an rna polymerase sigma factor and was also partly autoregulatory. the uvia gene has two promoters; one provided a uvia-independent, basal level of gene expression while the stronger, uvia-dependent promoter was only utilized after the cell experienced dna damage. as a result, bcn5 synthesis is induc ... | 2005 | 15686564 |
| probiotic therapy of intestinal inflammation and infections. | the author presents evidence published during the past year regarding treatment of clinical and experimental intestinal inflammation and infections by probiotic agents. | 2005 | 15687884 |
| clinical inquiries. what are effective therapies for clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea? | | 2005 | 15689297 |
| isolation and characterization of temperate bacteriophages of clostridium difficile. | the lack of information on bacteriophages of clostridium difficile prompted this study. three of 56 clinical c. difficile isolates yielded double-stranded dna phages phic2, phic5, phic6, and phic8 upon induction. superinfection and dna analyses revealed relatedness between the phages, while partial sequencing of phic2 showed nucleotide homology to the sequenced c. difficile strain cd630. | 2005 | 15691969 |
| three surveillance strategies for vancomycin-resistant enterococci in hospitalized patients: detection of colonization efficiency and a cost-effectiveness model. | to evaluate the cost-effectiveness and detection sensitivity associated with three active surveillance strategies for the identification of patients harboring vancomycin-resistant enterococci (vre) to determine which is the most medically and economically useful. | 2005 | 15693407 |
| prebiotic effect of fructo-oligosaccharide supplemented term infant formula at two concentrations compared with unsupplemented formula and human milk. | human milk components, including oligosaccharides, affect the gastrointestinal flora of infants. previous studies in adults have demonstrated that fructo-oligosaccharides increase potentially beneficial fecal bacteria, including bifidobacteria. the purpose of this study was to determine the prebiotic effect of infant formula supplemented with fructo-oligosaccharides. | 2005 | 15699689 |
| etiology of diarrhea in pediatric outpatient settings. | the frequency with which bacteria cause diarrhea evaluated in ambulatory settings is often unknown. we attempted to determine the microbiologic etiology of diarrhea in a private pediatric practice (site a) and a clinic serving largely immigrant children (site b) and to establish guidelines for bacterial culture. | 2005 | 15702043 |
| isolation of non-toxigenic strains of clostridium difficile from cases of diarrhea among patients hospitalized in hematology/oncology ward. | clostridium difficile has become the most common cause of hospital acquired diarrhea after antibiotic treatment. the aim of this study was to determine the frequency of c. difficile associated diarrhea among hematology/oncology ward patients and to characterize isolated strains. twenty three toxigenic and thirteen non-toxigenic strains were detected among fecal isolates. antibiotic susceptibility testing to erythromycin and clindamycin demonstrated a high degree of resistance (mic > 256 ug/ml) t ... | 2004 | 15702921 |