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4.2% Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains isolated in our hospital were resistant to ceftazidime. The 174K strain was also resistant to azthreonam but susceptible to imipenem and was studied as representative of these strains. It produced a single beta-lactamase (pI 8.6) which had all the characteristics of the chromosomal beta-lactamase Id and was the only beta-lactamase present. This enzyme hydrolyses slowly ceftazidime and imipenem. It could be a factor of imipenem resistance if the antibiotic influx into the bacteria was decreased or if the beta-lactamase Id was synthesized at a high level.

A large majority (87.4%) of 190 Staphylococcus aureus isolates from fresh beef in Lubumbashi (Zaire) belonged to the human St. aureus ecovar; 81.2% of the phage-typed human strains were partially or solely lysed by phages of group III. Thirteen of the 52 tested strains (25.0%) were enterotoxin producers; nine of these (69.2%) were positive for staphylococcal enterotoxin A. Sixteen serotypes were identified among the 122 Salmonella isolates and nearly all these strains were susceptible to the 8 different antibiotics tested.

Nasal carriage of Staphylococcus aureus is a risk factor for the development of infections caused by S. aureus in haemodialysis patients. This study compared the incidence of bacteraemia caused by S. aureus during 6 months of use of nasal 2% calcium mupirocin ('Nasal Bactroban') 3-times a week for nasal carriers with the incidence observed previously in the same dialysis unit without the use of mupirocin. Nasal mupirocin led to the total eradication of nasal carriage of S. aureus, a 4.26-fold reduction in the incidence of S. aureus bacteraemia, and a substantial cost saving. After a cumulative experience of nasal mupirocin in haemodialysis patients of more than 43 patient-years, the development of mupirocin resistance was not observed.

The antimicrobial agents most active against bacteremic isolates of oxacillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus isolated from 1983 to 1985 were new fluoroquinolones, including PD 117,596 and PD 127,391 (MIC for 90% of isolates [MIC90] in agar, in micrograms per milliliter, 0.1) and temafloxacin, pefloxacin, and ofloxacin (MIC90, 0.4). Other active antimicrobial agents included fusidic acid (MIC90, 0.2) and fosfomycin (MIC90, 12.5). Vancomycin was active against all isolates. Mupirocin was very active (MIC90, 0.4).

One hundred and twenty eight strains of Staphylococcus from lesions, mostly of the skin, in horses were identified and compared with 29 strains isolated from the healthy skin. The pathogenic species Staphylococcus aureus, S. intermedius and S. hyicus were found almost exclusively in lesions. Other species such as S. xylosus and S. sciuri were more frequently found on the healthy skin than in lesions. The S. aureus strains formed a very heterogeneous collection. Many of these strains were staphylokinase positive and rapidly coagulated bovine plasma. Such strains are rarely found in other animals and man.

Resume A la suite de plusieurs cas d'infections a staphylocoques dores dans le centre des brules de l'Hopital Militaire, des souches de S. aureus isolees de l'air, des surfaces et du personnel medical et infirmier ont ete comparees aux souches des patients (lysotype et resistance aux antibiotiques). Ce travail a montre que S. aureus persistait dans l'air et sur les surfaces ; il a conduit a une adaptation des locaux et a la redefinition des mesures de desinfection. Le typage des souches a indique que nos lysotypes du groupe III, souvent multiresistants, etaient apparentes a des lysotypes isoles dans d'autres hopitaux belges.

A biotyping system which uses 4 tests (staphylokinase, coagulation of bovine plasma, growth type on crystal violet and s-haemolysin production) was tried with 99 Staphylococcus aureus strains isolated from prepared foods. The origin of 74 of the strains could be determined. Approximately equal numbers of animal (36) and human (38) strains were found. Human strains were isolated from all types of foods examined whereas bovine strains were present only in raw prepared mixed beef and pork meat.

Routine typing was performed on a total of 7089Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains isolated in 16 Belgian hospitals in the period from 1977 to 1986. The annual number of strains received ranged from 318 to 1346. The incidence of serotype O: 12 was less than 2 % until 1981 when it rose to 4 %, steadily increasing to become the predominant serotype in 1984 (22 %), 1985 (18 %) and 1986 (22 %). Since 1980 the O: 12 isolates have exhibited characteristic patterns on pyocin and phage typing, 89 % of O: 12 isolates belonging to pyocin types 1, 39, 43, 45 or 105, whereas only 51 % of isolates of other serotypes belonged to those pyocin types. Ninety-three per cent of serotype O: 12 isolates belonged to phage types 68/119x, 68 or 119x, or were non-typable, whereas only 24.37 % of other serotypes isolates exhibited these phage patterns. These distinctive patterns of pyocin and phage types suggest a high degree of homogeneity within the O: 12 strains isolated in recent years in Belgium. Multi-centre or country-wide survey ofPseudomonas aeruginosa strains isolated in hospitals using epidemiological markers may be of value in identifying a sudden increase in epidemic strains.

The products of thermolysis of 11 4-alkylidene-1-pyrazolines were isolated and identified. It is observed that these products cannot be rationalized in terms of a planar singlet trimethylenemethane type of intermediate, nor can they be reconciled in terms of the orthogonal trimethylenemethane singlets. Evidence is presented that for 4-ethylidene-1-pyrazolines the carbon anti to the methyl has the greatest propensity to become a cyclopropane carbon, and that which is syn is most likely to become the exocyclic methylene.

Resume Nous avons rassemble les donnees concernant la sensibilite a differents antibiotiques (penicillines : carbenicilline, piperacilline, ticarcilline ; cephalosporines : cefotaxime, cefsulodine, ceftazidime ; aminoglycosides : amikacine, gentamicine, netilmicine, tobramicine ; colistine) de 462 souches de P. aeruginosa du groupe serologique 012, isolees de prelevements dans 6 hopitaux belges pendant la periode 1984–1985. Chaque hopital a utilise sa serie specifique d'antibiotiques, soit par diffusion en gelose (tous sauf Liege), soit par dilution en microplaques (Liege). Pour la serie de ces souches de 1984–1985, encore etendue aux souches de l'annee 1986 et a des souches de trois autres hopitaux bruxellois, nous avons determine les marqueurs epidemiologiques que sont le lysotype et le pyocinotype. Quoique la proportion de souches resistantes varie d'un hopital a l'autre lorsque l'on considere chaque antibiotique separement, l'on observe toujours 80 % de souches 012 montrant une resistance etendue au sein de la gamme antibiotique utilisee. Nos souches sont, pour la plupart, caracterisees par un petit nombre de lysotypes et de pyocinotypes, que l'on peut encore considerer comme apparentes ; elles pourraient donc representer un groupe relativement homogene.

The uterus was flushed with a transvaginal technique 5 to 6 days after isemination in 6 naturally ovulated and 6 superovulated cows. When 50–100 of fluid were injected, an average of 82% of the volume was recovered, jgs were recovered in 3 of the 6 cows having a single ovulation and 5 of ie superovulated animals. The recovery rate was 43% of the number of corpora Jtea (20/46).

Summary Nine of 11 caprine strains of Staphylococcus aureus examined belong to biotype C. They were typable serologically using antisera developed for typing human strains of Staphylococcus aureus. H2 was found to be the dominant thermostable antigen whilst 1 and 0 were the most common thermolabile antigens. Some strains possessed protein A and poly Aβ (β-glucosaminyl ribitol teichoic acid). Phage typing of the strains was achieved with an international set of phages for typing human strains of Staphylococcus aureus and they belong to phage groups II, and the mixed group.

The 1Hmr and 13Cmr spectra for 15 4-alkylidene-1-pyrazolines and 19 alkylidenecyclopropanes are reported. The assignments of E and Z isomers are made on the basis of shielding effects about the exo cyclic double bonds. The addition of diazomethane-d2 to 1,2-butadiene is shown to be both regiospecific and stereospecific.

The purpose of this work was to localize, with the aid of pharmacological tools, the site(s) of the antilipolytic action of insulin in rat fat pads. The following results have been obtained, 1. 1. When lipolysis is maximally stimulated by 1-methyl-3-isobutyl xanthine (1 · 10−3 M) or by 4-(3,4-dimethoxybenzyl)-2-imidazolidine (RO 7-2956) (1 · 10−3 M), the antilipolytic insulin action disappears. This suggests that at the basal reaction rate of adenylate cyclase, functional phosphodiesterases are needed to allow the expression of insulin action. 2. 2. In the presence of 1-methyl-3-isobutyl xanthine (1 · 10−3 M), the stimulation by adrenaline of adenylate cyclase restores the antilipolytic action of insulin, suggesting another mode of action involving the decrease of the cyclic AMP synthesis. This latter effect must be mediated by prostaglandins because it is suppressed by indomethacin. 3. 3. The possibility that insulin might impair the action of cyclic AMP on the lipase activity is discarded because insulin displays no antagonist effect on dibutyryl cyclic AMP-stimulated lipolysis whether alone or in presence of 1-methyl-3-isobutyl xanthine, supplemented or not with propanolol at a concentration inhibiting the basal rate of adenylate cyclase.

Plasma renin activity, renin substrate, angiotensin II, aldosterone and cortisol were measured concurrently and renin concentration calculated in plasma from mothers during labor and delivery, from cord and from newborn infants. The renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system was found strongly stimulated in both mother and fetus. The high values of plasma renin activity in fetus were due exclusively to the high renin concentrations the substrate concentration being normal. In the mother, however, the markedly elevated renin substrate resulted in a doubling of relative values of renin activity compared to renin concentration. Therefore gradients of renin and renin substrate across the placenta are established, but the resulting renin activity is similar on both sides and the levels of generated angiotensin II are also nearly indentical with a good correlation between these last parameters. Aldosterone is as elevated in mother as in fetus whereas cortisol, due to its binding to transcortin, is twice as high in mother as in fetus. No correlation was found between renin activity or concentration of angiotensin II and aldosterone or cortisol indicating that other factors controlling aldosterone are involved.

Etude du metabolisme de l'aldosterone dans un cas de diabete insipide nephrogenique congenital

Carbenoxolone slightly but significantly decreased the release of FFA from rat epididymal fat pads. The antilipolytic action of carbenoxolone was not blocked by 10−3m 3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine, a potent inhibitor of phosphodiesterase. The findings suggest that carbenoxolone exerts its antilipolytic activity by acting on adenylate cyclase, thereby decreasing cyclic AMP concentrations and the activity of the hormone-sensitive lipase in adipose tissue.

An outbreak of cutaneous staphylococcosis caused high mortality among newborn and very young rabbits. The most typical lesions were exudative dermatitis in the youngest, subcutaneous abscesses in rabbits of all ages and mastitis in lactating does. Generalised staphylococcosis was a frequent secondary manifestation of the disease.

Screening for abnormal hemoglobins and G6PD deficiency was conducted in adult and new born Maroccans from Casablanca. The results presented deal with HbS and HbC traits, alpha, gamma, and delta mutations, the presence of detectable amount of Hb Bart's and the G6PD deficiency frequency.

The urinary excretion of PGE2, PGF2 alpha, arginine-vasopressin, and kallikrein was measured in 58 healthy subjects aged 2 days to 13 years. In contrast to the activity of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system, which is known to decrease from birth, urinary excretion of PGE2, PGF2 alpha, vasopressin, and kallikrein significantly increased with age. These changes were not correlated to urine volume, natruresis, or glomerular filtration rate. Correction of the values by body surface area obliterated the differences for PGs and vasopressin, but not for kallikrein.

Summary The adenosine analogue toyocamycin which selectively abolishes the synthesis of ribosomal RNA in L cells, inhibits the antivirus activity of interferon. This inhibitory effect occurs when the cells are pre-treated with the analogue before interferon or treated simultaneously with interferon and toyocamycin. There is no inhibition of the antivirus action when the drug is added more than 1 h after the beginning of the treatment of cells with interferon.

Nosiheptide (9671 R.P.) isolated from Streptomyces actuosus 40037 (NRRL 2954) is a sulfur-containing polypeptidic antibiotic, quite different from all the other members of this family. Very active in vitro against gram-positive bacteria, it is inactive in vivo in experimentally infected mice. Not toxic, even at high dose, it may be used as a feed additive for chickens and pigs and it shows a favourable effect on the growth and conversion index.

Nine of 11 caprine strains of Staphylococcus aureus examined belong to biotype C. They were typable serologically using antisera developed for typing human strains of Staphylococcus aureus. H2 was found to be the dominant thermostable antigen whilst 1 and 0 were the most common thermolabile antigens. Some strains possessed protein A and poly A beta (beta-glucosaminyl ribitol teichoic acid). Phage typing of the strains was achieved with an international set of phages for typing human strains of Staphylococcus aureus and they belong to phage groups II, and the mixed group.

In a prospective study, during a period of 1 year, 1,116 children over 1 year of age, with acute pharyngitis-tonsillitis, were examined by a group of Swiss pediatricians. Throat swabs were cultured for the presence of group A beta-hemolytic streptococcus, and treatment was withheld pending results in most cases. The throat swab cultures were positive in 29.6% of the cases. There were no incidences of acute glomerulonephritis, acute rheumatic fever or severe purulent local complications. The findings confirm the recommendations in the American literature concerning clinic, diagnosis and management, and they can be applied in Switzerland.

Haemoglobin (Hb) was measured in 348 full-term one-year-old infants in 7 private paediatric offices. In 36 (10.3%) subjects, the Hb value was less than 110 g/l, and in 7 (2.0%) less than 100 g/l. In 11 of 212 (5.2%) subjects, MCV was less than 70 fl. Twenty-six infants with an Hb below 115 g/l showed an increase of Hb of +10 g/l or more after a therapeutic trial with oral iron. No relationship was found between Hb levels and early introduction of whole cow's milk into the diet. It is concluded that screening for iron deficiency is justified in healthy Swiss infants: Hb and MCV measurements may be the initial step.

The rfa-7 lipopolysaccharide core mutation carried by the R mutant F680, derived from Shigella flexneri F6S serotype 5b, has been mapped by conjugation and transduction experiments. The results show a chromosomal distance of about 1 min between rfa-7 and mtl. Such a position would be similar to those of rfa genes in Escherichia coli K12 and Salmonella typhi-murium LT2. Conjugational transfer of E. coli K12 rfa+ genes to mutant F680 restored S. flexneri O-specificity. Chemical analyses performed on the lipopolysaccharide of such a rfa+ hybrid suggest that this strain can attach the S. flexneri serotype 5b O-specific polysaccharide to the E. coli K12 core.

111 episodes of acute urinary tract infection in children without urinary tract malformations were treated by trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, either during 3 days or during 7-10 days. Cure rate attained almost 100%. Recurrence rates of the first infection were similar after short treatment (29.6%) and after conventional treatment (30%). It is concluded that uncomplicated urinary tract infection in ambulatory practice may be treated safely and successfully by only 3 days of an appropriate antimicrobial.

The effect of extractive haemodialysis and of postural changes on the plasma aldosterone concentration has been studied in 5 anephric children. The plasma aldosterone concentration tended to be lower after haemodialysis in spite of the extracellular volume depletion induced. No regular response occurred after orthostatism. There was no correlation between the plasma aldosterone and the plasma cortisol or the serum sodium concentration. A weak positive correlation was found between the plasma aldosterone and serum potassium concentration, suggesting that potassium may play a major role in aldosterone regulation in the anephric state.

Home urine culture in dipslide was performed in 297 preschool girls. Results correlated well with those of cultures at the medical office, specially if midstream urine was used. This method proved to be an inexpensive, reliable (100% sensitivity) technique for detecting significant bacteriuria in preschool girls. False-positive tests occurred in 22 cases.

Neutropenia with abnormal mobility of neutrophils is described in 3 related patients. All presented generalized phlebectasias; 2 had also persistent fetal circulation. One patient died at the age of 2 days from severe pulmonary hypoplasia and bilateral pneumothorax. It is speculated that the defective neutrophil mobility and the vascular abnormalities could be due to a common, genetically inherited, basic defect.

Emericid is a new polyether polycyclic ionophore antibiotic excreted by Streptomyces hygroscopicus (DS 24 367). Active in vitro against Gram-positive bacteria, it is ineffective in vivo. At a 0.006-0.02% level in the diet it protects chickens and rabbits against coccidiosis.

Receptor sites for phages FP3, V, P1kcvir, H+, C21, T4, T3, T7 and 6SR have been investigated, by comparing the lytic activity of these phages on R mutants of strain F6 (F6R) and of various serotypes (FH) of Shigella flexneri with their inhibition by the lipopolysaccharides isolated from these mutants. The results suggest the following localizations for the receptor sites: phage FP3: lipid A-KDO; phage V: heptose or glucose; phage C21: heptose-glucose; phages H+, P1kcvir, T4 and T3: glucose; phage T7: glucose-galactose; phage 6SR: complete core structure.

Staphylococcus simulans was found to be the most common staphylococcal species present on the healthy skin and in the nares of cats. S. aureus was the most frequent Staphylococcus species in lesions. Most of the S. aureus strains showed the characteristics of the human ecovar. Other strains isolated formed a heterogenic collection in which not less than 13 species were represented. One of these, S. epidermidis, was almost exclusively associated with lesions. It was concluded that coagulase-positive staphylococci are not endogenous to cats. Staphylococci from other sources, most frequently from man, are often associated with lesions in these animals.

The F6R rough mutants isolated from Shigella flexneri F6S, serotype 5b, and the FH rough mutants, derived from other serotypes of S. flexneri, were chemotyped according to the chemical analysis of their lipopolysaccharides. Further, the following stages of lipopolysaccharide core biosynthesis in S. flexneri have been established: --(KDO)3--heptose--heptose--glucose--galactose; the last three stages are: either --glucose--glucosamine--glucose, or --glucosamine--glucose--glucose. The results of the chemical study of the R lipopolysaccharides are compatible with the assumption of the existence of a similar core in all considered S. flexneri serotypes.