Dobrava hantavirus variants found in Apodemus flavicollis mice in Kirklareli Province, Turkey.

Hantaviruses infect humans via inhalation of viral particles within secretions of infected rodents or rarely through direct contact with infected rodents. Determining the prevalence of hantavirus infections among rodent populations is of vital importance to obtain information on hantavirus-related cases and to predict possible outbreaks. We hypothesized that DOBV strains circulating in the Thrace Region in Turkey would be related to other Balkan DOBV strains. In this study, hantavirus infections in the rodent population of the Kirklareli-Igneada Region (north-western Turkey, near the Bulgarian border) were investigated. This region is of particular importance, as it is located in the south-eastern margin of the European continent and was used as an entrance point of Asian faunal elements into Europe. DOBV infection was detected in eight of 73 rodents; all were of the Apodemus flavicollis species. Partial sequences of the viral S-, M-, and L-genome segments were recovered and compared with previously reported DOBV sequences. The newly characterized Turkish strains were similar to other DOBV variants. Silent nucleotide mutations were dominant. The hantavirus prevalence in the Igneada region was similar to what has been reported in Greece and Bulgaria. For the first time, the M-segment sequences of DOBV from Turkey were recovered and genetic data of hantaviruses from Thrace region of Turkey were obtained.

Dobrava-Belgrade virus in Apodemus flavicollis and A. uralensis mice, Turkey.

In 2009, human Dobrava-Belgrade virus (DOBV) infections were reported on the Black Sea coast of Turkey. Serologic and molecular studies of potential rodent reservoirs demonstrated DOBV infections in Apodemus flavicollis and A. uralensis mice. Phylogenetic analysis of DOBV strains showed their similarity to A. flavicollis mice-borne DOBV in Greece, Slovenia, and Slovakia.

qnrA prevalence in extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-positive Enterobacteriaceae isolates from Turkey.

Quinolone resistance mostly originates from chromosomal mutations. In recent years, however, plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance has been reported in several parts of the world. Plasmid-borne qnrA, qnrB, or qnrS genes are responsible for this kind of resistance. Little is known about the diversity, type, and species range of the qnr genes in Turkey. We screened qnrA, qnrB, and qnrS genes in quinolone-resistant blood culture isolates collected from six different medical centers in Turkey which produced extended-spectrum beta-lactamases (ESBLs). A total of 78 ESBL-positive isolates were enrolled in this study. Of these, 37 (47.4%) were nalidixic-acid resistant or intermediate. qnrA was found on large plasmids isolated from five (6.4%) of the Nal(I/R) isolates. In three of these, the same plasmid also carried bla(CTX-M). Four of the qnrA-positive isolates were Klebsiella pneumoniae from Dokuz Eylul University Hospital, Izmir, and the fifth isolate was Escherichia coli from Istanbul University Hospital. Two of the isolates from Izmir were found by enterobacterial repetitive interegenic consensus sequence-PCR to be clonally related. This is the first report on the qnrA prevalence among ESBL-positive blood culture isolates collected from different regions in Turkey. According to our results, plasmid-mediated resistance is a potential problem for the spread of quinolone resistance, and this mechanism could be emerging strongly among the ESBL-positive Enterobacteriaceae in Turkey.