Browsing by Issue Date, starting with "2019-02-28"
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- The human lung and Aspergillus: You are what you breathe in?Publication . Richardson, Malcolm; Bowyer, Paul; Sabino, RaquelThe diversity of fungal species comprising the lung mycobiome is a reflection of exposure to environmental and endogenous filamentous fungi and yeasts. Most lung mycobiome studies have been culture-based. A few have utilized next generation sequencing (NGS). Despite the low number of published NGS studies, several themes emerge from the literature: (1) moulds and yeasts are present in the human respiratory tract, even during health; (2) the fungi present in the respiratory tract are highly variable between individuals; and (3) many diseases are accompanied by decreased diversity of fungi in the lungs. Even in patients with the same disease, different patients have been shown to harbor distinct fungal communities. Those fungal species present in any one individual may represent a patient's unique environmental exposure(s), either to species restricted to the indoor environment, for example, Penicillium, or species found in the outdoor environment such as Aspergillus, wood and vegetation colonizing fungi and plant pathogens. In addition to causing clinical fungal infections, the lung mycobiome may have inflammatory effects that can cause or worsen lung disease. Most respiratory diseases that have been studied, have been associated with decreases in fungal diversity. However, none of these diversity studies distinguish between accidental, transient fungal colonizers and true residents of the respiratory tract. Where does Aspergillus feature in the mycobiomes of the respiratory tract? Do these mycobiomes reflect the diversity of fungi in outdoor and internal environments? These intriguing questions are explored here.
- Worsening epidemiological situation of carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae in Europe, assessment by national experts from 37 countries, July 2018Publication . Brolund, Alma; Lagerqvist, Nina; Byfors, Sara; Struelens, Marc J.; Monnet, Dominique L.; Albiger, Barbara; Kohlenberg, Anke; European Antimicrobial Resistance Genes Surveillance Network (EURGen-Net) capacity survey group, Vera)A survey on the epidemiological situation, surveillance and containment activities for carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae (CPE) was conducted in European countries in 2018. All 37 participating countries reported CPE cases. Since 2015, the epidemiological stage of CPE expansion has increased in 11 countries. Reference laboratory capability, dedicated surveillance and a specific national containment plan are in existence in 33, 27 and 14 countries, respectively. Enhanced control efforts are needed for CPE containment in Europe.
- The role of occupational Aspergillus exposure in the development of diseasesPublication . Sabino, Raquel; Veríssimo, Cristina; Viegas, Carla; Viegas, Susana; Brandão, João; Alves-Correia, Magna; Borrego, Luís-Miguel; Clemons, Karl V.; Stevens, David A.; Richardson, MalcolmAspergillus spp. have a high nutritional versatility and good growth on a large variety of construction materials. They also colonize soil or food, but decaying vegetation is their primary ecological niche. Therefore, exposure to fungi may occur at home, during hospitalization, during specific leisure activities, or at the workplace. The development of Aspergillus infections depends on the interplay between host susceptibility and the organism. Environments with high counts of fungal elements (conidia, hyphal fragments and others), high levels of bioarerosols, and elevated concentrations of mycotoxins or other volatile organic compounds should be considered as potential hazards, since they may present a risk to the exposed person. Rural tasks as well as work related to wood and food industries, poultries, swineries, waste handling plants, and other occupational environments involving contaminated organic material are among the ones posing higher respiratory risks to the workers. This paper presents a review of several studies related to occupational and indoor exposure to Aspergillus, potential health effects related to that exposure, and associated exposure assessment procedures.
- Current insights on Arcobacter butzleri in food chainPublication . Ferreira, Susana; Oleastro, Mónica; Domingues, FernandaArcobacter butzleri is an emerging pathogen with a global distribution, frequently found in the food chain. Its wide spread and association with human illness may point this bacterium as a possible causative agent of foodborne diseases usually associated with unknown aetiology. Thus, the true pathogenic potential of A. butzleri and the associated risk of disease development must be clarified. Since its dispersion throughout the food chain is clear, this points towards a potential public health problem due to contaminated food and water, which is strengthened by the ability of this microorganism to survive in food products and water and by its resistance to stress created during food storage and processing.
- Interaction between HFE and haptoglobin polymorphisms and its relation with plasma glutathione levels in obese childrenPublication . Laura, Aguiar; Marinho, Cláudia; Martins, Rute; Alho, Irina; Ferreira, Joana; Quinhones Levy, Pilar; Faustino, Paula; Bicho, Manuel; Inácio, ÂngelaObesity among children has emerged as a serious public health problem. The growing prevalence of childhood obesity has led to the appearance of serious complications, including a chronic systemic inflammation associated with oxidative stress. In the present study, we analysed the interaction between two genes related with iron metabolism - HFE and haptoglobin – and the plasmatic concentration of glutathione, as a way to evaluate the antioxidant response capacity in obesity. To achieve this, 118 obese children and 89 eutrophic children were recruited for the study. Results showed that although obese children present a significantly decreased tGSH levels, once we analysed separately children based on their haptoglobin phenotype, the decreased tGSH levels is significant only for the Hp 2 allele. Additionally, Hp 2.2 obese children carrying H63D polymorphism show significantly lower tGSH/GSSG values. Our results found an association of haptoglobin and HFE with oxidative stress in childhood obesity.