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Dias AP, Orsel K, De Buck J. Quantifying and mapping digital dermatitis-associated bacteria in lesion and nonlesion body sites and dairy farm environment. J Dairy Sci 2024; 107:3252-3268. [PMID: 38135044 DOI: 10.3168/jds.2023-24160] [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] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/05/2023] [Accepted: 11/26/2023] [Indexed: 12/24/2023]
Abstract
The source of infection of digital dermatitis (DD), an infectious lameness condition, is still uncertain. In this cross-sectional study, we aimed to identify potential reservoirs of DD bacteria in dairy cattle body sites with different stages of the disease and farm environments. We collected skin swabs from 85 dairy cows from 5 herds, 3 with and 2 without DD, from foot, hock, and udder cleft skin (with lesions or not), saliva, urine, and feces. We also obtained environmental samples. Real-time quantitative PCR targeted Treponema phagedenis, Treponema medium, Treponema pedis, Porphyromonas levii, Bacteroides pyogenes, Fusobacterium necrophorum, and Fusobacterium mortiferum. Digital dermatitis-associated Treponema spp. were exclusively detected in DD-affected herds in DD-foot and other skin lesions, healthy skin, saliva, and environmental samples. In contrast, the non-Treponema spp. were found in samples from both DD-negative and affected herds. As expected, DD lesions had higher bacterial loads than healthy skin. Interestingly, similar counts were observed in udder cleft lesions, indicating a potential opportunistic behavior on compromised skin. None of the targeted species were detected in fecal samples, but P. levii, B. pyogenes, and F. necrophorum were detected in urine. All 7 species were detected in saliva, although in low quantities. No associations were observed between the presence of each bacterial species in DD lesions and urine; however, there was an association between the presence of DD-Treponema spp. in lesions and saliva, hock, and udder skin. Feces and urine do not seem to be a DD bacteria primary source, but saliva and other skin lesions may play a role. Longitudinal studies would improve our understanding of DD-associated bacteria's transient or persistent presence in these sites. Investigating the sources of DD-associated bacteria will guide future interventions to minimize bacterial shedding and transmission, ultimately more effectively reducing bacterial load, transmission, and sources of infection in dairy herds.
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Affiliation(s)
- A P Dias
- Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, AB, T2N 4N1, Canada
| | - K Orsel
- Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, AB, T2N 4N1, Canada
| | - J De Buck
- Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, AB, T2N 4N1, Canada.
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Vermeersch AS, Ali M, Gansemans Y, Van Nieuwerburgh F, Ducatelle R, Geldhof P, Deforce D, Callens J, Opsomer G. An in-depth investigation of the microbiota and its virulence factors associated with severe udder cleft dermatitis lesions. J Dairy Sci 2024; 107:3219-3234. [PMID: 38135052 DOI: 10.3168/jds.2023-24180] [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] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2023] [Accepted: 11/22/2023] [Indexed: 12/24/2023]
Abstract
Udder cleft dermatitis (UCD) is a skin condition affecting the anterior parts of the udder in dairy cattle. In the present study, we aimed to shed light on the microbiota in severe UCD lesions versus healthy udder skin by putting forward a taxonomic and functional profile based on a virulence factor analysis. Through shotgun metagenomic sequencing, we found a high proportion of bacteria in addition to a low abundance of archaea. A distinct clustering of healthy udder skin versus UCD lesion samples was shown by applying principal component analysis and (sparse) partial least squares analysis on the metagenomic data. Proteobacteria, Bacillota, and Actinomycetota were among the most abundant phyla in healthy udder skin samples. In UCD samples, Bacteroidota was the most abundant phylum. At genus level, Bifidobacterium spp. had the highest relative abundance in healthy skin samples, whereas Porphyromonas spp. and Corynebacterium spp. had the highest relative abundance in UCD samples. In the differential abundance analysis, Porphyromonas spp. and Bacteroides spp. were significantly differentially abundant in UCD samples, whereas Bifidobacterium spp., Staphylococcus sp. AntiMn-1, and Staphylococcus equorum were more commonly found in healthy samples. Moreover, the abundance of several treponeme phylotypes was significantly higher in lesion samples. The streptococcal cysteine protease speB was among the most abundant virulence factors present in severe UCD lesions, while a plethora of virulence factors such as the antitoxin relB were downregulated, possibly contributing to creating the ideal wound climate for the dysbiotic community. Network analysis showed healthy lesion samples had a large network ofpositive, correlations between the abundances of beneficial species such as Aerococcus urinaeequi and Bifidobacterium angulatum, indicating that the healthy skin microbiome forms an active protective bacterial network, which is disrupted in case of UCD. In UCD samples, a smaller microbial network mainly consisting of positive correlations between the abundances of Bacteroides fragilis and anaerobic Bacteroidota was exposed. Moreover, a high correlation between the taxonomic data and virulence factors was revealed, concurrently with 2 separate networks of microbes and virulence factors. One network, matching with the taxonomic findings in the healthy udder skin samples, showcased a community of harmless or beneficial bacteria, such as Bifidobacterium spp. and Butyrivibrio proteoclasticus, associated with hcnB, hcnC, relB, glyoxalase, and cupin 2. The other network, corresponding to UCD samples, consisted of pathogenic or facultative pathogenic and mainly anaerobic bacteria such as Treponema spp., Mycoplasmopsis spp., and bovine gammaherpesvirus 4, that correlated with virulence factors SpvB, fhaB, and haemagglutination activity domain-associated factor. Our results point toward a dysbiotic community with a notable decrease in diversity and evenness, with a loss of normal skin inhabitants and innocuous or useful species making way for predominantly anaerobic, facultative pathogens. The shift in the abundance of virulence factors such as fhaB and SpvB could play a role in the manifestation of a local micro-environment favorable to the microbiome associated with udder skin lesions. Lastly, the presence of specific networks between microbial species, and between microbes and virulence factors was shown.
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Affiliation(s)
- A S Vermeersch
- Department of Internal Medicine, Reproduction and Population Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ghent University, 9820 Merelbeke, Belgium.
| | - M Ali
- Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Ghent University, 9000 Ghent, Belgium
| | - Y Gansemans
- Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Ghent University, 9000 Ghent, Belgium
| | - F Van Nieuwerburgh
- Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Ghent University, 9000 Ghent, Belgium
| | - R Ducatelle
- Department of Pathobiology, Pharmacology and Zoological Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ghent University, 9820 Merelbeke, Belgium
| | - P Geldhof
- Department of Translational Physiology, Infectiology and Public Health, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ghent University, 9820 Merelbeke, Belgium
| | - D Deforce
- Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Ghent University, 9000 Ghent, Belgium
| | - J Callens
- Dierengezondheidszorg Vlaanderen, 8820 Torhout, Belgium
| | - G Opsomer
- Department of Internal Medicine, Reproduction and Population Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ghent University, 9820 Merelbeke, Belgium
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Lahiri P, Arrazuria R, Tan YL, De Buck J, Hollenberg MD, Orsel K, Cobo ER. Proinflammatory CD14 highCD16 low monocytes/macrophages prevail in Treponema phagedenis-associated bovine digital dermatitis. Infect Immun 2024; 92:e0034223. [PMID: 38189287 PMCID: PMC10863414 DOI: 10.1128/iai.00342-23] [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] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2023] [Accepted: 12/05/2023] [Indexed: 01/09/2024] Open
Abstract
Digital dermatitis (DD) is a skin disease in cattle characterized by painful inflammatory ulcerative lesions in the feet, mostly associated with local colonization by Treponema spp., including Treponema phagedenis. The reason why most DD lesions remain actively inflamed and progress to chronic conditions despite antibiotic treatment remains unknown. Herein, we show an abundant infiltration of proinflammatory (CD14highCD16low) monocytes/macrophages in active DD lesions, a skin response that was not mitigated by topical treatment with oxytetracycline. The associated bacterium, T. phagedenis, isolated from DD lesions in cattle, when injected subcutaneously into mice, induced abscesses with a local recruitment of Ly6G+ neutrophils and proinflammatory (Ly6ChighCCR2+) monocytes/macrophages, which appeared at infection onset (4 days post challenge) and persisted for at least 7 days post challenge. When exploring the ability of macrophages to regulate inflammation, we showed that bovine blood-derived macrophages challenged with live T. phagedenis or its structural components secreted IL-1β via a mechanism dependent on the NLRP3 inflammasome. This study shows that proinflammatory characteristics of monocytes/macrophages and neutrophils dominate active non-healing ulcerative lesions in active DD, thus likely impeding wound healing after antibiotic treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Priyoshi Lahiri
- Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
| | - Rakel Arrazuria
- Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
| | - Yi Lin Tan
- Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
| | - Jeroen De Buck
- Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
| | - Morley D. Hollenberg
- Department of Physiology & Pharmacology, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
| | - Karin Orsel
- Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
| | - Eduardo R. Cobo
- Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
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Liroff K, Kassaye SG, Spence AB, Kumar PN, Natarajan M, Harold R, Dorsey K, Doshi RK, Visconti AJ. The Tenacious Treponema: A Retrospective Examination of Syphilis Treatment Disparities in Washington, DC. Sex Transm Dis 2024; 51:1-7. [PMID: 37889936 DOI: 10.1097/olq.0000000000001879] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [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: 10/29/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Since 2000, there have been rising rates of syphilis infections nationally with higher incidence among minorities and persons living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) (PLWH). The purpose of this study was to determine syphilis treatment adequacy and factors associated with treatment delay. METHODS This was a retrospective academic-public health collaboration with the District of Columbia Department of Public Health reviewing surveillance data of all primary, secondary, and early latent syphilis cases diagnosed between January 1, 2015, and December 31, 2019. Data were analyzed using multivariable logistic regression to identify factors associated with delayed treatment >14 days from diagnosis. RESULTS Among 1852 individuals diagnosed with early syphilis, 93% (1730/1852) were male; 48% (893/1852) were coinfected with HIV; 43% (n = 796/1852) were African American/Black, 27% (n = 492/1852) were White, and race/ethnicity was unknown for 17% (n = 318/1852) of cases. Among 679 PLWH for whom viral load (VL) was known, 41% (278/679) had a VL < 20 copies/mL, and 18% (123/679) had VL >10,000 copies/mL. Treatment adequacy overall was 96.5%. Median time to syphilis treatment was 6 days (interquartile range = 4-7). Factors associated with delay of treatment included refused/unknown race (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 1.95; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.00-3.79), and HIV VL > 10,000 copies/mL (aOR, 1.97; 95% CI, 1.08-3.58). CONCLUSIONS The factors we identified associated with delayed treatment may reflect systemic factors contributing to the increased rates of infection among key populations. This highlights the importance of targeted public health efforts with the goal of reducing transmission of both HIV and syphilis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kaitlin Liroff
- From the Georgetown University Department of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases and Travel Medicine
| | - Seble G Kassaye
- From the Georgetown University Department of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases and Travel Medicine
| | - Amanda B Spence
- From the Georgetown University Department of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases and Travel Medicine
| | - Princy N Kumar
- From the Georgetown University Department of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases and Travel Medicine
| | - Madhuri Natarajan
- From the Georgetown University Department of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases and Travel Medicine
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Velásquez CV, Moustafa MAM, Rocha SC, Parveen N. Borrelia burgdorferi colonizes the mammary glands of lactating C3H mice: does not cause congenital Lyme disease. Microbes Infect 2024; 26:105241. [PMID: 38380602 PMCID: PMC10882187 DOI: 10.1016/j.micinf.2023.105241] [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] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2023] [Revised: 09/19/2023] [Accepted: 10/23/2023] [Indexed: 02/22/2024]
Abstract
Transplacental transmission of syphilis causing spirochete, Treponema pallidum subspecies pallidum, from mother to child results in congenital syphilis, an ever-expanding devastating disease worldwide. Although adverse effects of untreated gestational Lyme disease, caused by a related spirochete, Borrelia burgdorferi on fetus viability and development have been observed, cases of congenital Lyme disease are not reported. In this study, we show that B. burgdorferi colonizes mammary glands of C3H mice only postpartum; however, neither transmission of these spirochetes from dams-to-pups occurs nor congenital Lyme disease is observed in pups.
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Affiliation(s)
- Clara Vásquez Velásquez
- Department of Microbiology, Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, Newark, NJ 07103, USA
| | - Mohamed A M Moustafa
- Department of Microbiology, Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, Newark, NJ 07103, USA
| | - Sandra C Rocha
- Department of Microbiology, Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, Newark, NJ 07103, USA
| | - Nikhat Parveen
- Department of Microbiology, Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, Newark, NJ 07103, USA.
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6
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Eallonardo SJ, Freitag NE. Crossing the Barrier: A Comparative Study of Listeria monocytogenes and Treponema pallidum in Placental Invasion. Cells 2023; 13:88. [PMID: 38201292 PMCID: PMC10778170 DOI: 10.3390/cells13010088] [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] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2023] [Revised: 12/03/2023] [Accepted: 12/19/2023] [Indexed: 01/12/2024] Open
Abstract
Vertically transmitted infections are a significant cause of fetal morbidity and mortality during pregnancy and pose substantial risks to fetal development. These infections are primarily transmitted to the fetus through two routes: (1) direct invasion and crossing the placenta which separates maternal and fetal circulation, or (2) ascending the maternal genitourinary tact and entering the uterus. Only two bacterial species are commonly found to cross the placenta and infect the fetus: Listeria monocytogenes and Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum. L. monocytogenes is a Gram-positive, foodborne pathogen found in soil that acutely infects a wide variety of mammalian species. T. pallidum is a sexually transmitted spirochete that causes a chronic infection exclusively in humans. We briefly review the pathogenesis of these two very distinct bacteria that have managed to overcome the placental barrier and the role placental immunity plays in resisting infection. Both organisms share characteristics which contribute to their transplacental transmission. These include the ability to disseminate broadly within the host, evade immune phagocytosis, and the need for a strong T cell response for their elimination.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samuel J. Eallonardo
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Illinois Chicago, Chicago, IL 60612, USA;
| | - Nancy E. Freitag
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Illinois Chicago, Chicago, IL 60612, USA;
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Illinois Chicago, Chicago, IL 60612, USA
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7
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Tantalo LC, Lieberman NAP, Pérez-Mañá C, Suñer C, Vall Mayans M, Ubals M, González-Beiras C, Rodríguez-Gascón A, Canut A, González-Candelas F, Mueller J, Tapia K, Greninger AL, Giacani L, Mitjà O. Antimicrobial susceptibility of Treponema pallidum subspecies pallidum: an in-vitro study. Lancet Microbe 2023; 4:e994-e1004. [PMID: 37827185 PMCID: PMC10686905 DOI: 10.1016/s2666-5247(23)00219-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2022] [Revised: 07/08/2023] [Accepted: 07/13/2023] [Indexed: 10/14/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The increasing incidence of syphilis and the limitations of first-line treatment with penicillin, particularly in neurosyphilis, neonatal syphilis, and pregnancy, highlight the need to expand the therapeutic repertoire for effective management of this disease. We assessed the in-vitro efficacy of 18 antibiotics from several classes on Treponema pallidum subspecies pallidum (T pallidum), the syphilis bacteria. METHODS Using the in-vitro culture system for T pallidum, we exposed the pathogen to a concentration range of each tested antibiotic. After a 7-day incubation, the treponemal burden was evaluated by quantitative PCR targeting the T pallidum tp0574 gene. The primary outcome was the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) at which the quantitative PCR values were not significantly higher than the inoculum wells. We also investigated the susceptibility of macrolide-resistant strains to high concentrations of azithromycin, and the possibility of developing resistance to linezolid, a proposed candidate for syphilis treatment. FINDINGS Amoxicillin, ceftriaxone, several oral cephalosporins, tedizolid, and dalbavancin exhibited anti-treponemal activity at concentrations achievable in human plasma following regular dosing regimens. The experiments revealed a MIC for amoxicillin at 0·02 mg/L, ceftriaxone at 0·0025 mg/L, cephalexin at 0·25 mg/L, cefetamet and cefixime at 0·0313 mg/L, cefuroxime at 0·0156 mg/L, tedizolid at 0·0625 mg/L, spectinomycin at 0·1 mg/L, and dalbavancin at 0·125 mg/L. The MIC for zoliflodacin and balofloxacin was 2 mg/L. Ertapenem, isoniazid, pyrazinamide, and metronidazole had either a poor or no effect. Azithromycin concentrations up to 2 mg/L (64 times the MIC) were ineffective against strains carrying mutations associated to macrolide resistance. Exposure to subtherapeutic doses of linezolid for 10 weeks did not induce phenotypic or genotypic resistance. INTERPRETATION Cephalosporins and oxazolidinones are potential candidates for expanding the current therapeutic repertoire for syphilis. Our findings warrant testing efficacy in animal models and, if successful, clinical assessment of efficacy. FUNDING European Research Council.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lauren C Tantalo
- Department of Medicine, Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Nicole A P Lieberman
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Clara Pérez-Mañá
- Clinical Pharmacology Unit, Hospital Universitari Germans Trias i Pujol, Institut de Recerca Germans Trias i Pujol, Badalona, Spain; Department of Pharmacology, Therapeutics and Toxicology, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Clara Suñer
- Sexually Transmitted Infections and Skin Neglected Tropical Diseases Section, Fight Infectious Diseases Foundation, Hospital Germans Trias i Pujol, Barcelona, Spain; Universitat de Vic-Universitat Central de Catalunya, Vic, Spain
| | - Marti Vall Mayans
- Sexually Transmitted Infections and Skin Neglected Tropical Diseases Section, Fight Infectious Diseases Foundation, Hospital Germans Trias i Pujol, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Maria Ubals
- Sexually Transmitted Infections and Skin Neglected Tropical Diseases Section, Fight Infectious Diseases Foundation, Hospital Germans Trias i Pujol, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Camila González-Beiras
- Sexually Transmitted Infections and Skin Neglected Tropical Diseases Section, Fight Infectious Diseases Foundation, Hospital Germans Trias i Pujol, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Alicia Rodríguez-Gascón
- Pharmacokinetic, Nanotechnology, and Gene Therapy Group (PharmaNanoGene), Faculty of Pharmacy, University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU, Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain; Bioaraba, Microbiology, Infectious Disease, Antimicrobial Agents, and Gene Therapy Group, Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain
| | - Andrés Canut
- Bioaraba, Microbiology, Infectious Disease, Antimicrobial Agents, and Gene Therapy Group, Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain; Microbiology Service, Araba University Hospital, Osakidetza Basque Health Service, Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain
| | - Fernando González-Candelas
- Joint Research Unit Infection and Public Health, FISABIO-Universitat de València, València, Spain; Institute for Integrative Systems Biology, Universitat de València-CSIC, Paterna, Spain; CIBER Epidemiology and Public Health, Madrid, Spain
| | - John Mueller
- Innoviva Specialty Therapeutics, Waltham, MA, USA
| | - Kenneth Tapia
- Department of Medicine, Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and Department of Global Health, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Alexander L Greninger
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA; Vaccine and Infectious Disease Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Lorenzo Giacani
- Department of Medicine, Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA; Department of Medicine, Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and Department of Global Health, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA.
| | - Oriol Mitjà
- Sexually Transmitted Infections and Skin Neglected Tropical Diseases Section, Fight Infectious Diseases Foundation, Hospital Germans Trias i Pujol, Barcelona, Spain; Universitat de Vic-Universitat Central de Catalunya, Vic, Spain; School of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Papua New Guinea, Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea
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Ekeke N, Iyama FS, Chukwu JN, Asiedu K, Marks M, Omotowo B, Agwu-Umahi O, Nvene VO, Paul S, Nwafor CC, Meka AO, Eze CC, Ezeakile OE, Njoku MI, Murphy-Okpala NN. Is there still yaws in Nigeria? Active case search in endemic areas of southern Nigeria. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2023; 17:e0011753. [PMID: 37983269 PMCID: PMC10695364 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0011753] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [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: 05/25/2023] [Revised: 12/04/2023] [Accepted: 10/27/2023] [Indexed: 11/22/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Yaws is a disease caused by the bacteria Treponema pallidum subspecies pertenue, which is most commonly seen among children below 15 years. In the twentieth century yaws was endemic in Nigeria but eradication strategies markedly reduced the disease burden. Currently there is minimal data on the ongoing transmission of yaws in Nigeria, despite reports of confirmed yaws cases in neighbouring West African countries. METHODS We conducted both community and school-based active yaws case search among school-aged children in southeast Nigeria. Children were screened by trained community volunteers. Suspected yaws cases were clinically reviewed and tested using rapid diagnostic serological tests. RESULTS Between February and May 2021, up to 28 trained community volunteers screened a total of 105,015 school children for yaws. Overall, 7,706 children with various skin lesions were identified. Eight (8) suspected cases of yaws were reported, reviewed and screened, but none was confirmed using rapid diagnostic tests. The four most common skin conditions identified were scabies (39%), papular urticaria (29%), tinea corporis (14%) and tinea capitis (12%). CONCLUSIONS No case of yaws was confirmed in this large population of children in south-east Nigeria. Continuous community awareness and yaws case finding activities have been recommended across Nigeria.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ngozi Ekeke
- German Leprosy and Tuberculosis Relief Association (GLRA), Enugu, Nigeria
| | - Francis S. Iyama
- German Leprosy and Tuberculosis Relief Association (GLRA), Enugu, Nigeria
| | - Joseph N. Chukwu
- German Leprosy and Tuberculosis Relief Association (GLRA), Enugu, Nigeria
| | - Kingsley Asiedu
- Department of Control of Neglected Tropical Diseases, WHO, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Michael Marks
- Department of Clinical Research, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), London, England
| | | | | | - Victor O. Nvene
- Institute of Public Health, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Nigeria
| | - Shiloh Paul
- Neglected Tropical Diseases Division, Federal Ministry of Health, Abuja, Nigeria
| | - Charles C. Nwafor
- German Leprosy and Tuberculosis Relief Association (GLRA), Enugu, Nigeria
| | - Anthony O. Meka
- German Leprosy and Tuberculosis Relief Association (GLRA), Enugu, Nigeria
| | - Chinwe C. Eze
- German Leprosy and Tuberculosis Relief Association (GLRA), Enugu, Nigeria
| | | | - Martin I. Njoku
- German Leprosy and Tuberculosis Relief Association (GLRA), Enugu, Nigeria
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9
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Romeis E, Lieberman NAP, Molini B, Tantalo LC, Chung B, Phung Q, Avendaño C, Vorobieva A, Greninger AL, Giacani L. Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum with an Artificially impaired TprK antigenic variation system is attenuated in the Rabbit model of syphilis. PLoS Pathog 2023; 19:e1011259. [PMID: 36940224 PMCID: PMC10063172 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1011259] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2022] [Revised: 03/30/2023] [Accepted: 03/01/2023] [Indexed: 03/21/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The TprK protein of the syphilis agent, Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum (T. pallidum), undergoes antigenic variation in seven discrete variable (V) regions via non-reciprocal segmental gene conversion. These recombination events transfer information from a repertoire of 53 silent chromosomal donor cassettes (DCs) into the single tprK expression site to continually generate TprK variants. Several lines of research developed over the last two decades support the theory that this mechanism is central to T. pallidum's ability for immune avoidance and persistence in the host. Structural and modeling data, for example, identify TprK as an integral outer membrane porin with the V regions exposed on the pathogen's surface. Furthermore, infection-induced antibodies preferentially target the V regions rather than the predicted β-barrel scaffolding, and sequence variation abrogates the binding of antibodies elicited by antigenically different V regions. Here, we engineered a T. pallidum strain to impair its ability to vary TprK and assessed its virulence in the rabbit model of syphilis. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS A suicide vector was transformed into the wild-type (WT) SS14 T. pallidum isolate to eliminate 96% of its tprK DCs. The resulting SS14-DCKO strain exhibited an in vitro growth rate identical to the untransformed strain, supporting that the elimination of the DCs did not affect strain viability in absence of immune pressure. In rabbits injected intradermally with the SS14-DCKO strain, generation of new TprK sequences was impaired, and the animals developed attenuated lesions with a significantly reduced treponemal burden compared to control animals. During infection, clearance of V region variants originally in the inoculum mirrored the generation of antibodies to these variants, although no new variants were generated in the SS14-DCKO strain to overcome immune pressure. Naïve rabbits that received lymph node extracts from animals infected with the SS14-DCKO strain remained uninfected. CONCLUSION These data further support the critical role of TprK in T. pallidum virulence and persistence during infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily Romeis
- Department of Medicine, Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
| | - Nicole A. P. Lieberman
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
| | - Barbara Molini
- Department of Medicine, Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
| | - Lauren C. Tantalo
- Department of Medicine, Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
| | - Benjamin Chung
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
| | - Quynh Phung
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
| | - Carlos Avendaño
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
| | - Anastassia Vorobieva
- VIB-VUB Center for Structural Biology, VIB, Brussels, Belgium
- Structural Biology Brussels, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Alexander L. Greninger
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
- Vaccine and Infectious Disease Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
| | - Lorenzo Giacani
- Department of Medicine, Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
- Department of Global Health, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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Nasrallah GK, Al-Buainain R, Younes N, Dargham SR, Al-Sadeq DW, Elhassan M, Al-Shaar I, Yassine HM, Abu-Raddad LJ, Emara MM, Ismail A. Screening and diagnostic testing protocols for HIV and Syphilis infections in health care setting in Qatar: Evaluation and recommendations. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0278079. [PMID: 36749795 PMCID: PMC9904467 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0278079] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2022] [Accepted: 12/22/2022] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND HIV and Syphilis are common STIs, which have become a concern and burden on healthcare systems, as many infections go untreated and lead to potentially serious complications. HIV is usually diagnosed with Western blot, PCR, and p24 antigen testing. Whereas, Syphilis is mainly diagnosed through clinical findings and serologic testing. The Medical Commission Department (MC) under MOPH is responsible for screening all newcomers to Qatar, aiming to keep the country free from serious infectious diseases. OBJECTIVE We aimed to evaluate the diagnostic efficiency of the protocols used in the MC for screening HIV and Syphilis infections. METHODS We conducted a retrospective study of samples analyzed by 4th Generation ARCHITECT® HIV Ag/Ab Combo and Rapid Plasma Reagin (RPR) between January to December 2019. ARCHITECT® HIV Ag/Ab Combo positive samples were confirmed by INNO-LIA™ HIVI/II and RT-PCR. RPR-reactive samples were confirmed by ARCHITECT® Syphilis Treponema pallidium Antibody (Syphilis TPA) assay. RESULTS For HIV, data were collected from 585,587 individuals, of which 595 (0.1%) were positive by the ARCHITECT® HIV Ag/Ab Combo (Analyzer A). When all initially positive sera were re-tested on newly collected blood samples using different ARCHITECT® HIV Ag/Ab Combo analyzer (analyzer B), 99.8% (594/595) of samples were also positive, suggesting high reproducibility. The positive predictive value (PPV) between ARCHITECT® HIV Ag/Ab Combo and the INNO-LIA™ HIVI/II confirmatory assay was 31.8%. The PPV between ARCHITECT® HIV Ag/Ab Combo and HIV-PCR assay was 26.8%. Retrospective data for Syphilis were collected from a total of 97,298 individuals who visited the MC, of which 198 (0.20%) were initially positive by RPR. The PPV between RPR and Syphilis TPA confirmatory assay was 36.6%. CONCLUSION Despite the high rate of false positivity using ARCHITECT® HIV Ag/Ab Combo and RPR screening assays, both assays have proven to be highly effective as screening testing methods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gheyath K. Nasrallah
- Department of Biomedical Science, College of Health Sciences, QU Health, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar
- Biomedical Research Center, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar
- * E-mail: , (AI); (GKN)
| | - Raniya Al-Buainain
- Medical Commission Department, Laboratory Section, Ministry of Public Health, Doha, Qatar
| | - Nadin Younes
- Department of Biomedical Science, College of Health Sciences, QU Health, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar
- Biomedical Research Center, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar
| | - Soha R. Dargham
- Infectious Disease Epidemiology Group, Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar, Cornell University, Doha, Qatar
- World Health Organization Collaborating Centre for Disease Epidemiology Analytics on HIV/AIDS, Sexually Transmitted Infections, and Viral Hepatitis, Weill Cornell Medicine–Qatar, Cornell University, Doha, Qatar
| | - Duaa W. Al-Sadeq
- Biomedical Research Center, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar
- College of Medicine, QU Health, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar
| | - Mohamed Elhassan
- Medical Commission Department, Laboratory Section, Ministry of Public Health, Doha, Qatar
| | - Ibrahim Al-Shaar
- Medical Commission Department, Laboratory Section, Ministry of Public Health, Doha, Qatar
| | - Hadi M. Yassine
- Department of Biomedical Science, College of Health Sciences, QU Health, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar
- Biomedical Research Center, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar
| | - Laith J. Abu-Raddad
- Infectious Disease Epidemiology Group, Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar, Cornell University, Doha, Qatar
- World Health Organization Collaborating Centre for Disease Epidemiology Analytics on HIV/AIDS, Sexually Transmitted Infections, and Viral Hepatitis, Weill Cornell Medicine–Qatar, Cornell University, Doha, Qatar
| | | | - Ahmed Ismail
- Medical Commission Department, Laboratory Section, Ministry of Public Health, Doha, Qatar
- * E-mail: , (AI); (GKN)
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11
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Nemergut M, Batkova T, Vigasova D, Bartos M, Hlozankova M, Schenkmayerova A, Liskova B, Sheardova K, Vyhnalek M, Hort J, Laczó J, Kovacova I, Sitina M, Matej R, Jancalek R, Marek M, Damborsky J. Increased occurrence of Treponema spp. and double-species infections in patients with Alzheimer's disease. Sci Total Environ 2022; 844:157114. [PMID: 35787909 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.157114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2022] [Revised: 06/25/2022] [Accepted: 06/28/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Although the link between microbial infections and Alzheimer's disease (AD) has been demonstrated in multiple studies, the involvement of pathogens in the development of AD remains unclear. Here, we investigated the frequency of the 10 most commonly cited viral (HSV-1, EBV, HHV-6, HHV-7, and CMV) and bacterial (Chlamydia pneumoniae, Helicobacter pylori, Borrelia burgdorferi, Porphyromonas gingivalis, and Treponema spp.) pathogens in serum, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and brain tissues of AD patients. We have used an in-house multiplex PCR kit for simultaneous detection of five bacterial and five viral pathogens in serum and CSF samples from 50 AD patients and 53 healthy controls (CTRL). We observed a significantly higher frequency rate of AD patients who tested positive for Treponema spp. compared to controls (AD: 62.2 %; CTRL: 30.3 %; p-value = 0.007). Furthermore, we confirmed a significantly higher occurrence of cases with two or more simultaneous infections in AD patients compared to controls (AD: 24 %; CTRL 7.5 %; p-value = 0.029). The studied pathogens were detected with comparable frequency in serum and CSF. In contrast, Borrelia burgdorferi, human herpesvirus 7, and human cytomegalovirus were not detected in any of the studied samples. This study provides further evidence of the association between microbial infections and AD and shows that paralleled analysis of multiple sample specimens provides complementary information and is advisable for future studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michal Nemergut
- International Clinical Research Center, St. Anne's University Hospital Brno, Brno, Czech Republic; Loschmidt Laboratories, Department of Experimental Biology and RECETOX, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Tereza Batkova
- International Clinical Research Center, St. Anne's University Hospital Brno, Brno, Czech Republic; Department of Neurology, Masaryk University, St. Anne's University Hospital Brno, Brno, Czech Republic; BioVendor R&D, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Dana Vigasova
- International Clinical Research Center, St. Anne's University Hospital Brno, Brno, Czech Republic; Loschmidt Laboratories, Department of Experimental Biology and RECETOX, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
| | | | | | - Andrea Schenkmayerova
- International Clinical Research Center, St. Anne's University Hospital Brno, Brno, Czech Republic; Loschmidt Laboratories, Department of Experimental Biology and RECETOX, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Barbora Liskova
- Loschmidt Laboratories, Department of Experimental Biology and RECETOX, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Katerina Sheardova
- International Clinical Research Center, St. Anne's University Hospital Brno, Brno, Czech Republic; Department of Neurology, Masaryk University, St. Anne's University Hospital Brno, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Martin Vyhnalek
- International Clinical Research Center, St. Anne's University Hospital Brno, Brno, Czech Republic; Department of Neurology, Charles University, Second Faculty of Medicine and Motol University Hospital, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Jakub Hort
- International Clinical Research Center, St. Anne's University Hospital Brno, Brno, Czech Republic; Department of Neurology, Charles University, Second Faculty of Medicine and Motol University Hospital, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Jan Laczó
- International Clinical Research Center, St. Anne's University Hospital Brno, Brno, Czech Republic; Department of Neurology, Charles University, Second Faculty of Medicine and Motol University Hospital, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Ingrid Kovacova
- International Clinical Research Center, St. Anne's University Hospital Brno, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Michal Sitina
- International Clinical Research Center, St. Anne's University Hospital Brno, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Radoslav Matej
- Department of Pathology and Molecular Medicine, Third Faculty of Medicine, Charles University and Thomayer University Hospital, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Radim Jancalek
- Department of Neurosurgery, St. Anne's University Hospital Brno, Brno, Czech Republic and Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Martin Marek
- International Clinical Research Center, St. Anne's University Hospital Brno, Brno, Czech Republic; Loschmidt Laboratories, Department of Experimental Biology and RECETOX, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Jiri Damborsky
- International Clinical Research Center, St. Anne's University Hospital Brno, Brno, Czech Republic; Loschmidt Laboratories, Department of Experimental Biology and RECETOX, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic.
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12
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Chen W, Luo H, Zeng L, Pan Y, Parr JB, Jiang Y, Cunningham CH, Hawley KL, Radolf JD, Ke W, Ou J, Yang J, Yang B, Zheng H. A suite of PCR-LwCas13a assays for detection and genotyping of Treponema pallidum in clinical samples. Nat Commun 2022; 13:4671. [PMID: 35945210 PMCID: PMC9362966 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-32250-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2021] [Accepted: 07/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
The performance of commonly used assays for diagnosis of syphilis varies considerably depending on stage of infection and sample type. In response to the need for improved syphilis diagnostics, we develop assays that pair PCR pre-amplification of the tpp47 gene of Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum with CRISPR-LwCas13a. The PCR-LwCas13a assay achieves an order of magnitude better analytical sensitivity than real-time PCR with equivalent specificity. When applied to a panel of 216 biological specimens, including 135 clinically confirmed primary and secondary syphilis samples, the PCR-LwCas13a assay demonstrates 93.3% clinical sensitivity and 100% specificity, outperforming tpp47 real-time PCR and rabbit-infectivity testing. We further adapt this approach to distinguish Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum lineages and identify genetic markers of macrolide resistance. Our study demonstrates the potential of CRISPR-based approaches to improve diagnosis and epidemiological surveillance of syphilis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wentao Chen
- Dermatology Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, P. R. China
- Guangzhou Key Laboratory for Sexually Transmitted Diseases Control, Guangzhou, P. R. China
| | - Hao Luo
- Dermatology Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, P. R. China
- Guangzhou Key Laboratory for Sexually Transmitted Diseases Control, Guangzhou, P. R. China
| | - Lihong Zeng
- Dermatology Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, P. R. China
- Guangzhou Key Laboratory for Sexually Transmitted Diseases Control, Guangzhou, P. R. China
| | - Yuying Pan
- Dermatology Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, P. R. China
- Guangzhou Key Laboratory for Sexually Transmitted Diseases Control, Guangzhou, P. R. China
| | - Jonathan B Parr
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, and Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Yinbo Jiang
- Dermatology Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, P. R. China
- Guangzhou Key Laboratory for Sexually Transmitted Diseases Control, Guangzhou, P. R. China
| | - Clark H Cunningham
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, and Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Kelly L Hawley
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Connecticut Children's, Hartford, CT, USA
- Department of Medicine, UConn Health, Farmington, CT, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, UConn Health, Farmington, CT, USA
| | - Justin D Radolf
- Department of Medicine, UConn Health, Farmington, CT, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, UConn Health, Farmington, CT, USA
- Department of Molecular Biology and Biophysics, UConn Health, Farmington, CT, USA
- Department of Genetics and Genome Sciences, UConn Health, Farmington, CT, USA
- Department of Immunology, UConn Health, Farmington, CT, USA
| | - Wujian Ke
- Dermatology Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, P. R. China
- Guangzhou Key Laboratory for Sexually Transmitted Diseases Control, Guangzhou, P. R. China
| | - Jiangli Ou
- Dermatology Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, P. R. China
- Guangzhou Key Laboratory for Sexually Transmitted Diseases Control, Guangzhou, P. R. China
| | - Jianjiang Yang
- Dermatology Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, P. R. China
- Guangzhou Key Laboratory for Sexually Transmitted Diseases Control, Guangzhou, P. R. China
| | - Bin Yang
- Dermatology Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, P. R. China.
- Guangzhou Key Laboratory for Sexually Transmitted Diseases Control, Guangzhou, P. R. China.
| | - Heping Zheng
- Dermatology Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, P. R. China.
- Guangzhou Key Laboratory for Sexually Transmitted Diseases Control, Guangzhou, P. R. China.
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13
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Vrbová E, Noda AA, Grillová L, Rodríguez I, Forsyth A, Oppelt J, Šmajs D. Whole genome sequences of Treponema pallidum subsp. endemicum isolated from Cuban patients: The non-clonal character of isolates suggests a persistent human infection rather than a single outbreak. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2022; 16:e0009900. [PMID: 35687593 PMCID: PMC9223347 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0009900] [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] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2021] [Revised: 06/23/2022] [Accepted: 04/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Bejel (endemic syphilis) is a neglected non-venereal disease caused by Treponema pallidum subsp. endemicum (TEN). Although it is mostly present in hot, dry climates, a few cases have been found outside of these areas. The aim of this work was the sequencing and analysis of TEN isolates obtained from “syphilis patients” in Cuba, which is not considered an endemic area for bejel. Genomes were obtained by pool segment genome sequencing or direct sequencing methods, and the bioinformatics analysis was performed according to an established pipeline. We obtained four genomes with 100%, 81.7%, 52.6%, and 21.1% breadth of coverage, respectively. The sequenced genomes revealed a non-clonal character, with nucleotide variability ranging between 0.2–10.3 nucleotide substitutions per 100 kbp among the TEN isolates. Nucleotide changes affected 27 genes, and the analysis of the completely sequenced genome also showed a recombination event between tprC and tprI, in TP0488 as well as in the intergenic region between TP0127–TP0129. Despite limitations in the quality of samples affecting breadth of sequencing coverage, the determined non-clonal character of the isolates suggests a persistent infection in the Cuban population rather than a single outbreak caused by imported case.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eliška Vrbová
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Angel A. Noda
- Department of Mycology-Bacteriology, Institute of Tropical Medicine “Pedro Kourí”, Havana, Cuba
| | - Linda Grillová
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Islay Rodríguez
- Department of Mycology-Bacteriology, Institute of Tropical Medicine “Pedro Kourí”, Havana, Cuba
| | - Allyn Forsyth
- GeneticPrime Dx, Inc., La Jolla, California, United States of America
- San Diego State University, San Diego, California, United States of America
| | - Jan Oppelt
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, United States of America
| | - David Šmajs
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
- * E-mail:
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14
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Dofitas BL, Kalim SP, Toledo CB, Richardus JH. Yaws in the Philippines: A clinico-seroprevalence study of selected communities in Mindanao. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2022; 16:e0010447. [PMID: 35648735 PMCID: PMC9159601 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0010447] [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] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2021] [Accepted: 04/26/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Yaws is a chronic, highly contagious skin and bone infection affecting children living in impoverished, remote communities. It is caused by Treponema pallidum subsp. pertenue. We report the prevalence of active yaws among elementary schoolchildren based on clinical and serological criteria in selected municipalities of Southern Philippines. Methods From January to March 2017, exploratory cross-sectional surveys and screening of skin diseases were conducted in the Liguasan Marsh area of the provinces Maguindanao, Sultan Kudarat, and Cotabato. We included 9 municipalities and randomly selected one public elementary school per municipality. Members of students’ households and the communities were also examined and treated. Yaws suspects and contacts had blood tests for treponemal and non-treponemal antibodies using Dual Pathway Platform and Treponema pallidum particle agglutination (TPPA) tests. Results A total of 2779 children and adults were screened for any skin disease: 2291 students, 393 household members, and 95 community members. Among 210 yaws suspects and contacts, 150 consented to serologic tests. The estimated prevalence of active yaws among schoolchildren screened was 1 out of 2291 (0.04%). Among 2532 children who were 14 years old and younger, 4 (0.2%) had active yaws. Eight adult household contacts and community members had latent yaws and 2 had past yaws. Five out of 9 municipalities were endemic for yaws. Conclusions This study confirmed that the Philippines is endemic for yaws but at a low level in the schools surveyed. This is an under-estimation due to the limited sampling. The lack of proper disease surveillance after the eradication campaign in the 1960’s has made yaws a forgotten disease and has led to its resurgence. Yaws surveillance is needed to determine the extent of yaws in the Philippines and to help develop a strategy to eradicate yaws by 2030. Yaws is a chronic, highly contagious skin and bone infection affecting children living in impoverished, remote communities. It is caused by bacteria called Treponema pallidum subspecie pertenue. To determine the prevalence of yaws, we conducted cross-sectional surveys and integrated screening of skin diseases and blood tests in nine selected schools and students’ households in three provinces located in Liguasan Marsh, Mindanao Island, Southern Philippines. A total of 2779 children and adults were screened for any skin disease: 2291 students, 393 household members, and 95 community members. Among 210 yaws suspects and contacts, 150 consented to serologic tests. The estimated prevalence of yaws among schoolchildren screened was 1 out of 2291 (0.04%). Among 2532 children who were 14 years old and younger, 4 (0.2%) had active yaws. Eight adult household contacts and community members had latent yaws and 2 had past yaws. Five out of 9 municipalities were endemic for yaws. This study confirmed that the Philippines is endemic for yaws. The occurrence among schoolchildren in the study sites was low probably due to limited sampling. A yaws surveillance and eradication program is needed for endemic communities in the Philippines. Yaws could be unreported in other previously endemic countries as well because the skin and bone signs are not recognized anymore.
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Affiliation(s)
- Belen Lardizabal Dofitas
- Department of Dermatology, College of Medicine, University of the Philippines Manila, Metro Manila, Philippines
- Department of Public Health, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- * E-mail:
| | - Sherjan P. Kalim
- Department of Pathology, Cotabato Regional and Medical Center, Cotabato City, Philippines
| | - Camille B. Toledo
- Institute of Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine, Southern Philippines Medical Center, Davao City, Philippines
| | - Jan Hendrik Richardus
- Department of Public Health, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
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Cooper PJ, Anselmi M, Caicedo C, Lopez A, Vicuña Y, Cagua Ordoñez J, Rivera Bonilla J, Rodriguez A, Soto A, Guevara A. Yaws elimination in Ecuador: Findings of a serological survey of children in Esmeraldas province to evaluate interruption of transmission. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2022; 16:e0010173. [PMID: 35613083 PMCID: PMC9132314 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0010173] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2022] [Accepted: 04/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Background The WHO roadmap for neglected tropical diseases includes yaws eradication requiring certification of elimination of transmission in all endemic and formerly endemic countries worldwide. A community-based programme for yaws control was considered to have achieved elimination of the infection in the endemic focus in Ecuador after 1993. We did a serosurvey of children in this focus to provide evidence for interruption of transmission. Methods Survey of serum samples collected from children aged 2 to 15 years living in the formerly endemic and in geographically contiguous areas. A convenience sample of sera collected between 2005 were 2017 from non-yaws studies, were analyzed using immunochromatic rapid tests to screen (OnSite Syphilis Ab Combo Rapid Test) for Treponema pallidum-specific antibodies and confirm (DPP Syphilis Screen and Confirm) seroreactivity based on the presence antibodies to treponemal and non-treponemal antigens. Results Seroreactivity was confirmed in 6 (0.14%, 95% CI 0.06–0.30) of 4,432 sera analyzed and was similar in formerly endemic (0.11%, (95% CI 0.01–0.75) and non-endemic (0.14%, 95% CI 0.06–0.34) communities. All seroreactors were of Afro-Ecuadorian ethnicity and most were male (4/6) and aged 10 or more years (5/6), the latter possibly indicating venereal syphilis. Only 1 seroreactor lived in a community in the Rio Santiago, that was formerly hyperendemic for yaws. Conclusion We observed very low levels of treponemal transmission in both formerly endemic and non-endemic communities which might be indicative of congenital or venereal syphilis and, if yaws, would likely be insufficient to maintain transmission of this endemic childhood infection. Additional surveys of children aged 1 to 5 years are planned in Rio Santiago communities to exclude yaws transmission. Yaws, caused by infection with the spirochete, Treponema pallidum pertenue, causes a chronic debilitating condition of skin, cartilage, and bone, and is transmitted during childhood through skin-to-skin contact. Yaws has been targeted for eradication as part of the WHO roadmap for control of neglected tropical diseases, requiring certification of elimination in all endemic and formerly endemic regions. Yaws in Ecuador has been restricted to a geographically isolated focus in a rainforest region of Esmeraldas Province in northern coastal Ecuador. Following a strategy of repeated 5-yearly clinical and serological surveys with mass-treatment and surveillance between surveys, yaws was assumed to have been eliminated by 1998. To provide the evidence base to certify the elimination of transmission in Ecuador, this study presents an analysis of stored sera collected from 4,432 children between 2005 and 2017 from formerly endemic and non-endemic communities. Screening and confirmation of seroreactors was done using two validated rapid tests for T. pallidum. Seroreactivity was observed in 6 samples (0.14%) and was similar in formerly endemic (0.11%) and non-endemic (0.14%) communities, possibly explained by background rates of congenital or venereal syphilis. Only 1 active infection was detected in formerly endemic communities. To our knowledge, this is the first study of yaws from the Americas to evaluate the elimination of transmission. Our data indicate that active yaws transmission is unlikely to be occurring in formerly endemic communities. Additional surveys of young children may be required to confirm interruption of transmission.
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Affiliation(s)
- Philip J. Cooper
- Escuela de Medicina, Universidad Internacional del Ecuador, Quito, Ecuador
- Insititute of Infection and Immunity, St George’s University of London, London, United Kingdom
- * E-mail:
| | - Mariella Anselmi
- Centro de Epidemiologia Comunitaria y Medicina Tropical (CECOMET), Esmeraldas, Ecuador
| | - Cintia Caicedo
- Centro de Epidemiologia Comunitaria y Medicina Tropical (CECOMET), Esmeraldas, Ecuador
| | - Andrea Lopez
- Escuela de Medicina, Universidad Internacional del Ecuador, Quito, Ecuador
| | - Yosselin Vicuña
- Instituto de Biomedicina, Carrera de Medicina, Universidad Central, Quito, Ecuador
| | - Jaen Cagua Ordoñez
- Dirección Nacional de Estrategias de Prevención y Control, Ministerio de Salud Pública, Quito, Ecuador
- Instituto Ecuatoriano de Seguridad Social, Quito, Ecuador
| | - Julio Rivera Bonilla
- Dirección Nacional de Estrategias de Prevención y Control, Ministerio de Salud Pública, Quito, Ecuador
| | | | - Aida Soto
- Pan American Health Organization, Quito, Ecuador
| | - Angel Guevara
- Instituto de Biomedicina, Carrera de Medicina, Universidad Central, Quito, Ecuador
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Handley BL, González-Beiras C, Tchatchouang S, Basing LA, Hugues KA, Bakheit M, Becherer L, Ries C, Njih Tabah E, Crucitti T, Borst N, Lüert S, Frischmann S, Haerpfer T, Landmann E, Amanor I, Sylla A, Kouamé-Sina MS, Ndzomo-Ngono JP, Tano A, Arhinful D, Awondo P, Ngazoa Kakou S, Eyangoh S, Addo KK, Harding-Esch EM, Knauf S, Mitjà O, Marks M. LAMP4yaws: Treponema pallidum, Haemophilus ducreyi loop mediated isothermal amplification - protocol for a cross-sectional, observational, diagnostic accuracy study. BMJ Open 2022; 12:e058605. [PMID: 35351731 PMCID: PMC8966536 DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2021-058605] [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] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Yaws, caused by the bacterium Treponema pallidum subsp. pertenue, is a neglected tropical disease targeted for eradication by 2030. Improved diagnostics will be essential to meet this goal. Diagnosis of yaws has relied heavily on clinical and serological tools. However, the presence of coendemic cutaneous skin ulcer diseases, such as lesions caused by Haemophilus ducreyi (HD), means these techniques do not provide a reliable diagnosis. Thus, new diagnostic tools are needed. Molecular tools such as PCR are ideal, but often expensive as they require trained technicians and laboratory facilities, which are often not available to national yaws programmes. METHODS AND ANALYSIS The LAMP4yaws project is a cross-sectional, observational, diagnostic accuracy study of a combined Treponema pallidum (TP) and HD loop mediated isothermal amplification (TPHD-LAMP) test performed under real world conditions in three endemic countries in West Africa. Individuals with serologically confirmed yaws will be recruited in Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana. Each participant will provide paired swabs, one of which will be sent to the respective national reference laboratory for yaws quantitative PCR and the other will be tested for both TP and HD using the TPHD-LAMP test at local district laboratories. Sensitivity and specificity of the TPHD-LAMP test will be calculated against the reference standard qPCR. We will also assess the acceptability, feasibility and cost-effectiveness of the test. We anticipate that results from this study will support the adoption of the TPHD-LAMP test for use in global yaws eradication efforts. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION We have received ethical approval from all relevant institutional and national ethical committees. All participants, or their parents or guardians, must provide written informed consent prior to study enrolment. Study results will be published in an open access journal and disseminated with partners and the World Health Organization. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER NCT04753788.
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Affiliation(s)
- Becca Louise Handley
- Clinical Research Department, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine Faculty of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, London, UK
| | - Camila González-Beiras
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Hospital Universitari Germans Trias i Pujol, Badalona, Spain
| | | | - Laud Antony Basing
- University of Ghana Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, Accra, Greater Accra, Ghana
| | - Kouadio Aboh Hugues
- National Program of African Trypanosomiasis Elimination, Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire
- Institut Pasteur de Cote d'Ivoire, Abidjan, Lagunes, Côte d'Ivoire
| | | | - Lisa Becherer
- IMTEK - Department of Microsystems Engineering, University of Freiburg, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
| | - Christina Ries
- Institute of International Animal Health/One Health, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Federal Research Institute for Animal Health, Greifswald - Insel Riems, Germany
| | - Earnest Njih Tabah
- National Buruli Ulcer, Leprosy, Yaws and Leishmaniasis Control Program, Ministry of Public Health, Yaounde, Centre Region, Cameroon
- Public Health & Epidemiology, University of Dschang, Yaounde, West Region, Cameroon
| | - Tania Crucitti
- Experimental Bacteriology Unit, Institut Pasteur de Madagascar, Antananarivo, Madagascar
| | - Nadine Borst
- IMTEK - Department of Microsystems Engineering, University of Freiburg, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
| | - Simone Lüert
- Institute of International Animal Health/One Health, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Federal Research Institute for Animal Health, Greifswald - Insel Riems, Germany
| | | | - Tamara Haerpfer
- IMTEK - Department of Microsystems Engineering, University of Freiburg, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
| | | | - Ivy Amanor
- University of Ghana Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, Accra, Greater Accra, Ghana
| | - Aboubacar Sylla
- Institut Pasteur de Cote d'Ivoire, Abidjan, Lagunes, Côte d'Ivoire
| | | | | | - Adingra Tano
- Institut Pasteur de Cote d'Ivoire, Abidjan, Lagunes, Côte d'Ivoire
| | - Daniel Arhinful
- University of Ghana Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, Accra, Greater Accra, Ghana
| | | | | | | | - Kennedy Kwasi Addo
- Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, University of Ghana, Legon, Ghana
| | - Emma Michele Harding-Esch
- Clinical Research Department, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine Faculty of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, London, UK
| | - Sascha Knauf
- Institute of International Animal Health/One Health, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Federal Research Institute for Animal Health, Greifswald - Insel Riems, Germany
| | - Oriol Mitjà
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Hospital Universitari Germans Trias i Pujol, Badalona, Spain
| | - Michael Marks
- Clinical Research Department, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine Faculty of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, London, UK
- Hospital for Tropical Diseases, London, UK
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Hoby S, Jensen TK, Brodard I, Gurtner C, Eicher R, Steiner A, Kuhnert P, Alsaaod M. Detection of treponemes in digital dermatitis lesions of captive European bison (Bison bonasus). PLoS One 2021; 16:e0255921. [PMID: 34370779 PMCID: PMC8352065 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0255921] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2021] [Accepted: 07/26/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
A newly-discovered foot disease of unknown origin in captive European Bison (Bison bonasus) was recently detected at Berne Animal Park. Dermatitis of the interdigital cleft of varying degrees of severity was diagnosed in all animals (n = 10). The aim of this study was to describe the gross and histological lesions of the interdigital cleft found in 10 captive European bison and to identify involved potential pathogens in affected feet using molecular-based methods for Treponema spp., Dichelobacter nodosus and Fusobacterium necrophorum. Lesions were scored according to the degree of gross pathology at limb level. In a single animal, the gross lesions were restricted to focal lesions on the dorsal aspect of the digital skin of each foot (score 1), whereas all other animals showed at least one foot with extended lesions including the interdigital cleft (score 2). The presence of viable spirochaetes was observed in all animals using dark field microscopy. Applying fluorescence in situ hybridisation (FISH) on biopsies, Treponema spp. were identified, infiltrating the skin lesions in varying numbers in nine animals. Nested PCRs for Treponema medium, Treponema phagedenis and Treponema pedis of swab samples showed three positive animals out of ten for the latter two, whereas pooled biopsy samples were positive in all ten animals for at least T. phagedenis (9/10) and/or T. pedis (7/10), while all samples were negative for T. medium. However, none of these Treponema species could be isolated and sequence analysis of the amplified products showed 100% match of 365 base pairs (bp) to Treponema phylotype PT3 and almost full match (530 of 532 bp, 99.6%) to Treponema phylotype PT13. The presence of T. phagedenis, PT3 and PT13 phylotypes was confirmed by FISH analyses. The phylotypes of T. phagedenis were present in all hybridized positive biopsies of Treponema spp., and PT13 and PT3 were less abundant. Neither D. nodosus nor F. necrophorum were detected. The histological Treponema score was mostly mild. Digital dermatitis in captive European Bison is contagious and differs from bovine digital dermatitis, concerning associated pathogens as well as gross appearance.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Tim K. Jensen
- Center for Diagnostic, Technical University of Denmark, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Isabelle Brodard
- Institute of Veterinary Bacteriology, Vetsuisse Faculty, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Corinne Gurtner
- Institute of Animal Pathology, Vetsuisse Faculty, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Richard Eicher
- Clinic for Ruminants, Vetsuisse Faculty, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Adrian Steiner
- Clinic for Ruminants, Vetsuisse Faculty, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Peter Kuhnert
- Institute of Veterinary Bacteriology, Vetsuisse Faculty, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Maher Alsaaod
- Clinic for Ruminants, Vetsuisse Faculty, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
- * E-mail:
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18
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Chen Q, Wu Y, Huang Z, Zhang W, Mu W. Molecular Characterization of a Mesophilic Cellobiose 2-Epimerase That Maintains a High Catalytic Efficiency at Low Temperatures. J Agric Food Chem 2021; 69:8268-8275. [PMID: 34231359 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jafc.1c02025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [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: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Cellobiose 2-epimerase (CE) can catalyze bioconversion of lactose to its prebiotic derivative epilactose. The catalytic property of a novel CE from Treponema brennaborense (Trbr-CE) was investigated. Trbr-CE showed the highest catalytic efficiency of epimerization toward lactose among all of the previously reported CEs. This enzyme's specific activity could reach as high as 208.5 ± 5.3 U/mg at its optimum temperature, which is 45 °C. More importantly, this enzyme demonstrated a considerably high activity at low temperatures, suggesting Trbr-CE as a promising enzyme for industrial low-temperature production of epilactose. This structurally flexible enzyme exhibited a comparatively high binding affinity toward substrates, which was confirmed by both experimental verification and computational analysis. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations and binding free energy calculations were applied to provide insights into molecular recognition upon temperature changes. Compared with thermophilic CEs, Trbr-CE presents a more negative enthalpy change and a higher entropy change when the temperature drops.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiuming Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Food Science and Technology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, Jiangsu, China
| | - Yanchang Wu
- State Key Laboratory of Food Science and Technology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, Jiangsu, China
| | - Zhaolin Huang
- State Key Laboratory of Food Science and Technology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, Jiangsu, China
| | - Wenli Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Food Science and Technology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, Jiangsu, China
| | - Wanmeng Mu
- State Key Laboratory of Food Science and Technology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, Jiangsu, China
- International Joint Laboratory on Food Safety, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China
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Getman D, Lin M, Barakat N, Skvoretz R, Godornes C, Swenson P, Nenninger A, Golden MR, Lukehart SA. Analytical Performance Characteristics of a New Transcription-Mediated Amplification Assay for Treponema pallidum. J Clin Microbiol 2021; 59:e0051121. [PMID: 33980645 PMCID: PMC8373238 DOI: 10.1128/jcm.00511-21] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2021] [Accepted: 05/04/2021] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
This study evaluated the performance characteristics of a new research-use-only transcription-mediated amplification (TMA) assay for the detection of rRNA from Treponema pallidum. Analytical sensitivity determined using dark-field microscopy-quantitated T. pallidum was 1.4 organisms/ml (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.7 to 6.33 organisms/ml). Dilution of in vitro-transcribed (IVT) T. pallidum RNA in Aptima sample transport medium (STM) yielded 100% positivity (n = 3) at 10 copies/ml (4 copies/reaction). Analytical specificity testing of nontarget microorganisms (n = 59), including the closely related nonsyphilis treponemes Treponema denticola and Treponema phagedenis, yielded 0% positivity. TMA testing of mucosal swab specimens collected from men who have sex with men (MSM) attending a sexually transmitted disease clinic yielded 1.8% (17/944) positive results. A collection of 56 serum specimens obtained from a separate cohort of patients with known rapid plasma reagin (RPR) statuses and clinical diagnoses of syphilis was 19.6% (11/56) TMA positive overall and 29.7% (11/37) positive among subjects with syphilis diagnoses, including 8 (36.3%) of 22 persons with primary or secondary syphilis, 2 (20%) of 10 persons with early latent syphilis, and 1 (20%) of 5 persons with late latent or unstaged syphilis. None (0%) of the 18 RPR-positive sera from patients with histories of treated syphilis were TMA positive. These results show that TMA is an analytically sensitive and specific method for the detection of T. pallidum rRNA and is compatible with serum specimens in addition to pharyngeal and rectal mucocutaneous swab specimens. Automated real-time TMA testing for T. pallidum may be useful as an adjunctive method with serology for screening and diagnostic testing of selected patient populations for syphilis.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Mike Lin
- Hologic, Inc., San Diego, California, USA
| | | | | | - Charmie Godornes
- Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Paul Swenson
- Public Health—Seattle and King County, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | | | - Matthew R. Golden
- Public Health—Seattle and King County, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Sheila A. Lukehart
- Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, Washington, USA
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20
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Getman D, Lin M, Barakat N, Skvoretz R, Godornes C, Swenson P, Nenninger A, Golden MR, Lukehart SA. Analytical Performance Characteristics of a New Transcription-Mediated Amplification Assay for Treponema pallidum. J Clin Microbiol 2021. [PMID: 33980645 DOI: 10.1128/jcm.00511] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/02/2023] Open
Abstract
This study evaluated the performance characteristics of a new research-use-only transcription-mediated amplification (TMA) assay for the detection of rRNA from Treponema pallidum. Analytical sensitivity determined using dark-field microscopy-quantitated T. pallidum was 1.4 organisms/ml (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.7 to 6.33 organisms/ml). Dilution of in vitro-transcribed (IVT) T. pallidum RNA in Aptima sample transport medium (STM) yielded 100% positivity (n = 3) at 10 copies/ml (4 copies/reaction). Analytical specificity testing of nontarget microorganisms (n = 59), including the closely related nonsyphilis treponemes Treponema denticola and Treponema phagedenis, yielded 0% positivity. TMA testing of mucosal swab specimens collected from men who have sex with men (MSM) attending a sexually transmitted disease clinic yielded 1.8% (17/944) positive results. A collection of 56 serum specimens obtained from a separate cohort of patients with known rapid plasma reagin (RPR) statuses and clinical diagnoses of syphilis was 19.6% (11/56) TMA positive overall and 29.7% (11/37) positive among subjects with syphilis diagnoses, including 8 (36.3%) of 22 persons with primary or secondary syphilis, 2 (20%) of 10 persons with early latent syphilis, and 1 (20%) of 5 persons with late latent or unstaged syphilis. None (0%) of the 18 RPR-positive sera from patients with histories of treated syphilis were TMA positive. These results show that TMA is an analytically sensitive and specific method for the detection of T. pallidum rRNA and is compatible with serum specimens in addition to pharyngeal and rectal mucocutaneous swab specimens. Automated real-time TMA testing for T. pallidum may be useful as an adjunctive method with serology for screening and diagnostic testing of selected patient populations for syphilis.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Mike Lin
- Hologic, Inc., San Diego, California, USA
| | | | | | - Charmie Godornes
- Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Paul Swenson
- Public Health-Seattle and King County, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | | | - Matthew R Golden
- Public Health-Seattle and King County, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Sheila A Lukehart
- Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, Washington, USA
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21
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Berry ASF, Pierdon MK, Misic AM, Sullivan MC, O’Brien K, Chen Y, Murray SJ, Ramharack LA, Baldassano RN, Parsons TD, Beiting DP. Remodeling of the maternal gut microbiome during pregnancy is shaped by parity. Microbiome 2021; 9:146. [PMID: 34176489 PMCID: PMC8237508 DOI: 10.1186/s40168-021-01089-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2020] [Accepted: 05/06/2021] [Indexed: 05/09/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The maternal microbiome has emerged as an important factor in gestational health and outcome and is associated with risk of preterm birth and offspring morbidity. Epidemiological evidence also points to successive pregnancies-referred to as maternal parity-as a risk factor for preterm birth, infant mortality, and impaired neonatal growth. Despite the fact that both the maternal microbiome and parity are linked to maternal-infant health, the impact of parity on the microbiome remains largely unexplored, in part due to the challenges of studying parity in humans. RESULTS Using synchronized pregnancies and dense longitudinal monitoring of the microbiome in pigs, we describe a microbiome trajectory during pregnancy and determine the extent to which parity modulates this trajectory. We show that the microbiome changes reproducibly during gestation and that this remodeling occurs more rapidly as parity increases. At the time of parturition, parity was linked to the relative abundance of several bacterial species, including Treponema bryantii, Lactobacillus amylovorus, and Lactobacillus reuteri. Strain tracking carried out in 18 maternal-offspring "quadrads"-each consisting of one mother sow and three piglets-linked maternal parity to altered levels of Akkermansia muciniphila, Prevotella stercorea, and Campylobacter coli in the infant gut 10 days after birth. CONCLUSIONS Collectively, these results identify parity as an important environmental factor that modulates the gut microbiome during pregnancy and highlight the utility of a swine model for investigating the microbiome in maternal-infant health. In addition, our data show that the impact of parity extends beyond the mother and is associated with alterations in the community of bacteria that colonize the offspring gut early in life. The bacterial species we identified as parity-associated in the mother and offspring have been shown to influence host metabolism in other systems, raising the possibility that such changes may influence host nutrient acquisition or utilization. These findings, taken together with our observation that even subtle differences in parity are associated with microbiome changes, underscore the importance of considering parity in the design and analysis of human microbiome studies during pregnancy and in infants. Video abstract.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexander S. F. Berry
- Department of Pathobiology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA USA
- Department of Pediatric Gastroenterology Hepatology and Nutrition, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104 USA
| | - Meghann K. Pierdon
- Department of Clinical Studies - New Bolton Center, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA USA
| | - Ana M. Misic
- Department of Pathobiology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA USA
| | - Megan C. Sullivan
- Department of Pathobiology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA USA
| | - Kevin O’Brien
- Department of Pathobiology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA USA
| | - Ying Chen
- Department of Pathobiology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA USA
| | - Samuel J. Murray
- Department of Pathobiology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA USA
| | - Lydia A. Ramharack
- Department of Pathobiology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA USA
| | - Robert N. Baldassano
- Department of Pediatric Gastroenterology Hepatology and Nutrition, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104 USA
| | - Thomas D. Parsons
- Department of Clinical Studies - New Bolton Center, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA USA
| | - Daniel P. Beiting
- Department of Pathobiology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA USA
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Mubemba B, Chanove E, Mätz-Rensing K, Gogarten JF, Düx A, Merkel K, Röthemeier C, Sachse A, Rase H, Humle T, Banville G, Tchoubar M, Calvignac-Spencer S, Colin C, Leendertz FH. Yaws Disease Caused by Treponema pallidum subspecies pertenue in Wild Chimpanzee, Guinea, 2019. Emerg Infect Dis 2021; 26:1283-1286. [PMID: 32441635 PMCID: PMC7258472 DOI: 10.3201/eid2606.191713] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Yaws-like lesions are widely reported in wild African great apes, yet the causative agent has not been confirmed in affected animals. We describe yaws-like lesions in a wild chimpanzee in Guinea for which we demonstrate infection with Treponema pallidum subsp. pertenue. Assessing the conservation implications of this pathogen requires further research.
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23
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Haynes AM, Fernandez M, Romeis E, Mitjà O, Konda KA, Vargas SK, Eguiluz M, Caceres CF, Klausner JD, Giacani L. Transcriptional and immunological analysis of the putative outer membrane protein and vaccine candidate TprL of Treponema pallidum. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2021; 15:e0008812. [PMID: 33497377 PMCID: PMC7864442 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0008812] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2020] [Revised: 02/05/2021] [Accepted: 01/09/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Background An effective syphilis vaccine should elicit antibodies to Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum (T. p. pallidum) surface antigens to induce pathogen clearance through opsonophagocytosis. Although the combination of bioinformatics, structural, and functional analyses of T. p. pallidum genes to identify putative outer membrane proteins (OMPs) resulted in a list of potential vaccine candidates, still very little is known about whether and how transcription of these genes is regulated during infection. This knowledge gap is a limitation to vaccine design, as immunity generated to an antigen that can be down-regulated or even silenced at the transcriptional level without affecting virulence would not induce clearance of the pathogen, hence allowing disease progression. Principal findings We report here that tp1031, the T. p. pallidum gene encoding the putative OMP and vaccine candidate TprL is differentially expressed in several T. p. pallidum strains, suggesting transcriptional regulation. Experimental identification of the tprL transcriptional start site revealed that a homopolymeric G sequence of varying length resides within the tprL promoter and that its length affects promoter activity compatible with phase variation. Conversely, in the closely related pathogen T. p. subsp. pertenue, the agent of yaws, where a naturally-occurring deletion has eliminated the tprL promoter region, elements necessary for protein synthesis, and part of the gene ORF, tprL transcription level are negligible compared to T. p. pallidum strains. Accordingly, the humoral response to TprL is absent in yaws-infected laboratory animals and patients compared to syphilis-infected subjects. Conclusion The ability of T. p. pallidum to stochastically vary tprL expression should be considered in any vaccine development effort that includes this antigen. The role of phase variation in contributing to T. p. pallidum antigenic diversity should be further studied. Syphilis is still an endemic disease in many low- and middle-income countries and has been resurgent in high-income nations for almost two decades now. In endemic areas, syphilis still causes significant morbidity and mortality in patients, particularly when its causative agent, the bacterium Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum is transmitted to the fetus during pregnancy. Although there are significant ongoing efforts to identify an effective syphilis vaccine to bring into clinical trials within the decade in the U.S., such efforts are partially hindered by the lack of knowledge on transcriptional regulation of many genes encoding vaccine candidates. Here, we start addressing this knowledge gap for the putative outer membrane protein (OMP) and vaccine candidates TprL, encoded by the tp1031 gene. As we previously reported for other putative OMP-encoding genes of the syphilis agent, tprL transcription level appears to be affected by the length of a homopolymeric sequence of guanosines (Gs) located within the gene promoter. This is a mechanism known as phase variation and often involved in altering the surface antigenic profile of a bacterial pathogen to facilitate immune evasion and/or adaptation to the host milieu.
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Affiliation(s)
- Austin M. Haynes
- Department of Medicine, Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
| | - Mark Fernandez
- Department of Global Health, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
| | - Emily Romeis
- Department of Medicine, Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
| | - Oriol Mitjà
- Fight Aids and Infectious Diseases Foundation, Hospital Germans Trias I Pujol, Badalona, Barcelona, Spain
- Lihir Medical Centre-International SOS, Newcrest Mining, Lihir Island, Papua New Guinea
| | - Kelika A. Konda
- Unit of Health, Sexuality and Human Development and Laboratory of Sexual Health, Universidad Peruana Cayetano-Heredia, Lima, Peru
- David Geffen School of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, United States of America
| | - Silver K. Vargas
- Unit of Health, Sexuality and Human Development and Laboratory of Sexual Health, Universidad Peruana Cayetano-Heredia, Lima, Peru
- School of Public Health and Administration “Carlos Vidal Layseca”, Universidad Peruana Cayetano-Heredia, Lima, Peru
| | - Maria Eguiluz
- Unit of Health, Sexuality and Human Development and Laboratory of Sexual Health, Universidad Peruana Cayetano-Heredia, Lima, Peru
| | - Carlos F. Caceres
- Unit of Health, Sexuality and Human Development and Laboratory of Sexual Health, Universidad Peruana Cayetano-Heredia, Lima, Peru
| | - Jeffrey D. Klausner
- David Geffen School of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, United States of America
| | - Lorenzo Giacani
- Department of Medicine, Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
- Department of Global Health, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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Edmondson DG, Wormser GP, Norris SJ. In Vitro Susceptibility of Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum to Doxycycline. Antimicrob Agents Chemother 2020; 64:e00979-20. [PMID: 32718967 PMCID: PMC7508625 DOI: 10.1128/aac.00979-20] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2020] [Accepted: 07/23/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Doxycycline is regarded as an effective therapy for early syphilis, and there is increasing interest in using doxycycline for prophylaxis of this infection. However, the MIC of doxycycline for Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum has not been reported previously. In this study, an in vitro culture system was utilized to determine that the MIC of doxycycline is 0.06 to 0.10 μg/ml for four strains of T. pallidum subsp. pallidum (Nichols, SS14, UW231B, and UW249B). The Nichols strain cultured in vitro with doxycycline was also tested for infectivity in rabbits, and the minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) was found to be ≤0.1 μg/ml using this method. The low MIC and MBC values are consistent with the previously demonstrated clinical efficacy of doxycycline for the treatment of early syphilis. This study represents the first report of the in vitro susceptibility of T. pallidum to doxycycline, and the resulting information may be useful in the consideration of doxycycline for use in prevention of syphilis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Diane G Edmondson
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Gary P Wormser
- Division of Infectious Diseases, New York Medical College, Valhalla, New York, USA
| | - Steven J Norris
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston, Texas, USA
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González-Prendes R, Pena RN, Solé E, Seradj AR, Estany J, Ramayo-Caldas Y. Modulatory Effect of Protein and Carotene Dietary Levels on Pig gut Microbiota. Sci Rep 2019; 9:14582. [PMID: 31601914 PMCID: PMC6787051 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-51136-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2019] [Accepted: 09/20/2019] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
In this study we investigated the impact of dietary protein and carotene levels on microbial functions and composition during the last month of purebred fattening Duroc pigs. Fecal microbiota was characterized using 16S ribosomal RNA sequencing at two points of live, 165 (T1) and 195 (T2) days. From 70 to 165 days of age, 32 pigs were divided into two groups fed either a standard-protein (SP) or a low-protein (LP) diet. In the last month (165-195 days), all pigs received a LP diet, either carotene-enriched (CE) or not (NC). Significant differences were observed between T1 and T2 at Amplicon Sequences Variants (ASVs), phylum and genus levels. In T1 group, Prevotella, Faecalibacterium and Treponema were the genera most influenced by dietary protein, together with predicted functions related with the degradation of protein. In contrast, the CE diet did not impact the microbiome diversity, although 160 ASVs were differentially abundant between CE and NC groups at T2. Weak stability of enterotype clusters across time-points was observed as consequence of medium-term dietary interventions. Our results suggest that during the last month of fattening, dietary protein have a stronger effect than carotenes on the modulation of the compositional and functional structure of the pig microbiota.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rayner González-Prendes
- Departament de Ciència Animal, Universitat de Lleida-Agrotecnio Centre, Lleida, 25198, Catalonia, Spain
- Animal Breeding and Genomics Group, Wageningen University & Research, Droevendaalsesteeg 1, 6708 PB, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Ramona Natacha Pena
- Departament de Ciència Animal, Universitat de Lleida-Agrotecnio Centre, Lleida, 25198, Catalonia, Spain
| | - Emma Solé
- Departament de Ciència Animal, Universitat de Lleida-Agrotecnio Centre, Lleida, 25198, Catalonia, Spain
| | - Ahmad Reza Seradj
- Departament de Ciència Animal, Universitat de Lleida-Agrotecnio Centre, Lleida, 25198, Catalonia, Spain
| | - Joan Estany
- Departament de Ciència Animal, Universitat de Lleida-Agrotecnio Centre, Lleida, 25198, Catalonia, Spain.
| | - Yuliaxis Ramayo-Caldas
- Animal Breeding and Genetics Program, IRTA, Torre Marimon, Caldes de Montbui, Catalonia, Spain
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Abstract
Syphilis research has been severely limited by the necessity to propagate Treponema pallidumin vivo in rabbits. After decades of erroneous or irreproducible reports of cultivation of T. pallidum, the recent very convincing report of its successful long-term in vitro propagation opens numerous opportunities for development of genetic tools for studying pathogenesis and protein function, antigenic variation, and surface exposure of antigens. The possibility of more rapid isolation of new strains will expand our knowledge of this organism beyond the century-old Nichols strain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sheila A Lukehart
- Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Global Health, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
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Li ZJ, Wang SG, Li YH, Tu DX, Liu SY, Nie HB, Li ZQ, Zhang JM. [Study on Microbial Diversity of Peri-implantitis Subgingival by High-throughput Sequencing]. Sichuan Da Xue Xue Bao Yi Xue Ban 2015; 46:568-572. [PMID: 26480660] [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: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To study microbial diversity of peri-implantitis subgingival with high-throughput sequencing, and investigate microbiological etiology of peri-implantitis. METHODS Subgingival plaques were sampled from the patients with peri-implantitis (D group) and non-peri-implantitis subjects (N group). The microbiological diversity of the subgingival plaques was detected by sequencing V4 region of 16S rRNA with Illumina Miseq platform. The diversity of the community structure was analyzed using Mothur software. RESULTS A total of 156 507 gene sequences were detected in nine samples and 4 402 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were found. Selenomonas, Pseudomonas, and Fusobacterium were dominant bacteria in D group, while Fusobacterium, Veillonella and Streptococcus were dominant bacteria in N group. Differences between peri-implantitis and non-peri-implantitis bacterial communities were observed at all phylogenetic levels by LEfSe, which was also found in PcoA test. CONCLUSION The occurrence of peri-implantitis is not only related to periodontitis pathogenic microbe, but also related with the changes of oral microbial community structure. Treponema, Herbaspirillum, Butyricimonas and Phaeobacte may be closely related to the occurrence and development of peri-implantitis.
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Abstract
The intravenous injection into rabbits of suspensions of dead T. pallidum derived from rabbit testicular chancres regularly caused the appearance of Wassermann and flocculation antibodies in significantly increased titer. Control suspensions of cultured treponemes (Reiter strain) added to extracts of normal testes were ineffective. This suggests that the Wassermann and flocculation reagin elaborated during syphilitic infection may be an antibody to T. pallidum which happens to cross-react with alcoholic extracts of mammalian tissue. The antisera did not cause the agglutination of suspensions of pathogenic T. pallidum, living or dead, did not give specific complement fixation with those suspensions, and did not usually cause the living treponemata to lose their infectiousness. Animals immunized with such aqueous suspensions for as long as 4 months, or with organisms suspended in a water-in-oil emulsion, were not demonstrably resistant to infection. As few as ten living organisms inoculated intradermally into animals "immunized" with as many as 38 billion dead treponemata regularly produced typical darkfield positive infections; and two of five animals inoculated intratesticularly with ten organisms were also infected. The contradiction involved in the production of antibodies cross-reacting with a non-specific antigen, and the non-appearance of specific antibodies against the organism used as antigen, is discussed in the text.
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Yang F, Pan X, Yan H, Wang H, Liu X, Yi C. [Pilot study of treating syphilitic uveitis with vitrectomy--one case report]. Yan Ke Xue Bao 2006; 22:221-3. [PMID: 17378153] [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: 05/14/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE to study the possibility of treating syphilitic uveitis with vitrectomy, and observe its safety as well as validity. METHOD case observation and literature review. RESULTS one bilateral syphilitic uveitis was treated with anti-inflammation and anti-syphilis treatment. The visual acuity at left side improved dramatically during short time while left eye kept same without improving. After carefully following up and analyzed for the unfavorable recovery, standard three-incision vitrectomy was performed. The visual acuity at the right eye improved quickly and even exceeded the left eye within half month reaching to 0.9 from 0.02. CONCLUSION Vitrectomy is a useful tool, at least in certain case, in treating syphilitic uveitis. Its safety and mechanism need further amply study, though there is no any obvious side effect in the reported case.
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Hampp EG, Scott DB, Wyckoff RW. Morphologic Characteristics of Certain Cultured Strains of Oral Spirochetes and Treponema pallidum as Revealed by the Electron Microscope. J Bacteriol 2006; 56:755-69. [PMID: 16561628 PMCID: PMC518649 DOI: 10.1128/jb.56.6.755-769.1948] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- E G Hampp
- National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland
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STEINMAN HG, EAGLE H. Nutritional requirements of Treponemata. II. Pantothenic acid, glutamine, and phenylalanine as additional growth-promoting factors for the Reiter treponeme. J Bacteriol 2004; 60:57-68. [PMID: 15436461 PMCID: PMC385840 DOI: 10.1128/jb.60.1.57-68.1950] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
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Abstract
OBJECTIVE To determine whether Treponema-associated papillomatous digital dermatitis (PDD) occurs in Australian dairy cattle. DESIGN Mail-out questionnaire and histological and bacteriological examination of biopsy tissue from suspect PDD lesions. PROCEDURE The questionnaire was mailed to 375 veterinarians to evaluate their knowledge of PDD, determine if they had observed the disease in Australian dairy cattle, and to request biopsy material from suspicious cases. Biopsies were examined for histological and bacteriological evidence of PDD, including for the presence of spirochaetes. RESULTS Eighty-eight replies to the questionnaire were received (23.5%). Of 52 respondents who were aware of PDD as a possible cause of lameness, 26 reported observing the condition in Australian cattle. Of 32 respondents who were unaware of the condition, 6 reported observing lesions that might have been PDD. The majority of reports of PDD-like lesions came from the southern Australian states, the condition occurring during periods of high rainfall and proving responsive to topical or parenteral application of antimicrobials. Biopsies from five erosive lesions showed histological similarity to PDD whereas biopsies from five proliferative lesions were consistent with chronic inflammation, fibroma or cutaneous papilloma. The presence of spirochaetes was not demonstrated in any of the lesions by histological or bacteriological methods. CONCLUSION Anecdotal reports and analysis of biopsy material confirm that a condition similar to PDD does occur sporadically in dairy cattle in southern Australia. However, this condition has so far not been shown to be associated with the presence of spirochaetes in the lesions.
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Affiliation(s)
- G J Milinovich
- School of Veterinary Science, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, Queensland 4072
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Kimizuka R, Kato T, Ishihara K, Okuda K. Mixed infections with Porphyromonas gingivalis and Treponema denticola cause excessive inflammatory responses in a mouse pneumonia model compared with monoinfections. Microbes Infect 2004; 5:1357-62. [PMID: 14670448 DOI: 10.1016/j.micinf.2003.09.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [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: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
Periodontopathic anaerobes such as Porphyromonas gingivalis are frequently found in aspiration pneumonia and lung abscesses. However, defense mechanisms and responses to these bacterial infections in the lung in vivo remain poorly understood. The coexistence of P. gingivalis with Treponema denticola has been found at higher levels and proportions in periodontally diseased sites. We hypothesized that mixed infections with P. gingivalis and T. denticola can cause severe respiratory disease. In the present study, inflammatory responses to mono- and mixed inoculations with P. gingivalis and T. denticola in the bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid were investigated. Acute pneumonia and lung abscesses in mice with the mixed infection resulted in a 40% mortality rate within 72 h, compared with only 10% mortality for the respective monoinfections. Pulmonary clearance of P. gingivalis was delayed in the mice with mixed infections with P. gingivalis and T. denticola. Tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFalpha) interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) levels from BAL fluid of mice with mixed infections at 24 h after inoculation were significantly higher than those after P. gingivalis monoinfection (TNFalpha: P < 0.05, Il-1beta: P < 0.001, IL-6: P < 0.05). The chemokine KC level from BAL fluid of mice at 48 h (P < 0.05) and 72 h after mixed infection was also significantly increased when compared with that after P. gingivalis monoinfection (P < 0.001). The present study demonstrates that a mixed infection of P. gingivalis with T. denticola in mouse causes a marked bronchopneumonia and lung abscess in the mouse model.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryuta Kimizuka
- Department of Microbiology, Tokyo Dental College, 1-2-2 Masago, Mihama-ku, Chiba City, Chiba 261-8502, Japan.
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ANGULO JJ, WATSON JHL, WEDDERBURN CC, LEON-BLANCO F, VARELA G. Electronmicrography of treponemas from cases of yaws, pinta, and the so-called Cuban form of pinta. Am J Trop Med Hyg 2004; 31:458-78. [PMID: 14857252 DOI: 10.4269/ajtmh.1951.s1-31.458] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022] Open
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TAYLOR AE. The effects of cod-liver oil and vitamin E on infections of Plasmodium gallinaceum and Treponema duttoni. Ann Trop Med Parasitol 2000; 52:139-44. [PMID: 13559950 DOI: 10.1080/00034983.1958.11685854] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
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CANNEFAX GR. A temperature-gradient bar and its applications to the study of temperature effects on the growth of Reiter's treponeme. J Bacteriol 1998; 83:708-10. [PMID: 13876228 PMCID: PMC279343 DOI: 10.1128/jb.83.4.708-710.1962] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Cannefax, George R. (Communicable Disease Center, Atlanta, Ga.). A temperature-gradient bar and its applications to the study of temperature effects on the growth of Reiter's treponeme. J. Bacteriol. 83:708-710. 1962.-A temperature-gradient device is described which employs a constant heat source and an aluminum bar with 294 holes to accommodate small test tubes. Examples of the range and degree of temperature gradients are presented, and the factors affecting heat conduction and heat losses are discussed. Three temperature gradients obtained under different conditions are shown graphically. The usefulness of the temperature-gradient bar in determining the optimal temperature for the cultivation of Reiter's treponeme is presented. The optimal temperature range was found to be 33 to 35 C. The potential usefulness of the temperature-gradient bar in other biological studies is suggested.
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REITER H. An account of the so-called Reiter treponeme (history, isolation, cultivation, specificity, and utilization). Sex Transm Infect 1998; 36:18-20. [PMID: 14437236 PMCID: PMC1047309 DOI: 10.1136/sti.36.1.18] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022] Open
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Abstract
Three Millipore filters (100, 50, and 10 mmicro) can effectively and easily be used to isolate oral spirochetes from a mixed oral inoculum. The spirochetes appear pure in the underlying agar, owing to their ability to grow through the filter. Their passage through the 10-mmicro filters may be attributed to the instability of this pore size on storage.
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VELDKAMP H. Isolation and characteristics of Treponema zuelzerae nov. spec., and anaerobic, free-living spirochete. Antonie Van Leeuwenhoek 1998; 26:103-25. [PMID: 13841601 DOI: 10.1007/bf02538999] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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SOCRANSKY SS, LOESCHE WJ, HUBERSAK C, MACDONALD JB. DEPENDENCY OF TREPONEMA MICRODENTIUM ON OTHER ORAL ORGANISMS FOR ISOBUTYRATE, POLYAMINES, AND A CONTROLLED OXIDATION-REDUCTION POTENTIAL. J Bacteriol 1996; 88:200-9. [PMID: 14197888 PMCID: PMC277277 DOI: 10.1128/jb.88.1.200-209.1964] [Citation(s) in RCA: 65] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Socransky, S. S. (Forsyth Dental Center, Boston, Mass.), W. J. Loesche, C. Hubersak, and J. B. Macdonald. Dependency of Treponema microdentium on other oral organisms for isobutyrate, polyamines, and a controlled oxidation-reduction potential. J. Bacteriol. 88:200-209. 1964.-Strains of Treponema microdentium can be cultivated on a variety of autoclaved commercially available media in the presence of other oral organisms. Organisms supporting growth in these circumstances include a facultative diphtheroid accompanied by either a strain of Fusobacterium or a motile gram-negative anaerobic rod. Culture filtrates and lysates of these "supporting organisms" failed to substitute for growing organisms. Measurement of the oxidation-reduction potential of the test system demonstrated that the spirochetes grew in a narrow range of Eh (optimum, -190 mv). The supporting organisms could be replaced by their filtrates when the Eh of the medium was poised in this range by a combination of reducing agents. Both filtrates contained a heat-labile factor required by the spirochete, which could be replaced by 5 mug/ml of cocarboxylase. Isobutyric acid, which could be detected in the fusiform filtrate, and putrescine which could be detected in the diphtheroid filtrate, replaced the spirochete's remaining filtrate requirement. Maximal growth occurred when any of the following were incorporated into the medium: 2 mug/ml of sodium isobutyrate; 250 mug/ml of putrescine dihydrochloride; 200 mug/ml of spermidine phosphosphate, or 150 mug/ml of spermine tetrahydrochloride.
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Abstract
Listgarten, M. A. (Harvard School of Dental Medicine and Forsyth Dental Infirmary, Boston, Mass.), W. J. Loesche, and S. S. Socransky. Morphology of Treponema microdentium as revealed by electron microscopy of ultrathin sections. J. Bacteriol. 85:932-939. 1963.-Broth cultures of a strain of Treponema microdentium were harvested on Millipore filters, fixed in osmic acid, and sectioned for electron microscopy. The sections revealed that the spirochetes had an axial filament, made up of two fibrils approximately 150 A in diameter, which was situated between an external envelope approximately 140 A in thickness and a protoplasmic cylinder. The protoplasmic cylinder had a cross-sectional diameter of 100 to 200 mmu, and was surrounded by a double "membrane" consisting of two 40-A electron-dense structures separated by a 45-A space. Cross-sections of spirochetal "granules" revealed that the limiting membrane was continuous with the outer envelope of the spirochetes, and surrounded the protoplasmic cylinder and axial filament.
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