Molecular screening of cat and dog ectoparasites for the presence of Bartonella spp. in Attica, Greece.

The purpose of this study was the molecular detection of Bartonella spp. in fleas and ticks parasitizing cats and dogs from 39 locations in Attica, Greece. One hundred and forty five ectoparasites (104 fleas and 41 ticks) from 92 cats and 53 dogs were investigated individually using PCRs targeting the 16S-23S ribosomal RNA intergenic spacer (ITS) and the citrate synthase (gltA) genetic loci.

Visceral leishmaniasis and COVID-19 coinfection - A case report.

As the COVID-19 pandemic spreads across the globe, it will undoubtedly cross paths with long endemic infectious diseases in different areas. Interactions between SARS-CoV2 and well-known pathogens will likely give rise to unfamiliar clinical presentations, depending on complex and as yet unknown immunological interactions. We present a case of coinfection with COVI19 and visceral leishmaniasis and discuss recent reports regarding coexistence of SARS-CoV2 and spp.

Antibody Response Following a Two-Dose mRNA Vaccination Regimen, in Health Care Workers of a Tertiary Hospital in Athens, Greece.

We analyzed the antibody responses of 564 hospital workers in Athens, Greece, after vaccination with two doses of the BNT162b2 (Comirnaty; BioNTech and Pfizer) mRNA COVID-19 vaccine. A greater antibody increase was observed in women, younger age groups, previously infected individuals and personnel working in COVID-19 clinics. Notably, individuals with a prior COVID-19 infection mounted a significantly higher antibody titer following the first dose than the rest of the population; the same was true for those working in COVID-19 clinics, even without history of previous infection.

Effects of Visceralising Leishmania on the Spleen, Liver, and Bone Marrow: A Pathophysiological Perspective.

The leishmaniases constitute a group of parasitic diseases caused by species of the protozoan genus . In humans it can present different clinical manifestations and are usually classified as cutaneous, mucocutaneous, and visceral (VL). Although the full range of parasite-host interactions remains unclear, recent advances are improving our comprehension of VL pathophysiology.

Bioenergetic Profiling of the Differentiating Human MDS Myeloid Lineage with Low and High Bone Marrow Blast Counts.

Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) encompass a very heterogeneous group of clonal hematopoietic stem cell differentiation disorders with malignant potential and an elusive pathobiology. Given the central role of metabolism in effective differentiation, we performed an untargeted metabolomic analysis of differentiating myeloid lineage cells from MDS bone marrow aspirates that exhibited <5% (G1) or ≥5% (G2) blasts, in order to delineate its role in MDS severity and malignant potential. Bone marrow aspirates were collected from 14 previously untreated MDS patients (G1, = 10 and G2, = 4) and age matched controls ( = 5).

An efficient and novel technology for the extraction of parasite genomic DNA from whole blood or culture.

The aim of this study was to assess pathogen DNA extraction with a new spin column-based method (DNA-XT). DNA from either whole-blood samples spiked with or  amastigote culture was extracted with DNA-XT and compared with that produced by a commercial extraction kit (DNeasy). Eluates from large and small sample volumes were assessed by PCR and spectroscopy.

Atlas posterior arch and vertebral artery's groove variants: a classification, morphometric study, clinical and surgical implications.

Background: The third part of the vertebral artery (VA) coursing in vertebral artery groove (VAG) may be injured during posterior craniocervical junction approaches.

Objective: The current study classifies all possible variants of the posterior arch (PA) of the atlas vertebra (C), focusing on VAG and calculates their incidence. PA and VAG morphometry is studied in correlation with gender and age.

A systematic classification of the vertebral artery variable origin: clinical and surgical implications.

Several congenital anomalies regarding the right (RVA) and left (LVA) vertebral artery have been described. The current paper aims to perform a systematic literature review of the variable vertebral artery (VA) origin from the aortic arch (AOA) and its branches. The incidence of these variants and the ensuing AOA branching pattern are highlighted.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteraemia in patients with hematologic malignancies: risk factors, treatment and outcome.

Our aims were to identify factors associated with Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA) bloodstream infection (BSI) in patients with hematological malignancies and evaluate the outcome of the affected patients. Consecutive patients with hematological malignancies who developed PA BSI were identified. Subsequently, two case-control studies were performed to evaluate the risk factors (i) for PA BSI and (ii) for carbapenem resistant (CR) PA BSI.

Lord Byron's death: a case of late malarial relapse?

The study examines the pathological circumstances related to Byron's death, the primary issue being malaria. Lord Byron died during the Greek War of Independence against the Ottoman Empire, in Messolonghi on 19 April 1824. Byron's medical profile consists of recurrent onsets of fever, which gave rise to the issue of malaria relapses.

The history of the Greek Anti-Malaria League and the influence of the Italian School of Malariology.

In 1905, a group of eminent Greek physicians led by Professor of Hygiene and Microbiology Constantinos Savvas and the pediatrician Dr. Ioannis Kardamatis founded the Greek Anti-Malaria League. The League assumed a role that the State would not, and for the next 25 years organized the country's anti-malaria campaign.

Inflammatory bowel disease exacerbation associated with Epstein-Barr virus infection.

Background: Epstein-Barr virus infection is associated with inflammatory bowel disease, but its role as a pathogenetic or exacerbating factor remains unclear.

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between Epstein-Barr virus infection and inflammatory bowel disease, particularly in regard to exacerbation of disease activity.

Design: This was a nonrandomized crosssectional study in subgroups of patients with inflammatory bowel disease compared with a control group with noninflammatory disease.

Evolution of multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii clonal lineages: a 10 year study in Greece (2000-09).

Objectives: To analyse the evolution and genetic relatedness of Acinetobacter baumannii clonal lineages in Greece during a 10 year period.

Methods: The study included 94 randomly selected A. baumannii clinical isolates recovered from 2000 to 2009 in eight tertiary Greek hospitals.

Dissemination of clinical isolates of Klebsiella oxytoca harboring CMY-31, VIM-1, and a New OXY-2-type variant in the community.

The aim of the present study was to investigate the epidemiological link of multidrug-resistant Klebsiella oxytoca isolates causing community-onset infections among patients attending our outpatient department and to investigate the underlying resistance mechanisms. The isolates were tested by agar dilution MICs, phenotypic carbapenemase testing, enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus-PCR, and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). PCR assays and nucleotide sequencing were employed for the identification of bla gene types and the mapping of the integron-containing metallo-β-lactamase (MBL) gene.

Characterization of Enterobius vermicularis in a human population, employing a molecular-based method from adhesive tape samples.

Human infection with the parasitic nematode Enterobius vermicularis occurs worldwide, particularly in children. Although its prevalence may exceed 35% in some parts of the world, molecular studies of E. vermicularis in humans are limited.

Prevalence of Trichomonas vaginalis infection in women attending a major gynaecological hospital in Greece: a cross-sectional study.

Background: The prevalence of Trichomonas vaginalis is not accurately estimated, since it is not a reportable disease.

Aims: To assess the prevalence of T vaginalis infection in women attending a Greek gynaecological hospital and to evaluate four diagnostic methods for T vaginalis infection.

Methods: 255 symptomatic and 247 asymptomatic women were included in the study during 2006-07; 372 were Greek and 130 were immigrants.

Detection and species identification of Old World Leishmania in clinical samples using a PCR-based method.

The aim of this study was to develop a simple, low-cost method for the detection and species differentiation of Leishmania directly from clinical samples, for routine use in a parasitology laboratory. A total of 87 samples was used, including 60 peripheral blood, seven bone marrow and 17 skin lesion material samples, derived from Greek patients with visceral or cutaneous leishmaniasis, and three reference strains. PCR was performed using primers designed to amplify the internal transcribed spacer 1 (ITS1) region of the rRNA gene.