Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology

ObjectiveTo establish and validate reference intervals for the peripheral blood systemic immune-inflammation index (SII), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), and lymphocyte-to-monocyte ratio (LMR) in healthy children from the Zigong region of china. MethodsA total of 2014 healthy children undergoing physical examination at The First Peoples Hospital of Zigong from April 2023 to February 2025 were enrolled. Blood cell parameters were measured using the XN-10...

Tuberculosis is emerging as a major global health issue for the under-developed regions across the world including Indias North East. Importantly, the incidence of multidrug-resistant (MDR) strain of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB), the causative agent of TB is increasing. Furthermore, the disease is associated with stigma, and therefore peoples wholehearted participation in care, and research support is lacking. Here, we report the development of novel research methodologies through a process ...

The number of patients suffering from Mycobacterium abscessus complex (MABC) pulmonary diseases is steadily increasing. MABC consists of three subspecies, and it is recommended that the three subspecies be distinguished because of their differing macrolide susceptibilities. Unfortunately, current methods are inefficient due to their high cost, complexity, and time requirements. The third-generation Bruker MALDI Biotyper (MBT) Sirius has the capability to detect phospholipids and glycolipids usin...

Tuberculosis, caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis, is a treatable and curable disease, and yet remains one of the leading causes of death worldwide. Diagnosis is essential to reducing the number of cases and starting treatment, but costly tests and equipments that require complex infrastructure hamper their widespread use as a tool to contain the disease in vulnerable populations as well countries lacking resources. Therefore, it becomes necessary to develop new technological approaches to mole...

Temporal dynamics of certain human microbiotas have been described in longitudinal studies; variability often relates to modifiable factors or behaviors. Early studies of the urinary microbiota preferentially used samples obtained by transurethral catheterization to minimize vulvo-vaginal microbial contributions. Whereas voided specimens are preferred for longitudinal studies, the few studies that reported longitudinal data were limited to women with lower urinary tract (LUT) symptoms, due to ea...

BackgroundTuberculosis (TB) remains a significant global health challenge, particularly with the rise of drug-resistant strains, such as Pyrazinamide (PZA)-resistant TB. This resistance hampers treatment effectiveness. Currently, theres a lack of affordable and precise quantitative tests for detecting PZA resistance, highlighting the need for accessible diagnostic tools. Our study introduces a direct, accurate, and accessible susceptibility test for PZA resistance by quantifying pirazinoic acid ...

In this study, thirty-nine sputum samples from tuberculosis (TB)-positive patients undergoing first-line therapy were collected and archived on a chemical-coated cellulose matrix. DNA was extracted from these matrices and tested for Mycobacterium tuberculosis using the Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra assay. Seven samples tested positive for M. tuberculosis, with low levels of detection. End-point PCR yielded faint signals in four samples, but no signal in the remaining three. A Line Probe Assay (LPA) detect...

Ziehl-Neelsen (ZN) smear microscopy remains central to tuberculosis (TB) diagnosis and treatment monitoring, yet its sensitivity is limited by incomplete recovery of Mycobacterium tuberculosis during pre-analytical processing. This study evaluated whether modifying centrifugation force and duration improves bacillary recovery and ZN smear performance. Laboratory experiments were conducted using M. tuberculosis H37Rv and pulmonary TB sputum samples. Following NALC-NaOH decontamination, samples we...

The presence of high SARS-coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) titres in saliva may result in transmission of the virus and increase the risk of COVID-19 infection. This is particularly important as significant amounts of aerosols are generated during dental procedures, posing risk to dental care personnel and patients. Thus, reducing the titres of SARS-CoV-2 in the saliva of infected patients could be one of the key approaches to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission during dental procedures. In this ...

This research letter describes the results of a clinical trial of a novel vaginal synbiotic comprising three L. crispatus strains and a supportive nutrient complex. Results indicated that administration of the synbiotic led to an optimal vaginal microbiome dominated by L. crispatus (CST I) and additionally reduced the abundance of microbes associated with vaginal dysbiosis and the abundance of Candida, the most common source of vaginal yeast infections.

Here, we describe the first placebo-controlled trial of vaginal microbiota transplantation (VMT) in women with asymptomatic dysbiosis without the use of antibiotic pretreatment. Importantly, we also describe the implementation of a donor program and banking of donor cervicovaginal secretions (CVS) while retaining sample viability, which is crucial to allow for scale-up and confirmatory quality testing. By metagenome sequencing, we demonstrate that VMT provided a significant increase in combined ...

PCR-based methods for detecting Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tuberculosis) have transformed tuberculosis (TB) diagnostics by allowing for the quick and sensitive identification of the pathogens DNA. The IS6110 insertion sequence is a popular molecular target due to its high specificity to the M. tuberculosis complex. However, the variability in IS6110 copy numbers among different strains raises questions about its reliability as a sole diagnostic marker. In this research, we devised a rapid qP...

Here we describe the first double-blinded, randomized, placebo-controlled trial (RCT) on vaginal microbiota transplantation (VMT) without antibiotics in women with both symptomatic and asymptomatic vaginal dysbiosis. Forty-nine women were randomly assigned to VMT or placebo. The trial did not show a significant conversion to our predefined Lactobacillus-dominated microbiome. However, in participants not initially converting, antiseptic pretreatment before a subsequent VMT led to a 50% conversion...

Although bacterial vaginosis (BV) affects 30% of women worldwide and is associated with adverse health outcomes, current standard-of-care antibiotics fail in over half of cases and treatments have not improved in over 40 years. Probiotics have been proposed as alternative treatments, but fail to restore an optimal lactobacilli-dominated microbiome in the vast majority of patients. Here, we present findings from a pilot clinical trial demonstrating the successful engraftment of vaginal microbiota...

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), a new type and rapidly spread viral pneumonia, is now producing an outbreak of pandemic proportions. The clinical features and laboratory results of different age groups are different due to the general susceptibility of the disease. The laboratory findings of COVID-19 in pregnant women are also conflicting. Para-clinical investigations including laboratory tests and radiologic findings play an important role in early diagnosis and treatment monitoring of sev...

Candida auris is a multidrug-resistant yeast that presents global health threat for the hospitalized patients. Early diagnostic of C. auris is crucial in control, prevention, and treatment. Candida auris is difficult to identify with standard laboratory methods and often can be misidentified leading to inappropriate management. A newly-devised real-time PCR assay played an important role in the ongoing investigation of the C. auris outbreak in New York metropolitan area. The assay can rapidly de...

Fluoroquinolones are a commonly used prophylaxis in transrectal ultrasound-guided prostate biopsy (TRUS-Bx), even though fluoroquinolone-resistant Escherichia coli has been associated with infectious complications after TRUS-Bx. The present study describes fluoroquinolone resistance mechanisms and antimicrobial susceptibility among intestinal E. coli, isolated from TRUS-Bx patients in a prospective study showing very few infectious prostate biopsy adverse events. This Multi-IMPROD sub-study incl...

Paracoccidioidomycosis (PCM) is caused by Paracoccidioides spp.; during infection, some host mechanisms limit the availability of iron, thereby reducing its reproduction. However, Paracoccidioides spp. can evade the immune defense and, even under limited iron conditions, use this mineral for growth and dissemination. This study evaluated the iron metabolism of 39 patients who were diagnosed with chronic PCM between 2013 and 2021. The forms of iron before treatment and at the time of clinical cur...

Background and ObjectiveCoronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) manifests as multiple clinical and pathological organ dysfunctions. It also disrupts metabolic profile due to the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines causing a systemic inflammation reaction. However, the development and correlation of dyslipidemia with acute phase reactants is unknown. This investigation was performed to assess the pathological alterations of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), high-density lipoprotein (HDL)...

HIV is identified as a factor that aggravates tuberculosis disease pathogenesis and its progression to latent TB. While, TB is declared as one of the major causes for AIDS-associated mortality. So there is a dire need for new drugs to combat such ailments that have a synergistic interaction.This has led us to study a novel antibiotic purified from a marine Streptomyces sp isolated from the coral reef ecosystem of South Indian coast. Streptomyces sp. R2 (MTCC 5597; DSM 26035)., isolated from the ...