Browsing by Author "Kurt Ö."
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Item Serological levels of zinc, copper and iron elements among Giardia lamblia infected children in turkey(2002) Ertan P.; Yereli K.; Kurt Ö.; Balcioǧlu I.C.; Onaǧ A.Background: Giardiasis, an intestinal protozoan infection caused by Giardia lamblia, is common in Turkey, especially among children aged between 2- and 14-years-old. Effects of giardiasis on serological levels of zinc, copper and iron elements were assessed in this study. Methods: A total of 45 children, aged between 2- and 14-years-old, who were admitted to the Pediatrics Department of Celal Bayar University Medical School with gastrointestinal complaints and diagnosed as having giardiasis by stool examinations in the Parasitology Department, were enrolled as the study group (SG). The control group (CG) consisted of 45 age-matched healthy children. Serological levels of zinc, copper and iron were measured by atomic absorption spectrophotometer in all samples. Results: As a result of the study, serum zinc levels were 67.43 ± 17.72 μg/dL and 145.20 ± 9.13 μg/dL, copper levels were 198.45 ± 39.14 μg/dL and 150 ± 21.14 μg/dL and iron levels were 87.98 ± 18.31 μg/dL and 160.45 ± 45.40 μg/dL, in SG and CG, respectively. When compared separately as SG and CG, there was a statistically significant difference between the serological levels of all these elements. Conclusion: These results revealed that giardiasis increased the serological levels of copper, like other infectious agents. However, zinc and iron levels decreased during giardiasis due to malabsorption.Item Giardiasis treatment in Turkish children with a single dose of ornidazole(2002) Özbilgin A.; Ertan P.; Yereli K.; Tamay A.T.; Kurt Ö.; Degerli K.; Balcioglu I.C.; Ok Ü.Z.; Onag A.This study was designed to compare the treatment efficacy of single dose of ornidazole with 5 d treatments of ornidazole and metronidazole in children with giardiasis. 175 children, between 2 and 15 y old, whose stool samples were found to be positive for Giardia lamblia cysts and/or trophozoites by either saline-Lugol, formalin-ethyl acetate or trichrome staining, were enrolled in the study. Of these children, 105 were treated with a single dose of ornidazole: 35 with 30 mg/kg, 35 with 25 mg/kg and 35 with 20 mg/kg; 35 were treated with 25 mg/kg per day of ornidazole for 5 d in 2 doses and 35 children were treated with 20 mg/kg per day metronidazole for 7 d in 3 doses. All cases were examined on the 7th, 10th and 14th days after treatment by the same methods; clinical symptoms were also evaluated. Giardia lamblia was eradicated in 34 of 35 (97%), 34 of 35 (97%) and 33 of 35 (94%) patients treated with 30, 25 and 20 mg/kg single doses of ornidazole, respectively. Eradication was achieved in all 35 patients treated with 25 mg/kg per day ornidazole for 5 d and in 31 of 35 (89%) patients treated with metronidazole. There was no statistically significant difference among doses of ornidazole (p > 0.05); however, all ornidazole treatment regimens were significantly more effective than metronidazole treatment (p < 0.05). No important side-effects were detected in any patients and clinical symptoms disappeared in all. Single-dose ornidazole treatment could be considered as a proper and effective alternative method for the treatment of giardiasis in children.Item Efficacy of azithromycin in a murine toxoplasmosis model, employing a Toxoplasma gondii strain from Turkey(Elsevier, 2003) Deǧerli K.; Kilimcioǧlu A.A.; Kurt Ö.; Tamay A.T.; Özbilgin A.A murine toxoplasmosis model with Balb/C mice was used to investigate the therapeutic and prophylactic efficacy of azithromycin in a native strain of Toxoplasma gondii. Initially, seven groups - four studies and three controls - were established and 103 tachyzoites of this native strain of T. gondii were injected intraperitoneally to the mice in groups 1, 2, 3, 4 and 7. Azithromycin was given to groups 1-4 at different times of infection orally between 100 and 300 mg/kg/day for 10 days. Azithromycin was found to be effective at 200 mg/kg/day and above in the prophylaxis, at 250 mg/kg/day and above in the treatment of toxoplasmosis. These results suggest that azithromycin is effective in the prophylaxis and early infection of a highly virulent strain of T. gondii, and it doubled the survival time in the late infection. Azithromycin could be an alternative treatment regimen for human toxoplasmosis, if supported by further clinical investigations. © 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.Item Is there an association between clinical symptoms and intestinal parasitic infections?(2005) Limoncu M.E.; Kurt Ö.; Gümüş M.; Kayran E.; Balcioǧlu I.C.; Dinç G.; Özbilgin A.Intestinal parasitic infections are major causes of childhood diseases in rural regions. The significant causes of this problem are the insufficient resources to improve the infrastructure in these regions and inadequate health services in both the diagnosis and treatment of diseases. The aim of this study was to assess the association between intestinal parasitic infections and clinical symptoms of infected children. Cellophane tape and stool samples of 100 children, aged between 7-10 years, from two villages of Manisa city, were examined for intestinal parasites and their symptoms were recorded. Although some symptoms, such as abdominal pain, anorexia and fatigue were found to be common in infected children, no significant relationship was found between symptoms and intestinal parasitic infections. © 2005 Bioscience Ediprint Inc.Item Rural life, lower socioeconomic status and parasitic infections(2007) Balcioglu I.C.; Kurt Ö.; Limoncu M.E.; Dinç G.; Gümüş M.; Kilimcioglu A.A.; Kayran E.; Özbilgin A.This study was conducted both to assess the prevalence of parasitic infections in two neighboring villages of Manisa province in Turkey, with different socioeconomic levels and investigate the influences of some individual and environmental factors on these infections. A total of 100 school children were enrolled and their cellophane tape and stool samples were examined for parasites. Pediculus capitis infestation was diagnosed by visual inspection of the hair. Although the prevalences of both intestinal parasitosis and pediculosis were high in both villages, there was a statistically significant difference for pediculosis, but not for intestinal parasitosis. Lack of social security and father's regular job were found to be highly correlated with all parasitic infections. Pediculosis was more common in younger children, girls and those in crowded families. These results indicate not only the high prevalence of parasitic infections, but also the urgent need for the improvement of basic health services and infrastructure in the rural areas, crowded with poorer immigrant population. © 2007 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.Item Two novel serum-free media for the culture of Trichomonas vaginalis(2007) Limoncu M.E.; Kilimcioǧlu A.A.; Kurt Ö.; Östan I.; Özkütük N.; Özbilgin A.Definitive diagnosis of Trichomonas vaginalis, one of the common causes of sexually transmitted diseases in Turkey, relies on the microscopic examination of both fresh preparations and culture material of genital secretions and urine. The aim of this study was to compare the diagnostic efficacies of two culture media, serum-free TB1 and TB2, including iron and vitamin B12, respectively, with the well-known medium, TYM. Growth rate reached peak levels 48 h in TYM and 72 h in both TB1 and TB2 after inoculation. The highest amount of viable trophozoites has been obtained from TB1, almost equal to TYM but significantly higher than TB2. Fresh preparations obtained from the vaginal secretions of 119 patients have been examined and vaginal samples have been inoculated in TB1, TB2, and TYM. Viable T. vaginalis trophozoites have been detected in ten (8.4%) of fresh preparations and 11 (9.9%) of each medium. It is concluded that serum-free TB1 medium could be used effectively in both the isolation and maintenance of T. vaginalis culture in vitro. © 2006 Springer-Verlag.Item A comparison of metronidazole and single-dose ornidazole for the treatment of dientamoebiasis(Blackwell Publishing Ltd, 2008) Kurt Ö.; Girginkardeşler N.; Balcioǧlu I.C.; Q̈zbilgin A.; Ok Ü.Z.Recent reports of the pathogenic potential of Dientamoeba fragilis have underlined the need for an effective treatment against this colon-dwelling protozoan. Metronidazole is a well-known and commonly used anti-protozoal agent, but another 5-nitroimidazole derivative, ornidazole, may be preferable, where available, because of its longer half-life and fewer side-effects. This study compared the efficacies of metronidazole and ornidazole in a group of 112 patients with dientamoebiasis. Patients were randomised into two treatment groups: group.1 (n = 56) received metronidazole for 5 days, 20 mg/kg/day for children and 1.5 g/day for adults, in three oral doses, while group 2 (n = 56) received a single oral dose of ornidazole, 30 mg/kg for children and 2g for adults. Stool samples were examined on the seventh and 14th days after treatment, and clinical symptoms were recorded to evaluate the efficacy of treatment. A statistically significant difference was recorded between the efficacies of ornidazole and metronidazole, both parasitologically (92.9% vs. 69.6%, p 0.001) and clinically (96.4% vs. 76.8%, p 0.001). Patients in the metronidazole group reported more side-effects than patients in the ornidazole group, none of whom required termination of treatment. These results suggest that single-dose ornidazole may be an important alternative agent for the treatment of dientamoebiasis. © 2008 European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases.Item A possible link between subtype 2 and asymptomatic infections of Blastocystis hominis(2008) Dogruman-Al F.; Dagci H.; Yoshikawa H.; Kurt Ö.; Demirel M.Blastocystis hominis is one of the most common eukaryotic organisms in the intestinal tract of humans, while its pathogenic potential is still controversial. A total of 286 stool samples obtained from adult and pediatric patients with or without gastrointestinal symptoms in two hospitals in Manisa, Turkey, were cultured to detect B. hominis infection. Forty-one and 51 isolates were obtained from the adults and children, respectively, and these isolates were subjected to subtyping by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) with the known sequence-tagged site primers. The correlation between the genotype and the symptoms was evaluated. PCR subtyping indicated that subtype 3 was the most common genotype in both symptomatic and asymptomatic groups, and the second common genotype was subtypes 1 and 2 in symptomatic and asymptomatic groups, respectively. A significant correlation between subtype 2 and the asymptomatic groups was found among both in pediatric and adult patients (χ 2 cal=4.38, df=1, p=0.044). However, there were no significant differences between the other genotypes and the symptomatic or asymptomatic groups, as well as both the age and sex of the patients. The present study suggests that subtype 2 is a non-pathogenic genotype of B. hominis. © 2008 Springer-Verlag.Item Molecular epidemiology of Blastocystis infections in Turkey(2008) Özyurt M.; Kurt Ö.; Mølbak K.; Nielsen H.V.; Haznedaroglu T.; Stensvold C.R.Blastocystis is a very common unicellular intestinal parasite of ubiquitous occurrence. In order to describe the molecular epidemiology of Blastocystis infections in Turkey, 87 isolates from 69 symptomatic and 18 asymptomatic individuals were sequenced. Sequence data were phylogenetically analyzed and statistically tested against unmodifiable risk factors such as gender and age. Blastocystis-positive males were complaining mainly of gastroenteritis, whereas dyspepsia was the chief complaint among Blastocystis-positive females. Blastocystis sp. subtypes detected in the study included subtypes 1, 2, 3 and 4, subtype 3 being the most predominant (75.9%). No association was detected between Blastocystis sp. subtype and symptoms (p > 0.365), or between infection intensity and symptoms (p > 0.441). There was a tendency of subtype 2 isolates being more common among older study individuals, and subtype 2 isolates were significantly associated with higher parasite abundance (p = 0.017). Compared to data from similar studies, the distribution of Blastocystis sp. isolates in Turkey was found to more or less reflect the one seen in other countries, and it was deduced that subtype 3 is generally by far the most common subtype infecting humans, followed by subtypes 1, 2 and 4. © 2008 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.Item The prevalence of intestinal parasites in the province of Izmir, Turkey(2008) Dagci H.; Kurt Ö.; Demirel M.; Östan I.; Azizi N.R.; Mandiracioglu A.; Yurdagül C.; Tanyüksel M.; Eroglu E.; Ak M.Stool samples of a total of 2,047 people in Izmir province were examined by wet mount, formalin ethyl acetate concentration, and trichrome staining methods with an aim to reveal the prevalence of intestinal parasites in Izmir together with related personal and environmental risk factors. Geographical mapping showing the density and variation of the species of intestinal parasites in Izmir was done after all maps were scaled, and the coordinates were determined with GeoMedia5.0®. The prevalence of the intestinal parasites was found to be 25.6 % in Izmir, with a variation between the districts. Blastocystis hominis was the leading parasite, and the prevalence of parasites was higher in children compared to adults; however, the difference was statistically insignificant. There was also no significant difference between the parasite prevalence and sex, marital status, education, income, frequent eating outside, and habitual raw meat eating. Significant differences were found between the parasite prevalence and crowded families, early immigrants, individuals with no social security, and people living in close contact with their livestock. The parasites were found to be less common among individuals who had been drinking bottled water and living in a house with a sewage system. The results demonstrated a correlation between the intestinal parasites and environmental conditions in our study group. We further plan to expand the study group to cover all regions of Turkey. © 2008 Springer-Verlag.Item Transmission of Dientamoeba fragilis: Evaluation of the role of Enterobius vermicularis(2008) Girginkardeşler N.; Kurt Ö.; Kilimcioǧlu A.A.; Ok Ü.Z.The role of Enterobius vermicularis in the transmission of Dientamoeba fragilis has been evaluated in two groups of patients admitted to the Parasitology Laboratory of Celal Bayar University: one group with E. vermicularis infection (n = 187, Pinworm Group), and the other with D. fragilis infection (n = 126, Dientamoeba Group). The presence of the other parasite, pinworm or Dientamoeba, was investigated with the microscopic examination of cellophane tape and stool samples for three consecutive days. In the Pinworm Group, 9.6% of the patients were found to be coinfected with D. fragilis, while 25.4% of the patients in the Dientamoeba Group were found to be coinfected with pinworms. The coincidence rates of D. fragilis and E. vermicularis, higher than the prevalence of each parasite in similar populations, suggest a common relation between these two parasites, possibly in entering the human body. E. vermicularis infection was found to be significantly more common in younger children (p < 0.001), indicating that younger children may also be at higher risk for D. fragilis infection. These findings also raise the question of whether the unrelated symptoms of the pinworm infected patients such as abdominal pain and diarrhea may actually be due to overlooked Dientamoeba infections. © 2007 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.Item Treatment of head lice with dimeticone 4% lotion: Comparison of two formulations in a randomised controlled trial in rural Turkey(2009) Kurt Ö.; Balcioǧlu I.C.; Burgess I.F.; Limoncu M.E.; Girginkardeşler N.; Tabak T.; Muslu H.; Ermiş Z.; Sahin M.T.; Bilac C.; Kavur H.; Özbel Y.Background. Dimeticone 4% lotion was shown to be an effective treatment for head louse infestation in two randomised controlled trials in England. It is not affected by insecticide resistance but efficacy obtained (70-75%) was lower than expected. This study was designed to evaluate efficacy of dimeticone 4% lotion in a geographically, socially, and culturally different setting, in rural Turkey and, in order to achieve blinding, it was compared with a potential alternative formulation. Methods. Children from two village schools were screened for head lice by detection combing. All infested students and family members could participate, giving access to treatment for the whole community. Two investigator applied treatments were given 7 days apart. Outcome was assessed by detection combing three times between treatments and twice the week following second treatment. Results. In the intention to treat group 35/36 treated using dimeticone 4% had no lice after the second treatment but there were two protocol violators giving 91.7% treatment success. The alternative product gave 30/36 (83.3%) treatment success, a difference of 8.4% (95% CI -9.8% to 26.2%). The cure rates per-protocol were 33/34 (97.1%) and 30/35 (85.7%) respectively. We were unable to find any newly emerged louse nymphs on 77.8% of dimeticone 4% treated participants or on 66.7% of those treated with the alternative formulation. No adverse events were identified. Conclusion. Our results confirm the efficacy of dimeticone 4% lotion against lice and eggs and we found no detectable difference between this product and dimeticone 4% lotion with nerolidol 2% added. We believe that the high cure rate was related to the lower intensity of infestation in Turkey, together with the level of community engagement, compared with previous studies in the UK. Trial Registration. Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN10431107.Item General features of patients infected with dientamoeba fragilis: Assessment of a cohort of one hundred patients from manisa province; [Dientamoeba fragilis ile enfekte hastaların genel özellikleri: Manisa ilinden yüz hastalık kohortun inceleme sonuçları](Veteriner Fakultesi Dergisi, 2012) Kurt Ö.; Ok Ü.Z.Dientamoeba fragilis is a flagellated protozoon dwelling in the colonic lumen. It was shown that it may cause clinical manifestations which required effective anti-microbial therapy. General features of 100 D. fragilis-infected patients were assessed in a study conducted in the Parasitology Laboratory of Celal Bayar University Hospital. Patients were mostly females, between 18 and 50 years, and almost two-thirds of them were admitted with gastrointestinal complaints such as bloating, abdominal pain, diarrhea and fatigue. Thirty-four of 100 patients were coinfected with Blastocystis sp., while 27 of 83 (32.5%) patients that submitted three cellophane tape samples were coinfected with Enterobius vermicularis. Another significant outcome of the study was that 7 and 6 of 35 patients reported dermatologic complaints as itching and lesions, consecutively. The patients and/or their families were mostly educated, middle-class individuals living in apartments in city centre, using tap water for drinking and do regular hand-washing. The study results suggest that D. fragilis should be regarded as a causative agent in pediatric and adult patients suffering from abdominal pain, diarrhea and intense bloating, and the fresh stool samples should be examined directly or kept in a fixative solution until examination with a permanent-stained smear such as trichrome. © 2012, Veteriner Fakultesi Dergisi. All rights reserved.Item Are regular controls conducted in schools adequate in lowering the incidence of head lice (Pediculus capitis) infestation?; [Okullarda düzenli aralıklarla gerçekleştirilen kontroller saç biti (Pediculus capitis) insidansını düşürmekte yeterli olabilir mi?](Veteriner Fakultesi Dergisi, 2012) Balcioğlu İ.C.; Kurt Ö.; Limoncu M.E.; Ermiş V.Ö.; Tabak T.; Oyur T.; Muslu H.; Kavur H.; Görgün S.; Girginkardeşler N.; Yereli K.; Bilaç C.; Özbel Y.In the present study, school children of similar age-groups from two villages of Manisa province, namely Osmancalı and Maldan, were examined in regular time periods to monitorize the changes in the incidence of head lice (Pediculus capitis). A total of 2091 children (1565 in Osmancalı and 526 in Maldan) were combed with a newly-designed lice comb (PDC®, KSL Consulting, Helsinge, Denmark) four times in May and November in 2008 and 2009. The assessment of the results was conducted with SPSS® v.15 program using CHAID and logistic regression analysis. The results of the periodic examinations of the children showed that the infestation rate of girls were found to be higher significantly compared to boys (P<0.001), and the incidence of head lice infestation in boys from Osmancalı was found three times higher than the incidence in boys in Maldan (P=0.002). In addition, regular dry combing and treatment lowered the infestation rates among girls significantly (P=0.001). According to the results of the study, regular dry combing of school children with specially-designed lice combs may be essential for the control of this common infestation, especially in rural areas. © 2012, Veteriner Fakultesi Dergisi. All rights reserved.Item Feconomics®: A simple, novel and fast technique for stool concentration in parasitology laboratory; [Feconomics®: Parazitoloji laboratuvarında dışkının konsantrasyonu için basit, yeni ve hızlı bir yöntem](Veteriner Fakultesi Dergisi, 2012) Kurt Ö.; Akyar I.; Görgün S.; Kocagöz T.; Özbilgin A.Feconomics® is a new ready-to-use kit for fecal concentration that eliminates the need for centrifugation and floatation by using absorbent beads. To assess its efficacy in the diagnosis of intestinal parasites, a comparative, double-blind study was conducted in the Parasitology Laboratory of Celal Bayar University Medical School. Stools (Group I, n=251) submitted for routine ova and parasite examination were concentrated with both routine formalin ethyl acetate concentration (FEAC) technique and Feconomics®. Since the number of helminthes identified in the stool samples of patients were very low, helminthes obtained from the animal models in the laboratory were included (Group II, n=11). The iodine-stained samples of all stools and some of the positive samples stained with Gomori’s trichrome and Kinyoun’s acid fast stain were read by specialists. In Group I, 103 of 251 (41.04%) samples were found to be positive for one or more intestinal parasites; among them, 76 (30.28%) and 96 (38.25%) stools were found to be positive with FEAC and Feconomics®, respectively, and the difference was significant (P=0.000). Same parasites were identified with both methods among all 11 samples in Group II. There was no difference between the methods for the morphological integrity and visual appearances of the parasites having cyst or egg forms; yet, it was noticed that the vegetative forms of the parasites were only identified with Feconomics®. Review of our data indicated that Feconomics® may be suggested as a fast and effective fecal concentration method for Parasitology laboratories owing to the identification of higher number of parasites compared to FEAC, and parasites with only vegetative forms such as Dientamoeba fragilis. © 2012, Veteriner Fakultesi Dergisi. All rights reserved.Item E.Histolytica/dispar cases diagnosed in ege university medical faculty parasitology outpatient clinic between January 2010 to June 2011; [Ocak 2010-haziran 2011 tarihleri arasında ege üniversitesi tıp fakültesi parazitoloji polikliniğinde saptanan e. Histolytica/dispar olguları](Veteriner Fakultesi Dergisi, 2012) Ünver A.; Oyur T.; Kurt Ö.; Özensoy Töz S.; Turgay N.For definitive diagnosis of amoebiasis, The Ministry of Health requires the detection of Entamoeba histolytica (E. histolytica) trophozoites that ingested red blood cells in Trichrome-stained smears or E. histolytica-specific adhesin antigen with ELISA. Stool samples of 51 patients admitted to the Outpatients Clinic of Ege University School of Medicine Department of Parasitology between January 2010 and June 2011 were suspected to have E. histolytica/dispar cysts or trophozoites in wet mount examinations and stained with Trichrome. Examination of these smears revealed that 49 samples were positive for E. histolytica/dispar Thirty-three samples were tested for the positivity of E. histolytica-specific adhesin antigen with a commercial ELISA kit (Entamoeba CELISA-Path; CeLLabs Pty. Ltd., Brookvale, Australia) and 23 were found to be positive. Our results indicated an elevation of figures of amoebiasis cases in recent years. It is concluded that application of different methods for the diagnosis of E. histolytica infections as suggested by The Ministry of Health is essential for correct reports of peripheral laboratories. © 2012, Veteriner Fakultesi Dergisi. All rights reserved.Item In vitro efficacy of quercus infectoria Oliv. and achillea millefolium l. extracts against blastocystis spp. isolates; [Quercus infectoria oliv. ve achillea millefolium l. ekstrelerinin blastocystis spp. i̇zolatlarına in vitro etkileri](Veteriner Fakultesi Dergisi, 2013) ÖzbIlgIn A.; Durmuşkahya C.; KIlImcIoǧlu A.A.; Kayalar H.; Kurt Ö.; ErmIş V.Ö.; Tabak T.; Östan I.Blastocystis is a common intestinal parasite that can inhabit the intestinal tract of humans and many animals. Despite it was firstly described almost 100 years ago; many subjects are still under debate about Blastocystis, including its life-cycle, pathogenic potential and treatment of infected individuals. Historically, local plant species have been used for therapeutic purposes by the local people of Anatolia. Here, hexane and methanol extracts of two local plants, Quercus infectoria (Fagaceae) and Achillea millefolium, which have been used against diarrhea in Anatolia, were examined for their in vitro efficacies against Blastocystis. LC50 and EC50 values of the plant extracts were determined by Brine Shrimp and Graphpad Prism 5® methods, respectively. The results showed that LC50 (500 μg/ml) and EC50 (198.8 μg/ml) concentrations of the methanol extract of A. millefolium were lowest compared to other extracts, its anti-Blastocystis activity was found to be comparable to metronidazole and it showed no cytotoxic activity. These initial results suggest that the methanol extract of A. millefolium may be a novel option for the treatment of Blastocystis infections in humans in future, if confirmed by further, larger-scale studies.Item Leishmaniasis in Turkey: Determination of Leishmania species by matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS)(Tehran University of Medical Sciences (TUMS), 2014) Culha G.; Akyar I.; Yildiz Zeyrek F.; Kurt Ö.; Gündüz C.; Özensoy Töz S.; Östan I.; Cavus I.; Gülkan B.; Kocagöz T.; Özbel Y.; Özbilgin A.Background: Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is endemic in Southeastern Anatolia, mainly in Sanliurfa and Hatay provinces, and the causative agents are mostly Leishmania tropica and less frequently L. infantum. Here, we report the first MALDI-TOF analyses of Leishmania promastigotes obtained from the cultures of two CL cases from Osmaniye and Hatay provinces who were initially diagnosed by microscopy, culture and identified as L. infantum with Real-Time PCR (RT-PCR). Methods: Samples obtained from the skin lesions of patients were initially stained with Giemsa and cultivated in NNN medium. Examination of the smears and cultures revealed Leishmania amastigotes and promastigotes, respectively. The promastigotes (MHOM/TR/2012/CBU15 and MHOM/TR/2012/MK05) obtained from the cultures of both patients were used for RT-PCR targeting the ITS-1 region in the SSU of rRNA. The reference strains of four Leishmania species (L. infantum, L. donovani, L. tropica and L. major) were initially assessed with MALDI-TOF and their data were added to MALDI-TOF Biotyper Library. Results: Both RT-PCR and MALDI-TOF analyses indicated that the causative agent in both patient samples was L. infantum. Conclusion: Despite disadvantages such as requirement of culture fluid with nothing but promastigotes and high cost, MALDI-TOF analysis may be a fast, sensitive and specific diagnostic tool in especially large-scale research studies, where the cost declines, relatively.Item Treatment of head lice (Pediculus humanus capitis) infestation: Is regular combing alone with a special detection comb effective at all levels?(Springer Verlag, 2015) Kurt Ö.; Balcıoğlu I.C.; Limoncu M.E.; Girginkardeşler N.; Arserim S.K.; Görgün S.; Oyur T.; Karakuş M.; Düzyol D.; Gökmen A.A.; Kitapçıoğlu G.; Özbel Y.Head lice infestation (HLI) caused by Pediculus humanus capitis has been a public health problem worldwide. Specially designed combs are used to identify head lice, while anti-lice products are applied on the scalp for treatment. In the present study, we aimed to test whether combing only by precision detection comb (PDC) or metal pin comb (MPC) could be effective alternatives to the use of anti-lice products in children. A total of 560 children from two rural schools in Turkey were screened. In the PDC trial, children were combed every second day for 14 days, while in the MPC trial, combing was performed once in every four days for 15 days. Children were divided into two groups (dry combing and wet combing) for both trials and results were compared. The results showed no significant differences between dry and wet combing strategies for both combs for the removal of head lice (p > 0.05). The number of adult head lice declined significantly on each subsequent combing day in both approaches, except on day 15 in the MPC trial. In the end, no louse was found in 54.1 and 48.9 % of children in the PDC and MPC trials, respectively. Since family members of infested children were not available, they were not checked for HLI. Four times combing within 2 weeks with MPC combs was found effective for both treatment of low HLI and prevention of heavy HLI. In conclusion, regular combing by special combs decreases HLI level in children and is safely applicable as long-term treatment. © 2015, Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.Item Leishmaniasis in Turkey: First clinical isolation of Leishmania major from 18 autochthonous cases of cutaneous leishmaniasis in four geographical regions(Blackwell Publishing Ltd, 2016) Özbilgin A.; Çulha G.; Uzun S.; Harman M.; Topal S.G.; Okudan F.; Zeyrek F.; Gündüz C.; Östan I.; Karakuş M.; Töz S.; Kurt Ö.; Akyar I.; Erat A.; Güngör D.; Kayabaşi Ç.; Çavuş I.; Bastien P.; Pratlong F.; Kocagöz T.; Özbel Y.Objective: To report isolation of Leishmania major strains obtained from 18 Turkish autochthonous cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) patients infected with L. major between 2011 and 2014. Methods: Initial diagnosis relied on microscopy and culture in enriched medium, prepared by adding specific amounts of liver extract, protein and lipid sources to NNN medium. Promastigotes were then transferred to RPMI medium including 10% of foetal calf serum for mass culture. Species-specific real-time PCR targeting ITS1 region of Leishmania spp. was performed using both lesion aspiration samples and cultured promastigotes. Two of 18 isolates were identified by isoenzyme analysis in the Leishmaniasis Reference Center in Montpellier, France. Each isolate was inoculated into the footpads of six mice to observe the pathogenicity of L. major. Developing lesions were observed, and the thickening of footpads was measured weekly. Results: Melting curve analyses of 18 isolates showed a peak concordant with L. major, and two of them were confirmed by isoenzyme analyses as L. major zymodeme MON103. In the mouse model, acute lesions seen on day 21 were accepted as an indication of heavy infection. Severe impairments were observed on all mouse footpads over 3 weeks, which even progressed to extremity amputation. Conclusion: Cutaneous leishmaniasis-causing L. major was recently identified in Adana province in southern Turkey, with PCR. Our study shows that such CL cases are not limited to Adana but currently present from western to Southeastern Anatolia, and along the Mediterranean coast. The role of small mammals, the main reservoirs of L. major in Anatolia, needs to be elucidated, as do the underlying factors that cause severe clinical manifestations in L. major infections in Turkey, contrary to the infections in neighbouring countries. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.