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The Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal Jan 2024
Topics: Child; Humans; Arcanobacterium; Actinomycetales Infections; Immunocompetence
PubMed: 37922488
DOI: 10.1097/INF.0000000000004147 -
The American Journal of Case Reports Nov 2023BACKGROUND Actinomyces, a filamentous, branching, anaerobic gram-positive bacillus, typically found as a commensal organism in the oral cavity, can lead to rare chronic...
BACKGROUND Actinomyces, a filamentous, branching, anaerobic gram-positive bacillus, typically found as a commensal organism in the oral cavity, can lead to rare chronic bacterial infections in various anatomical regions. Chest wall involvement represents an uncommon presentation, posing significant diagnostic challenges. This report focuses on the case of a 13-year-old boy presenting with chest wall actinomycetoma that closely resembled Ewing sarcoma on imaging. CASE REPORT We present the case of a 13-year-old male with no previous medical history who presented to the Emergency Department with progressive left-sided chest pain following a sports-related fall. Physical examination revealed mild swelling and tenderness on the left anterior chest wall. A chest computed tomography (CT) scan revealed a large tumor involving the lower left chest wall, suggesting Ewing sarcoma. However, a histopathological examination unexpectedly confirmed actinomycosis of the chest wall. Intravenous penicillin G was promptly initiated for 4 weeks. A follow-up CT scan after 4 weeks of therapy demonstrated a significant response with notable reduction in the size of the chest wall mass. The patient then continued with maintenance therapy using oral amoxicillin for 12 months. Throughout this period, complete resolution of the chest wall mass occurred, with no significant adverse events or complications observed. CONCLUSIONS This case highlights the importance of considering uncommon differential diagnoses like chest wall actinomycosis in patients presenting with chest wall masses. The diagnostic complexities associated with this rare condition emphasize the need for a comprehensive evaluation strategy, incorporating histopathological examination and imaging.
Topics: Male; Humans; Adolescent; Sarcoma, Ewing; Thoracic Wall; Actinomycosis; Actinomyces; Amoxicillin
PubMed: 37919883
DOI: 10.12659/AJCR.941498 -
Journal of Periodontology Jun 2024This study determined the prevalence of aggressive (molar-incisor pattern) (Ag/MI) periodontitis and assessed the associated subgingival bacterial-herpesvirus microbiota...
BACKGROUND
This study determined the prevalence of aggressive (molar-incisor pattern) (Ag/MI) periodontitis and assessed the associated subgingival bacterial-herpesvirus microbiota in Pueblo Indian adolescents in the southwestern United States.
METHODS
The study included 240 Pueblo Indian adolescents, aged 13-20 years old, residing in three Rio Grande River villages in New Mexico and the Hopi Pueblo reservation in Arizona. Adolescents with Ag/MI periodontitis or periodontal health provided subgingival samples for culture of bacterial pathogens and for polymerase chain reaction detection of periodontal herpesviruses.
RESULTS
Ag/MI periodontitis was detected in 22 (9.2%) Pueblo Indian adolescents, with 21 exhibiting a localized molar-incisor breakdown pattern. Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans, Porphyromonas gingivalis, and other red/orange complex bacterial pathogens predominated in Ag/MI periodontitis, whereas periodontal health yielded mainly viridans streptococci and Actinomyces species. Periodontal herpesviruses demonstrated a 3.5 odds ratio relationship with Ag/MI periodontitis. The only adolescent with generalized Ag/MI periodontitis harbored viral co-infection by cytomegalovirus plus Epstein-Barr virus Type 1, in addition to A. actinomycetemcomitans, P. gingivalis, and several other periodontopathic bacteria.
CONCLUSIONS
Pueblo Indian adolescents showed an unusually high prevalence of early-age Ag/MI periodontitis predominated by periodontopathic bacteria and herpesviruses suspected to be major etiologic agents of the disease.
Topics: Humans; Adolescent; Young Adult; Male; Female; Aggressive Periodontitis; Indians, North American; Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans; Porphyromonas gingivalis; Arizona; New Mexico; Cytomegalovirus; Actinomyces; Viridans Streptococci; Prevalence; Coinfection; Herpesvirus 4, Human; Herpesviridae
PubMed: 37910464
DOI: 10.1002/JPER.23-0410 -
Microbiology Spectrum Dec 2023With the development of animal husbandry in China, the production of a large amount of livestock and poultry manure has become one of the main agricultural pollution...
With the development of animal husbandry in China, the production of a large amount of livestock and poultry manure has become one of the main agricultural pollution sources. High-temperature aerobic composting stands out as one of the most crucial methods for the safe and resourceful utilization of livestock and poultry manure, serving as an essential link between crop cultivation, animal breeding, and sustainable agricultural development. Numerous studies have demonstrated that the addition of exogenous multifunctional bacterial agents to compost reduces not only harmful emissions but also sequesters or increases essential nutrients. However, these efficacies depend on the specific functions of the bacteriophage itself, the harmonization and complementarity within the colony, and its ability to adapt to the environment. In recent years, relatively few studies have been conducted on actinomycetes. This experiment provides excellent actinomycete resources for the production of high-efficiency and high-quality compost compound microbial agents of manure and straw.
Topics: Animals; Composting; Actinobacteria; Actinomyces; Manure; Animal Husbandry; Poultry; Livestock; Soil
PubMed: 37905797
DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.02053-23 -
Diagnostic Microbiology and Infectious... Jan 2024Actinomycetes, ubiquitous in the natural world, have been known to inflict infections upon both immunocompromised and healthy individuals. Interestingly enough, these... (Review)
Review
Fifteen years of phenotypic and genotypic surveillance and antibiotic susceptibility pattern of Actinomycetes (Mycobacterium, Nocardia, Rhodococcus, etc.) in clinical and environmental samples of Iran.
Actinomycetes, ubiquitous in the natural world, have been known to inflict infections upon both immunocompromised and healthy individuals. Interestingly enough, these species are oftentimes found residing within the microbiota of humans and animals alike. Unfortunately, these infections are frequently misdiagnosed as more sinister ailments such as malignancy or tuberculosis. Due to this issue, this review deals with 15 years of study on clinical and environmental samples to determine Actinomycetes' prevalence, isolation, identification, and antibiotic susceptibility pattern in Iran by Davood Azadi et al. According to the Davood Azadi framework, we searched the following databases: PubMed/MEDLINE, Embase, Scopus, Web of Science, SID, and Google Scholar in the period from 2007 to 2023. This review aimed to provide an overview of the most recent techniques for collecting environmental samples, cultivating them, and identifying the Actinomycetes group's members. The isolation of Actinomycetes from clinical and ecological sources is becoming more prevalent and should be a concern for health authorities in developing countries. Health centers should take action to increase awareness of diagnostic criteria and management guidelines for actinomycete diseases. Improvements in national and regional reference laboratories may also aid in accurately diagnosing these diseases.
Topics: Humans; Animals; Nocardia; Mycobacterium Infections, Nontuberculous; Actinobacteria; Rhodococcus; Actinomyces; Iran; Nontuberculous Mycobacteria; Mycobacterium; Anti-Bacterial Agents
PubMed: 37862765
DOI: 10.1016/j.diagmicrobio.2023.116080 -
Acta Crystallographica. Section D,... Nov 2023Cell-surface proteins known as adhesins enable bacteria to colonize particular environments, and in Gram-positive bacteria often contain autocatalytically formed...
Cell-surface proteins known as adhesins enable bacteria to colonize particular environments, and in Gram-positive bacteria often contain autocatalytically formed covalent intramolecular cross-links. While investigating the prevalence of such cross-links, a remarkable example was discovered in Mobiluncus mulieris, a pathogen associated with bacterial vaginosis. This organism encodes a putative adhesin of 7651 residues. Crystallography and mass spectrometry of two selected domains, and AlphaFold structure prediction of the remainder of the protein, were used to show that this adhesin belongs to the family of thioester, isopeptide and ester-bond-containing proteins (TIE proteins). It has an N-terminal domain homologous to thioester adhesion domains, followed by 51 immunoglobulin (Ig)-like domains containing ester- or isopeptide-bond cross-links. The energetic cost to the M. mulieris bacterium in retaining such a large adhesin as a single gene or protein construct suggests a critical role in pathogenicity and/or persistence.
Topics: Female; Humans; Mobiluncus; Adhesins, Bacterial; Esters
PubMed: 37860959
DOI: 10.1107/S2059798323007507 -
Methods in Molecular Biology (Clifton,... 2024The Gram-positive bacterium Actinomyces oris expresses a unique cell wall-anchored fimbria comprised of the fimbrial shaft FimA and the tip fimbrillin CafA, whose gene...
The Gram-positive bacterium Actinomyces oris expresses a unique cell wall-anchored fimbria comprised of the fimbrial shaft FimA and the tip fimbrillin CafA, whose gene is not genetically linked to the fimA locus, unlike many other fimbrial gene loci in Gram-positive bacteria. Mutational analyses of individual fimbrillins, FimA and CafA, in A. oris often rely on multi-copy plasmids that may alter the stoichiometry of fimbrillins in vivo, hence fimbrial assembly. Here, we provide a robust method for single-copy gene expression and mutagenesis in A. oris, using CafA as an experimental model. This method can be applied for single-copy gene editing in various bacterial systems.
Topics: Fimbriae Proteins; Gene Editing; Actinomyces; Fimbriae, Bacterial; Cell Wall; Bacterial Proteins
PubMed: 37815713
DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-3491-2_10 -
Current Opinion in Microbiology Dec 2023Throughout the golden age of antibiotic discovery, Streptomyces have been unsurpassed for their ability to produce bioactive metabolites. Yet, this success has been... (Review)
Review
Throughout the golden age of antibiotic discovery, Streptomyces have been unsurpassed for their ability to produce bioactive metabolites. Yet, this success has been hampered by rediscovery. As we enter a new stage of biodiscovery, omics data and existing scientific repositories can enable informed choices on the biodiversity that may yield novel antibiotics. Here, we focus on the chemical potential of rare actinomycetes, defined as bacteria within the order Actinomycetales, but not belonging to the genus Streptomyces. They are named as such due to their less-frequent isolation under standard laboratory practices, yet there is increasing evidence to suggest these biologically diverse genera harbour considerable biosynthetic and chemical diversity. In this review, we focus on examples of successful isolation and genera that have been the focus of more concentrated biodiscovery efforts, we survey the representation of rare actinomycete taxa, compared with Streptomyces, across natural product data repositories in addition to its biosynthetic potential. This is followed by an overview of clinically useful drugs produced by rare actinomycetes and considerations for future biodiscovery efforts. There is much to learn about these underexplored taxa, and mounting evidence suggests that they are a fruitful avenue for the discovery of novel antimicrobials.
Topics: Actinobacteria; Actinomyces; Anti-Bacterial Agents; Streptomyces; Biodiversity
PubMed: 37804816
DOI: 10.1016/j.mib.2023.102385 -
Microbiology Spectrum Dec 2023As the management of wheat fungal diseases becomes increasingly challenging, the use of bacterial agents with biocontrol potential against the two major wheat...
As the management of wheat fungal diseases becomes increasingly challenging, the use of bacterial agents with biocontrol potential against the two major wheat phytopathogens, and , may prove to be an interesting alternative to conventional pest management. Here, we have shown that dimethylpolysulfide volatiles are ubiquitously and predominantly produced by wheat-associated and actinomycetes, displaying antifungal activity against both pathogens. By limiting pathogen growth and DON virulence factor production, the use of such DMPS-producing strains as soil biocontrol inoculants could limit the supply of pathogen inocula in soil and plant residues, providing an attractive alternative to dimethyldisulfide fumigant, which has many non-targeted toxicities. Notably, this study demonstrates the importance of bacterial volatile organic compound uptake by inhibited , providing new insights for the study of volatiles-mediated toxicity mechanisms within bacteria-fungus signaling crosstalk.
Topics: Arthrobacter; Microbacterium; Triticum; Actinobacteria; Actinomyces; Soil; Plant Diseases
PubMed: 37800942
DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.05292-22 -
PeerJ 2023The quest for microbial cellulases has intensified as a response to global challenges in biofuel production. The efficient deconstruction of lignocellulosic biomass...
The quest for microbial cellulases has intensified as a response to global challenges in biofuel production. The efficient deconstruction of lignocellulosic biomass holds promise for generating valuable products in various industries such as food, textile, and detergents. This article presents a systematic bioprospection aimed at isolating actinomycetes with exceptional cellulose deconstruction capabilities. Our methodology explored the biodiverse oligotrophic region of Cuatro Cienegas, Coahuila, within the Chihuahuan Desert. Among the evaluated actinomycetes collection, 78% exhibited cellulolytic activity. Through a meticulous screening process based on enzymatic index evaluation, we identified a highly cellulolytic strain for further investigation. Submerged fermentation of this strain revealed an endoglucanase enzymatic activity of 149 U/mg. Genomic analysis of strain sp. STCH565-A revealed unique configurations of carbohydrate-active enzyme (CAZyme) genes, underscoring its potential for lignocellulosic bioconversion applications. These findings not only highlight the significance of the Chihuahuan Desert as a rich source of cellulolytic microorganisms but also offer insights into the systematic exploration and selection of high-performing cellulolytic microorganisms for application in diverse environmental contexts. In conclusion, our bioprospecting study lays a foundation for harnessing the cellulolytic potential of actinomycetes from the Chihuahuan Desert, with implications for advancing cellulose deconstruction processes in various industries. The findings can serve as a blueprint for future bioprospecting efforts in different regions, facilitating the targeted discovery of microorganisms with exceptional cellulosic deconstruction capabilities.
Topics: Actinobacteria; Actinomyces; Cellulose; Cellulases; Cellulase; Streptomyces
PubMed: 37790635
DOI: 10.7717/peerj.16119