• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.47 no.3
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• pp.140-146
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• 2015

The increase in resistance by pathogenic bacteria to multiple antimicrobial agents has become a significant treat, as the effective antimicrobial agents available for the patients infected by such resistant bacteria are reduced, or even eliminated. Several natural plant extracts have exhibited antibacterial and synergistic activity against various resistant microorganisms. Houttuynia cordata is frequently used by many traditional medicine practicioners for its antimicrobial, antiviral, and anti-inflammatory properties. This study investigated the antibacterial effects of H. cordata extract against clinical multi-resistant bacteria, and compared the two methods used for the antimicrobial susceptibility testing. Thirty isolates of Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA, 10), Vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium (VRE, 10), Carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (CRAB, 10) were included in this study. The antibacterial effect of H. cordata was tested by disk diffusion and microbroth dilution methods as per CLSI guidelines. In disk diffusion, all isolates (30) showed no inhibition to 30,000 ug/mL of H. cordata. But in the microbroth dilution method, $MIC_{90}$ of H. cordata was 4,096 ug/mL, 8,192 ug/mL and 4,096 ug/mL in MRSA, VRE and CRAB, respectively. These results demonstrate that H. cordata exhibits antibacterial activity against MRSA, VRE and CRAB. Moreover, the microbroth dilution method is a more effective method than disk diffusion to evaluate the antibacterial activity of natural products. The Disk diffusion method used to evaluate the antibacterial activity of natural products required new standard guidelines including inoculum concentration of bacteria.

• Journal of Internet of Things and Convergence
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• v.6 no.2
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• pp.19-24
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• 2020

In the present study, using biological information of bacteria and biochemical information of chlorine dioxide gas, Gram-positive bacteria, e.g., Alloiococcus otitis, Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae, Staphylococcus caprae, Staphylococcus lentus, and gram-negative bacteria, e.g., Acinetobacter baumannii complex, Aeromonas salmonicida, Brucella melitensis, Oligella ureolytica were used whether a plastic kit to release ClO₂ gas could inhibit their growth. Overall, chlorine dioxide gas showed about 99% inhibition of bacterial growth, with less than 10 CFU. However, it was found that Gram positive Alloiococcus otitis and Gram negative Aeromonas salmonicida had more than about 50 CFU. When comparing the results of experiments with several bacteria, it suggested that the concentration of chlorine dioxide gas would be at least 10 ppm to 400 ppm for the bacterial inhibition. The results of this study could be used as basic data to evaluate the clinical usefulness of chlorine dioxide gas. If this study helps with prior knowledge to help clinicians to recognize and prevent the presence of micro-organisms that cause infections in hospitals, it would be helpful for activities such as patient care as a convergence field. In the future, it is considered that the research results will be the basis for rapidly inhibiting the microbes infected with patients by utilizing data of the information of the microbes that are inhibited for chlorine dioxide gas.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.74 no.2
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• pp.63-69
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• 2013

Background: Aiming to improve outcome of lung transplantation (LTx) patients, we reviewed risk factors and treatment practices for the LTx recipients who experienced respiratory infection in the late post-LTx period (>1 month after LTx). Methods: We analyzed the clinical data of 48 recipients and donors from 61 LTx, who experienced late respiratory infections. Late respiratory infections were classified according to the etiology, time of occurrence, and frequency of donor-to-host transmission or colonization of the recipient prior to transplantation. Results: During the period of observation, 42 episodes of respiratory infections occurred. The organisms most frequently involved were gram (-) bacteria: Acinetobacter baumannii (n=13, 31.0%), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (n=7, 16.7%), and Klebsiella pneumoniae (n=4, 10.0%). Among the 42 episodes recorded, 14 occurred in the late post-LTx period. These were bacterial (n=6, 42.9%), fungal (n=2, 14.3%), viral (n=4, 28.5%), and mycobacterial (n=2, 14.3%) infections. Of 6 bacterial infections, 2 were from multidrug-resistant (MDR) A. baumannii and one from each of MDR P. aeruginosa, extended spectrum ${\beta}$-lactamase (+) K. pneumoniae, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus pneumoniae. Infection-related death occurred in 6 of the 14 episodes (43%). Conclusion: Although the frequency of respiratory infection decreased sharply in the late post-LTx period, respiratory infection was still a major cause of mortality. Gram (-) MDR bacteria were the agents most commonly identified in these infections.

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.299-306
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• 2012

Recently, the prevalence of 16S rRNA methylase conferring high-level resistance to aminoglycosides has been increasing in Gram-negative bacilli globally. We determined the prevalence and genotype of these methylase-producing bacteria, and characterized the co-resistance to ${\beta}$-lactam antibiotics and quinolone in Gram-negative clinical isolates collected in 2010 at a hospital in Korea. Among 65 amikacin-resistant isolates screened from 864 Gram-negative bacilli (GNB), 16S rRNA methylase genes were detected from 49 isolates, including Acinetobacter baumannii (43), Klebsiella pneumoniae (2), Proteus mirabilis (2) and Serratia marcescens (1), Empedobacter brevis (1). All of the 16S rRNA methylase genotype was armA and no variant sequences of amplified PCR products for armA were noted. The 16S rRNA methylase producing bacteria showed much higher resistance to aminoglycoside for Enterobacteriaceae and glucose non-fermenting (NF)-GNB and to imipenem for glucose NF-GNB, than the non-producing isolates. All of the 16S rRNA methylase producing Enterobacteriaceae had the extended-spectrum-${\beta}$-lactamase. In addition, two K. pneumoniae concurrently produced both plasmid-mediated AmpC ${\beta}$-lactamase and qnrB gene. All of the amikacin-resistant A. baumannii (43) co-harbored armA 16S rRNA methylase and $bla_{OXA-23}$ carbapenemase. In conclusion, 16S rRNA methylase producing bacteria were very prevalent among GNB in South Korea, and were commonly associated with co-resistance, including carbapenem and quinolone.

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.77-84
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• 2014

Periodic analysis of local epidemiologic data of prevalent pathogens of blood culture can provide clinicians with relevant information to guide empirical antibiotic therapy. In this study, we analyzed a pattern of change of causative microorganisms and antimicrobial resistance at a tertiary medical center in Chungcheong province from 2003 to 2012, retrospectively. Of 70,258 blood specimens cultured, 6,063 (8.6%) were positive. Among the positive isolates, 95.9% were aerobic or facultative anaerobic bacteria, 0.1% were anaerobes, and 3.9% were fungi. Coagulase-negative Staphylococci (CoNS) (32.9%), Escherichia coli (16.7%), Staphylococcus aureus (9.1%), Klebsiella pneumoniae (6.4%), and ${\alpha}$-hemolytic Streptococcus (5.9%) were commonly isolated bacteria, and Candida albicans (1.4%) was the most commonly isolated fungi. Enterococcus faecium progressively increased but Streptococcus pneumoniae, Acinetobacter baumannii and Proteus species gradually decreased over a period of 10 years. The multidrug-resistant microorganisms such as methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA), vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE), cefotaxime-resistant E. coli, imipenem-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa (IRPA) and imipenem-resistant A. baumannii (IRAB), were significantly increased. Therefore, there is a need for a more strict control of antibiotics and a more updated guideline for the treatment of bloodstream infection.

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.257-261
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• 2008

Cellular phones are the most used electronic device everyday in modern life and are always in contact with our hands, Although many studies have revealed microorganisms living on our hands, there are only a few reports on the research about products or places which are in contact with our hands. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to verify microorganisms living in cellular phones. Microorganisms were scraped from cellular phones of students and professors from the clinical laboratory science department in Daegu Health College, and cultured at Brain Heart Infusion agar and MacConkey agar following API kit to identify them. The average colony number was $1.5{\times}10^2$ on BHI agar and $40{\times}10$ on MacConkey agar. There was no difference according to gender. In Gram stain result, Gram(+) Cocci showed the highest frequency. Also in BHI agar plates, Micrococcus spp and Acinetobacter baumannii identified with high frequency. Moreover, S. aureus, which is very well known as strong food poisoning bacteria, was isolated. Klebsiella pneumonia ssp pneumonia was isolated with the highest frequency from the MacConkey agar or S-S agar plate. From these results show, there are as many different microorganisms from cellular phones as from our hands. This is the first report isolating strong food poisoning bacteria in cellular phones. Since infection in hospitals have been an important issue to be aware of, it is equally necessary to investigate cell phones and products which hospital workers touch with their hands.

• Pediatric Infection and Vaccine
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.178-185
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• 2015

Purpose: We investigated trends in antibiotic pressure and the antibiotic susceptibility of gram negative bacteria isolated from Korean children over 10 consecutive years. Methods: From January 2004 to December 2013, the antibiotic susceptibility of Klebsiella pneumoniae, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Acinetobacter baumannii blood isolates obtained from children <18 years of age was determined according to the 2009 Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute guidelines. Antibiotic consumption data were also analyzed. Results: The prevalence of K. pneumoniae, E. coli, P. aeruginosa, and A. baumannii bacteremia was 4.6, 3.5, 3.4, and 2.2 cases/1,000 blood cultures/year, respectively. In K. pneumoniae, resistance to the third and fourth cephalosporin did not increase significantly. However, carbapenem-resistant K. pneumoniae first appeared in 2010, and the resistance rate increased to 9% between 2012 and 2013. Resistance to 3rd and 4th cephalosporin increased from 10% to 50% in E. coli, and resistance to carbapenem rose abruptly from 11% to 71% in A. baumannii (P for trend <0.01). However, such an increase of resistance was not observed in P. aeruginosa. There is a positive correlation between the resistance rate of cefepime in E. coli and the consumption of cefepime (r=0.900, P=0.037). Conclusion: The significant burden of antibiotic consumption and the high prevalence of antibiotic resistance to gram negative pathogen isolated from bacteremic children were observed. Empirical antibiotics should be wisely selected, and continued efforts to decrease the overall antibiotic pressure are mandatory, especially in highly resistant situations.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.45 no.4
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• pp.154-158
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• 2013

The unnatural dead body refers to a corpse which is suspicious of unusual death and the dead case has been occurred more than 20 thousands times every year during the recent five years and most of them are found decayed. Police Scientific Investigators investigate unnatural dead bodies and its surroundings in all-around way and determine whether the death is involved with a crime, and most of the Scientific Investigators are exposed to a danger to get infected with pathogenic bacteria which are generated during the decaying process of dead body and are mostly to cause serious injuries on human beings. In line with the fact, the present study conducted a bacterial analysis by collecting excretions from 60 dead bodies and culturing the bacteria to evaluate infection risk of the police agents. The study cultured bacteria from 60 bodies and classified pathogenic bacteria of 108 strains, and its main bacteria are found to be them (; Acinetobacter baumannii 20 strains (19%), Pseudomonas aeruginosa 19 strains (18%), E. coli 18 strains (17%), Klebsiella pneumoniae 11 strains (10%), Proteus mirabillis 10 strains (9%), Enterococcus faecium 10 strains (9%), Staphylococcus aureus 9 strains (8%), Bacillus spp. 5 strains (5%), Streptococcus pneumoniae 3 strains (3%), Candida albicans 2 strains (2%), Mycobacterium tuberculosis 1 strains (1%)). The study results are expected to be used as educational data for preventing the Police Scientific Investigator from infections with bacteria or as a minimum data for improving work environment of the agents.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.363-367
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• 2006

Food wastes were decomposed into the Mugri (Isung Engineering, Korea), a food waste reduction machine, with adding sawdust of cryptomeria. Degradation effects were better when the machine worked at over 45$^{\circ}C$ than those at the lower temperature. Thermophilic bacteria were isolated from cryptomeria sawdust and the food waste products degraded by the machine. The isolates from cryptomeria sawdust were classified into 3 genera (Acinetobacter baumannii, Enterobacter sp. and Erwinia cypripedii) and almost all the isolates from the degraded products were partially identified as Bacillus sp. by 16S rDNA sequence analysis. The isolated thermophilic bacteria showed degradative enzyme activities. In the case of addition of the 30 thermophilic bacteria into the machine, degradation rate of food wastes was almost twice as high with increasing process temperature up to 6$^{\circ}C$.

• Journal of Korean Biological Nursing Science
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.127-137
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• 2002

The purpose of this study was to compare the hand disinfection effect of waterless alcohol gel hand washing agent with that of soap and water, 4% chlorhexidine gluconate, and 10% povidone-iodine. Hands of fourty subjects were artificially contaminated with Acinetobacter baumannii $5m{\ell}$ and randomly distributed to each hand washing methods. Samples were collected from gloved hand by glove juice sampling procedure. Mean log reduction after hand washing were compared with baseline values. Number of microorganisms were converted to log and tested by ANOVA in SPSSWIN 10.0. Mean log reduction of soap and water, alcohol gel, 4% chlorhexidine gluconate, 10% povidone-iodine were $2.76{\pm}0.62$, $2.97{\pm}0.56$, $4.66{\pm}1.70$, $4.60{\pm}0.91$, respectively. The bactericidal effect of alcohol gel was similar to that of soap and water, but the effect was much less than chlorhexidine gluconate and povidone-iodine(p<0.001). In terms of microorganism reduction, the efficacy of waterless alcohol gel was almost the same as soap and water hand washing. Further evaluation of the bactericidal effect of waterless alcohol gel is needed because waterless alcohol gel is simple, convenient, and non-irritating hand washing agent and also very effective in busy hospital environment.