The expression of propionicin PLG-1 gene (plg-1) by lactic starters
JOURNAL OF DAIRY RESEARCH
Authors: Mohamed, Sameh E.; Tahoun, Mahmoud K.
Abstract
Propionicin PLG-1 is a bacteriocin produced by Propionibacterium thoenii P127. Such bacteriocin inhibits wide range of food-borne pathogens such as pathogenic Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Vibrio parahaemolyticus, Yersinia enterocolitica and a strain of Corynebacterium sp. In the present study, plg-1 gene expressing propionicin PLG-1 was isolated, sequenced for the first time and the resulting sequence was analysed using several web-based bioinformatics programs. The PCR product containing plg-1 gene was transferred to different lactic acid bacterial (LAB) strains using pLEB590 as a cloning vector to give the modified vector pLEBPLG-1. LAB transformants showed an antimicrobial activity against Esch. coli DH5 alpha (most affected strain), Listeria monocytogenes 18116, and Salmonella enterica 25566 as model pathogenic strains. Such LAB transformants can be used in dairy industry to control the food-borne pathogens that are largely distributed worldwide and to feed schoolchildren in the poor countries where dangerous epidemic diseases and diarrhoea prevail.
Symptomatic paradoxical low gradient severe aortic stenosis: A possible link to heart failure with preserved ejection fraction
JOURNAL OF CARDIOLOGY
Authors: Namisaki, Hidehiro; Nagata, Yasufumi; Seo, Yoshihiro; Ishizu, Tomoko; Izumo, Masaki; Akashi, Yoshihiro J.; Yamashita, Eiji; Otsuji, Yutaka; Takeuchi, Masaaki
Abstract
Background: There is an ongoing debate regarding optimal management of patients with paradoxical low gradient severe aortic stenosis (PLG-SAS). We hypothesized that the presence of symptoms is closely associated with future adverse outcome. We aimed to determine the relation between symptoms and outcome in patients with PLG-SAS. Methods: We prospectively enrolled 222 patients with PLG-SAS. Left ventricular (LV) volumes, mass, and strain were measured by three-dimensional echocardiography. The primary end-point was cardiac events including cardiac death, ventricular fibrillation, and heart failure leading to hospitalization. Results: There were 65 cases of symptomatic PLG-SAS and 157 cases of asymptomatic PLG-SAS. Patients with symptomatic PLG-SAS received beta-blockers, angiotensin blockers, and diuretics more frequently and showed higher levels of B-type natriuretic peptide than patients with asymptomatic PLG-SAS. Although LV chamber parameters were not different. patients with symptomatic PLG-SAS had significantly higher E-wave velocity and E/A ratio than patients with asymptomatic PLG-SAS. During the median follow-up of 18 months, 20 patients reached the primary end-point. Patients with symptomatic PLG-SAS had significantly worse prognosis than patients with asymptomatic PLG-SAS. A similar trend was observed while comparing with the propensity-score-matched cohort after adjusting for age, sex, stroke volume index, and severity of AS. Conclusions: Symptomatic PLG-SAS is associated with poorer prognosis even after adjusting for flow status and severity of AS. Therefore, presence of symptoms is not always related to the severity of AS itself but might be related to the underlying comorbidities. Our results suggest a possible link between PLG-SAS and heart failure with preserved ejection fraction in some symptomatic patients. (C) 2019 Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of Japanese College of Cardiology.