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Query: UMLS:C0032285 (pneumonia)
 54,520 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Pneumocystis carinii causes life-threatening pneumonia in T-lymphocyte-immunodeficient subjects in transplant and oncology units or with acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS). Recent DNA homology studies show P. carinii to be a fungus. To investigate the biology and epidemiology of this parasite further, we elected to determine for it a more precise taxonomic assignment within the fungal kingdom. We screened a wide range of organisms representing the major orders of fungi using DNA amplification and subsequently sequenced a portion of the mitochondrial gene encoding the large subunit ribosomal RNA. Our data show that the opportunistic pulmonary pathogen P. carinii is closely related to the ustomycetous red yeast fungi, a group which includes organisms that are extensively distributed throughout the environment and which release many widely dispersed airborne spores.
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PMID:Pneumocystis carinii shows DNA homology with the ustomycetous red yeast fungi. 831 90

Pulmonary cells and fluid obtained by bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) from 19 pediatric acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) patients with pneumonia were examined for markers of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-1) infection. The HIV-1 DNA was detected in BAL cells by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in 14 of 15 patients (93.3 percent). Immunostaining of cytocentrifuged cell preparations of six specimens revealed that HIV-1 antigen was associated with from five percent to 95 percent of the alveolar macrophages. Analysis of the 22 cell-free BAL fluids by enzyme immunoassay (EIA) showed that samples from three patients (15.8 percent) contained HIV-1 p24 antigen. One sample, with a dilution factor of 15.1 relative to serum, contained a markedly elevated antigen concentration (106 pg per ml) compared to the serum concentration (41.6 pg per ml). Antibodies to HIV-1 were present in the BAL fluids of six patients (31.6 percent) at levels detectable by EIA. By Western blot analysis, three samples yielded more intense gp120 bands compared to bands observed with matched serum samples. Our results suggest that HIV-1 and antibodies to this virus are frequently present in the lungs of children with AIDS and that the serum antigen and antibody profile of some patients does not reflect local pulmonary levels.
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PMID:Markers of human immunodeficiency virus infection in pediatric bronchoalveolar lavage samples. 152 1

The rapid development of biotechnological methods provides the potential of dissecting the molecular structure of microorganisms. In this review the molecular biology of chlamydia is described. The genus Chlamydia contains three species C. trachomatis, C. psittaci, and C. pneumonia which all are important human pathogens. Chlamydia is obligate intracellular bacteria with a unique biphasic life cycle. The extracellularly chlamydial elementary bodies (EB) are small, metabolic inactive, infectious particles with a tight outer cell membrane. After internalization into host cells the chlamydial structure changes, they transform to reticulated bodies (RB) which become larger, metabolically active, and start to replicate. Fourtysix hrs post infection RB reorganizes to EB followed by burst of the inclusion. The structure of the EB outer membrane differs from the membrane of gram-negative bacteria since it is highly cross-linked by S-S bridges. There are, however, also similarities to gram-negative cell walls. The chlamydial major outer membrane protein, Omp1, forms pores and is closely associated with lipopolysaccharide, LPS. LPS, however, is more loosely associated with Omp1 than in other gram negative bacteria since incubation of EB with antibodies against LPS will liberate it from the chlamydial surface. Therefore the surface localized LPS may be important for chlamydial survival. OMP1 varies between the different serovar of C. trachomatis. Several very conserved regions are separated by variable domains. The variable domains are very antigenic and are localized at the surface of EB. After chlamydial internalization into the host cell transition to RB starts. Some of the early proteins are DnaK-like and groEL-like heat-shock proteins. The chlamydial DnaK-like protein is very antigenic. Patient serum samples will recognize the chlamydial DnaK-like protein. From the determined DNA sequence the amino acid sequence was determined. It was 57% homologous to the Eschrichia coli DnaK protein. Also the GroEL-like protein is antigenic and very conserved. Factors of importance for pathogenicity of chlamydia have not yet been found. The adhesin(s) is unknown, and no factor of importance for the inhibition of fusion between phagosome and host cell lysosomes has been described. A protein similar to the mip gene product of Legionella pneumofila may be a possible candidate for a pathogenicity factor. Diagnosis of C. trachomatis infections has been done by chlamydia cultivation in tissue culture cells, by immunofluorescence and by ELISA. A new method based on the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) has been developed. As primers sequences from the common plasmid were used. This method has high sensitivity and specificity and does not require live chlamydia.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
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PMID:The molecular biology and diagnostics of Chlamydia trachomatis. 152 83

A 60-year-old man born in Miyazaki prefecture was admitted to our hospital complaining of skin rash in December 1989. On hematological examinations, leukocyte count was 14,200/microliters with 49% of abnormal lymphocytes showing lobulated nuclei. The surface marker study revealed their phenotype as CD4+8-. Anti human T cell leukemia virus type I (HTLV-I) antibody and monoclonal integration of proviral DNA were positive. From the above results, he was diagnosed as adult T-cell leukemia (ATL). Abnormal lymphocytes gradually decreased without treatment after the first admission. In January, 1990, he began to complain of neck pain. Two months later he was readmitted because of paresis of extremities and disturbance of urination. Vertebral bone mass and a compressed spinal cord in the 4th cervic level were confirmed by MR imaging. He received a resection of tumor and an anterior fusion of vertebrae. The bone tumor was histologically diagnosed as malignant lymphoma, diffuse medium-size cell type and the infiltrating cells had their phenotype as CD4+8+. He was postoperatively treated with combination chemotherapies, but neurological abnormalities did not improve. He died of pneumonia on 35 days after the operation. A postmortem examination revealed extradural tumor formation with ATL cells. This case is considered to be rare in respect of both the disappearance of most peripheral abnormal lymphocytes without any treatments and the cervical bone tumor showing immunophenotypic change.
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PMID:[Adult T-cell leukemia with cervical bone tumor showing immunophenotypic change]. 154 18

A 27-year-old nonsmoking woman complained of cough and chest oppression for two years since an episode of pneumonia. Clinical tests showed decrease in FEV1.0 during attacks of coughing and evidence of bronchial hypersensitivity. While these events fitted the picture of bronchial asthma, the nonwheezing cough suggested cough variant asthma. Antinuclear antibody and anti-ds DNA antibody were increased and leukopenia was recognized, suggesting the diagnosis of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Bronchoalveolar lavage showed lymphocytic alveolitis and decreased T4/T8. These results were suggestive of collagen lung induced by SLE. Inhalation challenge with capsaicin and rapid intravenous injection of lobelin and alinamin indicated that peripheral c-fiber receptors were involved in the induction of coughing. We conclude that the peripheral lesion of collagen lung stimulates the peripheral c-fiber receptors, leading to cough variant asthma.
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PMID:[Case report of collagen lung in SLE presenting with cough variant asthma: relation between the localization of responsible receptors and cough]. 156 25

In 1979 and 1980, more than 400 harbor seals (Phoca vitulina) along the New England coast of the United States died of epizootic pneumonia that was attributed to an influenza virus. Six mycoplasma isolates that were recovered from the respiratory tracts of affected seals were investigated and were found to be serologically identical and distinct from previously described species. These isolates required serum for growth, did not possess a cell wall, and did not hydrolyze urea. Arginine was hydrolyzed, glucose was not fermented, film and spots were observed on horse serum agar, phosphatase was produced, tetrazolium was not reduced, and serum and casein were not digested. The guanine-plus-cytosine content of the DNA was 27.8 mol%. We propose the name Mycoplasma phocidae for these isolates. The type strain of M. phocidae is strain 105 (= ATCC 33657).
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PMID:Mycoplasma phocidae sp. nov., isolated from harbor seals (Phoca vitulina L.). 158 Nov 81

Chlamydia pecorum sp. nov. is proposed as the fourth species of the genus Chlamydia on the basis of the results of a genetic analysis of Chlamydia strains that were isolated from cattle and sheep which had various diseases, including sporadic encephalitis, infectious polyarthritis, pneumonia, and diarrhea. The levels of DNA-DNA homology between C. pecorum and strains of C. psittaci, Chlamydia pneumoniae, and Chlamydia trachomatis were less than 10%. Several DNA probes were used to identify C. pecorum. The C. pecorum strains were distinguished from C. psittaci strains by the results of immunological assays, including an immunofluorescence antibody assay performed with monoclonal antibodies and an immunoblot analysis of the immunological specificity of the major outer membrane protein. Species identification was based on results obtained from DNA analyses and serology. The type strain of C. pecorum is strain ATCC VR628.
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PMID:Proposal of Chlamydia pecorum sp. nov. for Chlamydia strains derived from ruminants. 158 Nov 91

Several viruses may cause more or less severe acute respiratory infections in man, some of which are followed by systemic infection. Only for influenza and measles are licensed vaccines available at present. The protection induced by influenza vaccines, which are based on inactivated whole virus or viral subunits, depends largely on the matching of vaccine strain and circulating virus. Measles vaccines, which are based on attenuated live virus, have been quite effective in controlling the disease in vaccinated populations in the industrialized world. In developing countries, severe measles infections occur in infants from six to nine months of age, which necessitates the vaccination of children of less than six months. At that time maternal antibodies, that may interfere with the induction of protection, may still be present. Therefore, instead of using the parenteral route, the possibility to use the mucosal route of primary immunization is also investigated for vaccination with attenuated live measles vaccines. The use of inactivated measles vaccines has resulted in a state of immunity which upon exposure to the virus may induce an atypical measles syndrome including a severe pneumonia. Measles virus proteins presented in an iscom matrix have recently been shown to induce functional B and T cell responses to both the surface glycoproteins of the virus. These responses could also be induced in the presence of virus neutralizing antibodies and they proved to be protective in several animal model systems. Many of the problems that have been encountered in the development of measles vaccines, proved to be similar in the development of vaccines against other paramyxoviruses causing acute respiratory infections in man, including respiratory syncytial virus. Parenteral application of inactivated and attenuated live vaccines against these paramyxoviruses has generally had little success. Topical application of attenuated live vaccines has been more successful, and also the use of vaccinia recombinant viruses expressing foreign paramyxoviral glycoproteins has shown promising results in laboratory animals. Live vaccines based on adenovirus types 4 and 7 in oral enteric-coated vaccines, which lead to virus replication in the intestines but not in the respiratory tract have been included in military vaccination programs. The possibility to replace e.g. the E3 region with foreign DNA makes adenoviruses also suitable as cloning vectors for proteins of other respiratory viruses. Although live attenuated vaccines against some of the serotypes of rhinoviruses have shown promising results, the generation of a multivalent vaccine against this epidemiologically most significant cause of acute respiratory infections will be almost impossible, due to the multiplicity of serotypes involved.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
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PMID:Vaccination against acute respiratory virus infections and measles in man. 158 42

We have isolated a maedi-visna-like virus from the peripheral blood mononuclear cells of a British sheep displaying symptoms of arthritis and pneumonia. After brief passage in fibroblasts this virus (designated EV1) was used to infect choroid plexus cells. cDNA clones of the virus were prepared from these cells and sequenced. Gaps between non-overlapping clones were filled using gene amplification by the polymerase chain reaction. The genome structure is similar to that described for visna virus strain 1514, and differs from that described for visna virus strain SA-OMVV in not having a W reading frame. Overall the genome differs by about 20% between each of these strains, but there is fivefold variation in the amount of divergence of derived amino acid sequences of different open reading frames. Two sequenced EV1 clones each contain only one copy of the 43 bp repeat, with paired AP-1 sites, which is a feature of other ruminant lentiviral long terminal repeats (LTRs). However, analysis of viral DNA in infected cells by gene amplification shows that LTRs with two repeats do occur, albeit at a relatively low frequency.
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PMID:Nucleotide sequence of EV1, a British isolate of maedi-visna virus. 165 83

The frequent reactivation of disease in immunosuppressed patients represents a serious health complication for acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) patients with herpesviruses. Since the herpesviruses are often associated with the development of complication such as pneumonia and lymphoma, an emphasis is being placed on the rapid laboratory diagnosis of herpes simplex viruses 1 and 2, varicella- zoster, Epstein-Barr virus, and cytomegalovirus. Diagnostic methods that utilize monoclonal antibodies to detect viral antigens in clinical specimens are now within the scope of general laboratories and detection methods for viral DNA in clinical specimens are being advanced. Each of the viruses requires its own diagnostic procedures, however, and consideration should be given to practical and economic issues. The World Health Organization (WHO) has recommended that developing countries use rapid diagnostic techniques that do not require expensive, labor-intensive virus replication. Serological diagnosis can facilitate disease surveillance of the herpesviruses in different population groups in countries with little information on this infection's epidemiology. Who is recommending that regional or national reference laboratories establish confirmatory testing facilities to support the routing virological or microbiological services offered by local laboratories. Other WHO recommendations include the development of international standard preparations and reference reagents, compilation of a list of monoclonal antibodies available for collaborative diagnostic studies, and promotion of studies on the rapid diagnosis of herpesvirus-promoted encephalitides.
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PMID:Diagnosis of human herpesviruses: memorandum from a WHO meeting. 165 24


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