Clinical Features of Febrile Urinary Tract Infection Caused by Extended-spectrum Beta-lactamase-producing Escherichia Coli in Children.

The global prevalence of infections caused by extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL)-producing Escherichia coli has been increasing. In children, ESBL-producing E. coli manifest mostly as febrile urinary tract infections (fUTIs). This study aimed to elucidate the clinical features of fUTI resulting from ESBL-producing E. coli in Japanese patients. The clinical features of children with E. coli-related fUTI were retrospectively examined. These children underwent treatment at the National Hospital Organization Saitama Hospital, Japan, between May 2010 and April 2018. Urine specimens were obtained by either bladder catheterization or the clean-catch method. All children having positive urine cultures (≥104 colony-forming unit/mL for catheter specimens and ≥105 colony forming unit/mL for clean-catch specimens) and a fever of ≥38°C were considered to have fUTI. During the study period, 171 patients were diagnosed with E. coli-related fUTI. Among these, 17 (9.9%) fUTI cases were caused by ESBL-producing E. coli. A significant difference was noted in the median age of the populations having ESBL-producing E. coli and non-ESBL-producing E. coli infections (2 and 5 months, respectively); other characteristics were not significantly different between the two patient groups. ESBL-producing E. coli infections markedly increased in our hospital between 2013 and 2018. In the present study, young age was the only risk factor for fUTI caused by ESBL-producing E. coli identified in Japanese children.

Combined effects of dietary protein type and fat level on the body fat-reducing activity of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) in rats.

The interaction of dietary protein type and fat level on the body fat-reducing activity of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) was studied in male rats fed diets containing casein (CAS) or soy protein (SOY) as a protein source with low fat (LF, 6.0% soybean oil) or high fat (HF, 13.0% soybean oil) combinations for 4 weeks. CLA was added at the 1.0% level to all diets. The weight of perirenal adipose tissue tended to be lower in the SOY groups than in the corresponding CAS groups, and the difference between the LF diets was significant. The weight of epididymal adipose tissue showed a similar but insignificant trend. The weight of brown adipose tissue was heaviest on the SOY-HF diet and lowest on two CAS diets, the SOY-LF diet being intermediate. The concentration of serum leptin was lowest on the SOY-LF diet and was significantly lower than that of the corresponding CAS group, but this difference disappeared when the dietary fat level increased. The serum cholesterol-lowering activity of SOY in relation to CAS was reproduced even when CLA was given. Thus the body fat-reducing activity of CLA was most marked when rats were fed the SOY-LF diet. Although the CAS-HF diet increased body fat deposition, the magnitude of the reduction by lowering dietary fat level was more marked than in the case of SOY. These results indicate a complicated interaction of dietary manipulations with the body fat-reducing effect of CLA, but the combination of CLA with the SOY-LF diet appears to be an appropriate approach.

Dietary protein modulates the effect of CLA on lipid metabolism in rats.

The effect of the interaction of CLA and type of dietary protein on lipid metabolism was studied in male rats by feeding diets containing casein (CAS) or soy protein (SOY) as dietary protein and either linoleic acid (LA, a control FA) or graded levels of CLA at 0, 0.1, 0.5, and 1.0% for 28 d. CLA reduced the weight of perirenal adipose tissue in a dose-dependent manner, but the magnitude of the reduction was greater when rats were fed SOY. Feeding SOY resulted in a significant reduction of the concentrations of serum total and HDL cholesterol, TG, glucose, and insulin irrespective of dietary CLA. The concentration of serum leptin tended to be lower on the SOY diet free of CLA than in the corresponding CAS diet, but it fell with an increasing dietary level of CLA in the CAS groups. In contrast, serum leptin tended to increase when CLA was added to SOY diets. The concentration of serum adiponectin was higher in the CAS than in the SOY groups, and it tended to increase in response to dietary CLA levels in the CAS-fed rats, whereas CLA showed no effect in SOY-fed rats. The activity of liver mitochondrial carnitine palmitoyltransferase was higher in the SOY than in the CAS groups, but it tended to increase with an increasing dietary level of CLA in both protein groups. Although the body fat-reducing activity of CLA was more effective when the protein source was SOY, rats fed CAS appeared to be more susceptible to CLA than in those fed SOY with respect to cytokines examined. These results suggest that the type of dietary protein may modify the antiobesity activity of CLA.

Lack of significant inhibitory effects of a plant lignan tracheloside on 2-amino-1-methyl-6-phenylimidazo[4,5-b]pyridine (PhIP)-induced mammary carcinogenesis in female Sprague-Dawley rats.

Tracheloside, one of the plant lignans which can be extracted from the debris after safflower oil is produced from the seeds of Carthamus tinctorious, is an analogue of another plant lignan, arctiin, the side-chain C-2 of the five-membered ring being changed from a hydrogen to a hydroxyl group. We have already demonstrated that arctiin has chemopreventive effect on mammary carcinogenesis. Therefore, chemopreventive effects of tracheloside on the initiation or post-initiation period of 2-amino-1-methyl-6-phenylimidazo[4,5-b]pyridine (PhIP)-induced mammary carcinogenesis in female rats were examined. For initiation, female Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats at the 6 weeks of age were given intragastric administrations of 100 mg/kg body weight of PhIP once a week for 8 weeks. The animals were treated with 0.2 or 0.02% tracheloside during or after this carcinogen exposure. Control rats were fed basal diet with PhIP initiation or 0.2% tracheloside or basal diet alone without initiation throughout the experimental period. All surviving animals were necropsied at the week 52 of administration. There were no clear treatment-related changes with statistical significance in all parameters for mammary carcinomas measured in this experiment. These results indicate that tracheloside may not exert significant effects on PhIP-induced mammary carcinogenesis at least under the present experiment condition.

Immunoglobulin and cytokine production from spleen lymphocytes is modulated in C57BL/6J mice by dietary cis-9, trans-11 and trans-10, cis-12 conjugated linoleic acid.

We evaluated the effect of cis-9, trans-11 (9c,11t) and trans-10, cis-12 (10t,12c) conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) on the immune system in C57BL/6J mice. Mice were fed experimental diets containing 0% CLA (controls), 1% 9c,11t-CLA, 1% 10t,12c-CLA or a 1:1 mixture (0.5% + 0.5%) of these two CLA isomers for 3 wk. Relative spleen weights of all CLA fed mice were greater than the controls. Spleen lymphocytes isolated from the mice fed 10t,12c-CLA produced more immunoglobulin (Ig)A and IgM but not IgG when stimulated with concanavalin A (ConA) compared with controls. IgA production from unstimulated spleen lymphocytes was greater in the 10t, 12c-CLA group than in controls. Conversely, 9c,11t-CLA did not affect the production of any of the Ig subclasses. Lymphocytes isolated from 9c,11t-CLA fed mice produced more tumor necrosis factor-alpha than the control group. The proportion of B cells in the spleen lymphocyte population was significantly lower in the 9c,11t-CLA group, and higher in the 10t,12c-CLA group than in the controls. Compared with the control group, the percentage of CD4(+) T cells was lower in the 10t,12c-CLA group, and the percentage of CD8(+) T cells was higher in the 9c,11t-CLA group. Furthermore, the percentage of CD8(+) T cells was higher in the 1:1 mixture group than in controls. The CD4(+)/CD8(+) ratio was lower in the 1:1 mixture group than in controls. These results suggest that 9c,11t and 10t,12c-CLA can stimulate different immunological effects and that the simultaneous intake of the two isomers can change the T cell population.

Dietary conjugated linolenic acid in relation to CLA differently modifies body fat mass and serum and liver lipid levels in rats.

The present study compared the effect of dietary conjugated linolenic acid (CLNA) on body fat and serum and liver lipid levels with that of CLA in rats. FFA rich in linoleic acid, a-linolenic acid, CLA, or CLNA were used as experimental fats. Male Sprague-Dawley rats (4 wk old) were fed purified diets containing 1% of one of these experimental fats. After 4 wk of feeding, adipose tissue weights, serum and liver lipid concentrations, serum tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha and leptin levels, and hepatic beta-oxidation activities were measured. Compared with linoleic acid, CLA and, more potently, CLNA were found to reduce perirenal adipose tissue weight. The same trend was observed in the weight of epididymal adipose tissue. CLNA, but not CLA, was found to significantly increase serum and liver TG concentrations. Serum FFA concentration was also increased in the CLNA group more than in the other groups. The activity of beta-oxidation in liver mitochondria and peroxisomes was significantly higher in the CLNA group than in the other groups. Thus, the amount of liver TG exceeded the ability of hepatic beta-oxidation. Significant positive correlation was found between the adipose tissue weights and serum leptin levels in all animals (vs. perirenal: r = 0.557, P < 0.001; vs. epididymal: r = 0.405, P < 0.05). A less significant correlation was found between adipose tissue weights and serum TNF-alpha level (vs. perirenal: r = 0.069, P > 0.1; vs. epididymal: r = 0.382, P < 0.05). Although the mechanism for the specific effect of CLNA is not clear at present, these findings indicate that in rats CLNA modulated the body fat and TG metabolism differently from CLA.

Combined effects of dietary conjugated linoleic acid and sesamin triacylglycerol and ketone body production in rat liver.

The effects of a combination of dietary conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) supplemented with sesamin on hepatic ketogenesis and triacylglycerol secretion were compared using the livers of rats fed diets containing 1% CLA or linoleic acid (LA) in combination with 0.2% sesamin for 14 d, respectively. The feeding of CLA, as compared to LA, caused a significant reduction in the weight of perirenal adipose tissue but not that of epididymal adipose tissue, and affected neither growth parameters nor hepatic lipid concentration. Hepatic production of ketone bodies was consistently higher in rats fed CLA than in those fed LA, while triacylglycerol secretion was reversed. No significant difference was noted in the hepatic secretion of cholesterol among the groups. Although there was no effect of the dietary combination of CLA with sesamin on adipose tissue weight, hepatic lipid parameters and ketone body production were observed: i.e., triacylglycerol secretion tended to be reduced. These results suggest that the dietary combination of CLA with sesamin may be an effective approach for lowering serum triacylglycerol levels. The decreased hepatic secretion of triacylglycerol is, in part, due to enhanced fatty acid oxidation in the liver.