The Assist. Prof. Dr. Basima Qasim Hasan, a faculty member at the Institute of Genetic Engineering and Biotechnical Techniques for Postgraduate Studies at the University of Baghdad, has published a research paper entitled ” Distribution of Virulence genes in Streptococcus pneumoniae Isolated from Different Baghdad Hospitals), that is derived from a master thesis submitted by the researcher Dina Muthana Fahran, in the Indian Journal of Forensic Medicine & Toxicology classified in Scopus Elsevier’s abstract and citation database.
The aim of this research was to isolate and identify S. pneumoniae from the clinical samples obtained from Baghdad’s hospitals in order to explore patterns of antibiotic resistance, the presence of three virulence genes (lytA, ply, and psaA) as well as three anti-antigens (mef (A/E), ermB and tetM) in clinical isolates obtained from inpatients & outpatients with upper and lower respiratory tract infections (sore throat, sinusitis, ear Infection (Otitis Media), bronchitis and pneumonia). The researchers concluded that the link between the presence of virulence genes and the pattern of antibiotic resistance could be considered as a serious problem.
