• P06-05 | Towards a virtual embryo: Computational modelling of neural tube closure defects

      Berkhout, JH; Piersma, A; Legler, J; Gamba, A; Ladeira, LCM; Heusinkveld, HJ; et al. (2023-09-01)
    • P24.007 | Parents' views about newborn bloodspot screening (non-)participation and expansion

      Klapwijk, J; van der Pal, S; Wins, S; van Dijk, T; Verschoof-Puite, RK; van den Bosch, LJM; et al. (2023-05-10)
    • PAB(T3)-124 | Dutch women at risk of micronutrient inadequacy during pregnancy

      de Jong, Marjolein; Melse-Boonstra, Alida; Geleijnse, Johanna M; Verkaik-Kloosterman, Janneke (2023-08-03)
    • PACEMweb: a tool for aggregate consumer exposure assessment.

      Delmaar, Christiaan J E; Schreurs, Roel; Bakker, Martine I; Minnema, Jordi; Bokkers, Bas G H (2022-12-15)
    • Paediatric monkeypox patient with unknown source of infection, the Netherlands, June 2022.

      Tutu van Furth, A Marceline; van der Kuip, Martijn; van Els, Anne L; Fievez, Lydia Cr; van Rijckevorsel, Gini Gc; van den Ouden, Anton; Jonges, Marcel; Welkers, Matthijs Ra
    • Pain over the adult life course: 15-year pain trajectories-The Doetinchem Cohort Study.

      Picavet, H Susan J; Monique Verschuren, W M; Groot, Lichelle; Schaap, Laura; van Oostrom, Sandra H (2019-10-01)
    • Pair formation models for sexually transmitted infections: A primer.

      Kretzschmar, Mirjam; Heijne, Janneke C M (2017-08)
      For modelling sexually transmitted infections, duration of partnerships can strongly influence the transmission dynamics of the infection. If partnerships are monogamous, pairs of susceptible individuals are protected from becoming infected, while pairs of infected individuals delay onward transmission of the infection as long as they persist. In addition, for curable infections re-infection from an infected partner may occur. Furthermore, interventions based on contact tracing rely on the possibility of identifying and treating partners of infected individuals. To reflect these features in a mathematical model, pair formation models were introduced to mathematical epidemiology in the 1980's. They have since been developed into a widely used tool in modelling sexually transmitted infections and the impact of interventions. Here we give a basic introduction to the concepts of pair formation models for a susceptible-infected-susceptible (SIS) epidemic. We review some results and applications of pair formation models mainly in the context of chlamydia infection.
    • A pan-European ring trial to validate an International Standard for detection of Vibrio cholerae, Vibrio parahaemolyticus and Vibrio vulnificus in seafoods.

      Hartnell, R E; Stockley, L; Keay, W; Rosec, J-P; Hervio-Heath, D; Van den Berg, H; Leoni, F; Ottaviani, D; Henigman, U; Denayer, S; et al. (2018-02-10)
      Globally, vibrios represent an important and well-established group of bacterial foodborne pathogens. The European Commission (EC) mandated the Comite de European Normalisation (CEN) to undertake work to provide validation data for 15 methods in microbiology to support EC legislation. As part of this mandated work programme, merging of ISO/TS 21872-1:2007, which specifies a horizontal method for the detection of V. parahaemolyticus and V. cholerae, and ISO/TS 21872-2:2007, a similar horizontal method for the detection of potentially pathogenic vibrios other than V. cholerae and V. parahaemolyticus was proposed. Both parts of ISO/TS 21872 utilized classical culture-based isolation techniques coupled with biochemical confirmation steps. The work also considered simplification of the biochemical confirmation steps. In addition, because of advances in molecular based methods for identification of human pathogenic Vibrio spp. classical and real-time PCR options were also included within the scope of the validation. These considerations formed the basis of a multi-laboratory validation study with the aim of improving the precision of this ISO technical specification and providing a single ISO standard method to enable detection of these important foodborne Vibrio spp.. To achieve this aim, an international validation study involving 13 laboratories from 9 countries in Europe was conducted in 2013. The results of this validation have enabled integration of the two existing technical specifications targeting the detection of the major foodborne Vibrio spp., simplification of the suite of recommended biochemical identification tests and the introduction of molecular procedures that provide both species level identification and discrimination of putatively pathogenic strains of V. parahaemolyticus by the determination of the presence of theromostable direct and direct related haemolysins. The method performance characteristics generated in this have been included in revised international standard, ISO 21872:2017, published in July 2017.
    • PANOPTES, Een nieuw hulpmiddel voor MBB'ers om kritieke organen te leren intekenen ten behoeve van radiotherapie planning

      Scheurleer, J; Vasquez Osorio, EM; Assendelft, E; van Dijk, I; Bijwaard, H; et al. (2023-02-15)
    • Panton-Valentine Leukocidin-Positive CC398 MRSA in Urban Clinical Settings, the Netherlands.

      Gooskens, Jairo; Konstantinovski, Marja M; Kraakman, Margriet E M; Kalpoe, Jayant S; van Burgel, Nathalie D; Claas, Eric C J; Bosch, Thijs (2023-03-13)
    • Paradoxal Trends in Azole-Resistant Aspergillus fumigatus in a National Multicenter Surveillance Program, the Netherlands, 2013-2018.

      Lestrade, Pieter P A; Buil, Jochem B; van der Beek, Martha T; Kuijper, Ed J; van Dijk, Karin; Kampinga, Greetje A; Rijnders, Bart J A; Vonk, Alieke G; de Greeff, Sabine C; Schoffelen, Annelot F; et al.
      We investigated the prevalence of azole resistance of Aspergillus fumigatus isolates in the Netherlands by screening clinical A. fumigatus isolates for azole resistance during 2013-2018. We analyzed azole-resistant isolates phenotypically by in vitro susceptibility testing and for the presence of resistance mutations in the Cyp51A gene. Over the 6-year period, 508 (11%) of 4,496 culture-positive patients harbored an azole-resistant isolate. Resistance frequency increased from 7.6% (95% CI 5.9%-9.8%) in 2013 (58/760 patients) to 14.7% (95% CI 12.3%-17.4%) in 2018 (112/764 patients) (p = 0.0001). TR34/L98H (69%) and TR46/Y121F/T289A (17%) accounted for 86% of Cyp51A mutations. However, the mean voriconazole MIC of TR34/L98H isolates decreased from 8 mg/L (2013) to 2 mg/L (2018), and the voriconazole-resistance frequency was 34% lower in 2018 than in 2013 (p = 0.0001). Our survey showed changing azole phenotypes in TR34/L98H isolates, which hampers the use of current PCR-based resistance tests.
    • Parasite Load and Site-Specific Parasite Pressure as Determinants of Immune Indices in Two Sympatric Rodent Species.

      Hofmeester, Tim R; Bügel, Esther J; Hendrikx, Bob; Maas, Miriam; Franssen, Frits F J; Sprong, Hein; Matson, Kevin D (2019-11-22)
      Wildlife is exposed to parasites from the environment. This parasite pressure, which differs among areas, likely shapes the immunological strategies of animals. Individuals differ in the number of parasites they encounter and host, and this parasite load also influences the immune system. The relative impact of parasite pressure vs. parasite load on different host species, particularly those implicated as important reservoirs of zoonotic pathogens, is poorly understood. We captured bank voles (Myodes glareolus) and wood mice (Apodemus sylvaticus) at four sites in the Netherlands. We sampled sub-adult males to quantify their immune function, infestation load for ecto- and gastrointestinal parasites, and infection status for vector-borne microparasites. We then used regression trees to test if variation in immune indices could be explained by among-site differences (parasite pressure), among-individual differences in infestation intensity and infection status (parasite load), or other intrinsic factors. Regression trees revealed splits among sites for haptoglobin, hemagglutination, and body-mass corrected spleen size. We also found splits based on infection/infestation for haptoglobin, hemolysis, and neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio. Furthermore, we found a split between species for hemolysis and splits based on body mass for haptoglobin, hemagglutination, hematocrit, and body-mass corrected spleen size. Our results suggest that both parasite pressure and parasite load influence the immune system of wild rodents. Additional studies linking disease ecology and ecological immunology are needed to understand better the complexities of host-parasite interactions and how these interactions shape zoonotic disease risk.
    • Parasitic nematodes of the genus Syphacia Seurat, 1916 infecting Muridae in the British Isles, and the peculiar case of Syphacia frederici.

      Stewart, Alex; Lowe, Ann; Smales, Lesley; Bajer, Anna; Bradley, Jan; Dwużnik, Dorota; Franssen, Frits; Griffith, Jack; Stuart, Peter; Turner, Cyan; et al. (2017-08-23)
      Syphacia stroma (von Linstow, 1884) Morgan, 1932 and Syphacia frederici Roman, 1945 are oxyurid nematodes that parasitize two murid rodents, Apodemus sylvaticus and Apodemus flavicollis, on the European mainland. Only S. stroma has been recorded previously in Apodemus spp. from the British Isles. Despite the paucity of earlier reports, we identified S. frederici in four disparate British sites, two in Nottinghamshire, one each in Berkshire and Anglesey, Wales. Identification was based on their site in the host (caecum and not small intestine), on key morphological criteria that differentiate this species from S. stroma (in particular the tail of female worms) and by sequencing two genetic loci (cytochrome C oxidase 1 gene and a section of ribosomal DNA). Sequences derived from both genetic loci of putative British S. frederici isolates formed a tight clade with sequences from continental worms known to be S. frederici, clearly distinguishing these isolates from S. stroma which formed a tight clade of its own, distinct from clades representative of Syphacia obvelata from Mus and S. muris from Rattus. The data in this paper therefore constitute the first record of S. frederici from British wood mice, and confirm the status of this species as distinct from both S. obvelata and S. stroma.
    • Parental and trophic transfer of nanoscale plastic debris in an assembled aquatic food chain as a function of particle size.

      Abdolahpur Monikh, Fazel; Chupani, Latifeh; Vijver, Martina G; Peijnenburg, Willie J G M (2020-11-28)
      The existing limitations in analytical techniques for characterization and quantification of nanoscale plastic debris (NPD) in organisms hinder understanding of the parental and trophic transfer of NPD in organisms. Herein, we used iron oxide-doped polystyrene (PS) NPD (Fe-PS-NPD) of 270 nm and Europium (Eu)-doped PS-NPD (Eu-PS-NPD) of 640 nm to circumvent these limitations and to evaluate the influence of particle size on the trophic transfer of NPD along an algae-daphnids food chain and on the reproduction of daphnids fed with NPD-exposed algae. We used Fe and Eu as proxies for the Fe-PS-NPD and Eu-Ps-NPD, respectively. The algae cells (Pseudokirchinella subcapitata) were exposed to 4.8 × 1010 particles/L of Fe-PS-NPD or Eu-PS-NPD for 72 h. A high percentage (>60%) of the NPD was associated with algal cells. Only a small fraction (<11%) of the NPD, however, was transferred to daphnids fed for 21 days on the NPD-exposed algae. The uptake and trophic transfer of the 270 nm Fe-PS-NPD were higher than those for the 640 nm Eu-PS-NPD, indicating that smaller NPD are more likely to transfer along food chains. After exposure to Fe-PS-NPD, the time to first brood was prolonged and the number of neonates per adult significantly decreased compared to the control without any exposure and compared to daphnids exposed to the Eu-Ps-NPD. The offspring of daphnids exposed to Eu-PS-NPD through algae, showed a traceable concentration of Eu, suggesting that NPD are transferred from parents to offspring. We conclude that NPD can be transferred in food chains and caused reproductive toxicity as a function of NPD size. Studies with prolonged exposure and weathered NPD are endeavored to increase environmental realism of the impacts determined.
    • Parental intention, attitudes, beliefs, trust and deliberation towards childhood vaccination in the Netherlands in 2022: Indications of change compared to 2013.

      Knijff, Marthe; van Lier, Alies; Boer, Maartje; de Vries, Marion; Hament, Jeanne-Marie; de Melker, Hester E (2024-01-11)