Indian Journal Watch
1 November 2026
Peer-reviewed microbiology, infectious disease, AMR and infection-control papers from India and South Asia, published or added to PubMed from 30 to 31 October 2026.
Lead articles
Antimicrobial resistance · IPC & healthcare-associated infection · Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology
Virulence determinants in multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii: comparative phenotypic and genomic analysis of clinical and patient-environmental isolates
Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology · doi:10.3389/fcimb.2026.1969523 · PubMed 42964070
- What
- A study from JSS Medical College & Hospital, Mysuru, with Kasturba Medical College, Mangalore, comparing phenotypic virulence traits and genomic virulence-associated genes in multidrug-resistant (MDR) Acinetobacter baumannii isolated from clinical specimens and from patients’ environmental surroundings.
- Design
- 110 non-duplicate MDR A. baumannii isolates (55 clinical and 55 corresponding patient-environmental isolates) were tested for biofilm formation, haemolytic activity, proteolytic activity and siderophore production using standard phenotypic assays. All isolates underwent whole-genome sequencing on the Illumina MiSeq platform, and virulence-associated genes were identified using the Virulence Factor Database (VFDB).
- Key findings
- Clinical isolates showed significantly higher frequencies of strong biofilm formation (34/55, 61.8% vs. 6/55, 10.9%), haemolytic activity (29/55, 52.7% vs. 13/55, 23.6%) and siderophore production (31/55, 56.4% vs. 17/55, 30.9%) than environmental isolates (P < 0.05), whereas proteolytic activity was comparable (36/55, 65.5% vs. 33/55, 60.0%). Virulence-associated genes were highly prevalent among phenotypically positive isolates, and several were also detected in phenotypically negative isolates, indicating phenotype-genotype discordance.
- Limitations
- The abstract does not report patient outcomes or the study period; the authors note that gene carriage alone does not necessarily predict phenotypic expression.
- Relevance to India
- The authors conclude that environmental isolates retained multiple virulence-associated genes, highlighting their potential role as reservoirs for persistence and transmission within healthcare settings, and underscore the importance of continuous environmental surveillance and infection prevention strategies.
Vector-borne & zoonoses · One Health · Frontiers in Veterinary Science
A meta-analysis-guided sampling plan for estimating the prevalence of 10 zoonotic and 4 transboundary animal diseases across India
Frontiers in Veterinary Science · doi:10.3389/fvets.2026.1919244 · PubMed 42964325
- What
- A study from the ICAR-National Institute of Veterinary Epidemiology and Disease Informatics (NIVEDI), Bengaluru, with partners including Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Chennai, to build a sampling plan for estimating the prevalence of 10 zoonotic diseases (brucellosis, tuberculosis, Q-fever, scrub typhus, Japanese encephalitis, Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever, cysticercosis, cryptosporidiosis, listeriosis, salmonellosis) and four transboundary animal diseases (TADs: swine influenza, porcine reproductive and respiratory disease, lumpy skin disease, African swine fever) across India.
- Design
- A systematic review and meta-analysis conducted in accordance with PRISMA guidelines (random-effects model, heterogeneity quantified by I²) provided preliminary prevalence estimates. Combined with predetermined assay sensitivity and specificity, these were used to generate a two-stage stratified random surveillance plan at a 95% confidence level, using an in-house epi-calculator with the village as the stratification variable for the targeted animal species in different states.
- Key findings
- The pooled prevalence estimates of the 14 diseases ranged from 4 to 30%. Based on these estimates, a village-level surveillance plan comprising 34,975 samples across 2,018 villages was generated for India.
- Limitations
- The plan is a design for future surveillance: its inputs are pooled estimates from published studies, and the paper does not itself report new field prevalence data.
- Relevance to India
- The authors describe this as the first scientifically rigorous meta-analysis-based sampling plan under one platform for many diseases, which could facilitate a robust prevalence study and serve as a tool for monitoring zoonotic diseases and TADs that are a threat to India.
More from the journals
Antimicrobial resistance & stewardship
- Amity University Rajasthan, Jaipur, and D Y Patil Deemed To Be University, Mumbai: the response regulator PprB was evaluated as an anti-biofilm target in Pseudomonas aeruginosa, with atropine and α-ketoglutarate assessed as modulators of biofilm formation.Journal of Molecular Recognition · PubMed 42963110
- Shifa Tameer-e-Millat University and NUST, Islamabad: review of phage therapy for bacterial infections of the central nervous system, covering pharmacological, therapeutic and regulatory aspects.Folia Microbiologica · PubMed 42961713
Tuberculosis
- IIT Kharagpur: Rv0783c of Mycobacterium tuberculosis acts as a proton-motive force-dependent multidrug efflux transporter, conferring resistance to fluoroquinolones and anti-TB drugs in E. coli and M. smegmatis and enhancing biofilm formation.Molecular Microbiology · PubMed 42963827
- Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, and Pt. B. D. Sharma University of Health Sciences, Rohtak: hydrazide-linked benzyl ether analogues (8a-p) showed MIC values of 1 to >64 µg/mL against M. tuberculosis; docking suggested interaction with InhA, which requires biochemical confirmation.Future Medicinal Chemistry · PubMed 42960637
Vector-borne & zoonoses
Virology & vaccines
Mycology
- PSG College of Pharmacy, Coimbatore: review of the four amphotericin B formulations across pharmacokinetics, organ toxicity, indication-specific efficacy, pharmacoeconomics and global access; L-AmB pricing remains approximately 50-fold above AmBD.Medicina Clínica · PubMed 42963295
- AIIMS New Delhi with US co-authors: review of FDG PET/CT in fungal infections for detecting occult lesions, evaluating disease burden, guiding biopsy, monitoring treatment and identifying recurrence.PET Clinics · PubMed 42963219
Diagnostics
- AIIMS New Delhi with the University of Pennsylvania: review of 18F-FDG-PET/CT in musculoskeletal and spine infections, including mapping multilevel/disseminated tuberculous spondylitis in endemic regions such as India; its chief limitation is limited specificity.PET Clinics · PubMed 42963220
- GADVASU, Ludhiana: in 218 cattle and buffalo sera from dairy farms in Punjab, a fluorescence polarization assay for anti-Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis antibodies had a relative sensitivity of 85% and relative specificity of 71.1% against ELISA (AUC 0.830).Tropical Biomedicine · PubMed 42960650
Other
Items are summaries of published abstracts and are not clinical advice. Readers should consult the original article. Figures are quoted as reported in each abstract.