Publications by authors named "Jun Kawase"

strain CRE21025 was isolated from a gallbladder abscess of a patient admitted to the hospital in Shimane Prefecture in 2021. Here, we present the complete genome sequence of this isolate, bearing a novel variant of the imipenemase-type gene, , by whole-genome sequencing using Oxford Nanopore and Illumina methods.

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To demonstrate the transmission cycle of Shimokoshi-type Orientia tsutsugamushi in Shimane Prefecture, field rodents were captured from areas where four human infections caused by the pathogen have been reported. The rodents were investigated for the transmission cycle of the pathogen based on the pathogen's genome, antibodies against the pathogen, and the vector of the pathogen (Leptotrombidium palpale). In addition, the vector was captured from the soil in the study area.

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Article Synopsis
  • Diphtheria toxin-producing Corynebacterium ulcerans is a rising zoonotic pathogen that can lead to serious illness in humans.
  • The complete genome of the C. ulcerans strain TSU-28, which carries two diphtheria toxin genes, has been sequenced.
  • This strain was collected in 2019 from a patient in Japan exhibiting symptoms similar to diphtheria.
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Postpartum endometritis is known to be associated with ovarian dysfunction in cows. Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) generated by Gram-negative bacteria is recognized by toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4), which leads to an inflammatory response by the generation of cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukins. In this study, we investigated the effect of endometrial LPS on granulosa cell functions during early follicular development in cows.

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and are one of the leading causes of gastrointestinal illnesses, and which are considered to be transmitted to humans mainly from chicken meats. Considering the less availability of quantitative contamination data in the retail chicken meats in Japan, 510 fresh chicken meats retailed at five distinct regions in Japan between June 2019 and March 2021 were examined. The quantitative testing resulted that 45.

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We developed a multiplex real-time PCR assay with amplicon melting curve analysis to rapidly discriminate Corynebacterium ulcerans from Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis and detect the bacterial diphtheria toxin gene. This assay should be a valuable tool for identification of potentially toxigenic C. ulcerans.

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Article Synopsis
  • Shiga toxin (Stx)-producing Escherichia coli (STEC), particularly O121:H19, are emerging foodborne pathogens linked to serious illnesses like hemorrhagic colitis and hemolytic uremic syndrome.
  • A global whole genome sequencing analysis of 638 O121:H19 strains revealed four distinct lineages, with significant differences in their virulence factors and prophage characteristics between the major lineages L1 and L3.
  • The study highlights that strains in lineage L1 produce much higher levels of Stx2a toxin due to their highly conserved short-tailed phage genomes, while lineage L3 shows notable genetic diversity with long-tailed phages.
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Abstract: In this study, the distribution of hygienic indicator bacteria in cattle livers and bile was examined at slaughterhouses. One hundred twenty-seven cattle livers with gallbladders were carefully eviscerated from carcasses at 10 slaughterhouses. Microbiological examination revealed that nine bile samples (7.

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is one of the leading causes of gastrointestinal illness worldwide and is mainly transmitted from chicken through the food chain. Previous studies have provided increasing evidence that this pathogen can colonize and replicate in broiler chicken during its breeding; however, its temporal kinetics in laying hen are poorly understood. Considering the possible interaction between and gut microbiota, the current study was conducted to address the temporal dynamics of in the cecum of laying hen over 40 weeks, with possible alteration of the gut microbiota and fatty acid (FA) components.

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This study investigated the genetic and pathogenic variation of the subgroups of clade 2 strains of Shiga toxin (Stx)-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) O157. A total of 111 strains of STEC O157 isolated in Shimane prefecture, Japan, were classified in clade 2 (n = 39), clade 3 (n = 16), clade 4/5 (n = 3), clade 7 (n = 14), clade 8 (n = 17), and clade 12 (n = 22) by single-nucleotide polymorphism analysis and lineage-specific polymorphism assay-6. These results showed a distinct difference from our previous study in which clade 3 strains were the most prevalent strains in three other prefectures in Japan, indicating that the clade distribution of O157 strains was different in different geographic areas in Japan.

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In this study, we examined the prevalence of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli and Salmonella spp. and the distribution of indicator bacteria in 248 samples of game meats (120 venison and 128 wild boar) retailed between November 2015 and March 2016 in Japan. No Salmonella spp.

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We previously developed a multiplex real-time PCR assay (Rapid Foodborne Bacterial Screening 24 ver.5, [RFBS24 ver.5]) for simultaneous detection of 24 foodborne bacterial targets.

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Here, we developed a new version of our original screening system (Rapid Foodborne Bacterial Screening 24; RFBS24), which can simultaneously detect 24 genes of foodborne pathogens in fecal DNA samples. This new version (RFBS24 ver. 5) detected all known stx2 subtypes, enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (STh genotype), and Vibrio parahaemolyticus (trh2), which were not detected by the original RFBS24 assay.

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Prefectural and municipal public health institutes are located in prefectures and ordinance-designated cities in Japan, and play a vital role in the regional surveillance of infectious diseases and foodborne illnesses. These institutes, in close cooperation with national institutes such as the National Institute of Infectious Diseases and the National Institute of Health Sciences, construct the national surveillance network for infectious diseases and their causative agents. Bacteriological examinations and studies on a variety of infectious diseases and foodborne illnesses are core activities of prefectural and municipal public health institutes, through which novel and important bacteriological findings have been acquired.

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In this study, 2 methods of DNA extraction were evaluated for use in conjunction with the screening system Rapid Foodborne Bacterial Screening 24 (RFBS24), which employs multiplex real-time SYBR Green polymerase chain reaction (SG-PCR) and can simultaneously detect 24 target genes of foodborne pathogens in fecal DNA samples. The QIAamp DNA Stool mini kit (Qkit) and Ultra Clean Fecal DNA Isolation Kit (Ukit) were used for bacterial DNA extraction from fecal samples artificially inoculated with Clostridium perfringens, Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella Typhimurium, and Campylobacter jejuni. SG-PCR and simplex real-time quantitative PCR (S-qPCR) analyses revealed higher copy numbers (8-234 times) of DNA in samples obtained using Ukit compared with those obtained using Qkit, resulting in lower cycle threshold values for the Ukit samples of the 4 bacteria on SG-PCR analysis.

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Yersinia enterocolitica is a gram-negative bacillus that can cause illness ranging from a self-limiting enterocolitis to life-threatening bacteremia. Y. enterocolitica biotype 1B, serotype O:8 (1B/O:8), is the most pathogenic of the Yersinia species because of the presence of the high-pathogenicity island and the Yersinia virulence plasmid (pYV).

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A set of 8 multiplex real-time SYBR Green PCR (SG-PCR) assays including 3 target primers and an internal amplification control (IAC) primer was simultaneously evaluated in 3 h or less with regard to detection of 24 target genes of 23 foodborne pathogens in 7 stool specimens of foodborne outbreak using a 96-well reaction plate. This assay, combined with DNA extraction (QIAamp DNA Stool Mini kit), offered detection of greater than 10(3)-10(4) foodborne pathogens per g in stool specimens. The products formed were identified using melting point temperature (Tm) curve analysis.

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