Clinical Science and Epidemiology
Research Article | Clinical Science and EpidemiologyMixed Chlamydia trachomatis Peptide Antigens Provide a Specific and Sensitive Single-Well Colorimetric Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay for Detection of Human Anti-C. trachomatis AntibodiesFor detection of anti-C. trachomatis antibodies by serological assays, use of classical chlamydial antigens results in high cross-reactivity and poor sensitivity. Previously, we discovered 48 strongly reactive peptide antigens of C. trachomatis-specific B-cell epitopes from 21 immunodominant...
Observation | Clinical Science and EpidemiologyCharacterization of Staphylococcal Cassette Chromosome mec Elements from Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus pseudintermedius Infections in Australian AnimalsStaphylococcus pseudintermedius is a significant veterinary pathogen and occasional cause of infections in humans. β-Lactams are an important group of antimicrobials used to treat staphylococcal infections in humans and animals. However, when staphylococci become methicillin resistant via the acquisition of a mobile genetic element called staphylococcal cassette...
Research Article | Clinical Science and EpidemiologyDiscovery of mcr-1-Mediated Colistin Resistance in a Highly Virulent Escherichia coli LineageEscherichia coli ST95 is a globally disseminated clone frequently associated with bloodstream infections and neonatal meningitis. However, the ST95 lineage is defined by low levels of drug resistance amongst clinical isolates, which normally provides for uncomplicated treatment options. Here, we provide the first detailed genomic analysis of an...
Research Article | Clinical Science and EpidemiologyAnalyses of a Ceftazidime-Avibactam-Resistant Citrobacter freundii Isolate Carrying blaKPC-2 Reveals a Heterogenous Population and Reversible GenotypeThe development of ceftazidime-avibactam resistance among KPC-producing isolates during treatment with this agent has been reported. Usually isolates that become resistant have a mutated blaKPC gene that confers resistance to ceftazidime-avibactam and susceptibility to meropenem. We report a Citrobacter freundii isolate that developed ceftazidime-...
Research Article | Clinical Science and EpidemiologyBifidobacterial Dominance of the Gut in Early Life and Acquisition of Antimicrobial ResistanceInfants are vulnerable to an array of infectious diseases, and as the gut microbiome may serve as a reservoir of AMR for pathogens, reducing the levels of AMR in infants is important to infant health. This study demonstrates that high levels of Bifidobacterium are associated with reduced levels of AMR in early life and suggests that probiotic interventions to increase infant Bifidobacterium levels have the potential to...
Research Article | Clinical Science and EpidemiologyDeep Sequencing of H7N9 Influenza A Viruses from 16 Infected Patients from 2013 to 2015 in Shanghai Reveals Genetic Diversity and Antigenic DriftH7N9 subtype avian influenza viruses caused infections in over 1,400 humans from 2013 to 2017 and resulted in almost 600 deaths. It is important to understand how avian influenza viruses infect and cause disease in humans and to assess their potential for efficient person-to-person transmission. In this study, we used deep sequencing of primary clinical material to assess the evolution and potential for human adaptation of H7N9...
Editor's Pick Research Article | Clinical Science and EpidemiologyTransmission of Foot-and-Mouth Disease from Persistently Infected Carrier Cattle to Naive Cattle via Transfer of Oropharyngeal FluidFoot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is a viral disease of livestock with substantial impact on agricultural production and subsistence farming on a global scale. Control of FMD is impeded by the existence of a prolonged asymptomatic carrier phase during which infected cattle shed low quantities of infectious virus in oropharyngeal fluid (OPF) for months to years after infection. The epidemiological significance of FMD virus (FMDV) carriers is...
Research Article | Clinical Science and EpidemiologyDevelopment and Use of an Endpoint Titration Assay To Characterize Mumps IgG Avidity following Measles, Mumps, and Rubella Vaccination and Wild-Type Mumps InfectionNumerous outbreaks of mumps have occurred in the United States among two-dose measles-mumps-rubella (MMR)-vaccinated populations since 2006. The avidity of mumps-specific IgG antibodies may affect susceptibility to mumps virus infection in some vaccinated individuals. To accurately measure mumps avidity, we developed and validated a mumps-specific IgG avidity assay that determines avidity at the endpoint titer of serially diluted serum...
Research Article | Clinical Science and EpidemiologyExperimental Infection of Tadarida brasiliensis with Pseudogymnoascus destructans, the Fungus That Causes White-Nose SyndromeWhite-nose syndrome (WNS) is a fungal disease that is causing severe declines of bat populations in North America. Identifying ways to reduce the impacts of this disease is a priority but is inhibited by the lack of an experimental animal model that does not require the use of wild-caught bat species already impacted by WNS. We tested whether Tadarida brasiliensis,...
Observation | Clinical Science and EpidemiologyInvestigation of the Plasma Virome from Cases of Unexplained Febrile Illness in Tanzania from 2013 to 2014: a Comparative Analysis between Unbiased and VirCapSeq-VERT High-Throughput Sequencing ApproachesCharacterization of the viruses found in the blood of febrile patients provides information pertinent to public health and diagnostic medicine. PCR and culture have historically played an important role in clinical microbiology; however, these methods require a targeted approach and may lack the capacity to identify novel or mixed viral infections. High-throughput sequencing can overcome these constraints. As the cost of running...