Salmonella Typhimurium is an important nontyphoidal Salmonella serovar associated with foodborne diseases in many parts of the world. This organism is the major causative agent of nontyphoidal salmonellosis in Malaysia. We aimed to investigate the genetic profiles of the strains isolated from clinical, zoonotic, and dietary sources in Malaysia using multilocus variable number tandem repeat analysis (MLVA) and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). By focusing on the 5 common variable number tandem repeat (VNTR) loci, we found that PFGE (D = 0.99) was more discriminative than MLVA (D = 0.76). The low MLVA score might be because of a lack of VNTR loci STTR6 (81.0%) and STTR10pl (76.2%). Both subtyping methods suggested that our S. Typhimurium strains were largely endemic with limited genetic variation. Furthermore, we observed that biphasic S. Typhimurium strains were dominant (99%) and multidrug resistance was prevalent (50%) within our sample pool. The most frequently observed phenotypes were resistance to compound sulfonamides (49%), tetracycline (51%), and streptomycin (52%). In this study, we documented the genetic relationship, antimicrobial resistance characteristics, and flagellar-phase dominance among S. Typhimurium strains found in Malaysia.
Coffee beans derived from feces of the civet cat are used to brew coffee known as kopi luwak (the Indonesian words for coffee and palm civet, respectively), which is one of the most expensive coffees in the world owing to its limited supply and strong market demand. Recent metabolomics studies have revealed that kopi luwak metabolites differ from metabolites found in other coffee beans. To produce kopi luwak, coffee beans are first eaten by civet cats. It has been proposed that fermentation inside the civet cat digestive tract may contribute to the distinctively smooth flavor of kopi luwak, but the biological basis has not been determined. Therefore, we characterized the microbiome of civet cat feces using 16S rRNA gene sequences to determine the bacterial taxa that may influence fermentation processes related to kopi luwak. Moreover, we compared this fecal microbiome with that of 14 other animals, revealing that Gluconobacter is a genus that is, uniquely found in feces of the civet cat. We also found that Gluconobacter species have a large number of cell motility genes, which may encode flagellar proteins allowing colonization of the civet gut. In addition, genes encoding enzymes involved in the metabolism of hydrogen sulfide and sulfur-containing amino acids were over-represented in Gluconobacter. These genes may contribute to the fermentation of coffee beans in the digestive tract of civet cats.
We report a case of leptospirosis infected in Sabah, Borneo island, Malaysia. The case is 25-year-old male who had participated in the EcoChallenge Sabah 2000 Expedition Race, a multisport event held during August 20 to September 3, 2000 at various sites in Sabah in Malaysian Borneo. He developed a high fever and headache on September 7, and he was admitted to our hospital on September 9. On admission he also had conjunctivitis and myalgias. Laboratory findings on admission revealed leukocytosis with left shift, slightly elevated transaminase levels, high CRP levels and proteinuria. Plasmodium spp. were negative on blood smears, and no bacteria were isolated from blood and feces cultures. We performed the laboratory tests for leptospirosis, based on the information about the probable leptospirosis outbreak among athletes who participated in the EcoChallenge Race, however both Leptospira antigens and antibodies were negative at that time. We diagnosed leptospirosis clinically because he manifested persistent symptoms, and minocycline 100 mg b.i.d. was administered intravenously resulting in excellent efficacy. Serum antibody tests by microscopic agglutination test (MAT) at convalescent stage revealed significant increased antibodies against Leptospira interrogans serovar hebdomadis, and the diagnosis of leptospirosis was confirmed. Infectious diseases have been global and it is important to have information concerning worldwide infectious disease situations as much as possible for accurate diagnosis.