Comparison of Clinical Characteristics and Mortality Outcome in Critical COVID-19 Patients Infected with Alpha and Omicron Variants.

Objective: Early reports have indicated that the Omicron variant of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) may be associated with low mortality. However, the mortality rate of critical patients in Taiwan with COVID-19 caused by different variants has not been well described.

Methods: This retrospective cohort study was conducted at the Linkou Branch of Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taiwan, from April 2020 to September 2022.

Recommendation for the use of respiratory syncytial virus vaccines.

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is the most common pathogen for young children hospitalized with bronchiolitis and pneumonia. Most infections occur below 1 year of age. RSV is also a significant viral pathogen for adults with respiratory tract infection.

Superior persistence of ustekinumab compared to anti-TNF in vedolizumab-experienced inflammatory bowel diseases patients: a real-world cohort study.

Background/aims: The increasing use of biologic therapies for moderate to severe inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) highlights the importance of optimal treatment sequencing, particularly after vedolizumab (VDZ) exposure. Studies comparing the effectiveness of ustekinumab (UST) and antitumor necrosis factor (anti-TNF) agents post-VDZ are limited.

Methods: This retrospective study analyzed VDZ-experienced IBD patients treated with UST or anti-TNF (adalimumab and infliximab) from May 2019 to January 2024.

Safety, tolerability, and efficacy of intranasally-administered detoxified LTh(αK) in mild-to-moderate COVID-19 patients: A randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled phase 2 study.

The objective of the study was to assess the safety, tolerability, and potential efficacy of intranasally administered AD17002, a detoxified form of heat-labile enterotoxin, in treating individuals with mild-to-moderate coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19). In this randomized, double-blinded, and placebo-controlled phase 2a study, a total of 30 adults aged 20-70 years with mild-to-moderate COVID-19 were recruited from three medical centers in Taiwan in 2022-2023. The trial comprised two cohorts, and participants were randomly assigned to receive intranasal administrations of either three doses of AD17002 immunomodulator or a placebo formulation buffer.

High cumulative antibiotic exposure in extremely low birth weight infants during the first month of life: Risk factors and clinical outcomes.

Background: Extremely low birthweight (ELBW) infants invariably receive multiple antibiotic therapies during hospitalization. However, the causes of high cumulative antibiotic exposure, as well as the impact of such exposure on the outcomes of preterm infants, particularly long-term neurodevelopmental outcomes, remain to be elucidated. Furthermore, the cumulative effects of simultaneous use of multiple antibiotics are often overlooked.

Clinical features and immune memory of breakthrough infection in children after age-appropriate 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccination in Taiwan.

Purpose: As certain vaccine serotypes are still circulating within the community during the PCV13 era, we aimed to delineate the clinical features and assess the immunity following breakthrough infections in children.

Methods: 101 PCVs-vaccinated children < 18 years with culture confirmed PCV13 serotype breakthrough infection (25/101, invasive pneumococcal disease [IPD]) was identified in Taiwan in 2015-2019. Immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibody levels, IgM memory B cells (MBCs), and isotype-switched immunoglobulin (sIg) MBC specific to serotypes 3, 14, 19 A were assessed prior to and one month after an additional PCV13 booster in 9 patients.

Pneumococcal serotype prevalence and antibiotic resistance in children in South and Southeast Asia, 2012-2024.

This narrative review describes pneumococcal serotype prevalence for invasive disease and carriage and antibiotic resistance among specimens collected from children in countries across South and Southeast Asia from 2012 to 2024. Literature search retrieved 326 articles; 96 were included. The prevalence of pneumococcal serotypes varied geographically and over time after introduction of pneumococcal conjugate vaccine.

Neonatal gut microbiota profile and the association with retinopathy of prematurity in preterm infants.

Background: To explore the role of gut microbiota in preterm infants at high risk of developing retinopathy of prematurity (ROP).

Methods: Preterm infants with gestational age (GA) < 32 weeks and/or birth weight (BW) < 1500 g born between 2020 and 2021 were prospectively enrolled. Their faecal samples were collected and analysed at different postnatal ages of life using 16S rRNA gene sequencing on the Miseq platform.

Worldwide SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant infection: Emerging sub-variants and future vaccination perspectives.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has sparked widespread concern globally, particularly with the Omicron variant and its sub-lineages emerging as the predominant cause of infection for nearly two years. Taiwan's successful containment of COVID-19, underscored by broad vaccine coverage, the utilization of anti-viral therapeutics, and timely response strategies, has resulted in reduced excess mortality. Moreover, there is a crucial need for a phased exit strategy, balancing efforts to curtail disease transmission with the mitigation of socioeconomic impacts from rigorous measures.

RAGE participates in the intracellular transport of Campylobacter jejuni cytolethal distending toxin.

Background: Cytolethal distending toxin (CDT) belongs to the genotoxin family and is closely related to Campylobacter jejuni-associated gastroenteritis. We recently reported that CDT triggers the danger-associated molecular pattern (DAMP) signaling to exert deleterious effects on host cells. However, how CDT traffics in cells and the mechanism of CDT intoxication remain to be elucidated.

Comparative Efficacy of Fecal Microbiota Transplantation in Treating Refractory or Recurrent Infection among Patients with and without Inflammatory Bowel Disease: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

infection (CDI) worsens inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) prognosis. While fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) is effective for refractory or recurrent CDI (rrCDI), comparative success rates between IBD and non-IBD patients are scarce. This study addresses this gap.

Clinical characteristics of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.2 infection and its impact on pediatric emergency care in northern Taiwan.

Background: The SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.2 outbreak started in Taiwan in April 2022. The pandemic posed a challenge to pediatric emergency departments (PEDs) because of increased PED visits and diverse clinical presentations.

Capsule-deficient group A evades autophagy-mediated killing in macrophages.

Unlabelled: The hyaluronic acid capsule is crucial in protecting group A (GAS) against phagocytic killing. However, there have been reported outbreaks caused by capsule-deficient GAS strains, and the mechanisms underlying their evasion of immune clearance remain unclear. This study demonstrated that the capsule-deficient mutant [Cap(-)] of the strain increased survival within phagocytic cells compared to the wild-type strain [Cap(+)].

Factors associated with treatment responses to pioglitazone in patients with steatotic liver disease: A 3-year prospective cohort study.

Aim: The response rate to pioglitazone and the predictive factors for its effects on improving liver biochemistry in patients with steatotic liver disease (SLD) remain elusive, so we aimed to investigate these issues.

Methods: A 3-year prospective cohort study of 126 Taiwanese patients with SLD treated with pioglitazone (15-30 mg/day) was conducted. Phospholipase domain-containing protein 3 I148M rs738409, methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase rs1801133, aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 (ALDH2) rs671 and lipoprotein lipase rs10099160 single nucleotide polymorphisms were assessed in the patients.

Adequate antiviral treatment lowers overall complications of cytomegalovirus colitis among inpatients with inflammatory bowel diseases.

Background: Cytomegalovirus (CMV) colitis significantly complicates the course of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), frequently leading to severe flare-ups and poor outcomes. The role of antiviral therapy in hospitalized IBD patients with CMV colitis is currently under debate. This retrospective analysis seeks to clarify the influence of antiviral treatment on these patients.

Doxycycline cotherapy with albendazole relieves neural function damage in C57BL/6 and BALB/c mice infected with Angiostrongylus cantonensis.

Background: We investigated the effects of combination therapy albendazole and doxycycline in Angiostrongylus cantonensis-infected mice during early and late treatment.

Materials And Methods: C57BL/6 and BALB/c mice were divided into five groups: (i) uninfected, (ii) infected with A. cantonensis, (iii) infected + 10 mg/kg albendazole, (iv) infected + 25 mg/kg doxycycline, and (v) infected + 10 mg/kg albendazole + 25 mg/kg doxycycline.

Antimicrobial activity of eravacycline and other comparative agents on aerobic and anaerobic bacterial pathogens in Taiwan: A clinical microbiological study.

Objectives: Eravacycline, a new tetracycline derivative, exhibits broad-spectrum antimicrobial susceptibility. This study aimed to comprehensively investigate in vitro activities of eravacycline, tigecycline, and ertapenem against various Gram-positive, Gram-negative, and anaerobic bacteria.

Methods: Minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) were determined using the broth microdilution method.