Taxonogenomics description of Arcanobacterium urinimassiliense sp. nov., a new bacterial species isolated from urine sample.

Strain Marseille-P3248т is a new species from the order Actinomycetales that was isolated from the urine sample of a girl aged 20 months with rotavirus gastroenteritis. It is a facultative anaerobic Gram-positive rod-shaped bacterium. Strain Marseille-P3248т exhibits 94.73% sequence similarity with Arcanobacterium pluranimalium strain M430/94/2, a phylogenetically related species with standing in nomenclature. Its genome size is 1 667 964 bp with 49.1% G + C content. Strain Marseille-P3248т (= CSURP3248) is the type strain of the new species Arcanobacterium urinimassiliense sp. nov.

Draft genome and description of Microvirga mediterraneensis strain Marseille-Q2068T sp. nov., a new bacterium isolated from human healthy skin.

In 2019, by culturing a skin swab from the forehead of a 70-year-old healthy woman via the culturomics method, we isolated the new bacterial strain Marseille-Q2068T (= CSUR-Q2068). Matrix-assisted desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) failed to identify this isolate. Analysis of the 16S ribosomal RNA gene and genome-to-genome comparison suggested that this taxon belongs to a novel bacterial species within the family Methylobacteriaceae in the phylum Proteobacteria. We describe here its main phenotypic characteristics, genome sequence and annotation of Microvirga mediterraneensis strain Marseille-Q2068T, a new member of the Microvirga genus, which we propose as the type strain.

Bartonella gabonensis sp. nov., a new bartonella species from savannah rodent Lophuromys sp. in Franceville, Gabon.

We describe a new strain named Bartonella gabonensis sp. nov. strain 669T (CSURB1083). The entire genome of this strain is described here. It was isolated from a savannah rodent, a brush-furred rat (Lophuromys sp.), trapped the city of Franceville in Gabon, in Central Africa. B. gabonensis is an aerobic, rod-shaped and Gram-negative bacterium. On the basis of the organism's features, and following a taxonogenomic approach, we propose the creation of the species Bartonella gabonensis sp. nov.

Draft genome and description of Chryseobacterium manosquense strain Marseille-Q2069T sp. nov., a new bacterium isolated from human healthy skin.

In 2019, by culturing a skin swab from the hand of a 35-year-old healthy woman using culturomics methods, we isolated the new bacterial strain Marseille-Q2069T =CSUR-Q2069. Matrix-assisted desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry failed to identify this isolate. Analysis of the 16S rRNA gene and Genome-to-Genome comparison suggested that this taxon belongs to a novel bacterial species within the family Flavobacteriaceae in the phylum Bacteroidetes. We described here the main phenotypic characteristics, genome sequence and annotation of Chryseobacterium manosquense strain Marseille-Q2069T, a new member of the Chryseobacterium genus, that we propose as type strain.

Draft genome and description of Aeromicrobium phoceense strain Marseille-Q0843T sp. nov., a new bacterium isolated from human healthy skin.

In 2019, by culturing a skin swab sample from the back of the hand of a 61-year-old healthy woman and assessing it via the culturomics method, we isolated the new bacterial strain Marseille-Q0843T (= CSUR-Q0843). Matrix-assisted desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) failed to identify this isolate. Analysis of the 16S ribosomal RNA gene and genome-to-genome comparison suggested that this taxon belongs to a novel bacterial species within the family in Nocardioidaceae in the phylum Actinobacteria. We describe here the main phenotypic characteristics, genome sequence and annotation of Aeromicrobium phoceense strain Marseille-Q0843T, a new member of the Aeromicrobium genus, which we propose as the type strain.

Comprehensive insight into functional interaction between GNB3 C825T and eNOS T-786C, G894T gene polymorphisms and association with susceptibility to diabetic erectile dysfunction.

BACKGROUND: No study has assessed the possible involvement of endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) T-786C and G894T and G-protein ß3 subunit (GNB3) C825T polymorphisms with susceptibility to diabetic vasculogenic erectile dysfunction (VED) in North African subjects. OBJECTIVES: Our aim was to evaluate the interaction and association between these gene polymorphisms and this disorder. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 164 type 2 diabetes patients with VED diagnosed with penile color Doppler ultrasonography and 148 age-matched healthy volunteers were genotyped for the rs1799983 (G894T) and rs2070744 (T-786C) of the eNOS gene and the rs5443 (C825T) of the GNB3 gene using the PCR-RFLP method. RESULTS: A significant association of the eNOS G894T (p = 0.005) and T-786C (p = 0.02) with altered susceptibility to VED was observed. The risk also holds for the G894T and T-786C eNOS gene polymorphisms when excluding patients with dyslipidemia and cardiovascular diseases (p = 1.7·10-4 and p = 3.2·10-5 , respectively). The univariate odds ratio associated with CC alleles of the eNOS T-786C revealed a four times increased risk for VED (OR = 4.04; 95% CI = 1.53-10.67; p = 0.006). VED risk was also associated with the G894T variant under dominant model (p = 0.002) and the T-786C variant under recessive model (p = 0.004). Furthermore, the concomitant presence of the combined genotypes of the 894T and 786T strongly affected the predisposition to VED (p = 0.007). DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: Our study gave a comprehensive insight into functional interaction between GNB3 and eNOS gene polymorphisms and suggests that the eNOS G894T and T-786C variants are strong predisposing factors of VED susceptibility within men with type 2 diabetes.

Headache in a young woman: do not forget Susac's syndrome.

Susac syndrome is a rare disease characterized by the clinical triad of encephalopathy, branch retinal artery occlusion, and sensorineural hearing loss. This underdiagnosed condition needs to be considered in the differential diagnosis of a broad variety of disorders. An early diagnosis is important as treatment can halt disease progression and prevent permanent disability. Herein, we report a case of Susac syndrome in a 31-year-old woman and we highlight how challenging an early diagnosis was and the importance of an aggressive therapeutic approach, including the combination of steroids and other cytotoxic drugs.

[Clinical outcome and prognosis of neonatal bacterial meningitis]. / Aspects cliniques et évolutifs des méningites bactériennes néonatales.

OBJECTIVES: To study the epidemiological, clinical, and bacteriological aspects as well as the outcome of neonatal bacterial meningitis and analyze the factors of poor prognosis of this condition. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We report a retrospective analysis of 44 cases of neonatal bacterial meningitis hospitalized in the pediatric unit of Tahar Sfar Hospital in Mahdia, Tunisia, between January 1996 and December 2010. Inclusion criteria were infants less than 29 days of age who were hospitalized for bacterial meningitis diagnosed on either the presence of bacteria in cerebrospinal fluid or with more than 50 cells/mm(3), predominance of neutrophils, and the protein level greater than 1.2g/l. Clinical data were obtained through the analysis of patient files. Statistical analysis was based on the Chi(2) test, and P-values less than 0.05 were considered statistically significant. RESULTS: The incidence of neonatal bacterial meningitis was 0.49 per 1000 live births. The patients were premature in 20.4 % and low birth weight in 13.6 % of cases. The clinical presentation was not specific for most cases. The main signs at admission were hyperthermia (43.2 %), refusal to nurse (20.4 %), seizures (18.2 %), and respiratory distress (13.6 %). The cerebrospinal fluid culture was positive in 36.4 % of cases. The group B streptococcus was the most frequently isolated (62.5 %) followed by Escherichia coli (12.5 %). The association of cefotaxime-ampicillin-gentamicin was used as the first treatment in all cases. Ofloxacin was associated with initial antibiotic therapy during the first 5 days in 20.4 % of cases. The mortality rate was 15.9 % and the rate of neurological sequelae in survivors was 21.6 %. Prematurity, low birth weight, shock, respiratory distress, and pleocytosis of less than 500 cells/mm(3) were the main factors of a poor prognosis. The addition of ofloxacin to the initial antibiotic therapy was associated with a decreased rate of neurological sequelae in survivors (11 % vs. 25 %, P=0.042). CONCLUSION: This study emphasizes the severity of neonatal bacterial meningitis with high rates of mortality and neurological sequelae, especially in premature and low birth weight infants. An early diagnosis and effective antibiotic therapy is needed to improve the prognosis.

[Epidemiological study of Klebsiella spp. uropathogenic strains producing extended-spectrum ß-lactamase in a Tunisian university hospital, 2009]. / Epidémiologie des souches de Klebsiella spp. uropathogènes productrices de ß-lactamases à spectre élargi dans un hôpital universitaire Tunisien, 2009.

OBJECTIVE: An update on the prevalence of antibiotic resistance in extended-spectrum ß-lactamase among urinary strains of Klebsiella spp. isolated from in-come and out-come patients at University Hospital, Mahdia (Tunisia). PATIENTS AND METHODS: A retrospective survey was made over a period of twelve months (year 2009). It focused on 3564 patients with urinary tract infection confirmed by the Laboratory of Microbiology in the University Hospital, Mahdia. RESULTS: Klebsiella spp. was involved in 5.5% (198/3564) of all cases of urinary tract infections identified. Klebsiella pneumoniae accounted for 94.9% of all Klebsiella (5.1% for Klebsiella oxytoca). The frequency of Klebsiella spp. resistance to fluoroquinolones was 19.2% and to third generation cephalosporins was 22.7%. Forty strains of Klebsiella spp. producing extended-spectrum ß-lactamase witch corresponds to 20.2% of all the Klebsiella. The extended-spectrum ß-lactamase strains with resistance to fluoroquinolones were 67.5% (27/40) or 13.6% of all klebsiella (27/198). No strain was resistant to imipenem. The 27 strains multiresistant (ESBL+FQ resistance) are likely to be carriers of plasmids encoding the ESBL and resistance to fluoroquinolones. CONCLUSION: the resistance of Enterobacteriaceae, including Klebsiella spp, to fluoroquinolones has become a concern both in hospital in community medicine. The advent of this resistance mechanism involves a more rational use of fluoroquinolones, especially as first-line treatment of urinary tract infections.

[Phenotypic and genotypic (randomly amplified polymorphic DNA analysis and multiple-locus variable-number tandem-repeat analysis) charaterization of 96 clinical isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa in the F. Bourguiba hospital (Monastir, Tunisia)]. / Caractérisation phénotypique et génotypique (randomly amplified polymorphic DNA analysis et multiple-locus variable-number tandem-repeat analysis) de 96 isolats cliniques de Pseudomonas aeruginosa à l'hôpital F. Bourguiba (Monastir, Tunisie).

AIM OF THE STUDY: Phenotypic and genotypic characterization of 96 clinical isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa recovered in a Tunisian teaching hospital during a 16-month period. MATERIALS AND METHODS: All the isolates were characterized by serotyping, antimicrobial susceptibility typing and genotyping with randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) analysis and multiple-locus variable-number tandem-repeat analysis (MLVA). RESULTS: Forty-one isolates out of 96 (43%) were recovered from two intensive care units (medical and chirurgical). Most of the isolates (48%) belonged to serotype O:11. Among the 13 antibiotypes, three multidrug resistant ones were mostly observed within the two intensive care units. Genotyping showed 83 RAPD types and 52 MLVA types. Isolates showing the same serotype could show different genotypes. A limited number of clusters was highlighted with MLVA typing, of which an outbreak of nine cases within the surgical intensive care unit. CONCLUSION: Except this outbreak of nine cases, the heterogeneity observed for most of the P. aeruginosa isolates showed that outbreak situations were rare in the F. Bourguiba hospital during the study period. MLVA genotyping is a good tool for genotyping P. aeruginosa clinical isolates.

Frequence et profil de sensibilite aux antibiotiques des bacteries isolees des hemocultures au CHU de Mahdia

L'objectif de notre etude etait de determiner l'epidemiologie et le profil desensibilite aux antibiotiques des bacteries isolees des hemocultures dans le CHUde Mahdia; afin d'optimiser l'antibiotherapie probabiliste utilisee en premiere intention.Cette etude retrospective a ete realisee sur une periode de seize mois (Jui ll et2007 a Octobre 2008) et a concerne 398 isolats. Cinquante neuf pourcent des isolats etaient des bacilles a Gram negatif (BGN) dont 83;2d'enterobacteries. Les cocci a Gram positif representaient 39;7avec predominance de staphylocoques a coagulase negative (61;2). Les BGN non fermentant representaient 16;8. La resistance a l'oxacilline etait de 34;2pour les staphylocoques a coagulase negative. Les enterobacteries etaient resistantes aux C3G dans 50;5. Le taux de resistance de l'Acinetobacter baumannii etait de 62a la ceftazidime et de 51a l'imipeneme. Celui de Pseudomonas aeruginosa etait; respectivement de 35;3et de 18;7. Une surveillance epidemiologique des bacteriemies est necessaire; a l'echelle d'un hopital; pour mieux guider l'antibiotherapie probabiliste

[Antibiotics resistance of meticilline-resistant Staphylococcus aureus: detection of the first glycopeptides low sensibility strains in Tunisia]. / Résistance aux antibiotiques de Staphylococcus aureus résistant à la méticilline: détection des premières souches de sensibilité diminuée aux glycopeptides en Tunisie.

The adaptation of Staphylococcus aureus to the hospital environment led to the acquisition of resistance to all antibiotics available in clinical practice. The aim of this study was to investigate the methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) strains isolated in the F. Bourguiba hospital of Monastir (Tunisia). We determined the antibiotype of all Staphylococcus aureus strains identified. Susceptibility rates to fosfomycin, chloramphenicol, rifampicin and pristinamycin were 7%, 3%, 2% and 0%, respectively. The prevalence of MRSA was 15.5% (96 strains); their susceptible to gentamicin progressively increased. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MICs) of oxacillin, vancomycin and teicoplanin were evaluated for the 96 MRSA strains. We identified two MRSA strains (M4 and M41) showing reduced glycopeptides susceptibility. Further analysis revealed that M4 and M41 harbor the gene encoding the class S and class F proteins specific for the Panton-Valentine Leukocidin (PVL). The mecA gene was detected only in strain M41 which harbors the Staphylococcal Cassette Chromosome (SCCmec) type III. This is the first reported MRSA showing reduced susceptibility to glycopeptides in Tunisia. Regulatory surveillance of susceptibility to antibiotics is needed to reduce the morbidity and the mortality rates as well as societal costs of S. aureus infections.

[Prevalence of hepatitis G virus among Tunisian blood donors]. / Prevalence du virus de l'hépatite G chez les donneurs de sang en Tunisie.

Prevalence of hepatitis G virus among Tunisian blood donors Hepatitis G virus (GBV-C/HGV) is a recently identified virus which occurs worldwide. The prevalence of GBV-C/HGV in Tunisia has not been previously studied. We aimed to assess the prevalence of GBV-C/HGV infection in Tunisian blood donors. A total of 912 blood donors were tested for anti-E2 antibodies of GBV-C/HGV by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and 600 were tested by reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction. GBV-C/HGV RNA was found in 5.3% of the sample and HGV antibodies occurred in 4.9%. A correlation was noticed between GBV-C/HGV infection and hepatitis C virus (P = 0.006). The prevalence of GBV-C/HGV is similar to that reported worldwide.

[Prevalence of hepatitis G virus among Tunisian blood donors]

Prevalence of hepatitis G virus among Tunisian blood donors Hepatitis G virus [GBV-C/HGV] is a recently identified virus which occurs worldwide. The prevalence of GBV-C/HGV in Tunisia has not been previously studied. We aimed to assess the prevalence of GBV-C/HGV infection in Tunisian blood donors. A total of 912 blood donors were tested for anti-E2 antibodies of GBV-C/HGV by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and 600 were tested by reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction. GBV-C/HGV RNA was found in 5.3% of the sample and HGV antibodies occurred in 4.9%. A correlation was noticed between GBV-C/HGV infection and hepatitis C virus [P = 0.006]. The prevalence of GBV-C/HGV is similar to that reported worldwide