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Spigaglia P, Mastrantonio P, Barbanti F. Antibiotic Resistances of Clostridioides difficile. Adv Exp Med Biol 2024; 1435:169-198. [PMID: 38175476 DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-42108-2_9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/05/2024]
Abstract
The rapid evolution of antibiotic resistance in Clostridioides difficile and the consequent effects on prevention and treatment of C. difficile infections (CDIs) are a matter of concern for public health. Antibiotic resistance plays an important role in driving C. difficile epidemiology. Emergence of new types is often associated with the emergence of new resistances, and most of the epidemic C. difficile clinical isolates is currently resistant to multiple antibiotics. In particular, it is to worth to note the recent identification of strains with reduced susceptibility to the first-line antibiotics for CDI treatment and/or for relapsing infections. Antibiotic resistance in C. difficile has a multifactorial nature. Acquisition of genetic elements and alterations of the antibiotic target sites, as well as other factors, such as variations in the metabolic pathways or biofilm production, contribute to the survival of this pathogen in the presence of antibiotics. Different transfer mechanisms facilitate the spread of mobile elements among C. difficile strains and between C. difficile and other species. Furthermore, data indicate that both genetic elements and alterations in the antibiotic targets can be maintained in C. difficile regardless of the burden imposed on fitness, and therefore resistances may persist in C. difficile population in absence of antibiotic selective pressure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrizia Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy.
| | - Paola Mastrantonio
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Barbanti
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
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Spigaglia P, Barbanti F, Germinario EAP, Criscuolo EM, Bruno G, Sanchez-Mete L, Porowska B, Stigliano V, Accarpio F, Oddi A, Zingale I, Rossi S, De Angelis R, Fabbri A. Comparison of microbiological profile of enterotoxigenic Bacteroides fragilis (ETBF) isolates from subjects with colorectal cancer (CRC) or intestinal pre-cancerous lesions versus healthy individuals and evaluation of environmental factors involved in intestinal dysbiosis. Anaerobe 2023; 82:102757. [PMID: 37380012 DOI: 10.1016/j.anaerobe.2023.102757] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2023] [Revised: 06/14/2023] [Accepted: 06/20/2023] [Indexed: 06/30/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to analyze enterotoxigenic Bacteroides fragilis (ETBF) isolates from colorectal biopsies of subjects with a histological analysis positive for colorectal cancer (CRC), pre-cancerous lesions (pre-CRC) or with a healthy intestinal tissue and to evaluate the environmental factors that may not only concur to CRC development but may also affect gut microbiota composition. METHODS ETBF isolates were typed using the ERIC-PCR method, while PCR assays were performed to investigate the bft alleles, the B. fragilis pathogenicity island (BFPAI) region and the cepA, cfiA and cfxA genes. Susceptibility to antibiotics was tested using the agar dilution method. Environmental factors that could play a role in promoting intestinal dysbiosis were evaluated throughout a questionnaire administered to the subjects enrolled. RESULTS Six different ERIC-PCR types were identified. The type denominated C in this study was the most prevalent, in particular among the biopsies of subjects with pre-CRC, while an isolate belonging to a different type, denominated F, was detected in a biopsy from a subject with CRC. All the ETBF isolates from pre-CRC or CRC subjects had a B. fragilis pathogenicity island (BFPAI) region pattern I, while those from healthy individuals showed also different patterns. Furthermore, 71% of isolates from subjects with pre-CRC or CRC were resistant to two or more classes of antibiotics vs 43% of isolates from healthy individuals. The B. fragilis toxin BFT1 was the most frequently detected in this study, confirming the constant circulation of this isoform strains in Italy. Interestingly, BFT1 was found in 86% of the ETBF isolates from patients with CRC or pre-CRC, while the BFT2 was prevalent among the ETBF isolates from healthy subjects. No substantial differences based on sex, age, tobacco and alcohol consumption were observed between healthy and non-healthy individuals included in this study, while most of the subjects with CRC or pre-CRC lesions were subjected to pharmacological therapy (71%) and showed a body mass index (BMI) that falls within the overweight range (86%). CONCLUSIONS Our data suggest that some types of ETBF seem to better adapt and colonize the human gut and that the selective pressure exerted by factors related to lifestyle, such as pharmacological therapy and weight, could facilitate their persistence in the gut and their possible involvement in CRC development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrizia Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, 00161, Rome, Italy.
| | - Fabrizio Barbanti
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, 00161, Rome, Italy.
| | - Elena Angela Pia Germinario
- Department of Cardiovascular, Endocrine-Metabolic Diseases and Ageing, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, 00161, Rome, Italy.
| | | | - Giovanni Bruno
- Department of Translational and Precision Medicine, Gastroenterology Unit, Policlinic Umberto I, University of Rome 'Sapienza', 00161, Rome, Italy.
| | - Lupe Sanchez-Mete
- Gastroenterology and Digestive Endoscopy IRCCS Regina Elena National Cancer Institute, 00144, Rome, Italy.
| | - Barbara Porowska
- Digestive Endoscopy UOC CSC03 of the Department of General Surgery, Surgical Specialities "Paride Stefanini", Policlinic Umberto I, University of Rome 'Sapienza', 00161, Rome, Italy.
| | - Vittoria Stigliano
- Gastroenterology and Digestive Endoscopy IRCCS Regina Elena National Cancer Institute, 00144, Rome, Italy.
| | - Fabio Accarpio
- Digestive Endoscopy UOC CSC03 of the Department of General Surgery, Surgical Specialities "Paride Stefanini", Policlinic Umberto I, University of Rome 'Sapienza', 00161, Rome, Italy.
| | - Andrea Oddi
- Hepatopancreatobiliary Surgery, IRCCS Regina Elena National Cancer Institute, 00114, Rome, Italy.
| | - Ilaria Zingale
- Digestive Endoscopy UOC CSC03 of the Department of General Surgery, Surgical Specialities "Paride Stefanini", Policlinic Umberto I, University of Rome 'Sapienza', 00161, Rome, Italy.
| | - Silvia Rossi
- Department of Oncology and Molecular Medicine, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, 00161, Rome, Italy.
| | - Roberta De Angelis
- Department of Oncology and Molecular Medicine, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, 00161, Rome, Italy.
| | - Alessia Fabbri
- Department of Cardiovascular, Endocrine-Metabolic Diseases and Ageing, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, 00161, Rome, Italy.
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Spigaglia P, Barbanti F, Faccini S, Vescovi M, Criscuolo EM, Ceruti R, Gaspano C, Rosignoli C. Clostridioides difficile in Pigs and Dairy Cattle in Northern Italy: Prevalence, Characterization and Comparison between Animal and Human Strains. Microorganisms 2023; 11:1738. [PMID: 37512910 PMCID: PMC10383565 DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms11071738] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2023] [Revised: 06/21/2023] [Accepted: 06/29/2023] [Indexed: 07/30/2023] Open
Abstract
It has been observed that novel strains of Clostridioides difficile can rapidly emerge and move between animal and human hosts. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of C. difficile in pigs and dairy cattle in northern Italy and to characterize and compare C. difficile animal strains with those from patients from the same geographical area. The C. difficile strains were isolated from animals from farms and slaughterhouses (cross-sectional studies) and from neonatal animals with enteric disorders in routine diagnostic investigations (passive surveillance). Samples positive for C. difficile were found in 87% of the pig farms and in 40% of the cattle farms involved in the cross-sectional studies, with a 20% prevalence among suckling piglets and 6.7% prevalence in neonatal calves, with no significant difference between animals with and without diarrheal symptoms. The prevalence of C. difficile in older animal categories was significantly lower. This result suggests that young age is an important risk factor for C. difficile colonization. In cross-sectional studies at slaughterhouses, in both the heavy pigs and dairy cows examined, only 2% of the intestinal content samples were positive for C. difficile and no contamination was found on the surface of the carcasses. Considering passive surveillance, the prevalence rates of positive samples were 29% in piglets and 1.4% in calves. Overall, 267 strains of animal origin and 97 from humans were collected. In total, 39 ribotypes (RTs) were identified, with RT 078 and RT 018 being predominant among animals and humans, respectively. Several RTs overlapped between animals and patients. In particular, RT 569 was identified as an emergent type in our country. Resistance to erythromycin and moxifloxacin was widely diffused among C. difficile strains, regardless of origin. This study supports C. difficile as a pathogen of one-health importance and highlights the need for a collaborative approach between physicians and veterinarians to control and prevent infections that are able to cross species and geographical barriers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrizia Spigaglia
- Dipartimento di Malattie Infettive, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, 00161 Roma, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Barbanti
- Dipartimento di Malattie Infettive, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, 00161 Roma, Italy
| | - Silvia Faccini
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Lombardia e dell'Emilia Romagna "B. Ubertini", Sede Territoriale di Mantova, 46100 Mantova, Italy
| | - Mariella Vescovi
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Lombardia e dell'Emilia Romagna "B. Ubertini", Sede Territoriale di Mantova, 46100 Mantova, Italy
| | | | - Rossella Ceruti
- Servizio di Medicina di Laboratorio, ASST Ospedale "Carlo Poma", 46100 Mantova, Italy
| | - Clara Gaspano
- Servizio di Medicina di Laboratorio, ASST Ospedale "Carlo Poma", 46100 Mantova, Italy
| | - Carlo Rosignoli
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Lombardia e dell'Emilia Romagna "B. Ubertini", Sede Territoriale di Mantova, 46100 Mantova, Italy
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Ricci ML, Fillo S, Ciammaruconi A, Lista F, Ginevra C, Jarraud S, Girolamo A, Barbanti F, Rota MC, Lindsay D, Gorzynski J, Uldum SA, Baig S, Foti M, Petralito G, Torri S, Faccini M, Bonini M, Gentili G, Senatore S, Lamberti A, Carrico JA, Scaturro M. Genome analysis of Legionella pneumophila ST23 from various countries reveals highly similar strains. Life Sci Alliance 2022; 5:5/6/e202101117. [PMID: 35236759 PMCID: PMC8899845 DOI: 10.26508/lsa.202101117] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2021] [Revised: 02/14/2022] [Accepted: 02/15/2022] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
ST23 isolated in Italy are analysed by cgMLST and SNP approaches and they are also compared with ST23 from other countries. They are found to be phylogenetically related independently on year, town, or country of isolation. Legionella pneumophila serogroup 1 (Lp1) sequence type (ST) 23 is one of the most commonly detected STs in Italy where it currently causes all investigated outbreaks. ST23 has caused both epidemic and sporadic cases between 1995 and 2018 and was analysed at genomic level and compared with ST23 isolated in other countries to determine possible similarities and differences. A core genome multi-locus sequence typing (cgMLST), based on a previously described set of 1,521 core genes, and single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) approaches were applied to an ST23 collection including genomes from Italy, France, Denmark and Scotland. DNAs were automatically extracted, libraries prepared using NextEra library kit and MiSeq sequencing performed. Overall, 63 among clinical and environmental Italian Lp1 isolates and a further seven and 11 ST23 from Denmark and Scotland, respectively, were sequenced, and pangenome analysed. Both cgMLST and SNPs analyses showed very few loci and SNP variations in ST23 genomes. All the ST23 causing outbreaks and sporadic cases in Italy and elsewhere, were phylogenetically related independent of year, town or country of isolation. Distances among the ST23s were further shortened when SNPs due to horizontal gene transfers were removed. The Lp1 ST23 isolated in Italy have kept their monophyletic origin, but they are phylogenetically close also to ST23 from other countries. The ST23 are quite widespread in Italy, and a thorough epidemiological investigation is compelled to determine sources of infection when this ST is identified in both LD sporadic cases and outbreaks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Luisa Ricci
- Department of Infectious Diseases Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy.,ESCMID Study Group for Legionella Infections (ESGLI), Basel, Switzerland
| | - Silvia Fillo
- Scientific Department, Army Medical Center, Rome, Italy
| | | | | | - Christophe Ginevra
- CIRI, Centre International de Recherche en Infectiologie, Legionella Pathogenesis Team, University of Lyon, Inserm, U1111, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, CNRS, UMR5308, ENS de Lyon, Lyon, France; National Reference Centre of Legionella, Institute of Infectious Agents, Hospices Civils de Lyon, Lyon, France.,ESCMID Study Group for Legionella Infections (ESGLI), Basel, Switzerland
| | - Sophie Jarraud
- Universitè Lyon 1, CNR Legionella, Lyon, France.,ESCMID Study Group for Legionella Infections (ESGLI), Basel, Switzerland
| | | | - Fabrizio Barbanti
- Department of Infectious Diseases Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | | | - Diane Lindsay
- Scottish Microbiology Reference Laboratories, Glasgow, Scotland.,ESCMID Study Group for Legionella Infections (ESGLI), Basel, Switzerland
| | - Jamie Gorzynski
- Scottish Microbiology Reference Laboratories, Glasgow, Scotland
| | - Søren A Uldum
- Department of Bacteria, Parasites, and Fungi, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen S, Denmark.,ESCMID Study Group for Legionella Infections (ESGLI), Basel, Switzerland
| | - Sharmin Baig
- Department of Bacteria, Parasites, and Fungi, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen S, Denmark
| | - Marina Foti
- Agency for Health Protection of Metropolitan Area of Milan (ATS), Milan, Italy
| | | | - Stefania Torri
- Department of Laboratory of Medicine, Hospital Niguarda, Ca' Granda, Milan, Italy
| | - Marino Faccini
- Agency for Health Protection of Metropolitan Area of Milan (ATS), Milan, Italy
| | - Maira Bonini
- Agency for Health Protection of Metropolitan Area of Milan (ATS), Milan, Italy
| | - Gabriella Gentili
- Agency for Health Protection of Metropolitan Area of Milan (ATS), Milan, Italy
| | - Sabrina Senatore
- Agency for Health Protection of Metropolitan Area of Milan (ATS), Milan, Italy
| | - Anna Lamberti
- Agency for Health Protection of Metropolitan Area of Milan (ATS), Milan, Italy
| | - Joao André Carrico
- Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal.,ESCMID Study Group for Legionella Infections (ESGLI), Basel, Switzerland
| | - Maria Scaturro
- Department of Infectious Diseases Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy .,ESCMID Study Group for Legionella Infections (ESGLI), Basel, Switzerland
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Mancini F, Barbanti F, Scaturro M, Fontana S, Di Martino A, Marsili G, Puzelli S, Calzoletti L, Facchini M, Di Mario G, Fabiani C, Bella A, Riccardo F, Pezzotti P, Stefanelli P, Rezza G, Ciervo A. Multiplex Real-Time Reverse-Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction Assays for Diagnostic Testing of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 and Seasonal Influenza Viruses: A Challenge of the Phase 3 Pandemic Setting. J Infect Dis 2021; 223:765-774. [PMID: 33080031 PMCID: PMC7665649 DOI: 10.1093/infdis/jiaa658] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/06/2020] [Accepted: 10/16/2020] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Pandemic coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) disease represents a challenge for healthcare structures. The molecular confirmation of samples from infected individuals is crucial and therefore guides public health decision making. Clusters and possibly increased diffuse transmission could occur in the context of the next influenza season. For this reason, a diagnostic test able to discriminate severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) from influenza viruses is urgently needed. METHODS A multiplex real-time reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay was assessed using 1 laboratory protocol with different real-time PCR instruments. Overall, 1000 clinical samples (600 from samples SARS-CoV-2-infected patients, 200 samples from influenza-infected patients, and 200 negative samples) were analyzed. RESULTS The assay developed was able to detect and discriminate each virus target and to intercept coinfections. The limit of quantification of each assay ranged between 5 and 10 genomic copy numbers, with a cutoff value of 37.7 and 37.8 for influenza and SARS-CoV-2 viruses, respectively. Only 2 influenza coinfections were detected in COVID-19 samples. CONCLUSIONS This study suggests that multiplex assay is a rapid, valid, and accurate method for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 and influenza viruses in clinical samples. The test may be an important diagnostic tool for both diagnostic and surveillance purposes during the seasonal influenza activity period.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fabiola Mancini
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Barbanti
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Maria Scaturro
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Stefano Fontana
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Angela Di Martino
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Giulia Marsili
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Simona Puzelli
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Laura Calzoletti
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Marzia Facchini
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Giuseppina Di Mario
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Concetta Fabiani
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Antonino Bella
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Flavia Riccardo
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Patrizio Pezzotti
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Paola Stefanelli
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Giovanni Rezza
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy.,Italian Ministry of Health, Rome, Italy
| | - Alessandra Ciervo
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
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Mancini F, Barbanti F, Scaturro M, Errico G, Iacobino A, Bella A, Riccardo F, Marsili G, Stefanelli P, Pezzotti P, Rezza G, Ciervo A. Laboratory management for SARS-CoV-2 detection: a user-friendly combination of the heat treatment approach and rt-Real-time PCR testing. Emerg Microbes Infect 2020; 9:1393-1396. [PMID: 32552549 PMCID: PMC7473159 DOI: 10.1080/22221751.2020.1775500] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
The RNA purification is the gold standard for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 in swab samples, but it is dependent on the availability of chemical reagents. In this study, we evaluated the heat treatment method without RNA extraction as a reliable option to nucleic acid purification.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fabiola Mancini
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Barbanti
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Maria Scaturro
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Giulia Errico
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy.,European Public Health Microbiology Training Program (EUPHEM), European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Angelo Iacobino
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Antonino Bella
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Flavia Riccardo
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Giulia Marsili
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Paola Stefanelli
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Patrizio Pezzotti
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Giovanni Rezza
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
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- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
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Barbanti F, Spigaglia P. Microbiological characteristics of human and animal isolates of Clostridioides difficile in Italy: Results of the Istituto Superiore di Sanità in the years 2006-2016. Anaerobe 2019; 61:102136. [PMID: 31857201 DOI: 10.1016/j.anaerobe.2019.102136] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2019] [Revised: 10/29/2019] [Accepted: 12/02/2019] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
The increased incidence of Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI) and the emergence of highly virulent types highlight the need of microbiological characterization to gain insight CDI epidemiological changes. This paper, reporting data obtained by the Istituto Superiore di Sanità Central Laboratory Service for C. difficile (ISS-CLSCD) in 2006-2016, provides a first long-term microbiological analysis of human and animal C. difficile strains circulating in Italy. The number of human isolates analyzed by ISS-CLSCD significantly increased over the time (170 in 2006-2011 vs 661 in 2012-2016). Independently from the year of isolation, 42% of the clinical isolates belonged to the PCR-ribotype (RT) 018-lineage (RT 018, RT 607, RT 541, PR07661 and PR14328), with RT 018 and RT 607 grouping the majority of isolates. This lineage was significantly associated to CDIs occurred in the General Medicine Units, Clinic Units or Long-Term Care Facilities, while it was rarely found in pediatric patients. Although the percentage of isolates positive for the binary toxin (CDT) was stable during the study (20%), several CDT-positive RTs emerged in 2012-2016, including RT 027. In total, 32 RTs overlapped between animals and humans and six of these RTs were non-toxigenic. The two lineages prevalent in animals, the RT 078-lineage and the RT 569-lineage (RT 569, RT 049, RT 056 and RT 727), were also found in humans, while the RT 018-lineage was rarely detected in animals, suggesting that it is prevalently associated to human infections. Sixty-two percent of clinical isolates showed a multidrug-resistance (MDR) phenotype, with resistance to rifampicin characterizing successful RTs. A MDR phenotype was also observed in 18% of animal isolates, in particular from dogs, supporting animals as potential reservoirs of resistant C. difficile strains. Interestingly, multiple resistances were observed in both human and animal non-toxigenic isolates suggesting their contribution to antibiotic resistance spread among C. difficile population. All these data indicate that CDI is an issue of growing concern in Italy, highlighting the need for a standardized surveillance in our Country and an interdisciplinary approach to deal successfully with this infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fabrizio Barbanti
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Patrizia Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy.
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Barbanti F, Spigaglia P. Direct detection and characterization of Clostridium difficile from a novel collection device to improve laboratory workflow. APMIS 2019; 127:449-453. [PMID: 30834561 DOI: 10.1111/apm.12942] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2018] [Accepted: 02/18/2019] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Emergence of Clostridium difficile strains with increased virulence emphasizes the importance of early diagnosis and surveillance of C. difficile infection (CDI). In this study, the new FecalSwab™ collection and transport system was evaluated to improve C. difficile diagnosis. The FecalSwab™ was used for direct C. difficile molecular detection, C. difficile culture/toxigenic culture (TC) and bacterial genomic DNA (bgDNA) extraction. Our results demonstrated that the FecalSwab™ medium could be successfully used as template for Xpert C. difficile binary toxin (BT), regardless of the bacterial load of samples, and for C. difficile culture also after a long storage (30 days) of FecalSwab™ tubes at 4 °C. Furthermore, good-quality bgDNA was extracted from the FecalSwab™ medium for the majority (75%) of the samples analyzed. Typing was performed to fully characterize C. difficile strains isolated during this study and 17 different PCR-ribotypes (RTs) were identified. The results obtained indicate that the FecalSwab™ can be successfully used not only in daily diagnostic routine of C. difficile but also in surveillance and retrospective studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fabrizio Barbanti
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Patrizia Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
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9
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Agnoletti F, Arcangeli G, Barbanti F, Barco L, Brunetta R, Cocchi M, Conedera G, D'Este L, Drigo I, Spigaglia P, Mazzolini E. Survey, characterization and antimicrobial susceptibility of Clostridium difficile from marine bivalve shellfish of North Adriatic Sea. Int J Food Microbiol 2019; 298:74-80. [PMID: 30927688 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2019.03.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2019] [Accepted: 03/05/2019] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Clostridium difficile is a major cause of infectious diarrhea associated to healthcare settings. Community-acquired infections are increasingly reported in the last decade and exposure other than to symptomatic patients rather to contaminated foods or animals is feasible. Occurrence of C. difficile in shellfish raises concern because spores can survive the cooking temperatures given that shellfish is often consumed poorly cooked or raw. Aim of our study was to investigate whether shellfish represents a reservoir of C. difficile human PCR-ribotypes (RTs). 702 shellfish samples of farmed and wild bivalve mollusc species were collected over the 2015-2017 period in North Adriatic Italian Sea to investigate contamination with C. difficile and characterize the isolates in terms of genotypic variability and antimicrobial resistance profile. C. difficile was detected in 16.9% (CI: 14.1%-19.8%) samples: 11.6% mussels and 23.2% clams. Compared to mussels, clams were significantly associated with detection of C. difficile (OR = 2.4, P < 0.01). Overall 113 C. difficile isolates were genotyped and 75 (66.4%) were toxigenic. Fifty-three different RTs were identified. 40.7% C. difficile isolates were among the RTs most commonly involved in human infection in Europe. The profile of antimicrobial susceptibility was determined by E-test; microbiological resistance was frequent against clindamycin (17%), erythromycin (23%), rifampicin (8.8%) and moxifloxacin (10.6%). All isolates were susceptible to metronidazole and one showed MIC > ECOFF for vancomycin. C. difficile strains showed high variety in RTs, most of them already detected in other animals or known as highly virulent and epidemic in humans. These results prompt towards investigating on specific risk mitigation measures against C. difficile and are preliminary for any source attribution and risk assessment study.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fabrizio Agnoletti
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie, Viale dell'Università 10, 35020 Legnaro, PD, Italy.
| | - Giuseppe Arcangeli
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie, Viale dell'Università 10, 35020 Legnaro, PD, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Barbanti
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena 299, 00161 Rome, Italy
| | - Lisa Barco
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie, Viale dell'Università 10, 35020 Legnaro, PD, Italy
| | - Romina Brunetta
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie, Viale dell'Università 10, 35020 Legnaro, PD, Italy
| | - Monia Cocchi
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie, Viale dell'Università 10, 35020 Legnaro, PD, Italy
| | - Gabriella Conedera
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie, Viale dell'Università 10, 35020 Legnaro, PD, Italy
| | - Laura D'Este
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie, Viale dell'Università 10, 35020 Legnaro, PD, Italy
| | - Ilenia Drigo
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie, Viale dell'Università 10, 35020 Legnaro, PD, Italy
| | - Patrizia Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena 299, 00161 Rome, Italy
| | - Elena Mazzolini
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie, Viale dell'Università 10, 35020 Legnaro, PD, Italy
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10
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Serafino S, Consonni D, Migone De Amicis M, Sisto F, Domeniconi G, Formica S, Zarantonello M, Maraschini A, Cappellini MD, Spigaglia P, Barbanti F, Castaldi S, Fabio G. Clinical outcomes of Clostridium difficile infection according to strain type. A prospective study in medical wards. Eur J Intern Med 2018; 54:21-26. [PMID: 29650357 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejim.2018.03.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2017] [Revised: 03/16/2018] [Accepted: 03/26/2018] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES To describe clinical characteristics and outcome of Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) patients in Internal Medicine, to identify ribotypes (RTs); to evaluate the association between RT and patient clinical characteristics and report outcome. METHODS One year prospective cohort study. Clinical data, Barthel Index (BI) and outcomes were collected for all inpatients suffering from CDI (n = 148) in hospital wards in Northern Italy. 84 fecal samples were analysed for molecular typing. RESULTS 12 RTs were identified, predominantly RT018 (42.9%, n = 36/84) and RT356/607 (40.5%, n = 34/84). Patients with dementia were more frequent among those infected by RT018 [55.6% (n = 20/36) vs. 32.4% (n = 11/34), p = 0.05]. The median BI score of patients with RT018 was lower than BI score of patients with RT356/607 [10 (IQR 0-32) vs. 15 (IQR 5-50), p = 0.06]. RT018 infection was associated to higher levels of C-reactive protein [7.2 mg/dl (IQR 4.1-14.7) vs. 4.0 mg/dl (IQR 2.2-6.8), p = 0.01] and white blood cells ≥15,000/dl [33.3% (n = 12/36) vs. 14.7% (n = 5/34) of patients, p = 0.07]. Higher mortality was noted among RT018 infected patients. We found a continuous mortality increase according to the ATLAS score. CONCLUSIONS Our results confirm that RT018 and RT356/607 are the two major RTs causing CDI in older patients with a high degree of disability in Northern Italy and RT018 is associated with more serious outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- S Serafino
- Internal Medicine Department, Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Italy.
| | - D Consonni
- Epidemiology Unit, Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Milan, Italy
| | - M Migone De Amicis
- Post Graduate School in Internal Medicine, University of Milan, Milan, Italy
| | - F Sisto
- Department of Biomedical, Surgical and Dental Sciences, University of Milan, Milan, Italy
| | - G Domeniconi
- Post graduate School in Public Health, Department Biomedical Sciences for Health, University of Milan, Milan, Italy
| | - S Formica
- Department of Clinical Sciences and Community Health, University of Milan, Milan, Italy
| | - M Zarantonello
- Department of Clinical Sciences and Community Health, University of Milan, Milan, Italy
| | - A Maraschini
- Microbiology Laboratory, Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Milan, Italy
| | - M D Cappellini
- Internal Medicine Department, Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Italy; Department of Clinical Sciences and Community Health, University of Milan, Milan, Italy
| | - P Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Roma, Italy
| | - F Barbanti
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Roma, Italy
| | - S Castaldi
- Quality Unit, Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Milan, Italy; Department of Biological Sciences for Health, University of Milan, Italy
| | - G Fabio
- Internal Medicine Department, Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Italy; Department of Clinical Sciences and Community Health, University of Milan, Milan, Italy
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11
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Giufrè M, Accogli M, Ricchizzi E, Barbanti F, Farina C, Fazii P, Mattei R, Sarti M, Barozzi A, Buttazzi R, Cosentino M, Nardone M, Savini V, Spigaglia P, Moro ML, Cerquetti M. Multidrug-resistant infections in long-term care facilities: extended-spectrum β-lactamase-producing Enterobacteriaceae and hypervirulent antibiotic resistant Clostridium difficile. Diagn Microbiol Infect Dis 2018; 91:275-281. [PMID: 29571838 DOI: 10.1016/j.diagmicrobio.2018.02.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2017] [Revised: 11/15/2017] [Accepted: 02/23/2018] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Infections due to multidrug-resistant (MDR) organisms in long-term care facilities (LTCFs) residents constitute a public health concern. This multicenter study investigated the frequency of ESBL-producing pathogens and MDR Clostridium difficile in clinical specimens from LTCF residents in Italy. During October 2014-March 2015, all urine and diarrheic fecal samples from LTCF residents (≥65 years) with suspected urinary tract infection or C. difficile infection, respectively, received for diagnosis by 4 hospital laboratories located in different cities were analyzed. Antibiotic susceptibility testing, characterization of resistance genes, and molecular typing of pathogens were performed. Of 806 urine cultures collected from 626 residents at 44 different LTCFs, 492 were positive for microbial infection. Of these, 158 were positive for at least an ESBL-producing Enterobacteriaceae species (32.1%), with Escherichia coli as the most frequent ESBL pathogen (23.4%) followed by Klebsiella pneumoniae (4.5%). Furthermore, 4 carbapenemase producers (0.8%) (1 E. coli with VIM-1and 3 K. pneumoniae with KPC-3) were detected. The CTX-M-15 type ESBL predominated in both E. coli (71.3%) and K. pneumoniae (77.3%). Most E. coli isolates (82.6%) belonged to the ST131/H30 clone/subclone. For K. pneumoniae, ST307 and ST15 were frequent (31.8% and 22.7%, respectively), but isolates harboring blaKPC-3 belonged to CC258. Of 136 diarrheic fecal samples collected from 111 residents at 26 different LTCFs, 21 (15.4%) were positive for toxigenic C. difficile; of these, 13 (62%) were MDR (resistant to 3 or more antimicrobial agents of different classes). The predominant C. difficile polymerase chain reaction ribotype was 356/607 (42.9%), followed by 018, 449, and 078 (14% each). Public health efforts are needed to contain the diffusion of CTX-M-producing Enterobacteriaceae and MDR C. difficile in LTCF settings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Giufrè
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Marisa Accogli
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | | | - Fabrizio Barbanti
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | | | | | | | - Mario Sarti
- S. Agostino-Estense-Baggiovara Hospital, Modena, Italy
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Patrizia Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | | | - Marina Cerquetti
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy.
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12
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Spigaglia P, Barbanti F, Castagnola E, Diana MC, Pescetto L, Bandettini R. Clostridium difficile causing pediatric infections: New findings from a hospital-based study in Italy. Anaerobe 2017; 48:262-268. [PMID: 29066337 DOI: 10.1016/j.anaerobe.2017.10.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/03/2017] [Revised: 10/18/2017] [Accepted: 10/20/2017] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Recent studies support a change of Clostridium difficile infections (CDIs) epidemiology in pediatric patients. Since limited information is available about C. difficile in this population, we investigated the epidemiology of CDI in a large pediatric hospital that acts as reference centre in Italy and analyzed C. difficile isolates to identify the prevalent PCR-ribotypes (RTs), the binary toxin (CDT)-positive strains and the antibiotic susceptibility patterns. The CDI incidence was 6.6 cases/1000 admissions and the majority (92%) of CDI were healthcare-associated (47% occurred in the Hematology-Oncology and in the Gastroenterology units). Most of symptomatic children <3 years with a positive culture for C. difficile were negative for other gastrointestinal pathogens, supporting C. difficile as cause of disease in these patients, including those showing recurrences. Strains RT020 (16%) and RT014 (14%) were identified as the main cause of infection, while RT356/607 and RT018, predominant in Italian adult patients, were absent (RT356/607) or rarely found (RT018) among children. CDT-positive strains represented the 20% of the total number of isolates analyzed. In particular, two emerging types, RT033 and RT442, were recognized as Toxin A-/Toxin B-/CDT+. Resistance to antibiotics characterized almost 50% of the toxigenic isolates analyzed in this study and, in particular, 20% of them were multidrug resistant (MDR). The emergence and circulation of strains with peculiar toxins profiles and/or MDR strongly highlight the necessity of a rapid CDI diagnosis, a careful monitoring of C. difficile in pediatric patients and a more strict control of antibiotics usage in the Italian pediatric hospitals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrizia Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy.
| | - Fabrizio Barbanti
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Elio Castagnola
- Infectious Diseases Unit, Istituto Giannina Gaslini, Genoa, Italy
| | - Maria Cristina Diana
- Pediatric Neurology and Muscle Disease Unit, Istituto Giannina Gaslini, Genoa, Italy
| | - Luisa Pescetto
- Clinical Pathology Laboratory Unit, Istituto Giannina Gaslini, Genoa, Italy
| | - Roberto Bandettini
- Clinical Pathology Laboratory Unit, Istituto Giannina Gaslini, Genoa, Italy
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13
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Giufrè M, Ricchizzi E, Accogli M, Barbanti F, Monaco M, Pimentel de Araujo F, Farina C, Fazii P, Mattei R, Sarti M, Barozzi A, Buttazzi R, Cosentino M, Nardone M, Savini V, Spigaglia P, Pantosti A, Moro ML, Cerquetti M. Colonization by multidrug-resistant organisms in long-term care facilities in Italy: a point-prevalence study. Clin Microbiol Infect 2017; 23:961-967. [PMID: 28412380 DOI: 10.1016/j.cmi.2017.04.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2016] [Revised: 03/30/2017] [Accepted: 04/06/2017] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES To determine prevalence and risk factors for colonization by multidrug-resistant organisms (MDROs) in long-term care facility (LTCF) residents in Italy. Genotypes of MDRO isolates were investigated. METHODS A point-prevalence study was conducted at 12 LTCFs located in four Italian cities (2 February to 14 March 2015). Rectal swabs, faeces and nasal/auxiliary swabs were cultured for extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)- and/or carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae, Clostridium difficile and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) respectively. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing, detection of ESBL and/or carbapenemase genes and molecular typing of MDROs were performed. Risk factors for colonization were determined by univariate and multivariate analysis. RESULTS A total of 489 LTCF residents aged ≥65 years were enrolled. The prevalence of colonization by ESBL-producing Enterobacteriaceae, MRSA and C. difficile was 57.3% (279/487), 17.2% (84/487) and 5.1% (21/409) respectively. Carriage rate of carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae was 1% (5/487). Being bedridden was a common independent risk factor for colonization by all MDROs, although risk factors specific for each MDRO were identified. ESBL-producing Escherichia coli carriage was associated with the sequence type (ST) 131-H30 subclone, but other minor STs predominated in individual LTCF or in LTCFs located in the same city, suggesting a role for intrafacility or local transmission. Similarly, MRSA from LTCF residents belonged to the same spa types/ST clones (t008/ST8 and t032/ST22) commonly found in Italian acute-care hospitals, but infrequent spa types were recovered in individual LTCFs. The prevalent C. difficile PCR ribotypes were 356/607 and 018, both common in Italian acute-care hospitals. CONCLUSIONS MDRO colonization is common among residents in Italian LTCFs.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Giufrè
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - E Ricchizzi
- Health and Social Agency, Emilia-Romagna Region, Bologna, Italy
| | - M Accogli
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - F Barbanti
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - M Monaco
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | | | - C Farina
- Papa Giovanni XXIII Hospital, Bergamo, Italy
| | - P Fazii
- Spirito Santo Hospital, Pescara, Italy
| | - R Mattei
- Campo di Marte Hospital, Lucca, Italy
| | - M Sarti
- S. Agostino-Estense-Baggiovara Hospital, Modena, Italy
| | - A Barozzi
- S. Agostino-Estense-Baggiovara Hospital, Modena, Italy
| | - R Buttazzi
- Health and Social Agency, Emilia-Romagna Region, Bologna, Italy
| | - M Cosentino
- Papa Giovanni XXIII Hospital, Bergamo, Italy
| | - M Nardone
- Campo di Marte Hospital, Lucca, Italy
| | - V Savini
- Spirito Santo Hospital, Pescara, Italy
| | - P Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - A Pantosti
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - M L Moro
- Health and Social Agency, Emilia-Romagna Region, Bologna, Italy
| | - M Cerquetti
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy.
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14
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Cioni G, Viale P, Frasson S, Cipollini F, Menichetti F, Petrosillo N, Brunati S, Spigaglia P, Vismara C, Bielli A, Barbanti F, Landini G, Panigada G, Gussoni G, Bonizzoni E, Gesu GP. Epidemiology and outcome of Clostridium difficile infections in patients hospitalized in Internal Medicine: findings from the nationwide FADOI-PRACTICE study. BMC Infect Dis 2016; 16:656. [PMID: 27825317 PMCID: PMC5101712 DOI: 10.1186/s12879-016-1961-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2016] [Accepted: 10/25/2016] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Clostridium difficile (CD) is a leading cause of diarrhoea among hospitalized patients. The objective of this study was to evaluate the rate, the optimal diagnostic work-up, and outcome of CD infections (CDI) in Internal Medicine (IM) wards in Italy. Methods PRACTICE is an observational prospective study, involving 40 IM Units and evaluating all consecutive patients hospitalized during a 4-month period. CDI were defined in case of diarrhoea when both enzyme immunoassay for GDH, and test for A/B toxin were positive. Patients with CDI were followed-up for recurrences for 4 weeks after the end of therapy. Results Among the 10,780 patients observed, 103 (0.96 %) showed CDI, at admission or during hospitalization. A positive history for CD, antibiotics in the previous 4 weeks, recent hospitalization, female gender and age were significantly associated with CDI (multivariable analysis). In-hospital mortality was 16.5 % in CD group vs 6.7 % in No-CD group (p < 0.001), whereas median length of hospital stay was 16 (IQR = 13) vs 8 (IQR = 8) days (p < 0.001) among patients with or without CDI, respectively. Rate of CD recurrences was 14.6 %. As a post-hoc evaluation, 23 out of 34 GDH+/Tox- samples were toxin positive, when analysed by molecular method (a real-time PCR assay). The overall CD incidence rate was 5.3/10,000 patient-days. Conclusions Our results confirm the severity of CDI in medical wards, showing high in-hospital mortality, prolonged hospitalization and frequent short-term recurrences. Further, our survey supports a 2–3 step algorithm for CD diagnosis: EIA for detecting GDH, A and B toxin, followed by a molecular method in case of toxin-negative samples. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12879-016-1961-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giorgio Cioni
- Department of Internal Medicine, Pavullo nel Frignano Hospital, Modena, Italy
| | - Pierluigi Viale
- Infectious Diseases Unit, Teaching Hospital "Policlinico S. Orsola Malpighi", Alma Mater Studiorum University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - Stefania Frasson
- Clinical Research Department, FADOI Foundation, Piazzale L. Cadorna, 15, Milan, Italy
| | - Francesco Cipollini
- Internal Medicine, Hospital "Vittorio Emanuele II", Amandola, Ascoli Piceno, Italy
| | | | - Nicola Petrosillo
- 2nd Infectious Diseases Division, National Institute for Infectious Diseases, "Lazzaro Spallanzani" IRCCS, Rome, Italy
| | - Sergio Brunati
- Department of Internal Medicine, Abbiategrasso Hospital, Milan, Italy
| | - Patrizia Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Chiara Vismara
- Clinical Chemistry and Microbiology Laboratory, Niguarda Ca' Granda Hospital, Milan, Italy
| | - Alessandra Bielli
- Clinical Chemistry and Microbiology Laboratory, Niguarda Ca' Granda Hospital, Milan, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Barbanti
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Giancarlo Landini
- Department of Internal Medicine, "Santa Maria Nuova" Hospital, Florence, Italy
| | - Grazia Panigada
- Department of Internal Medicine, "S.S. Cosma e Damiano" Hospital, Pescia, Pistoia, Italy
| | - Gualberto Gussoni
- Clinical Research Department, FADOI Foundation, Piazzale L. Cadorna, 15, Milan, Italy.
| | - Erminio Bonizzoni
- Section of Medical Statistics and Biometry "GA Maccacaro", Department of Clinical Science and Community, University of Milan, Milan, Italy
| | - Giovanni Pietro Gesu
- Clinical Chemistry and Microbiology Laboratory, Niguarda Ca' Granda Hospital, Milan, Italy
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15
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Barbanti F, Spigaglia P. Characterization of Clostridium difficile PCR-ribotype 018: A problematic emerging type. Anaerobe 2016; 42:123-129. [PMID: 27725230 DOI: 10.1016/j.anaerobe.2016.10.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2016] [Revised: 09/20/2016] [Accepted: 10/06/2016] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
Recent surveys indicate that the majority of toxigenic Clostridium difficile strains isolated in European hospitals belonged to PCR-ribotypes (RTs) different from RT 027 or RT 078. Among these types, RT 018 has been reported in Italy and, more recently, in Korea and Japan. In Italy, strains RT 018 have become predominant in the early 2000s, whereas the majority of strains isolated before were RT 126, a type belonging to the same lineage as the RT 078. In this study, we have found that Italian strains RT 018 are resistant to erythromycin, clindamycin, moxifloxacin and rifampicin. Rifampicin resistance is rarely observed in strains RT 018 from other countries and in Italian strains RT 078 and RT 126, therefore the decennial use of rifamycin antibiotics in Italy may be one of the driving factors for the spread of RT 018 in our country. The strains RT 018 examined showed a significant higher adhesion to Caco-2 cells compared to strains RT 078 and RT 126. Furthermore, strains RT 018 became predominant in in vitro competition assays with strains RT 078 or RT 126. If maintained in vivo, these characteristics could lead to a rapid colonization of the intestine by strains RT 018. Under the conditions used, isolates RT 018 produced significantly higher toxins levels compared to strains RT 078 and RT 126, while heat-resistant CFUs production seems to be strain-dependent. Robust toxin production and enhanced sporulation could in part explain the high diffusion and interpatient transmissibility observed for strains RT 018 in the hospital environment. In conclusion, the characteristics observed in the Italian isolates RT 018 seem to contribute in conferring an adaptive advantage to these strains, allowing their successful spread in our country.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fabrizio Barbanti
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Patrizia Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy.
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16
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Grandesso S, Arena F, Eseme FE, Panese S, Henrici De Angelis L, Spigaglia P, Barbanti F, Rossolini GM. Clostridium difficile ribotype 033 colitis in a patient following broad-spectrum antibiotic treatment for KPCproducing Klebsiella pneumoniae infection, Italy. New Microbiol 2016; 39:235-236. [PMID: 27284989] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2016] [Accepted: 09/07/2016] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
This report describes a case of Clostridium difficile ribotype 033 colitis in a patient treated with multiple antibiotics for KPC-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae pancreatitis. Diagnostic, clinical and therapeutic features are discussed. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case of C. difficile ribotype 033 clinical infection reported from Italy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefano Grandesso
- Microbiology Unit, Clinical Pathology Department, dell'Angelo Hospital, Venezia-Mestre, Italy
| | - Fabio Arena
- Department of Medical Biotechnologies, University of Siena, Italy
| | | | - Sandro Panese
- Infectious Diseases Unit, dell'Angelo Hospital, Venezia-Mestre, Italy
| | | | - Patrizia Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-Mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Barbanti
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-Mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Gian Maria Rossolini
- Microbiology Unit, Clinical Pathology Department, dell'Angelo Hospital, Venezia-Mestre, Italy
- Department of Experimental and Clinical Medicine, University of Florence, Italy
- Clinical Microbiology an
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17
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Vuotto C, Moura I, Barbanti F, Donelli G, Spigaglia P. Subinhibitory concentrations of metronidazole increase biofilm formation in Clostridium difficile strains. Pathog Dis 2015; 74:ftv114. [PMID: 26656887 DOI: 10.1093/femspd/ftv114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 12/01/2015] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Resistance mechanism to metronidazole is still poorly understood, even if the number of reports on Clostridium difficile strains with reduced susceptibility to this antibiotic is increasing. In this study, we investigated the ability of the C. difficile strains 7032994, 7032985 and 7032989, showing different susceptibility profiles to metronidazole but all belonging to the PCR ribotype 010, to form biofilm in vitro in presence and absence of subinhibitory concentrations of metronidazole. The quantitative biofilm production assay performed in presence of metronidazole revealed a significant increase in biofilm formation in both the susceptible strain 7032994 and the strain 7032985 exhibiting a reduced susceptibility to this antibiotic, while antibiotic pressure did not affect the biofilm-forming ability of the stable-resistant strain 7032989. Moreover, confocal microscopy analysis showed an abundant biofilm matrix production by the strains 7032994 and 7032885, when grown in presence of metronidazole, but not in the stable-resistant one. These results seem to demonstrate that subinhibitory concentrations of metronidazole are able to enhance the in vitro biofilm production of the above-mentioned PCR ribotype 010 C. difficile strains, susceptible or with reduced susceptibility to this antibiotic, suggesting a possible role of biofilm formation in the multifactorial mechanism of metronidazole resistance developed by C. difficile.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claudia Vuotto
- Microbial Biofilm Laboratory, IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia, 00179 Rome, Italy
| | - Ines Moura
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, 00161 Rome, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Barbanti
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, 00161 Rome, Italy
| | - Gianfranco Donelli
- Microbial Biofilm Laboratory, IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia, 00179 Rome, Italy
| | - Patrizia Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, 00161 Rome, Italy
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18
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Spigaglia P, Barbanti F, Morandi M, Moro ML, Mastrantonio P. Diagnostic testing for Clostridium difficile in Italian microbiological laboratories. Anaerobe 2015; 37:29-33. [PMID: 26555737 DOI: 10.1016/j.anaerobe.2015.11.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2015] [Revised: 11/02/2015] [Accepted: 11/02/2015] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
A laboratory diagnosis survey of Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) was performed in Italy in 2012-2013. Questionnaires from 278 healthcare settings from 15 regions of Italy were collected and analysed. Eighty seven percent of the laboratories declared to routinely perform CDI diagnosis, 99% of them only after the clinician's request. Among the 216 laboratories providing information on the size of the hospitals in which they were located, 65 had more than 500 beds (large hospitals), while 151 had less than 500 beds (small hospitals). The average percentage of positive tests for C. difficile toxins was 12.2%. Almost half of the laboratories (42%) used immunoenzymatic assay (EIA) for Tox A/B as a stand-alone method, while only 34% used an algorithm for CDI as indicated by the European guidelines. A low percentage of laboratories performed molecular assays or C. difficile culture, 25% and 29%, respectively. Most laboratories (161/278) declared to type C. difficile strains, the majority in collaboration with a reference laboratory. Among the 103 C. difficile clinical isolates collected during the study, 31 different PCR-ribotypes were identified. PCR-ribotype 356/607 (27%) was predominant, followed by 018 (12%). These two PCR-ribotypes show 87.5% of similarity in ribotyping profile. PCR-ribotypes 027 and 078 represented 8% and 4% of the strains, respectively. Four PCR-ribotypes (027, 033, 078 and 126) were positive for the binary toxin CDT. In particular, PCR-ribotype 033 produces only CDT, and it has recently been associated with symptomatic cases. The majority of strains were multidrug resistant. In particular, all strains PCR-ribotypes 356/607 and 018 were resistant to moxifloxacin, rifampicin, erythromycin and clindamycin. The results obtained highlight the need to raise awareness to the microbiological diagnosis of CDI among clinicians and to implement and harmonize diagnostic methods for CDI in Italian laboratories in the perspective of a future national surveillance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrizia Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy.
| | - Fabrizio Barbanti
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Matteo Morandi
- Agenzia Sanitaria e Sociale, Regione Emilia-Romagna, Bologna, Italy
| | - Maria Luisa Moro
- Agenzia Sanitaria e Sociale, Regione Emilia-Romagna, Bologna, Italy
| | - Paola Mastrantonio
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
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Drigo I, Mazzolini E, Bacchin C, Tonon E, Puiatti C, Bano L, Spigaglia P, Barbanti F, Agnoletti F. Molecular characterization and antimicrobial susceptibility of Clostridium difficile isolated from rabbits raised for meat production. Vet Microbiol 2015; 181:303-7. [PMID: 26507420 DOI: 10.1016/j.vetmic.2015.10.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2015] [Revised: 09/29/2015] [Accepted: 10/08/2015] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Clostridium difficile is an important cause of enteric disease in humans and animals. Recent studies demonstrated a genetic overlap between C. difficile isolated from animals and humans suggesting animals as possible reservoir for human pathogenic strains. This study was a preliminary investigation on the occurrence of C. difficile in rabbits raised in industrial holdings for food production and aimed to characterise isolates and estimate their antimicrobial susceptibility. C. difficile isolates were characterized by toxin profiles, toxinotyping and PCR-ribotyping. The MICs of six antibiotics were determined using E-test. Between 2007 and 2013, 285 industrial holdings (representing 40% of the national census) submitted rabbits to our laboratory for diagnostic purposes, among these holdings, groups of three to five post-weaned rabbits were sampled once by convenience. 1279 samples of caecal content were collected. The overall isolation rate of C. difficile from the enteric specimen was 3% (38/1279), with no difference among animals affected or not by enteric disorders. Among isolates 66% (25/38) were toxigenic. Sixteen different PCR-ribotypes (RTs) were identified. Among the toxigenic strains RT-014/020, RT-078 and RT-012 were found in at least three rabbit holdings. According to the ECOFF threshold, 82% (31/38) C. difficile isolates displayed a reduced susceptibility to at least one and 18% (7/38) to three tested antimicrobials. Rabbits are colonized by heterogeneous C. difficile ribotypes many of which are commonly isolated in humans. One third of isolates displayed a reduced susceptibility to MTZ, the first choice antimicrobial for human CDI treatment. According to our findings rabbits are a potential source of C. difficile for humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ilenia Drigo
- Laboratory of Diagnostic Bacteriology, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie, Treviso, Italy.
| | - Elena Mazzolini
- Department of Veterinary Epidemiology, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie, Udine, Italy
| | - Cosetta Bacchin
- Laboratory of Diagnostic Bacteriology, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie, Treviso, Italy
| | - Elena Tonon
- Laboratory of Diagnostic Bacteriology, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie, Treviso, Italy
| | - Cinzia Puiatti
- Laboratory of Diagnostic Bacteriology, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie, Treviso, Italy
| | - Luca Bano
- Laboratory of Diagnostic Bacteriology, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie, Treviso, Italy
| | - Patrizia Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Barbanti
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Agnoletti
- Laboratory of Diagnostic Bacteriology, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie, Treviso, Italy
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Spigaglia P, Barbanti F, Castagnola E, Bandettini R. Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) in children due to hypervirulent strains PCR-ribotype 027: An emblematic report of two cases. Anaerobe 2015; 36:91-3. [PMID: 26385433 DOI: 10.1016/j.anaerobe.2015.09.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2015] [Revised: 09/10/2015] [Accepted: 09/15/2015] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
In this report, the first two cases of pediatric Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) due to the hypervirulent PCR-ribotype 027 in Italy are described as emblematic of the role of both the infecting C. difficile strain and patient status in the occurrence and clinical manifestation of CDI in children.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrizia Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-Mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy.
| | - Fabrizio Barbanti
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-Mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Elio Castagnola
- Infectious Diseases Unit, Istituto Giannina Gaslini, Genoa, Italy
| | - Roberto Bandettini
- Clinical Pathology Laboratory Unit, Istituto Giannina Gaslini, Genoa, Italy
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21
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Wasels F, Monot M, Spigaglia P, Barbanti F, Ma L, Bouchier C, Dupuy B, Mastrantonio P. Inter- and intraspecies transfer of a Clostridium difficile conjugative transposon conferring resistance to MLSB. Microb Drug Resist 2015; 20:555-60. [PMID: 25055190 DOI: 10.1089/mdr.2014.0015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Resistance to the macrolide-lincosamide-streptogramin B group of antibiotics in Clostridium difficile is generally due to erm(B) genes. Tn6194, a conjugative transposon initially detected in PCR-ribotype 027 isolates, is an erm(B)-containing element also detected in other relevant C. difficile PCR-ribotypes. In this study, the genome of a C. difficile PCR-ribotype 001 strain was sequenced, and an element with two nucleotidic changes compared to Tn6194 was detected. This element was transferred by filter mating assays to recipient strains of C. difficile belonging to PCR-ribotype 009 and 027 and to a recipient strain of Enterococcus faecalis. Transconjugants were characterized by Southern blotting and genome sequencing, and integration sites in all transconjugants were identified. The element integrated the genome of C. difficile at different sites and the genome of E. faecalis at a unique site. This study is the first molecular characterization of an erm(B)-containing conjugative transposon in C. difficile and provides additional evidence of the antibiotic resistance transmission risk among pathogenic bacteria occupying the same human intestinal niche.
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Affiliation(s)
- François Wasels
- 1 Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-Mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità , Rome, Italy
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22
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Wasels F, Spigaglia P, Barbanti F, Monot M, Villa L, Dupuy B, Carattoli A, Mastrantonio P. Integration of erm(B)-containing elements through large chromosome fragment exchange in Clostridium difficile. Mob Genet Elements 2015; 5:12-16. [PMID: 26442177 DOI: 10.1080/2159256x.2015.1006111] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2014] [Revised: 12/22/2014] [Accepted: 01/07/2015] [Indexed: 10/23/2022] Open
Abstract
In Clostridium difficile, erm(B) genes are located on mobile elements like Tn5398 and Tn6215. In previous studies, some of these elements were transferred by conjugation-like mechanisms, mobilized in trans by helper conjugative systems. In this study, we analyzed the genomes of several recipient strains that acquired either Tn5398 or Tn6215-like elements. We demonstrated that the integration of the transposons in the genome of the recipient cell was always due to homologous recombination events, involving exchange of large chromosomal segments. We did not observed transposon transfer to a C. difficile strain in presence of DNAse, suggesting that a possible transformation-like mechanism occurred in this recipient.
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Affiliation(s)
- François Wasels
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-Mediated Diseases; Istituto Superiore di Sanità ; Rome, Italy
| | - Patrizia Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-Mediated Diseases; Istituto Superiore di Sanità ; Rome, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Barbanti
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-Mediated Diseases; Istituto Superiore di Sanità ; Rome, Italy
| | - Marc Monot
- Laboratoire Pathogenèse des Bactéries Anaérobies; Institut Pasteur ; Paris, France
| | - Laura Villa
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-Mediated Diseases; Istituto Superiore di Sanità ; Rome, Italy
| | - Bruno Dupuy
- Laboratoire Pathogenèse des Bactéries Anaérobies; Institut Pasteur ; Paris, France
| | - Alessandra Carattoli
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-Mediated Diseases; Istituto Superiore di Sanità ; Rome, Italy
| | - Paola Mastrantonio
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-Mediated Diseases; Istituto Superiore di Sanità ; Rome, Italy
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Spigaglia P, Barbanti F, Morandi M, Moro ML, Mastrantonio P. Microbiological aspects of Clostridium difficile infection in Italy: results of a study performed in 2012-2013. Microbiol Med 2014. [DOI: 10.4081/mm.2014.4722] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
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24
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Spigaglia P, Drigo I, Barbanti F, Mastrantonio P, Bano L, Bacchin C, Puiatti C, Tonon E, Berto G, Agnoletti F. Antibiotic resistance patterns and PCR-ribotyping of Clostridium difficile strains isolated from swine and dogs in Italy. Anaerobe 2014; 31:42-6. [PMID: 25316022 DOI: 10.1016/j.anaerobe.2014.10.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2014] [Revised: 09/24/2014] [Accepted: 10/05/2014] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
Recent studies suggest animals, in particular farm and companion animals, as possible reservoir for Clostridium difficile human pathogenic strains. The aim of this study was to give a first characterization of C. difficile isolates from Italian swine and dogs. In total, 10 different PCR-ribotypes were identified among porcine strains and six among canine strains. The predominant type found among porcine strains was 078 (50%), whereas the most frequently detected among canine strains was the non-toxinogenic 010 (64%). Considering the CLSI breakpoints, 60% of porcine isolates was resistant to ERY, 35% to MXF, 15% to CLI, 5% to RIF, and none to MTZ or VAN. Among dogs, 51% of strains was resistant to CLI, 46% to ERY, 21% to MTZ and 5% to MXF or RIF, and none to VAN. Five porcine strains (10%) and 9 canine isolates (41%) were MDR. Interestingly, 8 MDR canine strains were highly resistant to MTZ, with MICs ≥32 mg/L. Considering the EUCAST cut-off for MTZ (MIC >2 mg/L), 13 canine isolates and one porcine strain were found with reduced susceptibility to MTZ (MICs ranging from 3 to ≥256 mg/L). Swine and canine strains showing resistance or reduced susceptibility to MTZ belonged to PCR-ribotype 010 and 078. These PCR-ribotypes have been associated to reduced susceptibility to MTZ also in human, suggesting a potential risk for the emergence of C. difficile strains resistant to the current first-line antibiotic for CDI treatment. The agar incorporation method (AIM) was confirmed as the best method to detect C. difficile strains with this phenotype also after strains manipulations. The results obtained add further evidences about the possible role of animals as source of MDR C. difficile strains and reservoir of antibiotic resistance determinants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrizia Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy.
| | - Ilenia Drigo
- Special Bacteriology Laboratory, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie, Treviso, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Barbanti
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Paola Mastrantonio
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Luca Bano
- Special Bacteriology Laboratory, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie, Treviso, Italy
| | - Cosetta Bacchin
- Special Bacteriology Laboratory, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie, Treviso, Italy
| | - Cinzia Puiatti
- Special Bacteriology Laboratory, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie, Treviso, Italy
| | - Elena Tonon
- Special Bacteriology Laboratory, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie, Treviso, Italy
| | - Giacomo Berto
- Special Bacteriology Laboratory, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie, Treviso, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Agnoletti
- Special Bacteriology Laboratory, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie, Treviso, Italy
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25
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Novak A, Spigaglia P, Barbanti F, Goic-Barisic I, Tonkic M. First clinical and microbiological characterization of Clostridium difficile infection in a Croatian University Hospital. Anaerobe 2014; 30:18-23. [PMID: 25079669 DOI: 10.1016/j.anaerobe.2014.07.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/25/2014] [Revised: 07/15/2014] [Accepted: 07/18/2014] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
Abstract
Clinical background and molecular epidemiology of Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) in the University Hospital Centre Split were investigated from January 2010 to December 2011. In total, 54 patients with first episode of CDI were consecutively included in the study based on the positive EIA test specific for A and B toxins. Demographic and clinical data were prospectively analyzed from medical records. CDI incidence rate was 0.6 per 10,000 patient-days. Thirty six cases (70.6%) were healthcare-associated, twelve cases (23.5%) were community-associated and three (5.9%) were indeterminate. Six patients (11.7%) had suffered one or more recurrences and 37 patients (72.5%) showed severe CDI. Prior therapy with third generation cephalosporin was significantly associated with severe CDI (P<0.021). Fifty four toxigenic C. difficile strains were isolated and 50 of them were available for PCR-ribotyping. Sixteen different PCR-ribotypes were identified. The most prevalent were PCR-ribotype 001 (27.8%) and 014/020 (24.1%). Twenty three strains were resistant to at least one of the antibiotics tested. Among resistant strains, three (13.0%)--all PCR-ribotype 001--were multi-resistant. Resistance to fluoroquinolones was significantly higher in strains that caused infection after previous use of fluoroquinolones (P=0.04).
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Affiliation(s)
- Anita Novak
- University Hospital Centre Split, Croatia; University of Split School of Medicine, Split, Croatia.
| | - Patrizia Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immunomediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Barbanti
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immunomediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Ivana Goic-Barisic
- University Hospital Centre Split, Croatia; University of Split School of Medicine, Split, Croatia
| | - Marija Tonkic
- University Hospital Centre Split, Croatia; University of Split School of Medicine, Split, Croatia
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Vuotto C, Barbanti F, Mastrantonio P, Donelli G. Lactobacillus brevisCD2 inhibitsPrevotella melaninogenicabiofilm. Oral Dis 2013; 20:668-74. [DOI: 10.1111/odi.12186] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/05/2013] [Revised: 09/04/2013] [Accepted: 09/16/2013] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- C Vuotto
- Fondazione Santa Lucia IRCCS; Microbial Biofilm Laboratory (LABIM); Rome Italy
| | - F Barbanti
- Istituto Superiore di Sanità; Department of Infectious; Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases; Rome Italy
| | - P Mastrantonio
- Istituto Superiore di Sanità; Department of Infectious; Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases; Rome Italy
| | - G Donelli
- Fondazione Santa Lucia IRCCS; Microbial Biofilm Laboratory (LABIM); Rome Italy
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27
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Wasels F, Spigaglia P, Barbanti F, Mastrantonio P. Clostridium difficile erm(B)-containing elements and the burden on the in vitro fitness. J Med Microbiol 2013; 62:1461-1467. [DOI: 10.1099/jmm.0.057117-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
In Clostridium difficile, resistance to the macrolide-lincosamide-streptogramin B group of antibiotics generally relies on erm(B) genes. In this study, we investigated elements with a genetic organization different from Tn5398, the mobilizable non-conjugative element identified in C. difficile strain 630. Our results suggested that the elements most frequently found in strains isolated during the European surveillance study in 2005 were related to Tn6194, the conjugative transposon recently detected in different C. difficile types, including PCR-ribotype 027. We characterized a Tn6194-like and a novel element rarely found in clinical isolates. A burden on the in vitro fitness of C. difficile was observed after the acquisition of these elements as well as of Tn5398.
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Affiliation(s)
- François Wasels
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-Mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Patrizia Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-Mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Barbanti
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-Mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Paola Mastrantonio
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-Mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
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28
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Keessen EC, Hensgens MP, Spigaglia P, Barbanti F, Sanders IM, Kuijper EJ, Lipman LJ. Antimicrobial susceptibility profiles of human and piglet Clostridium difficile PCR-ribotype 078. Antimicrob Resist Infect Control 2013; 2:14. [PMID: 23566553 PMCID: PMC3651393 DOI: 10.1186/2047-2994-2-14] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2012] [Accepted: 03/29/2013] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
In the last decade, outbreaks of nosocomial Clostridium difficile infections (CDI) occurred worldwide. A new emerging type, PCR-ribotype 027, was the associated pathogen. Antimicrobial susceptibility profiles of this type were extensively investigated and used to partly explain its spread. In Europe, the incidence of C. difficile PCR-ribotype 078 recently increased in humans and piglets. Using recommendations of the European Committee on Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing (EUCAST) and the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) we studied the antimicrobial susceptibility to eight antimicrobials, mechanisms of resistance and the relation with previously prescribed antimicrobials in human (n=49) and porcine (n=50) type 078 isolates. Human and porcine type 078 isolates showed similar antimicrobial susceptibility patterns for the antimicrobials tested. In total, 37% of the isolates were resistant to four or more antimicrobial agents. The majority of the human and porcine isolates were susceptible to amoxicillin (100%), tetracycline (100%) and clindamycin (96%) and resistant to ciprofloxacin (96%). More variation was found for resistance patterns to erythromycin (76% in human and 59% in porcine isolates), imipenem (29% in human and 50% in porcine isolates) and moxifloxacin (16% for both human and porcine isolates). MIC values of cefuroxim were high (MICs >256 mg/L) in 96% of the isolates. Resistance to moxifloxacin and clindamycin was associated with a gyr(A) mutation and the presence of the erm(B) gene, respectively. A large proportion (96%) of the erythromycin resistant isolates did not carry the erm(B) gene. The use of ciprofloxacin (humans) and enrofloxacin (pigs) was significantly associated with isolation of moxifloxacin resistant isolates. Increased fluoroquinolone use could have contributed to the spread of C. difficile type 078.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elisabeth C Keessen
- Institute for Risk Assessment Sciences, Utrecht University, PO Box 80175, Utrecht 3508 TD, the Netherlands
| | - Marjolein Pm Hensgens
- Department of Medical Microbiology, Leiden University Medical Center, PO Box 9600, Leiden 2300 RC, the Netherlands
| | - Patrizia Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases, Instituto Superiore di Sanita', Rome, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Barbanti
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases, Instituto Superiore di Sanita', Rome, Italy
| | - Ingrid Mjg Sanders
- Department of Medical Microbiology, Leiden University Medical Center, PO Box 9600, Leiden 2300 RC, the Netherlands
| | - Ed J Kuijper
- Department of Medical Microbiology, Leiden University Medical Center, PO Box 9600, Leiden 2300 RC, the Netherlands
| | - Len Ja Lipman
- Institute for Risk Assessment Sciences, Utrecht University, PO Box 80175, Utrecht 3508 TD, the Netherlands
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Spigaglia P, Barketi-Klai A, Collignon A, Mastrantonio P, Barbanti F, Rupnik M, Janezic S, Kansau I. Surface-layer (S-layer) of human and animal Clostridium difficile strains and their behaviour in adherence to epithelial cells and intestinal colonization. J Med Microbiol 2013; 62:1386-1393. [PMID: 23518658 DOI: 10.1099/jmm.0.056556-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Clostridium difficile is a frequent cause of severe, recurrent post-antibiotic diarrhoea and pseudomembranous colitis. The surface layer (S-layer) is the predominant outer surface component of C. difficile which is involved in pathogen-host interactions critical to pathogenesis. In this study, we characterized the S-layer protein A (SlpA) of animal and human strains belonging to different PCR-ribotypes (PR) and compared the in vitro adherence and in vivo colonization properties of strains showing different SlpA variants. Since each SlpA variant has been recently associated with an S-layer cassette, we were able to deduce the cassette for each of our strains. In this study, an identity of 99-100 % was found among the SlpA of isolates belonging to PR 012, 014/020, 045 and 078. One exception was the SlpA of a poultry isolate, PR 014/020, which showed 99 % identity with that of strain 0160, another PR 014/020 which contains an S-layer cassette 6. Interestingly, this cassette has also been found in a PR 018 strain, an emerging virulent type currently predominant in Italy. Five other SlpA variants (v014/020a-e) were identified in strains PR 014/020. In vitro adherence assays and in vivo colonization experiments were performed on five PR 014/020 strains: human 1064 (v014/020e), human 4684/08 (v014/020b), human IT1106 (v078a), poultry P30 (v014/020d) and poultry PB90 (v014/020b) strains. Adhesion assays indicate that C. difficile strains vary in their capacity to adhere to cells in culture and that adhesion seems to be independent of the SlpA variant. Colonization properties were assessed in vivo using a dixenic mouse model of colonization. The kinetics of faecal shedding and caecal colonization were similar when human 4684/08 (v014/020b) strain was compared with human 1064 (v014/020e) and poultry PB90 (v014/020b) strain. In contrast, poultry P30 (v014/020d) strain outcompeted both human 4684/08 (v014/020b) and IT1106 (v078a) strains and its adherence to caeca at day 7 was significantly higher. The peculiar characteristics of C. difficile P30 seem to advantage it in colonizing the intestinal mice niche, increasing its ability to compete and adapt. The results obtained underline the need of an increased attention to the genetic evolution of C. difficile to prevent and limit the consequences of the emergence of increasingly virulent strains.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Anne Collignon
- EA 4043, USC INRA Faculté de Pharmacie, Université Paris-Sud 11, France
| | | | | | - Maja Rupnik
- Centre of Excellence for Integrated Approaches in Chemistry and Biology of Proteins, Ljubljana, Slovenia.,University of Maribor, Faculty of Medicine, Maribor, Slovenia.,Institute of Public Health Maribor, Maribor, Slovenia
| | | | - Imad Kansau
- EA 4043, USC INRA Faculté de Pharmacie, Université Paris-Sud 11, France
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Moura I, Spigaglia P, Barbanti F, Mastrantonio P. Analysis of metronidazole susceptibility in different Clostridium difficile PCR ribotypes. J Antimicrob Chemother 2012; 68:362-5. [DOI: 10.1093/jac/dks420] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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Abstract
OBJECTIVES Multidrug resistance and antibiotic resistance mechanisms were investigated in 316 Clostridium difficile clinical isolates collected during the first European surveillance on C. difficile in 2005. METHODS MICs of eight different antibiotics were determined using Etest. Reserpine- and carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone-sensitive efflux was tested using the agar dilution method. Molecular analysis of the resistance mechanisms was performed using PCR assays, PCR mapping and sequencing. RESULTS One hundred and forty-eight C. difficile strains were resistant to at least one antibiotic and 82 (55%) were multidrug resistant. In particular, 48% of these isolates were resistant to erythromycin, clindamycin, moxifloxacin and rifampicin. New genetic elements or determinants conferring resistance to erythromycin/clindamycin or tetracycline were identified. Even if most multiresistant strains carried an erm(B) gene, quite a few were erm(B) negative. In-depth analysis of the underlying mechanism in these isolates was carried out, including analysis of 23S rDNA and the ribosomal proteins L4 and L22. Interestingly, resistance to rifampicin was observed in multidrug-resistant strains in association with resistance to fluoroquinolones. Mutations in the rpo(B) and gyrA genes were identified as the cause of resistance to these antibiotics, respectively. CONCLUSIONS Characterization of multidrug-resistant C. difficile clinical isolates shows that antibiotic resistance is changing, involving new determinants and mechanisms and providing this pathogen with potential advantages over the co-resident gut flora. The present paper provides, for the first time, a comprehensive picture of the different characteristics of multidrug-resistant C. difficile strains in Europe in 2005 and represents an important source of data for future comparative European studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrizia Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
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Spigaglia P, Galeotti CL, Barbanti F, Scarselli M, Van Broeck J, Mastrantonio P. The LMW surface-layer proteins of Clostridium difficile PCR ribotypes 027 and 001 share common immunogenic properties. J Med Microbiol 2011; 60:1168-1173. [PMID: 21349988 DOI: 10.1099/jmm.0.029710-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The aim of this study was to investigate the S-layer proteins (SLPs) of the hypervirulent Clostridium difficile PCR ribotype 027 and compare them with those of PCR ribotype 001 and other PCR ribotypes involved in C. difficile infection and outbreaks, by molecular analysis and immunological assays. It has been demonstrated previously that PCR ribotype 027 SlpA is conserved in C. difficile strains belonging to this PCR ribotype and that it is a new variant, showing 88 % identity with SlpA of PCR ribotype 001. As the low-molecular-weight (LMW) SLPs of C. difficile are immunodominant antigens, attention was focused on this region of the genome. Sequencing of strains of different PCR ribotypes (001, 012, 014, 017, 027 and 078) showed that SlpA was conserved among strains belonging to the same PCR ribotype. Comparison of the LMW SLP region among these strains identified ten regions with sequence identity between PCR ribotypes 027 and 001, and low conservation with the other PCR ribotypes. In particular, two of these regions corresponded to areas predicted to be surface exposed. Three specific peptides, including those of the two surface-exposed regions, were recognized by human sera against PCR ribotypes 027 and 001 and by a rabbit polyclonal serum against the SLPs of PCR ribotype 027. In contrast, these peptides were not recognized by a polyclonal serum against the SLPs of PCR ribotype 012 used as a control. These results confirm the antigenic role of the LMW SLP and suggest that it may have a role in evasion of the host immune response.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrizia Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | | | - Fabrizio Barbanti
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | | | - Johan Van Broeck
- Microbiology Unit, Université Catholique de Louvain, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Paola Mastrantonio
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
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Bianco M, Fedele G, Quattrini A, Spigaglia P, Barbanti F, Mastrantonio P, Ausiello CM. Immunomodulatory activities of surface-layer proteins obtained from epidemic and hypervirulent Clostridium difficile strains. J Med Microbiol 2011; 60:1162-1167. [PMID: 21349985 DOI: 10.1099/jmm.0.029694-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Surface-layer proteins (SLPs) have been detected in all Clostridium difficile strains and play a role in adhesion, although an involvement in the inflammatory process may also be supposed, as they cover the bacterial surface and are immunodominant antigens. The aim of this study was to evaluate the immunomodulatory properties of SLPs obtained from hypervirulent and epidemic (H/E) or non-H/E C. difficile strains, to try to determine whether they contribute to hypervirulence. SLPs were purified from H/E PCR ribotype 027 and 001 and non-H/E PCR ribotype 012 C. difficile strains, and the ability to modulate these properties was studied in human ex vivo models of monocytes and monocyte-derived dendritic cells (MDDCs). The results indicated that SLPs were able to induce immunomodulatory cytokines [interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-6 and IL-10] in monocytes. SLPs induced maturation of MDDCs, which acquired enhanced antigen-presenting activity, a crucial function of the mature stage. SLP-primed MDDCs expressed high levels of IL-10, an important regulatory cytokine. No significant differences were found in the activation induced in monocytes and MDDCs by SLP preparations from H/E and non-H/E strains. Overall, these findings show an important role for SLPs in modulation of the immune response to C. difficile. However, SLPs from H/E strains did not show a specific immunomodulatory pattern compared with SLPs from non-H/E strains, suggesting that SLPs are not involved in the increased severity of infection peculiar to H/E strains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Manuela Bianco
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-Mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Giorgio Fedele
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-Mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Adriano Quattrini
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-Mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Patrizia Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-Mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Barbanti
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-Mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Paola Mastrantonio
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-Mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Clara M Ausiello
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-Mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
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Mastrantonio P, Barbanti F, Spigaglia P. Hypervirulent antibiotic-resistant Clostridium difficilein Europe. Microbial Ecology in Health and Disease 2009. [DOI: 10.1080/08910600802408152] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Paola Mastrantonio
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Barbanti
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Patrizia Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
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Mastrantonio P, Barbanti F, Spigaglia P. Hypervirulent antibiotic-resistant Clostridium difficilein Europe. Microbial Ecology in Health & Disease 2008. [DOI: 10.3402/mehd.v20i4.7582] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022]
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Spigaglia P, Barbanti F, Mastrantonio P, Brazier JS, Barbut F, Delmée M, Kuijper E, R Poxton I, On Behalf Of The European Study Group On Esgcd. Fluoroquinolone resistance in Clostridium difficile isolates from a prospective study of C. difficile infections in Europe. J Med Microbiol 2008; 57:784-789. [PMID: 18480338 DOI: 10.1099/jmm.0.47738-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 98] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
The European Study Group on Clostridium difficile (ESGCD) conducted a prospective study in 2005 to monitor and characterize C. difficile strains circulating in European hospitals, collecting 411 isolates. Eighty-three of these isolates, showing resistance or intermediate resistance to moxifloxacin (MX), were selected for this study to assess susceptibility to other fluoroquinolones (FQs) and to analyse the gyr genes, encoding the DNA gyrase subunits GyrA and GyrB. Twenty MX-susceptible isolates from the surveillance study were included for comparison. Overall, one amino acid substitution in GyrA (Thr82 to Ile) and four different substitutions in GyrB (Ser416 to Ala, Asp426 to Asn, Asp426 to Val and Arg447 to Lys) were identified. A high level of resistance (MIC >or=32 microg ml(-1)) to MX, ciprofloxacin (CI), gatifloxacin (GA) and levofloxacin (LE) was found in 68 isolates showing the amino acid substitution Thr82 to Ile in GyrA, in eight isolates with the substitutions Thr82 to Ile in GyrA and Ser416 to Ala in GyrB, in two isolates showing the substitution Asp426 to Asn in GyrB and in one isolate with Asp426 to Val in GyrB. The remaining four isolates showed high MICs for CI and LE, but different MIC levels for MX and GA. In particular, intermediate levels of resistance to MX were shown by two isolates, one with the substitution Thr82 to Ile in GyrA, and one showing Asp426 to Asn in GyrB. The substitution Arg447 to Lys in GyrB was found in two strains resistant to MX, CI and LE but susceptible to GA. No substitutions in GyrA were found in the FQ-susceptible strains, whereas two strains showed the amino acid change Ser416 to Ala in GyrB. Thr82 to Ile was the most frequent amino acid change identified in the C. difficile isolates examined. In contrast to previous observations, 10% of the isolates showed this substitution in association with Ser416 to Ala in GyrB. The other amino acid changes found were characteristic of a few strains belonging to certain types and/or countries. Two new substitutions for C. difficile, Ser416 to Ala and Arg447 to Lys, were found in GyrB. Whereas the former does not seem to have a key role in resistance, since it was also detected in susceptible strains, the latter substitution occurred in the same position where other amino acid variations take place in resistant Escherichia coli and other C. difficile strains. A large number of C. difficile isolates now show an alarming pattern of resistance to the majority of FQs currently used in hospitals and outpatient settings, therefore judicious use of these antibiotics and continuous monitoring of in vitro resistance are necessary.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrizia Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Barbanti
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Paola Mastrantonio
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
| | - Jon S Brazier
- Anaerobe Reference Laboratory, NPHS Microbiology Cardiff, University Hospital of Wales, Cardiff CF14 4XW, UK
| | | | - Michel Delmée
- Microbiology Unit, Université Catholique de Louvain, Bruxelles, Belgium
| | - Ed Kuijper
- Department of Medical Microbiology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Ian R Poxton
- Department of Medical Microbiology, Edinburgh University, Edinburgh, UK
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Spigaglia P, Barbanti F, Mastrantonio P. Detection of a Genetic Linkage Between Genes Coding for Resistance to Tetracycline and Erythromycin inClostridium difficile. Microb Drug Resist 2007; 13:90-5. [PMID: 17650959 DOI: 10.1089/mdr.2007.723] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Elements carrying more than one antibiotic resistance gene have never been found in Clostridium difficile, one of the major causes of nosocomial diarrheic diseases. In this study, C. difficile isolates were investigated for a possible genetic linkage between tet(M) and erm(B), the most frequent genes found in strains resistant to tetracycline and erythromycin. In the majority of C. difficile strains, tet(M) is carried by Tn5397. However, tet(M) genes carried by Tn916-like elements have been found in recent clinical isolates. As far as erythromycin resistance is concerned, the only completely characterized transposon harboring an erm(B) gene in C. difficile is Tn5398, even if ErmB determinants probably carried by other elements have been identified. Among the 100 C. difficile isolates screened in this study, 27 were positive for tet(M) and erm(B). Twenty five of these strains were positive for tndX, used as marker for Tn5397, whereas two were positive for int, used as marker for Tn916-like elements. The latter isolates showed two tet(M) genes: one was carried by a Tn916-like element, able to transfer to a recipient C. difficile strain, whereas the second was genetically linked to an erm(B) in a composite element probably unable to conjugate. Molecular analysis of C. difficile cd1911 tet(M)-erm(B) DNA sequence demonstrated that this region has arisen by recombination of DNA fragments from different plasmids and transposons. This is the first demonstration that C. difficile is able to accumulate and maintain antibiotic resistance genes, as observed in other pathogens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrizia Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
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Spigaglia P, Barbanti F, Mastrantonio P. New variants of the tet(M) gene in Clostridium difficile clinical isolates harbouring Tn916-like elements. J Antimicrob Chemother 2006; 57:1205-9. [PMID: 16565156 DOI: 10.1093/jac/dkl105] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES To detect Tn916-like elements in Clostridium difficile clinical isolates from different time periods and to analyse the genetic structure of these elements, in particular the tet(M) region. METHODS Ninety C. difficile clinical isolates were examined by PCR assays for tet(M) and int, which are markers for the Tn916 family of elements. Positive isolates were typed by PCR-ribotyping, and tetracycline MIC values were evaluated by Etest. The genetic organization of the Tn916 elements was investigated by PCR mapping and hybridization assays. The tet(M) region of eight selected C. difficile isolates was sequenced. RESULTS Nineteen isolates were tet(M)/int positive and the majority (12/19) belonged to PCR-ribotype R, previously found to be predominant in clinical strains of more recent isolation. Eleven isolates were tetracycline resistant, three inducibly resistant and five susceptible. Fifty-eight per cent of the C. difficile isolates harboured one Tn916 element and 42% harboured two. Most isolates showed elements with a genetic organization very similar to that of Enterococcus faecalis DS16 Tn916. Sequence analysis highlighted variations in the leader peptide and six tet(M) variants were identified, five of which have never been described before. CONCLUSIONS C. difficile isolates harbouring Tn916-like elements have mainly been isolated since 1997, suggesting a recent circulation of these elements among C. difficile strains in Italian hospitals. Molecular analysis of these Tn916-like elements showed that they may have different genetic structures and carry new tet(M) alleles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrizia Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità Viale, Regina Elena 299, 00161 Rome, Italy
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Spigaglia P, Barbanti F, Mastrantonio P. Horizontal transfer of erythromycin resistance from Clostridium difficile to Butyrivibrio fibrisolvens. Antimicrob Agents Chemother 2006; 49:5142-5. [PMID: 16304188 PMCID: PMC1315942 DOI: 10.1128/aac.49.12.5142-5145.2005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
This study demonstrates for the first time the in vitro transfer of the erythromycin resistance gene erm(B) between two obligate anaerobes, the human spore-forming pathogen Clostridium difficile and the rumen commensal Butyrivibrio fibrisolvens, suggesting that this event might occur also in the natural environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrizia Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-Mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena 299, 00161 Rome, Italy
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Spigaglia P, Carucci V, Barbanti F, Mastrantonio P. ErmB determinants and Tn916-Like elements in clinical isolates of Clostridium difficile. Antimicrob Agents Chemother 2005; 49:2550-3. [PMID: 15917571 PMCID: PMC1140533 DOI: 10.1128/aac.49.6.2550-2553.2005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/11/2004] [Revised: 12/19/2004] [Accepted: 02/11/2005] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Erythromycin and tetracycline resistance was analyzed in 37 Clostridium difficile clinical isolates. Strains of different clonal origins showed different erythromycin and tetracycline resistance determinants and different genetic arrangements of the elements. In strains of recent isolation, the presence of Tn916-like elements, never found before in C. difficile clinical isolates, has been demonstrated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrizia Spigaglia
- Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immune-Mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena 299, 00161 Rome, Italy
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Ravaioli A, Canuti D, Gianni L, Desiderio F, Scarpellini M, Nicolini M, Fava C, Bartolini S, Monti F, Bernardi L, Pozzuoli R, Barbanti F, Manzo A, Pivi P. Prognostic factors in hereditary and sporadic breast cancers: analysis of an Italian series of 602 patients. Breast 1997. [DOI: 10.1016/s0960-9776(97)90004-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
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Ravaioli A, Gentilini P, Ridolfi R, Amadori D, Gardini G, Barbanti F, Vio A, Verdecchia G, Casadei A. Inflammatory breast carcinoma: results from sixteen patients treated with chemo-radiotherapy and surgery. Chemioterapia 1984; 3:86-9. [PMID: 6532541] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
Abstract
Inflammatory breast carcinoma is a dramatic tumour with a five-year survival rate of almost 3%. Various therapeutic approaches have been made for this neoplasia: surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy, alone or in combination. The best results were obtained with the use of a multidisciplinary approach. The authors developed a treatment in which chemotherapy and radiotherapy, together with surgery, are used. After three cycles of CMF (cyclophosphamide, methotrexate, 5-fluorouracil) the patients with partial remission, no change or disease progression were changed to adriamycin + vincristine plus radiotherapy. Surgery was performed on patients with complete remission or partial remission after chemo-radiotherapy. After surgery, maintenance chemotherapy was used with the more active drugs. The actuarial survival rate at 5 years was 30.65% and median survival 34 months.
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Pannuti F, Martoni A, Fruet F, Di Marco AR, Piana E, Saccani-Jotti G, Manfredi D, Mattioli G, Barbanti F, Battelli T, Franchini A, Marrano D, Lungarotti F, Bergnach A. Surgical adjuvant hormonal therapy with high dose medroxyprogesterone acetate (MAP) in breast cancer. Results 36 months after mastectomy. Panminerva Med 1982; 24:187-94. [PMID: 7177683] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/23/2023]
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Pannuti F, Martoni A, Di Marco AR, Piana E, Saccani F, Becchi G, Mattioli G, Barbanti F, Marra GA, Persiani W, Cacciari L, Spagnolo F, Palenzona D, Rocchetta G. Prospective, randomized clinical trial of two different high dosages of medroxyprogesterone acetate (MAP) in the treatment of metastatic breast cancer. Eur J Cancer 1979; 15:593-601. [PMID: 86447 DOI: 10.1016/0014-2964(79)90097-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
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Amadori D, Ravaioli A, Barbanti F. [Use of high doses of medroxyprogesterone acetate in the palliative treatment of advanced breast cancer. Clinical experience with 44 cases]. Minerva Med 1977; 68:3967-80. [PMID: 74811] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
MAP was used in high doses (1 g/die up to a total dose of 45-50 g) in 44 cases of advanced mammary carcinoma (IIIrd and IVth stage of the T.N.M. classification), evaluated according to the criteria proposed by CBCG. The excellent tolerance to the drug, even at such high doses, is stressed. Therapeutic responses were best in cases of metastasis in the soft and bony tissues and in cases of pulmonary metastasis. It is pointed out that the effectiveness of the treatment is particularly evident in patients in whom the free interval has exceeded two years and in patients in the menopause for more than five years. In the light of results obtained, the possibility of introducing the drug into the therapeutic strategy of this condition is discussed.
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