The D-eigenvalues {µ1,…,µp} of a graph G are the eigenvalues of its distance matrix D and form its D-spectrum. The D-energy, ED(G) of G is given by ED (G) =∑i=1p |µi|. Two non cospectral graphs with respect to D are said to be D-equi energetic if they have the same D-energy. In this paper we show that if G is an r-regular graph on p vertices with 2r ≤ p - 1, then the complements of iterated lin...

The gene encoding the putative reductase component (KshB) of 3-ketosteroid 9α-hydroxylase was cloned from Rhodococcus equi USA-18, a cholesterol oxidase-producing strain formerly named Arthrobacter simplex USA-18, by PCR according to consensus amino acid motifs of several bacterial KshB subunits. Deletion of the gene in R. equi USA-18 by a PCR-targeted gene disruption method resulted in a mutan...

Rhodococcus equi causes severe pyogranulomatous pneumonia in foals. This facultative intracellular pathogen produces similar lesions in immunocompromised humans, particularly in AIDS patients. Virulent strains of R. equi bear a large plasmid that is required for intracellular survival within macrophages and for virulence in foals and mice. Only two plasmid-encoded proteins have been described p...

BACKGROUND Pulmonary infections are a major cause of mortality and morbidity in patients infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and can progress rapidly to respiratory failure and death without appropriate therapy. Herein, we present a rare case of an advanced HIV infection and Rhodoccocus equi (R. equi) pneumonia in a young male who had severe paradoxical immune reconstitution inflam...

A case of recurrent multisystemic infection due to Rhodococcus equi in a patient with antibody to the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) but without AIDS is reported. This case, which occurred in a woman with a history of alcohol and drug abuse, is, to our knowledge, the first such case described. The infection involved the lungs, kidneys, brain, and bloodstream. Despite several courses of ther...

A 2-month-old foal with septic shock and severe respiratory distress was referred to the Veterinary Teaching Hospital. Due to poor prognosis, the foal was euthanized. Histopathology showed lesions suggestive of Rhodococcus equi infection associated with a diffuse interstitial infiltrate of foamy macrophages and syncytial cells presenting large acidophilic intranuclear inclusion bodies, fibrin e...

Conventional vaccines to prevent the pneumonia caused by Rhodococcus equi have not been successful. We have recently demonstrated that immunization with Salmonella enterica Typhimurium expressing the VapA antigen protects mice against R. equi infection. We now report that oral vaccination of mice with this recombinant strain results in high and persistent fecal levels of antigen-specific IgA, a...

Rhodococcus equi is a major cause of foal morbidity and mortality. We have investigated the presence of lipoglycan in this organism as closely related bacteria, notably Mycobacterium tuberculosis, produce lipoarabinomannans (LAM) that may play multiple roles as virulence determinants. The lipoglycan was structurally characterized by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry following permethylation,...

Preliminary analysis of a partial (30% coverage) genome sequence of Rhodococcus equi has revealed a number of important features. The most notable was the extent of the homology of genes identified with those of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. The similarities in the proportion of genes devoted to fatty acid degradation and to lipid biosynthesis was a striking but not surprising finding given the r...

Rhodococcus equi is a facultative, intracellular, gram-positive coccobacillus increasingly reported as an opportunistic pathogen in human immunodeficiency virus-positive patients. However, the optimal drug regimen for treating R. equi pulmonary or systemic infections is not yet known. Therefore, a model of intravenously infected nude mice with disseminated infection was created to study the eff...