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Microorganisms
Special Issues
Haemophilus influenzae: New Insights in Epidemiology of Disease
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Haemophilus influenzae: New Insights in Epidemiology of Disease

A special issue of Microorganisms (ISSN 2076-2607). This special issue belongs to the section "Medical Microbiology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 December 2022) | Viewed by 5887

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Maria Paula Bajanca-Lavado

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Haemophilus influenzae Reference Laboratory, Department of Infectious Disease, National Institute of Health, Lisbon, Portugal
Interests: Haemophilus influenzae; H. influenzae serotypes; hib vaccine; antibiotic resistance; molecular typing; invasive disease
Dr. Sara Marti

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Microbiology, Hospital Universitari de Bellvitge, Instituto de Investigación Biomédica de Bellvitge (IDIBELL), Barcelona, Spain
Interests: Haemophilus spp.; chronic respiratory infections (COPD); persistent colonization; respiratory microbiome

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Haemophilus influenzae is responsible for community-acquired pneumonia, otitis media, conjunctivitis, and sinusitis, as well as being an etiological agent in patients with comorbidities, such as cystic fibrosis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Moreover, it is responsible for severe invasive disease, including meningitis, septicaemia, epiglottitis, septic arthritis, and bacteraemia pneumonia, and affects all age groups. H. influenzae serotype b (Hib) was responsible for more than 95% of invasive disease until the development of a conjugate vaccine against this serotype in the late 1980s. The worldwide use of this vaccine resulted in a change in the epidemiology of the disease, with the near elimination of Hib and a global increase in non-b serotype disease. There is a higher incidence in children ≤5 years old and adults ≥65 years old. Whole-genome sequencing has increased our knowledge of the genomic structure of H. influenzae, particularly the genetic diversity and transmission of virulent factors; antimicrobial resistance determinants; and pathogenic mechanisms that enable colonization, survival, and persistence in susceptible hosts.

The scope of this Special Issue is to present the latest research on a wide range of topics, such as new and relevant aspects of the epidemiology and clinical characteristics of the disease, antimicrobial resistance mechanisms, and genetic population structure. Colonization and mechanisms of virulence are other relevant topics that will enhance our knowledge of this important pathogen.

Dr. Maria Paula Bajanca-Lavado
Dr. Sara Marti
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Microorganisms is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Haemophilus influenzae
  • Haemophilus influenzae serotype b
  • non-b Haemophilus influenzae
  • hib vaccine
  • non-typeable Haemophilus influenzae
  • antimicrobial resistance
  • invasive disease
  • colonization
  • virulence mechanisms
  • pathogenicity
  • genomic diversity
  • WGS

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

10 pages, 550 KiB  
Article
Antibiotic Susceptibility and Molecular Typing of Invasive Haemophilus influenzae Isolates, with Emergence of Ciprofloxacin Resistance, 2017–2021, Italy
by Maria Giufrè, Rita Cardines, Manuela Marra, Maria Carollo, Marina Cerquetti and Paola Stefanelli
Microorganisms 2023, 11(2), 315; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms11020315 - 26 Jan 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1476
Abstract
Haemophilus influenzae invasive disease is a severe infection that needs rapid antibiotic therapy. The aim of the study was to perform and evaluate the serotype distribution, antibiotic susceptibility and molecular characteristics of 392 H. influenzae invasive isolates collected during 2017–2021 in Italy. The [...] Read more.
Haemophilus influenzae invasive disease is a severe infection that needs rapid antibiotic therapy. The aim of the study was to perform and evaluate the serotype distribution, antibiotic susceptibility and molecular characteristics of 392 H. influenzae invasive isolates collected during 2017–2021 in Italy. The majority of isolates were NTHi (305/392, 77.8%), followed by Hib (49/392, 12.5%). Ampicillin resistance was frequently detected (85/392, 21.7%): 12.2% were β-lactamase producers (all blaTEM except one blaROB), 9.4% were β-lactamase-negative ampicillin-resistant (BLNAR), with mutations in the ftsI gene. Six isolates were resistant to ciprofloxacin, with substitutions in GyrA and ParC. An MLST analysis revealed the occurrence of international resistant clones, such as ST103 and ST14, highlighting the importance of molecular surveillance. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Haemophilus influenzae: New Insights in Epidemiology of Disease)
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19 pages, 804 KiB  
Article
Haemophilus influenzae Carriage among Healthy Children in Portugal, 2015–2019
by Maria Paula Bajanca-Lavado, Luís Cavaco, Mariana Fernandes, Tiago Touret, Catarina Candeias, Alexandra S. Simões and Raquel Sá-Leão
Microorganisms 2022, 10(10), 1964; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms10101964 - 4 Oct 2022
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 1937
Abstract
Haemophilus influenzae is an important cause of mucosal and invasive infections and a common colonizer of the upper respiratory tract. As there are no recent data on H. influenzae carriage in Portugal, we aimed to characterize carriage samples and investigate possible parallelisms with [...] Read more.
Haemophilus influenzae is an important cause of mucosal and invasive infections and a common colonizer of the upper respiratory tract. As there are no recent data on H. influenzae carriage in Portugal, we aimed to characterize carriage samples and investigate possible parallelisms with disease isolates. Between 2016–2019, 1524 nasopharyngeal samples were obtained from children (0–6 years) attending day-care. H. influenzae were serotyped and screened for β-lactamase production. Strains producing β-lactamase and/or those that were encapsulated were further characterized by antibiotype; encapsulated strains were also investigated for MLST and the presence of antimicrobial resistance and virulence genes (extracted from whole genome sequencing). The overall carriage rate was 84.1%. Most isolates (96.7%) were nonencapsulated. Encapsulated strains were of serotypes f (1.8%), e (1.1%), a (0.3%), and b (0.1%). MLST showed clonality within serotypes. Although the lineages were the same as those that were described among disease isolates, colonization isolates had fewer virulence determinants. Overall, 7.5% of the isolates were β-lactamase positive; one isolate had blaTEM-82, which has not been previously described in H. influenzae. A single isolate, which was identified as H. parainfluenzae, had an incomplete f-like cap locus. In conclusion, circulation of serotype b is residual. The few encapsulated strains are genetically related to disease-causing isolates. Thus, surveillance of H. influenzae carriage should be maintained. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Haemophilus influenzae: New Insights in Epidemiology of Disease)
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9 pages, 1179 KiB  
Article
Impact of a Single-Tube PCR Assay for the Detection of Haemophilus influenzae Serotypes a, c, d, e and f on the Epidemiological Surveillance in Greece
by Athanasia Xirogianni, Theano Georgakopoulou, Vassileios Patsourakos, Ioanna Magaziotou, Anastasia Papandreou, Stelmos Simantirakis and Georgina Tzanakaki
Microorganisms 2022, 10(7), 1367; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms10071367 - 7 Jul 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1662
Abstract
Background: The decrease in the rate of meningitis due to Haemophilus influenzae type b after vaccine introduction and a possible change in epidemiology of H. influenzae disease highlights the need for continuous serotype surveillance. Methods: A single-tube multiplex PCR assay for serotyping of [...] Read more.
Background: The decrease in the rate of meningitis due to Haemophilus influenzae type b after vaccine introduction and a possible change in epidemiology of H. influenzae disease highlights the need for continuous serotype surveillance. Methods: A single-tube multiplex PCR assay for serotyping of H. influenzae was developed and deployed. Results: During 2003–2020, 108 meningitis cases due to H. influenzae were notified; 86 (80%) were confirmed and serotyped by molecular methods. The overall specificity and sensitivity of the assay were estimated (100% PPV and NPV respectively). The overall mean annual reported incidence for H. influenzae was 0.02, while for Hib and non-b meningitis equaled 0.02 and 0.03 per 100 000, respectively. Analysis by age group revealed that H. influenzae peaks in toddlers and children 0–4 years and in adults >45 years old. Among the serotyped cases, 39.8% were identified as Hib, 46.3% as NTHi, and 0.9% and 2.8% as serotypes a (Hia) and f (Hif)) respectively. Conclusions: Low incidence due to Hib was observed while non-typeable H. influenzae (NTHi) and serotypes Hia and Hif seem to emerge. The application of the current assay discloses the ongoing change of invasive H. influenzae disease trends during the Hib post-vaccine era. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Haemophilus influenzae: New Insights in Epidemiology of Disease)
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