Iranian Journal of Microbiology

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Despite progress in diagnosing and managing ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP), ongoing monitoring of ventilator-associated events (VAE) is crucial due to VAP's persistent prominence as the primary cause of Hospital-Acquired Infection (HAI) among Intensive Care unit patients. This study was done to illuminate the prevalence of VAE and antibiogram of bacterial isolates of VAP in a tertiary care hospital of Uttarakhand. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This cross-sectional study focused on ICU patients...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: AmpC-producing Gram-negative bacterial (GNB) pathogens are distributed worldwide, especially in clinical settings. This study aimed to determine the antibiogram and the type of AmpC-β-lactamase gene harboured by GNB pathogens implicated in chronic suppurative otitis media (CSOM) cases. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Ear swab samples (300) collected from patients with active CSOM were analysed using standard microbiological techniques. Phenotypic and molecular detection of AmpC β-lactamase production was done by cefoxitin/cloxacillin double-disk synergy test and PCR respectively...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Group A Rotavirus (RVA) is the most important causative agent of acute diarrheal disease in pediatrics 5 years and below. This study aimed to determine the distribution of circulating RVA in Mashhad, Iran to develop health improvement strategies and vaccine decision making. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 106 fecal specimens were collected from children admitted to Akbar and Dr. Sheikh referral pediatric hospitals of Mashhad City during the December 2020 to March 2021 and December 2021 to March 2022...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has affected most countries in the world. Monitoring the humoral immune responses during the natural course of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection and the duration of them provide useful information for the development of vaccination strategies against this virus and its emerging variants. The importance of the antibody response especially neutralizing antibodies in long-term immunity to SARS-CoV-2 is significant...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Despite the significant improvement in the prognosis of cystic fibrosis (CF), it is still regarded as the most common life-shortening genetic disease in Caucasian populations. This disease is the most important cause of chronic lung disease and exocrine pancreatic insufficiency in infancy and childhood. The aim of our study was to assess the potential association between bacterial colonization detected by sputum cultures and pulmonary structural and functional changes in Iranian children with CF...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Bisphenol A (BPA) is a toxic compound with broad applications in the plastics industry. BPA has harmful effects on various organisms and its efficient removal is necessary. The microbial degradation of BPA is a safe and economical approach. In this research, soil samples containing decaying plants were screened to isolate a BPA-degradable bacterial strain. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Soil samples were collected from different locations in Damghan, Semnan province, Iran...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Water is crucial to human existence but may be contaminated with microorganisms, thus making it unfit for consumption. This study aimed to evaluate the physicochemical properties and bacterial loads of selected river waters in Ondo State, Nigeria. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Ten major rivers were sampled between April and August, 2021. The pH, temperature, total alkalinity, colour, turbidity, electrical conductivity, dissolved oxygen, ammonium, aluminium, organic matters, nitrate levels including the microbial loads were determined according to standard procedures...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Respiratory infections are the most serious condition in cystic fibrosis (CF) patients; therefore, a thorough comprehension of the diversity and dominant microbial species in CF airways has a crucial role in treatment. Our objective was to determine the antibiotic resistance profile of CF airways microbiota and compare culture methods and PCR-DGGE to evaluate bacterial diversity. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Pharyngeal swabs from 121 CF patients were collected...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Rinaie Marwah hot spring Kishtwar (RMHSK) is one of the geothermal springs located at 33°51'51″N 75°32'07″E with an elevation of 2134 meters above sea level in Jammu and Kashmir, India. We aimed to study the microbial diversity of this geothermal spring using metagenomics. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In the present study, physiochemical parameters including temperature (65-75°C), pH (6. 9-8. 8), hardness (250 ppm), and mineral content was measured along with the microbial diversity using Illumina MiSeq metagenome-based 16s amplicon sequencing (V3-V4)...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The resistance of Pseudomonas aeruginosa to antibiotics offers a significant challenge in the treatment of patients. This study aimed to investigate the antimicrobial resistance profile, biofilm-specific antimicrobial resistance genes, and genetic diversity of P. aeruginosa recovered from clinical samples. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Totally 47 non-duplicate isolates of P. aeruginosa were recovered from various clinical samples. toxA, algD, ndvB, and tssC1 genes were detected in biofilm-producing isolates...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Candida albicans cause a problematic condition in immunocompromised patients that could not be treated quickly due to the resistant behavior of microorganisms. This study aimed to investigate the effect of a novel ionic liquid (IL) as a new drug on C. albicans strains. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Seven newly binary ionic liquids mixtures were synthesized, and among them, ([prollinium chloride] [1-methylimidazolium 3-sulfonate] ([pro-HCl][MImS]) was selected and characterized by 1HNMR, 13C NMR, and FT-IR methods...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: A new type of corona virus has caused Corona virus disease-19 and, subsequently, a global pandemic. All individuals are prone to the disease, so drastic measures were taken to prevent its spread. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of COVID-19 on the progression of the antimicrobial resistance rate by comparing two periods: before and during COVID-19. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We used a cross-sectional design to investigate the Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) rate before (03/2019 to 03/2020) and during COVID-19 (03/2020 to 03/2021) in a University Hospital in Marrakech...

Cryptococcosis, a relatively uncommon infection in cancer patients is often associated with delayed diagnosis and high fatality rate due to its highly heterogeneous and protean manifestations. Early recognition and initiation of appropriate antifungal therapy might have a favourable outcome in such cases. Here we report three cases of Cryptococcosis among cancer patients in a tertiary care cancer centre in South India. All three patients were males of different ages at presentation with immunosuppression in the form of solid organ or hematologic malignancy and were using immunosuppressive medications like steroids or chemotherapeutic agents...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: One of the highly conserved outer membrane proteins expressed only by pathogenic Leptospires is Loa22. The study aims is to achieve the optimum conditions for high expression of recombinant Loa22 (rLoa22) protein. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Complete coding sequence of loa22 gene sub-cloned into a pET32a (+) expression vector. BL21 competent E. coli (pLysS) used as expression host for transformation. The recombinant clones selected on ampicillin plates and subjected to PCR by using pET T7 primers...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Hepatitis B is a common chronic viral infection in humans. Universal use of hepatitis B vaccine is crucial for controlling the infection, but the duration of vaccine-induced immunity remains uncertain. This study aimed to assess hepatitis B antibody levels (anti-HBs) after vaccination in infancy and adolescence, and explore the relationship between immunity levels and variables such as age, sex, BMI, place of birth, and duration since last vaccination among students at Hormozgan University of Medical Sciences from 2019 to 2021...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The study aimed to investigate the distribution of genes encoding integrons, extended spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL) in E. coli isolated from UTIs, as well as the genetic diversity among the isolates. MATERIALS AND METHODS: E. coli isolates were recovered from the patients with UTI in Kerman Iran. Antibiotic susceptibility was done according to CLSI guidelines. The presence of ESBL genes and integrons was evaluated using PCR. PCR and sequencing were applied for the evaluation of cassette content of integrons...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB) may reduce the negative effects of salinity stress. The aim of this study was to optimize Bacillus megaterium RTS1 and characterize the effect of the PGPB on the physiological characteristics of tomato ( Lycopersicon esculentum ). MATERIALS AND METHODS: The Central composite design (CCD) of response surface methodology (RSM) was used to optimize Bacillus megaterium RTS1 to produce maximum cell biomass and spores...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The type VI secretion system (T6SS) was identified as a novel virulence factor in many Gram-negative bacteria. This study aimed to investigate the frequency of the T6SS genes in Klebsiella pneumoniae -causing different nosocomial infections, and to study the association between T6SS, antibiotic resistance, and biofilm formation in the isolated bacteria. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of fifty-six non-repetitive K. pneumoniae isolates were collected from different inpatients admitted at Sohag University Hospital from September 2022 to March 2023...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Klebsiella pneumoniae is increasingly developing resistance to last-resort antibiotics such as carbapenems. This study aimed to investigate the dissemination of common carbapenemase encoding genes among 48 clinical isolates of carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae (CRKP). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Antimicrobial susceptibility testing was performed by broth dilution and disc diffusion methods. The phenotypic evaluation of carbapenemase production was performed by using Modified Carbapenem Inactivation Method...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Acinetobacter baumannii, an opportunistic pathogen, is related to hospital-acquired infections and increased mortality. This study aimed to develop the loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) test for the fast-detecting of A. baumannii isolates as well as determining genetic relatedness for these isolates via the REP-PCR technique. MATERIALS AND METHODS: LAMP primers and multiplex PCR primers were designed for recognizing A. baumannii isolates harboring the bla SHV-1 , bla PER-1 , bla TEM-1 , AMPC, qnr , and aac (6)-1 genes, were collected (October 2020 to February 2021) from Shahid Motahari Hospital, Tehran, Iran...