Publications by authors named "A Okutani"
In November 2020, a volunteer group reported an outbreak of an infectious disease with a high fatality rate and flu-like symptoms among stray cats in Aoshima, a remote island in Ehime, Japan. Nine adult cats with severe symptoms were hospitalized. Feline calicivirus (FCV) was isolated from pharyngeal swabs of six hospitalized cats.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFcatheter-related bloodstream infections (CRBSIs) are an increasing concern in Japanese hospitals. Although their clinical characteristics have been explored, the genetic relationships and virulence profiles of isolates from CRBSIs remain understudied. Here, using advanced genomic techniques, we investigated the genetic diversity, phylogenetic relationships, and virulence profiles of isolates from patients with bloodstream infections.
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- A study investigated how susceptible domestic cats are to SARS-CoV-2, including different variants like gamma, delta, and omicron.
- Researchers found that cats inoculated with wild-type, gamma, and delta variants could shed the virus for a week and showed no severe symptoms even after being infected with a small amount of the virus.
- While cats developed a strong immune response to the earlier variants, the study revealed that the omicron variant was less effective at replicating in cats and elicited a weaker immune response.
The green tea catechin epigallocatechin gallate (EGCg) has antimicrobial effects on many bacteria. In this study, we investigated the inhibitory effects of EGCg on spores and vegetative cells. The spores were insensitive to EGCg, but the growth of vegetative cells derived from germinated spores was inhibited by EGCg.
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