| [efficacy of spirolept vaccine against human leptospirosis as estimated by passive protection of laboratory rodents]. | this study had for aim to assess the serological response induced by the spirolept vaccine against human leptospirosis. | 2004 | 16235594 |
| differential tlr recognition of leptospiral lipid a and lipopolysaccharide in murine and human cells. | leptospira interrogans is a spirochete that is responsible for leptospirosis, a zoonotic disease. this bacterium possesses an unusual lps that has been shown to use tlr2 instead of tlr4 for signaling in human cells. the structure of its lipid a was recently deciphered. although its overall hexa-acylated disaccharide backbone is a classical feature of all lipid a forms, the lipid a of l. interrogans is peculiar. in this article, the functional characterization of this lipid a was studied in compa ... | 2005 | 16237097 |
| novel conformational states of peptide deformylase from pathogenic bacterium leptospira interrogans: implications for population shift. | peptide deformylase is an attractive target for developing novel antibiotics. previous studies at ph 3.0 showed peptide deformylase from leptospira interrogans (lipdf) exists as a dimer in which one monomer is in a closed form and the other is in an open form, with different conformations of the cd-loop controlling the entrance to the active pocket. here we present structures of lipdf at its active ph range. lipdf forms a similar dimer at ph values 6.5-8.0 as it does at ph 3.0. interestingly, bo ... | 2005 | 16239225 |
| lrua and lrub, novel lipoproteins of pathogenic leptospira interrogans associated with equine recurrent uveitis. | recurrent uveitis as a sequela to leptospira infection is the most common infectious cause of blindness and impaired vision of horses worldwide. leptospiral proteins expressed during prolonged survival in the eyes of horses with lesions of chronic uveitis were identified by screening a phage library of leptospira interrogans dna fragments with eye fluids from uveitic horses. inserts of reactive phages encoded several known leptospiral proteins and two novel putative lipoproteins, lrua and lrub. ... | 2005 | 16239521 |
| the incp island in the genome of brucella suis 1330 was acquired by site-specific integration. | an 18,228-bp region containing open reading frames predicted to be derived from the incp plasmid or phage ancestors is present in the genomes of brucella suis biovars 1 to 4, b. canis, b. neotomae, and strains isolated from marine mammals, but not in b. melitensis, b. abortus, b. ovis, and b. suis biovar 5. the presence of circular excision intermediates and the results of an analysis of sequenced bacterial genomes suggest that the region downstream of the guaa gene is a hotspot for site-specifi ... | 2005 | 16239585 |
| infectious disease and the decline of steller sea lions (eumetopias jubatus) in alaska, usa: insights from serologic data. | serologic data were examined to determine whether infectious disease may have played a role in the decline of steller sea lions (eumetopias jubatus) in the gulf of alaska and aleutian islands, usa. available published data, unpublished data, and recent collections (1997-2000) were compared and reviewed. data were stratified by geography to compare the declining western alaskan population in the aleutian islands through eastern prince william sound to the increasing population in southeastern ala ... | 2005 | 16244061 |
| serological prevalence of leptospira interrogans serovar bratislava in horses in mongolia. | | 2005 | 16244236 |
| rat bite fever caused by streptobacillus moniliformis in a child: human infection and rat carriage diagnosed by pcr. | a child owning pet rats developed an eruptive fever with blisters, polyarthritis, and spectacular desquamation of the hands. streptobacillus moniliformis was identified after culture of the child's blister fluid and was detected in rat samples by molecular methods. such detection in the pet of a human victim of rat bite fever has not been reported previously. | 2005 | 16254115 |
| [gene expression, purification and functional analysis of liprma]. | leptospira interrogans (l. interrogans) genomic dna was used as template to amplify the full-length gene for ribosomal protein l11 methyltransferase (liprma) by pcr. the pet22b-/liprma expression plasmid was successfully constructed in escherichia coli (e.coli.) strain top10 and confirmed by restriction enzyme digest and sequencing. through optimizing expression of the recombinant liprma-6xhis fusion protein in expression host e. coli. bl21, the yield of soluble target protein reached 40 mg (lit ... | 2005 | 16257911 |
| microarray analysis of escherichia coli o157:h7. | to establish the rapid, specific, and sensitive method for detecting o157:h7 with dna microchips. | 2005 | 16270390 |
| serologic responses of dogs given a commercial vaccine against leptospira interrogans serovar pomona and leptospira kirschneri serovar grippotyphosa. | to evaluate serum titers obtained by use of the microscopic agglutination test (ie, mat titers) to leptospira interrogans serovar pomona and autumnalis and leptospira kirschneri serovar grippotyphosa in dogs given a commercial vaccine against serovars pomona and grippotyphosa. | 2005 | 16273911 |
| experimental canine leptospirosis caused by leptospira interrogans serovars pomona and bratislava. | to evaluate gross, histopathologic, and serum biochemical findings caused by leptospira interrogans serovars pomona and bratislava inoculated in dogs. | 2005 | 16273916 |
| diversity of bat-associated leptospira in the peruvian amazon inferred by bayesian phylogenetic analysis of 16s ribosomal dna sequences. | the role of bats as potential sources of transmission to humans or as maintenance hosts of leptospires is poorly understood. we quantified the prevalence of leptospiral colonization in bats in the peruvian amazon in the vicinity of iquitos, an area of high biologic diversity. of 589 analyzed bats, culture (3 of 589) and molecular evidence (20 of 589) of leptospiral colonization was found in the kidneys, yielding an overall colonization rate of 3.4%. infection rates differed with habitat and loca ... | 2005 | 16282313 |
| chex is a phosphorylated chey phosphatase essential for borrelia burgdorferi chemotaxis. | motility and chemotaxis are believed to be important in the pathogenesis of lyme disease caused by the spirochete borrelia burgdorferi. controlling the phosphorylation state of chey, a response regulator protein, is essential for regulating bacterial chemotaxis and motility. rapid dephosphorylation of phosphorylated chey (chey-p) is crucial for cells to respond to environmental changes. chey-p dephosphorylation is accomplished by one or more phosphatases in different species, including chez, che ... | 2005 | 16291669 |
| identification of regions involved in enzymatic stability of peptide deformylase of mycobacterium tuberculosis. | sequence analysis of peptide deformylase of mycobacterium tuberculosis revealed the presence of insertions (residues 74 to 85) and an unusually long carboxy-terminal end (residues 182 to 197). our results with deletion mutants indicated the contribution of these regions in maintaining enzymatic stability. furthermore, we showed that the region spanning the insertions was responsible for maintaining resistance to oxidizing agents, like h(2)o(2). | 2005 | 16291698 |
| a guild of 45 crispr-associated (cas) protein families and multiple crispr/cas subtypes exist in prokaryotic genomes. | clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (crisprs) are a family of dna direct repeats found in many prokaryotic genomes. repeats of 21-37 bp typically show weak dyad symmetry and are separated by regularly sized, nonrepetitive spacer sequences. four crispr-associated (cas) protein families, designated cas1 to cas4, are strictly associated with crispr elements and always occur near a repeat cluster. some spacers originate from mobile genetic elements and are thought to confer "im ... | 2005 | 16292354 |
| serological survey of pre-weaned new zealand fur seals (arctocephalus forsteri) for brucellosis and leptospirosis. | to conduct a longitudinal serological survey for evidence of brucella spp and leptospira spp infection of pre-weaned new zealand fur seals in a colony on the otago peninsula. | 2005 | 16317444 |
| genetic characterization of the bifidobacterium breve ucc 2003 hrca locus. | the bacterial heat shock response is characterized by the elevated expression of a number of chaperone complexes and transcriptional regulators, including the dnaj and the hrca proteins. genome analysis of bifidobacterium breve ucc 2003 revealed a second copy of a dnaj gene, named dnaj2, which is flanked by the hrca gene in a genetic constellation that appears to be unique to the actinobacteria. phylogenetic analysis using 53 bacterial dnaj sequences, including both dnaj1 and dnaj2 sequences, su ... | 2005 | 16332909 |
| a global research agenda for leptospirosis. | leptospirosis is a zoonotic spirochetal disease of global importance. this disease continues to have a major impact on people living in urban and rural areas of developing countries with inestimable morbidity and mortality. funding for research and control efforts is currently haphazard, not organized and not effective for public health efforts, primarily because there are no concerted, ongoing international efforts to assess the impact of leptospirosis on human health. major issues in the field ... | 2005 | 16333188 |
| [clinical and epidemiological features of leptospirosis in bolívar state, venezuela. comparison of diagnostic methods: lepto-dipstick and plaque macroscopic agglutination test]. | leptospirosis is caused by numerous serovars of leptospira interrogans. the infection is acquired through the contact of softened skin, mucous and conjunctive with the urine of animals and humans infected by animal carriers. the aim of this study was to determine the clinical and epidemiological features of leptospirosis in bolívar state venezuela and to compare the sensibility and specificity of the lepto-dipstick, with the test of macroscopic agglutination in plate with the termorresistent ant ... | 2005 | 16353539 |
| the scc spirochetal coiled-coil protein forms helix-like filaments and binds to nucleic acids generating nucleoprotein structures. | the analysis of the genome of leptospira spp., a group of bacteria of the phylum of spirochetes with several unique evolutionary and morphological features, has allowed the identification of a gene encoding a coiled-coil protein, called scc, which is completely unrelated to any other eukaryotic or prokaryotic protein. since coiled-coil proteins are often key elements of the cytoskeleton, we analyzed the protein scc, which is a 24-kda protein composed of a n-terminal coiled-coil domain, a proline ... | 2006 | 16385037 |
| lipoprotein computational prediction in spirochaetal genomes. | lipoproteins are of great interest in understanding the molecular pathogenesis of spirochaetes. because spirochaete lipobox sequences exhibit more plasticity than those of other bacteria, application of existing prediction algorithms to emerging sequence data has been problematic. in this paper a novel lipoprotein prediction algorithm is described, designated splip, constructed as a hybrid of a lipobox weight matrix approach supplemented by a set of lipoprotein signal peptide rules allowing for ... | 2006 | 16385121 |
| [identification on the immunogenic activity of recombinant rltb/ctb-lipl41/ 1 to leptospira interrogans and detection of lipl41 gene with its production]. | to construct prokaryotic expression systems of ltb/ctb-lipl41/1 fusion genes, identify immunogenic and adjuvant activities of the products as well as to understand the frequencies of lipl41 gene that carrying and expressing in l. interrogans wild strains and specific antibody levels in sera from patients with leptospirosis. | 2005 | 16390012 |
| phenotypic & genotypic conservation of ompl1 & lipl41 among leptospiral isolates of andaman islands. | the leptospiral antigens that are conserved among the diverse pathogenic leptospires have potential importance in the development of new serodiagnostic and immunoprotective strategies. the present study was therefore carried out to find out the phenotypic conservation of the leptospiral proteins ompl1 and lipl41, and the genetic conservation of ompl1 and lipl41 genes among the leptospiral isolates of andaman islands and among the reference strains. | 2005 | 16394328 |
| an outbreak of leptospirosis among israeli troops near the jordan river. | an outbreak of leptospirosis that involved 7 of a team of 27 israeli troops occurred following a military exercise in northern israel near the jordan river. the organism implicated in the outbreak was leptospira interrogans serovar hardjo. the clinical course was uncomplicated and all patients fully recovered. there were no cases of asymptomatic infection. military personnel should be recognized as having an occupational risk for contracting leptospirosis, especially when military activity takes ... | 2006 | 16407357 |
| bioinformatic analysis of an unusual gene-enzyme relationship in the arginine biosynthetic pathway among marine gamma proteobacteria: implications concerning the formation of n-acetylated intermediates in prokaryotes. | the n-acetylation of l-glutamate is regarded as a universal metabolic strategy to commit glutamate towards arginine biosynthesis. until recently, this reaction was thought to be catalyzed by either of two enzymes: (i) the classical n-acetylglutamate synthase (nags, gene arga) first characterized in escherichia coli and pseudomonas aeruginosa several decades ago and also present in vertebrates, or (ii) the bifunctional version of ornithine acetyltransferase (oat, gene argj) present in bacteria, a ... | 2006 | 16409639 |
| improvement in motion efficiency of the spirochete brachyspira pilosicoli in viscous environments. | spirochetes are unique among swimming bacteria in terms of their lack of external flagella. they actively move in viscous environments, and, surprisingly, the swimming speed of the spirochete leptospira interrogans has been reported to increase with viscosity in methylcellulose solutions. many researchers consider that the presence of a loose, quasi-rigid network formed by linear polymer molecules is related to this strange phenomenon. one of the authors has proposed a theory that expresses this ... | 2006 | 16415052 |
| function and evolution of plasmid-borne genes for pyrimidine biosynthesis in borrelia spp. | the thyx gene for thymidylate synthase of the lyme borreliosis (lb) agent borrelia burgdorferi is located in a 54-kb linear plasmid. in the present study, we identified an orthologous thymidylate synthase gene in the relapsing fever (rf) agent borrelia hermsii, located it in a 180-kb linear plasmid, and demonstrated its expression. the functions of the b. hermsii and b. burgdorferi thyx gene products were evaluated both in vivo, by complementation of a thymidylate synthase-deficient escherichia ... | 2006 | 16428394 |
| toll-like receptor 4 protects against lethal leptospira interrogans serovar icterohaemorrhagiae infection and contributes to in vivo control of leptospiral burden. | the roles of innate immune responses in protection from or pathogenesis of severe leptospirosis remain unclear. we examined the role of toll-like receptors (tlrs) in mouse infection and macrophage responses to leptospira. c3h/hej mice (tlr4 deficient) and c3h/hej-scid mice, but not c3h/ouj mice (tlr4 intact), died after intraperitoneal infection with leptospira interrogans serovar icterohaemorrhagiae. death in both c3h/hej mouse strains was associated with jaundice and pulmonary hemorrhage, simi ... | 2006 | 16428731 |
| leptospirosis in the tropics and in travelers. | leptospirosis, caused by spirochetes of the genus leptospira, has increasingly been recognized to affect travelers and residents in tropical settings. a zoonotic disease, leptospirosis is transmitted to humans through environmental surface waters contaminated by the urine of chronically infected mammals. outcome of infection varies, ranging from acute febrile illness (including self-resolving undifferentiated fever) to aseptic meningitis to a fulminant syndrome of jaundice, oliguric renal failur ... | 2006 | 16448601 |
| thrombocytopenia in the experimental leptospirosis of guinea pig is not related to disseminated intravascular coagulation. | thrombocytopenia is commonly observed in severe leptospirosis. however, previous studies on coagulation alterations during leptospirosis resulted in inconsistent conclusions. some findings showed that the prominent levels of thrombocytopenia observed in severe leptospirosis did not reflect the occurrence of disseminated intravascular coagulation (dic) syndrome, while the others reached the conclusion that the hemorrhages observed in leptospirosis were due to dic. the aim of this study is to eluc ... | 2006 | 16451735 |
| serologic survey of select infectious diseases in coyotes and raccoons in nebraska. | to obtain data about select zoonotic and other infectious diseases in free-ranging predators in five ecoregions in nebraska, sera were collected from 67 coyotes (canis latrans) and 63 raccoons (procyon lotor) from november 2002 through january 2003. for coyotes, antibodies were detected against canine distemper virus (cdv, 61%), francisella tularensis (32%), rickettsia rickettsi (13%), and flaviviruses (48%). none of the coyote sera had antibodies to borrelia burgdorferi, brucella canis, or six ... | 2005 | 16456169 |
| expression cloning and periplasmic orientation of the francisella novicida lipid a 4'-phosphatase lpxf. | francisella tularensis and related intracellular pathogens synthesize lipid a molecules that differ from their escherichia coli counterparts. although a functional orthologue of lpxk, the gene encoding the lipid a 4'-kinase, is present in francisella, no 4'-phosphate moiety is attached to francisella lipid a. we now demonstrate that a membrane-bound phosphatase present in francisella novicida u112 selectively removes the 4'-phosphate residue from tetra- and pentaacylated lipid a molecules. a clo ... | 2006 | 16467300 |
| the probiotic bacterium lactobacillus casei induces activation of the gut mucosal immune system through innate immunity. | the mechanisms by which probiotic bacteria affect the immune system are unknown yet, but many of them are attributed to an increase in the innate or in the acquired immune response. to study the influence of the probiotic bacterium lactobacillus casei in the expression of receptors involved in the innate immune response, this bacterium was orally administered to balb/c mice. after, they were sacrificed; the small intestine and intestinal fluids were collected to measure secretory immunoglobulin ... | 2006 | 16467329 |
| brief report: leptospirosis after flooding of a university campus--hawaii, 2004. | on november 19, 2004, the hawaii department of health (hdoh) received a report that a university of hawaii professor aged 56 years had been hospitalized with suspected leptospirosis after cleaning his flooded laboratory. on october 31, heavy rains had caused an adjacent stream to overflow its banks and flood the campus. persons exposed to fresh water or mud contaminated by the urine of animals infected with the spirochete leptospira interrogans can have systemic illness if the leptospires enter ... | 2006 | 16467778 |
| seroprevalence of leptospirosis among high-risk population of andaman islands, india. | leptospirosis is a severe spirochetal zoonosis in the world. it is considered an occupational disease of persons engaged in agriculture, sewage works, forestry, and animal slaughtering. a study was conducted with an objective of assessing the seroprevalence of leptospirosis among the high-risk groups of andaman islands. a total of 611 sera samples from different high-risk populations were collected and tested by microscopic agglutination test (mat). genetic characterization of the isolate was do ... | 2006 | 16474084 |
| characterization of chew genes of leptospira interrogans and their effects in escherichia coli. | the motility and chemotaxis systems are critical for the virulence of leptospires. in this study, the phylogenetic profiles method was used to predict the interaction of chemotaxis proteins. it was shown that chew1 links to chea1, chey, cheb and chew2; chew3 links to chea2, mcp (la2426), cheb3 and ched1; and chew2 links only to chew1. the similarity analysis demonstrated that chew2 of leptospira interrogans strain lai had poor homology with chew of escherichia coli in the region of residues 30-5 ... | 2006 | 16474898 |
| borrelia burgdorferi ftsz plays a role in cell division. | ftsz is essential for cell division in many microorganisms. in escherichia coli and bacillus subtilis, ftsz plays a role in ring formation at the leading edge of the cell division septum. an ftsz homologue is present in the borrelia burgdorferi genome (ftsz(bbu)). its gene product (ftsz(bbu)) is strongly homologous to other bacterial ftsz proteins, but its function has not been established. because loss-of-function mutants of ftsz(bbu) might be lethal, the tetr/teto system was adapted for regula ... | 2006 | 16484209 |
| host range and emerging and reemerging pathogens. | an updated literature survey identified 1,407 recognized species of human pathogen, 58% of which are zoonotic. of the total, 177 are regarded as emerging or reemerging. zoonotic pathogens are twice as likely to be in this category as are nonzoonotic pathogens. emerging and reemerging pathogens are not strongly associated with particular types of nonhuman hosts, but they are most likely to have the broadest host ranges. emerging and reemerging zoonoses are associated with a wide range of drivers, ... | 2005 | 16485468 |
| immunoprotection of recombinant leptospiral immunoglobulin-like protein a against leptospira interrogans serovar pomona infection. | we previously reported the cloning and characterization of leptospiral immunoglobulin-like proteins liga and ligb of leptospira interrogans. liga and ligb are conserved at the amino-terminal region but are variable at the carboxyl-terminal region. here, we evaluate the potential of recombinant liga (rliga) as a vaccine candidate against infection by l. interrogans serovar pomona in a hamster model. rliga was truncated into conserved (rligacon) and variable (rligavar) regions and expressed in esc ... | 2006 | 16495547 |
| [immunogenicity and protective capacity of leptospiral whole-cell monovalent serogroup ballum vaccines in hamsters]. | leptospira serogroup ballum is at present the first cause of human leptospirosis in cuba. killed whole-cell vaccines were formulated with two clinical isolates of leptospira interrogans serogroup ballum using aluminum hydroxide as adjuvant. agglutinins levels induced by each vaccine in hamsters were estimated by microscopic agglutination test and specific igg activities were quantified by a whole cell-based enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. homologous and cross protective capacity against letha ... | 2005 | 16502635 |
| expression, crystallization and preliminary crystallographic analysis of sufe (xac2355) from xanthomonas axonopodis pv. citri. | xanthomonas axonopodis pv. citri (xac) sufe (xac2355) is a member of a family of bacterial proteins that are conserved in several pathogens and phytopathogens. the escherichia coli suf operon is involved in iron-sulfur cluster biosynthesis under iron-limitation and stress conditions. it has recently been demonstrated that sufe and sufs form a novel two-component cysteine desulfarase in which sufs catalyses the conversion of l-cysteine to l-alanine, forming a protein-bound persulfide intermediate ... | 2006 | 16511319 |
| leptospiral antibodies in white-tailed deer of the southeastern united states. | serum samples from 1,544 white-tailed deer (odocoileus virginianus) collected in nine southeastern states were examined for leptospiral antibodies. significant titers of 1:100 or greater were found in 292 deer. the highest prevalence of leptospiral antibodies was in virginia, where 108 of 351 deer had significant titers. the most frequently encountered serotypes of leptospira interrogans were: grippotyphosa (210 positive), pomona (81), and canicola (26). other serotypes disclosed were australis ... | 1970 | 16512130 |
| comparison of culture and a novel 5' taq nuclease assay for direct detection of campylobacter fetus subsp. venerealis in clinical specimens from cattle. | a campylobacter fetus subsp. venerealis-specific 5' taq nuclease pcr assay using a 3' minor groove binder-dna probe (taqman mgb) was developed based on a subspecies-specific fragment of unknown identity (s. hum, k. quinn, j. brunner, and s. l. on, aust. vet. j. 75:827-831, 1997). the assay specifically detected four c. fetus subsp. venerealis strains with no observed cross-reaction with c. fetus subsp. fetus-related campylobacter species or other bovine venereal microflora. the 5' taq nuclease a ... | 2006 | 16517880 |
| prognostic factors associated with severe leptospirosis. | leptospirosis is an anthropozoonosis caused by leptospira interrogans. it occurs worldwide and is endemic in french polynesia. leptospirosis is associated with a large variety of clinical symptoms. most infections caused by leptospires are either sub-clinical or of very mild severity, but 5-10% of infections result in multiple organ damage, including kidney, liver and lung lesions. among 71 patients hospitalised in papeete for severe leptospirosis during a period of 2 years, the main risk-factor ... | 2006 | 16524404 |
| leptospira icteroides and yellow fever. | | 1920 | 16576471 |
| an outbreak of leptospirosis in seals (phoca vitulina) in captivity. | an outbreak of leptospirosis in seals (phoca vitulina) in captivity is described. in a zoo in the netherlands 5 adult seals died within 12 days. at necropsy all animals showed signs of acute septicaemia, consistent with acute leptospirosis. serological examination of one animal was positive for antibodies against leptospira interrogans serovar icterohaemorrhagiae and the serologically closely related serovar copenhageni. polymerase chain reaction was positive in one other animal. 8 nutria (myoca ... | 2006 | 16605159 |
| short report: dual infections with puumala virus and leptospira interrogans serovar lora in a bank vole (clethrionomys glareolus). | leptospirosis and hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome are public health problems in croatia. diagnosis and epidemiology of these diseases are complicated because these two diseases are sympatric in certain areas. we describe a natural dual infection of puumala virus and a leptospire in a bank vole (clethrionomys glareolus). | 2006 | 16606994 |
| role of toll-like receptors in health and diseases of gastrointestinal tract. | the human gastrointestinal (gi) tract is colonized by non-pathogenic commensal microflora and frequently exposed to many pathogenic organisms. for the maintenance of gi homeostasis, the host must discriminate between pathogenic and non-pathogenic organisms and initiate effective and appropriate immune and inflammatory responses. mammalian toll-like receptors (tlrs) are members of the pattern-recognition receptor (prr) family that plays a central role in the initiation of innate cellular immune r ... | 2006 | 16610014 |
| survey of leptospirosis of small mammals in thailand. | during 1999-2000, kidney tissues of approximately 15% of 1310 rodents trapped from northeastern provinces of thailand were tested for the presence of leptospires. our direct immunofluorescent assay (dfa) for detection of leptospires showed 100% sensitivity and 94% specificity with the culture data. both methods identified r. norvegicus as the highest source of infection. among isolated leptospira, 137 were serotyped by cross agglutinin absorption and/or a microscopic agglutination, and gave some ... | 2005 | 16610655 |
| lfha, a novel factor h-binding protein of leptospira interrogans. | the early phase of leptospiral infection is characterized by the presence of live organisms in the blood. pathogenic leptospira interrogans is resistant to the alternative pathway of complement mediated-killing, while nonpathogenic members of the genus are not. consistent with that observation, only pathogenic leptospires bound factor h, a host fluid-phase regulator of the alternative complement pathway. ligand affinity blot analyses revealed that pathogenic l. interrogans produces at least two ... | 2006 | 16622202 |
| use of a multilocus variable-number tandem repeat analysis method for molecular subtyping and phylogenetic analysis of neisseria meningitidis isolates. | the multilocus variable-number tandem repeat (vntr) analysis (mlva) technique has been developed for fine typing of many bacterial species. the genomic sequences of neisseria meningitidis strains z2491, mc58 and fam18 have been available for searching potential vntr loci by computer software. in this study, we developed and evaluated a mlva method for molecular subtyping and phylogenetic analysis of n. meningitidis strains. | 2006 | 16686962 |
| the epidemiology of leptospirosis and the emergence of leptospira borgpetersenii serovar arborea in queensland, australia, 1998-2004. | leptospirosis is one of the most commonly encountered zoonoses in both australia and the rest of the world. the incidence of leptospirosis in queensland over the 7-year study period (1998-2004) was 3.1/100000 population. enhanced surveillance questionnaires were used to collect patient data and facilitate an epidemiological investigation of leptospirosis in queensland. farming occupations comprised the majority of occupational exposure cases, however, recreational exposure accounted for 18% of t ... | 2006 | 16690001 |
| characterization of the chey genes from leptospira interrogans and their effects on the behavior of escherichia coli. | the motility and chemotaxis system are critical for the virulence of pathogenic leptospire, which enable them to penetrate host tissue barriers during infection. the completed genome sequence of a representative virulent serovar type strain (lai) of leptospira interrogans serogroups icterohaemorrhagiae (l. interrogans strain lai) suggested that there were multiple copies of putative chemotaxis homologues located at its large chromosome. in order to verify the function of these proteins, the puta ... | 2006 | 16701553 |
| production of reactive oxygen species and expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase in rat isolated kupffer cells stimulated by leptospira interrogans and borrelia burgdorferi. | to evaluate the production of reactive oxygen species (ros) and the expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase (inos) in rat isolated kupffer cells (kcs) stimulated by leptospira interrogans and borrelia burgdorferi. | 2006 | 16718791 |
| efficacy of macrolides and telithromycin against leptospirosis in a hamster model. | human studies support the use of beta-lactams and tetracyclines in the treatment of leptospirosis. additional agents from these and other classes of antimicrobials also have in vitro activity against leptospira species, though corroborating in vivo data are limited or lacking. we evaluated the therapeutic efficacy of azithromycin, clarithromycin, and telithromycin in a lethal hamster model of leptospirosis using leptospira interrogans serogroup canicola serovar portlandvere. a range of dosages f ... | 2006 | 16723556 |
| effects of intrauterine challenge with leptospira interrogans serovar hardjo on fertility in cattle. | the purpose of this study was to determine the effects of leptospira interrogans serovar hardio on fertility in cattle. twenty seronegative mature dairy cows were assigned to two groups. group i (challenged cows) was bred by a seronegative bull followed by intrauterine infusion (within 30 minutes) of leptospira interrogans serovar hardjo. group ii was bred by the same bull followed by intrauterine infusion of 5 ml of sterile culture medium. blood samples were collected at two-day intervals to mo ... | 1983 | 16725871 |
| neospora caninum and leptospira serovar serostatus in dairy cattle in ontario. | no significant association existed between neospora caninum titer and serostatus to leptospira serovar hardjo, icterohaemorrhagiae, or pomona in cattle on 78 dairy herds in ontario. leptospira titer increased with parity. amongst herds not vaccinated against leptospira, the proportions of herds with > or = 1 animal seropositive to serovar hardjo, icterohaemorrhagiae, or pomona were 45%, 42%, and 58%, respectively. | 2006 | 16734373 |
| crystal structure of neurotropism-associated variable surface protein 1 (vsp1) of borrelia turicatae. | vsp surface lipoproteins are serotype-defining antigens of relapsing fever spirochetes that undergo multiphasic antigenic variation to allow bacterial persistence in spite of an immune response. two isogenic serotypes of borrelia turicatae strain oz1 differ in their vsp sequences and in disease manifestations in infected mice: vsp1 is associated with the selection of a neurological niche, while vsp2 is associated with blood and skin infection. we report here crystal structures of the vsp1 dimer ... | 2006 | 16740958 |
| a constitutively expressed, truncated umudc operon regulates the reca-dependent dna damage induction of a gene in acinetobacter baylyi strain adp1. | in response to environmentally caused dna damage, sos genes are up-regulated due to reca-mediated relief of lexa repression. in escherichia coli, the sos umudc operon is required for dna damage checkpoint functions and for replicating damaged dna in the error-prone process called sos mutagenesis. in the model soil bacterium acinetobacter baylyi strain adp1, however, the content, regulation, and function of the umudc operon are unusual. the umuc gene is incomplete, and a remnant of an isehe3-like ... | 2006 | 16751513 |
| competitive metagenomic dna hybridization identifies host-specific microbial genetic markers in cow fecal samples. | several pcr methods have recently been developed to identify fecal contamination in surface waters. in all cases, researchers have relied on one gene or one microorganism for selection of host-specific markers. here we describe the application of a genome fragment enrichment (gfe) method to identify host-specific genetic markers from fecal microbial community dna. as a proof of concept, bovine fecal dna was challenged against a porcine fecal dna background to select for bovine-specific dna seque ... | 2006 | 16751515 |
| simple sequence proteins in prokaryotic proteomes. | the structural and functional features associated with simple sequence proteins (ssps) are non-globularity, disease states, signaling and post-translational modification. ssps are also an important source of genetic and possibly phenotypic variation. analysis of 249 prokaryotic proteomes offers a new opportunity to examine the genomic properties of ssps. | 2006 | 16762057 |
| genome-wide transcriptional analysis of temperature shift in l. interrogans serovar lai strain 56601. | leptospira interrogans is an important mammalian pathogen. transmission from an environmental source requires adaptation to a range of new environmental conditions in the organs and tissues of the infected host. several studies have shown that a shift in culture temperature from 28 degrees c to 37 degrees c, similar to that encountered during infection of a host from an environmental source, is associated with differential synthesis of several proteins of the outer membrane, periplasm and cytopl ... | 2006 | 16762078 |
| prrc-anticodon nuclease: functional organization of a prototypical bacterial restriction rnase. | the trna(lys) anticodon nuclease prrc is associated in latent form with the type ic dna restriction endonuclease ecoprri and activated by a phage t4-encoded inhibitor of ecoprri. the activation also requires the hydrolysis of gtp and presence of dttp and is inhibited by atp. the n-proximal ntpase domain of prrc has been implicated in relaying the activating signal to a c-proximal anticodon nuclease site by interacting with the requisite nucleotide cofactors [amitsur et al. (2003) mol. microbiol. ... | 2006 | 16790566 |
| proinflammatory and immunomodulatory cytokine mrna time course profiles in hamsters infected with a virulent variant of leptospira interrogans. | in order to quantify in vivo the mrnas of cytokines which play important roles in leptospirosis, we have developed quantitative real-time pcr assays for interleukin-2 (il-2), il-4, il-10, il-12p40, tumor necrosis factor alpha (tnf-alpha), gamma interferon (ifn-gamma), transforming growth factor beta, and two housekeeping genes (encoding beta-actin and hypoxanthine phosphoribosyltransferase). we used a lethal hamster model reflecting severe leptospirosis in humans. the lightcycler system was used ... | 2006 | 16790792 |
| crystallization and preliminary x-ray diffraction studies of ferredoxin reductase from leptospira interrogans. | ferredoxin-nadp+ reductase (fnr) is an fad-containing enzyme that catalyzes electron transfer between nadp(h) and ferredoxin. here, results are reported of the recombinant expression, purification and crystallization of fnr from leptospira interrogans, a parasitic bacterium of animals and humans. the l. interrogans fnr crystals belong to a primitive monoclinic space group and diffract to 2.4 angstroms resolution at a synchrotron source. | 2006 | 16820688 |
| detection of brucella canis and leptospira interrogans in canine semen by multiplex nested pcr. | brucella canis and leptospira interrogans are pathogenic bacteria that cause brucellosis and leptospirosis in dogs around the world. both diseases can be diagnosed serologically, but the direct detection of these organisms in canine semen is needed when it is used for artificial reproduction. we have been attempting the artificial reproduction of guide dogs for greater breeding efficiency and for this purpose have developed a multiplex nested pcr technique for the detection of b. canis and l. in ... | 2006 | 16820720 |
| spatial hierarchical variances and age covariances for seroprevalence to leptospira interrogans serovar hardjo, bohv-1 and bvdv for cattle in the state of paraíba, brazil. | we estimated spatial hierarchal variances and age-group covariances for seroprevalence to leptospira interrogans serovar hardjo (leptoh), bovine viral-diarrhea virus (bvdv) and bovine herpesvirus type 1 (bohv-1) among 2343 cattle from 72 properties sampled in the state of paraíba, brazil in 2000. from each property, eight animals in each of the four age categories were evaluated. the age categories studied were: pre-weaned (0-6 months), young (7-18 months), replacement (19-30 months) and mature ... | 2006 | 16828906 |
| rooting the tree of life by transition analyses. | despite great advances in clarifying the family tree of life, it is still not agreed where its root is or what properties the most ancient cells possessed--the most difficult problems in phylogeny. protein paralogue trees can theoretically place the root, but are contradictory because of tree-reconstruction artefacts or poor resolution; ribosome-related and dna-handling enzymes suggested one between neomura (eukaryotes plus archaebacteria) and eubacteria, whereas metabolic enzymes often place it ... | 2006 | 16834776 |
| leptospirosis in squirrels imported from united states to japan. | we diagnosed leptospirosis in 2 patients exposed to southern flying squirrels imported from the united states to japan. patients worked with exotic animals in their company. leptospira isolates from 1 patient and 5 of 10 squirrels at the company were genetically and serologically identical and were identified as leptospira kirschneri. | 2006 | 16836840 |
| hemin-dependent modulation of the lipid a structure of porphyromonas gingivalis lipopolysaccharide. | porphyromonas gingivalis is a periopathogen strongly associated with the development of adult-type periodontitis. both the virulence characteristics of periopathogens and host-related factors are believed to contribute to periodontitis. p. gingivalis lipopolysaccharide (lps) displays a significant amount of lipid a structural heterogeneity, containing both penta- and tetra-acylated lipid a structures. however, little is known concerning how the lipid a structural content of p. gingivalis is regu ... | 2006 | 16861633 |
| peptide deformylase is a potential target for anti-helicobacter pylori drugs: reverse docking, enzymatic assay, and x-ray crystallography validation. | colonization of human stomach by the bacterium helicobacter pylori is a major causative factor for gastrointestinal illnesses and gastric cancer. however, the discovery of anti-h. pylori agents is a difficult task due to lack of mature protein targets. therefore, identifying new molecular targets for developing new drugs against h. pylori is obviously necessary. in this study, the in-house potential drug target database (pdtd, http://www.dddc.ac.cn/tarfisdock/) was searched by the reverse dockin ... | 2006 | 16882991 |
| serotype 1-specific monoclonal antibody-based antigen capture immunoassay for detection of circulating nonstructural protein ns1: implications for early diagnosis and serotyping of dengue virus infections. | rapid diagnosis and serotyping of dengue virus (dv) infections are important for timely clinical management and epidemiological control in areas where multiple flaviviruses are endemic. however, the speed and accuracy of diagnosis must be balanced against test cost and availability, especially in developing countries. we developed a specific antigen capture enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (elisa) for early detection and serotyping of dv serotype 1 (dv1) by using well-characterized monoclonal a ... | 2006 | 16891505 |
| treatment of presumptive idiopathic immune-mediated anemia in a holstein heifer, using blood transfusions and corticotherapy. | an idiopathic immune-mediated anemia was diagnosed in a 1-year-old holstein heifer. the diagnostic procedures, blood transfusions, use of an immunosuppressive dosage of dexamethasone, and favorable outcome are described, and idiopathic immune-mediated anemia in mammals is briefly reviewed. | 2006 | 16898112 |
| [presence of igm antibodies for leptospira interrogans in wild animals from tocantins state, 2002]. | four hundred and twenty-seven serum samples of wild animals were tested against 18 serovars of leptospira interrogans. of 286 samples of cebus apella, 46 (16.1%) were positive for the serovars pomona, brasiliensis, mini, swajizak, grippotyphosa, sarmin, fluminense, autumnalis, hebdomadis, guaratuba, javanica and icterohaemorrhagiae. of 82 samples of alouatta caraya, 2 (2.4%) were positive for the serovars mangus and fluminense. of 31 samples of nasua nasua, 4 (12.9%) were positive for the serova ... | 2006 | 16906258 |
| autogenous and nonautogenous control of response in a genetic network. | feedback-based control methods determine the behavior of cellular systems, an example being autogenous control, the regulation of production of a protein by itself. this control strategy was theoretically shown to be superior to an equivalent but nonautogenously regulated system when based on a repressor. although some of its advantages were later confirmed with isolated synthetic circuits, the superiority of autogenous control in natural networks remains untested. here, we use the sos dna repai ... | 2006 | 16908855 |
| molecular epidemiology of leptospirosis in the amazon. | | 2006 | 16933961 |
| determining risk for severe leptospirosis by molecular analysis of environmental surface waters for pathogenic leptospira. | although previous data indicate that the overall incidence of human leptospirosis in the peruvian amazon is similar in urban and rural sites, severe leptospirosis has been observed only in the urban context. as a potential explanation for this epidemiological observation, we tested the hypothesis that concentrations of more virulent leptospira would be higher in urban than in rural environmental surface waters. | 2006 | 16933963 |
| diagnosis of gastric syphilis by direct immunofluorescence staining and real-time pcr testing. | we report on a case of gastric syphilis in a patient with chronic dyspepsia. the diagnosis was established by serology and the demonstration of spirochetes in diffusely inflammed gastric mucosa by staining with a fluorescent monoclonal antibody specific for pathogenic treponemes and by the detection of specific treponemal dna sequences by a real-time pcr. | 2006 | 16954299 |
| a newly identified leptospiral adhesin mediates attachment to laminin. | pathogenic leptospires have the ability to survive and disseminate to multiple organs after penetrating the host. several pathogens, including spirochetes, have been shown to express surface proteins that interact with the extracellular matrix (ecm). this adhesin-mediated binding process seems to be a crucial step in the colonization of host tissues. this study examined the interaction of putative leptospiral outer membrane proteins with laminin, collagen type i, collagen type iv, cellular fibro ... | 2006 | 16954400 |
| genome reduction in leptospira borgpetersenii reflects limited transmission potential. | leptospirosis is one of the most common zoonotic diseases in the world, resulting in high morbidity and mortality in humans and affecting global livestock production. most infections are caused by either leptospira borgpetersenii or leptospira interrogans, bacteria that vary in their distribution in nature and rely on different modes of transmission. we report the complete genomic sequences of two strains of l. borgpetersenii serovar hardjo that have distinct phenotypes and virulence. these two ... | 2006 | 16973745 |
| partial rpob gene sequencing for identification of leptospira species. | the usual target for sequence-based identification of leptospira species is the 16s rrna gene. however, because the 16s rrna gene is not polymorphic enough, it is necessary to sequence a 1500 bp segment of this gene for accurate identification. based on the alignment of previously determined rpob of three leptospira strains, we designed and tested a primer pair that enabled us to amplify and sequence a 600 bp segment of leptospira rpob. this segment was species-specific for the 16 species tested ... | 2006 | 16978348 |
| evaluation of a recombinant lipl41 antigen of leptospira interrogans serovar canicola in elisa for serodiagnosis of bovine leptospirosis. | the efficacy of a recombinant leptospiral lipoprotein lipl41 as an antigen for conducting enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (elisa) for diagnosis of bovine leptospirosis was evaluated. using known positive and known negative cattle sera the recombinant antigen was found to be highly reactive in the concentration of 100 ng/well. using a total of 321 field cattle sera the sensitivity of elisa as compared to microscopic agglutination test (mat) was calculated to be 100% whereas the specificity was ... | 2006 | 16979238 |
| comparative and functional genomic analyses of iron transport and regulation in leptospira spp. | the spirochetes of the leptospira genus contain saprophytic and pathogenic members, the latter being responsible for leptospirosis. despite the recent sequencing of the genome of the pathogen l. interrogans, the slow growth of these bacteria, their virulence in humans, and a lack of genetic tools make it difficult to work with these pathogens. in contrast, the development of numerous genetic tools for the saprophyte l. biflexa enables its use as a model bacterium. leptospira spp. require iron fo ... | 2006 | 16980464 |
| effects of temperature on gene expression patterns in leptospira interrogans serovar lai as assessed by whole-genome microarrays. | leptospirosis is an important zoonosis of worldwide distribution. humans become infected via exposure to pathogenic leptospira spp. from infected animals or contaminated water or soil. the availability of genome sequences for leptospira interrogans, serovars lai and copenhageni, has opened up opportunities to examine global transcription profiles using microarray technology. temperature is a key environmental factor known to affect leptospiral protein expression. leptospira spp. can grow in arti ... | 2006 | 16988264 |
| [leptospirosis]. | leptospirosis is the most common zoonosis worldwide, although most cases occur in tropical countries. leptospira interrogans, a spirochete, is the causative agent. rats are the main reservoir. most patients present a mild clinical form of the disease, which consists of a self-limited febrile process, without jaundice. nevertheless, about 10% of patients suffer severe infections, with intense jaundice. typically the disease manifests in two phases: acute or leptospiremic and immune or leptospiuri ... | 2006 | 16999233 |
| identification of a novel, invasive, not-yet-cultivated treponema sp. in the large intestine of pigs by pcr amplification of the 16s rrna gene. | laser capture microdissection in combination with fluorescent in situ hybridization was used to identify an unknown species of spirochetes from the pig colonic mucosa. the 16s rrna gene was pcr amplified, and the closest related type strain was treponema bryantiit (90.1%). the spirochete, here named "candidatus treponema suis," was associated with colitis, including invasion of the surface epithelium as well as superficial parts of the mucosa. | 2006 | 17005743 |
| intrinsic and selected resistance to antibiotics binding the ribosome: analyses of brucella 23s rrn, l4, l22, ef-tu1, ef-tu2, efflux and phylogenetic implications. | brucella spp. are highly similar, having identical 16s rna. however, they have important phenotypic differences such as differential susceptibility to antibiotics binding the ribosome. neither the differential susceptibility nor its basis has been rigorously studied. differences found among other conserved ribosomal loci could further define the relationships among the classical brucella spp. | 2006 | 17014718 |
| identification of potential virulence determinants by himar1 transposition of infectious borrelia burgdorferi b31. | lyme disease borrelia organisms are highly invasive spirochetes that alternate between vertebrate and arthropod hosts and that establish chronic infections and elicit inflammatory reactions in mammals. although progress has been made in the targeted mutagenesis of individual genes in infectious borrelia burgdorferi, the roles of the vast majority of gene products in pathogenesis remain unresolved. in this study, we examined the feasibility of using transposon mutagenesis to identify infectivity- ... | 2006 | 17015459 |
| development of species-specific pcr primer sets for the detection of leptospira. | spirochetes of the genus leptospira infect animals and humans and are the causative agents for the emerging infectious disease leptospirosis. rapid and simple assays for the identification of individual leptospira species are currently not available. for identification of individual leptospira species, pcr primers that detect the ompl1 gene sequence for the majority of pathogenic leptospires were developed in this study. the primer pairs detect leptospira interrogans, leptospira borgpetersenii, ... | 2006 | 17020546 |
| species-specific identification of leptospiraceae by 16s rrna gene sequencing. | the genus leptospira is classified into 13 named species and 4 genomospecies based upon dna-dna reassociation studies. phenotypic tests are unable to distinguish between species of leptospira, and there is a need for a simplified molecular approach to the identification of leptospires. 16s rrna gene sequences are potentially useful for species identification of leptospira, but there are a large number of sequences of various lengths and quality in the public databases. 16s rrna gene sequences of ... | 2006 | 17021075 |
| an improved multiple-locus variable number of tandem repeats analysis for leptospira interrogans serovar australis: a comparison with fluorescent amplified fragment length polymorphism analysis and its use to redefine the molecular epidemiology of this serovar in queensland, australia. | in this study, an improved multiple-locus variable number of tandem repeats analysis (mlva) method based upon a previously published method is described. improvements to the method included redesigned primers and pcr conditions, combined with pooled capillary electrophoresis using multicolored dyes. allele sizes were converted into an allele string, and each unique allele string was assigned a numerical mlva type (mvt). the improved mlva method was then applied to 96 previously characterized lep ... | 2006 | 17030915 |
| [modified emjh medium for cultivation of leptospira interrogans serogroup ballum]. | strains within the ballum serogroup of spirochete leptospira show fastidious growth with more exigent nutritional requirements than those of other leptospira pathogenic strains. the influence of 37 nutritional compounds on the growth of leptospira interrogans serogroup ballum was investigated employing the synthetic emjh medium as the base for the study. microbial growth was estimated spectrophotometrically and direct counts were performed with a petroff-hausser counting chamber. virulence stabi ... | 2006 | 17037250 |
| tasa-tasb, a new putative toxin-antitoxin (ta) system from bacillus thuringiensis pgi1 plasmid is a widely distributed composite maze-doc ta system. | post-segregational killing systems are present in a large variety of microorganisms. when found on plasmids, they are described as addiction systems that act to maintain the plasmid during the partitioning of the cell. the plasmid to be maintained through the generations harbours a group of two genes, one coding for a stable toxin and the other coding for an unstable antitoxin that inhibits the effects of the toxin. if, during cell division, the plasmid is lost, the toxin and antitoxin proteins ... | 2006 | 17038198 |
| seven dictyostelium discoideum phosphodiesterases degrade three pools of camp and cgmp. | the dictyostelium discoideum genome uncovers seven cyclic nucleotide pdes (phosphodiesterases), of which six have been characterized previously and the seventh is characterized in the present paper. three enzymes belong to the ubiquitous class i pdes, common in all eukaryotes, whereas four enzymes belong to the rare class ii pdes that are present in bacteria and lower eukaryotes. since all d. discoideum pdes are now characterized we have calculated the contribution of each enzyme in the degradat ... | 2007 | 17040207 |
| the reach of the genome signature in prokaryotes. | with the increased availability of sequenced genomes there have been several initiatives to infer evolutionary relationships by whole genome characteristics. one of these studies suggested good congruence between genome synteny, shared gene content, 16s ribosomal dna identity, codon usage and the genome signature in prokaryotes. here we rigorously test the phylogenetic signal of the genome signature, which consists of the genome-specific relative frequencies of dinucleotides, on 334 sequenced pr ... | 2006 | 17040564 |
| prevalence of brucella abortus antibodies in equines of a tropical region of mexico. | a cross-sectional study was conducted to determinate the seroprevalence rate of equine brucellosis in the state of tamaulipas, mexico. serum samples from 420 equines were analyzed with the rose bengal test at cell concentrations of 3% (rbt-3%) and 8% (rbt-8%), and positive results were confirmed with the rivanol test (rt). risk factors were determined with the prevalence ratio (pr) and the use of variables generated from a questionnaire administered to the animals' owners. serum from 1 stallion ... | 2006 | 17042384 |
| an inventory of yeast proteins associated with nucleolar and ribosomal components. | although baker's yeast is a primary model organism for research on eukaryotic ribosome assembly and nucleoli, the list of its proteins that are functionally associated with nucleoli or ribosomes is still incomplete. we trained a naïve bayesian classifier to predict novel proteins that are associated with yeast nucleoli or ribosomes based on parts lists of nucleoli in model organisms and large-scale protein interaction data sets. phylogenetic profiling and gene expression analysis were carried ou ... | 2006 | 17067374 |
| identification of pathogenic leptospira species by conventional or real-time pcr and sequencing of the dna gyrase subunit b encoding gene. | leptospira is the causative genus of the disease, leptospirosis. species identification of pathogenic leptospira in the past was generally performed by either dna-dna hybridisation or 16s rrna gene sequencing. both methods have inherent disadvantages such as the need for radio-labelled isotopes or significant homology between species. a conventional and real-time pcr amplification and sequencing method was developed for an alternate gene target: dna gyrase subunit b (gyrb). phylogenetic comparis ... | 2006 | 17067399 |
| bacterial programmed cell death and multicellular behavior in bacteria. | traditionally, programmed cell death (pcd) is associated with eukaryotic multicellular organisms. however, recently, pcd systems have also been observed in bacteria. here we review recent research on two kinds of genetic programs that promote bacterial cell death. the first is mediated by mazef, a toxin-antitoxin module found in the chromosomes of many kinds of bacteria, and mainly studied in escherichia coli. the second program is found in bacillus subtilis, in which the skf and sdp operons med ... | 2006 | 17069462 |