Blood cultures remained negative Abdominal CT scan revealed a fo

Blood cultures remained negative. Abdominal CT scan revealed a focal bilobate lesion measuring 6 cm. Serologic tests for detection of anti-amebic antibodies with LAT, IHAT, and electrosyneresis (ES) were negative. IFAT was found slightly positive: 1 : 80 (threshold at 1 : 80)

in a laboratory and 1 : 300 (threshold at 1 : 150) in a reference center. Because of undetermined etiology, drainage of the liver abscess was required. Microscopic examination of the hematic aspiration fluid remained negative whereas histological examination of the liver fragment taken during the aspiration revealed amebae in the abscess capsule leading to the diagnosis of ALA. Clinical and biologic outcomes were good selleck products after 20 days of treatment with metronidazole. The serology was followed JAK cancer up for 4 months: LAT, IHA, and ES remained

negative, IFAT result was twice the threshold on day 7, 14, and 37 and negative on the fourth month. The two cases reported here emphasize the difficulties in diagnosing the etiology of a liver abscess. Therefore, at the presentation of a patient with liver abcess, both PLA and ALA should be considered according to the patient’s clinical parameters. Furthermore, when no liver abscess puncture is performed the treatment must also cover anaerobes, and therefore metronidazole was used which is efficient against E histolytica. In industrialized nations where amebiasis is not endemic, serologic tests are Ergoloid essential for the diagnosis of ALA. Current methods include IFAT, IHAT, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), counterimmunoelectrophoresis (CIE), ES, and LAT. If IFAT, IHAT, ELISA, CIE, and ES are time-consuming methods requiring trained personnel and specialized equipment, LAT is a bedside test, easy to perform and gives rapid results (5 minutes). Therefore, LAT is often used in first-line in an emergency context. IFAT uses whole antigen whereas other tests use soluble antigens. Most of the tests are marketed, others are home made. Usually, the antigens come from cultivated axenic strains whereas recombinant

proteins are exceptionally used. Altogether, for the diagnosis of liver abscesses, amebic serology is considered as highly sensitive (>94%) and highly specific (>95%).[1] In the literature, sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values of serologic tests used to diagnose amebiasis are similar whatever the method used. However, the following study limitations must be emphasized: retrospective studies on serum bank, lack of gold standard, and high pre-test probability. Thus, results of positive and negative predictive values are not very reliable data. Limits of amebic serology in ALA diagnosis exist. False positives decrease specificity and positive predictive value. It has been frequently observed that current serologic tests measure long-persisting antibodies in amebiasis.

It is also plausible that the concentration of protease inhibitor

It is also plausible that the concentration of protease inhibitors in a given cocktail may be sufficient to prevent protein degradation, but insufficient to inhibit or kill bacteria in the samples. Accordingly, several investigators have reported that a concentration-dependent relationship exists between protease inhibitor and bacterial growth (Labbe et al., 2001). Grenier et al. (2001a) showed that there was no inhibition of bacteria with bestatin at 0.02 μg mL−1, but when the concentration of bestatin approached 10 μg mL−1, the bactericidal function Selleckchem Tanespimycin reached a maximum. In the presence

of aprotinin, the growth of S. alboniger was also partially or completely inhibited, depending on the concentration of the protease inhibitor (Lopes et al., 1999). Clearly, then, a higher dose of protease inhibitor has the potential to interfere with the proliferation of bacteria, resulting in an alteration of bacterial composition. Because massive degradation of proteins caused by proteases has been

observed in proteomic studies, it was suggested that PI should be added in the preparation of samples. Here, we have presented results indicating that saliva samples with and without PI showed similar protein diversity in fractions both with high-molecular-weight proteins and low-molecular-weight species as judged by both 1D SDS-PAGE and LC-MS/MS analysis. Addition of protease inhibitors seemed to have no significant effect on the integrity of salivary samples. Alternatively keeping the samples on ice and processing them in <1 h may have been sufficient to preserve protein integrity. In summary, our study ABT-263 cost lends considerable

evidence that a protease cocktail containing AEBSF, aprotinin, bestatin, E64, leupeptin, and pepstatin A has no effect on oral bacterial growth or total bacterial composition. These findings suggest that the addition of protease inhibitors in the preparation of saliva samples for protein research will not interfere with microbial DNA analysis. The study was supported by the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR) Grant no. U19 DE018385. Program Officer: Dr Isaac R. Rodriguez-Chavez. “
“A halophilic isolate Salimicrobium halophilum strain LY20 producing extracellular amylase Protein kinase N1 and protease was isolated from Yuncheng, China. Production of both enzymes was synchronized with bacterial growth and reached a maximum level during the early-stationary phase. The amylase and protease were purified to homogeneity with molecular weights of 81 and 30 kDa, respectively. Optimal amylase activity was observed at 70 °C, pH 10.0% and 10% NaCl. Complete inhibition by EDTA, diethyl pyrocarbonate (DEPC), and phenylarsine oxide (PAO) indicated that the amylase was a metalloenzyme with histidine and cysteine residues essential for its catalysis. Maltose was the main product of starch hydrolysis, indicating an β-amylase activity. The purified protease from LY20 showed highest activity at 80 °C, pH 10.0% and 12.5% NaCl.

Target recruitment was 74 pharmacies Once consented, pharmacies

Target recruitment was 74 pharmacies. Once consented, pharmacies were randomised independently to intervention or control, by the Health Services Research Unit, University of Aberdeen, Scotland, UK. Participating pharmacists approached all daily supervised methadone patients, initiated in the last 24 months and aged >18 years. Pharmacists recruited patients retrospectively EPZ5676 price (from the last 12 patients joining the pharmacy) and prospectively (patients starting methadone over the next 6 months). Patients gave informed written consent. Intervention pharmacists

used MI techniques during interactions with study patients over the 6-month follow-up period. The intervention was intended to be spread over a number of visits, building on discussions during previous interactions. Discussions were to focus on reducing illicit heroin and other drug use. Control pharmacists continued with normal practice. Both pharmacy groups were sent four newsletters during the study period directing them to the study website, which provided study progress information. Newsletters for the intervention group included reminders on MI techniques. Intervention pharmacists were trained in MI techniques, during four sessions provided by Scottish Training on Drugs and Alcohol (STRADA)-accredited MI trainers. Those unable to attend were visited and provided with equivalent self-study materials. Training was based on that

used in the pilot study. learn more Training provided a framework for increased communication as well as specific communication skills (i.e. using open questions, reflective listening, affirming and eliciting Selleckchem BMS-354825 ‘change talk’). The first two sessions emphasised how MI techniques could be used by initiating discussions about their current treatment and drug usage using suggested open questions and standard approaches. It was explained to pharmacists that these

discussions can take place over a number of days, which is the key aspect of pragmatic pharmacist delivered MI; whilst each interaction may also be brief, because they happen on a daily basis, they were regarded as one interaction with ongoing dialogue. The second and third sessions covered the practical application of skills based on pharmacists’ experiences in practice. Pharmacists received resource packs including area-specific information on available services (e.g. needle exchange, counselling, housing support, debt management). Competence in MI techniques was assessed at the final training session using the BECCI.[13] Pharmacists worked in triads, in which each sequentially assumed the role of pharmacist, the patient or observer/assessor who completed the BECCI. These data were reviewed by the trainer present to ensure competency had been achieved. The primary outcome was illicit heroin use. Secondary outcomes were retention in treatment, use of other illicit drugs, physical/psychological health and treatment satisfaction.

, 2007) GlcNAc-1-phosphate transferase transfers GlcNAc-1-phosph

, 2007). GlcNAc-1-phosphate transferase transfers GlcNAc-1-phosphate from undecaprenyl phosphate (UDP)-GlcNAc to the carrier, yielding C50-P-P-GlcNAc. The rhamnosyl transferase (WbbL) (Mills et

al., 2004; Grzegorzewicz et al., 2008) encoded by Rv3265c attaches the rhamnosyl residue (Rha) to C50-P-P-GlcNAc to produce C50-P-P-GlcNAc-Rha (Fig. 1b), which is then further elongated with galactan and arabinan and finally mycolylated arabinogalactan attached to the peptidoglycan. However, GlcNAc-1-phosphate transferase has not yet been identified in mycobacteria. Lipopolysaccharides found in the outer Doramapimod in vivo membrane of Gram-negative bacteria are made up of a hydrophobic lipid (lipid A), a hydrophilic core polysaccharide chain and a hydrophilic O-antigenic polysaccharide side chain (O-antigen). In most cases, O-specific chains are formed by repeating units of oligosaccharides that exhibit a strain-specific structural diversity (Reeves et al., 1996). The biosynthesis of an O repeating unit starts on the

cytosolic face of the plasma membrane with the formation of a sugar–phosphodiester linkage with a lipid carrier. After the initiation reaction, additional sugars are incorporated to complete the O unit in reactions catalyzed by specific glycosyltransferases, which are either soluble cytosolic enzymes or peripheral VAV2 membrane proteins associated with the plasma membrane by ionic interactions (Feldman et al., 1999; Samuel & Reeves, 2003). The GlcNAc is the first this website sugar of the O unit and the wecA gene (formerly called rfe) specifies the UDP-GlcNAc: undecaprenyl phosphate (Und-P) GlcNAc-1-phosphate transferase (WecA) that catalyzes the first step in the biosynthesis of O unit (Alexander & Valvano, 1994; Raetz & Whitfield, 2002; Schäffer et al., 2002). That is, WecA from Gram-negative bacteria transfers GlcNAc-1-phosphate from UDP-GlcNAc to Und-P (C55-P), forming C55-P-P-GlcNAc.

This reaction is similar to the formation of C50-P-P-GlcNAc in mycobacteria, although decaprenyl phosphate, rather than the usual Und-P, plays the central role as the carrier lipid in all known cell wall biosynthetic processes in mycobacteria (Scherman et al., 1996; Mahapatra et al., 2005; Mikušováet al., 2005). Mycobacterium tuberculosis Rv1302 shows high homology to Escherichia coli WecA protein (Amer & Valvano, 2001). Rv1302 and E. coli WecA have 28% identity (85/305) and 44% (137/305) positivity. A Mycobacterium smegmatis MSMEG_4947 ortholog was found by a blastp search using M. tuberculosis Rv1302 protein as a query; Rv1302 and MSMEG_4947 have 79% identity (301/380) and 83% positivity (316/380); and MSMEG_4947 and E. coli WecA have 29% (92/313) and 44% (138/313), respectively.

These findings suggest that AoAtg1 plays an essential role in the

These findings suggest that AoAtg1 plays an essential role in these pathways in A. oryzae. Based on the observed localization of EGFP–AoAtg8 in the ΔAoatg1 disruptant, EGFP Protease Inhibitor Library high throughput fluorescence was not detected in vacuoles even under starvation conditions, whereas EGFP puncta were formed under both nutrient-rich

and starvation conditions. It appears that the punctate structures observed in the strain expressing EGFP–AoAtg8 differed from the PAS-like structures observed in WT. Although PAS is generally localized to the periphery of vacuoles in WT, the punctate structures in ΔA1EGA8 were observed not only around vacuoles but were also found in the cytoplasm and, in addition, were larger in size than the PAS of WT. This result is consistent with the finding in S. cerevisiae that PAS-like punctate structures in an atg1 mutant are larger than those of WT and that an overabundance of Atg proteins is assembled to PAS, suggesting that Atg1 functions in the formation of autophagosomes from PAS (Suzuki et al., 2001). In a temperature-sensitive atg1 mutant (apg1ts), punctate structures of GFP–Atg8, which are excessively assembled at restrictive temperatures, are transported to vacuoles after a shift to permissive temperature (Suzuki et al., 2001). This phenomenon suggests that the punctate structures observed in

Aoatg1 disruptants are an assembly AZD6244 mw of AoAtg proteins that results due to inhibition of autophagosome

formation from PAS. Our localization analysis of the EGFP-fused prApe1 homolog in A. oryzae represents the first such analysis in a filamentous fungus. After incubation of the WT and ΔA1Ape1EG strains for 20 h at 30 °C, we observed AoApe1–EGFP fluorescence in vacuoles Tobramycin in WT, whereas that in ΔA1Ape1EG was not detected in vacuoles, but appeared as punctate structures in the cytoplasm. The localization pattern did not change even when ΔA1Ape1EG was shifted to starvation conditions. These results suggest that A. oryzae has a functional Cvt pathway and that the punctate structures observed in ΔAoatg1 were not Cvt vesicles, but rather were clusters of AoApe1 proteins. Genome-wide functional analysis in M. oryzae revealed that nonselective autophagy was an important factor of plant infection, and clear orthologues of S. cerevisiae genes required for the Cvt pathway, such as ATG19, were not found in the M. oryzae genome sequence (Kershaw & Talbot, 2009). Therefore, the Cvt pathway is considered to be missing in M. oryzae. Also, the Cvt pathway -specific proteins in S. cerevisiae are poorly conserved in A. oryzae, suggesting the existence of a functional homolog that is unable to be identified by homology searches. Atg13 plays an essential role in autophagy, as demonstrated by the disruption of atg13 in yeast, which results in the impaired ability to form Atg1 kinase complexes to induce autophagy (Kabeya et al., 2005).

Thirty (79%) agreed that yes if they wanted to talk to the pharma

Thirty (79%) agreed that yes if they wanted to talk to the pharmacist then they are easy to contact. In response to being asked how they feel the pharmacist communicates concerns to staff, 27 (71%) viewed that

this is communicated in a helpful way, Selleck Ruxolitinib 5 (13%) felt that the communication was more of a reprimand, and 6 (16%) gave a neutral response. When asked in their experience do they think the pharmacist is assertive enough when communicating clinical issues that really matter, 32 (84%) were positive about the pharmacist trying hard to communicate the necessary message, and 6 (16%) were neutral. Of the 21 that responded to the question asking what would be the one thing that pharmacists on the ward can do to improve their communication skills, 10 related to a theme of more pharmacists on the ward spending more time with patients. One respondent replied ‘Don’t tell off juniors’. In general, the overall results of this small scale survey can be interpreted as suggesting that clinical pharmacists are considered approachable, the majority of clinical staff feel that issues are raised

appropriately by pharmacists, and they also feel the pharmacists are assertive. However, comments captured during the survey such as ‘… I am usually very busy and don’t always appreciate the interruption’, communication from the pharmacist ‘can feel rushed’, and ‘when I’m busy and stressed it can definitely feel like I’m being told off’ suggest there may be an opportunity to improve communication skills. This baseline assessment demonstrates that further research across more hospital Talazoparib trusts and geographical locations is warranted to ensure that our results do not just reflect the culture in our trust, and to enable a fuller picture to emerge. 1. Howe H, Wilson K. Modernising Pharmacy Careers Programme Review of Post-Registration Career Development of Pharmacists and Pharmacy Technicians. Background

paper. Medical Education RAS p21 protein activator 1 England. July 2012. Veronica Smith University of Stirling, Stirling, UK What are the key barriers and facilitators for individual community pharmacists supporting people affected by dementia? When asked what they could do for people affected by dementia; most concerns were about medication management, followed by formal referral to the General Practitioner (GP). Community pharmacists may be the only health professional people affected by dementia regularly visit; they are ideally positioned to support them with medicines management and health advice. Recent policy initiatives are concerned with the role community pharmacists play, as part of the team of health professions providing support to people affected by dementia. The aims of this research are to identify what relationship community pharmacists have with people with dementia and their caregivers.

Thirty (79%) agreed that yes if they wanted to talk to the pharma

Thirty (79%) agreed that yes if they wanted to talk to the pharmacist then they are easy to contact. In response to being asked how they feel the pharmacist communicates concerns to staff, 27 (71%) viewed that

this is communicated in a helpful way, Selleck Enzalutamide 5 (13%) felt that the communication was more of a reprimand, and 6 (16%) gave a neutral response. When asked in their experience do they think the pharmacist is assertive enough when communicating clinical issues that really matter, 32 (84%) were positive about the pharmacist trying hard to communicate the necessary message, and 6 (16%) were neutral. Of the 21 that responded to the question asking what would be the one thing that pharmacists on the ward can do to improve their communication skills, 10 related to a theme of more pharmacists on the ward spending more time with patients. One respondent replied ‘Don’t tell off juniors’. In general, the overall results of this small scale survey can be interpreted as suggesting that clinical pharmacists are considered approachable, the majority of clinical staff feel that issues are raised

appropriately by pharmacists, and they also feel the pharmacists are assertive. However, comments captured during the survey such as ‘… I am usually very busy and don’t always appreciate the interruption’, communication from the pharmacist ‘can feel rushed’, and ‘when I’m busy and stressed it can definitely feel like I’m being told off’ suggest there may be an opportunity to improve communication skills. This baseline assessment demonstrates that further research across more hospital selleck kinase inhibitor trusts and geographical locations is warranted to ensure that our results do not just reflect the culture in our trust, and to enable a fuller picture to emerge. 1. Howe H, Wilson K. Modernising Pharmacy Careers Programme Review of Post-Registration Career Development of Pharmacists and Pharmacy Technicians. Background

paper. Medical Education Metalloexopeptidase England. July 2012. Veronica Smith University of Stirling, Stirling, UK What are the key barriers and facilitators for individual community pharmacists supporting people affected by dementia? When asked what they could do for people affected by dementia; most concerns were about medication management, followed by formal referral to the General Practitioner (GP). Community pharmacists may be the only health professional people affected by dementia regularly visit; they are ideally positioned to support them with medicines management and health advice. Recent policy initiatives are concerned with the role community pharmacists play, as part of the team of health professions providing support to people affected by dementia. The aims of this research are to identify what relationship community pharmacists have with people with dementia and their caregivers.

fumigatus is inhibited by P aeruginosa and its associated

fumigatus is inhibited by P. aeruginosa and its associated Ruxolitinib secreted heat-stable molecules. The analysis of defined

mutant isolates revealed that the ability of P. aeruginosa to interfere with the morphological differentiation is dependent on the quorum-sensing networks that regulate an array of virulence factors. However, given that the LasI mutant cannot synthesize HSL, it is likely that this and other undefined small heat-stable molecules influence A. fumigatus and other filamentous fungi, such as those molecules reported herein. These findings could be harnessed to produce novel therapeutics as a means of managing aspergillosis more effectively. We would like to thank Helen Kennedy (Royal Hospital for Sick Children, Yorkhill Division, Glasgow) for providing all the clinical see more A. fumigatus isolates used throughout this study. We thank Dr Douglas Storey (University of Calgary, Canada) for provision of the P. aeruginosa isolates and Professor Paul Williams (University of

Nottingham) for kindly donating the P. aeruginosa LasIR mutant strains. “
“Pasteurella multocida, a Gram-negative nonmotile coccobacillus, is the causative agent of fowl cholera in poultry, hemorrhagic septicemia in cattle, atropic rhinitis in swine, and snuffles in rabbits. The differentially expressed gene profile of P. multocida in infected rabbit livers was identified and compared with that from in vitro culture by selective capture of transcribed sequences. A total of 31 genes were identified, of which 28 encoded enzymes for amino acid biosynthesis and metabolism, intermediary metabolism, and energy metabolism, or proteins for regulatory adaptive responses, general microbial Benzatropine stress response, transport proteins, and secreted proteinases. Three were unknown, novel genes.

Five genes representing different categories were chosen randomly and verified by real-time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction analysis. All were upregulated by P. multocida in infected rabbit livers, with changes ranging from 1.61- to 13.55-fold when compared with in vitro cultures. This study has identified genes of P. multocida that are upregulated during infection of rabbit livers when compared with in vitro growth conditions. The genes will provide a molecular basis for further study of the pathogenesis of P. multocida. Pasteurella multocida, a Gram-negative nonmotile coccobacillus, is the causative agent of fowl cholera in poultry, hemorrhagic septicemia in cattle, atrophic rhinitis in swine and snuffles in rabbits. Strains of P. multocida are normally designated on the basis of the capsular serogroup and somatic serotype. There are five serogroups (A, B, D, E, and F) based on capsule specificity, and 16 somatic serotypes (1–16) based on lipopolysaccharide antigens (Heddleston et al., 1972). The pathogenicity of P. multocida is complex and several virulence factors of P.

The current measures lose their ability to discriminate further o

The current measures lose their ability to discriminate further once the patient gets into minimal disease or tight control. There are more numbers of parameters, measured to assess disease activity, like joint counts, perception scales and laboratory parameters. There are

different composite scores like Disease Activity Score, American College of Rheumatology criteria and clinical disease activity index. In this review we have reviewed the evolution of and changing need for these measures. The relevance of some measures and their use and limitations with reference to various characteristics are presented. Inflammation measures to quantify the RA process is the best way to monitor RA disease activity. C-reactive protein alone or with other biomarkers to specify RA, appear to be good prospective measures. “
“Although sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) is suggested to have an important role in GSK J4 nmr arthritis, its function in chondrocytes remains unknown. In contrast, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) has been speculated to contribute to the pathogenesis of osteoarthritis (OA), most likely by regulating angiogenesis. We here investigated the in vitro effect of S1P on VEGF expression in human articular chondrocytes from OA patients. Human articular cartilage samples were obtained from patients with OA under informed consent. Chondrocytes

were isolated by an enzymatic procedure, grown in monolayer Teicoplanin culture, and then stimulated with S1P in the presence or absence of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) inhibitors or the Gi Selleckchem MG-132 protein inhibitor pertussis toxin (PTX). VEGF expression and secretion in culture supernatants were

analyzed using real-time polymerase chain reaction and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Although S1P did not enhance basal secretion of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-1 and MMP-13, it stimulated VEGF expression in human articular chondrocytes, both at the messenger RNA and protein levels. MAPK inhibitors SB203580 and PD98059 were not effective at suppressing VEGF induction; rather, blocking extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) MAPK enhanced VEGF expression. The Gi protein inhibitor PTX partially attenuated S1P-induced VEGF secretion. Our results suggest that S1P may contribute to the regulation of VEGF expression in human chondrocytes. S1P may therefore play a unique role in the pathophysiology of OA by regulating VEGF expression in chondrocytes. “
“We describe a 42-year-old man who presented with painless obstructive jaundice, organomegaly and lymphadenopathy. Biopsy of the ampulla of Vater revealed the presence of increased populations of plasma cells which stained positively for immunoglobulin G4. He was treated with prednisolone and demonstrated significant clinical improvement 1 month later. A further case is described and a review of the literature is also provided.

Another

innovative technique mimicking natural conditions

Another

innovative technique mimicking natural conditions, this time used for the microcolony cultivation of uncultivated soil bacteria, is the soil substrate membrane system (Ferrari et al., 2005, 2008), which includes a polycarbonate membrane support and soil extract as a substrate. Although this system allowed the microcultivation of novel bacterial strains, the bacteria remained part of a mixed community on the membrane. A recent development of Selleck DZNeP the method has enabled the detection of live microcolonies on the membrane using viability staining, and the subsequent micromanipulation of such colonies for their isolation (Ferrari & Gillings, 2009). The study of bacteria with an obligate intracellular lifestyle presents a particular challenge and it can be difficult to determine and reproduce the environmental conditions required for metabolic GSK1120212 manufacturer activity. For example, initial work investigating the metabolism of Coxiella burnetii used neutral pH buffers and concluded that there was negligible activity (Ormsbee & Peacock, 1964). When acidic buffers were

used, metabolism was markedly enhanced (Hackstadt & Williams, 1981). Further refinements of this approach including the use of a citrate buffer, provision of complex nutrients and high (140 mM) chloride have enabled metabolic activity to be maintained for over 24 h (Omsland et al., 2008), enabling the investigation of the physiology of this important species. Many of the methods described above use an open-ended approach with the aim of cultivating all bacteria present in a sample. As a result, they have led to the cultivation of numerous fastidious bacteria. However, the phylogenetic targeting of specific bacterial strains of interest requires alternative approaches. Advances in molecular biology have enabled the detection and sorting of specific target bacteria with a view to their selective enrichment or physical isolation.

Oligonucleotide probes can be designed to target phylotypes with no known cultivable representatives. Using methods such as FISH or catalysed reporter Resminostat deposition (CARD)-FISH for added sensitivity, target-specific probes can detect cells of previously ‘unculturable’ taxa among mixed populations (Amann et al., 1995, 2001; Ferrari et al., 2006; Vartoukian et al., 2009), enabling the visualization of their cellular morphology. A limitation of these methods is that the cells detected within a sample are no longer viable after cell permeabilization and fixation procedures, and may not therefore be subsequently cultured in isolation. The colony hybridization method, on the other hand, is undertaken on membrane transfers from plate cultures that remain viable (Salama et al., 1993). Consequently, hybridization detections on membranes may be used to locate matched microcolonies within mixed cultures, from where they may be isolated. This method has been used in recent work (Vartoukian et al.