Physical and chemical quality, biodiversity, and thermodynamic prediction of adhesion of bacterial isolates from a water purification system: a case study

ABSTRACT The objective of this study was to evaluate the quality of water purification system and identify the bacteria this system, predict bacterial adherence according to the hydrophobicity of these microorganisms and of the polypropylene distribution loop for purified water. The assessment of drinking water that supplies the purification system allowed good-quality physical, chemical, and microbiological specifications. The physicochemical specifications of the distributed purified water were approved, but the heterotrophic bacteria count was higher than allowed (>2 log CFU mL-1).The sanitation of the storage tank with chlorine decreased the number of bacteria adhered to the surface (4.34 cycles log). By sequencing of the 16SrDNA genes, six species of bacteria were identified. The contact angle was determined and polypropylene surface and all bacteria were considered to be hydrophilic, and adhesion was thermodynamically unfavorable. This case study showed the importance of monitoring the water quality in the purified water systems and the importance of sanitization with chemical agents. The count of heterotrophic bacteria on the polypropylene surface was consistent with the predicted thermodynamics results because the number of adhered cells reached approximate values of 5 log CFU cm-2.

Immunopathology of rabies infection in mice selected for high or low acute inflammatory reaction

Rabies is a severe and lethal disease that produces a slight inflammatory response during the infection process. We analyzed the immunopathological mechanisms that occur in the central nervous system (CNS) using mice genetically selected for maximal or minimal acute inflammatory reaction (AIRmax or AIRmin). As viral samples, we adopted the antigenic variant 3 (AgV3) of rabies virus from hematophagous bats and a fixed virus strain (PV1 43/3). Titration of specific antibodies was performed using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). We observed a slight increase in IgG and IgG1 isotypes in infected AIRmax mice. Incubation period, determined by intracerebral inoculation with 100 LD50, was 6-7 days for PV1 43/4 strain and 9-10 days for AgV3. No difference in viral replication was noticed between AIRmax and AIRmin mice. Mortality was 100 percent with both viral strains. Histopathological analysis of brains and spinal cords showed inflammatory foci in all regions of the CNS. No differences were noticed in the number of neutrophils. Negri bodies were observed in practically all sites analyzed. Results suggested that inflammatory reaction is not a determining factor in the susceptibility to rabies infection.

Experience of human rabies in north India.

Rabies is one of the most common causes of human encephalitis in developing countries. This study shows the diagnosis of rabies among suspected human rabies encephalitis cases by Seller stain, Flourescent stain as well as mouse inoculation test. Out of 71 postmortem brain specimens, 26 were diagnosed as rabies positive. Negri bodies were demonstrated in 18 (25.4%) brain saples by Seller stain. Flourescent antibody technique could detect rabies antigen in 21 (29.6%) samples. Rabies virus could be isolated in 15 (42.9%) of the 35 samples by intracerebral inoculation in 15 (42.9%) of the 35 samples of intracerebral inoculation in newborn Swiss albino mice. Of the 26 confirmed cases, 61.5% occurred during the months of June to August and history of dog bite was present in 9 (34.6%) cases.

Recuperación parcial de rabia humana / Partial recovery in human rabies

Introducción. Se tienen reportados en la literatura médica nacional 3 casos de rabia humana con recuperación parcial, todos ellos ocurridos en niños y transmitidos por perros. Caso clínico. Se presenta 1 caso de rabia con recuperación parcial en una niña de 5 años de edad que fue mordida por un murciélago en el dedo índice derecho, sin haber recibido un manejo apropiado de la herida ni el tratamiento profiláctico postexposición correspondiente. La paciente falleció por desnutrición grave y neumonía aguda casi 6 meses después de haber iniciado su cuadro clínico de encefalitis rábica. Conclusión. Si bien el diagnóstico de rabia incluyó aspectos epidemiológicos, clínicos y estudios específicos de laboratorio, ha de destacarse el hecho de que solamente las titulaciones de anticuerpos antirrábicos fueron positivos. Resulta preocupante que el caso que se reporta, al igual que el de una hermana, no haya recibido el tratamiento profiláctico correspondiente, lo que pone en evidencia las graves carencias socioeconómicas y culturales existentes en diversas regiones del país

Modelo de autoasistencia en el programa antirrabico / Self care model in the antirabic program

Los programas de control de rabia involucran acciones de vigilancia epidemiologica, inmunizacion, regulacion de la poblacion canina, y educacion y participacion comunitaria. Dentro de estas ultimas, corresponde a la enfermera una inmensa labor. Con el proposito de disenar un programa de educacion a la comunidad para que pueda participar activamente en el control de esta zoonosis, se realizo una encuesta en la vereda Delicias del municipio de Chia, en la cual las condiciones ambientales de la vivienda familiar y la cohabitacion con animales domesticos, constituyen un importante factor de riesgo para la enfermedad. Se eligio la poblacion entre 15 y 44 anos, porque es el grupo mas vulnerable y a la vez, probablemente el que puede contribuir mas en la implementacion del programa. El analisis de la encuenta demostro que la mayor parte de las personas tiene informacion apropiada sobre que es la enfermedad, como se transmite y cual es su causa, Mas de la mitad sabe de la existencia de la vacuna antirrabica; pero solamente el 39.39 por ciento sabe como utilizarla. Asi mismo es menor la poblacion que puede identificar los signos de la enfermedad en un animal y por lo tanto puede seguirlo cuando es sospechoso. Ninguno podria reconocer signos de la enfermedad en humanos, el cuidado inicial de la herida es incorrecto, y no estan en condiciones de solicitar intervencion medica oportuna. Se describe un programa informativo por medio de estudios de casos y se presenta una cartilla disenada para que sea estudiada por la comunidad