PURPOSE: Group B Streptococcus (GBS) is a leading cause of neonatal sepsis and meningitis. Little is known about neonatal GBS infection in Korea. We investigated the clinical characteristics of GBS meningitis in neonate. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed 15 medical records of patients who diagnosed neonatal GBS meningitis admitted to two tertiary centers from January 2001 to December 2011. We analyzed the patient's characteristics, clinical symptoms and signs at admission, laboratory findings, and short-term outcomes at discharge. RESULTS: Among a total of 15 patients, five patients had early GBS meningitis and ten patients had late GBS meningitis. The most frequent clinical onset time was after three weeks of age. The major clinical symptom was respiratory difficulty in early GBS meningitis and fever in late GBS meningitis. The mortality rate was 6.7%. Among 15 patients, eight patients (53.3%) had abnormalities on neuroimaging studies at discharge and most of these patients were late GBS meningitis. CONCLUSION: Late GBS meningitis was the majority of neonatal GBS meningitis and had poor short-term neurological outcomes. To prevent the late GBS meningitis, we need to nation-wide preventive study including the incidence, mortality, and long-term outcomes of neonatal GBS meningitis.
Fever ; Humans ; Incidence ; Infant, Newborn* ; Korea ; Medical Records ; Meningitis* ; Mortality ; Neuroimaging ; Retrospective Studies ; Sepsis ; Streptococcus

Cyclic GMP-AMP (cGAMP), synthesized by cGAMP synthase (cGAS), serves as a secondary messenger that modulates various cellular processes, including cell proliferation, cell death, immune response, and inflammation. cGAS is activated upon detecting cytoplasmic DNA, which may originate from damaged genomic and mitochondrial DNA or from viral and bacterial infections. The presence of DNA in the cytoplasm can trigger a substantial inflammatory reaction and cytokine production via the cGAS-STING signaling pathway. Consequently, specific inhibitors targeting this pathway hold significant potential as chemopreventive agents. In this review, we explore the potential effectiveness of modulating cGAS activity. We discuss the role of cGAMP, the mechanism of action for distinguishing between self and foreign DNA, and the possible functions of cGAS within the nucleus.