• International Journal of Advanced Culture Technology
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.190-201
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• 2024

This study examined the effect of the distance Infection Control Education Program (ICEP), developed based on the ADDIE model, on infection control knowledge, attitude, and performance among care workers in long-term care facilities nationwide. The program, developed based on the ADDIE model, was applied to 173 care workers directly responsible for nursing care of elderly residents in lomg-term care facilities. The distance ICEP for care workers was conducted through the website and lasted 30 minutes for each of the eight topics. To determine the effectiveness of the education, infection control knowledge, attitude, performance, and satisfaction were surveyed before and four weeks after the program. Differences in infection control knowledge, attitude, and performance before and after the distance ICEP were assessed by a t-test. A significant difference was observed in knowledge and infection control performance after the distance ICEP was administered to care workers. In the sub-domains of infection control performance, overall understanding of infection, regular infection control education, infection control by special pathogen (multidrug-resistant bacteria, tuberculosis, tick-borne infectious diseases), and detailed infection control education by infection site (pressure ulcers and urinary tract infections) were significantly improved. Infection control knowledge and performance improved through the distance ICEP applied to care workers. Satisfaction also displayed high scores on most items and indicated that it was helpful for infection control in facilities, confirming the effectiveness of infection control education. Based on the survey of care workers nationwide, the infection education program can be effectively used for care workers in the future.

• The Journal of the Korean dental association
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• v.54 no.5
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• pp.356-364
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• 2016

Aim: The purpose of this study was to identify dominant pathogens and their antimicrobial susceptibilities of endodontic infection in type II diabetes mellitus (DM) patients to determine effective empirical antibiotics. Methodology: Pathogens from endodontic infection in six patients with DM and in six patients without DM were cultured, identified and their antimicrobial susceptibility was tested using Vitek2 systems ($bioM{\acute{e}}rieux$, Marcy l' Etoile, France). The results were analyzed using Chi-square test and Fisher's exact test at P< 0.05 level. Results: Pathogens of opportunistic infection were dominant in DM patients (P=0.015). However, there was no significant difference of antimicrobial susceptibility between DM and non-DM patients. Relatively high percent (27%) of pathogens showed resistance to penicillin. Conclusions: More cautions should be paid to DM patients because they are prone to opportunistic infection. Penicillin is not effective in the control of endodontic infection.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.36 no.5
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• pp.398-405
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• 2020

Nutrient manipulation is a promising strategy for controlling plant diseases in sustainable agriculture. Although many studies have investigated the relationships between certain elements and plant diseases, few have comprehensively explored how differing mineral nutrition levels might affect plant-fungal pathogen interactions, namely plant susceptibility and resistance. Here, we systematically explored the effects of the seven mineral elements that plants require in the greatest amounts for normal development on the susceptibility of soybean plants (Glycine max) to Fusarium oxysporum infection in controlled greenhouse conditions. Nitrogen (N) negligibly affected plant susceptibility to infection in the range 4 to 24 mM for both tested soybean cultivars. At relatively high concentrations, phosphorus (P) increased plant susceptibility to infection, which led to severely reduced shoot and root dry weights. Potassium (K), calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), sulfur (S), and iron (Fe) induced plant resistance to infection as their concentrations were increased. For K and Ca, moderate concentrations had a positive effect on plant resistance to the pathogen, whereas relatively high doses of either element adversely affected plant growth and promoted disease symptoms. Further experiments were conducted, assessing disease suppression by selected combinations of macro-elements and Fe at screened concentrations, i.e., K (9 mM) plus Fe (0.2 mM), and S (4 mM) plus Fe (0.2 mM). The disease index was significantly reduced by the combination of K plus Fe. In conclusion, this systematic investigation of soybean plant responses to F. oxysporum infection provides a solid basis for future environmentally-friendly choices for application in soybean disease control programs.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.203-209
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• 2007

Infection structures were observed using a fluorescence microscope at the penetration sites on the leaves of potato plants pre-inoculated with the bacterial strains Pseudomonas putida TRL2-3, Micrococcus luteus TRK2-2, and Flexibacteraceae bacterium MRL412, which mediated an induced systemic resistance on potato plants against late blight disease caused by Phytophthora infestans. In order to compare the infection structures on the leaves expressing systemic acquired resistance, the leaves of potato plants pre-treated with DL-3-amino butyric acid (BABA) were also observed after challenge inoculation with the same pathogen. The infection structures were investigated. The total number of germination and appressorium formation of P. infestans were counted. Furthermore, the frequencies of fluorescent epidermal cells at the penetration sites, which indicate a defense response of plant cell, were estimated. There were no differences on the germination rates of the fungal cysts among the untreated control, BABA pre-treated, and bacterial strains pre-inoculated plants. However, appressorium formation was slightly decreased on the leaves of BABA pre-treated plants compared to those of untreated as well as bacterial strains pre-inoculated plants. Furthermore, the frequencies of fluorescent cells of BABA pre-treated and bacterial strains pre-inoculated were higher than that of untreated plants, indicating an active defense reaction of the host cells against the fungal attack. On the other hand, the pre-treatment with BABA caused a stronger fluorescent of epidermal cells at the penetration sites compared to the pre-inoculation with the bacterial strains. Interestingly, the frequency of fluorescent cells by BABA, however, was lower than that by the bacterial strains. Based on the results it is suggested that the infection structures showing resistance reaction on the leaves of potato plants were different between by pre-inoculation with bacterial strains and by pre-treatment with BABA against the late blight pathogen.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.30 no.5
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• pp.642-648
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• 2020

In this study, we investigated the effects of linoleic acid (LA) treatment on Brucella abortus infection in professional phagocyte RAW264.7 cells, particularly during the pathogen's invasion and intracellular growth in these cells, as well as in murine model BALB/c mice focusing on bacterial splenic proliferation and immunoregulatory activities. LA inhibited the growth of Brucella in a dose- and time-dependent manner. The ability of the pathogen to enter the phagocytes was inhibited as was its survival within these cells. This was accompanied by increased nitrite accumulation in these cells at 24 h post-infection. The concentration of LA used in the present study did not affect the total body weight or liver function of the mice. During Brucella infection, the total splenic weight of these animals was not changed; rather, resistance to bacterial proliferation was enhanced in the spleen. Furthermore, mice treated with LA displayed elevated levels of IL-12 and IFN-γ but reduced levels of IL-10 during infection. The findings in this study showed the regulatory role of LA against B. abortus infection suggesting its potential use in designing intervention strategy for brucellosis.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Plant Pathology Conference
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• 2004.10a
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• pp.52-52
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• 2004

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• Proceedings of the Botanical Society of Korea Conference
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• 1985.08b
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• pp.19-22
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• 1985

Magnaporthe grisea (Hebert) Barr (anamorph: Pyricularia grisea) is a typical heterothallic Ascomycete and the causal agent of rice blast, one of the most destructive diseases on rice (Oryza sativa L.) worldwide. The interactions between cells of the pathogen and those of the host involve a complex of biological influences which can lead to blast disease. The early stages of infection process in particular may be viewed as a sequence of discrete and critical events. These include conidial attachment, gemination, and the formation of an appressorium, a dome-shaped and melanized infection structure. Disruption of this process at any point will result in failure of the pathogen to colonize host tissues. This may offer a new avenue for developing innovative crop protection strategies. To recognize and capture such opportunities, understanding the very bases of the pathogenesis at the cellular and molecular level is prerequisite. Much has been learned about environmental cues and endogenous signaling systems for the early infection-related morphogenesis in M. grisea during last several years. The study of signal transduction system in phytopathogenic filamentous fungi offers distinct advantages over traditional mammalian systems. Mammalian systems often contain multiple copies of important genes active in the same tissue under the same physiological processes. Functional redundancy, alternate gene splicing, and specilized isoforms make defining the role of any single gene difficult. Fungi and animals are closely related kingdoms [3], so inferences between these organisms are often justified. For many genes, fungi frequently possess only a single copy, thus phenotype can be attributed directly to the mutation or deletion of any particular gene of interest.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.50 no.4
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• pp.457-464
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• 2022

A public health concern emerging from a zoonotic disease. Monkeypox is caused by the orthopoxvirus specie Monkeypox virus (MPXV). Monkeypox was identified as the most common orthopoxvirus infection in humans following the eradication of smallpox. Monkeypox has a similar clinical presentation to smallpox. The MPXV is now considered a high-threat pathogen that causes a serious public-health problem. The continuous spread of Monkeypox virus from West Africa to all other places around the world throughout 2018 to 2022, have raised concerns that MPXV could have emerged to acquire the immunological and ecological niche vacated by smallpox virus. This review highlights the current knowledge about Monkeypox evolution, infection biology, and epidemiology around the world since from 1970 to 2022, with a focus on the human, viral, and cellular factors that influence virus emergence, infection, spread, and maintenance in nature. This paper also discusses the current therapeutic options for Monkeypox treatment and control. Under the right conditions, with limited smallpox vaccination and very little orthopoxvirus immunity in some areas of the world, MPXV could become a more efficient human pathogen. Finally, the review identified knowledge gaps, particularly in terms of identifying a definitive reservoir host for monkeypox and proposes future research endeavors to address the unanswered questions.

• 한국균학회소식:학술대회논문집
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• 2015.05a
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• pp.27-27
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• 2015

Clubroot (Plasmodiophora brassicae) is a serious agricultural problem affecting Brassica crop production worldwide. It also infects the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana. During infection, this biotrophic pathogen manipulates the development and metabolism of its host leading to the development of galls in the root and hypocotyl. In turn, its own development is strongly influenced by the host. The aim of this study is to investigate the metabolism of clubroot-infected plants using a combination of transcriptomic and metabolomic approaches. We have used direct injection mass spectrometry to obtain a metabolic fingerprint of when changes in the metabolome occur and linked this with changes in host and pathogen gene expression. We have identified alterations in carbohydrate metabolism that occur during P. brassicae infection of A. thaliana plants. Transcriptomic analysis showed that host genes associated with sugar transport and metabolism were induced during gall formation and that the pathogen also expresses genes associated with these processes. We have examined the impact of inactivating host sucrose synthase, cytosolic invertase and sugar permeases on gall formation, identifying host genes that are required for gall formation. We have also explored how sugar status is changed in root tissue, developing and mature leaf during infection of wild type and mutant plants.

• Acute and Critical Care
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.238-245
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• 2018

Background: Infection by multidrug-resistant (MDR) pathogens leads to poor patient outcomes in intensive care units (ICUs). Contact precautions are necessary to reduce the transmission of MDR pathogens. However, the importance of the surrounding environment is not well known. We studied the effects of ICU relocation on MDR respiratory pathogen detection rates and patient outcomes. Methods: Patients admitted to the ICU before and after the relocation were retrospectively analyzed. Baseline patient characteristics, types of respiratory pathogens detected, antibiotics used, and patient outcomes were measured. Results: A total of 463 adult patients admitted to the ICU, 4 months before and after the relocation, were included. Of them, 234 were admitted to the ICU before the relocation and 229 afterward. Baseline characteristics, including age, sex, and underlying comorbidities, did not differ between the two groups. After the relocation, the incidence rate of MDR respiratory pathogen detection decreased from 90.0 to 68.8 cases per 1,000 patient-days, but that difference was statistically insignificant. The use of colistin was significantly reduced from 53.5 days (95% confidence interval [CI], 20.3 to 86.7 days) to 18.7 days (95% CI, 5.6 to 31.7 days). Furthermore, the duration of hospital stay was significantly reduced from a median of 29 days (interquartile range [IQR], 14 to 50 days) to 21 days (IQR, 11 to 39 days). Conclusions: Incidence rates of MDR respiratory pathogen detection were not significantly different before and after ICU relocation. However, ICU relocation could be helpful in reducing the use of antibiotics against MDR pathogens and improving patient outcomes.