PURPOSE Community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus strains expressing Panton-Valentine leukocidin (PVL) are associated with severe skin and soft tissue infections, necrotizing pneumonia, and eye infections. We determined PVL's toxicity on infected mouse and cultured human corneal epithelial cells and the role of PVL and antibody to PVL in pathogenesis of murine keratitis. ...

Staphylococcus aureus necrotizing pneumonia is a life-threatening disease that is frequently preceded by influenza infection. The S. aureus toxin Panton-Valentine leukocidin (PVL) is most likely causative for necrotizing diseases, but the precise pathogenic mechanisms of PVL and a possible contribution of influenza virus remain to be elucidated. In this study, we present a model that explains h...

The aim of the study was to evaluate magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings in infants with periventricular leukomalacia (PVL) and West syndrome (WS) and determine the neurodevelopmental outcome in children with West syndrome and PVL. Ultrasound and brain MRI were performed in 37 infants with recognized PVL. PVL was categorized according to De Vries, whereas West syndrome was categorized acc...

Panton-Valentine leukocidin (PVL) production by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) was determined in vitro using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), and associations with clinical presentation and bacterial genetic characteristics were examined. PVL production ranged from 0.02 to 4.865 μg/ml and correlated with a multilocus sequence type (MLST) clonal complex associat...

Infections caused by Panton-Valentine leukocidin (PVL)–producing strains of Staphylococcus aureus have been reported with increasing frequency. However, the role of PVL in the pathogenesis of invasive staphylococcal infection is controversial. It is interesting to note that the role played by PVL may depend on the site of infection; although an association between PVL and severity has been repo...

Two hundred infants of below 1501 g at birth were regularly examined with real time ultrasound using a 7.5 MHz transducer. Abnormalities were categorized as periventricular haemorrhage (PVH) (n = 107) or periventricular leucomalacia (PVL), with or without PVH (n = 52). Of the group with PVL, 25 had the appearances of prolonged flare without cavitation. Prospective assessments of up to 50 potent...

One hundred sixty seven survivors among very low birthweight infants with a gestational age of less than 35 weeks have been studied prospectively. The purpose of this study was to clarify the relationship of severe prenatal and perinatal complications and hypocarbic alkalosis, defined as a carbon dioxide tension (PaCO2) of less than or equal to 2.67 kPa and a pH of 7.50 or greater during the fi...

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus is increasingly responsible for staphylococcal infections in the community. A large percentage of the community-acquired methicillin-resistant (CA-MRSA) strains in the USA produce Panton-Valentine leukocidin (PVL), which is associated with severe infections. The virulence of the clinical CA-MRSA strain USA300 was compared to that of its isogenic pvl-d...

The Staphylococcus aureus Panton-Valentine leukocidin (PVL) is a pore-forming toxin secreted by strains epidemiologically associated with the current outbreak of community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) and with the often-lethal necrotizing pneumonia. To investigate the role of PVL in pulmonary disease, we tested the pathogenicity of clinical isolates, isogenic...

BACKGROUND The emergence of multidrug resistant Staphylococcus aureus strains, including methicillin resistant (MRSA), is a global concern. Treatment of bacterial infections in Uganda's health care settings is largely empirical, rarely accompanied by laboratory confirmation. Here we show the burden, characteristics of MRSA and epidemiology of Panton-Valentine Leukocidin (PVL) positive strains i...