Displaying publications 161 - 180 of 899 in total

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  1. The reliability of a rapid molecular detection method in determining the prevalence of rifampicin-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis in an urban district health facility in Malaysia
    Ding CH, Ismail Z, Sulong A, Wahab AA, Gan B, Mustakim S, et al.
    Malays J Pathol, 2020 Dec;42(3):401-407.
    PMID: 33361721
    INTRODUCTION: Rifampicin is a key first-line antimycobacterial agent employed for the treatment of pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB). This study sought to obtain prevalence data on rifampicin-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis among smear-positive PTB patients in the Klang District of Malaysia.

    MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 103 patients from the Chest Clinic of Hospital Tengku Ampuan Rahimah with sputum smears positive for acid-fast bacilli were included in this cross-sectional study. All sputa were tested using Xpert MTB/RIF to confirm the presence of M. tuberculosis complex and detect rifampicin resistance. Sputa were also sent to a respiratory medicine institute for mycobacterial culture. Positive cultures were then submitted to a reference laboratory, where isolates identified as M. tuberculosis complex underwent drug susceptibility testing (DST).

    RESULTS: A total of 58 (56.3%) patients were newly diagnosed and 45 (43.7%) patients were previously treated. Xpert MTB/RIF was able to detect rifampicin resistance with a sensitivity and specificity of 87.5% and 98.9%, respectively. Assuming that a single resistant result from Xpert MTB/RIF or any DST method was sufficient to denote resistance, a total of 8/103 patients had rifampicinresistant M. tuberculosis. All eight patients were previously treated for PTB (p<0.05). The overall prevalence of rifampicin resistance among smear-positive PTB patients was 7.8%, although it was 17.8% among the previously treated ones.

    CONCLUSION: The local prevalence of rifampicin-resistant M. tuberculosis was particularly high among previously treated patients. Xpert MTB/RIF can be employed in urban district health facilities not only to diagnose PTB in smear-positive patients, but also to detect rifampicin resistance with good sensitivity and specificity.

    Matched MeSH terms: Microbial Sensitivity Tests/methods*
  2. Molecular Characterization of Multidrug-Resistant and Extended-Spectrum Beta-Lactamase-Producing Klebsiella pneumoniae Isolated from Swine Farms in Malaysia
    Mobasseri G, Teh CSJ, Ooi PT, Tan SC, Thong KL
    Microb Drug Resist, 2019 Sep;25(7):1087-1098.
    PMID: 30844323 DOI: 10.1089/mdr.2018.0184
    Aims:
    The high prevalence of multidrug resistance (MDR) and extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae associated with nosocomial infections has caused serious therapeutic challenges. The objectives of this study were to determine the genotypic and phenotypic characteristics of K. pneumoniae strains isolated from Malaysian swine farms and the transferability of ESBL genes by plasmids.
    Results:
    A total of 50 K. pneumoniae strains were isolated from 389 samples, which were collected from healthy and unhealthy pigs (swine rectum and oral cavities), healthy farmers (human rectum, urine, and nasal cavities), farm's environment, and animal feeds from seven Malaysian swine farms. Antimicrobial susceptibility analysis of these 50 K. pneumoniae strains showed that the majority (86%) were resistant to tetracycline, while 44% and 36% of these strains were MDR and ESBL producers, respectively. PCR and DNA sequencing of the amplicons showed the occurrence of blaTEM (15/18), blaSHV (15/18), blaCTX-M-1 group (7/18), and blaCTX-M-2 group (2/18), while only class 1 integron-encoded integrase was detected. Conjugation experiments and plasmid analysis indicated that the majority of the ESBL genes were plasmid encoded and the plasmids in 11 strains were conjugative. Genotyping by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis and repetitive extragenic palindrome-polymerase chain reaction (REP-PCR) showed that these 50 strains were genetically diverse with 44 pulsotypes and 43 REP-PCR subtypes.
    Conclusions:
    ESBL-producing K. pneumoniae strains showed high resistance to tetracycline as this antibiotic is used for prophylaxis and therapeutic purposes at the swine farms. The findings in this study have drawn attention to the issue of increasing MDR in animal husbandry and it should be taken seriously to prevent the spread and treatment failure due to antimicrobial resistance.
    Matched MeSH terms: Microbial Sensitivity Tests/methods
  3. Chemical compositions and biological activities of the essential oils of Beilschmiedia madang Blume (Lauraceae)
    Salleh WM, Ahmad F, Yen KH
    Arch Pharm Res, 2015 Apr;38(4):485-93.
    PMID: 25098422 DOI: 10.1007/s12272-014-0460-z
    The present study aimed to examine the chemical compositions of the essential oils of Beilschmiedia madang and their antioxidant, antibacterial, antifungal, anticholinesterase and anti-tyrosinase activities. The major constituents of the essential oils of leaf and bark of B. madang were δ-cadinene (17.0 and 20.5 %), β-caryophyllene (10.3 and 6.7 %), α-cubebene (11.3 and 15.6 %), and α-cadinol (5.8 and 10.6 %). The essential oils were screened for their antioxidant activities using 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical, β-carotene/linoleic acid bleaching, and total phenolic content. The bark oil showed the highest β-carotene/linoleic acid bleaching (90.3 % ± 0.2) and DPPH radical scavenging (IC50 212.0 µg/mL), while the highest phenolic content was exhibited by the leaf oil (94.5 % ± 0.3 mg GA/g). The antibacterial and antifungal activities were investigated by the disc diffusion and micro dilution method. The leaf and bark oils showed moderate activity towards Bacillus subtilis and Staphylococcus aureus with minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) value 125 µg/mL. For antifungal assay, the bark oil showed strong activity towards Aspergillus niger and Aspergillus fumigatus with MIC value 62.5 µg/mL. Anticholinesterase and anti-tyrosinase activities were evaluated against Ellman method and mushroom tyrosinase, respectively. The results showed that leaf oil gave significant percentage inhibition (I%: acetylcholinesterase 55.2 %, butyrylcholinesterase 60.4 %, tyrosinase 53.1 %).
    Matched MeSH terms: Microbial Sensitivity Tests/methods
  4. Molecular Characterization of Extended-Spectrum Beta Lactamase- and Carbapenemase-Producing Pseudomonas aeruginosa Strains from a Malaysian Tertiary Hospital
    Phoon HYP, Hussin H, Hussain BM, Thong KL
    Microb Drug Resist, 2018 Oct;24(8):1108-1116.
    PMID: 29437541 DOI: 10.1089/mdr.2017.0258
    Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections account for high morbidity and mortality rates worldwide. Increasing resistance toward β-lactams, especially carbapenems, poses a serious therapeutic challenge. However, the multilocus sequence typing (MLST) of extended-spectrum beta lactamase (ESBL)- and carbapenemase-producing clinical P. aeruginosa has not been reported in Malaysia. This study aimed to determine the antibiotic susceptibility profiles, resistance genes, pulsotypes, and sequence types (STs) of clinical P. aeruginosa from a Malaysian tertiary hospital. These characteristics were analyzed by disk diffusion, minimum inhibitory concentration, polymerase chain reaction, pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE), and MLST for 199 nonreplicate clinical strains. The susceptibility of the strains toward the carbapenems and piperacillin-tazobactam was the lowest (≤90%), while ≥90% of the strains remained susceptible to all other classes of antimicrobial agents tested. The multidrug-resistant strains displayed high level resistance to cephalosporins (48 to ≥256 mg/L) and carbapenems (4-32 mg/L). Eleven strains harbored class 1 integrons containing blaGES-13, blaVIM-2, blaVIM-6, blaOXA-10, aacA(6')-Ib, aacA(6')-II, aadA6, and gcuD gene cassettes. Extra-integron genes, blaGES-20, blaIMP-4, blaVIM-2, and blaVIM-11, were also found. Overall, the maximum likelihood tree showed concordance in the clustering of strains having the same STs and PFGE clusters. ST708 was the predominant antibiotic-susceptible clone detected from the neonatal intensive care unit. The STs 235, 809, and 1076 clonal clusters consisted of multidrug resistant strains. ST235 is a recognized international high-risk clone. This is the first report of blaGES-13 and blaGES-20 ESBL-encoding gene variants and novel STs (STs 2329, 2335, 2337, 2338, 2340, and 2341) of P. aeruginosa in Malaysia.
    Matched MeSH terms: Microbial Sensitivity Tests/methods
  5. Fulltext Virulence Factors and Antibiotic Susceptibility of Staphylococcus aureus Isolates in Ready-to-Eat Foods: Detection of S. aureus Contamination and a High Prevalence of Virulence Genes
    Puah SM, Chua KH, Tan JA
    Int J Environ Res Public Health, 2016 Feb;13(2):199.
    PMID: 26861367 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph13020199
    Staphylococcus aureus is one of the leading causes of food poisoning. Its pathogenicity results from the possession of virulence genes that produce different toxins which result in self-limiting to severe illness often requiring hospitalization. In this study of 200 sushi and sashimi samples, S. aureus contamination was confirmed in 26% of the food samples. The S. aureus isolates were further characterized for virulence genes and antibiotic susceptibility. A high incidence of virulence genes was identified in 96.2% of the isolates and 20 different virulence gene profiles were confirmed. DNA amplification showed that 30.8% (16/52) of the S. aureus carried at least one SE gene which causes staphylococcal food poisoning. The most common enterotoxin gene was seg (11.5%) and the egc cluster was detected in 5.8% of the isolates. A combination of hla and hld was the most prevalent coexistence virulence genes and accounted for 59.6% of all isolates. Antibiotic resistance studies showed tetracycline resistance to be the most common at 28.8% while multi-drug resistance was found to be low at 3.8%. In conclusion, the high rate of S. aureus in the sampled sushi and sashimi indicates the need for food safety guidelines.
    Matched MeSH terms: Microbial Sensitivity Tests*
  6. Fulltext Molecular detection of the New Delhi metallo-β-lactamase-1 gene in Enterobacteriaceae isolates in a tertiary medical centre
    Zainol Abidin NZ, Sulong A, Alfizah H, Muttaqillah NA, Ding CH
    Malays J Pathol, 2015 Dec;37(3):227-32.
    PMID: 26712667 MyJurnal
    New Delhi metallo-β-lactamase-1 (NDM-1) is a relatively recent carbapenemase enzyme that inactivates all β-lactam antibiotics with the exception of aztreonam. This study aims to ascertain the baseline prevalence and antibiotic susceptibility patterns of NDM-1-producing Enterobacteriaceae in a tertiary medical center in Malaysia.
    Matched MeSH terms: Microbial Sensitivity Tests
  7. Antibacterial properties of poly (octanediol citrate)/gallium-containing bioglass composite scaffolds
    Zeimaran E, Pourshahrestani S, Djordjevic I, Pingguan-Murphy B, Kadri NA, Wren AW, et al.
    J Mater Sci Mater Med, 2016 Jan;27(1):18.
    PMID: 26676864 DOI: 10.1007/s10856-015-5620-2
    Bioactive glasses may function as antimicrobial delivery systems through the incorporation and subsequent release of therapeutic ions. The aim of this study was to evaluate the antimicrobial properties of a series of composite scaffolds composed of poly(octanediol citrate) with increased loads of a bioactive glass that releases zinc (Zn(2+)) and gallium (Ga(3+)) ions in a controlled manner. The antibacterial activity of these scaffolds was investigated against both Gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus) and Gram-negative (Escherichia coli) bacteria. The ability of the scaffolds to release ions and the subsequent ingress of these ions into hard tissue was evaluated using a bovine bone model. Scaffolds containing bioactive glass exhibited antibacterial activity and this increased in vitro with higher bioactive glass loads; viable cells decreased to about 20 % for the composite scaffold containing 30 % bioactive glass. The Ga(3+) release rate increased as a function of time and Zn(2+) was shown to incorporate into the surrounding bone.
    Matched MeSH terms: Microbial Sensitivity Tests
  8. Antibacterial alkaloids from Artabotrys crassifolius Hook.f. & Thomson
    Tan KK, Khoo TJ, Rajagopal M, Wiart C
    Nat Prod Res, 2015;29(24):2346-9.
    PMID: 25738993 DOI: 10.1080/14786419.2015.1013954
    Chloroform extract of bark of Artabotrys crassifolius Hook.f. & Thomson exhibited antibacterial activities against both American Type Culture Collection and clinical bacterial strains in vitro with zones of inhibition ranging from 7 to 14 mm. Further analysis of this extract yielded artabotrine, liridine, lysicamine and atherospermidine. Artabotrine displayed a broad array of antibacterial activity mostly against Gram-positive bacteria with minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values ranging from 1.25 μg/mL to 5 μg/mL. Of note, artabotrine, liridine and lysicamine are bactericidal against Gram-negative extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-producing Klebsiella with MIC values equal 2.5, 2.5 and 10 μg/mL, respectively, and minimum bactericidal concentrations values equal to 2.5, 5 and 20 μg/mL.
    Matched MeSH terms: Microbial Sensitivity Tests
  9. Fulltext Essential oil composition and antimicrobial activities of two closely related species, Alpinia mutica Roxb. and Alpinia latilabris Ridl., from Peninsular Malaysia
    Ibrahim H, Sivasothy Y, Syamsir DR, Nagoor NH, Jamil N, Awang K
    ScientificWorldJournal, 2014;2014:430831.
    PMID: 24987733 DOI: 10.1155/2014/430831
    The essential oils obtained by hydrodistillation of the unripe and ripe fruits of Alpinia mutica Roxb. and Alpinia latilabris Ridl. were analysed by capillary GC and GC-MS. The oils were principally monoterpenic in nature. The unripe and ripe fruit oils of A. mutica were characterized by camphor (21.0% and 15.8%), camphene (16.6% and 10.2%), β-pinene (8.6% and 13.5%), and trans,trans-farnesol (8.0% and 11.2%), respectively. The oils of the unripe and ripe fruits were moderately active against Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis, Trichophyton mentagrophytes, and Trichophyton rubrum. 1,8-Cineole (34.2% and 35.9%) and β-pinene (20.2% and 19.0%) were the two most abundant components in the unripe and ripe fruit oils of A. latilabris. The oil of the unripe fruits elicits moderate activity against Staphylococcus aureus and Trichophyton mentagrophytes while Candida glabrata was moderately sensitive to the oil of the ripe fruits.
    Matched MeSH terms: Microbial Sensitivity Tests
  10. Fulltext Assessment of total phenolic, antioxidant, and antibacterial activities of Passiflora species
    Ramaiya SD, Bujang JS, Zakaria MH
    ScientificWorldJournal, 2014;2014:167309.
    PMID: 25028673 DOI: 10.1155/2014/167309
    This study focused on total phenolic content (TPC) and antioxidant and antibacterial activities of the leaves and stems of Passiflora quadrangularis, P. maliformis, and P. edulis extracted using three solvents: petroleum ether, acetone, and methanol. The maximum extraction yields of antioxidant components from the leaves and stems were isolated using methanol extracts of P. edulis (24.28%) and P. quadrangularis (9.76%), respectively. Among the leaf extracts, the methanol extract of P. maliformis had the significantly highest TPC and the strongest antioxidant activity, whereas among the stem extracts, the methanol extract of P. quadrangularis showed the highest phenolic amount and possessed the strongest antioxidant activity. The antibacterial properties of the Passiflora species were tested using the disc diffusion method against 10 human pathogenic bacteria. The largest inhibition zone was observed for the methanol extract of P. maliformis against B. subtilis. Generally, extracts from the Passiflora species exhibit distinct inhibition against Gram-positive but not Gram-negative bacteria. Based on the generated biplot, three clusters of bacteria were designated according to their performance towards the tested extracts. The present study revealed that methanol extracts of the Passiflora contain constituents with significant phenolic, antioxidant, and antibacterial properties for pharmaceutical and nutraceutical uses.
    Matched MeSH terms: Microbial Sensitivity Tests
  11. Fulltext Diversity and antimicrobial activities of actinobacteria isolated from tropical mangrove sediments in Malaysia
    Lee LH, Zainal N, Azman AS, Eng SK, Goh BH, Yin WF, et al.
    ScientificWorldJournal, 2014;2014:698178.
    PMID: 25162061 DOI: 10.1155/2014/698178
    The aim of this study was to isolate and identify Actinobacteria from Malaysia mangrove forest and screen them for production of antimicrobial secondary metabolites. Eighty-seven isolates were isolated from soil samples collected at 4 different sites. This is the first report to describe the isolation of Streptomyces, Mycobacterium, Leifsonia, Microbacterium, Sinomonas, Nocardia, Terrabacter, Streptacidiphilus, Micromonospora, Gordonia, and Nocardioides from mangrove in east coast of Malaysia. Of 87 isolates, at least 5 isolates are considered as putative novel taxa. Nine Streptomyces sp. isolates were producing potent antimicrobial secondary metabolites, indicating that Streptomyces isolates are providing high quality metabolites for drug discovery purposes. The discovery of a novel species, Streptomyces pluripotens sp. nov. MUSC 135(T) that produced potent secondary metabolites inhibiting the growth of MRSA, had provided promising metabolites for drug discovery research. The biosynthetic potential of 87 isolates was investigated by the detection of polyketide synthetase (PKS) and nonribosomal polyketide synthetase (NRPS) genes, the hallmarks of secondary metabolites production. Results showed that many isolates were positive for PKS-I (19.5%), PKS-II (42.5%), and NRPS (5.7%) genes, indicating that mangrove Actinobacteria have significant biosynthetic potential. Our results highlighted that mangrove environment represented a rich reservoir for isolation of Actinobacteria, which are potential sources for discovery of antimicrobial secondary metabolites.
    Matched MeSH terms: Microbial Sensitivity Tests
  12. Fulltext Synthesis, characterization, and antimicrobial activity of an ampicillin-conjugated magnetic nanoantibiotic for medical applications
    Hussein-Al-Ali SH, El Zowalaty ME, Hussein MZ, Geilich BM, Webster TJ
    Int J Nanomedicine, 2014;9:3801-14.
    PMID: 25143729 DOI: 10.2147/IJN.S61143
    Because of their magnetic properties, magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) have numerous diverse biomedical applications. In addition, because of their ability to penetrate bacteria and biofilms, nanoantimicrobial agents have become increasingly popular for the control of infectious diseases. Here, MNPs were prepared through an iron salt coprecipitation method in an alkaline medium, followed by a chitosan coating step (CS-coated MNPs); finally, the MNPs were loaded with ampicillin (amp) to form an amp-CS-MNP nanocomposite. Both the MNPs and amp-CS-MNPs were subsequently characterized and evaluated for their antibacterial activity. X-ray diffraction results showed that the MNPs and nanocomposites were composed of pure magnetite. Fourier transform infrared spectra and thermogravimetric data for the MNPs, CS-coated MNPs, and amp-CS-MNP nanocomposite were compared, which confirmed the CS coating on the MNPs and the amp-loaded nanocomposite. Magnetization curves showed that both the MNPs and the amp-CS-MNP nanocomposites were superparamagnetic, with saturation magnetizations at 80.1 and 26.6 emu g(-1), respectively. Amp was loaded at 8.3%. Drug release was also studied, and the total release equilibrium for amp from the amp-CS-MNPs was 100% over 400 minutes. In addition, the antimicrobial activity of the amp-CS-MNP nanocomposite was determined using agar diffusion and growth inhibition assays against Gram-positive bacteria and Gram-negative bacteria, as well as Candida albicans. The minimum inhibitory concentration of the amp-CS-MNP nanocomposite was determined against bacteria including Mycobacterium tuberculosis. The synthesized nanocomposites exhibited antibacterial and antifungal properties, as well as antimycobacterial effects. Thus, this study introduces a novel β-lactam antibacterial-based nanocomposite that can decrease fungus activity on demand for numerous medical applications.
    Matched MeSH terms: Microbial Sensitivity Tests
  13. Synthesis and evaluation of antimycobacterial activity of new benzimidazole aminoesters
    Yoon YK, Ali MA, Wei AC, Choon TS, Ismail R
    Eur J Med Chem, 2015 Mar 26;93:614-24.
    PMID: 24996257 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2013.06.025
    A total of 51 novel benzimidazoles were synthesized by a 4-step reaction starting from basic compound 4-fluoro-3-nitrobenzoic acid under relatively mild reaction conditions. The structure of the novel benzimidazoles was confirmed by mass spectra as well as (1)H NMR spectroscopic data. Out of the 51 novel synthesized compounds, 42 of them were screened for their antimycobacterial activity against Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv strain using BacTiter-Glo™ Microbial Cell Viability (BTG) method. Results of activity screened using Alamar Blue method was also provided for comparison purposes. Two of the novel benzimidazoles synthesized showed moderately good activity with IC50 of less than 15 μM. Compound 5g, ethyl 2-(4-(trifluoromethyl)phenyl)-1-(2-morpholinoethyl)-1H-benzo[d]imidazole-5-carboxylate, was found to be the most active with IC50 of 11.52 μM.
    Matched MeSH terms: Microbial Sensitivity Tests
  14. Sequential synthesis of amino-1,4-naphthoquinone-appended triazoles and triazole-chromene hybrids and their antimycobacterial evaluation
    Devi Bala B, Muthusaravanan S, Choon TS, Ashraf Ali M, Perumal S
    Eur J Med Chem, 2014 Oct 6;85:737-46.
    PMID: 25129868 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2014.08.009
    A general method for the synthesis of a library of hitherto unreported amino-1,4-naphthoquinone-appended triazoles was accomplished via a sequential three-component reaction of substituted N-propargylaminonaphthoquinones with variously substituted alkyl bromides/2-bromonaphthalene-1,4-dione and sodium azide in the presence of Et3N/CuI in water. Aminonaphthoquinone-appended iminochromene-triazole hybrid heterocycles were also synthesized from the amino-1,4-naphthoquinone-appended-1,2,3-triazolylacetonitriles. All the triazole hybrids were screened for their in vitro activity against Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv (MTB). Among the triazoles, 2-(((1-benzyl-1H-1,2,3-triazol-4-yl)methyl)(4-(trifluoromethyl)phenyl)amino)naphthalene-1,4-dione (7d) emerged as the most active one with IC50 = 1.87 μM, being more potent than the anti-TB drugs, cycloserine (6 times), pyrimethamine (20 times) and equipotent as the drug ethambutol (IC50 
    Matched MeSH terms: Microbial Sensitivity Tests
  15. A new chitinase-producer strain Streptomyces glauciniger WICC-A03: isolation and identification as a biocontrol agent for plants phytopathogenic fungi
    Awad HM, El-Enshasy HA, Hanapi SZ, Hamed ER, Rosidi B
    Nat Prod Res, 2014;28(24):2273-7.
    PMID: 25078877 DOI: 10.1080/14786419.2014.939083
    This study discusses the isolation and identification of a new Streptomycetes highly active chitinase producer. Fifteen strains were isolated from Malaysian soil samples. The isolate WICC-A03 was found to be the most active chitinase producer. Its antifungal activity was evaluated against many phytopathogens. The identification of WICC-A03 using phenotypic and genotypic methods strongly indicated that strain WICC-A03 belonged to the genus Streptomyces and displayed similarity (91%) with Streptomyces glauciniger. Thus, it was given the suggested name S. glauciniger WICC-A03 with accession number: JX139754. WICC-A03 produces extracellular chitinase in a medium containing 1.5% colloidal chitin in submerged culture on 144 h. The produced enzyme was partially characterised and its molecular weight of 50 kDa was determined by using SDS-PAGE. This study indicates that WICC-A03 is a potential chitinase producer for biocontrol of plant pathogens. Further experiments are being carried out to optimise medium composition and cultivation conditions under lab and bioreactor scale.
    Matched MeSH terms: Microbial Sensitivity Tests
  16. Antimicrobial susceptibility patterns of Burkholderia pseudomallei among melioidosis cases in Kedah, Malaysia
    Hassan MR, Vijayalakshmi N, Pani SP, Peng NP, Mehenderkar R, Voralu K, et al.
    Southeast Asian J. Trop. Med. Public Health, 2014 May;45(3):680-8.
    PMID: 24974653
    Burkholderia pseudomallei, the causative agent of melioidosis is an important cause of morbidity and mortality particularly among diabetics. We evaluated 228 isolates of B. pseudomallei for antimicrobial sensitivity during 2005-2010 using the disc diffusion technique, of which 144 were obtained from blood culture. More than 90% of the strains were susceptible to cefoperazone, ceftazidime, chloramphenicol and imipenem. Eighty-two percent of the isolates were susceptible to tetracycline and amoxicillin/clavulanate. The susceptibilities to ciprofloxacin was 78% and to trimethoprim-sulfamethoxezole was 47%. The susceptibilities to aminoglycoside antibiotics were low (21% to gentamicin and 6% to amikacin). The susceptibilities were similar between isolates from females and males, bacteremic and abacteremic cases, diabetics and non-diabetics, pneumonia and non-pneumonia cases and between those who died and those who survived. Our findings show antibiotic susceptibility patterns are not a major factor in determining outcomes of B. pseudomallei infection. Monitoring the drug susceptibilities among B. pseudomallei isolates needs to be conducted regularly to guide empiric therapy for melioidosis, as it causes high mortality, especially among diabetic cases.
    Matched MeSH terms: Microbial Sensitivity Tests
  17. Identification and characterization of the yellow pigment synthesized by Cupriavidus sp. USMAHM13
    Ramachandran H, Iqbal MA, Amirul AA
    Appl Biochem Biotechnol, 2014 Sep;174(2):461-70.
    PMID: 25099372 DOI: 10.1007/s12010-014-1080-2
    Microbial pigments are gaining intensive attention due to increasing awareness of the toxicity of synthetic colours. In this study, a novel polymer-producing bacterium designated as Cupriavidus sp. USMAHM13 was also found to produce yellow pigment when cultivated in nutrient broth. Various parameters such as temperature, pH and ratio of culture volume to flask volume were found to influence the yellow pigment production. UV-Visible, Fourier transform infrared and (13)C-nuclear magnetic resonance analyses revealed that the crude yellow pigment might probably represent new bioactive compound in the carotenoid family. The crude yellow pigment also exhibited a wide spectrum of antimicrobial activity against Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria with their inhibition zones and minimal inhibitory concentrations ranged from 25 to 38 mm and from 0.63 to 2.5 mg/ml, respectively. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on the identification and characterization of yellow pigment produced by bacterium belonging to the genus Cupriavidus.
    Matched MeSH terms: Microbial Sensitivity Tests
  18. Fulltext Microwave assisted synthesis, spectral and antifungal studies of 2-phenyl-N,N'-bis(pyridin-4-ylcarbonyl)butanediamide ligand and its metal complexes
    Shiekh RA, Malik MA, Al-Thabaiti SA, Wani MY, Nabi A
    ScientificWorldJournal, 2014;2014:404617.
    PMID: 24772018 DOI: 10.1155/2014/404617
    2-Phenyl-N,N'-bis(pyridin-4-ylcarbonyl)butanediamide ligand with a series of transition metal complexes has been synthesized via two routes: microwave irradiation and conventional heating method. Microwave irritation method happened to be the efficient and versatile route for the synthesis of these metal complexes. These complexes were found to have the general composition M(L)Cl2/M(L)(CH3COO)2 (where M = Cu(II), Co(II), Ni(II), and L = ligand). Different physical and spectroscopic techniques were used to investigate the structural features of the synthesized compounds, which supported an octahedral geometry for these complexes. In vitro antifungal activity of the ligand and its metal complexes revealed that the metal complexes are highly active compared to the standard drug. Metal complexes showed enhanced activity compared to the ligand, which is an important step towards the designing of antifungal drug candidates.
    Matched MeSH terms: Microbial Sensitivity Tests
  19. Evaluation of polycaprolactone matrices for the intravaginal delivery of metronidazole in the treatment of bacterial vaginosis
    Pathak M, Turner M, Palmer C, Coombes AG
    J Biomater Appl, 2014 Sep;29(3):354-63.
    PMID: 24682036 DOI: 10.1177/0885328214528256
    Microporous, poly (ɛ-caprolactone) (PCL) matrices loaded with the antibacterial, metronidazole were produced by rapidly cooling suspensions of drug powder in PCL solutions in acetone. Drug incorporation in the matrices increased from 2.0% to 10.6% w/w on raising the drug loading of the PCL solution from 5% to 20% w/w measured with respect to the PCL content. Drug loading efficiencies of 40-53% were obtained. Rapid 'burst release' of 35-55% of the metronidazole content was recorded over 24 h when matrices were immersed in simulated vaginal fluid (SVF), due to the presence of large amounts of drug on matrix surface as revealed by Raman microscopy. Gradual release of around 80% of the drug content occurred over the following 12 days. Metronidazole released from PCL matrices in SVF retained antimicrobial activity against Gardnerella vaginalis in vitro at levels up to 97% compared to the free drug. Basic modelling predicted that the concentrations of metronidazole released into vaginal fluid in vivo from a PCL matrix in the form of an intravaginal ring would exceed the minimum inhibitory concentration of metronidazole against G. vaginalis. These findings recommend further investigation of PCL matrices as intravaginal devices for controlled delivery of metronidazole in the treatment and prevention of bacterial vaginosis.
    Matched MeSH terms: Microbial Sensitivity Tests
  20. Fulltext Inhibitors of the glyoxylate cycle enzyme ICL1 in Candida albicans for potential use as antifungal agents
    Cheah HL, Lim V, Sandai D
    PLoS One, 2014;9(4):e95951.
    PMID: 24781056 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0095951
    Candida albicans is an opportunistic pathogen that causes candidiasis in humans. In recent years, metabolic pathways in C. albicans have been explored as potential antifungal targets to treat candidiasis. The glyoxylate cycle, which enables C. albicans to survive in nutrient-limited host niches and its. Key enzymes (e.g., isocitrate lyase (ICL1), are particularly attractive antifungal targets for C. albicans. In this study, we used a new screening approach that better reflects the physiological environment that C. albicans cells experience during infection to identify potential inhibitors of ICL. Three compounds (caffeic acid (CAFF), rosmarinic acid (ROS), and apigenin (API)) were found to have antifungal activity against C. albicans when tested under glucose-depleted conditions. We further confirmed the inhibitory potential of these compounds against ICL using the ICL enzyme assay. Lastly, we assessed the bioavailability and toxicity of these compounds using Lipinski's rule-of-five and ADMET analysis.
    Matched MeSH terms: Microbial Sensitivity Tests
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