Cronobacter sakazakii is an enteropathogen that causes neonatal meningitis, septicemia, and necrotizing enterocolitis in preterm infants and newborns with a mortality rate of 15 to 80%. Powdered and dairy formulas (P-DF) have been implicated as major transmission vehicles and subsequently the presence of this pathogen in P-DF led to product recalls in Chile in 2017. The objective of this study was to use whole genome sequencing (WGS) and laboratory studies to characterize Cronobacter strains from the contaminated products. Seven strains were identified as C. sakazakii, and the remaining strain was Franconibacter helveticus. All C. sakazakii strains adhered to a neuroblastoma cell line, and 31 virulence genes were predicted by WGS. The antibiograms varied between strains. and included mcr-9.1 and blaCSA genes, conferring resistance to colistin and cephalothin, respectively. The C. sakazakii strains encoded I-E and I-F CRISPR-Cas systems, and carried IncFII(pECLA), Col440I, and Col(pHHAD28) plasmids. In summary, WGS enabled the identification of C. sakazakii strains and revealed multiple antibiotic resistance and virulence genes. These findings support the decision to recall the contaminated powdered and dairy formulas from the Chilean market in 2017.

Determinar la disposición que tienen estudiantes chilenos de ciencias de la salud a la investigación científica. Materiales y métodos: Estudio observacional, descriptivo, de corte transversal, prospectivo. La muestra estuvo conformada por 246 estudiantes de ciencias de la salud. Se aplicó un cuestionario de actitudes frente a la investigación que contenía 22 ítems (α Cronbach =0,895) en escala tipo Likert (1 al 5). Se aplicó estadística descriptiva e inferencial. La significancia se estableció a un p:0,05. Resultados: El puntaje medio del cuestionario fue de 2,7±1,01, indicando una baja disposición por parte de estudiantes a la investigación, los ítems con puntajes más bajos fueron los asociados al análisis estadístico y búsqueda de artículos científicos. La carrera con mayor índice de disposición fue Enfermería, mientras que Terapia Ocupacional y Fonoaudiología tuvieron la menor disposición. Conclusiones: Es necesario fomentar en el estudiantado el reconocimiento de la importancia de basamento científico en el abordaje de situaciones de salud. Palabras claves: Actitudes; investigación; estudiantes del área de la salud (Fuente: DeCS BIREME). Willingness for scientific research in health science students ABSTRACT Objective: To determine the willingness for scientific research in Chilean health science students. Materials and methods: An observational, descriptive, cross-sectional, prospective study. The sample consisted of 246 health science students. A 22-item questionnaire on attitudes to research (α Cronbach = 0.895) was conducted using a 5-point Likert scale (1 to 5). Descriptive and inferential statistics were applied. Significance was established at p = 0.05. Results: The questionnaire mean score was 2.7±1.01, which indicated low willingness for scientific research in health science students. The items with the lowest scores were associated with statistical analysis and scientific literature search. The academic program with the highest willingness index was nursing, while occupational therapy and phonoaudiology had the lowest willingness indexes. Conclusions: It is necessary to promote in students the importance of scientific grounding to face health situations.

Ready-to-eat (RTE) artisanal foods are very popular, but they can be contaminated by Listeria monocytogenes. The aim was to determine the presence of L. monocytogenes in artisanal RTE foods and evaluate its food safety risk. We analyzed 400 RTE artisanal food samples requiring minimal (fresh products manufactured by a primary producer) or moderate processing (culinary products for sale from the home, restaurants such as small cafés, or on the street). Listeria monocytogenes was isolated according to the ISO 11290-1:2017 standard, detected with VIDAS equipment, and identified by real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR). A small subset (n = 8) of the strains were further characterized for evaluation. The antibiotic resistance profile was determined by the CLSI methodology, and the virulence genes hlyA, prfA, and inlA were detected by PCR. Genotyping was performed by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). Listeria monocytogenes was detected in 7.5% of RTE artisanal foods. On the basis of food type, positivity in minimally processed artisanal foods was 11.6%, significantly different from moderately processed foods with 6.2% positivity (p > 0.05). All the L. monocytogenes strains (n = 8) amplified the three virulence genes, while six strains exhibited premature stop codons (PMSC) in the inlA gene; two strains were resistant to ampicillin and one strain was resistant to sulfamethoxazole-trimethoprim. Seven strains were 1/2a serotype and one was a 4b strain. The sampled RTE artisanal foods did not meet the microbiological criteria for L. monocytogenes according to the Chilean Food Sanitary Regulations. The presence of virulence factors and antibiotic-resistant strains make the consumption of RTE artisanal foods a risk for the hypersensitive population that consumes them.

Cronobacter is a bacterial genus that includes seven species, and the species Cronobacter sakazakii is most related to meningitis and septicemia in infants associated with powdered infant formula (PIF). The objectives of this study were to evaluate the presence of C. sakazakii and to determine the microbiological quality of PIF for infant consumption. To do this, a total of 128 PIF samples were analyzed in four brands and countries (Chile, Mexico, Holland, and Brazil), considering three types of PIF: premature (PIF1), infant (PIF2), and follow-up (PIF3). Aerobic plate counts (APC) and Enterobacteriaceae (ENT) were assessed in accordance with Chilean official standards. The outer membrane protein A (ompA) gene was amplified to detect Cronobacter spp. and the fusA gene was amplified to identify C. sakazakii by using the PubMLST Web site and BLAST (NCBI). The antibiotic resistance profile was performed according to the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute standards. The pathogen was quantified by the most probable number (MPN). The results showed that APC median values for PIF1, PIF2, and PIF3 were 3.2, 4.9, and 4.8 log CFU g−1, respectively. The APC were higher in PIF2 (P < 0.01) from Holland (P < 0.01) in the commercial brand 4 (P < 0.01). The ENT median values in PIF1, PIF2, and PIF3 were 1.8, 1.5, and 1.7 log CFU g−1, respectively. Five strains of C. sakazakii and one strain of Cronobacter malonaticus were identified as having values between 0.023 and 2.3 MPN/g. All strains (100%) harbored the ompA, plasminogen activator (cpa), and hemolysin (hly) virulence genes. To conclude, C. sakazakii was found in four PIF samples from four Chilean products and one from Mexico, which is distributed throughout America. C. sakazakii strains exhibit virulence factors and resistance to ampicillin, thus posing a risk when PIFs are consumed by infants. HIGHLIGHTS

Objective: This study aimed to determine the association between body mass index (BMI) and functional fitness (FF) in 9-to 10-year-old Chilean children. Methods: This was an analytical and cross-sectional study with a probabilistic sample consisting of 139 children of both sexes. Anthropometric measurements, hemodynamic variables, physical activity (PAQ-C), and FF (measured by a 6-minute walk test: 6MWT) were recorded. If the distance walked was <10th percentile, FF was considered low. Means of variables between each group were compared by Student's t test, and Pearson's test was used to determine correlations between variables. Multivariable analyses were performed to identify factors associated with FF with a level of significance P < .05. All these analyses were performed with the STATA 15.0 program. Results: It was clear boys walked a greater distance than girls (P = .006); over-