Biomedical subjects

L Slobodníková

Publications and source records attributed to L Slobodníková.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2005

[Influrence of recombinant human procalcitonin on phagocytic and candidacidal ability of polymorphonuclear leukocytes and on killing mechanisms of serum and blood aganist bacteria Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli].

UNLABELLED: Procalcitonin (PCT) is a highly selective and specific marker for early diagnosis of sepsis. There is enough information confirming that procalcitonin should be considered as an important mediator in the pathophysiology of sepsis. The aim of our work was to evaluate the effect of recombinant human procalcitonin (rhPCT) on phagocytic and candidacidal activity of polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNL) in blood, as well as on killing mechanisms of fresh serum and blood against Escherichia coli (E. coli) and Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus). Our results show that rhPCT dose dependently decreased both phagocytic and candidacidal activity of polymorphonuclear leukocytes (p < 0.001). RhPCT inhibited also the microbicidal activity of both serum and blood on E. coli that was found by inoculation of suspension on culture plates. We found that rhPCT supported the E. coli colony count increase during the incubation in the presence of both serum and blood. The effect of rhPCT on the S. aureus colony count increase was not statistically significant. CONCLUSION: Our results indicate a suppressive effect of rhPCT on phagocytic and microbicidal activity of polymorphonuclear leucocytes.

Blood Bactericidal Activity↗

PubMed2004

Antibiotic resistance and virulence factors among clinical and food enterococci isolated in Slovakia.

The resistance to antibiotics and the distribution of virulence factors in enterococci isolated from traditional Slovak sheep cheese bryndza was compared with strains from human infections. The occurrence of 4 enterococcal species was observed in 117 bryndza-cheese isolates. The majority of strains were identified as E. faecium (76 %) and E. faecalis (23 %). Several strains of E. durans and 1 strain of E. hirae were also present. More than 90 % of strains isolated from 109 clinical enterococci were E. faecalis, the rest belonged to E. faecium. The resistance to 6 antimicrobial substances (ampicillin, ciprofloxacin, higher concentration of gentamicin, nitrofurantoin, tetracycline and vancomycin) was tested in clinical and food enterococci. A higher level of resistance was found in clinical than in food strains and E. faecium had a higher resistance than E. faecalis; no resistance to vancomycin was detected. The occurrence of 3 virulence-associated genes, cylA (coding for hemolysin), gelE (coding for gelatinase) and esp (coding for surface protein) was monitored. Differences were found in the distribution of cylA gene between clinical and bryndza-cheese E. faecalis strains; in contrast to clinical strains (45 %), cylA gene was detected in 22 % of food isolates. The distribution of 2 other virulence factors, gelE and esp, was not significantly different in the two groups of E. faecalis strains. cylA and gelE genes were not detected in E. faecium but more than 70 % of clinical E. faecium were positive for esp, even thought none of the 79 E. faecium cheese isolates contained this gene.

Animals↗

PubMed1995

Staphylococcus aureus in chronic and recurrent infections.

Ninety-four Staphylococcus aureus strains isolated from chronic and recurrent skin and respiratory tract infections were investigated for several virulence factor expressions. Production of protein A was noticed in all of the tested strains in amounts from less than 0.1 to more than 2.5 ng per 10(6) bacterial cells. The percentage of the extracellularly produced protein A was found to lie between 4.5 and 27.8%. Two strains (both from the respiratory tract) produced more than 50% of protein A in the extracellular form and one strain did not produce any detectable amount of the extracellular protein A; 99% of the tested strains produced the clumping factor, 96% staphylocoagulase, 79% staphylokinase and 90% gelatinolytic activity; 79% produced alpha-toxin exclusively or in combination with delta- or beta-toxin; 8% of strains produced beta-toxin. There were differences in beta-toxin production between strains from the respiratory tract (5%) and skin infections (25%). delta-Toxin was produced by 53% of the strains. In each of the tested strains a complex of virulence factors was detected. The importance of inactivated extracellular products (especially alpha- and delta-toxin and in the case of skin infections also beta-toxin) as components of staphylococcal whole-cell vaccine was suggested.

Bacterial Toxins↗

PubMed1995

[Staphylococcus aureus and the human immune system].

The author characterizes factors of virulence of Staphylococcus aureus and its different interactions with immune systems of the host. She describes the immune mechanisms which play a key role in the elimination of staphylococcal infection and where inadequate function leads to the development of staphylococcal disease. The author draws attention to the complicated interrelationship of the complex of different virulence factors of staphylococcal strains involved in inhibition and dysregulation or in stimulation of effector mechanisms of immunity.

Humans↗