UPO Biobank: The Challenge of Integrating Biobanking into the Academic Environment to Support Translational Research

Biobanks are driving motors of precision and personalized medicine by providing high-quality biological material/data through the standardization and harmonization of their collection, preservation, and distribution. UPO Biobank was established in 2020 as an institutional, disease, and population biobank within the University of Piemonte Orientale (UPO) for the promotion and support of high-quality, multidisciplinary studies. UPO Biobank collaborates with UPO researchers, sustaining academic translational research, and supports the Novara Cohort Study, a longitudinal cohort study involving the population in the Novara area that will collect data and biological specimens that will be available for epidemiological, public health, and biological studies on aging. UPO Biobank has been developed by implementing the quality standards for the field and the ethical and legal issues and normative about privacy protection, data collection, and sharing. As a member of the "Biobanking and Biomolecular Resources Research Infrastructure" (BBMRI) network, UPO Biobank aims to expand its activity worldwide and launch cooperation with new national and international partners and researchers. The objective of this manuscript is to report an institutional and operational experience through the description of the technical and procedural solutions and ethical and scientific implications associated with the establishment of this university research biobank

Persistence of neutralizing antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 in first wave infected individuals at ten months post-infection: The UnIRSA cohort study

Longitudinal mapping of antibody-based SARS-CoV-2 immunity is critical for public health control of the pandemic and vaccine development. We performed a longitudinal analysis of the antibody-based immune response in a cohort of 100 COVID-19 individuals who were infected during the first wave of infection in northern Italy. The SARS-CoV-2 humoral response was tested using the COVID-SeroIndex, Kantaro Quantitative SARS-CoV-2 IgG Antibody RUO Kit (R&D Systems, Bio-Techne, Minneapolis, USA) and pseudotype-based neutralizing antibody assay. Using sequential serum samples collected from 100 COVID-19 recovered individuals from northern Italy—mostly with mild disease—at 2 and 10 months after their first positive PCR test, we show that 93% of them seroconverted at 2 months, with a geometric mean (GeoMean) half-maximal neutralization titer (NT50) of 387.9. Among the 35 unvaccinated subjects retested at 10 months, 7 resulted seronegative, with an 80% drop in seropositivity, while 28 showed decreased anti-receptor binding domain (RBD) and anti-spike (S) IgG titers, with a GeoMean NT50 neutralization titer dropping to 163.5. As an NT50 > 100 is known to confer protection from SARS-CoV-2 re-infection, our data show that the neutralizing activity elicited by the natural infection has lasted for at least 10 months in a large fraction of subjects

Persistence of neutralizing antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 in first wave infected individuals at ten months post-infection: The UnIRSA cohort study

Longitudinal mapping of antibody-based SARS-CoV-2 immunity is critical for public health control of the pandemic and vaccine development. We performed a longitudinal analysis of the antibody-based immune response in a cohort of 100 COVID-19 individuals who were infected during the first wave of infection in northern Italy. The SARS-CoV-2 humoral response was tested using the COVID-SeroIndex, Kantaro Quantitative SARS-CoV-2 IgG Antibody RUO Kit (R&D Systems, Bio- Techne, Minneapolis, USA) and pseudotype-based neutralizing antibody assay. Using sequential serum samples collected from 100 COVID-19 recovered individuals from northern Italy—mostly with mild disease—at 2 and 10 months after their first positive PCR test, we show that 93% of them seroconverted at 2 months, with a geometric mean (GeoMean) half-maximal neutralization titer (NT50) of 387.9. Among the 35 unvaccinated subjects retested at 10 months, 7 resulted seronegative, with an 80% drop in seropositivity, while 28 showed decreased anti-receptor binding domain (RBD) and anti-spike (S) IgG titers, with a GeoMean NT50 neutralization titer dropping to 163.5. As an NT50 > 100 is known to confer protection from SARS-CoV-2 re-infection, our data show that the neutralizing activity elicited by the natural infection has lasted for at least 10 months in a large fraction of subjects

Taste and Smell Disorders in COVID-19 Patients at a Local Healthcare Trust in Northern Italy: a Cross-Sectional Study

Background: In Italy, since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, patients testing positive for SARS-CoV-2 through nasopharyngeal swab have reported taste and smell alterations. As these symptoms are quite uncommon in other respiratory infections, their specificity and prevalence are useful features for the differential diagnosis of COVID-19. The objective was to describe taste and smell alterations in patients diagnosed with SARS-CoV-2 infection and to define the onset of those disorders during the clinical course of the disease. Study design: Cross-sectional study. Methods: This study was conducted on adult patients testing positive for SARS-CoV-2 infection through nasopharyngeal swab at a Local Healthcare Trust in Northern Italy between April 27th and May 27th, 2020. In order to investigate the clinical course, the onset of the first symptoms, smell and/or taste alterations, a phone-based questionnaire was administered during the programming of the second nasopharyngeal swab. Results: We recruited 168 patients; the mean age was 52 years old, and 94 (56.0%) were female. Among the 135 symptomatic patients, 87 (64.4%) reported taste and smell alterations. Patients with a mild clinical course showed the highest prevalence for taste and smell disorders (76.6%), which were also associated with a more benign clinical course of the disease (P = 0.0166). Furthermore, in 33 (37.9%) of these patients, changes in smell and taste perception appeared before the acute phase of the disease. Among the 14 patients with a severe clinical course of SARS-CoV-2 infection, 8 reported a variation of taste and smell perception before the hospitalization, with a median of 4 days (IQR 2-7). Conclusions: Smell and taste disorders can be listed among the first symptoms of SARS-CoV-2 infection and may anticipate the acute phase of the disease. Noteworthy, they seem to be associated with a more benign clinical course

Missed Diagnosis of Gestational Diabetes Mellitus Due to Selective Screening: Evidence from a Cross-Sectional Study in the West Nile Sub-Region, Uganda

Vincent Abindu,1 Derick Hope,2 Mary Aleni,1 Monicah Andru,1 Richard Mangwi Ayiasi,3 Victor Afayo,4 Caesar Oyet,5 Ritah Kiconco6,7 1Department of Nursing and Midwifery - Faculty of Health Sciences, Muni University, Arua, West Nile, Uganda; 2Department of Medical Laboratory Science - Faculty of Health Sciences, Muni University, Arua, West Nile, Uganda; 3Department of Public Health - Faculty of Health Sciences, Muni University, Arua, West Nile, Uganda; 4Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Arua Regional Referral Hospital, Arua, West Nile, Uganda; 5Department of Medical Laboratory Science - Faculty of Health Sciences, Clark International University, Kampala, Central, Uganda; 6Department of Clinical Biochemistry - Faculty of Health Sciences, Soroti University, Soroti, Teso, Uganda; 7Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences - Faculty of Medicine, Mbarara University of Science and Technology, Mbarara, Southwestern, UgandaCorrespondence: Derick Hope, Department of Medical Laboratory Science - Faculty of Health Sciences, Muni University, Arua, West Nile, Uganda, Tel +256 772832320, Fax +256 476 420316, Email [email protected]: To ascertain the prevalence and risk factors of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) in pregnant women receiving antenatal care (ANC) services within the West Nile subregion of Uganda.Patients and Methods: An analytical cross-sectional study was conducted on 233 pregnant women who are within 24– 28 weeks of gestation and are receiving ANC services in selected hospitals. GDM was diagnosed according to the World Health Organization (WHO) criteria (2013). A questionnaire and anthropometric measurements were used to obtain relevant data. The chi-square test and logistic regression were used to determine the association between GDM and the study variables, including participants’ sociodemographic and medical characteristics.Results: The prevalence of hyperglycemia first detected in pregnancy among the participants tested was 8%. Overall, 7.45% had GDM and 0.53% had diabetes mellitus in pregnancy. The fasting plasma glucose test alone was positive in 86.7% of the GDM cases. The factors that were significantly associated with GDM included age ≥ 25 years (p = 0.017, AOR = 3.51) and body mass index (BMI) ≥ 25 kg/m2 (p = 0.024, AOR = 2.67). Out of the participants diagnosed with GDM, 28.6% did not have a known risk factor. Of the pregnant women with GDM, 57% would have been missed if the selective screening in the national clinical guidelines had been followed. Urinary tract infection (UTI) and Candida were detected in 36.36% and 13.85% of the participants, respectively.Conclusion: The study provides new data on the prevalence of GDM in rural settings in the West Nile subregion of Uganda. Of the participants, 7.5% were diagnosed with GDM, of which 57% would have been missed based on the selective screening of the national clinical guidelines. The study findings support the universal screening of GDM in pregnant women.Keywords: prevalence, gestational diabetes mellitus, risk factors, selective screenin