ABSTRACT
Mortality of eels Anguilla anguilla in a large shallow lake in France due to predation by the cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo was found to be moderate when compared to fishery catches over a 9 year period. The results show that, contrary to previous extrapolations made at the pan-European scale, P. carbo predation in shallow lakes is not invariably a major contributor to A. anguilla mortality, even in the presence of large colonies.
Subject(s)
Anguilla , Birds , Fisheries , Predatory Behavior , Animals , Ecosystem , France , Fresh Water , Population DensityABSTRACT
Serratia ficaria was first described in 1979 as part of the fig tree ecosystem (P.A.D. Grimont, F. Grimont, and M. P. Starr, Curr. Microbiol. 2:277-282, 1979). Since then, it has been isolated from clinical specimens from a few human patients (C. Bollet, J. Freney, P. de Micco, F. Grimont, and P.A.D. Grimont, Méd. Mal. Infect. 20:97-100, 1990; J.A. Brouillard, W. Hansen, and A. Compere, J. Clin. Microbiol. 19:902-904, 1984; H. Darbas, H. Jean-Pierre, G. Boyer, and M. Riviere, Méd. Mal. Infect. 23:269-270, 1993; V.J. Gill, J.J. Farmer, III, P.A.D. Grimont, M.A. Asbury, and C.L. McIntosh, J. Clin. Microbiol. 14:234-236, 1981; F.D. Pien and J.J. Farmer III, South. Med. J. 76:1591-1592, 1983; C. Richard, J. de Coquet, and C. Suc, Méd. Mal. Infect. 19:45-47, 1989), but the pathogenicity of S. ficaria was always questionable. We are reporting the case of an aged cancer patient who developed S. ficaria septicemia. The habitat of this organism and its potential role as a pathogen are discussed.
Subject(s)
Opportunistic Infections/microbiology , Postoperative Complications/microbiology , Sepsis/microbiology , Serratia Infections/microbiology , Serratia/isolation & purification , Adenocarcinoma/surgery , Aged , Aged, 80 and over , Animals , Environmental Exposure , Fruit/microbiology , Humans , Hymenoptera/microbiology , Immunocompromised Host , Male , Pylorus , Serratia/classification , Serratia/growth & development , Serratia/pathogenicity , Shock, Septic/microbiology , Stomach Neoplasms/surgeryABSTRACT
Mapping the restriction fragments of the Brucella melitensis 16M genome with a new restriction endonuclease, PacI, which cut the DNA into only eight fragments, indicated that this species contains two unique and independent replicons of about 2,100 and 1,150 kb. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis of intact DNA revealed two bands migrating the expected distances. These replicons were identified as two unique and independent chromosomes by the presence of rRNA operons and genes for heat shock proteins mapping to separate replicons.
Subject(s)
Brucella melitensis/genetics , Chromosomes, Bacterial/ultrastructure , DNA, Bacterial/ultrastructure , DNA, Bacterial/genetics , Electrophoresis, Gel, Pulsed-Field , Replicon , Restriction MappingABSTRACT
Commensal Neisseria may constitute a potential source of resistance genes transferable to pathogenic Neisseria. We tested 150 strains of commensal Neisseria isolated from throat cultures for resistance to tetracycline and beta-lactamase production. Seven strains were high level tetracycline resistant (MIC greater than 16 mg/ml), and minocycline resistant. Only one strain carries a 40 kilobases plasmid. Seven strains were tetracycline resistant (MIC = 8 or 16 mg/l) and minocycline susceptible. Three strains were beta-lactamase producers. These strains were identified as Neisseria perflava or Neisseria sica.
