An in vitro model of microbial contamination in the operating room.

Infection associated with tissue-contacting biomedical devices is a compelling clinical problem initiated by the microbial colonization of the device surface. Among the possible sources of contaminating bacteria is the operating room (OR) itself, where viable bacteria in the atmosphere can sediment onto a device surface intraoperatively. We have developed an aerosolizing system that can reproducibly spray small quantities of aerosolized bacteria onto a surface to mimic OR contamination.

Clinical outcomes following intradiscal injections of higher-concentration platelet-rich plasma in patients with chronic lumbar discogenic pain.

Purpose: This study aimed to assess clinical outcomes following intradiscal injections of higher-concentration (> 10 ×) platelet-rich plasma (PRP) in patients with chronic lumbar discogenic pain and to compare outcomes with a historical cohort.

Methods: This retrospective study included 37 patients who received intradiscal injections of higher-concentration (> 10 ×) PRP and had post-procedure outcomes data (visual numerical scale pain score, Functional Rating Index [FRI], and NASS Patient Satisfaction Index). Outcomes were compared to a historical cohort of 29 patients who received intradiscal injections of < 5X PRP.

A retrospective analysis of a commercially available platelet-rich plasma kit during clinical use.

Introduction: Point-of-care analyses of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) are not routine in the orthopedic regenerative medicine field. Therefore, many physicians rely on the manufacturer's reported content for commercial preparation kits. This contributes to a knowledge gap between injectate content and patient outcome.

Optimizing the safety of intradiscal platelet-rich plasma: an study with .

The most common risk associated with intradiscal injection of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) is discitis with . It is hypothesized that antimicrobial activity of PRP can be enhanced through inclusion of leukocytes or antibiotics in the injectate. Multiple PRP preparations of varying platelet and leukocyte counts were co-cultured with with or without cefazolin, with viable bacterial colony counts being recovered at 0, 4, 24 and 48 hours post-inoculation.

Bacterial toxin YafQ is an endoribonuclease that associates with the ribosome and blocks translation elongation through sequence-specific and frame-dependent mRNA cleavage.

Toxin-antitoxin (TA) systems on the chromosomes of free-living bacteria appear to facilitate cell survival during intervals of stress by inducing a state of reversible growth arrest. However, upon prolonged stress, TA toxin action leads to cell death. They have been implicated in several clinically important phenomena--bacterial persistence during antibiotic treatment, biofilm formation and bacterial pathogenesis--and serve as attractive new antibiotic targets for pathogens.

Loss of the Rpb4/Rpb7 subcomplex in a mutant form of the Rpb6 subunit shared by RNA polymerases I, II, and III.

We have identified a conditional mutation in the shared Rpb6 subunit, assembled in RNA polymerases I, II, and III, that illuminated a new role that is independent of its assembly function. RNA polymerase II and III activities were significantly reduced in mutant cells before and after the shift to nonpermissive temperature. In contrast, RNA polymerase I was marginally affected.