Bacterial Cellulose Hybrid Composites with Calcium Phosphate for Bone Tissue Regeneration.

Bacterial cellulose (BC) is a unique microbial biopolymer with a huge number of significant applications in the biomedical field, including bone tissue engineering. The present study proposes to obtain and characterize BC hybrid composites with calcium phosphate as biocompatible and bioactive membranes for bone tissue engineering. BC precursor membranes were obtained in static culture fermentation, and after purification, were oxidized to obtain 2,3-dialdehyde bacterial cellulose (DABC). Calcium phosphate-BC oxidized membranes were produced by successive immersion in precursor solutions under ultrasonic irradiation. The samples were characterized for their physicochemical properties using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) coupled with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, attenuated total reflectance-Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy grazing incidence X-ray diffraction (GI-XRD), solid-state 13C nuclear magnetic resonance (CP/MAS 13C NMR), and complex thermal analysis. In vitro cell studies were also performed to evaluate the influence of modified morphological characteristics on cell adhesion and proliferation. The results showed an increase in porosity and biodegradability for DABC hybrid composites compared with BC. In vitro cell studies have revealed that both hybrid composites favor cell adhesion to the surface. The new BC and DABC hybrid composites with calcium phosphate could be considered promising materials for bone tissue regeneration.

Characterization of Staphylococcus aureus strains and evidence for the involvement of non-classical enterotoxin genes in food poisoning outbreaks.

To an increasing extent, molecular and genetic characterization is now used to investigate foodborne outbreaks. The aim of this study was to seek molecular links among coagulase-positive staphylococci (CPS) isolated from three recent food poisoning outbreaks in Romania using polymerase chain reaction and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis techniques. The 19 CPS isolates were identified as Staphylococcus aureus by detection of the 23S rDNA gene. Among them, 15 carried at least one staphylococcal enterotoxin-encoding gene. The Calarasi outbreak strains grouped in pulsotype 2 and were sed/sej/ser-positive, whereas the Arad outbreak strains clustered in pulsotype 17 and were either sed/seg/sei/sej/ser- or seg/sei-positive. The Pitesti outbreak strains clustered in pulsotype 1 and, surprisingly, possessed only one enterotoxin gene, i.e. seh. Similar to other European countries, the seh gene has been identified with increasing frequency in Romanian outbreaks; this highlights the importance of considering the application of methods recommended for staphylococcal enterotoxin regulation in Europe.

New insights into the molecular epidemiology of Trichinella infection in domestic pigs, wild boars, and bears in Romania.

Trichinellosis is a food-borne zoonosis caused by the parasitic nematode Trichinella, characterized by an extremely wide host range and geographical distribution. In Romania, it is recognized as one of the most serious zoonotic diseases. A cross-sectional study, covering all regions of Romania, was conducted in 2014 to investigate and update the prevalence of Trichinella infection among domestic pigs, wild boars, and bears. Additional, molecular identification of Trichinella species circulating among these animals was performed in order to establish the biogeography of Trichinella species within the seven geographical regions of Romania. For this, a total of 113,383 pigs raised in non-controlled housing conditions (backyards), 5596 hunted wild boars and 147 hunted bears were subjected to Trichinella analysis. The highest prevalence of Trichinella infections was found in bears (12.93%), followed by wild boars (1.66%) and domestic pigs (0.20%). Of 294 Trichinella isolates that tested positive by multiplex PCR, 219 (74.49%) were identified as Trichinella spiralis, 66 (22.45%) as Trichinella britovi, and 9 isolates (3.06%) as mixed infections of T. spiralis and T. britovi. T. spiralis was more prevalent in domestic pigs (165/228; 72.37%) than in game (63/228; 27.63%), while T. britovi showed a higher prevalence in game (50/75; 66.66%) than in domestic pigs (25/75; 33.33%). Moreover, the present study revealed a significant host- and area- related distribution of Trichinella species within the seven regions of Romania. Therefore, these findings are of epidemiological relevance, updating data on the prevalence and distribution of Trichinella species circulating among domestic and wild animals in South-Eastern Europe.

First study of Salmonella in meat in Romania.

INTRODUCTION: The increasing antimicrobial resistance of Salmonella isolates is of major public health concern, but information regarding these aspects is still lacking in Romania. This study focused on a detailed and accurate investigation concerning prevalence, serotypes, and antimicrobial resistance patterns of Salmonella strains, isolated from pork and chicken meat, collected from all regions of Romania in 2011. METHODOLOGY: The research was conducted on 650 samples of chicken and pork meat collected from production units and retail markets located in various regions of Romania. A total of 149 Salmonella isolates were recovered (22.92%), serotyped, confirmed by PCR, and further tested for antimicrobial susceptibility. RESULTS: Thirteen Salmonella serovars were identified; predominant serovars included Infantis, Typhimurium, Derby and Colindale. Multiple resistance was found in 83.22% (n = 124) of the isolates. The isolates were frequently resistant to tetracycline (80.53%), streptomycin (81.21%), sulfamethoxazole (87.25%), nalidixic acid (65.10%), and ciprofloxacin (42.95%). Additionally, a markedly lower resistance rate was observed for ampicillin (20.81%), chloramphenicol (16.78%), and ceftazidime (11.41%). Among 137 resistant Salmonella isolates, 35 different resistance patterns were found. CONCLUSION: A high prevalence of Salmonella spp. and a relatively high resistance rate to multiple antimicrobials was found. This data indicates that chicken and pork meat could constitute a source of human exposure to multidrug-resistant Salmonella and therefore could be considered a potential vehicle of resistant Salmonella foodborne diseases. Further actions are needed to succesfully implement a national surveillance program for better monitoring of these resistant pathogens.