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Antibiotic resistance of Escherichia coli isolated from urinary tract infections (UTIs) is increasing worldwide. A total of 41 E. coli isolates were obtained from urine samples from hospitalized patients with a UTI in three hospitals in the northern districts of the West Bank, Palestine during March and June 2011. Resistance rates were: erythromycin (95 %), trimethoprimsulfamethoxazole (59 %), ciprofloxacin (56 %), gentamicin (27 %), imipenem (22 %), amoxicillin (93 %), amoxicillin-clavulanic acid (32 %), ceftazidime (66 %) and cefotaxime (71 %). No meropenem-resistant isolates were identified in this study. Among the isolates, phylogenetic group B2 was observed in 13 isolates, D in 12 isolates, A in 11 isolates and B1 in five isolates. Thirty-five of the isolates were positive for an extended-spectrum b-lactamase phenotype. Among these isolates, the bla CTX-M gene was detected in 25, and eight harboured the bla TEM gene. None of the isolates contained the bla SHV gene. Transformation experiments indicated that some of the b-lactamase genes (i.e. bla CTX-M and bla TEM ) with co-resistance to erythromycin and gentamicin were plasmid encoded and transmissible. Apart from this, enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus-PCR (ERIC-PCR) revealed that the 41 isolates were genetically diverse and comprised a heterogeneous population with 11 ERIC-PCR profiles at a 60 % similarity level.

This report presents the prevalence of Palestinian isolates of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in nosocomial infections and their antibiotic resistant pattern. A total of 321 clinical isolates of S. aureus were identified from different patients. The prevalence of methicillin resistance among S. aureus isolates was 8.7% (28 isolates). Resistance rates of MRSA to other antibiotics were as follows: 82.1% resistant to erythromycin, 67.9% to clindamycin, 64.3% to gentamicin, and 32.1% to ciprofloxacin. No co-trimoxazole- and vancomycin-resistant isolates were identified in this study. The proportion of methicillin resistance was highest among S. aureus isolates associated with upper respiratory specimens (42.8%); the proportion of methicillin resistance was 39.3% among skin ulcer isolates, 10.7% among urinary tract infection isolates, and lowest among isolates associated with blood and prostate discharge (3.6% each).

Cysticercus tenuicollis is the metacestode of canine tapeworm Taenia hydatigena, which has been reported in domestic and wild ruminants and is causing veterinary and economic losses in the meat industry. This study was conducted to determine the sequence variation in the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (coxl) gene in 20 isolates of T. hydatigena metacestodes (cysticercus tenuicollis) collected from northern West Bank in Palestine. Nine haplotypes were detected, with one prevailing (55%). The total haplotype diversity (0.705) and the total nucleotide diversity (0.0045) displayed low genetic diversity among our isolates. Haplotype analysis showed a star-shaped network with a centrally positioned common haplotype. The Tajima's D, and Fu and Li's statistics in cysticercus tenuicollis population of this region showed a negative value, indicating deviations from neutrality and both suggested recent population expansion for the population. The findings of this study would greatly help to implement control and preventive measures for T. hydatigena larvae infection in Palestine.