J Chromatogr, 1987 May 8, 394(1), 135 - 46 Biomedical applications of thermospray liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry; Taylor GW et al.; Thermospray liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry has been applied in the solution of a number of problems of biological and biomedical interest . These include the analysis of phenazines from the Gram negative bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa, steroids released by rat adrenals and eicosanoids generated by human inflammatory cells . The application of the technique to leukotrienes in blood is discussed . Isotopic labelling prior to analysis, to facilitate identification and structure elucidation is outlined with reference to the steroids. J Mol Biol, 1987 May 5, 195(1), 225 - 7 Determination of the quaternary structure of protocatechuate 3,4-dioxygenase from Pseudomonas aeruginosa; Ohlendorf DH et al.; A 2.5 A resolution data set has been collected for crystals of protocatechuate 3,4-dioxygenase from Pseudomonas aeruginosa . Analysis of the data using the rotation function shows that the alpha 2 beta 2 tetramers associate to form a particle with cubic 23 (T) point group symmetry . Prior to this analysis it was believed that eight tetramers associated to form the holoenzyme . The symmetry of the crystalline holoenzyme also addresses questions concerning its iron content and substrate stoichiometry. J Antibiot (Tokyo), 1987 May, 40(5), 646 - 51 Studies on semi-synthetic 7 alpha-formamidocephalosporins . III . Synthesis and antibacterial activity of some 7 beta-{D-2-(aryl)-2-{(4-ethyl-2,3-dioxopiperazin-1-yl)carbonyl amino} acetamido}-7 alpha-formamidoceph-3-em-4-carboxylate derivatives; Branch CL et al.; The synthesis and antibacterial activity of 7 beta-{D-2-(aryl)-2-{(4-ethyl-2,3-dioxopiperazin-1-yl) carbonylamino} acetamido}-7 alpha-formamidocephalosporins with various substituents at the C-3 position of the cephalosporin nucleus is described . Inhibition of Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria including beta-lactamase producing strains was observed with phenyl as the aryl residue . The 3,4-dihydroxyphenyl group further enhanced the activity against Gram-negative organisms; in this series, the 3-{(1-methyl-1H-tetrazol-5-yl)thiomethyl} and 3-{(1-carboxymethyl-1H-tetrazol-5-yl)thiomethyl} analogues (2 and 12b) exhibited exceptional activity against Gram-negative bacteria, including Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Infection, 1987 May-Jun, 15(3), 165 - 8 Nalidixic acid in children: retrospective matched controlled study for cartilage toxicity; Schaad UB et al.; The new fluoroquinolones allow effective oral therapy of infections due to Pseudomonas aeruginosa . Studies on efficacy and safety of these promising agents are not recommended in childhood because of cartilage toxicity which has been observed in growing animals . However, the first quinolone antimicrobial, nalidixic acid, showed identical arthropathic effects in young animals and is licensed for paediatric use . A review of the hospital charts revealed 11 patients who had received nalidixic acid over nine to 600 days and were available for control examination three to 12 years later . For each nalidixic acid case a carefully selected matched pair, who had never received nalidixic acid, was identically analyzed . Three patients from the nalidixic acid and three from the control group reported arthralgia, which was judged to have no relation to drug therapy . Growth curve and both functional and radiological joint findings were completely normal in all cases . These results suggest that quinolone-associated arthropathy does not occur in children, even after long-term therapy. Ann Clin Lab Sci, 1987 May-Jun, 17(3), 150 - 6 The effect of drying, heat, and pH on the survival of Legionella pneumophila; Katz SM et al.; The susceptibility of Legionella pneumophila, Philadelphia 1 strain, to drying, pH variation, and heating was determined and compared to that of Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa . L . pneumophila was quite sensitive to drying, with a four log drop in viability occurring during the first 30 seconds . After 90 minutes of drying in tap water, some samples contained no viable organisms, whereas E . coli, S . aureus, and P . aeruginosa still contained several thousand viable organisms . L . pneumophila showed a two log drop in viable cells after being held for one month in tap water varying in pH from 4 to 7 . This was similar to what was found for P . aeruginosa . However, at pH 8 there was a six log drop in viability for L . pneumophila which was not evident with P . aeruginosa . At pH 2 to 3, both organisms could only survive short term (minutes) exposure . Heating experiments revealed a four log drop in viability for L . pneumophila at temperatures ranging from 55 to 65 degrees C . The survival of E . coli and S . aureus was greater at these temperatures. Can J Anaesth, 1987 May, 34(3 ( Pt 1)), 252 - 8 Comparison of regional pulmonary perfusion in lobar pneumonia during high frequency and conventional mechanical ventilation in sheep; Girotti MJ et al.; We compared the effects of high frequency jet ventilation (HFV), conventional ventilation (CMV), and spontaneous breathing (SB) on regional pulmonary blood flows (QLLL), standard cardiopulmonary measurements and the serum levels of the first generation metabolites of prostacyclin (6-keto-PGF1 alpha) and thromboxane A2 (TxB2) in established left lower lobe pseudomonas aeruginosa pneumonia in 11 sheep . Gram negative pneumonia resulted in significant increases in alveolar-arterial oxygen gradients {(A-a)DO2} and pulmonary shunt fractions (Qs/Qt), as well as a significant decrease in QLLL during SB . Significant differences in standard haemodynamics, (A-a)DO2, Qs/Qt, and QLLL were not observed when HFV was compared to CMV . However, serum levels of 6-keto-PGF1 alpha were elevated when the animals underwent HFV . We conclude that HFV is a safe and efficient method of oxygenation and ventilation in unilobar gram negative pneumonia and also results in a significant increase in the serum levels of 6-keto-PGF1 alpha when compared to CMV in sheep . The exact significance of the latter finding is the subject of current investigation. Am Rev Respir Dis, 1987 May, 135(5), 1015 - 9 Interactions of clindamycin with antibacterial defenses of the lung; Astry CL et al.; Clindamycin is speculated to have select advantages in the treatment of certain infections because biologically active antibiotic is internalized by macrophages and PMNs in vitro . By challenging pulmonary host defenses with various bacterial species as probes, we were able to evaluate clindamycin-phagocyte interaction in vivo . A murine model was developed using an implanted mini-osmotic pump to maintain constant clindamycin blood levels at 1/4 MIC (1 microgram/ml) . Mice pretreated for 24 h with clindamycin killed a significantly greater percentage of intratracheally inoculated Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron in 4 h than did control animals (37 +/- 2% versus 7 +/- 5%) . The enhancing effects of clindamycin on pulmonary defenses could not be duplicated by a 1-h preincubation of B . theta in 1/4 MIC of clindamycin before inoculation into untreated mice . Clindamycin blood levels of 1 microgram/ml did not alter the rate at which Pseudomonas aeruginosa (clindamycin-resistant) was killed by pulmonary defenses, suggesting that clindamycin did not cause nonspecific activation of phagocytic defenses . Both PMNs and alveolar macrophages lavaged from the lungs of clindamycin-treated mice contained bioassayable concentrated intracellular antibiotic . The presence of intracellular antibiotic was further supported by experiments in which the intrapulmonary killing of large numbers of Staphylococcus aureus (sensitive, but not resistant organisms) was significantly enhanced (89 +/- 5 versus 70 +/- 5%) by clindamycin pretreatment . In contrast, phagocytes lavaged from mice with constant 1/4 MIC (4 micrograms/ml) blood levels of penicillin G had no detectable intracellular antibiotic activity and did not augment the intrapulmonary killing of B . theta.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS) Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci, 1987 May, 28(5), 881 - 5 Comparative bioavailability and efficacy of fortified topical tobramycin; Gilbert ML et al.; Topical treatment of severe ocular infections may require the use of antibiotics fortified in concentration beyond commercially available preparations . The authors studied tear pharmacokinetics, tissue bioavailability, epithelial toxicity, and comparative antibacterial efficacy of topical tobramycin concentrations ranging from 0.3-5.0% . Tear pharmacodynamics demonstrate bioassay-measurable levels with each preparation up to 6 hr after a single 50-microliter drop challenge . Comparing various fortified concentration levels yields progressive parallel-biphasic decay curves in antibiotic tear-film concentrations . Both tear and corneal data demonstrate increases in measured antibiotic levels largely proportional to the increases in drug concentration instilled . Tobramycin was undetectable in corneas treated with 0.3% tobramycin, yet measurable with higher drug levels . A rabbit epithelial wound-healing model demonstrated progressive toxicity ranging from no effect of 0.3% tobramycin on healing rates compared with paired controls, to a significant decrease in re-epithelialization rates with 1.1% (P = 0.03) and 4.0% (P = 0.02) tobramycin . Finally, a Pseudomonas aeruginosa keratitis model in the rat demonstrates the antibiotic efficacy of topical tobramycin treatment over untreated controls (P less than 0.00001), and a progressively enhanced efficacy with increasing tobramycin concentrations is suggested . Concentration enhancement of topical ocular medication is useful in the treatment of severe ocular infection. Pediatr Dermatol, 1987 May, 4(1), 18 - 20 Pseudomonas septicemia with nodules and bullae; Fleming MG et al.; We examined a patient with systemic lupus erythematosus and sepsis due to Pseudomonas aeruginosa . Early in the infection, she developed skin lesions that consisted of indurated tender nodules and hemorrhagic and nonhemorrhagic bullae . Blister fluid contained gram-negative rods, which were identified as P . aeruginosa on culture . Bullae and nodules, as well as ecthyma gangrenosum, can be early cutaneous signs of pseudomonal sepsis. Mikrobiologiia, 1987 May-Jun, 56(3), 410 - 4 {Isolation and characteristics of new nonlysogenic bacteriophages of Pseudomonas aeruginosa}; Mazepa VN et al.; A large group of nonlysogenic bacteriophages specific for Pseudomonas aeruginosa was studied . According to their absorption characteristics and serological properties, the phages were subdivided into four groups: luminal diameter k, luminal diameter m, luminal diameter mnP78 and luminal diameter mnF82 . Within each of the groups, the phages were similar in the morphology of their particles and certain physiological characteristics . The luminal diameter m phages were similar to the P . aeruginosa bacteriophage E79 in their adsorption properties and antigenic specificity . The phages of the other groups differed in the above characteristics from the known P . aeruginosa bacteriophages . The effect of some plasmids on the growth of bacteriophages luminal diameter k, luminal diameter m, luminal diameter mnP78 and luminal diameter mnF82 was studied . The growth of new bacteriophages on certain plasmid-containing strains was inhibited in some cases. Zentralbl Bakteriol Mikrobiol Hyg {B}, 1987 May, 184(2), 167 - 81 {The enzymatic degradation of formaldehyde by isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa}; Hingst V et al.; The capacity of 12 Ps . aeruginosa-strains to enzymatically degrade Formaldehyde was tested . These strains, derived from environmental and patient samples, were previously passaged 25 times in increasing formaldehyde-concentrations, in a micromodification of the bacteriostasis test . The formaldehyde-degradation was detected photometrically with the sulfite-pararosaniline-method . Furthermore, in 4 of the 12 strains the activity of a formaldehyde dehydrogenase assumed to be the degrading agent was determined . The tested strains exhibited a markedly differing resistance to formaldehyde, some environmental isolates growing even at concentrations in the range of commonly used disinfectant solutions . The exponential growth phase of the inoculum and the reduction of formaldehyde-content coincided . The strains with the highest formaldehyde-resistance showed a formaldehyde-dehydrogenase activity higher by approximately a factor 100 compared with the rather sensitive ATCC-strain . This dehydrogenase activity, in addition to possible extra- and intracellular penetration barriers, could be a causal factor for an increased formaldehyde-resistance. Pathol Biol (Paris), 1987 May, 35(5), 558 - 62 {In vitro sensitivity at 18 antibiotics of 192 strains of Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolated at Garches Hospital}; Ronco E et al.; The in vitro activity of 18 antibiotic (beta-lactam agents, quinolones and aminoglycoside has been evaluated against 192 clinical isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa . Minimal inhibitor concentrations (MICs) were determined by the agar dilution technique . The 50% and 90% MICs were respectively: ticarcillin (32/greater than 1 024), azlocillin (16/512), piperacillin (8/512), cefsulodin (4/128), ceftazidime (2/8), aztreonam (4/16), imipenem (2/4), nalidixic acid (128/256), pefloxacin (1/8), norfloxacin (1/8), ofloxacin (2/8), ciprofloxacin (0.25/2), gentamicin (8/256), sisomicin (4/256), tobramycin (2/128) dibekacin (4/256), netilmicin (16/256), amikacin (8/16) . The sensitivity to beta-lactam agents and to quinolones was usual . Resistance to aminoglycosides was frequently observed (59%): 35.7% of the resistant isolates were resistant to gentamicin-sisomicin-tobramycin-dibekacin-netilmicin, 30% to netilmicin alone, 17.8% to gentamicin-sisomicin-tobramycin-dibekacin-netilmicin-amikacin, 7% to gentamicin-netilmicin, 5.3% to gentamicin-sisomicin-tobramycin-dibekacin; we did not find any P . aeruginosa resistant only to gentamicin or gentamicin-sisomicin. Pathol Biol (Paris), 1987 May, 35(5), 552 - 7 {Profiles of resistance to aminosides of Pseudomonas aeruginosa}; Lesage D et al.; Among all Gram-negative bacilli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa is one of the most resistant to aminoglycosides . Five hundred and seventeen P . aeruginosa strains were studied . Isolates came from three Paris hospitals . Reference strains were provided by P . Courvalin and A . Philippon . The following aminoglycosides were used: streptomycin (S), spectinomycin (Sp), kanamycin (K), neomycin (N), gentamicin (G), sisomicin (Ss), netilmicin (Nt), tobramycin (T), amikacin (A), habekacin (H) . The in vitro activity of antibiotics was evaluated by the standardized disk agar diffusion test . Distribution of inhibition zone diameters among susceptible strains were represented by histograms . Resistance frequency to aminoglycosides was: G: 61.5%, Ss: 38.1%, T: 35.8%, Nt: 58.2%, A: 15.5%, Seven resistance patterns were identified: G: 3%, G Ss: 3%, G Nt: 8%, G Ss Nt: 7%, G Ss T: 5%, G Ss T Nt: 53%, G Ss T Nt A: 21% . Hypothesis about resistance mechanisms and interpretation of disk agar diffusion test are discussed. J Clin Lab Immunol, 1987 May, 23(1), 25 - 30 Prognostic implications of circulating immune complexes and Pseudomonas aeruginosa-specific antibodies in cystic fibrosis; Dasgupta MK et al.; We re-examined the role of circulating immune complexes (CIC) in cystic fibrosis, by their serial measurement in 16 patients who had advanced lung disease and persistent specific antibodies to Pseudomonas aeruginosa in their serum . CIC were detected by 125I C1q-BA (IgG + IgM-IC) and Raji RIA (IgG-IC), and IgA-IC by a modification of the Raji RIA method . Serum precipitins to Ps . aeruginosa were detected by crossed-immunoelectrophoresis (XIE) and antibodies to alkaline protease (AP), elastase (EL) and exotoxin-A (EA) of Ps . aeruginosa were detected by ELISA technique . CIC were positive in greater than 50% of the samples in 8 patients (group A) and in less than 25% in the other 8 (group B); follow-up averaged 22 mo in group A and 26 mo in group B . The numbers of precipitins to Pseudomonas were equally high, and levels of antibodies to AP, EL, and EA of Ps . aeruginosa were similarly positive, in the 2 groups . In group A the CIC were mostly IgG-IC by Raji RIA (76%) and IgA-IC, whereas in group B C1q-binding IC (79%) and IgA-IC were more prevalent than IgG-IC by Raji RIA . Four group A children died during follow-up, together with one group B child in whom the CIC level had suddenly risen precipitously . We postulate that a high level of CIC in association with persistent specific-antibody response to Ps . aeruginosa heralds a poor prognosis in cystic fibrosis. J Antimicrob Chemother, 1987 May, 19(5), 569 - 78 The effect of sublethal levels of antibiotics on the pathogenicity of Pseudomonas aeruginosa for tracheal tissue; Geers TA et al.; Hamster tracheal organ cultures were used to evaluate the ability of two aminoglycoside and two beta-lactam antibiotics to protect the epithelium from damage due to Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection . Hamster tracheal explants were infected with strains of P . aeruginosa for 4 h and washed to remove nonadherent organisms . The explants were incubated for an additional 18 h in fresh minimal essential medium containing inhibitory or subinhibitory concentrations of antibiotics . The explants were examined by scanning electron microscopy and bacterial elastase and exotoxin A production was detected by ELISA and a western blot assay respectively . Concentrations of aminoglycosides below the MIC for the infecting strain protected the epithelium from damage and inhibited the production of exotoxin and elastase . The beta-lactam antibiotics were not protective and epithelial damage was observed at antibiotic levels equal to or higher than the MIC for that strain . The beta-lactam treated cultures continued to release elastase and exotoxin A at antibiotic concentrations equivalent to or higher than the MIC for that strain . Thus subinhibitory levels of aminoglycoside antibiotics could protect the infected epithelium from damage by inhibiting the release of toxic substances from the invading bacteria . In contrast, bacteria exposed to beta-lactam antibiotics may continue to release extracellular toxins which can damage the tissue. J Antimicrob Chemother, 1987 May, 19(5), 561 - 8 The effect of sublethal concentrations of aminoglycosides on adherence of Pseudomonas aeruginosa to hamster tracheal epithelium; Geers TA et al.; Perfused hamster tracheal explants were used to examine the adherence of mucoid and non-mucoid strains of Pseudomonas aeruginosa to intact tracheal epithelium when grown in 0.5 MIC of tobramycin or gentamicin . Tracheal explants were perfused for 2 h with 10(7) cfu of P . aeruginosa grown overnight in trypticase soy broth containing 0.5 MIC of tobramycin or gentamicin or without antibiotics . After infection, the explants were washed and a 4 mm section was homogenized, diluted and plated for colony counts . Mucoid strains of P . aeruginosa grown in the presence of the aminoglycosides did not produce alginate and were not as adherent as the same strains which were not grown in antibiotics . Adherence of non-mucoid strains of P . aeruginosa grown in sublethal concentrations of the aminoglycosides was not significantly reduced compared with the adherence of the same strains which were not exposed to antibiotics . These results indicate that mucoid strains of P . aeruginosa growing in the presence of sublethal concentrations of aminoglycosides do not produce alginate and may not colonize the epithelial surface. Hokkaido Igaku Zasshi, 1987 May, 62(3), 392 - 401 {Heat-stable hemolysin of Pseudomonas aeruginosa}; Fujita K; Pseudomonas aeruginosa produces at least two distinct hemolysins: heat-labile hemolysin, which is known as phospholipase C, and heat-stable hemolysin, which is considered to be a glycolipid but its true nature is not found yet . Cellophane agar plate method was applied to hasten and enhance the hemolysin production by Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and the hemolysin obtained by this method was examined biochemically . This heat-stable hemolysin consisted of two major acidic glycolipids . One was considered to be the same glycolipid as that obtained by the same method of Jarvis and Johnson's from the peptone-glycerol culture filtrate of the same organism, which is composed of two moles of rhamnose and two moles of beta-hydroxy decanoic acid, and the other one being a glycolipid composed of one mole of rhamnose and two moles of beta-hydroxy decanoic acid . By this method, the rhamnolipid with one mole of rhamnose was produced more than the rhamnolipid with two moles of rhamnose, and they were produced in the same ratio from the first to fifth culture day . From the examinations of hemolytic activities of the hydrolyzed products of these glycolipids, the hemolysis producing moiety of the hemolysin was considered to be the dimer of beta-hydroxy decanoic acid contained in the glycolipid molecule . Hemolytic activities of these glycolipids are regarded as their detergent like effects . Since these activities are interfered by small amount of serum protein, their pathogenic role would not be important in vitro . However, their interaction with other toxic substances produced by this organism would be subject to be solved. Appl Environ Microbiol, 1987 May, 53(5), 987 - 95 Potential for transduction of plasmids in a natural freshwater environment: effect of plasmid donor concentration and a natural microbial community on transduction in Pseudomonas aeruginosa; Saye DJ et al.; Transduction of Pseudomonas aeruginosa plasmid Rms149 by the generalized transducing bacteriophage phi DS1 was shown to occur during a 9-day incubation of environmental test chambers in a freshwater reservoir . Plasmid DNA was transferred from a nonlysogenic plasmid donor to a phi DS1 lysogen of P . aeruginosa that served both as the source of the transducing phage and as the recipient of the plasmid DNA . When the concentration of donors introduced into the chambers was varied while the recipient concentration in each chamber was at a level equivalent to natural concentrations of P . aeruginosa, the concentration of plasmid-containing donor cells introduced was shown to affect the frequency of transduction significantly . Transduction was observed both in the absence and in the presence of the natural microbial community . The presence of the natural community resulted in a rapid decrease in the numbers of the introduced donors and recipients and a decrease in the number of transductants recovered . These results demonstrate the potential for naturally occurring transduction in aquatic environments and indicate that donor load may be an important parameter in assessing this potential. Antimicrob Agents Chemother, 1987 May, 31(5), 703 - 8 Imipenem resistance in Pseudomonas aeruginosa resulting from diminished expression of an outer membrane protein; Buscher KH et al.; The mechanism of Pseudomonas aeruginosa resistance to imipenem in five imipenem-susceptible clinical isolates and in their resistant counterparts was investigated . The frequency for selecting imipenem-resistant variants ranged from 2.7 X 10(-5) to 2.1 X 10(-8) and was comparable to those for other beta-lactams . Cross-resistance between imipenem and other beta-lactam compounds was not observed . In all imipenem-resistant variants, induction of chromosomal beta-lactamase by imipenem was markedly diminished compared with that in the susceptible parent strain . This was not the case for other inducers such as ampicillin or cefoxitin, suggesting an impaired uptake of imipenem as an explanation for resistance . Analysis of the outer membrane proteins revealed a marked decrease of either a 46- or a 45-kilodalton protein . The lipopolysaccharide of the outer membrane in the imipenem-resistant variants was not altered. Antimicrob Agents Chemother, 1987 May, 31(5), 698 - 702 Randomized double-blind evaluation of ceftazidime dose ranging in hospitalized patients with cystic fibrosis; Reed MD et al.; Eighty-five patients with cystic fibrosis who were experiencing an acute infectious exacerbation of their disease were randomized in double-blind fashion to receive either 50 or 75 mg of ceftazidime per kg (body weight) per dose administered intravenously every 8 h for 14 days . Three patients were dropped from the study within 4 days of enrollment for reasons unrelated to drug administration . The total daily dose of ceftazidime administered was restricted by protocol design and was independent of the body weight of the patient . Thus, for datum analysis, patients were separated into three ceftazidime dosage groups (denoted as range of milligrams per kilogram per dose): group 1, 22 to 44.5; group 2, 46.3 to 56.6; and group 3, 66.7 to 80.6 . Ceftazidime monotherapy had no effect on sputum colony counts for any Pseudomonas cepacia isolate . In contrast, a substantial reduction in Pseudomonas aeruginosa sputum colony counts was observed, and from 19 to 31% of isolates were suppressed greater than or equal to 10(5) CFU/ml after 14 days of therapy . Bacterial resistance in vitro was not observed, although a trend for increasing ceftazidime MICs was observed for group 1 patients (P less than 0.05) . Overall, clinical response appeared independent of drug dose, and no relationship could be identified between the reduction in P . aeruginosa sputum colony counts and clinical outcome . Adverse effects of ceftazidime were mild and transient, necessitating drug discontinuation in one patient . These data suggest that the clinical response to ceftazidime in patients with cystic fibrosis may be maximal with 50 mg/kg per dose (150 mg/kg per day) up to a total daily dose of 6 g. J Clin Microbiol, 1987 May, 25(5), 824 - 6 Comparison of the Chinese schema and the International Antigenic Typing System for serotyping Pseudomonas aeruginosa; Liu PV; Twelve strains of Pseudomonas aeruginosa representing 12 serogroups in the serogrouping schema used in the People's Republic of China were compared with serogroups in the International Antigenic Typing System (IATS) . The first eight groups originated in the People's Republic of China, and group II appears to have a new major antigen that is not found in the IATS . Groups I, III, IV, V, VI, VII, and VIII correspond to groups 11, 6, 9, 4, 8, 3, and 1, respectively, of the IATS . Groups IX, X, XI, and XII are immunotypes 3, 4, 5, and 1, respectively, of Fisher et al . (M . W . Fisher, H . B . Devlin, and F . J . Gnabasik, J . Bacteriol., 98:835-836, 1969); they exhibited a wide range of serological cross-reactions but correspond mainly to IATS groups 2, 3, 10, and 6, respectively. J Bacteriol, 1987 May, 169(5), 1960 - 6 Effect of growth temperature on the lipids, outer membrane proteins, and lipopolysaccharides of Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO; Kropinski AM et al.; Growth of Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1 at 15 to 45 degrees C in tryptic soy broth resulted in changes in the lipids, lipopolysaccharides (LPSs), and outer membrane proteins of the cells . Cells grown at 15 degrees C contained, relative to those cultivated at 45 degrees C, increased levels of the phospholipid fatty acids hexadecenoate and octadecenoate and reduced levels of the corresponding saturated fatty acids . Furthermore, the lipid A fatty acids also showed thermoadaptation with decreases in dodecanoic and hexadecanoic acids and increases in the level of 3-hydroxydecanoate and 2-hydroxdodecanoate as the growth temperature decreased . In addition, LPS extracted from cells cultivated at the lower temperatures contained a higher content of long-chain S-form molecules than that isolated from cells grown at higher temperatures . On the other hand, the percentage of LPS cores substituted with side-chain material decreased from 37.6 mol% at 45 degrees C to 19.3 mol% at 15 degrees C . The outer membrane protein profiles indicated that at low growth temperatures there was an increase in a polypeptide with an apparent molecular weight of 43,000 and decreases in the content of 21,000 (protein H1)- and 27,500-molecular-weight proteins. J Bacteriol, 1987 May, 169(5), 1847 - 52 Cloning and characterization of the c1 repressor of Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteriophage D3: a functional analog of phage lambda cI protein; Miller RV et al.; We cloned the gene (c1) which encodes the repressor of vegetative function of Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteriophage D3 . The cloned gene was shown to inhibit plating of D3 and the induction of D3 lysogens by UV irradiation . The efficiency of plating and prophage induction of the heteroimmune P . aeruginosa phage F116L were not affected by the presence of the cloned c1 gene of D3 . When the D3 DNA fragment containing c1 was subcloned into pBR322 and introduced into Escherichia coli, it was shown to specifically inhibit the plating of phage lambda and the induction of the lambda prophage by mitomycin C . The plating of lambda imm434 phage was not affected . Analysis in minicells indicated that these effects correspond to the presence of a plasmid-encoded protein of 36,000 molecular weight . These data suggest the possibility that coliphage lambda and the P . aeruginosa phage D3 evolved from a common ancestor . The conservation of the functional similarities of their repressors may have occurred because of the advantage to these temperate phages of capitalizing on the potential of the evolutionarily conserved RecA protein to monitor the level of damage to the host genome. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci, 1987 May, 28(5), 867 - 73 Spontaneous inhibition of bacterial growth in experimental gram-negative endophthalmitis; Davey P et al.; We compared the growth patterns of gram-negative bacilli in the vitreous humor (experimental endophthalmitis in rabbits) and in a subcutaneous site of infection (croton oil pouches in rats) . In untreated animals, inoculation of Klebsiella pneumoniae or Pseudomonas aeruginosa into either site was followed by a period of rapid bacterial multiplication . Thereafter, the numbers of bacteria in the vitreous humor fell spontaneously, whereas those in the subcutaneous site remained stable . During treatment with antibiotics, there was a decline in the numbers of bacteria in both sites . However, once the drug had been eliminated, the numbers of bacteria remained low in the vitreous humor but increased in the subcutaneous site . These findings suggest that during the course of infection, there was depletion of an essential bacterial nutrient or accumulation of an antibacterial substance in the vitreous humor but not in the subcutaneous site . To examine some of these possibilities, we made biochemical measurements during the course of untreated infection . In general, the biochemical changes in the two sites were similar except that the pH fell to about 6.6-6.8 in the vitreous humor but remained above 7.0 in the subcutaneous site . None of the biochemical changes that we observed seemed likely to account for the spontaneous decline in bacterial numbers in the vitreous humor . Further study is warranted to determine the cause of the antibacterial effect in the vitreous humor during the course of experimental bacterial endophthalmitis. J Infect Dis, 1987 May, 155(5), 973 - 8 Passive immune therapy for experimental Pseudomonas aeruginosa pneumonia in the neutropenic host; Pennington JE et al.; Studies were conducted in guinea pigs, myelosuppressed by cyclophosphamide, for determination of whether passive immune therapy for Pseudomonas aeruginosa pneumonia would be useful in the setting of neutropenia . Groups of infected animals (14 per group) were treated with a single intravenous infusion of hyperimmune IgG antibody to P . aeruginosa (PA-IGIV; 500 mg/kg), tobramycin (1.7 mg/kg per 8 hr), ticarcillin (120 mg/kg per 6 hr), or combinations of these regimens . Control groups received intravenous albumin solution . Survival rates were 0% with albumin only, 0% with PA-IGIV, 43% with tobramycin (P less than .05), 86% with tobramycin plus PA-IGIV (P less than .05 vs . tobramycin alone), 7% with ticarcillin, and 43% with ticarcillin plus PA-IGIV (.05 less than P less than .10 vs . ticarcillin alone) . Additive intrapulmonary killing of P . aeruginosa and prevention of bacteremia were observed in animals treated with tobramycin plus PA-IGIV compared with either treatment alone . Thus, passive immune therapy for P . aeruginosa pneumonia may be useful in the neutropenic host, but only when used in conjunction with antimicrobial agents. J Bacteriol, 1987 May, 169(5), 2322 - 5 Some properties of subunits of DNA gyrase from Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1 and its nalidixic acid-resistant mutant; Inoue Y et al.; Subunits A and B of DNA gyrase were purified from Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1 and its mutant, which was resistant to nalidixic acid . Inhibition tests of DNA gyrases reconstituted with a combination of subunits from the two strains showed that an alteration of subunit A but not subunit B caused bacteria to resist fluoroquinolones. Eur J Respir Dis, 1987 May, 70(5), 300 - 8 Lymphocyte subpopulations and function in cystic fibrosis; Smith MJ et al.; Circulating lymphocytes subpopulations and their function have been studied in 25 young adults with cystic fibrosis (CF) and 25 normal controls . Mean absolute numbers of all lymphocyte subsets in the CF group were not significantly different from the controls . Antibody-dependent cell cytotoxicity was significantly higher in the CF patients who had Pseudomonas aeruginosa in their sputum compared with those who had not and compared with the normal controls . Within the CF group the numbers of B cells, total T cells and OKT4+ helper cells fell as percent predicted peak expiratory flow (PEF) declined and similar significant positive correlations were found between lymphocyte subsets and percent predicted body weight . Serum albumin levels also showed a positive correlation with total T lymphocyte numbers (p less than 0.05) . In vitro lymphocyte proliferative responses to mitogen were not significantly different from the control group, but again correlated positively with body weight in the CF patients . This provides further evidence that immune function in CF patients may become impaired as pulmonary disease and nutritional status deteriorate. J Hosp Infect, 1987 May, 9(3), 255 - 64 Comparative susceptibility of hospital isolates of gram-negative bacteria to antiseptics and disinfectants; Hammond SA et al.; The sensitivity of hospital isolates of Gram-negative bacteria to cationic antiseptics, mercuric chloride and two organomercury compounds has been measured . A comparison was made with laboratory strains of known sensitivity which acted as standards . All strains of Escherichia coli showed a uniformly high sensitivity to chlorhexidine diacetate; other organisms tended to be less sensitive to the biguanide . Quaternary ammonium compounds were less effective than chlorhexidine . Resistance to mercuric chloride was observed frequently, but there was little evidence of organomercurial resistance except in Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates. J Antimicrob Chemother, 1987 May, 19(5), 579 - 83 Effects of subminimal inhibitory concentrations of antibiotics on the adherence of Pseudomonas aeruginosa to tracheobronchial mucin; Vishwanath S et al.; Bacterial adherence to mucins may be important in tracheobronchial infections in cystic fibrosis . Sublethal concentrations of antibiotics reduce bacterial adherence to epithelial cells and mucins . This reduction in adherence may be a component of antimicrobial effects in infections at anatomical sites where bactericidal concentrations of antibiotics are difficult to achieve . We therefore tested the effects of sublethal concentrations of an aminoglycoside, tobramycin, and a beta-lactam antibiotic, ceftazidime, on the adherence of Pseudomonas aeruginosa to tracheobronchial mucin, since mucus secretions are often colonized by P . aeruginosa in cystic fibrosis . Adherence of the mucoid strains tested was inhibited by ceftazidime, but not by tobramycin . This effect of ceftazidime may partially explain its efficacy in patients with cystic fibrosis despite variables achieved in sputum. Infect Immun, 1987 May, 55(5), 1051 - 7 Production and characterization of monoclonal antibodies against serotype strains of Pseudomonas aeruginosa; Lam JS et al.; Monoclonal antibodies against 12 of the 17 IATS serotype strains of Pseudomonas aeruginosa were produced . Eighty-seven hybridoma clones were isolated, and the antibodies secreted were found to be reactive with both Formalin-fixed whole cells and purified lipopolysaccharide of homologous strains in enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays . Among these monoclonal antibodies, the predominant antibody class was immunoglobulin M (IgM) (76%), although antibodies of the IgG2a and IgG3 isotypes were also produced . The monoclonal antibodies could further be divided into two groups based on their ability to agglutinate whole cells of homologous strains . The agglutinating monoclonal antibodies were found to immunoblot with the O side chains of homologous lipopolysaccharide, while the nonagglutinating monoclonal antibodies were found to be reactive with outer membrane protein-associated lipopolysaccharide . The applicability of monoclonal antibodies for serotyping was examined, and several antibodies were found to agglutinate whole cells and immunoblot with the O antigen of corresponding serotypes of clinical isolates from cystic fibrosis patients . In conclusion, a set of monoclonal antibodies against the IATS serotype strains of P . aeruginosa have been produced . These antibodies represent a bank of invaluable immunological reagents which may have application in serotyping, epitope mapping, lipopolysaccharide structural determination, and studies of protection against P . aeruginosa. Am J Med, 1987 Apr 27, 82(4A), 352 - 6 Dual individualization of intravenous ciprofloxacin in patients with nosocomial lower respiratory tract infections; Nix DE et al.; Dual individualization is the integration of patient-specific pharmacokinetic parameters with the pharmacodynamics (concentration versus response) of the infecting pathogen . This technique allows description of the time of in vivo bacterial eradication, and allows estimation of optimal dosages using small numbers of seriously ill patients . In an ongoing study, 11 patients with nosocomial lower respiratory tract infections were given 200 mg of intravenous ciprofloxacin every 12 hours . Ten blood samples were taken after the first dose, with additional peaks and troughs measured on Day 4 and at the end of treatment . Bacterial isolates had minimal inhibitory concentrations (MICs) determined by standard microdilution techniques . In the 11 patients, there were 14 bacterial isolates, of which seven were Pseudomonas aeruginosa and the remainder were other pathogens . Ciprofloxacin MICs ranged from 0.008 to 1.0 microgram/ml . The pharmacokinetics of ciprofloxacin in these patients varied with renal function, and average peak serum concentrations ranged from 1.7 to 4.9 micrograms/ml . Eradication of bacteria from tracheal aspirates occurred between Days 1 and 7, except in four patients in whom the organism persisted . Correlations were observed between the day of eradication and the length of time ciprofloxacin concentrations remained above the minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) . Essentially all bacteria with MICs of less than 0.25 were eradicated . Of the non-eradicated bacteria, most had either MICs of more than 0.25, or less than 100 percent time above the MIC . The clinical response was satisfactory . It is concluded that 200 mg of intravenous ciprofloxacin every 12 hours is highly effective for bacteria with MICs less than 0.25 microgram/ml, but higher dosages may be required to eradicate organisms with higher MICs. Am J Med, 1987 Apr 27, 82(4A), 254 - 8 Oral ciprofloxacin therapy for chronic contiguous osteomyelitis caused by aerobic gram-negative bacilli; Gilbert DN et al.; Twenty adult patients with chronic contiguous osteomyelitis caused by aerobic gram-negative bacilli were enrolled in an open, prospective cooperative study to determine the effect of oral ciprofloxacin therapy in a dosage of 750 mg every 12 hours . There were 14 men and six women, with a mean age of 55 years . Fifteen of the 20 patients had undergone previous unsuccessful attempts at therapy; seven of the 20 patients had clinically important underlying diseases . Osteomyelitis involved the sternum in three patients and the bones of the lower extremity in 17 patients . Initial surgical debridement was performed in 15 of 20 patients . The predominant organism isolated was Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which was found as a single pathogen in 13 patients and as part of a polymicrobic flora in three patients . Based on posttreatment follow-up of seven to 21 months, clinical cure was achieved in 13 of 20 (65 percent) patients and bacteriologic cure was achieved in 14 of 20 (70 percent) patients . Minimal inhibitory concentrations of ciprofloxacin against P . aeruginosa increased during therapy in four of 16 (25 percent) patients . Minor gastrointestinal side effects occurred in five patients . Oral ciprofloxacin was an effective and safe therapy in patients with chronic contiguous osteomyelitis due to aerobic gram-negative bacilli. Am J Med, 1987 Apr 27, 82(4A), 189 - 95 Randomized study of two dosage regimens of ciprofloxacin for treating chronic bronchopulmonary infection in patients with cystic fibrosis; Shalit I et al.; Twenty-nine adult patients with cystic fibrosis who had chronic bronchopulmonary infection were randomly assigned to receive 750 or 1,000 mg of oral ciprofloxacin every 12 hours for two weeks . Assessments for efficacy and safety were made on treatment Days 7 and 14 and one week following completion of therapy, and pharmacokinetic data were collected on Days 1, 7, and 14 . Fifteen of 28 evaluable patients showed clinical improvement, and none had clinical deterioration . The higher dosage of ciprofloxacin did not enhance the clinical response . Statistically significant, stepwise changes in clinical scores, pulmonary function, and sputum concentrations of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus were noted, but regression toward initial values occurred by one week after treatment . Although all P . aeruginosa isolates were initially inhibited by 2 mg/liter of ciprofloxacin or less, 45 and 35 percent of isolates were resistant after 14 days of therapy and one week later, respectively . Outpatient oral ciprofloxacin therapy was commonly associated with clinical improvement in adult patients with cystic fibrosis who have chronic bronchopulmonary infection, regardless of the emergence of resistant P . aeruginosa, and adverse reactions were infrequent . Further studies must delineate the long-term consequences of the frequent emergence of bacterial resistance. Am J Med, 1987 Apr 27, 82(4A), 185 - 8 Ciprofloxacin: comparative data in cystic fibrosis; Rubio TT; Ciprofloxacin, a 4-quinolone bactericidal antimicrobial, has a high activity against a broad spectrum of bacterial microorganisms, including Pseudomonas aeruginosa . The fact that ciprofloxacin can be administered orally would represent a cost-efficient advance in the management of patients with cystic fibrosis, most of whom must be treated frequently with anti-pseudomonal antibiotics . In this study, 11 adult patients received 26 therapeutic courses of ciprofloxacin at a dose of 750 mg orally every 12 hours . In addition, a 13-year-old patient received 500 mg orally every 12 hours . The length of therapy was usually two weeks, but some patients received treatment for up to eight weeks . The mean serum concentration at two to three hours after administration of a dose was 3.68 micrograms/ml (range, 1.85 to 7.25 micrograms/ml) . The mean trough level was 0.85 microgram/ml (range, 0.36 to 1.65 micrograms/ml) . A comparable group of 11 patients matched by age and severity of disease were treated with conventional doses of tobramycin and azlocillin administered intravenously for at least two weeks . Sputum cultures from all the patients grew P . aeruginosa, except for one patient with Pseudomonas cepacia infection; the minimal inhibitory concentration of ciprofloxacin for these organisms ranged from 0.05 to 1.56 micrograms/ml . The clinical and microbiologic results obtained with these two antimicrobial regimens were similar . A therapeutic failure was noted in the patient infected with P . cepacia whose organism became resistant after one week of therapy (minimal inhibitory concentration greater than 4.58 micrograms/ml) . Emergence of resistant strains was not observed in any of the other patients. Am J Med, 1987 Apr 27, 82(4A), 87 - 90 Efficacy of ciprofloxacin in stationary-phase bacteria in vivo; Zeiler HJ et al.; The granuloma pouch model in mice infected with Escherichia coli or Pseudomonas aeruginosa was used to investigate the bactericidal effect of ciprofloxacin in vivo on bacteria in the stationary growth phase . Ciprofloxacin caused a rapid decline in the number of colony-forming units (cfu) of E . coli shortly after initiation of therapy (40 mg/kg, intraperitoneally) . Ciprofloxacin was more effective than norfloxacin or pefloxacin and comparable in efficacy to ofloxacin . The drugs penetrated well into the pouch exudate, exceeding the minimal inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of the infecting organisms . The concentrations of pefloxacin or ofloxacin were higher than those of norfloxacin or ciprofloxacin . Ciprofloxacin also showed good killing effects in pouches infected with one strain of P . aeruginosa (ICB 7453, MIC of 0.06 micrograms/ml) . However, with another P . aeruginosa strain (ICB 7933), which has a MIC of 0.5 micrograms/ml, killing of stationary cells in vivo was not very pronounced . Electron microscopic evaluation of the pouch exudate revealed that phagocytosed and non-phagocytosed E . coli cells were severely damaged in comparison with untreated control cells . The earliest ultrastructural changes could be observed 15 minutes after initiation of therapy . The results demonstrate that ciprofloxacin is effective in mice for the treatment of a local inflammatory abscess harboring a stationary population of E . coli or P . aeruginosa . This specific kind of killing occurs in vivo when drug concentrations are at least eight to 10 times higher than the MIC. Chest, 1987 Apr, 91(4), 522 - 6 Hypergammaglobulinemia in cystic fibrosis . Role of Pseudomonas endobronchial infection; Moss RB; Hypergammaglobulinemia, chronic endobronchial infection with Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA), and the resulting systemic humoral immune response to PA are each associated with worsened clinical status and prognosis in patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) . Major serum immunoglobulin isotype levels (IgG, IgA, IgM, and IgG1-4 subclasses) were measured in 31 CF patients and ten control subjects . Immunoglobulin levels were related to airway infection with PA and the resulting IgG antibody response against PA lipopolysaccharide (LPS) . Hyperimmunoglobulinemia G was present with elevated IgG1 and IgG2 in 48 percent, IgG3 in 52 percent, and IgG4 in 42 percent of CF patients . The PA infection was associated with striking increases in IgG2 . IgG2 levels correlated well with IgG2 antibodies to PA LPS (r = +0.70, p less than 0.001) . However, even CF patients who were not infected with PA had an increased prevalence of high IgG3 (p less than 0.05) and IgG4 (p less than 0.01) . The PA infection thus appears to be a major, but not the only factor causing hypergammaglobulinemia in CF. J Gen Microbiol, 1987 Apr, 133 ( Pt 4), 849 - 56 Transport, nutritional and metabolic studies of taurine in staphylococci; Giehl TJ et al.; A specific, Na+-dependent, energy-requiring transport system for taurine has been reported recently in the Staphylococcus aureus M strain . Taurine was taken up vigorously by all S . aureus strains tested . The system was Na+-dependent, and Na+ decreased the Km but had no effect on the Vmax of the transport system . Among coagulase-negative staphylococci, the Staphylococcus epidermidis group (a taxonomically related group of species associated with humans or other primates) and the free-living, wide-ranging species Staphylococcus sciuri showed vigorous taurine uptake . Somewhat lower rates were found in the Staphylococcus saprophyticus group . Low or barely detectable uptake rates were noted in other staphylococcal species that were primarily of animal origin . No taurine uptake was detected in a variety of other bacterial species tested . Taurine uptake, which was not Na+-dependent, occurred in a Pseudomonas aeruginosa strain grown on taurine as sole energy, carbon, nitrogen, and sulphur source, but not when it was grown in a gluconate/salts medium . In nutritional studies we were unable to demonstrate a role for taurine as a sulphur source for S . aureus . {1,2-14C}- and {35S}taurine were taken up during overnight growth of cells, and radioactivity was distributed similarly among cellular fractions, indicating that the carbon and sulphur atoms of taurine were not cleaved and had the same fate . We were unable to demonstrate any catabolism of taurine in radiorespirometric experiments to detect evolution of 14CO2 by cells incubated with {1,2-14C}taurine . Thus, we found no evidence for a role of taurine in the energy, carbon and sulphur metabolism of S . aureus. Antimicrob Agents Chemother, 1987 Apr, 31(4), 657 - 9 Effect of peritoneal dialysis fluid and pH on bactericidal activity of ciprofloxacin; McCormick EM et al.; Ciprofloxacin is active in vitro against most bacteria that cause peritonitis associated with peritoneal dialysis . We compared the effects of pH (5.5 and 7.4) and medium (dialysis fluid) on the bactericidal activity of ciprofloxacin, tobramycin, vancomycin plus rifampin, and rifampin against Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, and three strains of staphylococci . The bactericidal activity of ciprofloxacin was not significantly affected by pH or medium, in contrast to the activity of tobramycin, which was decreased by low pH. Antimicrob Agents Chemother, 1987 Apr, 31(4), 594 - 9 Cumulative and acute toxicity of repeated high-dose tobramycin treatment in cystic fibrosis; Pedersen SS et al.; Forty-six patients with cystic fibrosis and chronic bronchopulmonary Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection entered a study of tobramycin-related chronic and acute nephro- and acousticovestibular toxicity . The patients (mean age, 15.7 years) had previously received 2-week courses of tobramycin therapy, for a mean cumulative total of 279 days each . The cumulative tobramycin dose ranged from 632 to 7,644 mg/kg . The patients were studied before and at the end of a 2-week course of treatment with tobramycin (10 to 20 mg/kg per day) to discriminate between acute and chronic toxicity . In patients studied at the beginning of the present course of treatment, the glomerular filtration rate, measured as 24-h creatinine clearance, did not correlate with the cumulative dose of tobramycin received during previous courses . Eighteen patients (39%) had a reduced glomerular filtration rate compared with normal values (mean, 12.5% reduction) but normal serum creatinine values . Two patients (5%) had a high-frequency hearing deficit (above 8 kHz), but only one deficit was possibly related to tobramycin . No chronic vestibular toxicity was observed . During the course of treatment, no patients developed acute nephrotoxicity . After 2 weeks of treatment 32% had a slightly reduced hearing threshold (15 to 30 dB) in two or more high frequencies, and 28% had a fall in vestibular response greater than 25% of the initial value but remained within normal limits . Thus, the acute and chronic toxicity of repeated high-dose tobramycin treatment in cystic fibrosis patients seems to be very mild. Can J Microbiol, 1987 Apr, 33(4), 327 - 30 Antibiotic activity of the pyrenocines; Sparace SA et al.; Pyrenocine A, a phytotoxin produced by Pyrenochaeta terrestris (Hansen) Gorenz, Walker and Larson, possesses general antibiotic activity against plants, fungi, and bacteria . Effective doses for 50% inhibition (ED50s) are 4 micrograms/mL for onion seedling elongation; 14, 20, 20, and 25 micrograms/mL for the germination of asexual spores of Fusarium oxysporum f . sp . cepae, Fusarium solani f . sp . pisi, Mucor hiemalis, and Rhizopus stolonifer, respectively . Pyrenocine A also inhibits the linear mycelial growth of both P . terrestris and F . oxysporum with ED50s calculated as 77 and 54 micrograms/mL, respectively . Gram-positive bacteria are more susceptible to pyrenocine A than Gram-negative bacteria . ED50s are estimated as 30, 45, and 200 micrograms/mL for the inhibition of growth of Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus, and Escherichia coli, respectively, with Pseudomonas aeruginosa resistant to those concentrations tested . Pyrenocine A acts primarily as a biostatic rather than a biocidal agent with all organisms tested showing some degree of recovery when released from pyrenocine A . Pyrenocines B and C show little antibiotic activity in the bioassays performed. Pediatr Infect Dis J, 1987 Apr, 6(4), 393 - 7 Efficacy of aztreonam in pulmonary exacerbations of cystic fibrosis; Bosso JA et al.; A noncomparative pilot study was conducted to assess the potential usefulness of aztreonam in pulmonary exacerbations of cystic fibrosis . Of 27 patients initially enrolled 25 received sufficient courses of aztreonam therapy to be evaluable . All patients received 200 mg/kg/day of aztreonam in 4 equally divided doses administered intravenously . Of 57 isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa from pretherapy sputum cultures, 48 were susceptible to aztreonam in vitro as were 11 of 18 strains isolated at the conclusion of therapy . With treatment colony counts of P . aeruginosa in sputum were reduced by 3 log10 or more in 15 patients . It was totally (but temporarily) eradicated in 11 of these patients . Clinical scores and white blood cell counts improved significantly (P less than 0.05) . Side effects of aztreonam were limited to transient elevations of liver enzymes occurring in 16 patients . Aztreonam merits further evaluation in a randomized, comparative trial with standard antibiotic therapy for cystic fibrosis. Diagn Microbiol Infect Dis, 1987 Apr, 6(4), 277 - 82 Comparison of two selective media developed to isolate Pseudomonas cepacia from patients with cystic fibrosis; Black-Payne C et al.; Two media selective for Pseudomonas cepacia have been described recently: OF-polymyxinbacitracin-lactose agar (OFPBL) and P . cepacia agar (PCA) . We compared these by culturing sputum from 27 patients with cystic fibrosis . Sputum from each patient was studied using streak-plate (SP) and quantitative (Q) culture methods . Five strains of P . cepacia were isolated from four patients (15%) . P . cepacia was not found on routine media by SP or Q methods in three of the four patients . All five isolates grew on both OFPBL and PCA and all were recovered by SP and Q culture methods . Colony counts of P . cepacia obtained by Q cultures were similar on both selective media . Each of the selective media allowed the growth of other organisms; nineteen of 27 specimens cultured on OFPBL yielded non-P . cepacia spp . and six of 27 specimens cultured on PCA yielded non-P . cepacia spp . species (p less than 0.005) . Pseudomonas aeruginosa was isolated from 26 of 27 patients on routine media (96%) . This organism was recovered from four specimens cultured on OFPBL but from none on PCA (p less than 0.05) . OFPBL and PCA are both selective for P . cepacia and enhance the ability to recover this organism from patients with cystic fibrosis using either SP or Q cultures of sputum; however, PCA is significantly more inhibitory for non-P . cepacia spp . than OFPBL. Thorax, 1987 Apr, 42(4), 256 - 61 Deleterious effects of purulent sputum sol on human ciliary function in vitro: at least two factors identified; Sykes DA et al.; Patients with chronic bronchial sepsis have impaired mucociliary clearance . A study was carried out on the effect of sputum sol (obtained by rapid centrifugation of purulent sputum) from 20 patients with chronic bronchial sepsis on the beating of human nasal cilia in vitro by a photometric technique . Thirteen sols caused significant (p less than 0.001) ciliary slowing . Two patterns of slowing were observed: firstly, a gradual onset associated with epithelial disruption (inhibited by alpha 1 antiprotease) and, secondly, an immediate onset associated with ciliary dyskinesia and ciliostasis (inhibited by chloroform extraction) . The ciliary slowing activity of sputum sols was associated with the isolation of Pseudomonas aeruginosa (p less than 0.01) . It is concluded that purulent sputum contains at least two factors that impair ciliary beating--one a serine protease, which is probably a product released by the host's phagocytic defences, and the other, which is chloroform extractable and probably a bacterial product. J Gen Microbiol, 1987 Apr, 133 ( Pt 4), 1099 - 107 Gluconeogenic mutations in Pseudomonas aeruginosa: genetic linkage between fructose-bisphosphate aldolase and phosphoglycerate kinase; Banerjee PC et al.; Mutants of mucoid Pseudomonas aeruginosa defective in fructose-bisphosphate aldolase (FBA), NADP-linked glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAP) or 3-phosphoglycerate kinase (PGK) were unable to grow on gluconeogenic precursors like glutamate, succinate or lactate . The gap and pgk mutants could grow on glucose, gluconate or glycerol, but fba mutants could not . This suggests that the metabolism of glucose or gluconate does not require either PGK or NADP-linked GAP but does require the operation of the aldolase-catalysed step . For gluconeogenesis, however, all three steps are essential . Recombinant plasmids carrying genes for FBA, PGK, GAP or phospho-2-keto-3-deoxygluconate aldolase (EDA) activities were constructed from a genomic library of mucoid P . aeruginosa selecting for complementation of deficiency mutations . Analysis of their complementation profile indicated that one group of plasmids carried fba and pgk genes, while another group carried eda, 6-phosphogluconate dehydratase (edd) and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (zwf) genes . The gap gene was not linked to any of these markers . Partial restoration of FBA activity in spontaneous revertants of Fba- mutants was accompanied by a concomitant loss of PGK activity . These experiments indicate a linkage between the fba and pgk genes on the P . aeruginosa chromosome. Clin Exp Immunol, 1987 Apr, 68(1), 86 - 92 Anti-pseudomonas activity of anti-lipopolysaccharide hyperimmune equine plasma; Wells M et al.; Passive immunotherapy with anti-lipopolysaccharide hyperimmune equine plasma (Anti-LPS) is effective in treating experimental Gram-negative bacterial infections . The bactericidal activity of anti-LPS towards five different Pseudomonas species, including two multiresistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates was tested here, as well as the ability of anti-LPS to inhibit the quantitative chromogenic limulus amoebocyte lysate (LAL) assay . Anti-LPS caused a mean reduction of 84.4 +/- 3.2% (P less than 0.001) in the number of colony forming units (cfu) of all isolates, whereas saline and complement inactivated anti-LPS induced no reduction . Nonimmune control plasma caused a small reduction in % cfu but much less than anti-LPS hyperimmune plasma (13.5% vs 84.4%, P less than 0.001) . In order to cause 99% inhibition of the LAL test of 5 ng/ml Pseudomonas aeruginosa LPS, IgG antibodies were required in 10(5)-fold excess . These results suggest that anti-LPS has potential in the therapy and prophylaxis of Gram-negative bacterial infections, especially where LPS is involved in the disease process. Zentralbl Bakteriol Mikrobiol Hyg {A}, 1987 Apr, 264(1-2), 154 - 62 Specific and nonspecific protection of mice by Pseudomonas aeruginosa lipopolysaccharides; Marx A et al.; The role of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in eliciting a predominant cellular or humoral protection of mice is determined by the amount administered and the immunization schedule . Three basically different experimental conditions could be characterized . Five days after immunization with 100 micrograms of LPS, a nonspecific protection was observed due to the immunomodulatory capacity of lipid A . After 14 days, the same amount of LPS results in an O-specific humoral protection . On the other hand, 0.1 micrograms of LPS lead to a specific protection within 5 days after immunization due to a synergistic action of a specific humoral response (induced by the O-side chain) and a nonspecific signal modulated by lipid A . In order to study the role of each LPS region for protection, the free side chain was conjugated to albumin, followed by complexation with lipid A . To induce a nonspecific protection 5 days after immunization, the presence of lipid A was mandatory, in either the conjugated or free form . Removal of ester-linked fatty acids from free lipid A reduced its protective and mitogenic capacities by 50, and 25%, respectively. Poult Sci, 1987 Apr, 66(4), 659 - 65 Efficacies of mixtures of disinfectants and insecticides; Geden CJ et al.; Efficacies of mixtures of diluted commercial formulations of selected insecticides and disinfectants were evaluated . Insecticides tested included representative pyrethroids (fenvalerate {Ectrin WDL and WD} and permethrin {Ectiban EC}), organophosphates (dichlorvos {Vapona EC}, tetrachlorvinphos {Rabon WP} and dichlorvos/tetrachlorvinphos {RaVap EC}, and a carbamate (carbaryl {Sevin S}) . Disinfectants tested included representatives of cresylic acid (Biolene), cresylic acid/phenol (BioGuard X-185), phenol (1-Stroke Environ), quaternary ammonium (BioGuard S-3 and PFP-4), quaternary ammonium/formalin (DC & R), and formalin classes of disinfectants . Mixtures were tested for toxicity to two target insects (Musca domestica on plywood, Alphitobius diaperinus in litter) and two bacteria (Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus) . Of 56 mixtures evaluated, 24 showed reduced insecticidal toxicity and 35 showed reduced bactericidal activity compared with insecticides or disinfectants alone. Antimicrob Agents Chemother, 1987 Apr, 31(4), 632 - 4 Synergism of the combinations of imipenem plus ciprofloxacin and imipenem plus amikacin against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and other bacterial pathogens; Bustamante CI et al.; The combinations of imipenem plus ciprofloxacin and imipenem plus amikacin were investigated for their activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and other bacterial pathogens . For imipenem-susceptible P . aeruginosa, synergy of imipenem plus ciprofloxacin and imipenem plus amikacin was observed against 36 and 45% of the strains, respectively . The incidence of synergy against imipenem-resistant isolates of P . aeruginosa was 10% for both combinations . Antagonism was not observed with either combination. Antimicrob Agents Chemother, 1987 Apr, 31(4), 582 - 6 Mutations producing resistance to norfloxacin in Pseudomonas aeruginosa; Hirai K et al.; Two genetically distinct classes of norfloxacin-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO4009 mutants were isolated spontaneously . Two norfloxacin resistance genes, nfxA and nfxB, were mapped hex-9001 and leu-9005 and between pro-9031 and ilv-9023, respectively, on the P . aeruginosa PAO chromosome . The nfxA gene was shown to be an allele of nalA by transductional analysis with bacteriophage F116L . The nfxB mutant showed a 16-fold increase in resistance to norfloxacin and a slight increase in resistance to nalidixic acid . The nfxB mutant was unique in that it showed hypersusceptibility to beta-lactam and aminoglycoside antibiotics . This mutant had about a threefold-lower rate of norfloxacin uptake than that of the wild-type strain or nfxA mutant . Sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of outer membrane proteins demonstrated the appearance of a 54,000-dalton protein in the nfxB mutant . These findings suggested that the norfloxacin resistance mechanism in the nfxB mutant might be an alteration in outer membrane permeability to norfloxacin. Arch Dis Child, 1987 Apr, 62(4), 357 - 61 Serum IgG antibodies in patients with cystic fibrosis with early Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection; Brett MM et al.; Serum IgG antibodies to Pseudomonas aeruginosa surface antigens were measured by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay in all patients with cystic fibrosis from whom P . aeruginosa was isolated for the first time during a study period of 18 months . In 15 patients the titre of serum IgG antibodies was greater than control values before or at the time of the first bacteriological isolation of P . aeruginosa . The presence of serum antibodies specific to P . aeruginosa suggests exposure to infection by that organism for some months before its isolation in significant numbers from the respiratory tract . In the other two patients serum titres were within the control range before isolation of P . aeruginosa but had increased to above the control range within the next month . Longitudinal studies on the entire group of patients showed further increases in titre concurrently with further isolations of P . aeruginosa . These results suggest that this assay may be an indicator of the beginning of pulmonary infection by P . aeruginosa and may prove to be a sensitive monitor of the progress of infection, and response to treatment, during the first months of infection by that organism. J Antimicrob Chemother, 1987 Apr, 19(4), 449 - 65 The frequency of in-vitro resistance development to fluoroquinolones and the use of a murine pyelonephritis model to demonstrate selection of resistance in vivo; Fernandes PB et al.; The frequency of development of resistance to the fluoroquinolones in vitro was generally low with Escherichia coli (in the order of 10(-7) to less than 10(-9) and high with Pseudomonas aeruginosa (in the order of 10(-5) to 10(-7)) . Susceptibility to the fluoroquinolones also decreased after serial transfer in increasing concentrations of the drug . Although the MICs for the resistant E . coli variants were higher than that of the parent organism, they were still susceptible to achievable serum concentrations of all the quinolones except nalidixic acid . On the other hand some of the P . aeruginosa variants selected for resistance were resistant to achievable serum concentrations of all the quinolones . When E . coli pyelonephritis in mice was treated with the fluoroquinolones, difloxacin, A-56620, and ciprofloxacin were more effective than norfloxacin and nalidixic acid in lowering viable bacterial counts in the kidneys . The susceptibility of E . coli isolated from kidneys of mice treated with the quinolones was the same as that of the parent strain . When P . aeruginosa pyelonephritis in mice was treated with the fluoroquinolones an initial reduction in the cell count was seen, followed by an increase in the number of resistant variants . The resistant variants differed in their colony morphology and cell envelope proteins . The levels of resistance for the P . aeruginosa variants ranged from a two- to a 64-fold increase in the MIC. Genetics, 1987 Apr, 115(4), 611 - 8 Recalibration of the Pseudomonas aeruginosa strain PAO chromosome map in time units using high-frequency-of-recombination donors; O'Hoy K et al.; High-frequency-of-recombination donors of P . aeruginosa strain PAO were generated using a temperature-sensitive, replication mutant of the IncP-1 plasmid R68, loaded with the transposon Tn2521 . Fourteen donors so isolated mobilized the chromosome in a polarized manner from a number of different transfer origins . The donors were used to construct a time of entry map of the entire chromosome and this was achieved by determining the time of entry of 32 randomly dispersed markers in crosses using nalidixic acid to interrupt chromosome transfer . Analysis of the time of entry data enabled the recalibration of the chromosome map to 75 min. Eur J Respir Dis, 1987 Apr, 70(4), 213 - 7 N-acetylcysteine and 2-mercaptoethane sulphonate inhibit anti-pseudomonas activity of antibiotics in vitro; Alfredsson H et al.; The in vitro activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa was investigated for serial dilutions of eight anti-Pseudomonas antibiotics in combination with serial dilutions of N-acetylcysteine (NAC) and 2-mercaptoethane sulphonate (MES) . The results indicated that addition of NAC and MES to the antibiotics increased the MIC values for tobramycin, netilmicin, piperacillin, azlocillin, cefsulodin, ceftazidime and imipenem but not for colistin . The decrease of MIC found in high concentrations of NAC and MES was probably due to the bacteriostatic effect of the drugs per se and not to synergism with the antibiotics. J Clin Microbiol, 1987 Apr, 25(4), 732 - 3 Attempted reduction of Abbott MS-2 false-susceptible errors for cefotaxime-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa by medium modification; Lander DW et al.; Thirty-five modifications of Abbott MS-2 growth medium were evaluated in an attempt to reduce the high frequency of false-susceptible errors produced by the MS-2 system when testing resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa against cefotaxime . A hypotonic modification with 0.1% KNO3 reduced the errors from 41 to 20% for 23 resistant isolates . All hypertonic modifications proved unsatisfactory . No modification reduced false-susceptible errors to acceptable clinical levels. J Clin Microbiol, 1987 Apr, 25(4), 656 - 9 Alginate production by clinical nonmucoid Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains; Anastassiou ED et al.; The slime material from a revertant nonmucoid variant, derived by serial passage of a heavily mucoid Pseudomonas aeruginosa strain isolated from a patient with bacteremia, was found to contain 16% uronic acids, 48.5% carbohydrates, 11% protein, and 2% lipids . Chromatographic analysis by ion exchange chromatography revealed that this extracellular material consisted of three fractions, one uronic acid fraction with properties similar to those of the alginate fraction of the parental strain and two other fractions consisting of neutral sugars and proteins in approximately a 5:1 ratio . In addition, the slime material from six other clinical macroscopic nonmucoid P . aeruginosa strains was found to contain alginate . These results demonstrate that alginate production in various amounts is a property shared by all P . aeruginosa strains. Am Rev Respir Dis, 1987 Apr, 135(4), 860 - 3 Fast solubilization of human lung elastin by Pseudomonas aeruginosa elastase; Hamdaoui A et al.; Pseudomonas aeruginosa may cause severe lung infections in humans . This bacteria secretes an elastase that might degrade lung elastin . We have studied the solubilization of human lung elastin by P . aeruginosa elastase in an attempt to delineate the pathogenic role of this proteinase in P . aeruginosa lung infections . We also used bovine ligamentum nuchae elastin and human leukocyte elastase for comparative purposes . With an elastin concentration of 5 mg X ml-1 and at physiologic ionic strength, P . aeruginosa elastase is about 50 times more active on human lung elastin than on bovine elastin . In contrast, human leukocyte elastase has similar specific activities on the 2 substrates . In addition, the bacterial enzyme is about 10 times more active on human elastin than the neutrophil elastase but the latter is about 5 times more active on bovine elastin than the former . In order to better quantitate these enzyme-substrate interactions, we have measured initial rates of elastolysis, derived from product versus time curves, as a function of elastin concentration . The substrate-velocity curves, analyzed using an equation similar to the classic Michaelis-Menten one, yielded 2 empirical kinetic parameters: {S50}-1, the apparent elastase-elastin affinity and Vm, the apparent catalytic efficiency of elastase . This analysis shows that human leukocyte elastase exhibits similar {S50}-1 and Vm values for the 2 elastins . The low activity of P . aeruginosa elastase on bovine elastin is due to the combined effects of low S50(-1) and Vm values, which could not be measured separately.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS) J Infect Dis, 1987 Apr, 155(4), 775 - 82 Beta-lactamase lability and inducer power of newer beta-lactam antibiotics in relation to their activity against beta-lactamase-inducibility mutants of Pseudomonas aeruginosa; Livermore DM et al.; The interactions of imipenem, carbenicillin, cefotaxime, ceftriaxone, and azlocillin with the chromosomal beta-lactamase of Pseudomonas aeruginosa were compared . Imipenem was hydrolyzed very slowly (kcat, 1/min) and induced beta-lactamase synthesis strongly . Its minimal inhibitory concentrations (MICs) reflected this behavior, being equal (1-2 micrograms/ml) for enzyme-inducible strains and their stably derepressed mutants . Mutants that had basal (i.e., minimal and uninducible) enzyme production were eight- to 16-fold more susceptible to imipenem than were inducible or stably derepressed strains . Carbenicillin was stable to hydrolysis (kcat, less than 0.1/min) and induced weakly at low concentrations . Consequently its MICs were equal for beta-lactamase-inducible strains and for their basal mutants . Stable beta-lactamase derepression generally did not increase resistance to carbenicillin significantly . Azlocillin, cefotaxime, and ceftriaxone were labile to hydrolysis (kcat, 12-297/min) but induced poorly . Consequently their MICs for enzyme-inducible strains equaled those for basal mutants but were elevated for derepressed mutants. Biochem J, 1987 Apr 1, 243(1), 241 - 8 Electron-paramagnetic-resonance and magnetic-circular-dichroism studies on the formate dehydrogenase-nitrate reductase particle from Pseudomonas aeruginosa; Godfrey C et al.; The membrane-bound respiratory particle complex of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which reduces nitrate to nitrite using formate as the electron donor, was prepared and characterized by e.p.r . and low-temperature magnetic c.d . (m.c.d.) spectroscopy . The particle complex has two enzymic components, namely nitrate reductase (NiR) and formate dehydrogenase (FDH), which are multi-centred proteins containing molybdenum, iron-sulphur clusters and cytochrome . By using results from work on the purified extracted enzymes NiR and FDH to aid in the assignment, it has been possible to observe spectroscopically all the components of the electron-transfer chain in the intact particle . This led to a proposal for the organization of the metal components of the FDH-NiR chain . Molybdenum ions are at opposite ends of the chain and interact with, respectively, the formate-CO2 couple and the nitrate-nitrite couple . The molybdenum ion at the low-potential end of the chain passes electrons to cytochrome b of FDH, a bishistidine-co-ordinated haem with unusual steric restraint at the iron . The next component is a {4Fe-4S} cluster . This comprises all the components of FDH . Electrons are passed to the molybdenum of NiR via a number, probably two, of {4Fe-4S} clusters . No evidence has been found in this work for the presence of a quinone to mediate electron transfer between FDH and NiR . Cytochrome c appears to be able to feed electrons into the chain at the level of one of the {4Fe-4S} centres of NiR. Biochem J, 1987 Apr 1, 243(1), 235 - 9 Purification and properties of formate dehydrogenase from Pseudomonas aeruginosa . Electron-paramagnetic-resonance studies on the molybdenum centre; Gadsby PM et al.; Formate dehydrogenase from Pseudomonas aeruginosa contains molybdenum, a {4Fe-4S} cluster and cytochrome b . This paper reports the detection of molybdenum as Mo(V) by e.p.r . spectroscopy . In order to generate Mo(V) signals, addition of amounts of excess formate varying between 10- and 50-fold over enzyme, followed by 200-fold excess of sodium dithionite, were used . Two Mo(V) species were observed . One, the major component, has g1 = 2.012, g2 = 1.985 and g3 = 1.968, appeared at low concentrations of formate and increased linearly in intensity with increasing concentrations of formate up to 25-fold excess over the enzyme . At higher formate concentration this signal disappeared . The appearance and disappearance of this Mo(V) signal seems to parallel the state of reduction of the {4Fe-4S} clusters . A second, minor, Mo(V) species with g-values g1 = 1.996, g2 = 1.981 and g3 = 1.941 appears at a constant level during the formate-dithionite titration . No evidence has been obtained for nuclear hyperfine coupling to protons . The major Mo(V) species has unusual e.p.r . signals compared with other molybdenum-containing enzymes, except for that observed in the formate dehydrogenase from Methanobacterium formicicum {Barber, Siegel, Schauer, May & Ferry (1983) J . Biol . Chem . 258, 10839-10845} . The present work suggests that the enzyme is acting as a CO2 reductase, with dithionite as an electron donor to a {4Fe-4S} cluster, which in turn donates electrons to molybdenum, producing a Mo(V) species with CO2 bound to the metal. Biochem J, 1987 Apr 1, 243(1), 225 - 33 Purification and properties of formate dehydrogenase from Pseudomonas aeruginosa . Characterization of haem and iron-sulphur centres by magnetic-circular-dichroism and electron-paramagnetic-resonance spectroscopy; Godfrey C et al.; The purification of formate dehydrogenase (FDH) from Pseudomonas aeruginosa after anaerobic growth on nitrate-containing medium was carried out . The separation of the FDH enzyme from nitrate reductase (NiR), which are found together in a particle fraction and constitute the short respiratory chain of this bacterium, has been followed by optical, magnetic c.d . (m.c.d.) and e.p.r . spectroscopy . These techniques have allowed the haem, iron-sulphur clusters and molybdenum components to be detected and, in part, their nature to be determined . Attempts to extract FDH anaerobically in the absence of sodium dithionite led to loss of activity . Addition of sodium dithionite maintained the activity of the enzyme, even after subsequent exposure to air, in an assay involving formate reduction with Nitro Blue Tetrazolium as reductant . Three preparations of FDH have been examined spectroscopically . The preparations vary in the amount of contaminating nitrate reductase, the amount of cytochrome c present and the concentration of oxidized {3Fe-4S} cluster . Optical spectra and low-temperature m.c.d . spectroscopy show the loss of a cytochrome-containing protohaem IX co-ordinated by methionine and histidine as NiR is separated from the preparation . In its purest state FDH contains one molecule of cytochrome co-ordinated by two histidine ligands in the oxidized state . This cytochrome has an e.p.r . spectrum with gz = 3.77, the band having the unusual ramp shape characteristic of highly anisotropic low-spin ferric haem . It also shows a charge-transfer band of high intensity in the m.c.d . spectrum at 1545 nm . It has recently been shown {Gadsby & Thomson (1986) FEBS Lett . 197, 253-257} that these spectroscopic properties are diagnostic of a bishistidine co-ordinated haem with steric constraint of the axial ligands . The e.p.r . and m.c.d . spectra of the reduced state of FDH reveal the presence of an iron-sulphur cluster of the {4Fe-4S}+ type . The g-values are 2.044, 1.943 and 1.903 . An iron-sulphur cluster of the class {3Fe-4S}, detected by e.p.r . spectroscopy in the oxidized state and by low-temperature m.c.d . spectroscopy in the reduced state, is purified away with the NiR . Finally, an e.p.r . signal at g = 2.0 with a narrow bandwidth which persists to 80 K is observed in the purest preparation of FDH . This may arise from an organic radical species. Biokhimiia, 1987 Apr, 52(4), 638 - 42 {Oxidation by nitrite of azurin and cytochrome c-551 from Pseudomonas aeruginosa}; Kamalian MG et al.; The nitrite oxidizes reduced azurin and cytochrome c-551 from Pseudomonas aeruginosa . The effects of pH, ionic strength and concentrations of nitrite, EDTA and the protein on the oxidation were investigated . The results obtained indicate that nitrite interacts not only with the terminal electron carrier of the nitrite reducing chain (nitrite reductase, cytochrome cd1) but also with the intermediate electron carrier components of the chain (azurin and cytochrome c-551). J Antibiot (Tokyo), 1987 Apr, 40(4), 547 - 54 Protective effect of forphenicinol, a low molecular weight immunomodifier, against infection with Pseudomonas aeruginosa in mice and its mechanisms; Naito K et al.; The oral administration of forphenicinol increased the survival rate of both normal and immunodepressed mice intraperitoneally or intratracheally infected with clinically isolated strains of Pseudomonas aeruginosa . The therapeutic effect of amikacin on intraperitoneal infection with P . aeruginosa was enhanced by combined use with forphenicinol . Forphenicinol did not enhance the bactericidal activity of polymorphonuclear cells (PMN) towards P . aeruginosa in vitro, but enhanced it in vivo . In vitro study indicated that the macrophages taken from mice treated with forphenicinol or the cultured supernatant of these macrophages enhanced the bactericidal activity of PMN . The protective effect of forphenicinol against P . aeruginosa infection was thus suggested to be due to macrophage activation followed by the enhancement of the bactericidal activity of PMN. J Bacteriol, 1987 Apr, 169(4), 1593 - 602 Construction and characterization of Pseudomonas aeruginosa algB mutants: role of algB in high-level production of alginate; Goldberg JB et al.; The algB gene, which is involved in the production of alginate in Pseudomonas aeruginosa, was localized to approximately 2.2 kilobases of DNA from strain FRD by using transposon Tn501 insertion mutagenesis, subcloning, and complementation techniques . The previously reported alg-50(Ts) mutation, which confers the phenotype of temperature-sensitive alginate production, was here designated as an algB allele . A transduction-mediated gene replacement technique was used for site-directed mutagenesis to isolate and characterize algB::Tn501 mutants of P . aeruginosa FRD . Although algB::Tn501 mutants had a nonmucoid phenotype (indicating an alginate deficiency), they still produced about 1 to 5% of wild-type levels of alginate in most growth media and up to 16% in very rich media . The algB::Tn501 mutations had no apparent effect on growth rate or growth requirements . Using another gene replacement technique called excision marker rescue, we constructed a chromosomal algB deletion (delta algB) mutant of P . aeruginosa FRD . The delta algB mutant also produced low levels of alginate as did the algB::Tn501 mutants . The alginate produced by algB::Tn501 mutants resembled wild-type alginate by all criteria studied: molecular weight, acetylation, and proportion of mannuronic and guluronic acids . Thus, the algB gene product is apparently involved in the high-level production of alginate by P . aeruginosa and is not directly involved in the pathway leading to its biosynthesis . Chromosomal mapping of an algB::Tn501 insertion showed linkage to the trp-2 marker on the FRD chromosome as does the algB50(Ts) mutation . The excision marker rescue technique was also used to place the algB::Tn501 marker on the chromosome of characterized strains of P . aeruginosa PAO . The algB::Tn501 mutation mapped near 21 min on the PAO chromosome. J Bacteriol, 1987 Apr, 169(4), 1499 - 508 Characterization of the Pseudomonas aeruginosa recA analog and its protein product: rec-102 is a mutant allele of the P . aeruginosa PAO recA gene; Kokjohn TA et al.; We cloned a 2.3-kilobase-pair fragment of the Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO chromosome which is capable of complementing recA mutations of Escherichia coli . The recA-complementing activity was further localized to a 1.5-kilobase-pair PvuII-HindIII fragment . Southern blot analysis under conditions of high stringency indicated that DNA sequence homology is shared by the E . coli recA gene and the P . aeruginosa recA analog . The cloned recA analog was shown to restore resistance to methyl methanesulfonate, nitrofurantoin, and UV irradiation to E . coli recA mutants . Upon introduction of the cloned P . aeruginosa gene, these mutants regained recombination proficiency in HfrH-mediated conjugation and the ability to induce lambda prophages and SOS functions (din gene transcription) after exposure to DNA-damaging agents . Lambda prophage carrying a cI ind mutation was not inducible, suggesting that the mechanism of induction of these SOS functions by the P . aeruginosa RecA analog is similar to that by the activated E . coli RecA protein . The product of the recA analog was identified in minicells as a protein of approximately 47,000 daltons . Western blot analysis using anti-E . coli RecA antibody demonstrated that this protein is antigenically cross-reactive with the E . coli recA protein . The recA-containing fragment was cloned into the broad-host-range vector pCP13 and introduced into Rec- strains of P . aeruginosa containing the rec-102 allele . The plasmid was shown to restore recombination proficiency in FP5-mediated conjugations and to restore resistance to UV irradiation and methyl methanesulfonate to these Rec- mutants . It was shown that a wild-type allele of rec-102 is necessary for UV-mediated induction of D3 and F116 prophages . The cloned recA analog restored the UV inducibility of these prophages in rec-102 mutants . These data indicate that rec-102 is a mutant allele of the P . aeruginosa recA gene and suggest that there has been considerable conservation of the recA gene in the evolution of the gram-negative bacteria. Infect Immun, 1987 Apr, 55(4), 986 - 9 Inhibition of human natural killer cell activity by Pseudomonas aeruginosa alkaline protease and elastase; Pedersen BK et al.; The present study was designed to examine the effect of Pseudomonas aeruginosa alkaline protease (AP) and elastase (Ela) on human natural killer (NK) cell activity in vitro . AP and Ela were found to inhibit NK cell function . Addition of alpha interferon and interleukin-2 did not abolish this inhibition of NK cell activity . Adhesion of effector to target cells was studied in a single-cell agarose assay of monocyte-depleted NK-cell-enriched cell populations . AP and Ela were shown to inhibit effector/target cell conjugate formation . Furthermore, AP and Ela inhibited the binding of the monoclonal antibody Leu-11, which reacts with the Fc receptor of NK cells . The inhibition of NK cell binding to the target cell by P . aeruginosa proteases is most likely due to proteolytic cleavage of the surface receptors involved in the binding of the effector cell to the target cell. J Immunol, 1987 Apr 1, 138(7), 2272 - 7 In vitro T cell-mediated killing of Pseudomonas aeruginosa . V . Generation of bactericidal T cells in nonresponder mice; Powderly WG et al.; We have previously reported that BALB/c mice immunized with 10 micrograms of a Pseudomonas aeruginosa polysaccharide antigen (PS) and 100 micrograms vinblastine sulfate develop T cell-mediated protective immunity, but fail to generate an antibody response . Vinblastine functions in this system to remove a suppressor cell that normally inhibits expression of this form of immunity after PS immunization . T cells from CB.20 mice immunized with the 10 micrograms of PS and 100 micrograms vinblastine fail to kill P . aeruginosa in vitro . These mice are allotype congenic with BALB/c mice, differing at loci closely linked to the IgH-1 locus . Immunization of CB.20 mice with 10 micrograms PS and 100 micrograms vinblastine results in the appearance of T cells which suppress in vitro bactericidal activity of BALB/c T cells . In the current study we found that T cell-mediated bactericidal activity can be generated in CB.20 mice by increasing the dose of vinblastine given at the time of PS immunization . The phenotype of the CB.20 bactericidal T cell generated by high dose vinblastine is identical to that of the BALB/c bactericidal T cell, and the CB.20 bactericidal T cell can adoptively transfer protective immunity to granulocytopenic mice . After immunization of BALB/c and CB.20 mice with PS alone, approximately one log fewer CB.20 T cells than BALB/c T cells are required to suppress bacterial killing in vitro . Furthermore, the number of CB.20 T cells required to suppress in vitro bacterial killing is directly correlated with the dose of vinblastine administered at the time of immunization . Increasing the immunizing dose of PS overcomes suppressor activity and allows the generation of bactericidal T cells in BALB/c mice without a requirement for vinblastine . CB.20 mice fail to generate bactericidal T cells after immunization with high doses of PS . These results indicate that CB.20 and BALB/c mice both possess the full repertoire of T cells required to express bactericidal T cell activity and that the differences in their responses reflect only quantitative differences in suppressor cell activity. Eur J Biochem, 1987 Mar 16, 163(3), 639 - 52 Somatic antigens of Pseudomonas aeruginosa . The structure of O-specific polysaccharide chains of the lipopolysaccharides from P . aeruginosa O5 (Lányi) and immunotype 6 (Fisher); Knirel YA et al.; Lipopolysaccharides were isolated from dry bacterial cells of Pseudomonas aeruginosa O5a,b,c, O5a,b,d, O5a,d (Lanyi classification) and immunotype 6 (Fisher classification) by the Westphal procedure . Their polysaccharide chains were built up of trisaccharide repeating units containing D-xylose, 2-acetamido-2,6-dideoxy-D-galactose and a new sialic acid-like sugar, the di-N-acyl derivative of 5,7-diamino-3,5,7,9-tetradeoxy-L-glycero-L-manno-nonulosonic (pseudaminic) acid . Formyl, acetyl and (R)-3-hydroxybutyryl groups were identified as the N-acyl substituents of the last monosaccharide; O5a,b,c and O5a,b,d lipopolysaccharides also contained O-acetyl groups . The glycosidic linkage of pseudaminic acid was extremely labile towards acids, and mild acid degradation of the lipopolysaccharides produced, instead of the O-specific polysaccharides, their trisaccharide fragments with pseudaminic acid at the reducing terminus . Similar degradation of immunotype 6 lipopolysaccharides, followed by oxidation with sodium metaperiodate, resulted in a disaccharide fragment due to destruction of xylose . In contrast the glycosidic linkage of pseudaminic acid proved to be more stable towards treatment with hydrogen fluoride than those of xylose and N-acetylfucosamine . As a result, solvolysis of immunotype 6 lipopolysaccharide with hydrogen fluoride in methanol gave methyl glycosides of a disaccharide and a trisaccharide with pseudaminic acid at the non-reducing terminus . Mild acid hydrolysis of these oligosides afforded free 5-N-acetyl-7-N-formylpseudaminic acid, which was identified by the 1H ande 13C nuclear magnetic resonance data, as well as by the mass spectrum of the corresponding fully methylated aldonic acid . As a result of the identification of all oligosaccharides obtained and comparative analysis of the 13C nuclear magnetic resonance spectra of the oligosaccharides and lipopolysaccharides the following structures were established for the repeating units of the polysaccharide chains of the lipopolysaccharides: (Formula: see text) where D-Xyl = D-xylose, D-FucNAc = 2-acetamido-2,6-dideoxy-D-galactose, Pse5N7NFm = 5-amino-3,5,7,9-tetradeoxy-7-formamido-L-glycero-L-manno-nonulosonic+ ++ acid (7-N-formylpseudaminic acid) . All the polysaccharides have an identical carbohydrate skeleton and differ from each other by the acyl substituent at N-5 of pseudaminic acid {acetyl or (R)-3-hydroxybutyryl group} or by the presence or absence of the O-acetyl group at position 4 of N-acetylfucosamine . The data obtained account properly for the O specificity of the studied P . aeruginosa strains. Eur J Biochem, 1987 Mar 16, 163(3), 627 - 37 Somatic antigens of Pseudomonas aeruginosa . The structure of the O-specific polysaccharide chain of the lipopolysaccharide from P . aeruginosa O13 (Lányi); Knirel YA et al.; The O-specific polysaccharide, obtained on mild acid degradation of lipopolysaccharide of Pseudomonas aeruginosa O13 (Lanyi classification), is built up of trisaccharide repeating units involving 2-acetamidino-2,6-dideoxy-D-glucose (N-acetyl-D-quinovosamine, D-QuiNAc), 2-acetamidino-2,6-dideoxy-L-galactose (L-fucosacetamidine, L-FucAm), and a new sialic-acid-like sugar, 5,7-diacetamido-3,5,7,9-tetradeoxy-D-glycero-L-galacto-nonuloso n ic acid (Sug), and thus contains simultaneously both acidic and basic functions . Cleavage of the polysaccharide with hydrogen fluoride in methanol revealed the high stability of the glycosidic linkage of the ulosonic acid and afforded methyl glycosides of a disaccharide and a trisaccharide . The structures of the new ulosonic acid and acetamidino group were established by analysing the oligosaccharide fragments by 1H, 13C nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometry, as well as on the basis of their chemical conversions: alkaline hydrolysis of the acetamidino group into acetamido group, reductive deamination with lithium borohydride into the ethylamino group and acetylation with acetic anhydride in pyridine accompanied by intramolecular acylation of the acetamidino function by the ulosonic acid to form a six-membered lactam ring . Identification of the oligosaccharide fragments and comparative analysis of the 13C nuclear magnetic resonance spectra of the oligosaccharides and polysaccharide revealed the following structure of the repeating unit: ----3)D-QuiNAcp(alpha 1----3)Sugp(alpha 2----3)L-FucAmp(alpha 1----. Nucleic Acids Res, 1987 Mar 11, 15(5), 2123 - 35 Nucleotide sequence and characterization of toxR: a gene involved in exotoxin A regulation in Pseudomonas aeruginosa; Wozniak DJ et al.; We have previously reported the discovery and subsequent cloning of a regulatory gene, designated toxR, which appears to regulate the expression of the exotoxin A (ETA) structural gene toxA . Subsequent work by this laboratory has resulted in the subcloning of the toxR gene and its transfer to a high copy number plasmid (pGW28) . Functional analysis of the toxR gene using a Tn5 insertion along with toxR deletions indicates that inactivation of toxR results in a dramatic reduction of ETA production . Nucleotide sequence analysis of pGW28 has revealed a 675 bp major open reading frame (225 codons) which could encode for a protein of 24,626 daltons . Using S1 nuclease mapping, the toxR RNA transcript has been shown to originate 20 bp upstream of the presumptive translation initiation codon . Experiments using a toxA specific probe have revealed the the toxR gene product appears to regulate the expression of ETA at the transcriptional level. J Allergy Clin Immunol, 1987 Mar, 79(3), 477 - 83 Acute desensitization of a patient with cystic fibrosis allergic to both beta-lactam and aminoglycoside antibiotics; Earl HS et al.; A 15-year-old patient with cystic fibrosis developed urticarial reactions to tobramycin, gentamicin, and cephoperazone, and an anaphylactic reaction to ticarcillin during therapy for an extensive pulmonary infection with Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus . Immediate wheal-and-flare skin tests were positive with tobramycin and with penicilloylpoly-L-lysine . Desensitization with tobramycin in gradually increasing intravenous doses was accomplished during 8 hours . The procedure was complicated by a macular rash that remitted within minutes without therapy, but no symptoms or signs of an allergic reaction to tobramycin were detected during full dose therapy . Skin test responses to tobramycin became negative by the end of the desensitization procedure, whereas the responses to penicilloylpoly-L-lysine and histamine remained positive . A worsening course led to an unsuccessful attempt to desensitize the patient to beta-lactam determinants . Wheezing appeared during the administration of oral doses . This case demonstrates the feasibility of acute, antigen-specific desensitization of an aminoglycoside-allergic patient and the failure to achieve a second, simultaneous desensitization . This patient experienced the first serious reaction to oral penicillin desensitization. Gastroenterology, 1987 Mar, 92(3), 759 - 63 Pseudomonas infection of the biliary system resulting from use of a contaminated endoscope; Allen JI et al.; Pseudomonas aeruginosa was present in bile cultures from 10 patients who had undergone previous endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography in 1984 . After environmental cultures and review of instrument disinfection, we traced the infections to a single endoscope contaminated with P . aeruginosa, serotype 10 . Although the instrument had been cleaned repeatedly with an automatic endoscope cleaning machine, P . aeruginosa survived on residual moisture left in the channels of the endoscope . Contamination ended only after we began to manually suction alcohol through the endoscope before air drying . In 5 of 10 patients, P . aeruginosa caused clinical infections including gangrenous cholecystitis, abscesses, and death . We could identify no factor that distinguished symptomatic from asymptomatic patients . In asymptomatic patients, P . aeruginosa was recovered from gallbladder bile up to 2 mo after endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography . As this P . aeruginosa epidemic was discovered retrospectively because we monitor bile cultures, we advocate this practice as part of endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography procedures. Radioisotopes, 1987 Mar, 36(3), 108 - 14 {Radiolysis and variation of anti-microbial activity of gamma-irradiated acrinol aqueous solution on radiosterilization}; Kimura S et al.; The investigations about the radiolysis materials and their quantities, and, anti-microbial activities of gamma-irradiated (in the ranges of 0.516-2.064 kC/kg (2-8 MR} acrinol on liquid dosage form have been carried out to study the application of radiosterilization . About nine components were found as radiolysis materials . Most of them were also found in the UV-irradiated of Fenton's reagent-treated acrinol solution . Increase of anti-microbial activity was observed with gamma-irradiated acrinol solutions, but this phenomenon was not long-lasting . The micro-organism such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa or Staphylococcus aureus that infect at the lips of wound are highly sensitive to the gamma-irradiation . They are almost sterilized by the irradiation of 10 kGy (1.0 Mrad) . At a low acrinol concentration, the decomposition rate of acrinol by the irradiation was relatively high . When 1.0% of acrinol solution was irradiated at a dose of 10 kGy (1.0 Mrad), the decomposition of the drug was less than 2% and the variation of anti-microbial activity was negligible. Drug Intell Clin Pharm, 1987 Mar, 21(3), 276 - 8 Tobramycin elimination rate change from first to later doses in older cystic fibrosis patients; Horner GW et al.; Adults with cystic fibrosis frequently require larger than usual tobramycin dosages in order to achieve desired serum concentrations . The application of dosing methods utilizing first-dose pharmacokinetics has been advocated as a means for rapidly attaining therapeutic serum concentrations . Review of ten cystic fibrosis patients between ages 13 and 33 years admitted for exacerbation of pulmonary disease caused primarily by Pseudomonas aeruginosa (Staphylococcus aureus in two patients) was conducted . Elimination rate constant (ke, h-1) was calculated from two concentration-time pairs obtained following the first dose . Two concentration-time pairs were again measured between cumulative doses (n) 7 to 19, and ke was calculated . First dose ke varied significantly from nth dose ke (p = 0.018) . First-dose pharmacokinetic analysis may not be a reliable predictor of maintenance tobramycin dosage requirements due to apparent changes in ke over time. Rev Infect Dis, 1987 Mar-Apr, 9 Suppl 2, S177 - 83 Use of trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole singly and in combination with other antibiotics in immunocompromised patients; Young LS et al.; Experience with trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (TMP-SMZ) alone or in combination with other agents in the treatment of immunocompromised patients other than those with Pneumocystis carinii pneumonitis and the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is reviewed . A comparative study involving 126 episodes of fever showed a higher rate of response to a TMP-SMZ-carbenicillin regimen than to a gentamicin-carbenicillin combination (85% vs . 69%, respectively, P less than or equal to .04) . In another study TMP-SMZ was used after unsuccessful therapy with the combination of an antipseudomonal penicillin and an aminoglycoside; 54% of the 35 patients treated orally and 49% of 86 treated intravenously responded to TMP-SMZ regimens . Other studies document successful results with TMP-SMZ used in combination with either an aminoglycoside or an antipseudomonal penicillin . TMP-SMZ has a role in the treatment of infections due to gram-negative bacilli in immunocompromised hosts, particularly when the infecting agent is not Pseudomonas aeruginosa and is resistant to moxalactam but susceptible to gentamicin. Drug Intell Clin Pharm, 1987 Mar, 21(3), 272 - 6 Clinical outcome of nosocomial pneumonia following imipenem/cilastatin therapy; Rapp RP et al.; Eighteen patients in a neurosurgery intensive care unit who had nosocomial pneumonia and/or bacteremia were treated with imipenem/cilastatin . The 16 patients who were evaluable had pneumonia; 4 of these had concurrent bacteremia . Eleven patients had a satisfactory clinical response (69 percent) and all patients with positive blood cultures had the organism eradicated . There were 44 organisms isolated from the initial culture of bronchial secretion and 32 of these organisms were gram-negative bacilli (72.5 percent) . One patient with pneumonia who initially had Pseudomonas aeruginosa sensitive to imipenem developed resistance during therapy . Adverse effects were minimal; one case of nausea occurred, which was thought to be related to a short infusion time . The most prominent laboratory abnormality was an increase in platelet count, seen in 50 percent of treated patients. Postgrad Med, 1987 Mar, 81(4), 263 - 71 Necrotizing dermatitis in patients receiving cancer chemotherapy; Dreizen S et al.; Necrotizing dermatitis in patients being treated with cancer chemotherapeutic agents can be of several types . Microbial causes can include a variety of bacteria and fungi, the most common being Pseudomonas aeruginosa . Gangrene from occlusive causes is not uncommon among cancer patients with coexisting atheromatous, thromboembolic, or obliterative vascular disease . Toxic gangrene is most commonly caused by extravasation of intravenously administered cytotoxic antineoplastic drugs but has also been associated with the use of coumarin congeners and the bite of the brown recluse spider . Pyoderma gangrenosum is an idiopathic condition that has been reported in association with myeloproliferative disorders . Finally, necrosis can be caused by the neoplasm itself, when its growth is so great that blood vessels are compressed and ischemia of the surrounding tissue results. Vet Microbiol, 1987 Mar, 13(3), 281 - 9 Assessment of elastase as a Pseudomonas aeruginosa virulence factor in experimental lung infection in mink; Elsheikh LE et al.; Anaesthetized mink were inoculated intratracheally with an elastase-producing Pseudomonas aeruginosa strain (PAO1) and two mutants derived from PAO1 with defective elastase formation (strains PAO1-E64 and PAO1-las-16) . Survival times were prolonged in mink infected with the mutants, and microscopic examination of lungs showed that the elastase-positive wild type strain produced more pronounced tissue damage and haemorrhages than did the elastase-defective mutant strains . The strains PAO1 and PAO1-las-16 were also compared to three strains isolated from natural infection in mink which differed in elastase production . The mink strains with high or moderate elastase production produced more severe lung damage and were associated with a higher mortality than the other strains tested . The results indicate that P . aeruginosa may enhance the virulence of the bacterium in lung infections. Southeast Asian J Trop Med Public Health, 1987 Mar, 18(1), 112 - 4 Traumatic wound infection due to Bacillus cereus in an immunocompromised patient: a case report; Jaruratanasirikul S et al.; A young man recently responding to immunosuppressive therapy for acute myelocytic leukemia was admitted with fever and haemorrhagic blebs on both extremities after sustaining some scratch marks in a muddy pond . Gram stains of the hemorrhagic fluid in the blebs revealed many gram positive bacilli . B . cereus was identified from culture of tissue fluid . He did not respond to therapy despite bacteriological cure . Terminally, he developed Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteremia and generalized bleeding. Mikrobiologiia, 1987 Mar-Apr, 56(2), 249 - 53 {Dynamic interaction of virulent Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteriophages with the host bacteria}; Balakshina VV et al.; The population interactions of Pseudomonas aeruginosa virulent bacteriophages phi kF77 and phi mnF82 with host bacterial cells were studied in dynamics under the conditions of continuous cultivation in the chemostat regime with glucose limitation . Two different types of maintaining the bacterium and its specific bacteriophages in the population were detected . When P . aeruginosa was cultivated with phage phi mnF82, such a maintenance was realized due to the successive appearance of bacterial mutants resistant to the phage and of phage mutants overcoming this resistance . When P . aeruginosa was cultivated with phage phi kF77, these were maintained owing to the ability of P . aeruginosa to form unstable phage-resistant variants with the segregation of phage-sensitive cells. Ann Inst Pasteur Microbiol, 1987 Mar-Apr, 138(2), 151 - 64 Deletions in the tetracycline resistance determinant reduce the thermosensitivity of a trfA(Ts) derivative of plasmid RP1 in Pseudomonas aeruginosa; Rella M et al.; A derivative of the broad-host-range plasmid RP1, pME301, was temperature-sensitive (Ts) at 43 degrees C for maintenance in Pseudomonas aeruginosa, P . mendocina, Klebsiella aerogenes and Escherichia coli . In E . coli, the Ts defect of pME301 could be complemented in trans by the cloned trfA gene, which is known to be essential for RP1 replication in E . coli and P . aeruginosa . Because pME301 expressed a Ts phenotype in P . mendocina and K . aerogenes, we assume that the trfA function is also vital in these organisms . When plasmid-encoded carbenicillin resistance (on transposon Tn801) was selected at non-permissive temperatures in P . aeruginosa strain PAO carrying pME301, we obtained either Tn801 insertions into the chromosome or pME301 derivatives having a deletion (or point mutation) in their tet genes, which determine resistance to tetracycline and are not transposable . From cloning experiments, we infer that the tet gene product(s) destabilize the pME301 replicon in P . aeruginosa at 40-43 degrees C. Zh Mikrobiol Epidemiol Immunobiol, 1987 Mar, (3), 3 - 6 {Pathogenic characteristics of Pseudomonas aeruginosa}; Gvozdiak RI et al.; P . aeruginosa strains isolated from clinical material have been found capable of inducing various types of lesions in agricultural plants: tissue growth, soft and dry rot, changes in the color of plant tissue . In connection with the capacity of P . aeruginosa for adaptation to various conditions of existence, plants may be one of the reservoirs of infection . The authors suggest the P . aeruginosa is not an opportunistic, but a complete pathogen with a high degree of adaptability to the environment. Antimicrob Agents Chemother, 1987 Mar, 31(3), 398 - 403 Evaluation of combination chemotherapy in a lightly anesthetized animal model of Pseudomonas pneumonia; Gordin FM et al.; Gram-negative bacillary pneumonia is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in hospitalized patients . The use of synergistic combinations of aminoglycosides and beta-lactams for therapy of this infection has been recommended but remains controversial . We designed a new model of Pseudomonas pneumonia in a lightly sedated guinea pig by using a long-acting anesthetic to impair natural respiratory defenses . We used this model to compare the efficacy of ceftazidime and tobramycin alone and in combination in the therapy of Pseudomonas pneumonia . The two antibiotics were shown to be synergistic in vitro for the strain of Pseudomonas aeruginosa tested . Treated animals receiving both antibiotics had fewer viable bacteria remaining in lung tissues (P less than 0.05) and exhibited a trend towards improved survival in comparison to animals receiving a single drug . In this model of Pseudomonas pneumonia, in vitro synergy was reflected by increased efficacy in vivo. J Laryngol Otol, 1987 Mar, 101(3), 205 - 10 Malignant external otitis; Babiatzki A et al.; During the years 1972-1985, 50 patients with malignant external otitis (MEO) were seen in our department . All our patients complained of severe earache; they presented initially with an apparently simple external otitis, but failed to improve when the usual measures were adopted . They all presented with granulation tissue in the external ear canal, and five of our patients had multiple cranial nerve involvement . MEO is in effect a severe external otitis which, if untreated, proceeds towards an osteomyelitis of the skull base . MEO is more prevalent in the summer, when external otitis is rampant . In some years, a relatively large number of these patients appear; in others there are none . The reason for this is unknown . In Israel, the disease is more prevalent in Jews than in Arabs . Diabetes was present in 68 per cent of our patients-severe diabetes in 42 per cent, mild diabetes in 26 per cent but 32 per cent of our patients were diabetes-free . The only otological past history in our patients was of a recent traumatic insult to the external ear canal; this was the case in about 8 per cent of them . Today, the treatment of choice of this important disease is local debridement supplemented by appropriate antibiotic treatment for 6-8 weeks . This should include some semi-synthetic penicillin to which pseudomonas aeruginosa is sensitive, combined with an appropriate aminoglycoside . During the earlier years of our encounter with MEO, two of our 10 patients died of it; later on, when we learned better how to treat it, the mortality rate decreased.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS) J Clin Microbiol, 1987 Mar, 25(3), 586 - 7 Comparison of the AMS gram-negative susceptibility flex panel GNS-V and agar disk diffusion for testing of Pseudomonas aeruginosa; Henry DA et al.; Sixty Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates were tested by the agar disk diffusion, AMS Vitek GNS-V flex panel (Vitek Systems, Inc., Hazelwood, Mo.), and agar dilution methods . Although the results of aminoglycoside tests were satisfactory, those of piperacillin and cefoperazone by Vitek GNS-V (T2.05 program) were not acceptable. J Antimicrob Chemother, 1987 Mar, 19(3), 321 - 9 Comparison of the activity of antibiotic combinations in vitro with clinical outcome and resistance emergence in serious infection by Pseudomonas aeruginosa in non-neutropenic patients; Chandrasekar PH et al.; Techniques for demonstrating synergy in vitro were compared in testing different beta-lactam-aminoglycoside combinations against 30 isola