The microbiological and chemical quality of tank-stored rainwater is impacted directly by roof catchment and subsequent run-off contamination, via direct depositions by birds and small mammals, decay of accumulated organic debris, and atmospheric deposition of airborne micro-organisms and chemical pollutants. Previous literature reports on roof water quality have given little consideration to t...

e-mail: Giovanni. [email protected] l objective: the aim of the study was to compare the efficacy of a microorganism-binding (mB) dressing with a silver-containing hydrofiber (sch) dressing in controlling the bacterial loads of heavily colonised or locally infected chronic venous leg ulcers, before surgical management with homologous skin grafts. l Method: a randomised comparative single centre...

The role of quantitative bacteriology is considered controversial for the prediction of infection in open fractures. A study was done in 20 patients with open fractures. Post debridement pieces of skin, muscle and periosteal tissue were obtained for quantitative bacterial counts. Among a total of 50 samples from all of the tissues, 29 showed positive bacterial counts (16 of 20 skin, 11 of 20 mu...

OBJECTIVE To determine the risk factors and clinical significance of anti-PGL-I seropositivity. DESIGN A large-scale sero-epidemiological study (COLEP) was carried out in northwest Bangladesh. Blood on filter paper from 1025 newly diagnosed patients was collected before treatment was started and tested with an anti-PGL-I ELISA; the relation between patient determinants and seropositivity was ...

Parachlamydia acanthamoebae is an obligate intracellular bacterium naturally infecting free-living amoebae. The role of this bacterium as an agent of pneumonia is suggested by sero-epidemiological studies and molecular surveys. Furthermore, P. acanthamoebae may escape macrophages microbicidal effectors. Recently, we demonstrated that intratracheal inoculation of P. acanthamoebae induced pneumon...

Animals live in a bacterial world, and detecting and exploring adaptations favouring mutualistic relationships with antibiotic-producing bacteria as a strategy to fight pathogens are of prime importance for evolutionary ecologists. Uropygial secretion of European hoopoes (Upupa epops, Linnaeus) contains antimicrobials from mutualistic bacteria that may be used to prevent embryo infection. Here,...

Though bacterial etiology of leprosy was suggested in 1873 by Hansen, the progress in understanding the biology of the leprosy bacillus has been very slow. Mycobacterium leprae has not been cultivated in vitro in any acceptable medium system. Growth of M.laprae in animal experiments is useful only at the research level. However, for assessment of the efficacy of drug therapy, repeated monitorin...