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Acta Dermato-venereologica May 2024
Topics: Humans; Male; Syphilis; Treponema pallidum; Anti-Bacterial Agents; Treatment Outcome; Adult; Syphilis, Cutaneous; Syphilis Serodiagnosis; Biopsy; Skin
PubMed: 38813741
DOI: 10.2340/actadv.v104.27983 -
Turkish Journal of Medical Sciences 2024Scaling and root planing remain inadequate in periodontitis treatment caused by dysbiotic microbial dental plaque. The aim of this clinical trial is to evaluate the... (Randomized Controlled Trial)
Randomized Controlled Trial
BACKGROUND/AIM
Scaling and root planing remain inadequate in periodontitis treatment caused by dysbiotic microbial dental plaque. The aim of this clinical trial is to evaluate the effects of probiotics and kefir consumption in initial periodontal therapy (IPT) on oral microbiota composition and treatment outcomes in patients with periodontitis.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
The study was carried out in the Gazi University Department of Periodontology, including a sample size of 36 individuals and utilizing a randomized controlled design. Thirty-six patients with periodontitis were randomly allocated to three groups: one receiving probiotic treatment, another receiving kefir, and a third serving as the control group. Obtaining subgingival microbial samples, we recorded plaque, gingival index, bleeding on probing, periodontal pocket depth, and clinical attachment level (periodontal clinical indices) and then performed IPT. For 14 days, patients took either probiotics, kefir, or no supplements. Data for the first and third months were collected using periodontal clinical indices. DNA sequencing was performed to detect , , and in subgingival plaque samples collected at baseline and three months.
RESULTS
Significant differences were observed regarding periodontal clinical indices among groups in the intragroup comparisons. Moreover, levels of were significantly decreased in all groups.
CONCLUSION
Kefir can be administered in addition to IPT, providing results similar to those observed with probiotics.
Topics: Humans; Probiotics; Male; Dysbiosis; Female; Adult; Middle Aged; Porphyromonas gingivalis; Kefir; Tannerella forsythia; Periodontitis; Treponema denticola; Periodontal Index; Treatment Outcome; Periodontal Diseases
PubMed: 38812644
DOI: 10.55730/1300-0144.5798 -
Scientific Reports May 2024Hard ticks are known vectors of various pathogens, including the severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus, Rickettsia spp., Coxiella burnetii, Borrelia spp.,...
Hard ticks are known vectors of various pathogens, including the severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus, Rickettsia spp., Coxiella burnetii, Borrelia spp., Anaplasma phagocytophilum, and Ehrlichia spp. This study aims to investigate the distribution and prevalence of tick-borne pathogens in southwestern Korea from 2019 to 2022. A total of 13,280 ticks were collected during the study period, with H. longicornis accounting for 86.1% of the collected ticks. H. flava, I. nipponensis and A. testudinarium comprised 9.4%, 3.6%, and 0.8% of the ticks, respectively. Among 983 pools tested, Rickettsia spp. (216 pools, 1.6% MIR) were the most prevalent pathogens across all tick species, with R. japonica and R. monacensis frequently detected in I. nipponensis and Haemaphysalis spp., respectively. Borrelia spp. (28 pools, 0.2% MIR) were predominantly detected in I. nipponensis (27 pools, 13.8% MIR, P < 0.001). Co-infections, mainly involving Rickettsia monacensis and Borrelia afzelii, were detected in I. nipponensis. Notably, this study identified R. monacensis for the first time in A. testudinarium in South Korea. These findings offer valuable insights into the tick population and associated pathogens in the region, underscoring the importance of tick-borne disease surveillance and prevention measures.
Topics: Animals; Republic of Korea; Rickettsia; Ticks; Tick-Borne Diseases; Prevalence; Borrelia; Anaplasma phagocytophilum; Ehrlichia; Coxiella burnetii; Phlebovirus
PubMed: 38811622
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-61126-y -
PloS One 2024Rapid syphilis testing plays a crucial role in global health strategies, addressing the urgent need for prompt and accurate diagnostics, especially in settings with...
Rapid syphilis testing plays a crucial role in global health strategies, addressing the urgent need for prompt and accurate diagnostics, especially in settings with limited resources. Despite their practical utility, these tests often lack thorough validation, leading to concerns about their efficacy and reliability. This study aims to evaluate two prototypes of the Onsite Syphilis Ab Combo Rapid Test (Fd and Ff) and compare their performance with the established chemiluminescent microparticle immunoassay (CMIA) method. Employing a reverse algorithm approach, the study analyzed 450 serum samples, including those from syphilis patients, healthy individuals, and cases with potential cross-reactions. Results of the rapid test kit were then correlated with CMIA findings, RPR, and TPPA titers. The results showed that prototype Fd exhibited a sensitivity of 100.0%, specificity of 98.8%, positive predictive value (PPV) of 8.4%, negative predictive value (NPV) of 100.00% and accuracy of 98.8%. Similarly, prototype Ff exhibited sensitivity of 100.0%, but with a slightly higher specificity of 99.6%, PPV of 21.5%, NPV of 100.0% and accuracy of 99.6%. Moreover, both prototypes Fd and Ff of the Onsite Syphilis Ab Combo Rapid Test demonstrated significant efficacy diagnostic tool, offering clear and straightforward interpretation for clinicians in varied CMIA, RPR and TPPA titer scenarios. The Onsite Syphilis Ab Combo Rapid Test prototypes, Fd and Ff, demonstrated high sensitivity and specificity, comparable to CMIA methods. The effectiveness highlights their suitability for syphilis screening, particularly in non-laboratory settings or situations requiring immediate results. The validation of these prototypes supports their integration into current syphilis diagnostic algorithms, potentially contributing to improved public health outcomes.
Topics: Humans; Treponema pallidum; Syphilis; Reagent Kits, Diagnostic; Antibodies, Bacterial; Syphilis Serodiagnosis; Sensitivity and Specificity; Male; Female; Adult; Middle Aged; Immunoassay; Reproducibility of Results; Rapid Diagnostic Tests
PubMed: 38809884
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0303477 -
Scientific Reports May 2024Bacterial zoonoses are diseases caused by bacterial pathogens that can be naturally transmitted between humans and vertebrate animals. They are important causes of...
Bacterial zoonoses are diseases caused by bacterial pathogens that can be naturally transmitted between humans and vertebrate animals. They are important causes of non-malarial fevers in Kenya, yet their epidemiology remains unclear. We investigated brucellosis, Q-fever and leptospirosis in the venous blood of 216 malaria-negative febrile patients recruited in two health centres (98 from Ijara and 118 from Sangailu health centres) in Garissa County in north-eastern Kenya. We determined exposure to the three zoonoses using serological (Rose Bengal test for Brucella spp., ELISA for C. burnetti and microscopic agglutination test for Leptospira spp.) and real-time PCR testing and identified risk factors for exposure. We also used non-targeted metagenomic sequencing on nine selected patients to assess the presence of other possible bacterial causes of non-malarial fevers. Considerable PCR positivity was found for Brucella (19.4%, 95% confidence intervals [CI] 14.2-25.5) and Leptospira spp. (1.7%, 95% CI 0.4-4.9), and high endpoint titres were observed against leptospiral serovar Grippotyphosa from the serological testing. Patients aged 5-17 years old had 4.02 (95% CI 1.18-13.70, p-value = 0.03) and 2.42 (95% CI 1.09-5.34, p-value = 0.03) times higher odds of infection with Brucella spp. and Coxiella burnetii than those of ages 35-80. Additionally, patients who sourced water from dams/springs, and other sources (protected wells, boreholes, bottled water, and water pans) had 2.39 (95% CI 1.22-4.68, p-value = 0.01) and 2.24 (1.15-4.35, p-value = 0.02) times higher odds of exposure to C. burnetii than those who used unprotected wells. Streptococcus and Moraxella spp. were determined using metagenomic sequencing. Brucellosis, leptospirosis, Streptococcus and Moraxella infections are potentially important causes of non-malarial fevers in Garissa. This knowledge can guide routine diagnosis, thus helping lower the disease burden and ensure better health outcomes, especially in younger populations.
Topics: Humans; Kenya; Adolescent; Male; Child; Female; Adult; Child, Preschool; Middle Aged; Leptospirosis; Fever; Animals; Young Adult; Leptospira; Bacterial Zoonoses; Brucellosis; Brucella; Outpatients; Q Fever; Aged; Serologic Tests; Zoonoses
PubMed: 38806576
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-62714-8 -
Indian Journal of Ophthalmology Jun 2024Leptospirosis is a waterborne zoonotic disease prevalent in tropical regions, causing significant morbidity and mortality. It can involve any organ in its primary stage,...
PURPOSE
Leptospirosis is a waterborne zoonotic disease prevalent in tropical regions, causing significant morbidity and mortality. It can involve any organ in its primary stage, and uveitis is its late complication. While advanced laboratory diagnosis is available only in tertiary care centers globally, a cost-effective bedside assessment of clinical signs and their scoring could offer a provisional diagnosis.
AIM
To analyze the diagnostic potential of demographic and clinical signs in a large cohort of serologically confirmed leptospiral uveitis patients.
METHODS
In this retrospective study, demographic and clinical parameters of 876 seropositive leptospiral uveitis patients and 1042 nonleptospiral uveitis controls were studied. Multivariable logistic regression analysis with bootstrap confidence interval (CI) characterized the diagnostic predictors. The performance of the model was evaluated using the area under the receiver operating curve (AUROC).
RESULTS
Presence of nongranulomatous uveitis (odds ratio [OR] = 6.9), hypopyon (OR = 4.6), vitreous infiltration with membranous opacities (OR = 4.3), bilateral involvement (OR = 4), panuveitis (OR = 3.3), vasculitis (OR = 1.9), disc hyperemia (OR = 1.6), absence of retinochoroiditis (OR = 15), and absence of cystoid macular edema (OR = 8.9) emerged as predictive parameters. The AUROC value was 0.86 with 95% CI of 0.846-0.874. At a cut-off score of 40, the sensitivity and specificity were 79.5 and 78.4, respectively.
CONCLUSION
The study demonstrates that ocular signs can serve as diagnostic predictors for leptospiral uveitis, enabling primary care ophthalmologists to make bedside diagnosis. This can be further confirmed by laboratory methods available at tertiary care centers.
Topics: Humans; Retrospective Studies; Leptospirosis; Male; Female; Eye Infections, Bacterial; Uveitis; Adult; Leptospira; Middle Aged; ROC Curve; Young Adult; Adolescent
PubMed: 38804803
DOI: 10.4103/IJO.IJO_1376_23 -
CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association... May 2024
Topics: Humans; Syphilis; Point-of-Care Systems; Syphilis Serodiagnosis; Treponema pallidum; Point-of-Care Testing; Sensitivity and Specificity
PubMed: 38802133
DOI: 10.1503/cmaj.231548 -
International Journal of Molecular... May 2024The most common type of periodontal disease is chronic periodontitis, an inflammatory condition caused by pathogenic bacteria in subgingival plaque. The aim of our study...
The most common type of periodontal disease is chronic periodontitis, an inflammatory condition caused by pathogenic bacteria in subgingival plaque. The aim of our study was the development of a real-time PCR test as a diagnostic tool for the detection and differentiation of five periodontopathogenic bacteria, , , , , and , in patients with periodontitis. We compared the results of our in-house method with the micro-IDent semiquantitative commercially available test based on the PCR hybridization method. DNA was isolated from subgingival plaque samples taken from 50 patients and then analyzed by both methods. Comparing the results of the two methods, they show a specificity of 100% for all bacteria. The sensitivity for was 97.5%, for 96.88%, and for 95.24%. The sensitivity for and was 100%. The Spearman correlation factor of two different measurements was 0.976 for , 0.967 for , 0.949 for , 0.966 for , and 0.917 for . In conclusion, the in-house real-time PCR method developed in our laboratory can provide information about relative amount of five bacterial species present in subgingival plaque in patients with periodontitis. It is likely that such a test could be used in dental diagnostics in assessing the efficacy of any treatment to reduce the bacterial burden.
Topics: Humans; Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction; Periodontitis; Porphyromonas gingivalis; Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans; Treponema denticola; Male; Female; Tannerella forsythia; Sensitivity and Specificity; Prevotella intermedia; Middle Aged; Adult; DNA, Bacterial; Dental Plaque; Bacteria
PubMed: 38791137
DOI: 10.3390/ijms25105097 -
PloS One 2024In this work, we determined that Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum (TPA) DAL-1 (belonging to Nichols-like group of TPA strains) grew 1.53 (± 0.08) times faster...
In this work, we determined that Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum (TPA) DAL-1 (belonging to Nichols-like group of TPA strains) grew 1.53 (± 0.08) times faster compared to TPA Philadelphia 1 (SS14-like group) during in vitro cultivations. In longitudinal individual propagation in rabbit testes (n = 12, each TPA strain), infection with DAL-1 manifested clinical symptoms (induration, swelling, and erythema of testes) sooner than Philadelphia 1 infection, which resulted in a significantly shorter period of the experimental passages for DAL-1 (median = 15.0 and 23.5 days, respectively; p < 0.01). To minimize the confounding conditions during rabbit experiments, the growth characteristics of DAL-1 and Philadelphia 1 strains were determined during TPA co-infection of rabbit testes (n = 20, including controls). During two weeks of intratesticular co-infection, DAL-1 overgrew Philadelphia 1 in all twelve testes, regardless of inoculation ratio and dose (median of relative excess DAL-1 multiplication = 84.85×). Moreover, higher DAL-1 to Philadelphia 1 inoculum ratios appeared to increase differences in growth rates, suggesting direct competition between strains for available nutrients during co-infection. These experiments indicate important physiological differences between the two TPA strains and suggest growth differences between Nichols-like and SS14-like strains that are potentially linked to their virulence and pathogenicity.
Topics: Animals; Rabbits; Male; Treponema pallidum; Testis; Syphilis
PubMed: 38787868
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0304033 -
Microbial Genomics May 2024Lyme disease (LD), caused by spirochete bacteria of the genus , remains the most common vector-borne disease in the northern hemisphere. outer surface protein A (OspA)...
Lyme disease (LD), caused by spirochete bacteria of the genus , remains the most common vector-borne disease in the northern hemisphere. outer surface protein A (OspA) is an integral surface protein expressed during the tick cycle, and a validated vaccine target. There are at least 20 recognized genospecies, that vary in OspA serotype. This study presents a new sequence-based method for OspA typing using next-generation sequence data. Using a compiled database of over 400 genomes encompassing the 4 most common disease-causing genospecies, we characterized OspA diversity in a manner that can accommodate existing and new OspA types and then defined boundaries for classification and assignment of OspA types based on the sequence similarity. To accommodate potential novel OspA types, we have developed a new nomenclature: OspA type (IST). Beyond the ISTs that corresponded to existing OspA serotypes 1-8, we identified nine additional ISTs that cover new OspA variants in (IST9-10), (IST11-12), and other genospecies (IST13-17). The IST typing scheme and associated OspA variants are available as part of the PubMLST spp. database. Compared to traditional OspA serotyping methods, this new computational pipeline provides a more comprehensive and broadly applicable approach for characterization of OspA type and genospecies to support vaccine development.
Topics: Bacterial Outer Membrane Proteins; Lyme Disease; Lipoproteins; Antigens, Surface; Borrelia burgdorferi; Computer Simulation; Humans; Genome, Bacterial; Borrelia burgdorferi Group; High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing; Serogroup; Phylogeny; Bacterial Vaccines
PubMed: 38787376
DOI: 10.1099/mgen.0.001252