Genome-based classification of Streptomyces anatolicus sp. nov., an actinobacterium with antimicrobial and cytotoxic activities, and reclassification of Streptomyces nashvillensis as a later heterotypic synonym of Streptomyces tanashiensis.

During the course of isolating novel actinobacteria producing bioactive metabolites, strain BG9HT was obtained from an arid soil sample in Erzurum, Turkey. Pairwise sequence comparisons for 16S rRNA gene sequences showed the strain was a member of the genus Streptomyces and it shared the highest 16S rRNA gene sequence identity of 99.7% with Streptomyces huasconensis HST28T. Comparative genome analyses based on digital DNA-DNA hybridization and average nucleotide identity revealed that strain BG9HT represents a novel species within the genus Streptomyces. The polyphasic analysis also confirmed that the strain has typical characteristics of the genus Streptomyces. The strain has LL-diaminopimelic acid as diagnostic amino acid, and galactose, mannose and trace amounts of glucose and ribose as whole-cell sugars. Polar lipid profile consisted of diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylinositol, unidentified aminolipids, phospholipids and lipids. Major isoprenoid quinones were MK-9(H6), MK-9(H4), and MK-9(H8). Its genome size is approximately 7.2 Mb with 71.2% G+C content. The methanolic extract of strain BG9HT showed antimicrobial and cytotoxic activities. Further genomic analyses of strain BG9HT confirmed its high potential to produce novel secondary metabolites. On the basis of phenotypic and phylogenetic analyses, strain BG9HT represents a novel species of the genus Streptomyces, for which Streptomyces anatolicus sp. nov. is proposed, and it holds high promise for novel biosynthetic metabolites of value to the biopharmaceutical industry. We also propose Streptomyces nashvillensis as a later heterotypic synonym of Streptomyces tanashiensis as a result obtained through analysis of overall genome relatedness indices.

Chemical Analysis and in Vitro Antiviral Effects of Northeast Türkiye Propolis Samples against HSV-1.

Propolis is one of the mixtures with the widest biological activity among natural products used in complementary medicine. HSV-1 is a highly contagious and endemic virus. Available drugs are insufficient for recurrent HSV-1 infections. Therefore, new approaches to treat HSV-1 infections are still being developed. In this study, it was aimed to investigate the inhibition effect of ethanolic Anatolian propolis extracts obtained from the Eastern Black Sea Region (Pazar, Ardahan, and Uzungöl) on HSV-1. In addition to the total phenolic (TPC) and the total flavonoid content (TFC), the phenolic profiles of the extracts were analyzed by HPLC-UV. The antiviral activity of the extracts were tested by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT), quantitative Real Time Polymerase Chain Reaction (qRT-PCR), and plaque reduction tests, and the results were evaluated statistically. It was determined that the total amount of phenolic substances varied between 44.12 and 166.91 mg GAE/g, and the total flavonoid content of the samples varied between 12.50 and 41.58 (mg QUE/g). It was shown that all propolis samples used in the current study were effective against HSV-1, but the higher phenolic compounds contained in the samples showed the higher activity. The results show that ethanolic propolis extracts are promising candidates for HSV-1 treatment.

Determination of Seroprevalence of Borrelia burgdorferi IgG in Adult Population Living in Trabzon.

BACKGROUND: Lyme borreliosis is a tick-borne, multi-systemic infectious disease that is thought to be wide spread in Turkey even though studies on its seroprevalence are limited. AIMS: To determine the seroprevalence of Lyme borreliosis in part of north-eastern Tur-key (in the city of Trabzon), and to identify possible relationships between seropositivity and various factors such as location, gender, age group, occupation, income, and educational level. STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective cross-sectional study. METHODS: A total of 884 blood samples collected from provincial and district health centers serving a population of about 800,000 were included in this study. ELISA was used to determine the anti-Borrelia IgG antibody levels in the samples. Samples that yielded positive results by ELISA were further subjected to western blot (WB). RESULTS: IgG antibodies were found in 128 samples (14.5%). Statistical analysis revealed significant differences between age groups and educational levels in terms of the incidence of seropositivity, whereas location, gender, occupational group and income level had no effect (p<0.001, p<0.001, p=0.948, p=0.645, p=0.131, p=0.080 respectively). CONCLUSIONS: The risk of contracting Lyme borreliosis in Trabzon is high, and necessary measures need to be taken to avoid the spread of disease.

Comparison of the serum cytokine levels before and after adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) therapy in patients with infantile spasm.

PURPOSE: Infantile spasm is an age-dependent epileptic syndrome seen in infancy or early childhood. Although studies have investigated the epilepsy-cytokine relationship, there has been insufficient research into the relation between cytokines and infantile spasm. The purpose of this study was to examine the role of cytokines in the pathogenesis of infantile spasm by investigating cytokine levels before and 1month after adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) therapy in patients diagnosed with the condition. METHOD: Twenty patients aged between 1month and 2years and diagnosed with infantile spasm at the Karadeniz Technical University Medical Faculty Department of Child Health and Diseases Pediatric Neurology Clinic, Turkey, and 20 healthy children were included in the study. Patients received 11 doses of ACTH on 2days a week. Levels of TNF-alpha and IL-2, the main cytokines involved in inflammation and recently associated with infantile spasm, and of IL-1beta, IL-6 and IL-17A, associated with epileptic seizures, and serum levels of the IL-17A activator IL-23 were investigated in all patients at the start of treatment and 1month after completion of treatment. RESULTS: No statistically significant difference was observed between pre- and post-treatment patient group and control group IL-1beta, IL-2, IL-23 or TNF-alpha levels. Pre-treatment IL-6 and IL-17A levels were significantly higher in the untreated patient group compared to the healthy control group (p<0.001 and p=0.002). CONCLUSION: Our study supports the recent idea that IL-6 and IL-17A are cytokines involved in the pathogenesis of infantile spasm.