Rapid Emergence, Subsidence, and Molecular Detection of Sequence Type 1193-, a New Disseminated Multidrug-Resistant Commensal and Extraintestinal Pathogen.

sequence type 1193 (ST1193) is an emerging multidrug-resistant pathogen. We performed longitudinal and cross-sectional surveillance for ST1193 among clinical and fecal isolates from Minneapolis Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC) patients and their household members, other Minnesota centers, and national VAMCs and compared these ST1193 isolates with archival human and canine ST1193 isolates from Australia (2008). We also developed and extensively validated a novel multiplex PCR assay for ST1193 and its characteristic (type 1 fimbrial adhesin) allele.

Predicting post-traumatic stress disorder in veterans: interaction of traumatic load with COMT gene variation.

Background: Because post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) by definition can occur only after exposure to a traumatic event, military veterans who are at high risk for trauma exposure are a particularly relevant population for studying the interaction of trauma with genetic factors that may predispose for the disorder. A number of studies have implicated specific genes as possible risk factors in developing PTSD, including the catechol-O-methyltransferase gene (COMT).

Methods: Data from Iraq War veterans (n = 236) were used to examine the interaction between COMT and traumatic experiences in predicting later development of PTSD symptoms.