| 1. |
- Chamoun, Sherley, et al.
(författare)
-
Colistin Dependence in Extensively Drug-Resistant Acinetobacter baumannii Strain Is Associated with ISAjo2 and ISAba13 Insertions and Multiple Cellular Responses
- 2021
-
Ingår i: International Journal of Molecular Sciences. - : MDPI. - 1661-6596 .- 1422-0067. ; 22:2
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The nosocomial opportunistic Gram-negative bacterial pathogen Acinetobacter baumannii is resistant to multiple antimicrobial agents and an emerging global health problem. The polymyxin antibiotic colistin, targeting the negatively charged lipid A component of the lipopolysaccharide on the bacterial cell surface, is often considered as the last-resort treatment, but resistance to colistin is unfortunately increasing worldwide. Notably, colistin-susceptible A. baumannii can also develop a colistin dependence after exposure to this drug in vitro. Colistin dependence might represent a stepping stone to resistance also in vivo. However, the mechanisms are far from clear. To address this issue, we combined proteogenomics, high-resolution microscopy, and lipid profiling to characterize and compare A. baumannii colistin-susceptible clinical isolate (Ab-S) of to its colistin-dependent subpopulation (Ab-D) obtained after subsequent passages in moderate colistin concentrations. Incidentally, in the colistin-dependent subpopulation the lpxA gene was disrupted by insertion of ISAjo2, the lipid A biosynthesis terminated, and Ab-D cells displayed a lipooligosaccharide (LOS)-deficient phenotype. Moreover, both mlaD and pldA genes were perturbed by insertions of ISAjo2 and ISAba13, and LOS-deficient bacteria displayed a capsule with decreased thickness as well as other surface imperfections. The major changes in relative protein abundance levels were detected in type 6 secretion system (T6SS) components, the resistance-nodulation-division (RND)-type efflux pumps, and in proteins involved in maintenance of outer membrane asymmetry. These findings suggest that colistin dependence in A. baumannii involves an ensemble of mechanisms seen in resistance development and accompanied by complex cellular events related to insertional sequences (ISs)-triggered LOS-deficiency. To our knowledge, this is the first study demonstrating the involvement of ISAjo2 and ISAba13 IS elements in the modulation of the lipid A biosynthesis and associated development of dependence on colistin.
|
|
| 2. |
- Claesson, Carina, 1970-, et al.
(författare)
-
Molecular typing and detection of the aap and atlE genes and ica operon in multi-drug resistant and susceptible coagulase negative staphylococci
-
Annan publikation (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The aims of the present study were to identify clinical isolates of multidrug resistant (MDR) and susceptible coagulase negative staphylococci (CoNS), (n=76) to the species level by rpoB amplicon sequencing and to detect and compare the presence of the atlE and aap genes and the ica operon between MDR (n=26) and susceptible (n=27) Staphylococcus epidermidis isolates. Detection of the atlE and aap genes and ica operon was carried out using PCR amplification. Most of the isolates were S. epidermidis, both among the MDR and susceptible CoNS. Staphylococcus haemolyticus was the only other species found in the MDR group. All MDR and 96% of the susceptible S. epidermidis isolates carried the atlE gene. The ica operon was present in about 30% of both the MDR and susceptible S. epidermidis isolates. By comparison, aap gene carriage was more common among susceptible S. epidermidis isolates (44%) than the MDR S. epidermidis isolates (27%). The atlE gene was the only gene that was found alone in the S. epidermidis genome. About 25% of the S. epidermidis isolates carried the atlE and aap genes and the ica operon simultaneously. In conclusion, rpoB gene amplicon sequencing is an easy and reliable method to identify CoNS isolates at the species and subspecies level. Both MDR and susceptible S. epidermidis isolates were found to be well equipped with adhesion and aggregation genes which might help them to adhere to artificial surfaces, colonize hospitalised patients and cause biofilm-related infections.
|
|
| 3. |
- Claesson, Carina, 1970-
(författare)
-
Staphylococci and Enterococci : Studies on activity of antimicrobial agents and detection of genes involved in biofilm formation
- 2010
-
Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The Gram-positive cocci, Staphylococcus aureus, coagulase negative staphylococci (CoNS), Enterococcus faecalis and Enterococcus faecium, are the bacteria most often isolated from patients with hospital acquired infections. S. aureus is one of the most important pathogens and have a variety of virulence mechanisms which help it to infect the patient and cause tissue damage. CoNS and enterococci are low virulent bacteria and predominantly cause infections in individuals with underlying illness, individuals that have undergone surgery or with suppressed immune-system. The aims of this thesis were i) to investigate the susceptibility to different antimicrobial agents among S. aureus, CoNS, E. faecium and E. faecalis isolates from primary care centres, general hospital wards and intensive care units in Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden and ii) to study the prevalence of the cytolysin genes and genes involved in biofilm formation among CoNS, E. faecium and E. faecalis. The results in this thesis show that the resistance rates among S. aureus and E. faecalis is still rather low in the north European countries. Among CoNS and E. faecium resistance rates are higher and comparable with rates in other European countries and US. CoNS had statistically significant differences in susceptibility rates between the ward levels with the lower susceptibility rates found at ICUs. Continued surveillance of resistance rates to antimicrobial agents among both staphylococci and enterococci are important internationally, nationally and locally. The results in this thesis also show that all multidrug resistant and 96% of the susceptible CoNS isolates carried at least one of the atlE and aap genes or the ica operon. Among E. faecalis isolates with HLGR, belonging to a cluster of genetically related isolates, both the esp and asa1 genes were carried in a high degree while the cyl operon was less frequently found. In addition, about 30% of unique E. faecalis isolates carried two or more of the virulence genes. Among E. faecium isolates the esp gene was common but asa1 and the cyl operon was not found in any of the isolates. Both CoNS and E. faecalis isolates from hospitalised patients are well equipped with genes involved in biofilm formation. These genes, when expressed and even more in combination with resistance to antimicrobial agents, might give these isolates an advantage compared to other isolates when it comes to adhesion to artificial surfaces, persistence in the hospital environment, colonisation of hospitalised patients and to cause nosocomial infections. Further studies are needed to be able to determine which isolates that causes hospital acquired infections and to evaluate the importance of the genes involved in biofilm formation as virulence factors and about how to prevent biofilm related infections from emerging
|
|
| 4. |
- Claesson, Carina, 1970-, et al.
(författare)
-
Susceptibility of staphylococci and enterococci to antimicrobial agents at different ward levels in four north European countries
- 2007
-
Ingår i: Scandinavian Journal of Infectious Diseases. - : Informa UK Limited. - 0036-5548 .- 1651-1980. ; 39:11-12, s. 1002-1012
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A multicentre susceptibility study was performed on staphylococci and enterococci isolated from patients at 3 different ward levels: primary care centres (PCCs), general hospital wards (GHWs) and intensive care units (ICUs), in Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden. There was a markedly higher incidence of resistance among CoNS in ICUs compared to GHWs and PCCs. Resistance rates were low among S. aureus isolates and no differences were found between the ward levels. Oxacillin resistance was found among 1.6% of S. aureus and 47% of CoNS isolates. 14% of CoNS and 0.9% of S. aureus isolates were glycopeptide intermediate. The prevalence of E. faecium isolates in this study differed significantly between the ward levels with the lowest prevalence found at PCCs. High level gentamicin resistant (HLGR) enterococci occurred in 11-25% of E. faecium and 6-20% of E. faecalis isolates. The HLGR rate was significantly higher among E. faecalis from hospitalized patients (GHWs and ICUs) compared to patients at PCCs. For enterococcal isolates, no other significant differences in antimicrobial resistance were found between the ward levels. All enterococci were teicoplanin susceptible, but decreased susceptibility to vancomycin was found among 2.0% and 0.6% of the E. faecium and E. faecalis isolates, respectively.
|
|
| 5. |
- Hällgren, Anita, et al.
(författare)
-
Molecular detection of aggregation substance, enterococcal surface protein, and cytolysin genes and in vitro adhesion to urinary catheters of Enterococcus faecalis and E. faecium of clinical origin
- 2009
-
Ingår i: International Journal of Medical Microbiology. - : Elsevier BV. - 1438-4221 .- 1618-0607. ; 299:5, s. 323-332
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- It has been hypothesized that nosocomial enterococci might have virulence factors that enhance their ability to colonise hospitalised patients. The objectives of this study were to investigate the prevalence of genes encoding 3 virulence factors: aggregation substance (asa1), enterococcal surface protein (esp), and 5 genes within the cytolysin operon (cylA, cylB, cylM, cylL(L), cylL(S)) and cytolysin production in 115 enterococcal clinical isolates (21 Enterococcus faecium and 94 E. faecalis). Adhesion to siliconized latex urinary catheters in relation to presence of esp was analysed in a subset of isolates. The isolates were previously characterised by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). esp was the only virulence gene found in E. faecium. It was found in 71% of the 21 E. faecium isolates. asa1, esp, and the cyl operon were found in 79%, 73% and 13% respectively, of the 94 E. faecalis isolates. There was a complete agreement between presence of the cyl operon and phenotypic cytolysin production. Isolates belonging to a cluster of genetically related isolates carried esp and asa1 more often when compared to unique isolates. No difference was found with respect to cyl genes. E. faecalis isolates adhered with higher bacterial densities than E. faecium. E. faecalis isolates within the same PFGE cluster adhered with similar bacterial densities, but there was no association between adhesion and the presence of esp when isolates within the same cluster were compared. In conclusion, E. faecalis isolates with high-level gentamicin resistance (HLGR) belonging to clusters of genetically related isolates widely distributed in Swedish hospitals, were likely to carry both esp and asa1. Adhesion was not affected by esp.
|
|
| 6. |
- Melin, Sofia, et al.
(författare)
-
Cryopreservation of autologous bone flaps following decompressive craniectomy : A new method reduced positive cultures without increase in post-cranioplasty infection rate.
- 2022
-
Ingår i: Brain & spine. - : Elsevier. - 2772-5294. ; 2
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- INTRODUCTION: Cranioplasty (CP) after decompressive craniectomy (DC) is a common neurosurgical procedure. Implementation of European Union (EU) directives recommending bacterial cultures before cryopreservation, lead to increased number of autologous bone flaps being discarded due to positive cultures. A new method for handling bone flaps prior to cryopreservation, including the use of pulsed lavage, was developed.RESEARCH QUESTION: The aim was to evaluate the effect of a new method on proportion of positive bacterial cultures and surgical site infection (SSI) following CP surgery.MATERIAL AND METHODS: Sixty-one bone flaps from 53 consecutive DC surgery patients were retrospectively included and the study period was divided into before and after method implementation. Patient demographics, laboratory and culture results, type of CP and occurrence of SSI were analyzed.RESULTS: Twenty-six and 18 bone flaps were available for analysis during the first and second period, respectively. The proportion of positive bacterial cultures was higher in the first period compared to the second (n = 9(35%) vs 0(0%); p = 0.001), and thus the use of custom made implants was considerably higher in the first study period (p = 0.001). There was no difference in the frequency of post-cranioplasty SSI between the first and second study period (n = 3 (11.5%) vs 1 (4.8%), p = 0.408).DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: The new method for handling bone flaps resulted in a lower frequency of positive bacterial cultures, without increased frequency of post-cranioplasty SSI, thus demonstrating it is safe to use, allows compliance with the EU-directives, and may reduce unnecessary discarding of bone flaps.
|
|
| 7. |
- Nilsdotter-Augustinsson, Åsa, 1962-, et al.
(författare)
-
Adherence of Staphylococcus epidermidis to extracellular matrix proteins and effects of fibrinogen-bound bacteria on oxidase activity and apoptosis in neutrophils
- 2005
-
Ingår i: Acta Pathologica, Microbiologica et Immunologica Scandinavica (APMIS). - : Wiley. - 0903-4641 .- 1600-0463. ; 113:5, s. 361-373
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Staphylococcus epidermidis often causes foreign-body infections such as those associated with hip prostheses, but the underlying pathogenic mechanisms are not fully understood. We performed spectrophotometry to study the ability of S. epidermidis to bind to immobilised fibrinogen, fibronectin, vitronectin, and collagen. The strains were isolated from infected hip prostheses or from normal flora and the well-known protein-binding strain Staphylococcus aureus Cowan was used as positive control. We also analysed the interaction between neutrophils and a fibrinogen-bound prosthesis-derived strain of S. epidermidisby measuring chemiluminescence to determine the neutrophil oxidative response and binding of annexin V to indicate neutrophil apoptosis. We found that binding of S. epidermidis to extracellular matrix proteins varied under different growth conditions, and that prosthesis isolates adhered better to vitronectin than did strains from normal flora. The oxidative response caused by fibrinogen-bound S. epidermidis was not above the background level, which was in marked contrast to the distinct response induced by fibrinogen-associated S. aureus Cowan. Furthermore, fibrinogen-adhering S. epidermidis retarded neutrophil apoptosis. We conclude that surface-bound S. epidermidis induces only a weak inflammatory response, which in combination with the ability of the adherent bacteria to retard neutrophil apoptosis may contribute to low-grade inflammation and loosening of prostheses.
|
|
| 8. |
- Östholm Balkhed, Åse, 1972-, et al.
(författare)
-
An investigation of household dogs as the source in a case of human bacteraemia caused by Staphylococcus pseudintermedius
- 2023
-
Ingår i: Infection Ecology & Epidemiology. - : Co-Action Publishing. - 2000-8686. ; 13:1
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Staphylococcus pseudintermedius is a commensal and an opportunistic pathogen in dogs, and is also an opportunistic pathogen in humans. Here we report about a case of bacteraemia with a fatal outcome in a 77-year-old co-morbid male likely caused by a S. pseudintermedius and the investigation into the possible transmission from the two dogs in the patient's household. The two dogs carried the same S. pseudintermedius strain, but this dog strain was unrelated to the strain from the patient. In contrast to the patient strain, the dog strain showed reduced susceptibility to several antibiotics and both dogs had received antibiotic treatment prior to sampling. So, it is conceivable that these treatments can have eliminated the patient's strain between the transmission event and the dog sampling. It is also worth noting that the patient strain was positive for the expA gene, which encodes an exfoliative toxin closely related to the S. aureus exfoliative toxin B. This toxin has been linked to canine pyoderma, but its effect on humans remains unknown. Transmission of S. pseudintermedius was confirmed in the household between the dogs. However, we could not verify that the dogs were the source for the S. pseudintermedius in the patient.
|
|
