Publications by authors named "M W Allard"

Context: The genomic surveillance of foodborne pathogens in the United States has grown exponentially in the past decade, grounded in a powerful combination of novel sequencing technologies, bioinformatic approaches, data-sharing networks, and metadata harmonization efforts. This practice report examines recent advances in genomic epidemiology as applied to food safety programs and delineates State, Tribal, Local, and Territorial infrastructure necessary for continued life-saving improvements in public health.

Program: National databases of foodborne pathogen genomes, along with data sharing and evaluation networks such as GenomeTrakr and PulseNet, have transformed how connections are made among isolates and how root causes of outbreaks are determined, allowing much more timely interventions to protect public health.

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Introduction: Granulocyte concentrates (GC) are leukocyte preparations enriched in neutrophils that can potentially save neutropenic patients from life-threatening, antimicrobial-resistant infections. The main challenge of GC transfusions is preserving the viability and antimicrobial activity of neutrophils beyond 24 h to reduce the logistical burden on collection centers and increase the availability of this cell therapy. Thus, the aim of this study was to explore extending the ex vivo viability and antimicrobial activity of GC neutrophils up to 72 h with a unique combination of the clinically-approved additives Plasma-Lyte, SAGM, AS-3 and Alburex.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study investigated the genomic characteristics of different serotypes of bacterial isolates (Agona, Braenderup, Muenchen, and Panama) found in surface waters of Chile, Mexico, and Brazil over three years.
  • Mexican isolates showed a higher prevalence of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) genes compared to those from Chile and Brazil, with specific patterns of ARG distribution across the different serotypes and countries.
  • The research highlights the intricate relationships between the isolates, including gene sharing and clustering patterns that point to surface waters as potential reservoirs for multidrug-resistant bacteria, underscoring the need for ongoing monitoring and research.
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Recent clinical trials targeting tau protein aggregation have heightened interest in tau-based therapies for dementia. Success of such treatments depends crucially on translation from non-clinical animal models. Here, we present the age profile of the PLB2 knock-in model of fronto-temporal dementia in terms of cognition, and by utilising a directly translatable magnetic resonance imaging approach.

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Background: Campylobacter spp. have been reported as a common cause of gastroenteritis in humans in many countries. However, in Brazil there is insufficient data to estimate the impact of Campylobacter in public health.

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