This paper studies the asymmetries of pulsar distributions relative to the Galactic plane in various Galactic longitudes. It is shown that the observed asymmetric distribution may be explained by the warped and flaring (i.e. increase of scale-height at the peripheries of the Galaxy) structure of the Galaxy. At the peripheries of the Galaxy, the amplitude of the warp, derived from these data, ma...

BACKGROUND The class A carbapenemase KPC has disseminated rapidly worldwide, challenging the treatment of Gram-negative infections. This report describes the first KPC-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates identified in Norway (n=6) and the second isolate from Sweden. METHODS Antimicrobial susceptibility profiles were determined using Etest. PCR and sequencing were used to determine the bl...

Animals sample their environment through sensory neurons with often elaborately branched endings named dendritic arbors. In a genetic screen for genes involved in the development of the highly arborized somatosensory PVD neuron in C. elegans, we have identified mutations in kpc-1, which encodes the homolog of the proprotein convertase furin. We show that kpc-1/furin is necessary to promote the ...

OBJECTIVES KPC-possessing Klebsiella pneumoniae have been found to be widespread in several regions but are still rarely detected in Europe. We describe the characteristics of an outbreak caused by KPC producers in a tertiary care Greek hospital. METHODS During a 12 month period (October 2007-September 2008), 47 patients in Hippokration University Hospital yielded K. pneumoniae isolates that ...

We present the KPC-Toolbox, a library of MATLAB scripts for fitting workload traces into Markovian Arrival Processes (MAPs) in an automatic way based on the recently proposed Kronecker Product Composition (KPC) method. We first present detailed sensitivity analysis that builds intuition on which trace descriptors are the most important for queueing performance, stressing the advantages of match...

BACKGROUND Klebsiella pneumoniae is a frequent nosocomial pathogen causing difficult-to-treat infections worldwide. The prevalence of Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase (KPC)-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae (KPC-KP) is increasing in China. The aim of this study was to investigate the molecular epidemiology of KPC-KP in a nosocomial outbreak. METHODS Fifty-four KPC-KP isolates were consecutiv...

KPC-2-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates mainly correspond to clonal complex 258 (CC258); however, we describe KPC-2-producing K. pneumoniae isolates belonging to invasive sequence type 23 (ST23). KPC-2 has scarcely been reported to occur in ST23, and this report describes the first isolation of this pathogen in the Americas. Acquisition of resistant markers in virulent clones could mark ...

Introduction / objectives Bacterial resistance to antimicrobials has increased over the years, but the importance of empirical investigation of these bacteria contributes to the prevention of spread within the institution. The Infection Control Comission Protocol has as surveillance for resistant organisms since 1996.In Brazil, Klebsiela pneumoniae carbapenemase enzyme (KPC) was the first descr...

A Klebsiella pneumoniae isolate showing moderate to high-level imipenem and meropenem resistance was investigated. The MICs of both drugs were 16 microg/ml. The beta-lactamase activity against imipenem and meropenem was inhibited in the presence of clavulanic acid. The strain was also resistant to extended-spectrum cephalosporins and aztreonam. Isoelectric focusing studies demonstrated three be...

Enterobacteriaceae clinical strains that produce the class A carbapenem-hydrolysing enzyme KPC (Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase) are increasingly reported worldwide, and are already endemic in North and South America, China, Israel and Greece. The accurate detection of KPC enzymes is of utmost importance for containing the global spread of KPC producers. Currently, the detection of putative...