The first case of human invasion by Clinostomum complanatum in the European part of Russia

The article presents a rare case of human invasion by the trematode Clinostomum complanatum in the European part of Russia. The diagnosis was established based on a parasitological study of flukes removed from the tonsils and pharynx of a 42-year-old woman, a resident of the Tambov region of Russia.

Case report of Usutu virus infection in an immunocompromised patient in Italy, 2022

Usutu virus (USUV) is an arthropod-borne flavivirus emerged in Africa in 1950s and in Eruope in 1990s causing a massive number of birds' deaths. The role of USUV as human pathogen has been only recently hypothesized and cases of USUV infection in humans remain limited and often related to immunocompromised subjects. Herein, we report a case of USUV meningoencephalitis infection in an immunocompromised patient with no history of previous flavivirus infection. The infection due to USUV evolved rapidly since hospital admission thus resulting fatal in few days after symptoms onset and, although not proven, a suspected bacteria co-infection has been hypothesized. Based on these findings, we suggested that when USUV meningoencephalitis is suspected in countries endemic, careful attention should be applied to neurological syndromes during summer months especially among immunocompromised patients.

The re-emergence of highly pathogenic avian influenza H7N9 viruses in humans in mainland China, 2019

After no reported human cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H7N9 for over a year, a case with severe disease occurred in late March 2019. Among HPAI H7N9 viral sequences, those recovered from the case and from environmental samples of a poultry slaughtering stall near their home formed a distinct clade from 2017 viral sequences. Several mutations possibly associated to antigenic drift occurred in the haemagglutinin gene, potentially warranting update of H7N9 vaccine strains.

Human case of bacteremia caused by Streptococcus canis sequence type 9 harboring the scm gene

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This is the first reported human case of bacteremia caused by Streptococcus canis having scm gene encoding M-like protein.

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The identity was based on similarity of its 16S rRNA and detection of the specific cfg gene encoding a co-hemolysin.

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This isolate was confirmed to be sequence type 9.

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This strain didn’t have the erm(A), erm(B), or mef(A), macrolide resistance genes, but was not susceptible to azithromycin.

Streptococcus canis (Sc) is a zoonotic pathogen that is transferred mainly from companion animals to humans. One of the major virulence factors in Sc is the M-like protein encoded by the scm gene, which is involved in anti-phagocytic activities, as well as the recruitment of plasminogen to the bacterial surface in cooperation with enolase, and the consequent enhancement of bacterial transmigration and survival. This is the first reported human case of uncomplicated bacteremia following a dog bite, caused by Streptococcus canis harboring the scm gene. The similarity of the 16S rRNA from the infecting species to that of the Sc type strain, as well as the amplification of the species-specific cfg gene, encoding a co-hemolysin, was used to confirm the species identity. Furthermore, the isolate was confirmed as sequence type 9. The partial scm gene sequence harbored by the isolate was closely related to those of other two Sc strains. While this isolate did not possess the erm(A), erm(B), or mef(A), macrolide/lincosamide resistance genes, it was not susceptible to azithromycin: its susceptibility was intermediate. Even though human Sc bacteremia is rare, clinicians should be aware of this microorganism, as well as Pasteurella sp., Prevotella sp., and Capnocytophaga sp., when examining and treating patients with fever who maintain close contact with companion animals.

Human case of bacteremia due to Streptococcus suis serotype 5 in Japan: The first report and literature review

Streptococcus suis is a zoonotic pathogen that can be transferred from pigs to humans. The serotypes 2 and 14 are prevalent among patients with S. suis infections, while other serotypes (i.e., 1, 4, 5, 16, and 24) have been detected in rare human cases. To the best of our knowledge, the present patient handling with raw pork is the first human case of uncomplicated bacteremia due to S. suis serotype 5 in Japan. We confirmed the new sequence type 752 of this isolate. Virulence-associated gene profiling was performed; both sly (encoding the hemolysin suilysin) and mrp (encoding a muramidase-released protein) were detected without amplification of epf (encoding the extracellular factor). Our polymerase chain reaction-based results indicated that this isolate possessed both tet(O), the tetracycline-resistance determinant, and erm(B), the macrolide/lincosamide-resistance determinant. In addition, we provide the review of literature concerning clinical and microbiological features of four human cases of infection due to S. suis serotype 5. Clinicians should be aware of this microorganism when examining and treating patients with fever, who are handling raw pork or having close contact with infected pigs even if they are immunocompetent.