Zelkovamycin, a new cyclic peptide antibiotic from Streptomyces sp. K96-0670. I. Production, isolation and biological properties. (65/26286)

A new antibiotic termed zelkovamycin was isolated from the fermentation broth of Streptomyces sp. K96-0670 by solvent extraction, ODS column chromatography and preparative HPLC. Zelkovamycin showed antibacterial activity against Xanthomonas oryzae, Acholeplasma laidlawii, Pyricularia oryzae and Staphylococcus aureus.  (+info)

Studies on time-kill kinetics of different classes of antibiotics against veterinary pathogenic bacteria including Pasteurella, Actinobacillus and Escherichia coli. (66/26286)

A systematic analysis of the bacteriostatic/bactericidal effect of several antibiotics used in veterinary medicine was carried out by time-kill kinetic analysis using P. haemolytica, P. multocida, A. pleuropneumoniae, and E. coli. The antibiotics tested were enrofloxacin, danofloxacin, erythromycin, tilmicosin, penicillin G, ceftiofur and tetracycline. Unexpectedly, the antibiotics well characterized as bacteriostatic agents against human pathogens such as tetracycline and macrolides, showed bactericidal activity against P. haemolytica and A. pleuropneumoniae. In contrast, tetracycline and erythromycin were bacteriostatic and tilmicosin was bactericidal against P. multocida. In addition, P. multocida was killed by fluoroquinolones at a slower rate than the other bacteria. Spectrum analysis revealed that ceftiofur and tilmicosin were good substrates of the universal efflux pump, AcrA/B, but penicillin and tetracycline were not. The fluoroquinolones were modest substrates for AcrA/B.  (+info)

Current susceptibility patterns of anaerobic bacteria. (67/26286)

While antibiotic resistance among anaerobes continues to increase, the frequency of antimicrobial susceptibility testing for anaerobes is declining. Because anaerobic infections are often mixed and detailed bacteriology of the organisms involved may take some time, physicians must institute empiric therapy before susceptibility testing results are available. Also, economic realities and prudent use of resources mandate that careful consideration be given to the necessity for routine susceptibility testing of anaerobic bacteria. Determination of appropriate therapy can be based on published antibiograms; however, since patterns may vary within geographic regions and even within hospitals, it is strongly recommended that each hospital center periodically test their isolates to determine local patterns and detect any pockets of resistance. As a general guide, antibiograms from the last several years of susceptibility testing at the Wadsworth Anaerobe Laboratory are reported.  (+info)

Vancomycin-resistant enterococcal infections in Korea. (68/26286)

Enterococci recently became the second-to-third most commonly isolated organism from nosocomial infections. Enterococci are intrinsically more resistant to many antimicrobial agents and often show acquired resistance to many antimicrobial agents including high-level aminoglycosides. With the increased use of vancomycin, vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) has become an important nosocomial pathogen. In Korea, the proportion of VRE among all enterococcal of VRE is no longer low in some settings and recent observations of a sudden increase of VRE isolation in several hospitals in Korea suggests that VRE infection may become a serious problem in the near future. The most important considerations are that vancomycin-resistant genes may spread to other highly virulent genera, such as MRSA, and that there are no approved and convincingly effective antibiotics for the treatment of VRE. Therefore, current efforts have concentrated on limiting the spread of these organisms within the hospital environment. Prudent use of antimicrobial agents and strict adherence to preventive measures such as aggressive communication, education, and infection control practices are essential to control the spread of this organism. However, hospital infection control protocols and the laboratory support they require are costly in terms of space and supplies, as well as in personnel resources. These factors add further pressure to already stretched hospital budgets. Nevertheless, policies or programs defining and managing VRE infection or colonization should be established and now is the time to enforce an overall management strategy against VRE.  (+info)

Korean Nationwide Surveillance of Antimicrobial Resistance of bacteria in 1997. (69/26286)

Antimicrobial-resistant bacteria are known to be prevalent in tertiary-care hospitals in Korea. Twenty hospitals participated to this surveillance to determine the nationwide prevalence of resistance bacteria in 1997. Seven per cent and 26% of Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae were resistant to 3rd-generation cephalosporin. Increased resistance rates, 19% of Acinetobacter baumannii to ampicillin/sulbactam, and 17% of Pseudomonas aeruginoa to imipenem, were noted. The resistance rate to fluoroquinolone rose to 24% in E. coli, 56% in A. baumannii and 42% in P. aeruginosa. Mean resistance rates were similar in all hospital groups: about 17% of P. aeruginosa to imipenem, 50% of Haemophilus influenzae to ampicillin, 70% of Staphylococcus aureus to methicillin, and 70% of pneumococci to penicillin. In conclusion, nosocomial pathogens and problem resistant organisms are prevalent in smaller hospitals too, indicating nosocomial spread is a significant cause of the increasing prevalence of resistant bacteria in Korea.  (+info)

Antimicrobial resistance patterns of Bacteroides fragilis group organisms in Korea. (70/26286)

Antimicrobial resistance patterns of 913 clinical isolates of Bacteroides fragilis group organisms were monitored during an 8-year period in Korea. In general the resistance rates of the non-fragilis B. fragilis group species were higher than those of B. fragilis for all the drugs tested. The rate of resistance to clindamycin remarkably increased and those to some beta-lactam drugs such as piperacillin and cefotaxime also increased. No isolates were found to be resistant to imipenem, metronidazole, or chloramphenicol. beta-lactam and beta-lactamase inhibitor combinations and cefoxitin were more active than the other beta-lactams. Therefore, these agents may be considered when empirical selection of antimicrobial agents is required to treat severe anaerobic infections.  (+info)

Epidemiological typing of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus outbreak isolates by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis and antibiogram. (71/26286)

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is one of the most common nosocomial pathogens. In April 1997, there were five MRSA-infected patients among 16 patients in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), Seoul National University Hospital, which is a tertiary-care hospital with 1,500 beds. The infections had spread from twin patients with MRSA who had transferred from Hospital C. MRSA was isolated from the axilla of 15 (94%) of the 16 patients, including the two patients with obvious infections. Three (19%) of 16 doctors and nine (30%) of 30 nurses had MRSA colonization of the anterior nares. Six different PFGE patterns (A through F) were identified in the 53 isolates of MRSA tested. Twelve of 13 isolates from infected sites of five patients showed pattern F. Three MRSA strains obtained from hospital C showed closely or possibly related pattern F. MRSA of type F was isolated from three of 16 patients' axilla, and one of 3 doctors' and three of 30 nurses' nasal swabs. The antibiogram code for 12 of 13 MRSA isolates from five infected patients was 66,754. PFGE patterns of these isolates were either F, F1, F2 or Fa. Only one of three strains isolated from clinical specimens of patients in Hospital C showed the antibiogram code 66754, although they were all PFGE types F1 and Fa. In conclusion, the presumptive sources of the outbreak of MRSA infection in NICU were the twin patients transferred from hospital C. Antibiogram correlated reasonably well to the PFGE type. An effective notification system is needed when a MRSA-infected patient is transferred to another hospital to control the spread of the infection.  (+info)

Phage type conversion in Salmonella enterica serotype Enteritidis caused by the introduction of a resistance plasmid of incompatibility group X (IncX). (72/26286)

The plasmid pOG670, a 54 kb, conjugative plasmid that specifies resistance to ampicillin and kanamycin and belonging to the incompatibility group X (IncX), was transferred into 10 isolates of Salmonella enterica serotype Enteritidis belonging to 10 different phage types (PT1, 2, 3, 4, 8, 9, 9b, 10, 11 and 13). Acquisition of the plasmid by these strains did not result in the loss of any resident plasmids but resulted in phage type conversion in 8 of the 10 strains (PT1, 2, 4, 8, 9, 9b, 10 and 11). The observed changes in phage type were found to result from the loss of sensitivity to 3 of the 10 typing phages used (phages 3, 5 and 7). Where the conversion resulted in a change to a defined phage type, both the new and original PTs belonged to the same, previously described, evolutionary lines. Enteritidis PTs 1, 4 and 8, commonly associated with poultry world-wide, were converted to PTs 21, 6 and 13a respectively. The results indicate a different route for phage type conversion Enteritidis from others reported in the literature and, although IncX plasmids are not normally present in PT8 or PT13a, may suggest a possible mechanism/link connecting these phage types.  (+info)