Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Case Of Enterococcus Cecorum Human Bacteremia, United States, Alexander D. Lake, Ryan Fields, Francia Guerrero, Yousef Almuzaini, Koravangala Sundaresh, Joseph Staffetti

HCA Healthcare Journal of Medicine

Enterococcus cecorum rarely serves as a human pathogen, and only 6 cases of this microbe inoculating humans have been documented. We present an elderly female with a marked vascular history presenting with epigastric pain and diarrhea, followed by shaking chills. Laboratory findings revealed leukocytosis, with imaging showing diffuse colonic thickening. She had a bout of bloody diarrhea, raising the likelihood of ischemic colitis with her vascular history. To our surprise, both sets of blood cultures drawn on admission grew Enterococcus cecorum. This case is unique as it is the first documented case of E. cecorum human infection in the …

Evaluating The Microbial Experience Influence On Anti-Tumor Immune Response, Jessica A. Ensing

Student Summer Scholars Manuscripts

Despite the steady increase of hygienic standards, the CDC continues to report an increase of immune-mediated diseases such as allergies and asthma. Human avoidance of microbial exposure and subsequently less experienced immune systems may be the cause for this increase. We investigated if increased microbial exposure results in increased immunity to cancer (B16 melanoma) by measuring activated lymphocytes between two groups of C57Bl/6 mice: specific pathogen free (SPF) mice (which had little microbial exposure) and cohoused (COH) mice (which were exposed to numerous microbes). Previous research shows that the CoH mouse model mimics a human adult’s immune system, while the …

Role Of Β-Catenin In Vitiligo: A Clinical And Immunohistochemical Study, Azza G. A. Farag, Dalia R. Al-Sharaky, Eman N. El-Shafey, Heba N. N. Shehata, Mohamed A. Shoeib, Reem A. Hassan

Menoufia Medical Journal

Objective This study aimed at evaluating the immunohistochemical expression of β-catenin in the involved skin in vitiligo patients and to correlate its evaluated expression with the available clinicopathological parameters in those patients. Background Vitiligo is an autoimmune skin disorder in which the loss of melanocytes is mainly attributed to defective autoimmune mechanisms, cytotoxic mechanisms, an intrinsic defect of melanocytes, oxidant–antioxidant mechanisms, and neural mechanisms. The assessment of maintenance of vitiligo could be related to β-catenin expression. The treatment of vitiligo remains a challenge. Patients and methods Thirty-five patients with different degrees of vitiligo severity versus 20 patients of age-matched and …

Educational Case: A Case Of Transfusion-Transmitted Babesiosis: Diagnostic Perspectives Across The Clinical Laboratory., Kaitlyn Dykes, Alexis R. Peedin

Department of Pathology, Anatomy, and Cell Biology Faculty Papers

The following fictional case is intended as a learning tool within the Pathology Competencies for Medical Education (PCME), a set of national standards for teaching pathology. These are divided into three basic competencies: Disease Mechanisms and Processes, Organ System Pathology, and Diagnostic Medicine and Therapeutic Pathology.

Covid-19: In The Absence Of Vaccination – ‘Mask-The-Nation’, Roy D. Sleator, Steven Darby, Alan Giltinan, Niall Smith

Department of Biological Sciences Publications

“In the absence of a vaccine, or effective antiviral, one of our only remaining strategies for controlling COVID-19 is to physically block the spread of SARS-CoV-2 in the community”

Contributions Of Gyra And Parc Mutations And Qnrs2 Acquisition To Ciprofloxacin Resistance In Aeromonas Veronii Hm21, Daniel J. Silverstein

Honors Scholar Theses

In recent years, ciprofloxacin resistant (CpR) Aeromonas veronii and A. hydrophila strains have been isolated from the wounds of patients receiving leech therapy. Genome comparisons of these CpR isolates revealed the presence of chromosomal mutations in gyrA and parC as well as the gain of qnrS2 on either a large, 34 kb, conjugatable, low-copy plasmid, pAv42, or on a small, 6.8 kb, high-copy plasmid, pAh1471. The minimum inhibitory concentration, MIC, for Cp of these clinical isolates ranged from 1 to ≥32 µg/mL and some harbored a qnrS2 containing plasmid. We wanted to assess the contributions of these factors in an …

Understanding Human Astrovirus From Pathogenesis To Treatment, Virginia Hargest

Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

While human astroviruses (HAstV) were discovered nearly 45 years ago, these small positive-sense RNA viruses remain critically understudied. These studies provide fundamental new research on astrovirus pathogenesis and disruption of the gut epithelium by induction of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) following astrovirus infection. Here we characterize HAstV-induced EMT as an upregulation of SNAI1 and VIM with a down regulation of CDH1 and OCLN, loss of cell-cell junctions most notably at 18 hours post-infection (hpi), and loss of cellular polarity by 24 hpi. While active transforming growth factor- (TGF-) increases during HAstV infection, inhibition of TGF- signaling does not hinder EMT induction. …

The Threat Of Antibiotic Resistance In Changing Climate, Aliyar Cyrus Fouladkhah, Brian Thompson, Janey Smith Camp

Agricultural and Environmental Sciences Faculty Research

As the earliest form of life, microorganisms have elaborate mechanisms for adapting to changes in environmental conditions.

Testing The Ancestral Function Of Divergent Candida Albicans Virulence-Associated Proteins Via Expression In Saccharomyces Cerevisiae Mutants, Curtis Mack

Student Scholars Day Posters

Candida albicans is an opportunistic fungal pathogen and a member of the normal human microbiota. It is closely related to the harmless fungus, Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Some genes associated with the virulent nature of C. albicans are similar to genes in S. cerevisiae. Three of these genes, PHO13, NRG1, and TUP1 are known to repress the change from yeast to filamentous growth in C. albicans, an important virulence trait. However, similar genes in S. cerevisiae are known to have functional differences. Our goal was to see if the ancestral function of these genes have drifted apart by examining …

Assessment Of Left Atrial Function In Patients With Ischemic And Nonischemic Dilated Cardiomyopathy Using Speckle-Tracking Echocardiography, Abdalla M. Kamal, Ahmed A. Kamal, Mohamed H. Mostafa, Naglaa F. Ahmed

Menoufia Medical Journal

Objective The aim was to assess left atrial (LA) function in patients with ischemic and nonischemic dilated cardiomyopathy using speckle tracking echocardiography. Background LA changes occur in patients with dilated cardiomyopathy and LA enlargement is commonly found by echocardiography. Two-dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography is a tool for the evaluation of LA function. Patients and methods This casecontrol study was conducted on 67 randomly selected individuals who presented to the Cardiology Department of Faculty of Medicine, Menoufia University, Egypt, during the period from January 2017 to December 2017. They included 52 patients with systolic heart failure (HF) and 15 normal individuals. …

Etiology, Clinical, Radiological, And Microbiological Profile Of Patients With Non-Cystic Fibrosis Bronchiectasis At A Tertiary Care Hospital Of Pakistan, Nadia Sharif, Mirza Saifullah Baig, Sana Sharif, Muhammad Irfan

Section of Pulmonary & Critical Care

Objectives: To identify the etiology of non-cystic fibrosis bronchiectasis (NCFB), to assess the clinical presentation, radiological findings, and microbiological profile of patients presenting with a diagnosis of bronchiectasis in a tertiary care center of Pakistan.
Methods: This was a prospective observational cohort study where patients with a diagnosis of bronchiectasis proven by high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) were evaluated for etiology, clinical characteristics, microbiology, radiology, spirometric profile, and in-hospital outcomes.
Results: During the study period, 196 patients were diagnosed with NCFB. The majority of the patients were men 76.5% (n = 150) and 83.6% (n = 163) of the total patients …

10th Annual Postdoctoral Science Symposium, University Of Texas Md Anderson Cancer Center Postdoctoral Association

Annual Postdoctoral Science Symposium Abstracts

The Annual Postdoctoral Science Symposium (APSS) was initiated on August 4, 2011, by the MD Anderson Postdoctoral Association to provide a platform for talented postdoctoral fellows throughout the Texas Medical Center to present their work to a wider audience.

APSS is a scientific symposium organized by postdoctoral fellows from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center that welcomes submissions and presentations from postdoctoral fellows from all Texas Medical Center affiliated institutions and other Houston area institutions. The APSS provides a professional venue for postdoctoral scientists to develop, clarify and refine their research as result of formal reviews and critiques …

Antifungal Defense Molecules From Bacterial Symbionts Of North American Trachymyrmex Ants, Georgia Scherer

CMC Senior Theses

Defensive symbioses, in which microbes provide molecular defenses for an animal host, hold great potential as untapped sources of therapeutically useful antibiotics. Fungus-growing ants use antifungal defenses from bacterial symbionts to suppress pathogenic fungi in their nests. Preliminary chemical investigations of symbiotic bacteria from this large family of ants have uncovered novel antifungal molecules with therapeutic potential, such as dentigerumycin and selvamicin.

In this study, the bacterial symbionts of North American Trachymyrmex fungus-growing ants are investigated for antifungal molecules. Plate-based bioassays using ecologically-relevant fungal pathogens confirmed that these bacteria have antifungal activity. In order to purify and identify the antifungal …