Population-Based Drug Resistance Surveillance of Multidrug-Resistant Tuberculosis in Taiwan, 2007-2014.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the extent of drug resistance in multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) cases, we conducted a retrospective, population-based analysis using drug susceptibility testing (DST) results of MDR Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex isolates obtained from 2007-2014 in Taiwan. METHODS: M. tuberculosis isolates collected from 1,331 MDR-TB cases were included in this survey. Treatment histories, age, sex, chest radiograph and bacteriological results of patients were analyzed. Standard DST was performed to assess resistance to the following drugs: isoniazid (INH), rifampicin (RIF), streptomycin (SM), ethambutol (EMB), amikacin (AM), kanamycin (KM), capreomycin (CAP), ofloxacin (OFX), moxifloxacin (MOX), levofloxacin (LVX), gatifloxacin (GAT), para-aminosalicylate (PAS), ethionamide (EA), and pyrazinamide (PZA). The Cochran-Armitage trend test was used for statistical analysis. RESULTS: We observed a significant increasing trend in portion of new MDR-TB cases, from 59.5% to 80.2% (p < 0.0001), and significant decreasing trend of portion in the 15-44-year-old age group (p < 0.05). Of the MDR M. tuberculosis isolates tested, 6.2% were resistant to AM, 8.6% were resistant to KM, 4.6% were resistant to CAP, 19.5% were resistant to OFX, 17.1% were resistant to MOX, 16.0% were resistant to LVX, 5.8% were resistant to GAT, 9.5% were resistant to PAS, 28.5% were resistant to EA and 33.3% were resistant to PZA. Fifty (3.8%) extensively drug-resistant TB cases were identified. No significant differences were found in drug resistance frequencies between new and previously treated MDR cases. However, we observed significant decreases in the rates of AM resistance (p < 0.05), OFX resistance (p < 0.00001), PAS resistance (p < 0.00001), EA resistance (p < 0.05) and PZA resistance (p < 0.05). Moreover, younger age groups had higher rates of resistance to fluoroquinolones. CONCLUSION: A policy implemented in 2007 to restrict the prescription of fluoroquinolones was shown to be effective. Our survey revealed a decreasing trend of resistance to PZA, OFX and AM, which suggests the feasibility of adopting a short-course regimen and demonstrates the effectiveness of our management program for MDR-TB.

Utilization of ground eggshell waste as an adsorbent for the removal of dyes from aqueous solution.

The adsorption of cationic basic blue 9 and anionic acid orange 51 from aqueous solution onto the calcified eggshell (ES) and its ground eggshell powder (ESP) was carried out by varying the process parameters such as agitation speed, initial dye concentration, adsorbent mass and temperature. The adsorption potential for basic blue 9 onto ESP is far lower than that for acid orange 51, mainly due to the ionic interaction between the acid dye with the sulfonate groups and the positively charged sites on the surface of ESP. The adsorption capacity of acid orange 51 onto ES is significantly smaller than that onto ESP, which is in line with their pore properties (i.e., 1 vs. 21 m(2)/g). The experimental results showed that the adsorption process can be well described with a simple model, the pseudo-second-order model. According to the equilibrium adsorption capacity from the fitting of pseudo-second order reaction model, it was further found that the Freundlich model yields a somewhat better fit than the Langmuir model in the adsorption of acid orange 51 onto ESP. In addition, an increase in adsorption temperature from 15 to 45 degrees C significantly enhances the adsorption capacity of acid orange 51 onto ESP, revealing that the adsorption should be an endothermic or chemisorption process. From the results, it is feasible to utilize the ground eggshell waste as an effective adsorbent for removal of anionic dye from aqueous solution.

Removal of basic dye (methylene blue) from wastewaters utilizing beer brewery waste.

In the work, the beer brewery waste has been shown to be a low-cost adsorbent for the removal of basic dye from the aqueous solution as compared to its precursor (i.e., diatomite) based on its physical and chemical characterizations including surface area, pore volume, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and non-mineral elemental analyses. The pore properties of this waste were significantly larger than those of its raw material, reflecting that the trapped organic matrices contained in the waste probably provided additional adsorption sites and/or adsorption area. The results of preliminary adsorption kinetics showed that the diatomite waste could be directly used as a potential adsorbent for removal of methylene blue on the basis of its adsorption-biosorption mechanisms. The adsorption parameters thus obtained from the pseudo-second-order model were in accordance with their pore properties. From the results of adsorption isotherm at 298 K and the applicability examinations in treating industrial wastewater containing basic dye, it was further found that the adsorption capacities of diatomite waste were superior to those of diatomite, which were also in good agreement with their corresponding physical properties. From the results mentioned above, it is feasible to utilize the food-processing waste for removing dye from the industrial dying wastewater.

The adsorption of cationic dye from aqueous solution onto acid-activated andesite.

The adsorption of cationic dye (i.e., methylene blue) onto acid-activated andesite in aqueous solution was studied in a batch system with respect to its kinetics as a function of agitation speed, initial adsorbate concentration, pH, and adsorbent mass. It was found that the resulting acid-activated adsorbent possessed a mesoporous structure with BET surface areas at around 60m(2)/g. The surface characterization of acid-activated andesite was also performed using the zeta-potential measurements, indicating that the charge sign on the surface of the andesite should be negative in a wide pH range (i.e., 3-11). Furthermore, a simplified kinetic model, pseudo-second-order, was tested to investigate the adsorption behaviors of methylene blue onto the clay samples treated under different process conditions. It was found that the adsorption process could be well described with the model. The adsorption capacity parameter of the model obtained in the present work was significantly in line with the process parameters.

Adsorption characteristics of bisphenol-A in aqueous solutions onto hydrophobic zeolite.

The adsorption behavior of bisphenol-A, which is a hydrophobic organic compound and also listed as one of endocrine disrupting chemicals, from aqueous solution onto hydrophobic zeolite at 25 degrees C have been studied using a batch adsorption process in terms of a pseudo-second-order equation and three common isotherms (i.e., the Langmuir, Freundlich, and Redlich-Peterson). The pore properties of the Y-type zeolite have been determined using N2 adsorption-desorption isotherms, indicating that it is a supermicroporous adsorbent associated with a lower percentage of mesopores. Based on the kinetic model the effects of particle size, initial bisphenol-A concentration, initial solution pH, and adsorbent dosage on the adsorption rate constant and equilibrium capacity have been estimated, showing that the adsorption process could be simulated well by the simplified kinetic model. From the data on the equilibrium adsorption capacities obtained by fitting the pseudo-second-order model, the adsorption isotherm could be better described by the three-parameter Redlich-Peterson model than by the two-parameter models (i.e., the Langmuir and Freundlich).