Implementation of an FTIR spectral library of 486 filamentous fungi strains for rapid identification of molds.

Filamentous fungi may cause food and feed spoilage and produce harmful metabolites to human and animal health such as mycotoxins. Identification of fungi using conventional phenotypic methods is time-consuming and molecular methods are still quite expensive and require specific laboratory skills. In the last two decades, it has been shown that Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy was an efficient tool for microorganism identification. The aims of this study were to use a simple protocol for the identification of filamentous fungi using FTIR spectroscopy coupled with a partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA), to implement a procedure to validate the obtained results, and to assess the transferability of the method and database. FTIR spectra of 486 strains (43 genera and 140 species) were recorded. An IR spectral database built with 288 strains was used to identify 105 different strains. It was found that 99.17% and 92.3% of spectra derived from these strains were correctly assigned at the genus and species levels, respectively. The establishment of a score and a threshold permitted to validate 80.79% of the results obtained. A standardization function (SF) was also implemented and tested on FTIR data from another instrument on a different site and permitted to increase the percentage of well predicted spectra for this set from 72.15% to 89.13%. This study confirms the good performance of high throughput FTIR spectroscopy for fungal identification using a spectral library of molds of industrial relevance.

Application of capillary electrophoresis single-stranded conformation polymorphism (CE-SSCP) analysis for identification of fungal communities in cheese.

As major contributors of the ripening process, yeasts and filamentous fungi play a fundamental role in cheese-making. Still, there is no rapid and affordable identification method available for both yeasts and filamentous fungi encountered in cheeses. In the present study, we developed a method based on CE-SSCP analysis of nuclear ribosomal DNA ITS amplicons, along with a species pattern database comprising 37 fungal species. By combining analyses of the ITS1 and ITS2 conformers, 25 out of 37 species were discriminated using CE-SSCP analysis. This reproducible and sensitive method was applied to determine the fungal community composition of 36 cheeses including blue-veined, pressed-cooked, pressed-uncooked, red-smear and surface-mould ripened cheeses. Overall, each cheese contained between 1 and 6 fungal species and 23 different species of fungi were detected including 8 yeast species, 9 filamentous species and 6 unidentified species. Comparison of the fungal diversity obtained after cloning and sequencing (rDNA ITS) versus CE-SSCP for 8 cheeses showed that CE-SSCP was at least as exhaustive as cloning and sequencing of thirty clones per cheese. In conclusion, this CE-SSCP method was an effective tool to identify the fungi present in various cheese varieties and may be of interest for the cheese industry to rapidly describe the composition of cheese fungal communities.

[Black esophagus]. / Nécrose aiguë de l'œsophage.

INTRODUCTION: Acute necrosis of the esophagus, frequently referred to as black esophagus is a rare clinical entity. CASE REPORT: We here report a case of an acute necrosis of the esophagus secondary to hemodynamic compromise after total hip replacement. Past medical history of our 72-year-old patient was remarkable for coronary heart disease, obstructive arteriopathy of the lower limbs, diabetes mellitus and hypertension. He was referred for hematemesis and epigastric pain one day after the surgical intervention was performed. Gastric endoscopy showed necrosis of the esophagus. Treatment consisted on intravenous proton pump inhibitor, parenteral renutrition, and red blood cell transfusion. Fours days later, endoscopy found complete disappearance of necrosis. CONCLUSION: Black esophagus develops in debilitated patients during hypoperfusion and stress. The outcome is usually favourable in the absence of comorbidities.

[Antisynthetase syndrome and lung carcinoma: a fortuitous association?]. / Syndrome des antisynthétases et adénocarcinome pulmonaire: une association fortuite?

INTRODUCTION: Dermatomyositis and polymyositis are sometimes associated with neoplasia. Conversely, a link between antisynthetase syndrome and neoplasia has not been clearly demonstrated. CASE REPORT: We report a 54-year-old smoker male patient who presented with an antisynthetase syndrome with anti-Jo1 and anti-Ro-52 antibodies. An adenocarcinoma of the lung was diagnosed at the same time. CONCLUSION: Two recent studies showed that patients with an antisynthetase syndrome associated with anti-Jo1 antibodies have more severe prognosis than antisynthetase syndrome associated with other antibodies (i.e. PL7/PL12). The risk of cancer occurrence seems to be increased when the anti-Jo1 antisynthetase syndrome is associated with anti-Ro-52 antibodies. To date, there is no demonstrated association between antisynthetase syndrome and neoplasia.

[Desensitization technics]. / Techniques de désensibilisation.

Desensitization or immunotherapy (ITS) is a fundamental treatment aimed at the specific allergic component of atopic asthma. The objective of treatment is to prevent antibody-antigen interactions which are generators, among others, of bronchoconstriction. The indications are essentially limited to those asthmatics sufficiently disabled (but without complications nor on long term corticosteroids or other medications in young subjects) with asthma linked to natural lung allergens whose elimination is impossible (domestic dust, mites, pollens, epithelial debris). Proceeding with intermittent repeated injections of extracts of antigen duly identified as responsible, either aqueous products or slow release preparations absorbed as an adjuvant, which allow longer periods between injections and a better clinical tolerance. Some modified extracts are suggested with the aim of reducing allergenicity while maintaining immunogenic potency. Fundamental progress has been made in the 80's is in the purification of allergens and above all in their standardization, controlling the power and the reproducibility of their effects, their duration of action and allowing an objective assessment of the efficacy of ITS in double blind multi-centre trials. The techniques themselves depend on the aqueous choice of or slow release preparation and always consists of a two stage protocol: First, induction by increasing dosage, differentiated in its duration between the traditionally slow method to achieve a maximum ceiling dose in 3 or 4 months, or of only 2 to 4 days, by the rapid or rushed method: secondly repeated maintenance doses, the top dose being chosen to maintain efficacy over several years with a regular rhythm.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)