University of Zagreb

School of Medicine, University of Zagreb

Institution :

The largest Medical School in Croatia with over 1800 students enrolled.
Department of Microbiology
Thematics: teaching, scientific research
Members of Department of Microbiology:
Prof. Dr.  Gordana Mlinarić-Galinović, MD, PhD
Prof. Dr.  Branka Bedenić, MD, PhD
Prof. Dr. . Jasmina Vraneš MD, PhD,
Associate Prof. Dr.  Ana Budimir , MD, PhD
Assist. Prof. . Dr.  Nataša Beader, MD, PhD
Assist. Prof. . Dr. Sunčanica Ljubin-Sternak, MD, PhD
Assist. Prof.. Dr. Tatjana Vilibić-Čavlek, MD,  PhD
Assist. Prof. Mario Sviben, MD, PhD
Assist. Prof. Zrinka Bošnjak, MD, PhD

The main activities:
Teaching at undergraduate and postgraduate level (including study courses in English language)
Scientific research (domestic and international projects)
Professional work (diagnostic and therapy in four large hospital centers which are teaching basis for the Medical School.

Equipment at the Department for Microbiology:
•    There is equipment for routine microbiological diagnostik at department
•    We have five incubators (one at 42°C), six refrigerators and one freezer at -80.
•    There are also two thermal cyclers, equipment for horizontal electrophoresis and UV transiluminator and camera
•    Five centrifuges (one with cooling)
•    One precise balance and one balance for the nutrient media and one pH meter.

Role in the project:

•     Collection of clinical specimens in University Hospital Center Zagreb: blood cultures, cerebrospinal fluid, BAL, stool, urine, pharingeal and nasopharingeal swabs etc .
•    The hospital units included: medical ICU, hematology unit, surgery unit, neurosurgery ICU, orthopedics etc .
•    The patients will be asked to sign the informed consent before taking the sample
•    A form containing basic data about the patient and sample will be taken together with the sample
•    Application for the permission from the Ethical comittee is obtained
•    The performance of the ultraplex assay will be evaluated using 300 clinical samples, glass slide microarrays and manual pipetting. The novel DNA extraction methods will be used to isolate the DNA from the pathogens and conduct the manual evaluation of the assay.
•    Identification of microorganisms by new method and conventional methods (classical culture on nutirent media, biochemical testing, serotyping)
•    Antibiotic susceptibility testing by new method and conventional method (disk diffusion and dilution methods)
•    Detection of resistance and virulence genes by ultraplex method and conventional methods (PCR, sequencing)
•    Intervention study at the end of the project
•    In each clinical centre, one intervention arm will use the results of the new diagnostic systems in parallel with the routine diagnostics, whereas the control arm will only follow its routine diagnostic clinical practice.
•    The median time from specimen collection until specific treatment (primary endpoint) and time to appropriate therapy, patient outcome parameters such as length of stay, clinical improvement, microbiological clearence  and hospital mortality (secondary endpoints) will be analysed and compared.

Scientific Manager and involved team:

Branka Bedenić
Date and place of birth: 30. 05. 1963., Zagreb, academic degrees: 1988- graduated from Medical School, University of Zagreb, 1993- master's degree-l experimental pharmacology, Medical School,  University of Zagreb, 1998-PhD degree, Medical School,  University of Zagreb. Academic degree and position:Full  Professor at the Department of Microbiology and Parasitology
Area of scientific interest: antimicrobial chemotherapy,*-lactamases,mechanisms of bacterial resistance to antibiotics, molecular methods in microbiology

Education abroad: 1993- study visit at the Department of experimental pharmacology, «Max von Pettenkofer» Institute, Munich, Germany, 1994- study visit at the Institute of Pharmaceutical Microbiology, University of Bonn, germany,  1996- study visit at the Department of Microbiology, United Medical and Dental School, St Thomas's Hospital London, United Kingdom, 1998- study visit at the Department of Microbiology, University Clinic of Maastricht , the Netherlands, 1999- study visit at the Institute of Medical Microbiology, University of Zurich, 2000- study visit at the Department of Microbiology, University of Athens, Greece,  2001- study visit at the laboratory for microbiology, Institute Arndt & Keeser, Hamburg, Germany, 2002- study visit at the Department of Biochemistry, University of Aquilla, Italy, study visit at the Institute of Microbiology and Hygiene, Technical University of Dresden, Germany, 2005- study visit-Department of Pathology, Section for Microbiology, School of Medicine, University of Verona, Italy, 2006-study visit-Asklepios University Clinic, Gauting, Germany, 2008-study visit- Institute for Microbiology and Hygiene, School of Medicine, University of Cologne, Germany,  2011- University Roma Tre, Rome, Italy, 2012-Department of Microbiology, University of Verona, Italy, 2014- Institute for Microbiology, hygiene and Environmental Medicine, University of Graz

Major scientific interests: b-lactamases, mechanisms of bacterial resistance to antibiotics, molecular methods in microbiology.

Number of publications: CC-38, SCI-Expanded-7,  IM-16, conference abstracts- 82 (in CC journal-48), chapters in books and manuals-9. Number of citations:  185

Teaching and mentorship experience: practices and seminars in basic microbiology and parasitology, seminars