Prevalence of Staphylococcus aureus nasal colonization in emergency department personnel.

Study Objective: Nasal colonization with Staphylococcus aureus and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) can precede infection in patients and contacts. Although general population S aureus/MRSA rates are well described, the prevalence of S aureus and MRSA nasal colonization in emergency department health care workers is not defined. We seek to determine the prevalence of S aureus and MRSA nasal colonization among ED health care workers without evidence of an active site of staphylococcal infection and identify variables associated with colonization.

Impaired olfactory behavior in mice deficient in the alpha subunit of G(o).

The ability to respond to chemical signals is essential for the survival and reproduction of most organisms. Olfactory signaling involves odorant receptor-mediated activation of G(olf), a homologue of G(s), on the dendrites of olfactory neurons. Olfactory receptor cells, however, also express Galpha(i2) and Galpha(o) on their axons, with all neurons expressing G(o) and a subset G(i2).