Association of respiratory infections with the incidence and treatment efficacy in Kawasaki disease.

The etiology of Kawasaki disease (KD) has not yet been completely elucidated. We evaluated the temporal association between respiratory pathogens and KD incidence and the association between respiratory pathogens and treatment responsiveness in patients with KD. This retrospective study was conducted to compare the number of symptomatic children with pathogens detected using multiplex PCR tests with the number of KD cases.

Risk of admission requirement among children with respiratory infection in the post-COVID-19 pandemic era.

Background: To evaluate the effect of the type and codetection of respiratory viruses on admission requirements among children with respiratory infections in the post-COVID-19 pandemic era.

Methods: In this retrospective study, we analyzed patients with acute respiratory symptoms using FilmArray® Respiratory Panel between December 2020 and March 2024. The viruses were classified into eight groups: adenovirus, seasonal coronavirus, human metapneumovirus, human rhinovirus/enterovirus, influenza virus, parainfluenza virus, respiratory syncytial virus, and severe acute respiratory virus coronavirus-2.

Duration of PCR positivity by type of respiratory virus among children using a multiplex PCR test.

Prolonged positive polymerase chain reaction (PCR) results, irrespective of the transmission risk, can lead to prolonged restrictions on daily activities and infection precaution interventions. Studies evaluating the duration of PCR positivity for multiple pathogens in a single patient cohort are scarce. This study aimed to evaluate and compare the durations of PCR positivity for multiple respiratory viruses among children and adolescents.

Engineering of the Long-Main-Chain Monomer-Incorporating Polyhydroxyalkanoate Synthase PhaC for the Biosynthesis of Poly[()-3-hydroxybutyrate--6-hydroxyhexanoate].

Polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) synthases (PhaCs) are useful and versatile tools for the production of aliphatic polyesters. Here, the chimeric PHA synthase PhaC was engineered to increase its capacity to incorporate unusual 6-hydroxyhexanoate (6HHx) units. Mutations at positions 149 and 314 in PhaC were previously found to increase the incorporation of an analogous natural monomer, 3-hydroxyhexanoate (3HHx).

Isolation and characterization of polyhydroxyalkanoate-degrading bacteria in seawater at two different depths from Suruga Bay.

Polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) is a highly biodegradable microbial polyester, even in marine environments. In this study, we incorporated an enrichment culture-like approach in the process of isolating marine PHA-degrading bacteria. The resulting 91 isolates were suggested to fall into five genera (, , , , and ) based on 16S rRNA analysis, including two novel genera ( and ) as marine PHA-degrading bacteria.