امین دهقان بنادکوکی

Klebsiella pneumoniae is a common bacterium in nosocomial infections, especially urinary tract infection. Considering rising in fluoroquinolone resistance and lack of accurate reports of frequency of plasmid-mediated genes, this study aimed to determine the frequency of qepA and aac(6')-Ib-cr genes among Klebsiella pneumoniae isolated from urinary tract infection in Yazd City, Iran.
In this cross-sectional study, 70 Klebsiella pneumoniae strains were isolated from the urine cultures during 9 months (March to November 2014). Antibiotic resistance pattern for common fluoroquinolones were determined via disk diffusion method and the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) via Epsilometer test (Etest). Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method was used for detection of qepA and aac(6')-Ib-cr genes by specific primers. The results were analyzed using SPSS software.
Findings: Disk diffusion results showed that the highest and lowest resistance rates were for nalidixic acid (40.0%) and levofloxacin (27.1%), respectively. According to the minimum inhibitory concentration, 45.7% and 38.6% of the isolates were identified as resistant for nalidixic acid and ciprofloxacin, respectively. aac(6')-Ib-cr gene was detected in 21 isolates (30%); but qepA gene was not detected in any of isolates (0%).
The results of this study indicate that resistance to common fluoroquinolones is gained. High frequency of aac(6')-Ib-cr gene is an alarm for the region. Therefore, antimicrobial resistance monitoring of this bacterium should be reviewed seriously before initiating treatment and studies about the chromosomal and plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance determinants should be done regularly.

Acinetobacter baumannii is a non-fermentative gram-negative coccobacill that is prevalent in intensive care units. Carbapenem resistant A.baumannii isolates have been reported worldwide. Oxasillinase beta-lactamase enzymes are involved in bacterial resistance to carbapenem. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of blaOXA-23 and blaOXA-24 genes in A. baumannii isolated from tube discharge specimens of hospitalized patients in the intensive care units of the hospitals in Isfahan, Iran, in 2015.
A total of 40 isolates of A. baumannii were collected from the patients admitted to the intensive care units of the hospitals in Isfahan in 2015, they were identified by biochemical methods and detection of blaOXA-51 like gene. Antibiotic resistance pattern and minimum inhibitory concentration of imipenem were determined using disk diffusion and E-test methods respectively according to CLSI2015 protocol. blaOXA-23 and blaOXA-24 genes were detected by PCR method. Data were analyzed by SPSS (v.16) software and chi-square tests.
All isolates were found resistant to ceftazidime, ceftriaxone, meropenem and imipenem and the lowest resistance were seen against colistin (0%) and tigecycline (10%), respectively. All isolates were resistant to imipenem using Etest method with MIC ≥ 32 μg / ml. blaOXA-23 and blaOXA-24 genes were detected in 87.5% and 25% of isolates, respectively.
Due to the results, treatment of A. baumannii isolates by carbapenems is ineffective and tigecycline or colistin could be used for treatment. Other studies for detection of other mechanisms for carbapenem resistance are recommended.

Iran is the richest country in terms of distribution of medicinal plants. The antimicrobial effect of plant extracts and essential oils is well known and they are used as a good substitute in food industry to control food-borne pathogens. Due to the antibacterial activity of plant extracts and their efficacy against microorganisms, the aim of this study was to investigate the antibacterial activity of peppermint extract in order to control pathogenic bacteria.
Piperita L., which is one of the species of mint; was used in this invitro-experimental study. The extraction was performed by percolation method. Well - agar method was used for antibacterial effects of extracts. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimal bactericidal concentration (MBC) were done for six standard bacteria using microdilution method. The test was performed 3 times for each bacterium. Data were analyzed by using SPSS version 16 and t-test.
The lowest MIC of peppermint extract on examined microorganisms were observed for Staphylococcus aureus and Enterococcus faecalis (3.25 mg/ ml). Also the maximum diameter of inhibition zone, was related to Staphylococcus aureus (32 mm).
Results of this study indicated that peppermint extract has a favorable control effect on the growth of food borne pathogens, which can be used as a perfect preservative for keeping food.

Klebsiella pneumoniae is an opportunistic pathogen that causes urinary tract Infection (UTI), intra-abdominal infection and pneumonia in patients with weakened immune systems or underlying diseases. Several studies have shown that the indiscriminate and irregular use of antibiotics can cause antibiotic resistance. Antimicrobial resistance has been introduced as one of the most important global health risks by the World Health Organization (WHO). Due to the increasing resistance of pathogens to antibiotics, antibiotic resistance patterns of Klebsiella pneumoniae strains isolated from urine samples have been investigated.
In this descriptive-sectional study, 130 isolates of Klebsiella pneumoniae were collected from hospitalized patients with urinary tract infections and identified by biochemical tests. Antimicrobial susceptibility test was evaluated by standard disk diffusion method (Kirby-Bauer) that has been recommended by the CLSI.
From 130 strains of Klebsiella pneumoniae, 72 strains (55.4%) were isolated from female patients. The results showed that the highest rate of resistance was belonged to amoxicillin (100%) and cefotaxime (41.5%) respectively and the lowest rate of resistance was for meropenem (3.8%) and ertapenem (3.8%).
The results of this study and other similar studies show that resistance to different antibiotics have been acquired, so it is recommended that antimicrobial susceptibility tests should be performed before treatment and the results are reported to the clinicians and infection control committees.

Candidiasisis the most common human opportunistic disease with the prevalence and resistance of etiologic agents being increased as a result of increasing the immunosuppressed diabetics and malignancies. Candida albicans known as the most common agent of disease is one of the human body’s normal floras. The aim of the present study was to evaluate anti-Candida properties of the aerial parts of Ferula assafoatida compared with Fluconazole in vitro. In the current experimental lab-trial study a 35 mg/ml aqueous extracts ofIranian Ferula assafoatida aerial parts were prepared and then used for evaluation of their susceptibility against a standard Candida albicans using broth microdilution method. Different concentrations of this herbal extract and Fluconazole were used for determining the minimum inhibition concentration and killing on Candidasuspensions. Concentrations of 8.75 mg/ml aerial parts of Ferula assafoetida completely inhibited the growth of Candida albicans and killed all viable cells (MFC). Concentrations of 0.273 and 4.4 mg/ml Ferula aqueous extracts were also determined as MIC50 and MIC90. In case of Fluconazole, 128 µg/ml concentrationis determined as MFC and 0.5 µg/ml concentration is also known as MIC50. Results of the current study showed that the aqueous extract of Ferula assafoetida aerial parts has inhibitory and candidacidal effect against Candida albicans and further in vivo studies are suggested.