Melioidosis in goats at a single Australian farm was caused by multiple diverse lineages of Burkholderia pseudomallei present in soil.

Background: Burkholderia pseudomallei, causative agent of melioidosis, is a One Health concern as it is acquired directly from soil and water and causes disease in humans and agricultural and wild animals. We examined B. pseudomallei in soil and goats at a single farm in the Northern Territory of Australia where >30 goats acquired melioidosis over nine years.

Knockdown resistance mutations are common and widely distributed in Xenopsylla cheopis fleas that transmit plague in Madagascar.

Background: Plague, caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis, remains an important disease in Madagascar, where the oriental rat flea, Xenopsylla cheopis, is a primary vector. To control fleas, synthetic pyrethroids (SPs) have been used for >20 years, resulting in resistance in many X. cheopis populations.

DNA Capture and Enrichment: A Culture-Independent Approach for Characterizing the Genomic Diversity of Pathogenic Species.

Because they are difficult to culture, obtaining genomic information from spp. is challenging, hindering the overall understanding of leptospirosis. We designed and validated a culture-independent DNA capture and enrichment system for obtaining genomic information from complex human and animal samples.

Burkholderia thailandensis Isolated from the Environment, United States.

Burkholderia thailandensis, an opportunistic pathogen found in the environment, is a bacterium closely related to B. pseudomallei, the cause of melioidosis. Human B.

Low risk of acquiring melioidosis from the environment in the continental United States.

Melioidosis is an underreported human disease of tropical and sub-tropical regions caused by the saprophyte Burkholderia pseudomallei. Although most global melioidosis cases are reported from tropical regions in Southeast Asia and northern Australia, there are multiple occurrences from sub-tropical regions, including the United States (U.S.

Diverse lineages of pathogenic Leptospira species are widespread in the environment in Puerto Rico, USA.

Background: Leptospirosis, caused by Leptospira bacteria, is a common zoonosis worldwide, especially in the tropics. Reservoir species and risk factors have been identified but surveys for environmental sources are rare. Furthermore, understanding of environmental Leptospira containing virulence associated genes and possibly capable of causing disease is incomplete, which may convolute leptospirosis diagnosis, prevention, and epidemiology.

The role for MRI-guided transurethral ultrasound ablation in the continuum of prostate cancer care.

Prostate cancer continues to have a negative impact on the duration and quality of life for males and their families. MRI is transforming the pathway of prostate cancer detection, diagnosis, staging, and surveillance, backed by multiple Level 1 studies and robust reporting standards. This evolving paradigm of MRI-directed care is now being expanded to include in-bore MRI-guided prostate tissue ablation techniques, which reduce the burden of genitourinary complications associated with standard-of-care treatments, without sacrificing cancer control.

Expanding the Complex with the Addition of Two Novel Species: sp. nov. and sp. nov.

Distinct strains were isolated from soil samples collected in tropical northern Australia (Northern Territory and the Torres Strait Islands, Queensland). Phylogenetic analysis of 16S rRNA and whole genome sequences revealed these strains were distinct from previously described species and assigned them to two novel clades within the B. pseudomallei complex (Bpc).

Oncologically Relevant Findings Reporting and Data System (ONCO-RADS): Guidelines for the Acquisition, Interpretation, and Reporting of Whole-Body MRI for Cancer Screening.

Acknowledging the increasing number of studies describing the use of whole-body MRI for cancer screening, and the increasing number of examinations being performed in patients with known cancers, an international multidisciplinary expert panel of radiologists and a geneticist with subject-specific expertise formulated technical acquisition standards, interpretation criteria, and limitations of whole-body MRI for cancer screening in individuals at higher risk, including those with cancer predisposition syndromes. The Oncologically Relevant Findings Reporting and Data System (ONCO-RADS) proposes a standard protocol for individuals at higher risk, including those with cancer predisposition syndromes. ONCO-RADS emphasizes structured reporting and five assessment categories for the classification of whole-body MRI findings.

No evidence for enzootic plague within black-tailed prairie dog (Cynomys ludovicianus) populations.

Yersinia pestis, causative agent of plague, occurs throughout the western United States in rodent populations and periodically causes epizootics in susceptible species, including black-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus). How Y. pestis persists long-term in the environment between these epizootics is poorly understood but multiple mechanisms have been proposed, including, among others, a separate enzootic transmission cycle that maintains Y.

Long-Term Survival of Virulent Tularemia Pathogens outside a Host in Conditions That Mimic Natural Aquatic Environments.

, the causative agent of the zoonotic disease tularemia, can cause seasonal outbreaks of acute febrile illness in humans with disease peaks in late summer to autumn. Interestingly, its mechanisms for environmental persistence between outbreaks are poorly understood. One hypothesis is that forms biofilms in aquatic environments.

Burkholderia pseudomallei in Soil, US Virgin Islands, 2019.

The distribution of Burkholderia pseudomallei in the Caribbean is poorly understood. We isolated B. pseudomallei from US Virgin Islands soil.

COYOTES () IN ARIZONA, USA, EXHIBIT IMMUNE AND GENETIC EVIDENCE OF RICKETTSIAL INFECTIONS.

Rocky Mountain spotted fever (RMSF), caused by the bacterium , was recognized as endemic in Arizona, US after a 2002 outbreak and has since been a public health concern. The brown dog tick ( sensu lato) is the principal vector of this pathogen in Arizona. Domesticated dogs () are the tick's main host, so free-roaming dogs in peridomestic areas have been named the primary risk factor for human cases of RMSF.

Burkholderia pseudomallei, the causative agent of melioidosis, is rare but ecologically established and widely dispersed in the environment in Puerto Rico.

Background: Burkholderia pseudomallei is a soil-dwelling bacterium and the causative agent of melioidosis. The global burden and distribution of melioidosis is poorly understood, including in the Caribbean. B.

Caprine humoral response to Burkholderia pseudomallei antigens during acute melioidosis from aerosol exposure.

Burkholderia pseudomallei causes melioidosis, a common source of pneumonia and sepsis in Southeast Asia and Northern Australia that results in high mortality rates. A caprine melioidosis model of aerosol infection that leads to a systemic infection has the potential to characterize the humoral immune response. This could help identify immunogenic proteins for new diagnostics and vaccine candidates.

Climate-driven reduction of genetic variation in plant phenology alters soil communities and nutrient pools.

We examined the hypothesis that climate-driven evolution of plant traits will influence associated soil microbiomes and ecosystem function across the landscape. Using a foundation tree species, Populus angustifolia, observational and common garden approaches, and a base population genetic collection that spans 17 river systems in the western United States, from AZ to MT, we show that (a) as mean annual temperature (MAT) increases, genetic and phenotypic variation for bud break phenology decline; (b) soil microbiomes, soil nitrogen (N), and soil carbon (C) vary in response to MAT and conditioning by trees; and (c) with losses of genetic variation due to warming, population-level regulation of community and ecosystem functions strengthen. These results demonstrate a relationship between the potential evolutionary response of populations and subsequent shifts in ecosystem function along a large temperature gradient.

Phylogenetic analysis of West Nile Virus in Maricopa County, Arizona: Evidence for dynamic behavior of strains in two major lineages in the American Southwest.

West Nile Virus (WNV) has been detected annually in Maricopa County, Arizona, since 2003. With this in mind, we sought to determine if contemporary strains are endemic to the county or are annually imported. As part of this effort, we developed a new protocol for tiled amplicon sequencing of WNV to efficiently attain greater than 99% coverage of 14 WNV genomes collected directly from positive mosquito pools distributed throughout Maricopa County between 2014 and 2017.

Range-wide genetic analysis of Dermacentor variabilis and its Francisella-like endosymbionts demonstrates phylogeographic concordance between both taxa.

Background: The American dog tick, Dermacentor variabilis, is an important vector of pathogens to humans, wildlife and domestic animals in North America. Although this tick species is widely distributed in the USA and Canada, knowledge of its range-wide phylogeographic patterns remains incomplete.

Methods: We carried out a phylogenetic analysis of D.

Phylogeographic, genomic, and meropenem susceptibility analysis of Burkholderia ubonensis.

The bacterium Burkholderia ubonensis is commonly co-isolated from environmental specimens harbouring the melioidosis pathogen, Burkholderia pseudomallei. B. ubonensis has been reported in northern Australia and Thailand but not North America, suggesting similar geographic distribution to B.

Burkholderia humptydooensis sp. nov., a New Species Related to Burkholderia thailandensis and the Fifth Member of the Burkholderia pseudomallei Complex.

During routine screening for from water wells in northern Australia in areas where it is endemic, Gram-negative bacteria (strains MSMB43, MSMB121, and MSMB122) with a similar morphology and biochemical pattern to and were coisolated with on Ashdown's selective agar. To determine the exact taxonomic position of these strains and to distinguish them from and , they were subjected to a series of phenotypic and molecular analyses. Biochemical and fatty acid methyl ester analysis was unable to distinguish sp.

VNTR diversity in Yersinia pestis isolates from an animal challenge study reveals the potential for in vitro mutations during laboratory cultivation.

Underlying mutation rates and other evolutionary forces shape the population structure of bacteria in nature. Although easily overlooked, similar forces are at work in the laboratory and may influence observed mutations. Here, we investigated tissue samples and Yersinia pestis isolates from a rodent laboratory challenge with strain CO92 using whole genome sequencing and multi-locus variable-number tandem repeat (VNTR) analysis (MLVA).