Article
Infectious Diseases
Herjan Bavelaar, Ulrik Stenz Justesen, Trefor E. Morris, Bethan Anderson, Sarah Copsey-Mawer, Tore Taksdal Stubhaug, Gunnar Kahlmeter, Erika Matuschek
Summary: The study aimed to determine the suitability of FAA as a medium for disk diffusion for rapidly growing anaerobic bacteria, and results showed that FAA is suitable. Factors such as incubation temperature and manufacturer had an impact on zone diameters and quality of growth, with incubation at 35 degrees Celsius resulting in slightly larger zones and good agreement among manufacturers for FAA performance.
CLINICAL MICROBIOLOGY AND INFECTION
(2021)
Article
Microbiology
Daniel M. Webber, Meghan A. Wallace, Carey-Ann D. Burnham
Summary: By reducing the incubation time for disk diffusion testing from 24 hours to 6 hours, the turnaround time for antimicrobial susceptibility testing can be significantly improved without additional costs or equipment requirements.
JOURNAL OF CLINICAL MICROBIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Microbiology
Abdessalam Cherkaoui, Gesuele Renzi, Nicolas Vuilleumier, Jacques Schrenzel
Summary: The study assessed the agreement at the categorical level between the Vitek 2 system and the Colibri coupled to the Radian under real laboratory conditions, with high overall categorical agreements. However, Vitek 2 had significant errors in P. aeruginosa testing. The Colibri coupled to the Radian provides an automated solution for antimicrobial disk diffusion susceptibility testing with accuracy equal to or better than the Vitek 2 system.
JOURNAL OF CLINICAL MICROBIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Microbiology
Sailaja Puttagunta, Steven. I. I. Aronin, Jeanna DiFranco-Fisher, Laura Koeth
Summary: This study evaluated the quality of Sulopenem disks using broth microdilution and disk diffusion susceptibility testing, and determined that a 2 μg disk was suitable for the assay. The susceptibility testing of Enterobacterales showed a low rate of interpretive errors, with only one major error observed. Moreover, the quality control study demonstrated consistent results across eight laboratories. The CLSI established a QC range of 24-30 mm for a 2 μg sulopenem disk.
JOURNAL OF CLINICAL MICROBIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
C. Paul Morris, Yehudit Bergman, Tsigedera Tekle, John A. Fissel, Pranita D. Tamma, Patricia J. Simner
Summary: Interpretation of cefiderocol ASTs varies significantly depending on the breakpoints used by CLSI, FDA, and EUCAST. DD offers a convenient alternative approach to BMD methods for cefiderocol AST, except for isolates of Acinetobacter baumannii complex.
JOURNAL OF CLINICAL MICROBIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Infectious Diseases
Chien-Tung Chiu, Chung-Hsu Lai, Yi-Han Huang, Chih-Hui Yang, Jiun-Nong Lin
Summary: The study compared different methods of antimicrobial susceptibility testing for Elizabethkingia anophelis and found significant differences between the results obtained from disk diffusion and Etest methods compared to the reference agar dilution method. These two alternative methods should not be routinely used for AST for E. anophelis.
Article
Infectious Diseases
Ulrik Stenz Justesen, Jenny Ahman, Erika Matuschek, Gunnar Kahlmeter
Summary: The purpose of this study is to establish a method for evaluating the anaerobic environment for the EUCAST disk diffusion antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST) of anaerobic bacteria. The method is based on the association between a decrease in the metronidazole disk zone diameter and increasing oxygen levels. The results indicate that a zone diameter of >= 25 mm using a metronidazole 5 μg disk and the C. perfringens strain, tested with EUCAST recommendations, can be used to indicate that the anaerobic environment is of sufficient quality for culture and disk diffusion AST.
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF CLINICAL MICROBIOLOGY & INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
Timothy J. Savage, Shun Rao, Jill Joerger, Al Ozonoff, Alexander J. McAdam, Thomas J. Sandora
Summary: The study has identified that direct disk diffusion testing is highly predictive of susceptibility for many common organism-antibiotic combinations and provides actionable information one day earlier than standard susceptibility approaches. However, the negative predictive value of dDD is variable and frequently lower than the positive predictive value. Antibiotics were narrowed in 30% of cases after a dDD result and a further 25% of cases after AST result.
JOURNAL OF CLINICAL MICROBIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Biochemical Research Methods
Kuo-Wei Hsu, Wen-Bin Lee, Huey-Ling You, Mel S. Lee, Gwo-Bin Lee
Summary: Urinary tract infections are common in females, posing risks to kidney function and often requiring broad-spectrum antibiotics. The rise of drug-resistant strains has led to high recurrence rates, emphasizing the need for accurate antibiotic selection. A newly developed portable system allows for rapid and precise measurement of antibiotic sensitivity in urine samples, offering promise for future personalized medicine.
Article
Biochemical Research Methods
Thomai P. Lazou, Serafeim C. Chaintoutis
Summary: The aim of this study was to compare the disk diffusion (DD) and broth microdilution (BMD) methods in determining the antimicrobial susceptibility of 36 Campylobacter isolates of meat-origin. The study found that there was substantial concordance between the DD and BMD classification results for tetracycline and streptomycin, and almost perfect agreement for nalidixic acid. The correlation between the complementary inhibition zones and MIC breakpoints was strong and statistically highly significant for ciprofloxacin, tetracycline, streptomycin, and nalidixic acid.
JOURNAL OF MICROBIOLOGICAL METHODS
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
Ayesha Khan, Cedric Pettaway, Jennifer Dien Bard, Cesar A. Arias, Micah M. Bhatti, Romney M. Humphries
Summary: Stenotrophomonas maltophilia is a challenging pathogen with intrinsic resistance to many antibiotics, except trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole. Alternative therapies such as levofloxacin, minocycline, and ceftazidime are used for neutropenic patients, but testing for susceptibility is necessary. Disk and gradient diffusion tests show good performance for S. maltophilia, except for levofloxacin and ceftazidime. Further studies are needed to establish interpretive criteria for certain antibiotics.
ANTIMICROBIAL AGENTS AND CHEMOTHERAPY
(2021)
Article
Microbiology
Tomefa E. Asempa, Christian M. Gill, Vindana Chibabhai, David P. Nicolau
Summary: This study investigates the zinc concentrations in commonly used automated susceptibility testing platforms and reveals significant variability. The findings pose challenges to the development of zinc-limited media.
MICROBIOLOGY SPECTRUM
(2022)
Review
Microbiology
Patricia J. Simner, Robin Patel
Summary: Cefiderocol is a novel siderophore-conjugated cephalosporin that shows activity against multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacilli. It utilizes a siderophore component to bind iron and enter bacterial cells, leading to cell death. Further clinical studies are needed to determine its effectiveness against other organisms.
JOURNAL OF CLINICAL MICROBIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Microbiology
Elisa Rampacci, Michele Trotta, Caterina Fani, Serenella Silvestri, Valentina Stefanetti, Chiara Brachelente, Antonella Mencacci, Fabrizio Passamonti
Summary: Staphylococcus pseudintermedius is the primary cause of canine cutaneous infections and is sporadically isolated from humans. Rapidly emerging antibiotic-resistant strains are creating serious health concerns, highlighting the importance of accurate and timely antimicrobial susceptibility testing for patient care.
JOURNAL OF CLINICAL MICROBIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Infectious Diseases
Federica Bovo, Tiziana Lazzarotto, Simone Ambretti, Paolo Gaibani
Summary: The aim of this study was to compare the BMD method with the DD test and strip test in assessing the antimicrobial activity of CFD against KPC-Kp strains. The CA between the BMD method and DD test was 92%, while the CA between the BMD method and strip test was 90.7%. KPC-Kp strains showing resistance to CFD were 36% by three methods. The DD test was found to be a valid alternative to the BMD method, while the strip test exhibited major limitations.
Article
Dentistry, Oral Surgery & Medicine
Maria Mksoud, Till Ittermann, Birte Holtfreter, Andreas Soehnel, Carmen Soehnel, Alexander Welk, Lena Ulm, Karsten Becker, Nils-Olaf Huebner, Andrea Rau, Stefan Kindler, Thomas Kocher
Summary: This study examined the risk of SARS-CoV-2 transmission among dental teams in Germany during the pandemic. The results showed that the risk of SARS-CoV-2 transmission among dental teams was not higher than that in the general population.
CLINICAL ORAL INVESTIGATIONS
(2022)
Article
Infectious Diseases
Corinna Glasner, Matthijs S. Berends, Karsten Becker, Jutta Esser, Jens Gieffers, Annette Jurke, Greetje Kampinga, Stefanie Kampmeier, Rob Klont, Robin Koeck, Lutz von Mueller, Nashwan Al Naemi, Alewijn Ott, Gijs Ruijs, Katja Saris, Adriana Tami, Andreas Voss, Karola Waar, Jan van Zeijl, Alex W. Friedrich
Summary: This first multicenter screening study in a European cross-border region reveals high heterogeneity in the carriage prevalence of MDROs in ICUs in the Netherlands-Germany cross-border region. This indicates that the prevalence is likely influenced by different healthcare structures.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Jesper Larsen, Claire L. Raisen, Xiaoliang Ba, Nicholas J. Sadgrove, Guillermo F. Padilla-Gonzalez, Monique S. J. Simmonds, Igor Loncaric, Heidrun Kerschner, Petra Apfalter, Rainer Hartl, Ariane Deplano, Stien Vandendriessche, Barbora Cerna Bolfikova, Pavel Hulva, Maiken C. Arendrup, Rasmus K. Hare, Celine Barnadas, Marc Stegger, Raphael N. Sieber, Robert L. Skov, Andreas Petersen, Oystein Angen, Sophie L. Rasmussen, Carmen Espinosa-Gongora, Frank M. Aarestrup, Laura J. Lindholm, Suvi M. Nykasenoja, Frederic Laurent, Karsten Becker, Birgit Walther, Corinna Kehrenberg, Christiane Cuny, Franziska Layer, Guido Werner, Wolfgang Witte, Ivonne Stamm, Paolo Moroni, Hannah J. Jorgensen, Herminia de Lencastre, Emilia Cercenado, Fernando Garcia-Garrote, Stefan Borjesson, Sara Haeggman, Vincent Perreten, Christopher J. Teale, Andrew S. Waller, Bruno Pichon, Martin D. Curran, Matthew J. Ellington, John J. Welch, Sharon J. Peacock, David J. Seilly, Fiona J. E. Morgan, Julian Parkhill, Nazreen F. Hadjirin, Jodi A. Lindsay, Matthew T. G. Holden, Giles F. Edwards, Geoffrey Foster, Gavin K. Paterson, Xavier Didelot, Mark A. Holmes, Ewan M. Harrison, Anders R. Larsen
Summary: This study reveals that methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) strains were present in European hedgehogs before the discovery of antibiotics and have spread among hedgehog populations and between hedgehogs and secondary hosts. The study also shows that the hedgehog dermatophyte Trichophyton erinacei produces two beta-lactam antibiotics that give an advantage to MRSA strains. These findings emphasize the importance of understanding and managing antibiotic resistance in both wild animals and different ecosystems.
Article
Microbiology
Ursula Kaspar, Nina Schleimer, Evgeny A. Idelevich, Sonja Molinaro, Karsten Becker
Summary: Recombinant bacteriophage endolysins PRF-119 and its successor HY-133 have been found to be highly active against various MRSA clonal lineages. However, in vitro re-growth phenomenon was observed, necessitating clarification for the assessment of the agent's stability and activity as well as for methodological aspects of endolysin testing. Factors such as the shape and material of culture vessels and shaking conditions were identified to influence the in vitro stability and activity of HY-133. The findings provide a basis for future standardization and accurate determination of the antimicrobial activities of engineered endolysins.
Article
Pediatrics
Kristin Klar, Dennis Knaack, Stefanie Kampmeier, Anna Katharina Hein, Dennis Goerlich, Siegfried Steltenkamp, Ulrike Weyland, Karsten Becker
Summary: This study aimed to investigate the knowledge of primary school children about infectious diseases and their prevention measures. The results showed that most children already have some awareness of infections, but their knowledge is not always accurate and adequately supported. The condition of sanitary facilities also has a significant impact on their usage behavior.
Article
Microbiology
Muzaffar Hussain, Christian Kohler, Karsten Becker
Summary: This study demonstrates for the first time a moonlighting function of the enolase protein in S. lugdunensis, which acts as both a metabolic enzyme and an adherence factor. The interaction between SlEno and various extracellular matrix components as well as plasminogen enhances the colonization and invasion ability of S. lugdunensis. These findings suggest that SlEno may serve as a potential vaccine candidate for preventing severe infections caused by this pathogen.
FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Microbiology
Elias Eger, Michael Schwabe, Lukas Schulig, Nils-Olaf Huebner, Juergen A. Bohnert, Uwe T. Bornscheuer, Stefan E. Heiden, Justus U. Mueller, Fazal Adnan, Karsten Becker, Carlos L. Correa-Martinez, Sebastian Guenther, Evgeny A. Idelevich, Daniel Baecker, Katharina Schaufler
Summary: The ability of extensively drug-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae to rapidly acquire resistance to novel antibiotics is a global concern. This study investigated the development of resistance against the drug combination ceftazidime-avibactam in a specific strain of Klebsiella pneumoniae and explored the mechanisms of resistance and the resulting fitness and virulence costs. The study reveals the crucial role of a specific porin channel mutation in resistance development and identifies a major metabolic regulator for ameliorating fitness and virulence costs.
MICROBIOLOGY SPECTRUM
(2022)
Letter
Medicine, General & Internal
Frieder Schaumburg, Bettina Loefler, Karsten Becker
DEUTSCHES ARZTEBLATT INTERNATIONAL
(2023)
Article
Genetics & Heredity
Elvira R. Shaidullina, Michael Schwabe, Thomas Rohde, Valeria V. Shapovalova, Marina S. Dyachkova, Alina D. Matsvay, Yuliya A. Savochkina, Andrey A. Shelenkov, Yulia V. Mikhaylova, Katharina Sydow, Francois Lebreton, Evgeny A. Idelevich, Stefan E. Heiden, Karsten Becker, Roman S. Kozlov, German A. Shipulin, Vasiliy G. Akimkin, Michael Lalk, Sebastian Guenther, Andreas E. Zautner, Juergen A. Bohnert, Ayslu M. Mardanova, Ruth Bouganim, Dror Marchaim, Katharina J. Hoff, Katharina Schaufler, Mikhail V. Edelstein
Summary: This study is the first to investigate a large international collection of K. pneumoniae ST395 genomes, revealing the phylogenetics and detailed genomic characteristics of this emerging high-risk clonal lineage.
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Loris Busch, Anna Maria Hanuschik, Yuri Avlasevich, Katrin Darm, Elisa F. F. Hochheiser, Christian Kohler, Evgeny A. A. Idelevich, Karsten Becker, Peter Rotsch, Katharina Landfester, Maxim E. E. Darvin, Martina C. C. Meinke, Cornelia M. M. Keck, Axel Kramer, Paula Zwicker
Summary: Hair follicles are important drug delivery targets for skin antisepsis due to their high concentration of skin microbiome. Nanoparticles can penetrate deeply into hair follicles and can be triggered to release drugs through various mechanisms. The study introduces UV-responsive nanocapsules containing hydroxyethyl starch, which demonstrated efficient release of ethanol and a strong reduction in microbial load on porcine ear skin. The findings suggest the potential for advanced skin antisepsis using UVA-responsive nanocapsules.
Article
Infectious Diseases
Jennifer K. Bender, Elsa Baufeld, Karsten Becker, Heike Claus, Anna Dudakova, Achim Doerre, Nikoletta Fila, Carola Fleige, Axel Hamprecht, Armin Hoffmann, Michael Hogardt, Achim J. Kaasch, Axel Kola, Nancy Kriebel, Franziska Layer-Nicolaou, Matthias Marschal, Ernst Molitor, Nico T. Mutters, Jan Liese, Claudia Nelkenbrecher, Bernd Neumann, Holger Rohde, Joerg Steinmann, Michael Soerensen, Philipp Thelen, Michael Weig, Andreas E. Zautner, Guido Werner
Summary: An increasing number of linezolid-resistant enterococci (LRE) has been recognized in Germany. However, there is a lack of reliable and rapid diagnostic methods for screening LRE in epidemiologically linked hospital settings. CHROMAgar™ LIN-R provides a simple and efficient screening tool for LRE in clinical settings. The prevalence of LRE among German hospital patients was estimated to be 1% based on the study results.
JOURNAL OF ANTIMICROBIAL CHEMOTHERAPY
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
Evgeny A. Idelevich, Betty Nedow, Marcus Vollmer, Karsten Becker
Summary: Over the past decade, MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry (MS) has become a standard method for identifying bacteria and yeasts. However, further optimization of the identification process is necessary to streamline workflows and save resources. This study evaluated the use of a multipurpose benchtop tool, MBT FAST Shuttle IVD, for accelerated drying of liquid assay components on a MALDI target. The results showed that using the MBT FAST Shuttle significantly reduced drying time and improved identification success.
JOURNAL OF CLINICAL MICROBIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
Elisa Heuser, Karsten Becker, Evgeny A. Idelevich
Summary: This study aimed to evaluate the reliability and time savings of automated colony counting. The results showed that fully automatic counting resulted in low accuracy, especially for plates with very high or very low colony numbers. Visual correction improved the concordance with manual counts, but there was no benefit in counting time.
MICROBIOLOGY SPECTRUM
(2023)
Review
Infectious Diseases
Karsten Becker
Summary: While modern molecular methods have greatly improved microbiological diagnostics, the detection and identification of phenotypic variants still pose challenges. This is particularly true for the small-colony-variant (SCV) phenotype formed by staphylococci, which is difficult to detect and characterize due to its unstable nature. The physiological and metabolic changes in SCVs make traditional growth-based methods unreliable, requiring prolonged incubation times and confirmation by molecular methods. Standardized protocols for SCV diagnostics are currently lacking, but their detection has significant implications for treatment and should be reported and managed collaboratively with microbiological laboratories and clinicians.
Letter
Health Care Sciences & Services
Juergen A. Bohnert, Lena Ulm, Nils-Olaf Huebner, Ulrike Seifert, Karsten Becker, Axel Kramer
LANCET REGIONAL HEALTH-EUROPE
(2022)