Tests under standardized and harmonized conditions help to choose the most efficacious agent. When a prolonged contact time is feasible, ranking of agents would be polyhexanide = octenidine > chlorhexidine > triclosan > PVP-iodine. This is consistent with the recommendations for antisepsis of acute wounds. Polyhexanide seems to be preferable for chronic wounds due to its higher tolerability. If an immediate effect is required, ranking would be octenidine = PVP-iodine>> polyhexanide > chlorhexidine > triclosan.

A consensus-directed search for ςB promoters was used to locate potential candidates for new ςB-dependent genes in Bacillus subtilis. Screening of those candidates by oligonucleotide hybridizations with total RNA from exponentially growing or ethanol-stressed cells of the wild type as well as asigB mutant revealed 22 genes that required ςB for induction by ethanol. Although almost 50% of the proteins encoded by the newly discovered ςB-dependent stress genes seem to be membrane localized, biochemical functions have so far not been defined for any of the gene products. Allocation of the genes to the ςB-dependent stress regulon may indicate a potential function in the establishment of a multiple stress resistance. AldY and YhdF show similarities to NAD(P)-dependent dehydrogenases and YdbP to thioredoxins, supporting our suggestion that ςB-dependent proteins may be involved in the maintenance of the intracellular redox balance after stress.

In this study global changes in gene expression were monitored in Bacillus subtilis cells entering stationary growth phase owing to starvation for glucose. Gene expression was analysed in growing and starving cells at different time points by full-genome mRNA profiling using DNA macroarrays. During the transition to stationary phase we observed extensive reprogramming of gene expression, with approximately 1,000 genes being strongly repressed and approximately 900 strongly up-regulated in a time-dependent manner. The genes involved in the response to glucose starvation can be assigned to two main classes: (i) general stress/starvation genes which respond to various stress or starvation stimuli, and (ii) genes that respond specifically to starvation for glucose. The first class includes members of the sigma(B)-dependent general stress regulon, as well as 90 vegetative genes, which are strongly down regulated in the course of the stringent response. Among the genes in the second class, we observed a decrease in the expression of genes encoding proteins required for glucose uptake, glycolysis and the tricarboxylic acid cycle. Conversely, many carbohydrate utilisation systems that depend on phosphotransferase systems (PTS) or ABC transporters were activated. The expression of genes required for utilisation or generation of acetate indicates that acetate constitutes an important energy source for B. subtilis during periods of glucose starvation. Finally, genome wide mRNA profiling data can be used to predict new metabolic pathways in B. subtilis. Thus, our data suggest that glucose-starved cells are able to degrade branched-chain fatty acids to pyruvate and succinate via propionyl-CoA using the methylcitrate pathway. This pathway appears to link lipid degradation to gluconeogenesis in glucose-starved cells.

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BACKGROUND For alcohol-based hand rubs, the currently recommended application time of 30 seconds is longer than the actual time spent in clinical practice. We investigated whether a shorter application time of 15 seconds is microbiologically safe in neonatal intensive care and may positively influence compliance with the frequency of hand antisepsis actions. METHODS We conducted in vitro experiments to determine the antimicrobial efficacy of hand rubs within 15 seconds, followed by clinical observations to assess the effect of a shortened hand antisepsis procedure under clinical conditions in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). An independent observer monitored the frequency of hand antisepsis actions during shifts. RESULTS All tested hand rubs fulfilled the requirement of equal or even significantly higher efficacy within 15 seconds when compared to a reference alcohol propan-2-ol 60% (v/v) within 30 seconds. Microbiologically, reducing the application time to 15 seconds had a similar effect when compared to 30-second hand rubbing, but it resulted in significantly increased frequency of hand antisepsis actions (7.9±4.3 per hour vs 5.8±2.9 per hour; P=.05). CONCLUSION Time pressure and workload are recognized barriers to compliance. Therefore, reducing the recommended time for hand antisepsis actions, using tested and well-evaluated hand rub formulations, may improve hand hygiene compliance in clinical practice. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2017;38:1430-1434.