Faecal Escherichia coli isolates from suckling (n5503) and weaning (n5450) piglets with and without diarrhoea from 10 farms in Mexico were examined for identification and prevalence of virulence genes. E. coli isolates were tested further for enterotoxin (LT, STa, STb, Stx1, Stx2 and EAST1), fimbrial (F4, F5, F6, F17, F18 and F41) and eae adhesin genes by multiplex PCR. Of the 953 isolates of E. coli examined by multiplex PCR, 650 (68.2 %) isolates were positive for at least one adhesin gene. Among the isolates from diarrhoeic piglets, F41 (72 %) was the most prevalent adhesin followed by eae adhesin (27 %), F6 (12 %), F17 (9 %), F18 (9 %), F5 (8 %) and F4 (3 %). Enterotoxin genes were detected in 424 (44.5 %) of the isolates, of which EAST1 (38 %) and STa (30 %) were the most common, followed by STb (17 %), Stx2 (6 %) and LT (5 %). Twenty-three per cent of isolates from suckling piglets and 43 % of isolates from weaned piglets carried both enterotoxin and adhesin genes, the most common virotypes being F41 : STa, F41 : EAST1, EAST1 : eae, F41 : F6, F41 : STa : STb, F41 : eae and F17 : eae. The present study examined for the first time, to our knowledge, the prevalence of 13 virulence genes among E. coli strains isolated from piglets with and without diarrhoea in Mexico. The results suggested that there are a wide variety of virulence genes associated with diarrhoea in piglets. This study provides baseline information on the significance of specific virotypes associated with suckling and weaning periods in piglets in Mexico.

Background Multiple factors are implicated in the etiology and pathogenesis of Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms (AAA). Available literature of genetic studies has previously suggested the possible roles of autoimmunity, genetic predisposition and ethnic susceptibility. Due to the association with autoimmune diseases and proven application in population genetics, we aimed to investigate alleles of the Class II Human Leukocyte Antigens (HLA-DRB1) in the Mexican Mestizo population with aortic aneurysms and determine possible associations with susceptibility. Methods We performed a case Control Study; the HLA molecular typing was completed for DRB1 loci by LabType Sequence-Specific Oligonucleotide (SSO) SSO-OneLambda kit (Applied Biosystems; Thermo Fisher Scientific. Inc.) in the studied individuals. Allele frequencies (af) were determined, associations were assessed by chi square or fisher exact tests at significance level (< 0.05), and Odds Ratios (OR) were calculated using the STATA software version 14. Results The genetic polymorphism of HLA-DRB1 of fifty one patients (70% males with a mean age of 71 years) with atherosclerotic or also known as degenerative AAA were compared with 99 unrelated patients (60% males, mean age 65 years) without the disease [Control group (CG)] from the same ethnic group. We examined a total of 102 Class II HLA-DRB1 alleles of AAA patients and 198 from CG. When comparing af, we observed the HLA-DRB1*01 af of 0.139 in the AAA compared to 0.05 in the CG [ p = 0.015, OR 3, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.29–7.08], the HLA-DRB1*16 af were 0.109 in the AAA and 0.025 in CG ( p = 0.006, OR 4.7, 95% CI 1.59–13.98). Conclusions Our study confirmed increased frequencies of the alleles HLA-DRB1*01 and HLA-DRB1*16 and their association to the development of AAA in Mexican Mestizo patients. The utility of genetic testing may assist in identifying individuals at genetic risk for the development of this disease in different ethnic groups, who might benefit from earlier ultrasound screening and closer imaging surveillance.

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Introduction: The CYP450 complex participates in the metabolism of ifosfamide, an antineoplastic drug used to treat solid tumors. genes contain several single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) that confer different activity towards the enzyme. The aim of our study was to analyze gene frequencies of allelic variants and their association with ifosfamide blood levels and patient prognosis. Material and methods: 148 DNA samples from children were analyzed. Genotyping was performed by real-time PCR with TaqMan probes and ifosfamide levels were determined in dried blood drop by UPLCMS/MS. Results: Ifosfamide levels increased according to the genotype, and patients with the variant rs1799853 in CYP2C9 genotype CC had lower levels of ifosfamide (median = 1.8 μmol/l, Q 25 0.9-Q 75 4.6) compared with patients with genotype TT + CT (median = 2.8 μmol/l, Q 25 1.9-Q 75 5.1), p < 0.001. In the case of the rs2740574 variant in the CYP3A4 gene, patients with normal genotype (TT) presented median = 1.4 μmol/l, (Q 25 0.7-Q 75 2.7), while patients with the CC + TC genotype had higher levels of ifosfamide (median = 2.0 μmol/l, Q 25 1.0-Q 75 4.3), p = 0.024. In addition, patients with CC + CT genotype of this variant had a higher risk of non-response to treatment compared to patients with TT genotype (RR = 1.3, 95% CI: 1.07-1.59, p = 0.03). Conclusions: Polymorphisms in CYP2C9 and CYP3A4 genes are associated with high levels of ifosfamide. In addition, the polymorphism rs2740574 in CYP3A4 was associated with a worse therapeutic response.