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Background Mycobacterium abscessus , an emerging pathogen in healthcare settings, has rarely been associated with community outbreaks. During February–May 2013, Idaho public health officials and pediatric infectious disease physicians investigated an outbreak of M abscessus skin infections in children whose only common exposure was an indoor wading pool. Methods Healthcare providers and parents reported possible M abscessus cases. We used a standardized questionnaire to interview parents of affected children. Clinical specimens were submitted for mycobacterial examination. We conducted an environmental investigation of the pool. Microbial isolates from clinical and environmental samples were identified by sequencing polymerase chain reaction amplicons and underwent pulsed-field gel electrophoresis. Results Twelve cases were identified. Specimens from 4 of 7 children grew M abscessus or Mycobacterium abscessus/Mycobacterium chelonae. Ten (83%) of 12 children were female; median age was 3 years (range, 2 to 6 years); and all were immunocompetent. Pool maintenance did not fully comply with Idaho state rules governing pool operation. Mycobacterium abscessus / chelonae was isolated from pool equipment. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis composite patterns were 87% similar between isolates from the pool ladder and 1 patient, and they were 90% similar between isolates from 2 patients. Environmental remediation included hyperchlorination, scrubbing and disinfection of pool surfaces, draining the pool, and replacement of worn pool materials. Conclusions Immunocompetent children acquired M abscessus cutaneous infection involving hands and feet after exposure to a wading pool. Environmental remediation and proper pool maintenance likely halted transmission. Medical and public health professionals' collaboration effectively detected and controlled an outbreak caused by an emerging recreational waterborne pathogen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peripheral blood neutrophils form highly decondensed chromatin structures, termed neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs), that have been implicated in innate immune response to bacterial infection. Neutrophils express high levels of peptidylarginine deiminase 4 (PAD4), which catalyzes histone citrullination. However, whether PAD4 or histone citrullination plays a role in chromatin structure in neutrophils is unclear. In this study, we show that the hypercitrullination of histones by PAD4 mediates chromatin decondensation. Histone hypercitrullination is detected on highly decondensed chromatin in HL-60 granulocytes and blood neutrophils. The inhibition of PAD4 decreases histone hypercitrullination and the formation of NET-like structures, whereas PAD4 treatment of HL-60 cells facilitates these processes. The loss of heterochromatin and multilobular nuclear structures is detected in HL-60 granulocytes after PAD4 activation. Importantly, citrullination of biochemically defined avian nucleosome arrays inhibits their compaction by the linker histone H5 to form higher order chromatin structures. Together, these results suggest that histone hypercitrullination has important functions in chromatin decondensation in granulocytes/neutrophils. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Produce-associated outbreaks of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) were first identified in 1991. In April 2018, New Jersey and Pennsylvania officials reported a cluster of STEC O157 infections associated with multiple locations of a restaurant chain. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) queried PulseNet, the national laboratory network for foodborne disease surveillance, for additional cases and began a national investigation., Methods: A case was defined as an infection between 13 March and 22 August 2018 with 1 of the 22 identified outbreak-associated E. coli O157:H7 or E. coli O61 pulsed-field gel electrophoresis pattern combinations, or with a strain STEC O157 that was closely related to the main outbreak strain by whole-genome sequencing. We conducted epidemiologic and traceback investigations to identify illness subclusters and common sources. A US Food and Drug Administration-led environmental assessment, which tested water, soil, manure, compost, and scat samples, was conducted to evaluate potential sources of STEC contamination., Results: We identified 240 case-patients from 37 states; 104 were hospitalized, 28 developed hemolytic uremic syndrome, and 5 died. Of 179 people who were interviewed, 152 (85%) reported consuming romaine lettuce in the week before illness onset. Twenty subclusters were identified. Product traceback from subcluster restaurants identified numerous romaine lettuce distributors and growers; all lettuce originated from the Yuma growing region. Water samples collected from an irrigation canal in the region yielded the outbreak strain of STEC O157., Conclusions: We report on the largest multistate leafy greens-linked STEC O157 outbreak in several decades. The investigation highlights the complexities associated with investigating outbreaks involving widespread environmental contamination., (Published by Oxford University Press for the Infectious Diseases Society of America 2019.)