Diarrhea outbreak in Pernambuco, Brazil, associated with a heat-stable cytotoxic enterotoxin produced by Aeromonas caviae / O surto de diarreia em Pernambuco, Brasil é associado com uma enterotoxina citotóxica termo-estável produzida por Aeromonas caviae

SUMMARYIn the present study enterotoxic and cytotoxic activities of twenty Aeromonas caviaestrains were examined. They originated from fecal specimens of patients with acute diarrhea during an outbreak in Brazil in 2004. Culture supernatants of fourteen strains (70%) caused fluid accumulation in rabbit ileal intestinal loops and in suckling mice assays, and also showed a cytotoxic activity in Vero and Caco-2 cells. The enterotoxic and cytotoxic factors were heat-stable after culture supernatants treatment at 100 ºC. The results revealed that A. caviaestrains produce a putative diarrheagenic virulence factor, a heat-stable cytotoxic enterotoxin that could be linked to the diarrhea outbreak that took place in Brazil.

RESUMOEm 2004 ocorreu um surto de diarreia aguda no Estado de Pernambuco, Brasil. Setenta por cento (14 dos 20) dos sobrenadantes de cultura de Aeromonas caviae,isoladas neste episódio induziram acúmulo de líquido em testes de alça ligada de intestino de coelhos, assim como em teste em camundongos recém-nascidos. Os mesmos sobrenadantes mostraram também atividade citotóxica em células de Vero e Caco-2, mas não em células HeLa e HEp2. As atividades enterotóxicas e citotóxicas mantiveram-se mesmo após o aquecimento a 100 ºC dos sobrenadantes de cultura. Este trabalho revela a expressão de um provável fator diarreiogênico: uma enterotoxina-citotóxica termo-estável, produzida por A. caviaeque pode ser associada ao surto de diarreia ocorrido no Brasil. Atualmente estamos purificando esta enterotoxina termo-estável, com o objetivo de elucidar seu papel como fator de virulência na diarreia causada por A. caviae.

Determination of germ tube, phospholipase, and proteinase production by bloodstream isolates of Candida albicans

Introduction Candida albicans is a commensal and opportunistic agent that causes infection in immunocompromised individuals. Several attributes contribute to the virulence and pathogenicity of this yeast, including the production of germ tubes (GTs) and extracellular hydrolytic enzymes, particularly phospholipase and proteinase. This study aimed to investigate GT production and phospholipase and proteinase activities in bloodstream isolates of C. albicans. Methods One hundred fifty-three C. albicans isolates were obtained from blood samples and analyzed for GT, phospholipase, and proteinase production. The assays were performed in duplicate in egg yolk medium containing bovine serum albumin and human serum. Results Detectable amounts of proteinase were produced by 97% of the isolates, and 78% of the isolates produced phospholipase. GTs were produced by 95% of the isolates. A majority of the isolates exhibited low levels of phospholipase production and high levels of proteinase production. Conclusions Bloodstream isolates of C. albicans produce virulence factors such as GT and hydrolytic enzymes that enable them to cause infection under favorable conditions. .

Expression of bacterial virulence factors and cytokines during in vitro macrophage infection by enteroinvasive Escherichia coli and Shigella flexneri: a comparative study

Enteroinvasive Escherichia coli (EIEC) and Shigellaspp cause bacillary dysentery in humans by invading and multiplying within epithelial cells of the colonic mucosa. Although EIEC and Shigellashare many genetic and biochemical similarities, the illness caused by Shigellais more severe. Thus, genomic and structure-function molecular studies on the biological interactions of these invasive enterobacteria with eukaryotic cells have focused on Shigella rather than EIEC. Here we comparatively studied the interactions of EIEC and of Shigella flexneriwith cultured J774 macrophage-like cells. We evaluated several phenotypes: (i) bacterial escape from macrophages after phagocytosis, (ii) macrophage death induced by EIEC and S. flexneri, (iii) macrophage cytokine expression in response to infection and (iv) expression of plasmidial (pINV) virulence genes. The results showed thatS. flexneri caused macrophage killing earlier and more intensely than EIEC. Both pathogens induced significant macrophage production of TNF, IL-1 and IL-10 after 7 h of infection. Transcription levels of the gene invasion plasmid antigen-C were lower in EIEC than in S. flexneri throughout the course of the infection; this could explain the diminished virulence of EIEC compared to S. flexneri.

Produção de fatores de virulência in vitro por espécies patogênicas do gênero Candida / Production of virulence factors in vitro by pathogenic species of the genus Candida

Avaliou-se, in vitro, a capacidade de crescimento em 39ºC e 42ºC, a produção de enzimas hidrolíticas e a atividade hemolítica de 21 cepas clínicas e de referência de sete espécies de Candida spp, Candida dubliniensis e Candida krusei demonstraram menor potencial de virulência e Candida albicans maior.

The growth capacity at 39ºC and 42ºC, production of hydrolytic enzymes and hemolytic activity of 21 clinical and reference strains of seven species of Candida spp were evaluated in vitro.Candida dubliniensis and Candida krusei demonstrated lower virulence potential and Candida albicans higher potential.

Siderophore production by uropathogenic Escherichia coli.

Urinary tract infection (UTI) is one of the most frequently encountered problems in ambulatory medicine. The present study was designed to determine siderophore production as the urovirulence factor of Escherichia coli isolated from the patients of UTI. A total of 160 strains of E. coli isolated from urine of patients with clinically diagnosed UTI were included in the study and 50 fecal isolates of E. coli, siderophore production was seen in 156 (97.5%). In 50 fecal isolates, siderophore production was seen in 2 (4%). Siderophore production has been shown to be more frequent in E. coli from patients with UTI, than in fecal isolates. The results suggest that siderophore production positive strains can be considered as UPEC. Thus, although a great deal has been learned regarding E. coli virulence mechanisms in UTI, much remains to be learned and the practical application of our growing understanding of E. coli virulence factors to the prevention and treatment of UTI has to be continued.

Effect of exposure to hydrogen peroxide on the virulence of Escherichia coli.

PURPOSE: To eliminate pathogenic bacteria, the host presents conditions that are stressful for bacteria. Oxidative stress arises when the concentration of pro-oxidants like hydrogen peroxide (H2O2 ) and superoxide anion increases to a level over the basal defence capacity of the cell. In the present study, we studied the effect of oxidative stress on the production of certain virulence factors by Escherichia coli . METHODS: E. coli was exposed to oxidative stress by growing in the presence of different concentrations of H2O2 . The effect of oxidative stress on the expression of surface hydrophobicity, adherence, haemolysin production, serum resistance and phagocytosis was studied. RESULTS: Oxidative stress caused a significant decrease in the expression of all the virulence factors of E. coli . CONCLUSIONS: Synthesis of virulence factors can be significantly altered by oxidative stress and such changes may affect the pathogenicity of E. coli.

Virulence factors of uropathogenic Escherichia coli from a University Hospital in Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brazil / Fatores de virulência de Escherichia coli uropatogênicas provenientes de um Hospital Universitário em Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brasil

The aim of the study was to determine the occurrence of virulence genes expressing fimbriae, production of hemolysin, colicin and aerobactin among a hundred Escherichia coli isolates obtained from in-and outpatients of a tertiary-care teaching hospital, between July and August 2000, showing clinical and laboratory signs of urinary tract infection (UTI). The presence of genes (pap, afa, sfa) for fimbriae expression was assayed using specific primers in a polymerase chain reaction. Among the isolates studied, the prevalence of the virulence factors was 96.0 percent, 76.0 percent, 24.0 percent, for hemolysin, aerobactin and colicin, respectively; the prevalence of genes coding for fimbrial adhesive systems was 32.0 percent, 19.0 percent and 11.0 percent for pap, sfa and afa respectively. The strains isolated from the outpatients displayed a greater number of virulence factors compared to those from hospitalized subjects, emphasizing the difference between these two kinds of patients.

O objetivo do trabalho foi determinar a ocorrência de fatores de virulência, tais como, a expressão de fímbrias, produção de hemolisina, colicina e aerobactina em 100 cepas de Escherichia coli isoladas de pacientes ambulatoriais e hospitalizados de um hospital universitário de nível de atendimento terciário, entre os meses de julho e agosto de 2000, que apresentavam sinais clínicos e laboratoriais de infecção do trato urinário (ITU). Foram pesquisados os genes pap, afa e sfa responsáveis pela expressão de fímbrias através da técnica de PCR. A freqüência dos fatores de virulência entre as cepas estudadas foi de 96,0 por cento, 76,0 por cento e 24,0 por cento para hemolisina, aerobactina e colicina respectivamente, e a prevalência dos genes para os sistemas de adesinas fimbriais foi de 32,0 por cento, 19,0 por cento e 11,0 por cento para os genes pap, sfa e afa respectivamente. As cepas isoladas dos pacientes ambulatoriais exibiram um número maior de fatores de virulência quando comparadas com aquelas provenientes de indivíduos hospitalizados.