Establishment of a ICR mouse model of systemic C. albicans infection induced by oral inoculation / 中国实验动物学报

Objective To establish a mouse model of systemic C. albicans infection by oral inoculation of the pathogen and observe the proliferation and distribution of C. albicans in vivo tissues. Methods Male ICR mice(n=46) were used as the experiment group(n=40) and blank group (n=6). Cotton swabs with C. albicans were used to infect the mice (7 × 106 CFU/mL), and the blank group with saline. The mice of the experiment group were randomly divided into two groups:model group A for clinical assessment (n=20) and model group B for tissue fungal burden detection (n=20). Clinical score, survival and autopsy were carried out among the model group A. Five mice were randomly killed from the model group B at 3 d, 5 d and7 d after infection, respectively ( blank group killed 2 mice each time) . Microbial load tablet method was used to detect the tissue fungal burdens in different tissues, meanwhile samples of tongue, esophagus, stomach, liver, kidney, lung of infected mice were taken for pathological examination. Results White spot appeared on the surface of tongue since 3 d postinfection and increased with time and finally caused death. The mortality reached over 50% at 5 d. C. albicans was not only detected from the tongue (87?5%), stomach (87?5%), liver (54?5%), kidney (50?5%), lung (20%) and heart (4%), but also was microscopically seen mycelia proliferation in the tongue, stomach, liver, and kidney , yet not seen in the control group, showing that C. albicans caused disseminated systemic infection through mucosal infection in mice. Conclusions C. albicans can induce opportunistic systemic infection by breakthrough the mucosal immune barrier, so as to increase the infection to death.

Xanthomonas fuscans subsp. fuscans causing wilt symptoms in bean plants (Phaseolus vulgaris) in Brazil / Xanthomonas fuscans subsp. fuscans causando sintomas de murcha em feijoeiro (Phaseolus vulgaris) no Brasil

Common and fuscous blights of bean are diseases widely distributed in the world. The most commonly observed symptoms are spots on leaves, stems, pods and seeds. In December 2009, bean plants cv. Uirapuru showing symptoms of wilt similar to those induced by Curtobacterium flaccumfaciens pv. flaccumfaciens were observed in a commercial crop located in the county of Itararé, State of São Paulo, Brazil. The plants were at the last cycle stage with mature pods and these symptoms were noted in the majority of the growing area. Optical microscopic observations of discolored vascular tissue from diseased stems revealed the presence of bacterial masses oozed from infected tissue, indicating that the disease was caused by bacterial pathogen. Isolations on nutrient agar showed circular, convex, yellow colonies with smooth edges. The causal bacterium was Gramnegative and produced a dark brown pigment in culture medium. Biochemical, cultural and physiological tests confirmed its identity as Xanthomonas fuscans subsp. fuscans(syn. Xanthomonas campestris pv. phaseoli"var. fuscans"). The pathogenicity of the isolates was confirmed by artificial inoculations. Systemic infection has been reported in the literature but these kinds of symptoms are not currently observed in Brazilian fields. Bacterial strains were deposited on the Phytobacteria Culture Collection of Instituto Biológico (IBSBF - www.biologico.sp.gov.br/bacterias/php) under accession numbers 2813 and 3028.(AU)

O crestamento bacteriano comum do feijoeiro é uma doença amplamente distribuída no mundo e os sintomas comumente observados são manchas nas folhas, hastes, vagens e sementes. Em dezembro de 2009, plantas de feijoeiro cv. Uirapuru com sintomas de murcha similares aos produzidos por Curtobacterium flaccumfaciens pv. flaccumfaciens foram observadas em campos comerciais localizados no município de Itararé, estado de São Paulo, Brasil. As plantas encontravam-se no final do ciclo, com as vagens já formadas. Os sintomas foram notados em quase a totalidade da área cultivada. Observações ao microscópio óptico de fragmentos de tecido do sistema vascular das hastes de plantas doentes evidenciaram intenso fluxo bacteriano, confirmando tratar-se de doença bacteriana. Isolamentos realizados em meio nutriente ágar produziram colônias de coloração amarelada, brilhantes, convexas, lisas. A bactéria agente causal era Gram-negativa e produtora de pigmento marrom escuro em meio de cultura. Testes bioquímicos, culturais e fisiológicos confirmaram sua identidade como Xanthomonas fuscans subsp. fuscans (sin. Xanthomonas campestris pv. phaseoli "var. fuscans"). A patogenicidade dos isolados foi confirmada por inoculações artificiais em mudas de feijão cv. Carioca e os reisolamentos efetuados resultaram em colônias semelhantes às originais. Embora descrita na literatura, a infecção sistêmica não é usualmente observada nos plantios de feijoeiro em nosso país. Linhagens bacterianas encontram-se depositadas na Coleção de Culturas do Instituto Biológico (IBSBF) sob os números 2813 e 3028.(AU)

Tratamiento antimicótico empírico de pacientes inmunocomprometidos con neutropenia y fiebre persistente con sospecha de aspergilosis sistémica: análisis de costo-efectividad en México / Empirical anti-mycotic treatment of immunocompromised patients with neutropenia and persistent fever with suspicion of systemic aspergillosis: Cost-effectiveness study in Mexico

Introducción. Las micosis sistémicas generan un gran incremento en los costos de la atención médica. Se evaluó el medicamento más costo-efectivo para el tratamiento empírico de aspergilosis sistémica entre la anfotericina B, caspofungina y voriconazol en pacientes con fiebre persistente y neutropenia. Métodos. Modelo tipo árbol de decisiones para estimar los resultados clínicos esperados y los costos asociados del tratamiento de la aspergilosis sistémica. La perspectiva del estudio fue la del proveedor de servicios públicos de salud (Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social [IMSS]). Temporalidad: 12 semanas. Medida de efectividad: tasa de remisión completa de la infección micótica. Se desarrollaron análisis de sensibilidad univaridos y probabilísticos. Resultados. Los costos totales promedio por paciente esperados para el tratamiento empírico de aspergilosis resultaron convoriconazol en $57 378.58 US; $72 833.96 US con anfotericina B, y de $49 962.37 US con caspofungina. La tasa de remisión total sin eventos adversos fue de 37% para caspofungina, 43.6% para voriconazol y de 51.1% para anfotericina B. El análisis de sensibilidad probabilístico muestra que voriconazol sería el tratamiento más costo-efectivo en 65% de los casos, independientemente de la disposición a pagar por el IMSS. Conclusiones. Los resultados presentados concuerdan con la afirmación de que el tratamiento estándar de primera línea recientemente propuesto para el tratamiento empírico de aspergilosis sistémica debe ser voriconazol.

Introduction. Systemic mycosis has a great impact on medical care costs. The objective of this study was to assess the most cost-effective empirical treatment for systemic aspergillosis, evaluating amphotericin B, caspofungin and voriconazole in patients with persistent fever and neutropenia. Methods. A decision-tree model was used to estimate expected clinical results and costs associated with the treatment for systemic aspergillosis. The study used a healthcare payer's perspective (Mexican Institute of Social Security, IMSS). Time frame was 12 weeks. Effectiveness measure was complete remission of mycotic infection. One-way and probabilistic sensitivity analyses were performed. Results. Average total expected costs per patient for the voriconazole treatment were US $57 378.58, for amphotericin B US $72 833.96, and for caspofungin were US $49 962.37. Thetotal expected remission rate without any adverse events was 37% for caspofungin, 43.6% for voriconazole and 51.1% for amphotericin B. Probabilistic sensitivity analysis showed that voriconazole would be a cost-effective treatment with 65% confidence, regardless of the willingness to pay the IMSS. Conclusions. The results of the study agree with the recommendation that voriconazole must be the empirical treatment for systemic aspergillosis, proposed as a standard first-line antifungal drug.