A potent enzybiotic against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus

Virus Genes - Staphylococcus aureus is one of the most dreadful infectious agents, responsible for high mortality and morbidity in both humans and animals. The increased prevalence of...     

Preoperative stress testing: new guidelines

To date, there are no well controlled trials in the literature that demonstrate an outcome benefit using stress testing as a screening procedure before noncardiac surgery. Perioperative beta-blockade significantly decreases morbidity and mortality, and thus reduces any potential benefit stress testing may have in identifying patients who may advance to more invasive treatment. Preoperative percutaneous coronary intervention has unproven perioperative benefit, and coronary artery bypass graft carries risks that often offset the risk of noncardiac surgery. Unless an outcome benefit from cardiac testing and procedures can be demonstrated in a properly designed trial, their use should generally be restricted to situations in which symptoms or other cardiac findings warrant cardiac evaluation and treatment, regardless of upcoming surgery.     

Breast-feeding and alcoholism: the Trotter hypothesis

OBJECTIVE: The authors' goal was to determine whether early termination of breast-feeding contributes to later alcohol dependence, as proposed more than 200 years ago by the British physician Thomas Trotter. METHOD: In 1959-1961, a multiple-specialty group of physicians studied 9, 182 consecutive deliveries in a Danish hospital, obtaining data about prepartum and postpartum variables. The present study concentrates on perinatal variables obtained from 200 of the original babies who participated in a 30-year high-risk follow-up study of the antecedents of alcoholism. RESULTS: Of the 27 men who were diagnosed as alcohol dependent at age 30, 13 (48%) came from the group weaned from the breast before the age of 3 weeks; only 33 (19%) of the 173 non-alcohol-dependent subjects came from the early weaning group. When challenged by other perinatal variables in a multiple regression analysis, early weaning significantly contributed to the prediction of the severity of alcoholism at age 30. CONCLUSIONS: The data support the hypothesis that early weaning may be associated with a greater risk of alcohol dependence later in life.     

Effects of Anticholinergics on Postoperative Vomiting, Recovery, and Hospital Stay in Children Undergoing Tonsillectomy with or without Adenoidectomy

Background: Nausea and vomiting are the most frequent problems after minor ambulatory surgical procedures. The agents used to induce and maintain anesthesia may modify the incidence of emesis. When neuromuscular blockade is antagonized with anticholinesterases, atropine or glycopyrrolate is used commonly to prevent bradycardia and excessive oral secretions. This study was designed to evaluate the effect of atrophine and glycopyrrolate on postoperative vomiting in children.

Methods: Ninety-three patients undergoing tonsillectomy with or without adenoidectomy were studied. After inhalation induction of anesthesia with nitrous oxide, oxygen, and halothane, anesthesia was maintained with a nitrous oxide-oxygen mixture, halothane, morphine, and atracurium. Patients were randomized to receive, in a double-blinded manner, either 15 [micro sign]g/kg atropine or 10 [micro sign]g/kg glycopyrrolate with 60 [micro sign]g/kg neostigmine to reverse neuromuscular blockade. Patient recovery, the incidence of postoperative emesis, antiemetic therapy, and the duration of postoperative hospital stay were assessed.

Results: There were no significant differences in age, gender, weight, or discharge time from the postanesthesia care unit or the hospital between the groups. Twenty-four hours after operation, the incidence of vomiting in the atropine group (56%) was significantly less than in the glycopyrrolate group (81%; P < 0.05). There was no significant difference between the atropine and glycopyrrolate groups in the number of patients who required antiemetics or additional analgesics.     

Contribution of free radicals to Pseudomonas aeruginosa induced acute pyelonephritis

Pyelonephritis induces an inflammatory process in the renal parenchyma, which may occur as a result of excessive reactive nitrogen intermediates (RNI) and reactive oxygen species (ROS) and/or impaired antioxidant capacity. In the present investigation, contribution of free radicals to the development of acute pyelonephritis induced by planktonic and biofilm cells of Pseudomonas aeruginosa was studied. Increase in production of RNI and ROS in urine, bladder and renal tissue following infection with P. aeruginosa was observed which correlated with bacterial load, neutrophil recruitment and malondialdehyde (MDA). Evaluation of the data revealed that excessive production of free radicals causes tissue damage leading to bacterial persistence in host's tissues. Treatment of mice with N-acetylcysteine (NAC), a potent antioxidant, lead to significant amelioration of oxidative stress and subsequent decrease in bacterial titer, neutrophil influx, MDA as well as tissue pathology highlighting important role of free radicals in P. aeruginosa induced pyelonephritis. Results of the present study bring out that production of RNI and ROS contributes to the pathophysiology of pyelonephritis. These findings may be relevant for the better understanding of host–parasite interactions and may be of clinical importance in the development of preventive intervention against P. aeruginosa induced pyelonephritis.     

Protective role of liposome incorporated lipopolysaccharide antigen of Klebsiella pneumoniae in a rat model of lobar pneumonia

In a lobar pneumonia model of Klebsiella pneumoniae, the immunoprotective role of free lipoploysaccharide (LPS) and liposome-incorporated LPS was studied. An alteration in the biological activity of the LPS molecule, in terms of its pyrogenicity and lethal toxicity, was observed on incorporation in the liposome. Compared at equal doses, liposome-incorporated LPS was found to be non-pyrogenic and 10 times less toxic than free LPS. Liposome-incorporated LPS was more effective in providing protection against K. pneumoniae induced lobar pneumonia in rats. The immunological mechanism underlying protection revealed involvement of both nonspecific and specific immune response. Alveolar macrophage activation was observed after 4 and 14 days of treatment with the free and liposome-entrapped forms of LPS, respectively. Specific immunity in terms of plaque-forming cells was seen with both forms of LPS. Delayed type hypersensitivity reaction was observed only with liposome-incorporated LPS. It is concluded that a non-toxic and immunogenic form of K. pneumoniae LPS can be obtained by incorporation of the native preparation into liposomes.