Vaccine hesitancy and refusal among parents: An international ID-IRI survey.

INTRODUCTION: Although vaccines are the safest and most effective means to prevent and control infectious diseases, the increasing rate of vaccine hesitancy and refusal (VHR) has become a worldwide concern. We aimed to find opinions of parents on vaccinating their children and contribute to available literature in order to support the fight against vaccine refusal by investigating the reasons for VHR on a global scale. METHODOLOGY: In this international cross-sectional multicenter study conducted by the Infectious Diseases International Research Initiative (ID-IRI), a questionnaire consisting of 20 questions was used to determine parents' attitudes towards vaccination of their children. RESULTS: Four thousand and twenty-nine (4,029) parents were included in the study and 2,863 (78.1%) were females. The overall VHR rate of the parents was found to be 13.7%. Nineteen-point three percent (19.3%) of the parents did not fully comply with the vaccination programs. The VHR rate was higher in high-income (HI) countries. Our study has shown that parents with disabled children and immunocompromised children, with low education levels, and those who use social media networks as sources of information for childhood immunizations had higher VHR rates (p < 0.05 for all). CONCLUSIONS: Seemingly all factors leading to VHR are related to training of the community and the sources of training. Thus, it is necessary to develop strategies at a global level and provide reliable knowledge to combat VHR.

Clinical and microbiological characteristics of Aeromonas bacteremia in Turkey.

We investigated the cases with Aeromonas bacteremia in terms of clinical and microbiological characteristics, underlying disease and mortality rates. Patients with positive blood cultures were included in this research. Aeromonas bacteremia was diagnosed as at least one positive blood culture for Aeromonas species. The bacteremia was defined as community origin if the onset was in the community or within 72 hours of hospital admission. The others were considered as nosocomial. All bacteria were defined as Aeromonas with conventional method. Species identification was verified by VITEK system. Antibiotic susceptibility tests were analyzed with the disc diffusion, E-test method or VITEK system. Thirty-three patients were diagnosed with bacteremia due to Aeromonas spp. Hematologic and solid tumors were the leading underlying conditions, followed by cirrhosis. Two patients (6%) had community-acquired infections. Aeromonas hydrophila was the most common isolated bacterium. The crude mortality rate was 36%. 12 patients died and 6 deaths and 4 deaths were detected in patients with bacteremia caused by A. hydrophila and Aeromonas sobria respectively. All strains were resistant to ampicillin and more than 90% of the strains were susceptible to trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, fluoroquinolone, third generation cephalosporins, and carbapenems. Aeromonas sp. is not a frequent cause of bacteremia however, it may lead to high mortality rates, especially in the immunocompromised hosts and patients with liver cirrhosis. Nosocomial Aeromonas bacteremia is not uncommon in these populations. Broad-spectrum cephalosporins, piperacillin-tazobactam, fluoroquinolones, and carbapenems remain as effective antimicrobial agents for therapy of Aeromonas bacteremia.

Heavy Metal Levels and Mineral Nutrient Status of Natural Walnut (Juglans regia L.) Populations in Kyrgyzstan: Nutritional Values of Kernels.

In this study, mineral nutrient and heavy metal (Al, Ca, Cd, Cu, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Na, Ni, Pb, and Zn) contents of the walnut kernels and their co-located soil samples collected from the four different zones of natural walnut forests (Sary-Chelek, Arslanbap, and Kara-Alma in Jalal-Abad Region and Kara-Shoro in Osh Region) in Kyrgyzstan were investigated. The highest concentrations for all elements determined in the soil samples were observed in the Sary-Chelek zone whereas the Arslanbap zone was found to be having the lowest concentrations except Fe and Zn. The highest concentrations in the kernels of walnut samples were found to be in the Sary-Chelek zone for Ca, Fe, K, Mg, and Zn; in the Kara-Shoro zone for Cu; in the Arslanbap zone for Mn; and in the Kara-Alma zone for Na whereas the lowest concentrations were found to be in the Arslanbap zone for Ca, Fe, K, Mg, Na, and Zn and in the Sary-Chelek zone for Cu and Mn, respectively. Also, the levels of Al, Cd, Ni, and Pb in kernel samples could not be detected by ICP-OES because their levels were lower than the threshold detection point (10 µg.kg-1). Additionally, our data indicated that the walnut kernels from Kyrgyzstan have higher values for RDA (recommended daily allowances) in comparison with the walnut kernels from other countries.

Proximate composition, minerals and fatty acid composition of Juglans Regia L. genotypes and cultivars grown in Turkey

The proximate composition of eleven walnut (Juglans regia L.) genotypes (28 ŞK 010, 28 ŞK 055, 28 ŞK 041, 28 ŞK 601, 28 ŞK 925, 28 ŞK 028, 28 ŞK 118, 28 ŞK 350, 28 ŞK 930, 28 ŞK 850, 28 ŞK 036) and three walnut cultivars (Şebin, Bilecik, Kaman 1) produced in Turkey were determined. The oil content of the samples ranged from 61.32 to 69.35%, corresponding to an energy value of approximately 710 kcal per 100 g of kernel. The protein content ranged from 10.58 to 18.19%, and the carbohydrate composition was between 9.05 and 18.92%. The ash content ranged from 1.53 to 1.99%, and the moisture content of the kernels was between 1.91 and 4.48% the oleic acid content of the oils ranged from 17.90 to 33.35% of the total fatty acids. The linoleic acid content ranged from 43.15 to 60.20%. The linolenic acid content ranged from 9.98 to 13.00%. The palmitic acid content was between 5.21 and 8.40%. Stearic acid ranged from 2.36 to 4.25%. Potassium was the major mineral in all the samples, ranging from 359.73 to 482.97 mg/100 g. Calcium was the next most abundant mineral, ranging from 109.45 to 335.97 mg/100 g, followed by magnesium, ranging from 126.01 to 165.15 mg/100 g.

Chemical composition of fruits of some important chestnut cultivars

Neste estudo, a composição química das frutas domésticas importadas tipo castanha e seus cultivares foram investigados. Seu conteúdo (base da matéria seca de g/100g com base em matéria seca) carboidratos totais 75,32 - 86,31, açúcares total 10,32 - 22,79, açúcar invertido 0,08 - 1,25, amido 54,45 - 69,70, sacarose 8,86 - 21,28, cinzas 1,02 - 3,22, celulose bruta 3,58 - 5,96, gordura total 0,49 - 2,01 do total, proteína total 4,88 - 10,87. Ca, Mg, Fe, Mn, Cu, Zn, P, Na e k índice foi (mg/100g) 43 - 230, 70 - 160, 0,4 - 5,7, 0,7 - 5,5, 0,6 - 3,8, 1,8 - 9,1, 107 - 191, 6 - 41, 761 - 1271, respectivamente.

Indole derivatives produced by the fungus Colletotrichum acutatum causing lime anthracnose and postbloom fruit drop of citrus.

Postbloom fruit drop (PFD) of citrus and Key lime anthracnose (KLA) are caused by Colletotrichum acutatum. Both fungal isolates can infect flower petals, induce young fruit abscission and result in severe yield loss on many citrus cultivars. Previous studies revealed that infection of citrus flowers by C. acutatum caused higher levels of indole-3-acetic acid (IAA), which could be synthesized from the host plant and/or the fungal pathogen. The ability for IAA production by C. acutatum isolates was investigated. Similar to many microorganisms, the production of indole compounds in the medium by C. acutatum was dependent solely on the presence of tryptophan (Trp). In total, 14 PFD and KLA fungal isolates were tested, and revealed that they all were capable of utilizing Trp as a precursor to synthesize IAA and other indole derivatives. High-performance liquid chromatography analysis and chromogenic stains after a fluorescence thin-layer chromatography separation unambiguously identified IAA, tryptophol (TOL), indole-acetaldehyde, indole-acetamide (IAM), indole-pyruvic acid, and indole-lactic acid (ILA) from cultures supplemented with Trp. The data suggest that C. acutatum may synthesize IAA using various pathways. Interestingly, increasing Trp concentrations drastically increased the levels of TOL and ILA, but not IAA and IAM. The ability of C. acutatum to produce IAA and related indole compounds may in part contribute to the increased IAA levels in citrus flowers after infection.