Genotypic analysis of Escherichia coli strains that cause urosepsis in the Aegean region.

BACKGROUND/AIM: The aim of this study was to characterize strains genotypically, to determine their phylogenetic relationships, to investigate the presence of the papG gene, and to compare their antibiotic susceptibility test results. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Seventy pathogenic E. coli strains were isolated from both urine and blood cultures of patients with the preliminary diagnosis of urosepsis who were referred to the Ege University Faculty of Medicine, Bacteriology Laboratory of Medical Microbiology Department in Izmir. All of these strains were examined for the papG gene and phylogenetic groups with the multiplex polymerase chain reaction technique. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis and multilocus sequence typing (MLST) were used for epidemiologic analysis. RESULTS: Phylogenetically, it was found that 16 belonged to group B2, 31 belonged to group D, 15 belonged to group A, and 7 belonged to group B1. One strain was not identified as belonging to a group. papG genes were found in 26 of 70 E. coli strains. Thirty urosepsis pathogenic E. coli strains were analyzed with MLST. Twenty-two strains were identified as new STs. CONCLUSION: These findings are extremely important for Turkey and these new 22 strains should be investigated in more detail because they are new and have the potential to lead to infections.

Determination and comparison of microbial loads in atmospheres of two hospitals in Izmir, Turkey.

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES: Nosocomial infections, also known as hospital-acquired infections, has become one of the most important health problems in health care units worldwide. The presented study aims to determine the average amount of microorganism loads and to show that the atmospheres of the two hospitals can be a potential source regarding nosocomial infections. The effect of surface and floor disinfection processes in the two hospitals and the antibiotic susceptibility of the bacterial isolates were also evaluated. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Microorganisms were isolated from air samples collected from different areas (patient wards, corridors, operating theatres and postoperative units) of the two hospitals in Izmir. Sampling was conducted between December 2006 - March 2007. RESULTS: During the 3-month sampling period, the average number of live microorganisms in the air samples collected from second-class environments in the hospital 1 and the hospital 2 was found to be 224.44 and 536.66 cfu/m(3) , respectively. The average number of microorganisms in hospital 2 collected before the disinfection process was higher than those after the disinfection process. However, because of the closure of the air-conditioning system and the hepa filters after the disinfection process, this was reversed in hospital 1. In total, 54 and 42 isolates were obtained from hospital 1 and hospital 2, respectively. 49 isolates from hospital 1 and 35 isolates from hospital 2 were identified as Staphylacoccus sp. The remaining isolates were identified as Aerococcus sp. and Enterococcus sp. Pseudomonas sp. was not determined in the air samples of the two hospitals. CONCLUSIONS: It was detected that the microbial loads in the atmospheres of the two hospitals studied varied greatly depending on the number of people in the environment. As the results indicate, the total number of microorganisms in the atmospheres of operating theatres in both hospitals does not pose a threat according to the Air Microbe Index.

Production and Optimization of Killer Toxin in Debaryomyces hansenii Strains

ABSTRACT Postharvest diseases of fruits and vegetables result in critical losses of production in worldwide. The losses often are caused by fungi and nowadays, most fungal pathogens are controlled by several strategies such as the use of fungicides. However, most of the fungicides are chemical-based compounds and are dangerous to human health and the nature. Therefore, the discovery of healthy and reliable strategies is crucial to control of fungal pathogens. In the paper, it was aimed to evaluate and characterize yeast isolates previously isolated from dairy products for the production of killer toxin. A total of 18 yeasts have been found to produce antagonistic behavior against susceptible fungal species. All of the yeasts expressing killer character were characterized by using several molecular techniques, and isolates TEM8 and 17 identified as D. hansenii have showed the strongest antifungal activities. Improvement of killer toxin production by the yeasts also has been studied, and the highest production was found in YMB medium containing NaCl (6%) and DMSO (1000 ppm) at pH 4.0 and 20oC. The killer characters of these yeasts have indicated the potential use of the yeasts as antagonists for the control of postharvest diseases in agricultural industries.