Fast and reliable assays to precisely define the nature of the infectious agents causing sepsis are eagerly anticipated. New molecular biology techniques are now available to define the presence of bacterial or fungal DNA within the bloodstream of sepsis patients. We have used a new technique (VYOO®) that allows the enrichment of microbial DNA before a multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) ...

Sepsis remains one of the leading causes of death in intensive care units. Although sepsis is caused by a viral, fungal or bacterial infection, it is the dysregulated generalized host response that ultimately leads to severe dysfunction of multiple organs and death. The concomitant profound metabolic changes are characterized by hyperglycemia, insulin resistance, and profound transformations of...

Research Group Applied Systems Biology, Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology—Hans Knöll Institute, Jena, Germany, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Jena, Germany, Center for Sepsis Control and Care (CSCC), Jena University Hospital, Jena, Germany, Fungal Septomics, Septomics Research Center, Leibniz Institute for Natural Product R...

Strongyloides stercoralis (S.S.) is a human intestinal parasite, which may lead to complicated strongyloidiasis. We report a case of disseminated strongyloidiasis following the treatment of myeloma. The patient developed skin lesions, respiratory distress, aseptic meningitis and bacterial and fungal sepsis. The diagnosis of strongyloidiasis was established through endotracheal tube secretions. ...

Fungal and bacterial infections are often which may cause sepsis. Mucormycosis is an unfrequent, but often life-threatening disease. A timely diagnosis and treatment is the cornerstone of success. An increase in incidence can be expected, given an aging population and increasing incidence of obesity, diabetes and cancer. We present a rare case where early diagnosis has helped to treat the patie...

Ureteral obstruction may develop in immunocompromised patients with an Aspergillus fungal infection. Infections can progress to invasive aspergillosis, which is highly lethal. We report a case of a 56-year-old man with alcoholic cirrhosis of the liver and diabetes. He had ureteral aspergilloma, discovered as a saprophytic whitish mass. It was treated by ureteroscopic removal, however, he refuse...

A non-immunocompromised man developed acute Aspergillus pneumonia after spreading mouldy tree bark mulch. Despite normal renal function at presentation, he developed rapidly progressive glomerulonephritis with acute kidney injury due to anti-glomerular basement membrane antibodies (anti-GBM) 4 weeks later. He remained dialysis dependent and died of sepsis 10 months later. We hypothesise that he...

International guidelines concerning the management of patients with sepsis, septic shock and multiple organ failure make no reference to the nature of the infecting organism. Indeed, most clinical signs of sepsis are nonspecific. In contrast, in vitro data suggest that there are mechanistic differences between bacterial, viral and fungal sepsis, and imply that pathogenetic differences may exist...

Severe sepsis leads to long-term systemic and local immunosuppression, which is the cause of a number of complications, including pulmonary infection. A therapeutic strategy that reverses this immunosuppression is required, given the ongoing high mortality rate of patients who have survived a severe sepsis. The present study demonstrates that experimental severe sepsis renders the lung suscepti...

Sepsis is a serious medical condition caused by a severe systemic inflammatory response to a bacterial, fungal, or viral infection that most commonly affects neonates and the elderly. Advances in understanding the pathophysiology of sepsis have resulted in guidelines for care that have helped reduce the risk of dying from sepsis for both children and older adults. Still, over the past three dec...