Miss Microbiologist

Miss Universe contestant Chalita Suansane is a 21 year old Thailand native currently studying Microbiology at Mahasarakham University. She is a 3rd year Microbiology student and looks like she still has many things to learn about lab safety...

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Miss universe

Source: Facebook via Medtech Must Know
Images: (c) KryzzaMelHilay

CRE may be spreading more widely than previously thought

One family of superbugs, known as carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae or CRE, may be spreading more widely than previously thought, according to a study published Monday in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. In fact, transmission of these bacteria person-to-person may be occurring without symptoms, say the researchers, from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and the Broad Institute.

CRE, which tend to spread in hospitals and long-term care facilities, cause an estimated 9,300 infections and 600 deaths each year in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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Drug-resistant superbug may be craftier, more widespread

Cource: CNN

New antibiotic for multidrug resistant gonorrhoeae

Scientists at the University of York have harnessed the therapeutic effects of carbon monoxide-releasing molecules to develop a new antibiotic which could be used to treat the sexually transmitted infection gonorrhoea.

The scientists found that Neisseria gonorrhoeae is more sensitive to CO-based toxicity than other model bacterial pathogens, and may serve as a viable candidate for antimicrobial therapy using CO-RMs. The CO molecule works by binding to the bacteria, preventing them from producing energy.

Professor Fairlamb added: "We think our study is an important breakthrough. It isn't the final drug yet but it is pretty close to it." "People might perceive Neisseria gonorrhoeae as a trivial bacterial infection, but the disease is becoming more dangerous and resistant to antibiotics."

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Scientists develop new antibiotic for gonorrhea

Source: Science Daily

Petri plate art for Christmas

Happy Christmas by Debashree Samal Lakhera‎

Petri Dish Cristmas Tree

Amazing pice of art

Petri Plate Raindeer

Petri dish art for the holiday season
by Cristian Michael Fernandez Galvez

Happy Holidays from Microbiology Lab

Amazing bacterial Christmas tree by Maria Anne‎‎

  

Influenza Activity in Europe

Week 49/2016 (5–11 December 2016)

• Influenza activity remained low, but is increasing across the region.
• The proportion of virus detections among sentinel surveillance specimens increased to 28%.
• The majority of influenza viruses detected for this week was A(H3N2).
• Laboratory-confirmed influenza cases from hospital settings increased in some countries.

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Flu News Europe

Source: ECDC

Fungal Snowman

Beautiful petri plate snowman by Michelle Travis, UK


Original image:
Getting into to the Christmas spirit in York, UK

 Source: Facebook via Michelle Travis


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Whole genome sequencing cannot yet be used to determine antimicrobial susceptibility

EUCAST experts publish report where they show that whole genome sequencing (WGS) cannot yet be used to determine antimicrobial susceptibility of many important bacterial species.

Whole genome sequencing (WGS) offers the potential to predict antimicrobial susceptibility from a single assay. The European Committee on Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing (EUCAST) established a subcommittee to review the current development status of WGS for bacterial antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST).

The published evidence for using WGS as a tool to infer antimicrobial susceptibility accurately is currently either poor or non-existent and the evidence / knowledge base requires significant expansion. The primary comparators for assessing genotypic-phenotypic concordance from WGS data should be changed to epidemiological cut-off values (ECOFFs) in order to improve differentiation of wild type from non-wild type isolates (harbouring an acquired resistance). Clinical breakpoints should be a secondary comparator. This assessment will reveal whether genetic predictions could also be used to guide clinical decision making. Internationally agreed principles and quality control (QC) metrics will facilitate early harmonization of analytical approaches and interpretative criteria for WGS-based predictive AST. Only datasets that pass agreed QC metrics should be used in AST predictions. Minimum performance standards should exist and comparative accuracies across different WGS laboratories and processes should be measured. In order to facilitate comparisons, a single public database of all known resistance loci should be established, regularly updated and strictly curated using minimum standards for the inclusion of resistance loci. For most bacterial species the major limitations to widespread adoption for WGS-based AST in clinical labs remain the current high-cost and limited speed of inferring antimicrobial susceptibility from WGS data as well as the dependency on prior culture since analysis directly on specimens remains challenging.

For most bacterial species there is currently insufficient evidence to support the use of WGS-inferred AST to guide clinical decision making. WGS-AST should be a funding priority if it is to become a rival to phenotypic AST. This report will be updated as the available evidence increases.

Read the report:
EUCAST_publication_WGS-AST.pdf

CMI, Clinical Microbiology and Infection

The good and bad of microbiology lab automation

Here is a summary of the potential quality benefits of “Total Lab Automation” (TLA) systems (e.g. Kiestra, Biomeurieux, Copan Wasp). You might be involved in a business case for one for your own laboratory.

Main advantages:

• Plate tracking
• Less menial tasks
• Better plate spreading
• Less plate contamination
• Storage of digital images of plates
• Standardised incubation times
• Less time out of the incubator
• Remote plate reading
• Plate checking
• Plate interpretation

Disadvantages:

• Redundancy of staff
• What happens if it breaks down<
  

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“The good and bad of lab automation….

Source: Microbiology matters
Image: Michael

MALDI-ToF - Benefits and Limitations in Microbiology

Helping clinicians quickly and effectively address the medical concerns of their patients should be the ultimate goal of any clinical microbiology laboratory. Delivering on this goal can be especially important when a patient presents with a bacterial or fungal infection. MALDI-ToF can help improve patient outcomes by speeding diagnosis and improving the quality of care.

There are many benefits to incorporating MALDI-ToF to aid in identification of microorganisms. Identification with MALDI-ToF is a relatively simple process. The process can reduce the time needed for identification and diagnosis from days to hours. There are, however, some limitations to MALDI-ToF. Some organisms may require repeat analysis and additional processing, and some closely related organisms are not differentiated and may cause challenges with identification. Also the initial purchase price of the equipment is high, which may limit the types of labs that can adopt it.

While not all laboratories are capable of widely adopting MALDI-ToF, those that can, probably should. MALDI-ToF may promote better patient outcomes through speedier diagnosis and information to influence efficacious treatment for many bacterial, yeast, and mycobacterial infections, greatly improving the quality of clinical management and patient care.

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MALDI-ToF is poised to speed diagnosis for bacterial and fungal infections(MLO)

MALDI-ToF principle (Frontiers Microbiology)

Source: MLO
Image: Juha Wahlstedt

Syphilis is coming back

Over the last few decades, an age-old infectious disease has been re-emerging globally: Syphilis. Using techniques to analyze low levels of DNA, an international research team headed by the University of Zurich has now shown that all syphilis strains from modern patient samples share a common ancestor from the 1700s. Furthermore, their research demonstrates that strains dominating infections today originate from a pandemic cluster that emerged after 1950, and these strains share a worrying trait: Resistance to the second-line antibiotic azithromycin.

Infection with the bacteria Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum (TPA) has been re-emerging globally in the last few decades; more than 10 million cases are reported annually. Yet the reason for the resurgence of this sexually transmitted infection remains poorly understood.

Philipp Bosshard from the University Hospital Zurich is continuing to collect Swiss patient samples in order to further study the clinical aspects of the work. The researchers are convinced that this type of analysis will open new opportunities to develop a comprehensive understanding of the epidemiology of syphilis – a devastating disease that persists to this day, despite the availability of treatment.

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Re-emergence of Syphilis Traced to Pandemic Strain Cluster

Source: University of Zurich
Image: Microbeworld

Missing Link in Malaria Evolution Discovered in Historical Specimens

A family’s collection of antique microscope slides became a trove of genetic information about the eradicated European malaria pathogen. These slides of stained blood droplets date to the 1940s and contain strains of the malaria parasite that are now extinct (image).

Lalueza-Fox and his colleagues were left with the first genetic material of extinct European Plasmodium species ever studied. They recovered DNA from both P. falciparum, the predominant species in Africa and the species responsible for the majority of today’s malaria deaths, and P. vivax, a less virulent species found widely across the globe. Scientists have long debated how P. vivax arrived in the Americas, with one theory suggesting colonial Europeans brought the pathogen over, while another posits entry from the other direction, when early humans crossed the Bering Land Bridge from Asia. The two theories, notes Jane Carlton, a malaria researcher at New York University who was not involved in the study, are not necessarily mutually exclusive.

The extinct European P. vivax genome more closely resembled strains found today in South America than those found in East Asia, lending credibility to the theory of a more recent introduction by European colonists. The European P. falciparum genome, however, was starkly divergent from the modern South American subtype, supporting the theory that this more-deadly species came to South America directly from Africa during the slave trade.

Read more:
Missing Link in Malaria Evolution Discovered in Historical Specimens

Source: The Scientist Magazine®
Image: Charles Aranda

Where to test HIV or Hepatitis? - European Test Finder

 Almost every second person (47%) diagnosed in 2014 was a late presenter or with indication of advanced infection. This means that these individuals are only diagnosed when their immune system already starts to fail. Providing antiretroviral therapy at the early stages of HIV infection allows people with HIV to live longer and healthier lives, and reduces the risk of transmitting HIV to others.

With the newly created and mobile-optimised European Test Finder, it only takes a few seconds to locate a testing site near you – wherever you are in Europe.

Open search engine here:
European test finder

Source: ECDC

I love my microbiome

Let's face it. We live in a world full of bacteria. From the food you eat to the door knob you just turned, these tiny critters are everywhere. Many people think of bacteria as dangerous and dirty, and I'm sure if you're the type who uses hand sanitizer every five minutes, you probably already feel creepy-crawly. While there are many bad bugs that can have serious health consequences, the bacteria in our gut play a critical role in keeping us healthy. These bacteria are our friends not our foes.

The gut is one of the most complex ecosystems on the planet. In fact, your gut is home to trillions of bacteria. There are 10 times more microorganisms in and on our body than there are human cells! 10 times!! These tiny microorganisms, called intestinal flora, have many important functions, from supporting your immune system and digestive system to playing large role in our emotions and mental health. If you look after your little friends, you are guaranteed better health. Here's what you need to know about your microbiome.

Read more:
Say Hello To Your Little Friends. What You Should Know about Gut Bacteria — Sprouting From The Soul

Source: Sproyting from the soul

This USB Stick can perform an HIV Test

Scientists in the UK have developed a USB stick that can quickly and accurately measure the amount of HIV is in a patient’s blood.

The medical device was created by scientists at Imperial College London and tech firm DNA Electronics, and all it needs is a simple drop of blood to measure HIV-1 levels. It then creates an electrical signal that’s fed into a computer, laptop, or handheld device. The disposable test could be used by HIV patients to monitor their own treatment and help patients in remote regions of the world, where more standard HIV tests are inaccessible.

The timely detection of viremia in HIV-infected patients receiving antiviral treatment is key to ensuring effective therapy and preventing the emergence of drug resistance. In high HIV burden settings, the cost and complexity of diagnostics limit their availability. Scientists in the UK have developed a novel complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) chip based, pH-mediated, point-of-care HIV-1 viral load monitoring assay that simultaneously amplifies and detects HIV-1 RNA. A novel low-buffer HIV-1 pH-LAMP (loop-mediated isothermal amplification) assay was optimised and incorporated into a pH sensitive CMOS chip. Screening of 991 clinical samples (164 on the chip) yielded a sensitivity of 95% (in vitro) and 88.8% (on-chip) at >1000 RNA copies/reaction across a broad spectrum of HIV-1 viral clades. Median time to detection was 20.8 minutes in samples with >1000 copies RNA. The sensitivity, specificity and reproducibility are close to that required to produce a point-of-care device which would be of benefit in resource poor regions, and could be performed on an USB stick or similar low power device.

Read more:
Novel pH sensing semiconductor for point-of-care detection of HIV-1 viremia

Source: Nature: Scientific reports
Image: Imperial College London/DNA Electronics

Petri dish paintings

Some fun for medical laboratory scientists

Read more:
Microbiology: Petridish #fun#lab#

Source: Mulpix via I love microbiology

Candida auris - New superbug in US

Just five months after federal health officials asked hospitals and physicians to be on the lookout for an often-fatal, antibiotic-resistant fungus called Candida auris, 13 cases have been reported, the CDC announced 4 November, 2016.

It is the first time that the fungus, which is easily misidentified in lab tests as a more common candida yeast infection, has been found in the USA, and four of the first seven patients with it have died.

Candida auris’s emergence and apparent global spread, it was first identified in Japan in 2009 and since then has been found in a dozen countries on four continents, put the pathogen on the ever-growing list of superbugs, disease-causing microbes that are resistant to many and, in some cases, all antibiotics.

C. auris is difficult to identify with standard laboratory methods and can be misidentified in labs without specific technology. CDC encourages all U.S. laboratory staff who identify C. auris strains to notify their state or local public health authorities and CDC at candidaauris@cdc.gov. Find answers to frequently asked questions about C. auris on our questions and answers page and in the Candida auris: Interim Recommendations.

Read more:
Health officials find first cases of new superbug in USMore information:
Candida auris | Fungal Diseases | CDC

Source: CDC

All you need is microbiology

E. coli on EMB media


Photo By: Madiha Tariq from Rawalpindi, Pakistan.