Atypical Presentation of Thrombotic Thrombocytopenic Purpura (TTP) as an Initial Manifestation of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) in a Young Male.

Thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP) is a rare but life-threatening hematologic disorder characterized by thrombocytopenia, microangiopathic hemolytic anemia, neurologic symptoms, renal impairment, and fever. The etiology of TTP often involves a severe deficiency in ADAMTS13 activity, resulting in the accumulation of ultra-large von Willebrand factor multimers and subsequent microvascular thrombosis. Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a chronic autoimmune disease that can affect multiple organ systems, and although the initial presentation of SLE with TTP is rare, it necessitates a comprehensive diagnostic and therapeutic approach.

Microbial diagnostics in periodontal diseases.

Microbial analytical methods have been instrumental in elucidating the complex microbial etiology of periodontal diseases, by shaping our understanding of subgingival community dynamics. Certain pathobionts can orchestrate the establishment of dysbiotic communities that can subvert the host immune system, triggering inflammation and tissue destruction. Yet, diagnosis and management of periodontal conditions still rely on clinical and radiographic examinations, overlooking the well-established microbial etiology.

Do Concurrent Peri-Implantitis and Periodontitis Share Their Microbiotas? A Pilot Study.

The microbial compositions from concurrent peri-implant and periodontal lesions were compared, since the results reported in the literature on the etiological relationship between these oral pathologies are contradictory. Microbial compositions from nine patients were evaluated using Illumina MiSeq sequencing of 16S rRNA gene amplicons and Principal Components Analysis. Comparisons between the use of curettes or paper points as collection methods and between bacterial composition in both pathologies were performed.

Comparative analysis of multidrug-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae strains of food and human origin reveals overlapping populations.

Given the increasing incidence of multidrug-resistant (MDR) Klebsiella pneumoniae infections, it is of great interest to investigate the risk of transmission associated with the prevalence of this pathogen. Some studies have described fresh raw poultry meat as a reservoir of MDR K. pneumoniae, including clinically relevant sequence types (ST) and extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL) strains, indicating possible consumer exposure.

New Preventive Strategy against Oral Biofilm Formation in Caries-Active Children: An In Vitro Study.

Quorum quenching (QQ) is the inhibition of bacterial communication, i.e., quorum sensing (QS).

Genomics, biofilm formation and infection of bladder epithelial cells in potentially uropathogenic (UPEC) from animal sources and human urinary tract infections (UTIs) further support food-borne transmission.

is the main cause of urinary tract infections (UTI). While genomic comparison of specific clones recovered from animals, and human extraintestinal infections show high identity, studies demonstrating the uropathogenicity are lacking. In this study, comparative genomics combined with bladder-cell and biofilm formation assays, were performed for 31 of different origins: 7 from meat (poultry, beef, and pork); 2 from avian-farm environment; 12 from human uncomplicated UTI, uUTI; and 10 from human complicated UTI, cUTI.

Gram-negative quorum sensing signalling enhances biofilm formation and virulence traits in gram-positive pathogen .

Acyl-homoserine lactones (AHLs) are typical quorum-sensing molecules of gram-negative bacteria. Recent evidence suggests that AHLs may also affect gram-positives, although knowledge of these interactions remains scarce. Here, we assessed the effect of AHLs on biofilm formation and transcriptional regulations in the gram-positive .

The quorum quenching enzyme Aii20J modifies periodontal biofilm formation.

Introduction: Recent studies have revealed the presence of -acyl-homoserine lactones (AHLs) quorum sensing (QS) signals in the oral environment. Yet, their role in oral biofilm development remains scarcely investigated. The use of quorum quenching (QQ) strategies targeting AHLs has been described as efficient for the control of pathogenic biofilms.

Phosphorylcholine-Based Contact Lenses for Sustained Release of Resveratrol: Design, Antioxidant and Antimicrobial Performances, and Behavior.

Design of advanced contact lenses (CLs) demands materials that are safe and comfortable for the wearers and that preserve the normal eye microbiota, avoiding chronic inflammation and biofilm development. This work aimed to combine the natural antibiofouling phosphorylcholine and the antioxidant and prebiotic resveratrol as integral components of CLs that may have the additional performance of preventing oxidative-stress related eye diseases. Different from previous uses of 2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine (MPC) as coating, we explored the feasibility of adding MPC at high proportions as a comonomer of 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA)-based hydrogels while still allowing for the loading of the hydrophobic resveratrol.

Perimeter and carvacrol-loading regulate angiogenesis and biofilm growth in 3D printed PLA scaffolds.

Carvacrol is a natural low-cost compound derived from oregano which presents anti-bacterial properties against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. In this work, carvacrol-loaded PLA scaffolds were fabricated by 3D printing as platforms to support bone tissue regeneration while preventing biofilm development. Scaffolds were printed with or without a perimeter (lateral wall) mimicking the cortical structure of bone tissue to further evaluate if the lateral interconnectivity could affect the biological or antimicrobial properties of the scaffolds.

Photo-oxidative stress response and virulence traits are co-regulated in E. faecalis after antimicrobial photodynamic therapy.

Knowledge of photo-oxidative stress responses in bacteria that survive antimicrobial photodynamic therapy (aPDT) is scarce. Whereas aPDT is attracting growing clinical interest, subsequent stress responses are crucial to evaluate as they may lead to the up-regulation of pathogenic traits. Here, we aimed to assess transcriptional responses to sublethal aPDT-stress and identify potential connections with virulence-related genes.

Quorum quenching and anti-biofilm activities of halotolerant Bacillus strains isolated in different environments in Algeria.

Aims: The current study aimed to screen Bacillus strains with wide-spectrum quorum quenching (QQ) activity against N-acyl-l-homoserine lactones (AHLs), helpful in controlling virulence traits in Gram-negatives, including biofilm formation and also with anti-biofilm activity against Gram-positives.

Methods And Results: A total of 94 halotolerant strains of Bacillus isolated from soil and salt-lake sediment samples in Algeria were examined for the presence of QQ activity against AHLs, the presence of the aiiA gene, encoding an AHL lactonase enzyme typical of Bacillus spp., antimicrobial and anti-biofilm activities against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Streptococcus mutans.

Use of Quorum Sensing Inhibition Strategies to Control Microfouling.

Interfering with the quorum sensing bacterial communication systems has been proposed as a promising strategy to control bacterial biofilm formation, a key process in biofouling development. Appropriate in vitro biofilm-forming bacteria models are needed to establish screening methods for innovative anti-biofilm and anti-microfouling compounds. Four marine strains, two spp.

Quorum Sensing as a Target for Controlling Surface Associated Motility and Biofilm Formation in ATCC 17978.

The important nosocomial pathogen presents a quorum sensing (QS) system (/) mediated by acyl-homoserine-lactones (AHLs) and several quorum quenching (QQ) enzymes. However, the roles of this complex network in the control of the expression of important virulence-related phenotypes such as surface-associated motility and biofilm formation is not clear. Therefore, the effect of the mutation of the AHL synthase AbaI, and the exogenous addition of the QQ enzyme Aii20J on surface-associated motility and biofilm formation by ATCC 17978 was studied in detail.

High Prevalence of Quorum-Sensing and Quorum-Quenching Activity among Cultivable Bacteria and Metagenomic Sequences in the Mediterranean Sea.

There is increasing evidence being accumulated regarding the importance of -acyl homoserine lactones (AHL)-mediated quorum-sensing (QS) and quorum-quenching (QQ) processes in the marine environment, but in most cases, data has been obtained from specific microhabitats, and subsequently little is known regarding these activities in free-living marine bacteria. The QS and QQ activities among 605 bacterial isolates obtained at 90 and 2000 m depths in the Mediterranean Sea were analyzed. Additionally, putative QS and QQ sequences were searched in metagenomic data obtained at different depths (15-2000 m) at the same sampling site.

Chronic stress enhanced fear memories are associated with increased amygdala zif268 mRNA expression and are resistant to reconsolidation.

The chronically stressed brain may present a vulnerability to develop maladaptive fear-related behaviors in response to a traumatic event. In rodents, chronic stress leads to amygdala hyperresponsivity and dendritic hypertrophy and produces a post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)-like phenotype that includes exaggerated fear learning following Pavlovian fear conditioning and resistance to extinction. It is unknown whether chronic stress-induced enhanced fear memories are vulnerable to disruption via reconsolidation blockade, as a novel therapeutic approach for attenuating exaggerated fear memories.

Molecular self-assembly at solid surfaces.

Self-assembly, the process by which objects initially distributed at random arrange into well-defined patterns exclusively due to their local mutual interactions without external intervention, is generally accepted to be the most promising method for large-scale fabrication of functional nanostructures. In particular, the ordering of molecular building-blocks deposited at solid surfaces is relevant for the performance of many organic electronic and optoelectronic devices, such as organic field-effect transistors (OFETs), organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) or photovoltaic solar cells. However, the fundamental knowledge on the nature and strength of the intermolecular and molecule-substrate interactions that govern the ordering of molecular adsorbates is, in many cases, rather scarce.

Real-space direct visualization of the layer-dependent roughening transition in nanometer-thick Pb films.

By means of variable-temperature scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy we studied the thickness-dependent roughening temperature of Pb films grown on Cu(111), whose electronic structure and total energy is controlled by quantum well states created by the spatial confinement of electrons. Large scale STM images are employed to quantify the layer population, i.e.