Validation of dried blood spot for serological diagnosis of Hepatitis B and C: a multicentric study.

The present study aimed to determine diagnostic performance of dried blood spot (DBS) for the detection of Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and Hepatitis C virus antibodies (anti-HCV) using CLIA at 3 different laboratories across India. DBS can serve as a simple and convenient alternative to plasma/serum for HBsAg detection. However for anti-HCV, site-specific validation of the assay is warranted.

Genomic characterization and epidemiology of an emerging SARS-CoV-2 variant in Delhi, India.

Delhi, the national capital of India, experienced multiple severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) outbreaks in 2020 and reached population seropositivity of >50% by 2021. During April 2021, the city became overwhelmed by COVID-19 cases and fatalities, as a new variant, B.1.617.2 (Delta), replaced B.1.1.7 (Alpha). A Bayesian model explains the growth advantage of Delta through a combination of increased transmissibility and reduced sensitivity to immune responses generated against earlier variants (median estimates: 1.5-fold greater transmissibility and 20% reduction in sensitivity). Seropositivity of an employee and family cohort increased from 42% to 87.5% between March and July 2021, with 27% reinfections, as judged by increased antibody concentration after a previous decline. The likely high transmissibility and partial evasion of immunity by the Delta variant contributed to an overwhelming surge in Delhi.

A rapid and sensitive method to detect SARS-CoV-2 virus using targeted-mass spectrometry.

In the last few months, there has been a global catastrophic outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome disease caused by the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 affecting millions of people worldwide. Early diagnosis and isolation are key to contain the rapid spread of the virus. Towards this goal, we report a simple, sensitive and rapid method to detect the virus using a targeted mass spectrometric approach, which can directly detect the presence of virus from naso-oropharyngeal swabs. Using a multiple reaction monitoring we can detect the presence of two peptides specific to SARS-CoV-2 in a 2.3 min gradient run with 100% specificity and 90.5% sensitivity when compared to RT-PCR. Importantly, we further show that these peptides could be detected even in the patients who have recovered from the symptoms and have tested negative for the virus by RT-PCR highlighting the sensitivity of the technique. This method has the translational potential of in terms of the rapid diagnostics of symptomatic and asymptomatic COVID-19 and can augment current methods available for diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2.

Integrated genomic view of SARS-CoV-2 in India.

Background: India first detected SARS-CoV-2, causal agent of COVID-19 in late January 2020, imported from Wuhan, China. From March 2020 onwards, the importation of cases from countries in the rest of the world followed by seeding of local transmission triggered further outbreaks in India. Methods: We used ARTIC protocol-based tiling amplicon sequencing of SARS-CoV-2 (n=104) from different states of India using a combination of MinION and MinIT sequencing from Oxford Nanopore Technology to understand how introduction and local transmission occurred. Results: The analyses revealed multiple introductions of SARS-CoV-2 genomes, including the A2a cluster from Europe and the USA, A3 cluster from Middle East and A4 cluster (haplotype redefined) from Southeast Asia (Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia) and Central Asia (Kyrgyzstan). The local transmission and persistence of genomes A4, A2a and A3 was also observed in the studied locations. The most prevalent genomes with patterns of variance (confined in a cluster) remain unclassified, and are here proposed as A4-clade based on its divergence within the A cluster. Conclusions: The viral haplotypes may link their persistence to geo-climatic conditions and host response. Multipronged strategies including molecular surveillance based on real-time viral genomic data is of paramount importance for a timely management of the pandemic.

Disease surveillance during a large religious mass gathering in India: The Prayagraj Kumbh 2019 experience.

BACKGROUND: Mass gathering (MG) events are associated with public health risks. During the period January 14 to March 4, 2019, Kumbh Mela in Prayagraj, India was attended by an estimated 120 million visitors. An onsite disease surveillance was established to identify and respond to disease outbreaks. METHODS: A health coordination committee was established for planning. Disease surveillance was prioritized and risk assessment was done to identify diseases/conditions based on epidemic potential, severity of illness, and reporting requirement under the International Health Regulations (IHR) of 2005. A daily indicator and event-based disease surveillance was planned. The indicator-based surveillance (IBS) manually and electronically recorded data from patient hospital visits and collected MG area water testing data to assess trends. The event-based surveillance (EBS) helped identify outbreak signals based on pre-identified event triggers from the media, private health facilities, and the food safety department. Epidemic intelligence was used to analyse the data and events to detect signals, verify alerts, and initiate the response. RESULTS: At Kumbh Mela, disease surveillance was established for 22 acute diseases/syndromes. Sixty-five health facilities reported 156 154 illnesses (21% of a total 738 526 hospital encounters). Among the reported illnesses, 95% (n = 148 834) were communicable diseases such as acute respiratory illness (n = 52 504, 5%), acute fever (n = 41 957, 28%), and skin infections (n = 27 094, 18%). The remaining 5% (n = 7300) were non-communicable diseases (injuries n = 6601, 90%; hypothermia n = 224, 3%; burns n = 210, 3%). Water samples tested inadequate for residual chlorine in 20% of samples (102/521). The incident command centre generated 12 early warning signals from IBS and EBS: acute diarrheal disease (n = 8, 66%), vector-borne disease (n = 2, 16%), vaccine-preventable disease (n = 1, 8%), and thermal event (n = 1, 8%). There were two outbreaks (acute gastroenteritis and chickenpox) that were investigated and controlled. CONCLUSIONS: This onsite disease surveillance imparted a public health legacy by successfully implementing an epidemic intelligence enabled system for early disease detection and response to monitor public health risks. Acute respiratory illnesses emerged as a leading cause of morbidity among visitors. Future MG events should include disease surveillance as part of planning and augment capacity for acute respiratory illness diagnosis and management.

Serotyping and Antimicrobial Susceptibility Pattern of Escherichia coli Isolates from Urinary Tract Infections in Pediatric Population in a Tertiary Care Hospital.

Urinary tract infections (UTIs) in pediatric population are associated with high morbidity and long term complications. In recent years, there is increased prevalence of Escherichia coli (E. coli) strains producing extended spectrum ß-lactamase, Amp C, and Metallo ß-lactamase, making the clinical management even more difficult. This study was aimed to detect the serotypes and to determine antimicrobial susceptibility profile of E. coli isolates from urine samples of children <10 yrs old. A total of 75 pure E. coli strains isolated from patients with symptoms of UTI and colony count ≥10(5) organisms/mL were included in the study. Antibiotic sensitivity pattern showed maximum resistance to nalidixic acid (98.7%), followed by ampicillin (97.3%), amoxi-clavulanate (96%), and fluoroquinolones (92%) while most of the isolates were found sensitive to piperacillin-tazobactam (13.3%), nitrofurantoin (5.3%), and meropenem (1.3%). 48% of the strains were ESBL producer (extended spectrum beta lactamase). 44% strains were typable withantisera used in our study and the most common serogroup was O6 (33.3%) followed by O1 (15.1%) and O15 (15.1%). To conclude, judicious use of antibiotics according to hospital antibiotic policy and infection control measures should be implemented to prevent spread of multidrug resistant organisms.

Pyogenic liver abscess caused by Salmonella Enteritidis: a rare case report.

Salmonella Enteritidis is one of the most important serovars transmitted from animals to humans and a serovar most commonly reported worldwide. Infection with Enteritidis is mainly limited to the intestinal tract, but under certain circumstances may cross the mucosal barrier to disseminate and get established as some localized infectious focus. Although cited as one of the very uncommon causes, Enteritidis may involve the liver and evolve into an overt abscess. Pyogenic liver abscess by a gas forming organism like Enteritidis usually follow a serious fulminant course and associated morbidity and mortality is unacceptably high unless immediate therapeutic interventions are initiated.

Urinary tract infection: aetiology and antimicrobial resistance pattern in infants from a tertiary care hospital in northern India.

INTRODUCTION: Urinary tract infection (UTI) is one of the most common bacterial infections in childhood. Present study was undertaken to determine the occurrence of the uropathogens and their antimicrobial susceptibility pattern in infants (< 1yr) suspected with UTI. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study was conducted in the Microbiology Department on urine samples received from infants for a period of two years from September 2011 to August 2013. RESULTS: Culture positivity rate was found to be 15.7%. There was an overall male preponderance in cases of UTI (70.1%). Most common bacterial isolate was E.coli (45.4%) followed by Klebsiella (16.7%) and Enterococcus spp (13.2%). Isolation of candida was 21.1%, maximum from ICU (63.1%). Maximum gram negative isolates (50%) showed high resistance to gentamicin, amikacin, cefotaxime and norfloxacin while most of the isolates (5%) were found susceptible to nitrofurantoin and piperacillin-tazobactam. 45.1% of gram negative bacilli were ESBL producer. We recommend continuous monitoring of changes in bacterial pathogens causing UTI and antibiotic sensitivity in each area for effective treatment of UTI. CONCLUSION: Since antimicrobial resistance is a major problem, such study will help in formulating a strict antibiotics prescription policy in our country.