OBJECTIVE: To investigate the functional pathways enriched and differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of patients with gram-positive and gram-negative sepsis. METHODS: Dataset GSE9960 obtained from NCBI GEO database containing PBMC samples from 16 non-infectious systematic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) patients, 17 gram-positive septic patients and 18 gram-negative septic patients were included in the study. Functional pathway annotations were conducted by gene set enrichment analysis and weighted gene co-expression network analysis. DEGs were filtered and master DEGs were then validated in PBMCs of gram-positive septic, gram-negative septic and non-infectious SIRS patients. RESULTS: The enriched gene sets in gram-positive sepsis and gram-negative sepsis were significantly different. The results indicated the opposite co-expression networks in SIRS and gram-negative sepsis, and the entirely different co-expression networks in gram-positive and gram-negative sepsis. Furthermore, we validated that CONCLUSIONS The results indicate that there are differences in the mechanism and pathogenesis of gram-positive and gram-negative sepsis, which may provide potential markers for sepsis diagnosis and empirical antimicrobial therapy.
Biomarkers/analysis* ; Gene Expression Profiling ; Gram-Negative Bacterial Infections/physiopathology* ; Gram-Positive Bacterial Infections/physiopathology* ; Humans ; Leukocytes, Mononuclear/pathology* ; Sepsis/physiopathology*

Male infertility is related to urogenital tract bacterial infection. The significance of bacteriosperimia for male infertility has been paid attention in recent years. Asymptomatic bacteriosperm may play an important role. However, litter is known about the adverse influence of some uropathogenic bacteria on sperm function. The article reviewed some uropathogenic bacteria in male urogential tract and several pathomechanisms of effect bacteria on sperm function.
Bacteria ; isolation & purification ; Bacterial Infections ; microbiology ; physiopathology ; Genital Diseases, Male ; microbiology ; physiopathology ; Humans ; Male ; Spermatozoa ; physiology

Intestinal failure (IF) is defined as the critical reduction of functional intestines below the minimum needed to absorb nutrients and fluids, so that intravenous supplementation with parenteral nutrition (PN) is required to maintain health and/or growth. Although the benefits are evident, patients receiving PN can suffer from serious cholestasis due to lack of enteral feeding and small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO). One such complication that may arise is intestinal failure-associated liver disease (IFALD). Evidences from recent studies suggest that alterations in the intestinal microbiota, as well as intraluminal bile acid driven signaling, may play a critical role in both hepatic and intestinal injury. Since Marshall first proposed the concept of the gut-liver axis in 1998, the role of gut-liver axis disorders in the development of IFALD has received considerable attention. The conversation between gut and liver is the key to maintain liver metabolism and intestinal homeostasis, which influences each other and is reciprocal causation. However, as a "forgotten organ" , intestinal microbiota on the pathogenesis of IFALD has not been well reflected. As such, we propose, for the first time, the concept of gut-microbiota-liver axis to emphasize the importance of intestinal microbiota in the interaction of gut-liver axis. Analysis and research on gut-microbiota-liver axis will be of great significance for understanding the pathogenesis of IFALD and improving the prevention and treatment measures.
Bacterial Infections/physiopathology* ; Bile Acids and Salts/physiology* ; Cholestasis/physiopathology* ; Enteral Nutrition ; Gastrointestinal Microbiome/physiology* ; Humans ; Intestinal Diseases/physiopathology* ; Intestines/physiopathology* ; Liver/physiopathology* ; Liver Diseases/physiopathology* ; Parenteral Nutrition/adverse effects* ; Short Bowel Syndrome/physiopathology* ; Signal Transduction

OBJECTIVETo study the efficacy of biological organic zinc in the treatment of chronic bacterial prostatitis (CBP).

METHODSSixty-one CBP patients were randomized into two groups: Group A (39 cases) was supplemented with organic zinc after routine antibiotic treatment, Group B (22 cases) was given routine antibiotic treatment only. NIH-CPIS (including pain, urinary symptoms, quality of life) and urodynamic indexes were used to evaluate the efficacy of biological organic zinc in the treatment of CBP.

RESULTSThe NIH-CPIS (including pain, urinary symptoms, quality of life) and the maximum urethra closure pressure (MUCP) were markedly decreased after the zinc treatment, compared with the non-zinc group(P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONIt is suggested that biological organic zinc is effective for the treatment of CBP.

Adult ; Aged ; Bacterial Infections ; drug therapy ; Chronic Disease ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prostatitis ; drug therapy ; physiopathology ; Urodynamics ; Zinc ; therapeutic use

Aerococcus viridans, a catalase-negative gram-positive coccus rarely causing bacteremia, was isolated from blood cultures of a 52-yr-old man under the gran-ulocytopenic condition. The isolate showed the typical characteristics of A. viridans, i.e., tetrad arrangements in gram stain, positive pyrrolidonyl aminopeptidase (PYR) and negative leucine aminopeptidase (LAP) reactions, and no growth at 45 degrees C.The isolate was revealed to be highly resistant to penicillin, erythromycin, clindamycin, and ceftriaxone, although most strains of A. viridans isolated from the previously reported patients were susceptible to penicillin and other commonly used antibiotics. Even though A. viridans is rarely associated with human infections, it could be a potential causative agent of bacteremia, especially in immunocompromised patients.
Agranulocytosis/*complications/microbiology/physiopathology ; Bacteremia/*complications/microbiology/physiopathology ; Ceftriaxone/pharmacology ; Clindamycin/pharmacology ; *Drug Resistance, Multiple, Bacterial ; Erythromycin/pharmacology ; Gram-Positive Bacterial Infections/*complications/microbiology/physiopathology ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Penicillins/*pharmacology ; Streptococcaceae/*drug effects/isolation & purification

OBJECTIVETo investigate the impact of intrauterine infection induced by LPS injection on long-term brain development of premature rats.

METHODSEighteen day-gestation pregnant rats were randomly assigned to a control group receiving an intraperitoneal injection of normal saline, and two infection groups that were intraperitoneally injected with 0.3 mg/kg or 0.6 mg/kg LPS. Twenty-four hours after injection, 7 pregnant rats of each group were sacrificed. The pathological changes of the placenta after hematoxylin and eosin staining were observed under a light microscope. The neural cell apoptosis of fetal brains was examined by the TUNEL assay. The remained pregnant rats were induced to labour before 21 gestation days. The long-term brain development of premature rats was tested with the Y type electric maze on postnatal day 42.

RESULTSObvious pathological changes were observed in the placenta in the infection groups. The apoptotic neural cells in the fetal brain increased in the infection groups compared with that in the control group (32.41+/-5.36 in the 0.3 mg/kg infection group and 66.41+/-7.61 in the 0.6 mg/kg infection group vs 8.00+/-0.36 in the control group; P<0.01). The number of trials to criterion in the Y type maze test in the infection groups was much more than that in the control group [117.8+/-8.7 (0.3 mg/kg infection group) and 194.4+/-13.7 (0.6 mg/kg infection group) vs 56.8+/-3.7 (control group); P<0.01]. The number of correct reactions in memory retaining in the infection groups was lower than that in the control group (0.62+/-0.09 in the 0.3 mg/kg infection group and 0.37+/-0.09 in the 0.6 mg/kg infection group vs 0.92+/-0.06 in the control group; P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONSIntrauterine infection can cause fetal rats' neural cell apoptosis and affect adversely long-term brain development of neonatal rats.

Animals ; Apoptosis ; Bacterial Infections ; physiopathology ; Blood-Brain Barrier ; Brain ; growth & development ; pathology ; Female ; Maze Learning ; Neurons ; pathology ; Pregnancy ; Pregnancy Complications, Infectious ; physiopathology ; Rats ; Rats, Wistar ; Uterus ; microbiology

Serum gastrin and pepsinogen concentrations were measured in 51 children infected with Helicobacter pylori, to investigate the clinical significance and influence of CagA and VacA on serum concentrations of these peptides. CagA+ was 44/51 (86%) and VacA+ was 42/51 (82%). Type I (CagA+/VacA+) included 39/51 (76%), type II (CagA-/VacA-) was 4/51 (8%), and intermediate (CagA-/VacA+, CagA+/VacA-) was 8/51 (16%). There was no significant correlation between endoscopic diagnosis and the state of CagA/VacA. Serum gastrin concentrations were not significantly correlated with the state of CagA/VacA. Serum pepsinogen I and II concentrations were significantly higher in CagA+ than in CagA-, but there was no significant difference between VacA+ and VacA-, Serum pepsinogen I/II ratio was not significantly correlated with the state of CagA/VacA. There was no significant difference between serum concentrations of gastrin, pepsinogen I and H. pylori phenotypes. However, pepsinogen II concentration was significantly higher in type I than type II. Pepsinogen I/II ratio was significantly lower in type I and intermediate than in type II. These findings suggest that CagA positively and phenotype of H. pylori could play a role in the development of upper gastrointestinal diseases in children.
Adolescence ; Bacterial Proteins/physiology* ; Bacterial Proteins/blood ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Female ; Gastrins/blood* ; Gastrointestinal Diseases/blood ; Helicobacter Infections/physiopathology ; Helicobacter Infections/blood* ; Helicobacter pylori*/genetics ; Human ; Male ; Osmolar Concentration ; Pepsinogens/blood* ; Phenotype

OBJECTIVETo study the effects of perinatal recurrent infection on the brain development in immature mice.

METHODSSix pregnant C57BL6 mice were randomly assigned to three groups: intrauterine infection, perinatal recurrent infection and control. The intrauterine infection group was intraperitoneally injected with LPS (0.5 mg/kg) on the 18th day of pregnancy. The perinatal recurrent infection group was injected with LPS (0.5 mg/kg) on the 18th day of pregnancy and their offsprings were intraperitoneally injected with the same dose of LPS daily from postnatal day 3 to 12. The control group was administered with normal saline at the same time points as the recurrent infection group. The short-time neurobehaviors were assessed on postnatal day 13. The mice were then sacrificed to measure brain weights and neuropathological changes using cresyl violet staining. Western blot was used to evaluate the expression of TNF-α, Caspase-3 and myelin basic protein (MBP).

RESULTSThe brain weights of the recurrent infection group were significantly lower than the control and intrauterine infection groups (P<0.05) and the recurrent infection group displayed significant neuropathological changes. Perinatal recurrent infection resulted in increased expression levels of TNF-α and Caspase-3, and decreased expression level of MBP compared with the intrauterine infection and control groups (P<0.01). The neurobehavior test showed that the recurrent infection group used longer time in gait reflex, right reflex and geotaxis reflex compared with the control and intrauterine infection groups on postnatal day 13 (P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONSPerinatal recurrent infection may exacerbate inflammatory response and cell death in the immature brain, which may be one of the important factors for perinatal brain injury.

Animals ; Animals, Newborn ; Bacterial Infections ; physiopathology ; Body Weight ; Brain ; growth & development ; pathology ; Caspase 3 ; analysis ; Female ; Mice ; Mice, Inbred C57BL ; Myelin Basic Protein ; analysis ; Pregnancy ; Recurrence ; Reflex

This study examined the effect of experimentally induced fever on the pharmacokinetics of cefepime (75 mg/kg BW) administered intramuscularly to six rabbits. The study was carried out in two consecutive phases separated by a two-week washout period. An infection was induced by an intravenous inoculation of 5 x 10(8) colony-forming units of Escherichia coli 24 h before the pharmacokinetic investigation. A quantitative microbiological assay was employed to measure the plasma cefepime concentrations using an agar-gel diffusion method with Bacillus subtilis ATCC 6633 as the test organism. Twenty-four hour after the injection, the rectal temperature in the infected animals increased by 1degrees C. There was a significant reduction in the elimination halflife by 21.8% in the febrile rabbits compared to healthy animals. In addition, the infection significantly increased the peak plasma concentrations by 11.9%, the mean residence time by 19.9%, the area under the plasmaconcentration- time curve by 53.6% and the area under the moment curve by 62.3%. In conclusion, the endotoxin-induced febrile state produced significant changes in the plasma levels as well as some of the pharmacokinetic variables of cefepime in rabbits.
Animals ; Anti-Bacterial Agents/*administration&dosage/blood/*pharmacokinetics ; Area Under Curve ; Cephalosporins/*administration&dosage/blood/*pharmacokinetics ; Endotoxins/pharmacology ; Escherichia coli Infections/drug therapy/physiopathology ; Fever/chemically induced/*physiopathology ; Half-Life ; Injections, Intramuscular ; Male ; Rabbits

Stenotrophomonas maltophilia (previously named Xanthomonas maltophilia) is an aerobic, non-fermentive, Gram-negative bacillus that is wide spread in the environment. It was considered to be an organism with limited pathogenic potential, which was rarely capable of causing diseases in human other than those who were in debilitated or immunocompromised state. More recent studies have established that Stenotrophomonas maltophilia can behave as a true pathogen. Endocarditis due to this organism is rare, and only 24 cases of Stenotrophomonas maltophilia endocarditis have been reported in the medical literature. Most cases were associated with risk factors, including intravenous drug abuse, dental treatment, infected intravenous devices, and previous cardiac surgery. We present a case with two episodes of Stenotrophomonas maltophilia endocarditis after mitral valve prosthesis implantation, which was treated with antibiotics initially, and a combination of antibiotics and surgery later. To our knowledge, this is the first case of repetitive endocarditis due to Stenotrophomonas maltophilia.
Adult ; Anti-Bacterial Agents/*therapeutic use ; Bioprosthesis/adverse effects/*microbiology ; Endocarditis, Bacterial/*drug therapy/physiopathology ; Gentamicins/therapeutic use ; Gram-Negative Bacterial Infections/*drug therapy/physiopathology ; Heart Valve Prosthesis/adverse effects/*microbiology ; Humans ; Male ; Mitral Valve ; Recurrence ; Stenotrophomonas maltophilia/*drug effects ; Treatment Outcome ; Trimethoprim-Sulfamethoxazole Combination/*therapeutic use ; Vancomycin/therapeutic use