Vancomycin-sensitive bacteraemia - hospital transmission and mortality in a Danish University Hospital.

The emergence of vancomycin-resistant (VREfm) has left the vancomycin-sensitive (VSEfm) strains almost unnoticed. Molecular characteristics, hospital transmission patterns and clinical impact of VSEfm have changed, and VSEfm is a predictor of VREfm introduction. We wanted to do a molecular characterization of VSEfm to identify hospital transmissions and links between VSEfm and VREfm, and to investigate the demographics, treatment and impact on mortality of VSEfm bacteraemia.

A Simple and Rapid Low-Cost Procedure for Detection of Vancomycin-Resistance Genes in Enterococci Reveals an Outbreak of Vancomycin-Variable .

The detection of resistance to vancomycin in enterococci cultured from patients is important for the treatment of individual patients and for the prevention of hospital transmission. Phenotypic antimicrobial resistance tests may fail to detect potential vancomycin-resistant enterococci. We have developed and tested a PCR based procedure for routine screening for vancomycin-resistance genes in clinical samples with enterococci.

SARS-CoV-2 viral load as a predictor for disease severity in outpatients and hospitalised patients with COVID-19: A prospective cohort study.

Introduction: We aimed to examine if severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) polymerase chain reaction (PCR) cycle quantification (Cq) value, as a surrogate for SARS-CoV-2 viral load, could predict hospitalisation and disease severity in adult patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

Methods: We performed a prospective cohort study of adult patients with PCR positive SARS-CoV-2 airway samples including all out-patients registered at the Department of Infectious Diseases, Odense University Hospital (OUH) March 9-March 17 2020, and all hospitalised patients at OUH March 10-April 21 2020. To identify associations between Cq-values and a) hospital admission and b) a severe outcome, logistic regression analyses were used to compute odds ratios (OR) and 95% Confidence Intervals (CI), adjusting for confounding factors (aOR).

Transmission of cytomegalovirus in fresh and freeze-thawed mother's own milk to very preterm infants: a cohort study.

Objectives: The objectives of the study were to clarify: (i) the frequency of human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) transmission, (ii) the association between the viral load in mother's own milk (MOM), the amount of fresh MOM and transmission, and (iii) the frequency of sepsis-like-symptoms (SLS) among infants born to seropositive mothers compared to infants born to seronegative mothers.

Study Design: This prospective cohort study enrolled very preterm infants (gestational age <32 weeks) from Denmark. Weekly samples of fresh MOM and urine were analyzed for HCMV-DNA.

Prospective Study of Long Noncoding RNA, MGAT3-AS1, and Viremia of BK Polyomavirus and Cytomegalovirus in Living Donor Renal Transplant Recipients.

Introduction: Viremia after renal transplantation is a major cause of morbidity and mortality and treatment opportunities are limited. Tests to determine the increased risk for viremia would be preferable.

Methods: In a prospective, single-center study, we conducted follow-up of 163 renal transplant recipients after incident living donor renal transplantation.

Plasmodium cynomolgi as Cause of Malaria in Tourist to Southeast Asia, 2018.

We report human infection with simian Plasmodium cynomolgi in a tourist from Denmark who had visited forested areas in peninsular Malaysia and Thailand in August and September 2018. Because P. cynomolgi may go unnoticed by standard malaria diagnostics, this malaria species may be more common in humans than was previously thought.

Pertactin-deficient isolates: evidence of increased circulation in Europe, 1998 to 2015.

IntroductionPertussis outbreaks have occurred in several industrialised countries using acellular pertussis vaccines (ACVs) since the 1990s. High prevalence of pertactin (PRN)-deficient isolates has been found in these countries.AimsTo evaluate in Europe: (i) whether proportions of PRN-deficient strains increased in consecutive collections of clinical isolates; (ii) if the frequency of PRN-deficient strains in countries correlated with the time since ACV introduction; (iii) the presence of pertussis toxin (PT)-, filamentous haemagglutinin (FHA)- or fimbriae (Fim)-deficient isolates.

Use of Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification in a Resource-Saving Strategy for Primary Malaria Screening in a Non-Endemic Setting.

Malaria is traditionally diagnosed by blood smear microscopy, which requires continuous resource-demanding training. In areas with only a few cases of malaria, a simple and rapid test that can reliably exclude malaria could significantly reduce the need for microscopy and training. We evaluated whether loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) for screening malaria parasites could reduce the workload in the diagnosis of malaria.

Surveillance of Circulating Bordetella pertussis Strains in Europe during 1998 to 2015.

One reason for increased pertussis incidence is the adaptation of to vaccine-induced immunity by modulating its genomic structure. This study, EUpert IV, includes 265 isolates collected from nine European countries during 2012 to 2015 ( = 265) and compares the results to previous EUpert I to III studies (1998 to 2009). The analyses included genotyping, serotyping, pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE), and multilocus variable-number tandem-repeat analysis (MLVA).

Cryptosporidium Species are Frequently Present But Rarely Detected in Clinical Samples From Children with Diarrhea in a Developed Country.

Two studies were done on cryptosporidiosis in children. A retrospective survey showed that from 2005 to 2015, Cryptosporidium species was detected by microscopy of stool from 0.25% of children with diarrhea.

Prevalence of antimicrobial resistance and the cfiA resistance gene in Danish Bacteroides fragilis group isolates since 1973.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of resistance and the cfiA carbapenemase-producing gene in historical Bacteroides fragilis group isolates.

Methods: Danish clinical B. fragilis group isolates (n = 444) from 1973 to 2015 were identified with Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization Time-Of-Flight Mass Spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) on the Biotyper platform.

Two Serious Cases of Infection with Clostridium celatum after 40 Years in Hiding?

Clostridium celatum [ce.la'tum. L.

Circulating surfactant protein D is decreased in systemic lupus erythematosus.

Objective: Deficiencies of innate immune molecules like mannan binding lectin (MBL) have been implicated in the pathogenesis of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Surfactant protein D (SP-D) and MBL belong to the same family of innate immune molecules - the collectins, which share important structural and functional properties. We aimed to compare concentrations of serum SP-D in patients with SLE and in healthy controls, and to investigate if SP-D is associated with selected disease indicators.

Multimeric and trimeric subunit SP-D are interconvertible structures with distinct ligand interaction.

Surfactant protein-D (SP-D) is a calcium dependent lectin in the innate immune system that facilitates clearance of microbes. The protein is associated with mucosal surfaces, and also found in bronchoalveolar lavage, serum and amniotic fluid. Human SP-D includes trimeric subunits and multimeric assemblies of trimeric subunits, which are stabilized by N-terminal interchain disulfide crosslinks.

Long-term stability and circadian variation in circulating levels of surfactant protein D.

Surfactant protein D (SP-D) is an oligomeric calcium-dependent lectin with important roles in innate host defence against infectious microorganisms. Several studies have shown that patients with inflammatory lung disease have elevated levels of circulating SP-D, and serum SP-D has been suggested to be used as a biomarker for disease e.g.