Improving herpetological surveys in eastern North America using the environmental DNA method.

Among vertebrates, herpetofauna has the highest proportion of declining species. Detection of environmental DNA (eDNA) is a promising method towards significantly increasing large-scale herpetological conservation efforts. However, the integration of eDNA results within a management framework requires an evaluation of the efficiency of the method in large natural environments and the calibration of eDNA surveys with the quantitative monitoring tools currently used by conservation biologists.

A type III secretion negative clinical strain of Pseudomonas aeruginosa employs a two-partner secreted exolysin to induce hemorrhagic pneumonia.

Virulence of Pseudomonas aeruginosa is typically attributed to its type III secretion system (T3SS). A taxonomic outlier, the P. aeruginosa PA7 strain, lacks a T3SS locus, and no virulence phenotype is attributed to PA7.

New materials and devices for preventing catheter-related infections.

Catheters are the leading source of bloodstream infections for patients in the intensive care unit (ICU). Comprehensive unit-based programs have proven to be effective in decreasing catheter-related bloodstream infections (CR-BSIs). ICU rates of CR-BSI higher than 2 per 1,000 catheter-days are no longer acceptable.

Outcomes in severe sepsis and patients with septic shock: pathogen species and infection sites are not associated with mortality.

Objectives: We evaluated the respective influence of the causative pathogen and infection site on hospital mortality from severe sepsis related to community-, hospital-, and intensive care unit-acquired infections.

Design: We used a prospective observational cohort 10-yr database. We built a subdistribution hazards model with corrections for competing risks and adjustment for potential confounders including early appropriate antimicrobial therapy.

New challenges in the diagnosis, management, and prevention of central venous catheter-related infections.

Catheters are the leading source of bloodstream infections in critically ill patients. Because the clinical signs of infection are nonspecific, such infections are overly suspected, which results in unnecessary removal of catheters. A conservative approach might be attempted in mild infections, whereas catheters should always be removed in cases of severe sepsis or septic shock.

Impact of ureido/carboxypenicillin resistance on the prognosis of ventilator-associated pneumonia due to Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Introduction: Although Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a leading pathogen responsible for ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP), the excess in mortality associated with multi-resistance in patients with P. aeruginosa VAP (PA-VAP), taking into account confounders such as treatment adequacy and prior length of stay in the ICU, has not yet been adequately estimated.

Methods: A total of 223 episodes of PA-VAP recorded into the Outcomerea database were evaluated.