Using Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Nasal Screens to Rule Out Methicillin-Resistant S aureus Pneumonia in Surgical Intensive Care Units.

Introduction: The methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) polymerase chain reaction (PCR) has a high negative predictive value (NPV). We aimed to understand if there was a difference in the NPV of the MRSA screen in surgical intensive care units (ICUs) and to determine its role in antibiotic de-escalation.

Methods: We performed a single-center, retrospective cohort study of adults with a positive respiratory culture and MRSA nasal PCR admitted to a surgical ICU from 2016 to 2019.

Bacterial production of organic acids enhances H2O2-dependent iodide oxidation.

To develop an understanding of the role that microorganisms play in the transport of (129)I in soil-water systems, bacteria isolated from subsurface sediments were assessed for iodide oxidizing activity. Spent liquid medium from 27/84 bacterial cultures enhanced iodide oxidation 2-10 fold in the presence of H(2)O(2). Organic acids secreted by the bacteria were found to enhance iodide oxidation by (1) lowering the pH of the spent medium, and (2) reacting with H(2)O(2) to form peroxy carboxylic acids, which are extremely strong oxidizing agents.

Iodide accumulation by aerobic bacteria isolated from subsurface sediments of a 129I-contaminated aquifer at the Savannah River site, South Carolina.

(129)I is of major concern because of its mobility in the environment, excessive inventory, toxicity (it accumulates in the thyroid), and long half-life (∼16 million years). The aim of this study was to determine if bacteria from a (129)I-contaminated oxic aquifer at the F area of the U.S.