Prevalence and genetic heterogeneity of Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato in Ixodes ticks in Belgium.

Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato is a genetically diverse group of spirochetes that includes the agent of Lyme borreliosis in which genospecies tend to be associated with specific clinical features. The aim of the study was to determine the prevalence and genetic diversity of Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato in 524 ticks collected in woods of a western province of Belgium. Presence of spirochetes in ticks was determined by phase contrast microscopy.

Crystal structure of the streptococcal superantigen SpeI and functional role of a novel loop domain in T cell activation by group V superantigens.

Superantigens (SAgs) are potent microbial toxins that bind simultaneously to T cell receptors (TCRs) and class II major histocompatibility complex molecules, resulting in the activation and expansion of large T cell subsets and the onset of numerous human diseases. Within the bacterial SAg family, streptococcal pyrogenic exotoxin I (SpeI) has been classified as belonging to the group V SAg subclass, which are characterized by a unique, relatively conserved approximately 15 amino acid extension (amino acid residues 154 to 170 in SpeI; herein referred to as the alpha3-beta8 loop), absent in SAg groups I through IV. Here, we report the crystal structure of SpeI at 1.

Antibiotic selection and resistance issues with fluoroquinolones and doxycycline against bioterrorism agents.

Bacillus anthracis (anthrax), Yersinia pestis (plague), Francisella tularensis (tularemia), Coxiella burnetti (Q fever), and Brucella sp (brucellosis) are all potential bioterrorism agents. Their known virulence, potential lethality, and ability to develop resistance to known antibiotic treatments make these pathogens particularly dangerous. We reviewed the scientific literature by searching MEDLINE databases and published abstracts from the Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy and the Infectious Diseases Society of America from 1989-2005 for studies of each of these biologic agents with the specific aim of examining whether doxycycline or a fluoroquinolone should be stockpiled for mass-scale postexposure prophylaxis.

High prevalence of penicillin resistance and comparative in vitro activity of various antibiotics in clinical isolates of streptococcus pneumoniae isolated in the Province of Hainaut during winter 2004.

A total of 154 isolates of Streptococcus pneumoniae obtained from 8 different centres in the province of Hainaut were included in this study. The susceptibilities to penicillin, amoxicillin, cefuroxime, ciprofloxacin, moxifloxacin, erythromycin and tetracycline were determined by a microdilution technique following NCCLS recommendations. Decreased susceptibility to penicillin was 32.