Two Concurrent Chromosomal Aberrations Involving Three-way t(3;21;8)(p21;q22;q22) and Two-way t(2;11)(q31;p15) Translocations in a Case of de novo Acute Myeloid Leukemia

One of the most frequent structural chromosomal anomaly is t(8;21)(q22;q22) that occurs in approximately 5-15% of all acute myeloid leukemia (AML). However, t(3;21)(p21;q22) and t(2;11)(q31;p15) translocations are rarely reported in AML. Here, we report a unique case of AML with two translocations, t(3;21;8)(p21;q22;q22) and t(2;11)(q31;p15). Using multiplex reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction, we identified a RUNX1-RUNX1T1 fusion gene. Following a second relapse, the patient did not respond to therapy and died 55 months following the first diagnosis. We believe that this is the first case describing concurrent chromosomal aberrations involving three-way t(3;21;8) and two-way t(2;11) translocations in de novo acute myeloid leukemia.

In Vitro Interactions of Antibiotic Combinations of Colistin, Tigecycline, and Doripenem Against Extensively Drug-Resistant and Multidrug-Resistant Acinetobacter baumannii

BACKGROUND: Acinetobacter baumannii infections are difficult to treat owing to the emergence of various antibiotic resistant isolates. Because treatment options are limited for multidrug-resistant (MDR) A. baumannii infection, the discovery of new therapies, including combination therapy, is required. We evaluated the synergistic activity of colistin, doripenem, and tigecycline combinations against extensively drug-resistant (XDR) A. baumannii and MDR A. baumannii. METHODS: Time-kill assays were performed for 41 XDR and 28 MDR clinical isolates of A. baumannii by using colistin, doripenem, and tigecycline combinations. Concentrations representative of clinically achievable levels (colistin 2 microg/mL, doripenem 8 microg/mL) and achievable tissue levels (tigecycline 2 microg/mL) for each antibiotic were used in this study. RESULTS: The colistin-doripenem combination displayed the highest rate of synergy (53.6%) and bactericidal activity (75.4%) in 69 clinical isolates of A. baumannii. Among them, thedoripenem-tigecycline combination showed the lowest rate of synergy (14.5%) and bacteri-cidal activity (24.6%). The doripenem-tigecycline combination showed a higher antagonistic interaction (5.8%) compared with the colistin-tigecycline (1.4%) combination. No antagonism was observed for the colistin-doripenem combination. CONCLUSIONS: The colistin-doripenem combination is supported in vitro by the high rate of synergy and bactericidal activity and lack of antagonistic reaction in XDR and MDR A. baumannii. It seems to be necessary to perform synergy tests to determine the appropri-ate combination therapy considering the antagonistic reaction found in several isolates against the doripenem-tigecycline and colistin-tigecycline combinations. These findings should be further examined in clinical studies.

Comparison of the Vitek 2, API 20A, and 16s rRNA Gene Sequencing for the Identification of Anaerobic Bacteria / 대한임상미생물학회지

BACKGROUND: Recently, genotypic identification of anaerobes is emerging as an alternative to the phenotypic method. In this study, we evaluated the performance of Vitek 2, API 20A and 16s rRNA gene sequencing for the identification of anaerobic bacteria. METHODS: A total of 35 anaerobe reference strains were identified using Vitek 2, API 20A and 16s rRNA gene sequencing. We evaluated the performance of three methods on the basis of the accurate identification rates. RESULTS: The Vitek 2, API 20A and 16s rRNA gene sequencing identified 54.3, 15.4, and 94.3% of test strains correctly at the species level and identified 77.1, 42.3, and 100% at the genus level, respectively. Results of the McNemar's test showed that there was a significant difference between each of the three identification methods in species level identification (P value<0.05). CONCLUSION: 16s rRNA gene sequencing showed better performance than Vitek 2 or API 20A for anaerobic bacteria. Considering its excellent performance, 16s rRNA gene sequencing may be useful for accurate identification of anaerobic bacteria that cannot be correctly identified by phenotypic methods.