ABSTRACT
Background: Brucellosis is a significant health problem inducing about 3% of acute febrile illnesses in Egypt. Superoxide dismutases [SODs] are a class of enzymes that catalyze the dismutation of superoxide into oxygen and hydrogen peroxide and so, represent an important antioxidant defense in nearly all cells exposed to oxidation, as occurs in acute brucellosis
Aim of the Work: This study was designed to assess SOD serum level during treatment of patients with acute Brucellosis
Patients and Methods: Twenty six patients with acute brucellosis [positive Standard tube agglutination test [SAT], who were attending the out-patient clinic of Benha Fever Hospital, were enrolled in this work as the study group [Group I]. They were cross matched with 10 healthy subjects negative for SAT test [Group II]. Both groups were subjected to measurement of SOD serum level by Enzyme Linked Immune Sorbent Assay [ELISA] that was assessed to patients again 3- and 6-weeks after initiation of combined therapy for acute brucellosis with Rifampicin and doxycycline
Results: Age and gender had no impact on SOD level in assessed patients. The SOD level was significantly lower in cases than the control group, [37.5+/-18.12 ng/ml] for the control Vs [[10.5±9.09 and 23.85+/-5.19 ng/ml] P<0.05] both before- and 3 weeks after-initiation of therapy. It was progressively rising during the treatment [TTT] course and its level showed no significant difference with control at the sixth week of TTT [33.31+/-7.092 ng/ml] [P > 0.05]. Also there was a significant difference in SOD levels for cases both before and at end of TTT
Conclusion: Serum levels of SOD were significantly lower in patients with acute brucellosis before TTT, compared with control and those after- 6 weeks of continuous TTT. The activity of SOD was progressively increased as TTT continues, finally reaching that of healthy subjects
ABSTRACT
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the potential of a broad diagnostic approach based on 16S rRNA gene amplification and sequencing for rapid detection of neonatal bacteremia
Subjects and Methods: blood samples were collected from fifty neonates admitted to the neonatal intensive care units with suspected sepsis, for paired analysis of bacterial growth using the BACTEC 9050 instrument and for bacterial 16S rRNA gene using a PCR assay with subsequent DNA sequencing for bacterial species identification
Results: the specimens were positive for bacteria in 43 cases [86%] by blood culture and 44 cases [88%] by PCR out of a total of 50 specimens analyzed. There was very good agreement between the results of PCR and blood culture for detection of neonatal bacteremia [kappa ? 0.8]. Taking blood culture as a reference method, the sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values for PCR were 100% , 75% , 95.5% and 100% respectively after exclusion of candida isolate which was detected by blood culture only and not by PCR[the primer being used was 16S r RNA not 18S r RNA needed to identify fungal sepsis]. Concerning the time consumed to detect sepsis, blood culture method took more time [up to 5 days] while PCR took less time <4 hour. Our results revealed the ability of DNA sequencing to recognize two pathogens which were negative by culture, one was Klebsiella pneumoniae and the other was Staphylococcus epidermidis. In addition DNA sequencing identified 2 species [one Acinetobacter lwoffii and one Acinetobacter baumannii] that couldn't be identified by routine conventional biochemical reactions but only by Microbact test
Conclusion: this PCR-based approach is quite useful in detection and identification of neonatal pathogens and has the potential for excellent sensitivity and a shorter turnaround time than those of culture based protocols
ABSTRACT
The aim of this study was to evaluate serum PIIANP and urinary CTXII as a parameters of type II collagen synthesis and degradation, respectively, in patients with OA knees and to investigate whether the use of these two molecular markers could predict the progression of joint damage evaluated by radiography during a period of 3 years. Sixty patients had symptomatic primary knee OA of Kellgren-Lawrence [K-L] grade I-III and met ACR criteria. These patients were evaluated prospectively for 3 years. Serum PIIANP and urinary CTX-II levels were measured by ELISA at baseline and at study end and their levels compared according to the changes in joint space width [JSW], K-L grade and WOMAC index, over 3 years. Also, we assessed the diagnostic value of those molecular markers and their performance for prediction of radiological progression. Serum and urinary levels also compared with 40 matched healthy subjects as a control group. There were significant decrease in the baseline serum PIIANP [P<0.001] and increase in the baseline urinary excretion of CTX-II [P<0.001] in knee OA patients in comparison with the control, in bilateral than unilateral cases [P<0.05], [P<0.05] and also with increasing the K-L radiological severity of the disease [P<0.05], [P<0.001], respectively. There were significant decrease in the mean baseline serum PIIANP and highly significant increase in the mean baseline urinary excretion of CTXII in progressors [JSW narrowing > 0.5 mm] and in patients showed increase in K-L grading either of the signal or both knees [P<0.05], [P<0.001], respectively. There were significant decrease in the mean study end serum PIIANP and highly significant increase in the mean study end urinary excretion of CTX-II in progressors [JSW narrowing > 0.5 mm] and in patients showed increase in K-L grading either of signal or both knees [P<0.05], [P<0.001], respectively. There were insignificant correlation between serum PIIANP and urinary CTX-II either at the baseline or study end and also insignificant correlation between those molecular markers with disease duration, BMI and WOMAC index [P>0.05]. Urinary CTX-II showed a higher diagnostic sensitivity and specificity [75% - 92%] than serum PIIANP [60% - 90%], respectively. The diagnostic specificity was greatest when both tests were found in combination [96%]. Also, combination of tests showed higher diagnostic sensitivity [92.3%] and specificity [55.3%] for predicting the radiological progression over 3 years than either one alone. In conclusion: using specific molecular markers serum PIIANP and urinary CTX-II, we found that patients with knee OA are characterized by depressed type II collagen synthesis and increased type II collagen degradation. Combining these two molecular markers allows the identification of patients with a high risk of subsequent progression of joint damage