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Staphylococcus aureus infections present a serious challenge to healthcare practitioners due to the emergence of resistance to numerous conventional antibiotics. Due to their unique mode of action, peptide nucleic acids are novel alternatives to traditional antibiotics to tackle the issue of bacterial multidrug resistance. In this study, we designed a peptide nucleic acid covalently conjugated to the HIV-TAT cell penetrating peptide (GRKKKRRQRRRYK) in order to target the RNA polymerase α subunit gene (rpoA) required for bacterial genes transcription. We explored the antimicrobial activity of the anti-rpoA construct (peptide nucleic acid-TAT) against methicillin-resistant S. aureus, vancomycin-intermediate S. aureus, vancomycin-resistant S. aureus, linezolid-resistant S. aureus, and methicillin-resistant S. epidermidis in pure culture, infected mammalian cell culture, and in an in vivo Caenorhabditis elegans infection model. The anti-rpoA construct led to a concentration-dependent inhibition of bacterial growth (at micromolar concentrations) in vitro and in both infected cell culture and in vivo in C. elegans. Moreover, rpoA gene silencing resulted in suppression of its message as well as reduced expression of two important methicillin-resistant S. aureus USA300 toxins (α-hemolysin and Panton-Valentine leukocidin). This study confirms that rpoA gene is a potential target for development of novel antisense therapeutics to treat infections caused by methicillin-resistant S. aureus.

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Coenurosis is a parasitic disease that particularly affects sheep and goats. The disease is caused by Coenurus cerebralis which is the larval stage of Taenia multiceps. Two-and-a-half year-old female ewe showing neurological signs was presented to the Veterinary Teaching Hospital, Assiut University, Egypt. Postmortem examination of the brain revealed Coenurus cyst measuring 5×3 cm associated with dilated lateral ventricle. Histopathological examination revealed extensive areas of liquefactive necrosis in the cerebrum. The necrotic area was infiltrated with lymphocytes, microglia cells and eosinophils. Internal hydrocephalus and atrophy of the ependymal cells of both lateral ventricle and choroid plexus were also seen. It was concluded that coenurosis might be associated with internal hydrocephalus along with some clinical and pathological finding.

Coenurosis is a parasitic disease that particularly affects sheep and goats. The disease is caused by Coenurus cerebralis which is the larval stage of Taenia multiceps. Two-and-a-half year-old female ewe showing neurological signs was presented to the Veterinary Teaching Hospital, Assiut University, Egypt. Postmortem examination of the brain revealed Coenurus cyst measuring 5×3 cm associated with dilated lateral ventricle. Histopathological examination revealed extensive areas of liquefactive necrosis in the cerebrum. The necrotic area was infiltrated with lymphocytes, microglia cells and eosinophils. Internal hydrocephalus and atrophy of the ependymal cells of both lateral ventricle and choroid plexus were also seen. It was concluded that coenurosis might be associated with internal hydrocephalus along with some clinical and pathological finding.

Abstract Aim: This study was designed for clinical and laboratory evaluation of intestinal obstruction (IO) in buffaloes (Bubalus bubalis) with special emphasis on the diagnostic value of ultrasonographic findings. Materials and Methods: A  total number of 30 buffaloes were included in the study and divided into 2 groups: Healthy (n=10) and diseased group (n=20). Diseased buffaloes were admitted to the Veterinary Teaching Hospital at Assiut University, Egypt, with a history of anorexia, abdominal pain, various degrees of abdominal distention, and absence or presence of scanty mucoid faces. These animals were subjected to clinical and ultrasonographic as well as laboratory examinations. Results: Based on ultrasonographic findings, various forms of IO were diagnosed. Functional obstruction, paralytic ileus, was diagnosed in 17  cases (85%) while mechanical IO was diagnosed only in 3  cases (15%). Out of 17  cases of paralytic ileus, both proximal and distal ileuses were successfully imaged in 8 and 9  cases, respectively. Proximal ileus was imaged from the right dorsal flank region as a single dilated loop of diameter >6  cm, while distal ileus was imaged as multiple dilated loops of diameter 6  cm. Mechanical obstruction due to duodenal intussusception was visualized as two concentric rings with outer echogenic wall and hypoechoic lumen. All cases of IO showed leukocytosis, hypoproteinemia, and increased activity of alkaline phosphatase and aspartate aminotransferase. Conclusion: Ultrasonography proved to be an essential tool for diagnosis and differential diagnosis of various forms of IO in buffaloes.