Maternal-Fetal Transfer of Anti-SARS-CoV-2 Antibodies in Amniotic Fluid: Insights from Maternal Vaccination and COVID-19 Infection.

: As the COVID-19 pandemic wanes, understanding maternal-fetal antibody transfer remains crucial for optimizing vaccination strategies. This study evaluates anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody levels in amniotic fluid following maternal BNT162b2 mRNA vaccination and/or COVID-19 infection during early pregnancy, focusing on the first and second trimesters. : A retrospective cohort study was conducted at a tertiary university-affiliated hospital, involving 149 pregnant women who underwent amniocentesis.

Antibiotic treatment of women with isolated intrapartum fever vs clinical chorioamnionitis: maternal and neonatal outcomes.

Background: Clinical chorioamnionitis refers to the presence of maternal fever (≥38°C) and at least 2 clinical signs: (1) maternal tachycardia (>100 bpm), (2) fetal tachycardia (>160 bpm), (3) maternal leukocytosis >15,000/mm, (4) purulent vaginal discharge, and (5) uterine tenderness. Few data exist to guide the appropriate management of women with isolated intrapartum fever in the absence of other clinical signs suggesting chorioamnionitis.

Objective: This study compared maternal and neonatal infectious outcomes and microbiological outcomes between women with isolated intrapartum fever and women with clinical chorioamnionitis.

The Utility of Maternal TORCH Screening Due to Obstetrical Indications in Detecting Congenital Infections: A Retrospective Observational Study.

Background: The diagnostic yield of TORCH screening for obstetrical indications is unclear. We evaluated TORCH testing results among women with intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR), polyhydramnios and oligohydramnios; and associations with congenital infections in neonates.

Method: This retrospective single-center study included all the women diagnosed with IUGR, polyhydramnios or oligohydramnios who underwent serological TORCH testing during 2010-2019.

Time to reconsider antibiotic prophylaxis in women with prolonged rupture of membranes: The trend of Enterobacteriaceae in peripartum infections.

Objective: The proportion of neonatal early-onset sepsis (EOS) by gram-negative bacteria has increased. The authors examined bacterial distribution in the amniotic membrane cultures of women with peripartum fever (PPF) and related perinatal outcomes.

Methods: This retrospective study covered the period 2011 to 2019.

Compared perinatal outcomes of two prophylactic antibiotic regimens for preterm premature rupture of membranes: a randomized controlled trial.

Background: Prophylactic antibiotic use in preterm premature rupture of membranes is associated with significantly reduced intra-amniotic infection and improved neonatal outcome, although data are insufficient to determine the optimal antibiotic regimen. Ampicillin resistance has changed the epidemiology of neonatal sepsis.

Objective: This study aimed to determine the efficacy of two antibiotic regimens in prolonging the latency period in women with preterm premature rupture of membranes.

Clinical implications of uterine cultures obtained during urgent caesarean section.

Background: Postpartum endometritis (PPE) is 12-25 times more common following caesarean sections (CS) performed after labour onset than after vaginal delivery. Risk factors for PPE include prolonged rupture of membranes (ROM), chorioamnionitis, prolonged labour, multiple cervical examinations and Group B Streptococcus colonisation of the lower genital tract.

Aims: We compared uterine culture results and microbial antibiotic susceptibility according to ROM duration in emergent intrapartum CS.

Maternal colonization with extended-spectrum β-lactamase-producing Enterobacteriaceae in term versus preterm pregnancies.

Objectives: To examine the prevalence and risk factors of extended-spectrum β-lactamase-producing Enterobacteriaceae (ESBL-E) colonization among women who delivered preterm and at term.

Methods: A prospective observational study of maternal ESBL-E rectovaginal colonization in threatened preterm labor and low-risk term pregnancies was conducted between March 2017 and August 2021 at the Galilee Medical Center, Israel. Obstetric and neonatal complications were compared between colonized and non-colonized mothers and neonates.

Clinical Predictors of Mortality and Critical Illness in Patients with COVID-19 Pneumonia.

Early identification of patients with COVID-19 who will develop severe or critical disease symptoms is important for delivering proper and early treatment. We analyzed demographic, clinical, immunological, hematological, biochemical and radiographic findings that may be of utility to clinicians in predicting COVID-19 severity and mortality. Electronic medical record data from patients diagnosed with COVID-19 from November 2020 to June 2021 in the COVID-19 Department in the Galilee Medical Center, Nahariya, Israel, were collected.

Clearance of the SARS-CoV-2 Virus in an Immunocompromised Patient Mediated by Convalescent Plasma without B-Cell Recovery.

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). This case report presents a patient who had difficulty eradicating the corona virus due to being treated with Rituximab, which depletes B lymphocyte cells and therefore disables the production of neutralizing antibodies. The combined use of external anti-viral agents like convalescent plasma, IVIG and Remdesivir successfully helped the patient's immune system to eradicate the virus without B-cell population recovery.

Vertical Transmission of Extended-Spectrum, Beta-Lactamase-Producing during Preterm Delivery: A Prospective Study.

Maternal carriage and vertical transmission of extended-spectrum, beta-lactamase-producing (ESBL-E), such as , hamper the treatment of infections, resulting in high morbidity. is the most frequent cause of early-onset neonatal sepsis (EOS) in preterm infants, where ESBL-E are more frequently isolated. In this prospective, case-controlled study, maternal rectovaginal ESBL-E colonization and vertical transmission to preterm infants were assessed in 160 women with preterm premature rupture of membranes (PPROM; 57.

A novel extended prophylactic antibiotic regimen in preterm pre-labor rupture of membranes: A randomized trial.

Objectives: Prophylactic antibiotic use in preterm pre-labor rupture of membranes (PPROM) is associated with a significant reduction in intra-amniotic infection and improved neonatal outcome. However, data is insufficient to determine the optimal antibiotic regimen. Considering the rise in Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumonia early-onset sepsis rate and the emergence of ampicillin resistance, our aim is to compare the efficiency of two antibiotic regimens in prolonging pregnancy and reducing infectious morbidity.

Routine uterine culture swab during cesarean section and its clinical correlations: A retrospective comparative study.

Objectives: Cesarean sections, particularly non-elective cesareans, are an important risk factor for the development of postpartum endometritis, a leading cause of postpartum febrile morbidity. We evaluated the yield of obtaining routine intrauterine culture during elective and non-elective cesarean sections, in the prevention and management of postpartum endometritis.

Study Design: A retrospective comparative study investigating the distribution of uterine cultures obtained immediately after fetus and placenta delivery during cesarean sections performed in a single tertiary hospital during 2017.

Characteristics of hospitalised patients with influenza in 2015-2016 in northern Israel: three circulating strains and continued fear of 2009 A/H1N1.

This study aimed to characterise children and adults diagnosed with influenza who were admitted to three medical centres in northern Israel in the winter of 2015-2016, a unique season due to infection with three types of influenza strains: A/H1N1, A/non-H1N1 and B. Data were collected retrospectively from medical records. Influenza A/H1N1 infected mainly adults (61% vs.

Reconsidering the Current Preterm Premature Rupture of Membranes Antibiotic Prophylactic Protocol.

Objective: The purpose of our study was to determine whether the current antibiotic regimen for preterm premature rupture of membranes (PPROM) is adequate for covering the current causative agents and sensitivities of chorioamnionitis and early-onset neonatal sepsis.

Study Design: During a 3-year period, we retrieved the results from placental and amniotic membrane cultures obtained at delivery in cases of maternal fever, chorioamnionitis, and PPROM, and from blood cultures obtained from neonates with early-onset sepsis (EOS) in three participating hospitals. Sensitivity of pathogens to antimicrobial agents was performed using routine microbiologic techniques.

Analysis of the First 100 Patients From the Syrian Civil War Treated in an Israeli District Hospital.

Objective: An analysis of the injuries and treatment of the first 100 patients from the Syrian civil war was conducted to monitor quality of care and outcome.

Summary Background Data: As reports of the collapse of health care systems in regions within Syria reach the media, patients find themselves crossing the border into Israel for the treatment of war injuries. Among these patients are combatants, noncombatants, women, and children.

Reconstitution of an active arginine deiminase pathway in Mycoplasma pneumoniae M129.

Some species of the genus Mycoplasma code for the arginine deiminase pathway (ADI), which enables these bacteria to produce ATP from arginine by the successive reaction of three enzymes: arginine deiminase (ArcA), ornithine carbamoyltransferase (ArcB), and carbamate kinase (ArcC). It so far appears that independently isolated strains of Mycoplasma pneumoniae encode an almost identical truncated version of the ADI pathway in which the proteins ArcA and ArcB have lost their original enzymatic activities due to the deletion of significant regions of these proteins. To study the consequences of a functional ADI pathway, M.

Genomic features and insights into the biology of Mycoplasma fermentans.

We present the complete genomic sequence of Mycoplasma fermentans, an organism suggested to be associated with the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis in humans. The genome is composed of 977,524 bp and has a mean G+C content of 26.95 mol%.

Mycoplasma hyorhinis upregulates calpastatin and inhibits calpain-dependent proteolysis in SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cells.

Mycoplasmas often contaminate cultured cells, leading to alterations in cellular gene expression, protein synthesis, signal transduction and metabolic pathways. Mycoplasmal contamination is often unnoticed, so that mycoplasma-induced alterations in cell functions may not be appreciated, unless specifically studied. Here, we show for the first time that contamination of SH-SY5Y cells by Mycoplasma hyorhinis leads to increased levels of calpastatin (the endogenous inhibitor of the Ca(2+)-dependent protease calpain), resulting in inhibition of Ca(2+)-induced calpain activation and inhibition of calpain-promoted proteolysis in the mycoplasmal-infected cells.

Alpha-enolase resides on the cell surface of Mycoplasma fermentans and binds plasminogen.

Plasminogen (Plg) binding to the cell surface of Mycoplasma fermentans results in a marked increase in the maximal adherence of the organism to HeLa cells, enhanced Plg activation by the urokinase-type Plg activator, and the induction of the internalization of M. fermentans by eukaryotic host cells (A. Yavlovich, A.

Reconstituted proteolipid vesicles prepared from Mycoplasma fermentans membranes are able to bind and fuse with Molt-3 cells.

We describe and characterize reconstituted proteolipid vesicles (rPLV) prepared from solubilized Mycoplasma fermentans membranes and studied their binding to and fusion with host Molt-3 cells. The rPLV were prepared following membrane solubilization by Triton X-100 and detergent removal by SM-2 resin beads. The vesicles thus obtained had a rather uniform diameter of about 1 microm and were sealed as monitored by measuring in an assay that measures the quenching by sodium dithionite of a hydrophobic fluorescent probe incorporated into the rPLV membrane.

Recognition of Mycoplasma hyorhinis by CD99-Fc molecule.

The human CD99 protein is expressed on many cell types and is mostly abundant on lymphocytes and on several tumors. Different functions were attributed to the CD99 receptor, including adhesion, apoptosis and activation. However, until now the only ligand suggested to be recognized by CD99 was CD99 itself.