Human Microbiology Institute to Present at ASM Microbe 2016

NEW YORK (April 26, 2016) – Human Microbiology Institute a not-for-profit scientific research organization, today announced that George Tetz and Victor Tetz will present data for the research study “The Novel Species Paenibacillus sp. VT-400 as a Potentially Pathogenic Spore-Forming Bacteria in the Oral Cavity of Patients with Hematological Malignancies” at the ASM Microbe 2016 Conference (June 16–20, 2016, Boston, MA).

Acute leukemia accounts for more than 10,000 deaths annually despite improved treatment regimens and respiratory tract infections are one of the direct causes of these deaths.

“In this study, we describe Paenibacillus sp. strain VT-400, a novel bacterium isolated by the core specialists of the HMI from the saliva of children with hematological malignancies, and investigated its potential to cause pneumonia,”  said Dr. V. Tetz, the head of the scientific core of Human Microbiology Institute.

This bacteria revealed a large number of virulence factors such as hemolysin D and CD4+ T-cell-stimulating antigen that caused significat mortality among experimental animals due to pneumonia. Paenibacillus sp. strain VT-400 harbors numerous antibiotic resistance genes resulting in resistance to a variety of antibiotics used in clinical practice.

The main danger of  previously unknown  respiratory pathogens is that they cause diseases but because they are not yet known, nobody controls or treats them; however, Paenibacillus sp. VT-400 may play a crucial role in the development of respiratory infections and contributes to mortality in leukemia patients.

“Pneumonia due to opportunistic bacteria is one of the leading causes of morbidity in patients with forms of hematological malignancies, because of treatment-induced immunosuppression. The immune system of these patients is supressed and they can be easily infected by a variety of pathogens,” said George Tetz, head of R&D department for the Human Microbiology Institute. “We have made the major step – discovered this pathogen and revealed its pathogenic potential. Further determination of its prevalence among patients beyond hematology and bone marrow transplantation units will improve the survival rate of these patients.”

Additional information will be presented  at the ASM Microbe 2016 Conference.

Integrating ASM’s two premier events, General Meeting and ICAAC, the all-new ASM Microbe 2016 showcases the best microbial sciences in the world and provides a one-of-a-kind forum to explore the complete spectrum of microbiology from basic science to translation and application.