Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0023241 (Legionella)
 6,990 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Melioidosis is endemic in Singapore, with diagnosis dependent upon both bacteriological culture and serodiagnosis. Using the polysaccharide (melioidin)-sensitized turkey red cells in the indirect haemagglutination test (IHAT), 20 (100%) of the Pseudomonas pseudomallei culture-positive cases were detectable by the IHAT with titles ranging from 1:16 to 1:32, 768. Eight of these patients who died within a few days after the IHAT was performed had titres ranging from 1:16 to 1:1028. Five culture-negative patients, with clinical symptoms suggestive of melioidosis infection and who responded to treatment with ceftazidime, showed IHA titres between 1:64 and 1:8,192. One hundred and twenty one sera from patients with pneumonia, abscesses, or diabetes mellitus were IHAT negative. The IHAT showed good specificity since negative titres were seen in tests using sera from 2 patients with culture-positive Pseudomonas aeruginosa and 4 patients positive for Legionella. IHAT negative results were obtained from tests of 50 normal blood donors and 50 sewerage workers. Of 683 national servicemen tested, 5 (0.73%) had IHAT titres ranging from 1:16 to 1:128. Unlike hyperendemic areas such as Thailand where interpretation of IHAT is seriously hampered by IHA titres found in one-third to half of the population, serodiagnosis of melioidosis by the sensitive IHAT may be employed in Singapore as a routine procedure since background IHA titres are low.
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PMID:Serodiagnosis of melioidosis in Singapore by the indirect haemagglutination test. 163 99

The presence of a single apparently cryptic plasmid of approximately 36 MDa was demonstrated in the virulent Dodge strain of Legionella pneumophila. 'Tagging' of the plasmid with Tn5 enabled transfer to be demonstrated to other strains of Legionella (though not to Escherichia coli or Pseudomonas aeruginosa) as well as a definitive assessment to be made of its stability. Plasmid carriage confers resistance to UV light probably by means of an error-prone UV repair system. The plasmid is compatible with plasmids of the IncP and IncW incompatibility groups.
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PMID:A plasmid from a virulent strain of Legionella pneumophila is conjugative and confers resistance to ultraviolet light. 178 81

Over a period of 4 consecutive yr, 92 nonimmunosuppressed patients (21 women and 71 men aged 53 +/- 16 yr, means = SD) with critical acute respiratory failure (PaO2/FiO2, 209 +/- 9 mm Hg) caused by severe community-acquired pneumonia were admitted to the respiratory intensive care unit (RICU) of a general hospital. The most frequent underlying clinical condition was chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (44 patients, 48%). A total of 56 patients (61%) required mechanical ventilation for a mean period of 10.7 +/- 12.5 days, 29 of them (52%) needing PEEP (9.9 +/- 3.8 cm H2O). A group of 23 (25%) patients had criteria of adult respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). A causal microorganism was identified in 48 patients (52%), the two most frequent etiologies being Streptococcus pneumoniae (14, 15%) and Legionella pneumophila (13, 14%). Pseudomonas aeruginosa (5, 5%) was always associated with bronchiectasis. Mortality due to severe community-acquired pneumonia was 22% (20 patients). According to univariate analysis, mortality was associated with anticipated death within 4 to 5 yr, inadequate antibiotic treatment before RICU admission, mechanical ventilation requirements, use of PEEP, FIO2 greater than 0.6, coexistence of ARDS, radiographic spread of the pneumonia during RICU admission, septic shock, bacteremia, and P. aeruginosa as the cause of the pneumonia. Further, recursive partitioning analysis selected two factors significantly related to the prognosis: the radiographic spread of the pneumonia during RICU admission and the presence of septic shock.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
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PMID:Severe community-acquired pneumonia. Epidemiology and prognostic factors. 185 53

The improved antimicrobial activity of newer fluoroquinolones and novel applications recently found for the drugs already marketed are reviewed. Several new compounds are more active against gram-positive bacteria than the presently marketed fluoroquinolones. WIN 57273, the most potent compound in vitro on a weight basis, is 16 to 128 times more active than ciprofloxacin against various staphylococci, streptococci, Enterococcus spp., Corynebacterium spp., Listeria monocytogenes and Bacillus spp. BMY 40062, PD 117558, PD 127391, sparfloxacin, temafloxacin and tosufloxacin also show enhanced in vitro efficacy against these species. These drugs also possess increased activity against various anaerobes, notably Clostridium perfringens, Clostridium difficile and the Bacteroides fragilis group. Mycobacterium tuberculosis, rapidly growing mycobacteria other than Mycobacterium chelonae, and Mycobacterium leprae are often susceptible to quinolones displaying bactericidal activity which is potentially useful for curing difficult-to-treat mycobacteriosis. In addition, a number of new products, notably those containing a cyclopropyl group, are more active than reference fluoroquinolones against Mycobacterium leprae. Sparfloxacin, BMY 40062 and WIN 57273 compare favorably with older fluoroquinolones in the killing of intracellular Legionella spp., and several of the newer compounds have greater antichlamydial potency. Improved antibacterial activity has also been found against Mycoplasma hominis, Ureaplasma urealyticum, Acinetobacter spp. and Pseudomonas maltophilia. By contrast, the newer quinolones have similar or less activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Enterobacteriaceae. Recently, pefloxacin, ofloxacin and ciprofloxacin were found to be active against protozoa, including Plasmodium spp., Trypanosoma cruzi and Leishmania donovani, but not against Toxoplasma gondii. In the near future, more specific research testing unusual pathogens may lead to the identification of quinolones with more selective activity.
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PMID:Newly documented antimicrobial activity of quinolones. 186 84

A model was developed to study the multiplication of various Legionella spp. in tap water containing Hartmannella vermiformis. Tap water cultures prepared with the following components were suitable for the multiplication studies: Legionella spp., 10(3) CFU/ml; H. vermiformis, 10(4.4) cysts per ml; and killed Pseudomonas paucimobilis, 10(9) cells per ml. Cocultures were incubated at 37 degrees C for at least 1 week. The following legionellae multiplied in tap water cocultures in each replicate experiment: L. bozemanii (WIGA strain), L. dumoffii (NY-23 and TX-KL strains), L. micdadei (two environmental strains), and L. pneumophila (six environmental strains and one clinical isolate). Growth yield values for these strains were 0.6 to 3.5 log CFU/ml. Legionellae which did not multiply in replicate cocultures included L. anisa (one strain), L. bozemanii (MI-15 strain), L. micdadei (a clinical isolate), L. longbeachae, (one strain), and L. pneumophila (Philadelphia 1 strain). L. gormanii and an environmental isolate of L. pneumophila multiplied in only one of three experiments. None of the legionellae multiplied in tap water containing only killed P. paucimobilis. The mean growth yield (+/- standard deviation) of H. vermiformis in the cocultures was 1.2 +/- 0.1 log units/ml. H. vermiformis supports multiplication of only particular strains of legionellae, some of which are from diverse origins.
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PMID:Multiplication of Legionella spp. in tap water containing Hartmannella vermiformis. 189 86

The prt1 gene encoding extracellular protease from Erwinia carotovora subsp. carotovora EC14 in cosmid pCA7 was subcloned to create plasmid pSK1. The partial nucleotide sequence of the insert in pSK1 (1,878 bp) revealed a 1,041-bp open reading frame (ORF1) that correlated with protease activity in deletion mutants. ORF1 encodes a polypeptide of 347 amino acids with a calculated molecular mass of 38,826 Da. Escherichia coli transformed with pSK1 or pSK23, a subclone of pSK1, produces a protease (Prt1) intracellularly with a molecular mass of 38 kDa and a pI of 4.8. Prt1 activity was inhibited by phenanthroline, suggesting that it is a metalloprotease. The prt1 promoter was localized between 173 and 1,173 bp upstream of ORF1 by constructing transcriptional lacZ fusions. Primer extension identified the prt1 transcription start site 205 bp upstream of ORF1. The deduced amino acid sequence of ORF1 showed significant sequence identity to metalloproteases from Bacillus thermoproteolyticus (thermolysin), B. subtilis (neutral protease), Legionella pneumophila (metalloprotease), and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (elastase). It has less sequence similarity to metalloproteases from Serratia marcescens and Erwinia chrysanthemi. Locations for three zinc ligands and the active site for E. carotovora subsp. carotovora protease were predicted from thermolysin.
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PMID:Erwinia carotovora subsp. carotovora extracellular protease: characterization and nucleotide sequence of the gene. 191 78

Despite the apparent common occurrence of pneumonia in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), there are little firm data on incidence, etiology, diagnostic procedures, and therapy in these patients. It appears that traditional respiratory pathogens such as the pneumococcus are declining in importance while "new" pathogens such as Pseudomonas sp., Moraxella catarrhalis, and Legionella sp. are becoming more important. The diagnosis of a specific etiologic agent is difficult in COPD and can be aided by obtaining specimens bronchoscopically. Directed therapy is optimal; however, empiric therapy is frequently unavoidable.
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PMID:Pneumonia in chronic obstructive lung disease. 195 95

The humidification trays of five of seven incubators in a neonatology unit of a hospital were found to be colonized with Legionella pneumophila, serogroup 1. Bacteriological analysis of the water in the humidification trays showed very large numbers of heterotrophic bacteria, one of which also contained Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Two hot water systems supply the neonatology unit, either of which is used to add water to the humidification trays; one system (A) is maintained at about 60 degrees C, while the other system (B) is maintained at 45 degrees C. The latter was also found to be colonized with L. pneumophila, Sg1. Monoclonal antibody (Mab) subgrouping of the isolates, indicated that system B was the source of colonization of the humidification trays of the incubators.
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PMID:A hot water supply as the source of Legionella pneumophila in incubators of a neonatology unit. 197 32

The authors report a nonradioactive adaptation of DNA hybridization technology for the direct detection of Legionella organisms in situ in routinely processed histologic specimens. The probe used consisted of synthetic oligodeoxynucleotides, complementary to the ribosomal RNA of all clinically relevant Legionella species, labeled with biotinylated dUTP at their 3' ends. By in situ DNA hybridization and detection with an avidin-alkaline phosphatase complex. Legionella was visualized by light microscopy within the alveoli of lung specimens in 9 of 13 direct fluorescent antibody- or culture-positive cases of Legionnaires' disease. No cross-hybridization was observed in lung specimens infected with Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Streptococcus pneumoniae, or other pathogens. The authors' results illustrate a novel adaptation of in situ DNA hybridization techniques, usually used for viruses, to the detection of a bacterial organism. The method enables direct visualization of bacterial nucleic acid in infected tissues and may facilitate early diagnosis and treatment of legionellosis.
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PMID:Rapid diagnosis of Legionella infection by a nonisotopic in situ hybridization method. 202 27

Forty eyewash units were sampled for protozoa, bacteria, and fungi. Total heterotrophic bacterial counts on nutrient agar and R2A agar (Difco Laboratories, Detroit, Mich.) ranged from 0 to 10(5) CFU/ml, with Pseudomonas spp. being the most frequently isolated. Total counts of 10(4) and 10(8) cells per ml were obtained with the acridine orange staining procedure. All samples were examined for Legionella spp. by direct fluorescent-antibody staining and by culturing on buffered charcoal-yeast extract agar containing alpha-ketoglutarate and glycine and supplemented with cycloheximide, vancomycin, and polymyxin B. DNA-DNA hybridization was used to confirm identification of the Legionella isolates. Legionellae were detected in 35 of 40 (87.5%) samples by direct fluorescent-antibody staining, with 3 samples yielding both Legionella spp. and amoebae. Amoebae identified as Hartmannella, Vahlkampfia, Acanthamoeba, and Cochliopodium spp. were detected in 19 of 40 (47:5%) samples. Sabouraud dextrose agar was used to obtain a crude estimate of viable fungal populations, pH, hardness, and ammonia, alkalinity, chlorine, copper, and iron contents were recorded for all water samples collected from eyewash stations; 33% of the samples had greater than or equal to 10 mg of CO2 per liter. It is concluded that eyewash stations not regularly flushed and/or cleaned and used to flush traumatized eye tissue may be a source of infection and can contaminate laboratory environments via aerosol transmission.
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PMID:Isolation of amoebae and Pseudomonas and Legionella spp. from eyewash stations. 203 3


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