[Enterovirus sequencing as a new approach to the laboratory diagnosis for clinical and epidemiological purposes]. / Sekvenace enteroviru jako nový prístup k laboratorní diagnostice pro klinické i epidemiologické úcely.

OBJECTIVE: Introducing enterovirus sequencing as an advanced approach to classify the viruses isolated according to the novel nomenclature and to characterize isolates in detail. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Seventy-five specimens collected from 64 patients in two hospitals, Liberec Regional Hospital, and Plzen University Hospital, were analyzed. The study patients' age ranged from four to 54 years, with a median of 15 years in males and 16 years in females. In most patients, the reasons for admission were intense headache, fever, vomiting, tiredness, meningeal symptoms, intestinal symptoms (in two patients), and skin symptoms (in one patient). The specimens collected were rectal and throat swabs, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and stool specimens. Molecular detection and typing were performed using the RT-PCR method. A segment of the 5´non-coding RNA was selected for typing. Specimens were amplified using single-step PCR with external primers and with the same primers extended to include M13 sequences (Generi-Biotech). The LASERGENE software (DIASTAR) was used in sequence editing, alignment, and quality check. The sequences obtained were checked against the central GenBank sequence database using the BLAST algorithm. RESULTS: The identification of the study isolates resulted in 61 ECHO viruses 30, three coxsackie viruses B1, one coxsackie virus B3, one coxsackie virus A9, one enterovirus 86, one enterovirus 71, Two ECHO viruses 13/coxsackie virus B5, one ECHO virus 7/30/coxsackie virus B4, one coxsackie virus B4/enterovirus B, one enterovirus 87/ECHO virus 30/enterovirus B, and one ECHO virus 3. All viruses isolated, except enterovirus 71 classified into group A, were of group B. CONCLUSION: The enteroviruses were identified unambigously, although the sequencing only targeted a short, conserved segment that showed considerable variability. The sequencing was an effective alternative to enterovirus identification by the neutralisation test and allowed for detailed characterization of the isolates. The predominance of ECHO 30 as the cause of aseptic meningitis is in accordance with the literature data.

[ATP pool and bioluminescence in psychrophilic bacteria Photobacterium phosphoreum].

Bioluminescence activity and ATP pool were investigated in the culture of psychrophilic bacteria Photobacterium phosphoreum collected-from the exponential and stationary growth phases, as well as immobilized in polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) cryogel. In liquid culture, ATP pool remained at an almost a constant level throughout the luminescence cycle (over 100 h). The ATP pool in the stationary-phase and PVA-immobilizedl cells remained constant throughout their incubation in the medium (over 200 h) and in 3% NaCl solution (over 100 h): Quantitative assessment of integral photon yield and ATP pool indicated that bioluminescence decay in growing or stationary cells was not caused by limitation by the energy substrates of the luciferase reaction. Kinetic and quantitative parameters of emission activity and ATP pool excluded the possibility of formation of the aldehyde substrate for luciferase via reduction of the relevant fatty acids in NADPH and ATP-dependent reductase reaction and its oxidation in the monooxygenase reaction. Our results indicate that the aliphatic aldehyde is not utilized in the process of light emission.

[The use of molecular genetics techniques in clinical microbiology--final report from the workshop of the Molecular Microbiology Working Group TIDE]. / Aplikace metod molekulární genetiky v klinické mikrobiologii: zpráva z jednání Pracovní skupiny molekulárni mikrobiologie--TIDE.

In the last decade, there has been a rapid development in the use of molecular genetics methods in clinical microbiology. Novel technologies bring new knowledge and approaches to various disciplines of microbiology--taxonomy, identification of microbes, clinical diagnosis, epidemiology of infectious diseases and antibiotic resistance. This article summarizes the conclusions from the workshop of the Molecular Microbiology Working Group TIDE held during the Second Annual Meeting of the Society for Medical Microbiology of the J. E. Purkyne Czech Medical Association.

High variability in viral load in cerebrospinal fluid from patients with herpes simplex and varicella-zoster infections of the central nervous system.

Infections of the central nervous system (CNS) caused by herpes viruses can result in severe diseases, often with a fatal outcome. In this study, the viral load in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of patients with herpes simplex or varicella-zoster infections of the CNS was measured using a quantitative real-time PCR. The results suggest a high variability in viral load, with relatively mild disease associated with a high viral load in CSF and vice versa. Determination of the viral load in CSF does not therefore seem to be useful in assessing the prognosis of disease caused by these viruses.

Influence of the four-spin exchange interaction on the magnetic properties of manganites.

It is shown that non-Heisenberg exchange interaction should be taken into account to reproduce the magnetic phase diagram of La1-xAxMnO3 (A = Ca,Sr) using only effective exchange parameters and spins. The formation of the four-spin exchange arises from carrier hopping and coincides with the critical concentration metal-dielectric transition. The two- and four-spin exchange parameters are determined by Monte Carlo simulations.

[Biosynthetic activity of cultures of different species of the genus Actinomadura]. / Izuchenie biosinteticheskoi aktivnosti kul'tur raznykh vidov roda Actinomadura.

The ability to synthesize antibiotics and exoproteases was studied in 13 species belonging to the Actinomadura genus. The antibiotic and proteolytic activities were found only in A. fulvescens INA-3321 and A. citrea INA-1849. Glycerol was shown to be the best carbon source for the growth and biosynthetic activity of A. fulvescens. A. citrea had a wider spectrum of carbon sources used for the growth and a higher proteolytic and antibiotic activity. A. citrea exerted the maximal biosynthetic activity and the best growth in a medium with starch and xylose. The effect of different nitrogen sources on the growth and biosynthetic activity of A. citrea was also studied.

[Morphological changes in the trunk and branches of the pulmonary artery in metastatic lung cancer]. / Morfologicheskie izmeneniia v stvole legochnoi arterii i ee vetviakh pri metastaticheskom rake legkikh.

Morphological changes in the lung artery and its branches were studied in 20 autopsy cases with carcinoma metastasis into the lung. Certain general lesions in the arteries, such as alteration and sclerosis of their walls due to intoxication and hypoxia as well as local changes in the form of allergic arteritis were detected. Immune genesis of the allergic arteritis is assumed, being a local allergic reaction to the tumour cells in the lumen of blood and lymph vessels. The importance of morphological changes in the lung vessels in the development of cardiopulmonary insufficiency in cases of various carcinomas with lung metastasis is demonstrated.