Jundishapur Journal of Microbiology
Volume:13 Issue: 1, Jan 2020

 Detection and monitoring of asymptomatic malaria cases, especially among immigrants, are the main parts of the successful malaria elimination program. To achieve this aim, a sensitive detection method is required.

 This study aimed to investigate immigrant asymptomatic malaria cases in Bandar Abbas district using microscopic, Rapid Diagnosis Test (RDT), and Nested PCR.

 In this cross-sectional study, 330 blood samples of immigrants living in Bandar Abbas were collected and their status in terms of Plasmodium infection was assessed using microscopic, RDT and Nested-PCR techniques.

 Five positive cases were found when molecular analysis was applied. However, microscopy and RDT methods showed no positive malaria cases.

 The results of this study are indicative of a big challenge to the malaria elimination program posed by presence of asymptomatic cases who migrated from malaria endemic areas. In addition, accurate diagnosis of asymptomatic malaria cases requires the use of molecular methods.

 Giardia intestinalis is the most common protozoan infecting the small intestine of human beings and a major cause of enteric infection, especially in children throughout the world. It is a highly diverse protozoan, which comprises a complex of eight genetic assemblages that are further differentiated into sub-assemblages.

 A cross-sectional study was conducted to detect the frequency, molecular detection and assemblage identification of G. intestinalis in children of Punjab, Pakistan.

 A total of 800 stool samples were collected from children ranging 0 - 10 years of age with gastrointestinal disturbances and subjected to direct microscopy, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and polymerase chain reaction targeting small-subunit ribosomal RNA (SSU rRNA) and triosephosphate isomerase (tpi) genes. A predesigned questionnaire was filled prior to sampling from the guardian of each child to collect information.

 The results indicated that the prevalence of 9.5% (76/800) was achieved by microscopy, ELISA and PCR targeting SSU-rRNA gene. The genetic DNA from 69 out of 76 (90.80%) was successfully amplified by tpi gene. Among these tpi gene-positive samples, 38 were successfully typed in assemblage B (55.07%) followed by 20 (28.98%) in assemblage A and 11 (15.94%) in mixed type assemblages (A & B). Residency and socioeconomic status were statistically associated with giardiasis. Among the clinical presentations, abdominal pain is prominent in assemblage B (57.89%) and vomiting in assemblage A (40%) type infections.

 Advanced molecular tools for giardiasis are well-adapted to get true prevalence, better discrimination of assemblages and their correlation with clinical signs.

 Mycobacterium tuberculosis is one of the biggest health challenges all over the world. The Caucasian region is one of the places with a high prevalence of drug-resistant M. tuberculosis.

 In this study, we aimed to investigate the trends in M. tuberculosis transmission during a 10-year period in the northwest of Iran.

 We collected 166 M. tuberculosis isolates from 2005 to 2006 and 119 M. tuberculosis isolates from 2015 to 2016 and subjected them to MIRU-VNTR and ETR-VNTR typing by a polymerase chain reaction and compared them by phylogenic tools.

 In the 2006 isolates, 104 different patterns were observed including 75 unique patterns and 91 isolates were clustered in 29 different clusters. In the 2016 isolates, 98 different patterns were observed with 86 unique patterns and 33 isolates were clustered in 12 different clusters. One cluster had a shared member from the 2006 and 2016 isolates, indicating the transmission of a single isolate during these years. The minimum estimate for the tuberculosis proportion, which is due to the recent transmission of tuberculosis, was 36.7% for the 2006 isolates and 17.6% for the 2016 isolates.

 In spite of the reduced number of tuberculosis patients, the isolates were more resistant and had a close relationship with worldwide strains. Cross-border immigration for treatment from Republic of Azerbaijan had significant participation in the recent transmission of tuberculosis in this region. In conclusion, the strict control of patients commuting and developing new tuberculosis clinics inside Republic of Azerbaijan can play a key role in the control of tuberculosis transmission in the northwest of Iran.

 Salmonella enterica serovar typhi infection is a worldwide bacterial disease still remains a public health problem and the resistance to the infection and clearance of the bacteria may differ between Sudanese and Chinese populations.

 We aimed to evaluate the difference in immunity to Salmonella infection and the relationship of HLA-DQB1 and antibody in the two populations using an artificial neural network (ANN).

 An ANN was constructed by data collected from resolved Salmonella-infected patients. The variation in immunity to Salmonella in the two groups was compared using the Mann-Whitney U test. The relationship between human leukocyte antigen (HLA) gene and the antibody was assessed by Spearman correlation. Binary Logistic regression assessed whether variables were independent in the two groups. The quantitative variations in immunity to S. typhi in the two groups were assessed by ANN using SPSS software version 21.0.

 A high variation in immunity to S. typhi between Sudanese and Chinese in affinity (P < 0.05), and no differences in other antibody parameters (P > 0.05). There was a high variation in HLA-DQB1*03 (P < 0.05), and no differences with other HLA-DQB1 alleles (P > 0.05). A clear correlation was observed between HLA-DQB1*05 and the antibody (P < 0.05). The standardized percentage of the effect of HLA-DQB1 gene on the variation of immunity in the two groups for HLA-DQB1*06 (100%) was much higher than the other HLA-DQB1 alleles.

 A high variation in the HLA-DQB1 gene between Sudanese and Chinese populations may be associated with the difference in immunity against S. typhi infection.

 Hepatitis B infection has an intimate relationship with lipids. The role of lipid-related variants remains unknown in the risk of hepatitis B infection persistence and steatosis in the Pakistani population. Recently, three GWAS-based polymorphisms in the TM6SF2, PNPLA3, and MBOAT7 genes have suggested being associated with steatosis and/or liver injury. However, the role of these variants is unknown in Hepatitis B virus (HBV) persistence and steatosis in the Pakistani population.

 We determined whether TM6SF2, PNPLA3, and MBOAT7 genetic variations are associated with HBV chronicity and hepatic steatosis in the Pakistani population.

 A total of 297 patients visiting the Hayat Abad Medical Complex in Peshawar were included in this study. Clinical analysis, along with genotyping of SNPs in the PNPLA3, TM6SF2, and MBOAT genes, was performed using the TaqMan genotyping assay. Logistic regression analysis, along with other tests as appropriate, was used to determine the association of the analyzed SNPs with HBV persistence, chronicity, and hepatic steatosis in the analyzed set of patients.

 In 297 subjects (240 HBV patients and 57 healthy controls), PNPLA3 rs738409 (OR: 0.43, 95% CI: 0.23 - 0.81, P = 0.009) and TM6SF2 rs58542926 (P = 0.018) genotypes were independently associated with the risk of chronic HBV infection, but not MBOAT rs641738 (OR: 1.3, 95% CI: 0.64 - 2.62, P = 0.454). We also observed that the PNPLA3 rs738409 GG genotype was associated with 2.97-fold and TM6SF2 rs58542926 genotype T allele with 1.54-fold increased risk of steatosis.

 PNPLA3 rs738409 and TM6SF2 rs58542926, but not MBOAT rs641738, were the risk variants for HBV persistence and steatosis in the Pakistani population.

 Adenoids act as reservoirs for pathogenic bacteria and chronic adenoid infection leads to its hypertrophy.

 The present study aimed to determine the frequency of Staphylococcus aureus, Haemophilus influenzae, Moraxella catarrhalis, and Streptococcus pneumoniae in children by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and culture and to determine the antimicrobial resistance patterns of the isolates.

 In this cross-sectional study, 200 adenoid tissues were taken from children with adenoid hypertrophy in the operating room under general anesthesia conditions. The isolation and detection of bacteria were performed by culture and PCR methods. The antibiotic susceptibility patterns of the isolates were determined by the disc agar diffusion method according to the CLSI guidelines.

 Staphylococcus aureus was the most common bacterium (102; 51%) isolated by the culture method, followed by S. pneumoniae (44; 22%), M. catarrhalis (33; 16.5%), and H. influenzae (6; 3%). By multiplex PCR, the detection rate of microorganisms was as follows: S. aureus 40.5% (n = 81), S. pneumoniae 15.5% (n = 31), M. catarrhalis 11% (n = 22), and H. influenzae 4% (n = 8). Haemophilus influenzae strains were sensitive to all of the tested antibiotics. Seven S. aureus isolates were resistant to cefoxitin and identified as MRSA.

 This study showed the importance of S. aureus in the etiology of adenoid hypertrophy as the most frequent isolate. It may be due to the long-term duration of adenoid hypertrophy in children that helps the colonization of S. aureus in adenoid tissue and leads to chronic infection.