The presence of endotoxin (detected by the Limulus amebocyte lysate assay) was compared to the presence of viable Haemophilus influenzae and Moraxella catarrhalis (detected by PCR) in 106 middle-ear effusions from pediatric patients with chronic otitis media. Endotoxin was found in 81 of the 106 specimens. Of these 81 specimens, 66 (81.5%) also tested positive for one or both of the gram-negati...

We found six bacteria capable of producing antifreeze protein (AFP) from Ross Island, Antarctica. Among these AFP-producing bacteria, strain No. 82 had the highest antifreeze activity and was identified as Moraxella sp. The optimum temperature and pH for the production of AFP were 5 degrees C and 7.0, respectively. After partially purifying the AFP from the culture supernatant using 60% saturat...

Moraxella catarrhalis is a gram negative diplococcus that causes a variety of upper and lower respiratory tract infections. Patients with malignant, hematological disorders treated with intensive cytotoxic chemotherapy, and recipients of various forms of haematopoietic stem cell transplant receiving immunosuppressive agents are at high risk of developing severe infections and septic complicatio...

The clinical and epidemiological features of an outbreak of nosocomial Moraxella catarrhalis infection in a respiratory unit are described. Six isolates from five patients were shown to be indistinguishable by immunoblotting and restriction endonuclease analysis and different from 11 other, unrelated clinical strains.

9-O-Glycosyloxime derivatives of erythromycin A have been synthesized and their in vitro antibacterial activity compared with that of erythromycin A (1). This new class of macrolide antibiotics showed reduced antibacterial spectrum. However, some derivatives were as or more active than erythromycin A (1) against strains, responsible for respiratory track infections, such as Haemophilus influenz...

Type IV pili, filamentous surface appendages primarily composed of a single protein subunit termed pilin, play a crucial role in the initiation of disease by a wide range of pathogenic bacteria. Although previous electron microscopic studies suggested that pili might be present on the surface of Moraxella catarrhalis isolates, detailed molecular and phenotypic analyses of these structures have ...