Serum gamma-glutamyltransferase fractions in Myotonic Dystrophy type I: Differences with healthy subjects and patients with liver disease.

Objectives: Elevation of serum gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT), in absence of a clinically significant liver damage, is often found in Myotonic Dystrophy type-1 (DM1). In this study we investigated if a specific GGT fraction pattern is present in DM1. Designs and methods: We compared total and fractional GGT values (b-, m-, s-, f-GGT) among patients with DM1 or liver disease (LD) and healthy subjects (HS). Results: The increase of GGT in DM1 and LD, vs HS, was mainly due to s-GGT (median: 32.7; 66.7; and 7.9 U/L, respectively), and b-GGT (8.5; 18.9; and 2.1 U/L). The subset of DM1 patients matched with HS with corresponding serum GGT showed higher b-GGT (6.0 vs 4.2 U/L). Conclusions: DM1 patients with normal total GGT values showed an alteration of the production and release in the blood of GGT fractions. Since increased s-GGT is also found in LD, a sub-clinical liver damage likely occurs in DM1 subjects apparently free of liver disease

Affinity Capillary Electrochromatography of Molecularly Imprinted Thin Layers Grafted onto Silica Capillaries Using a Surface-Bound Azo-Initiator and Living Polymerization

Molecularly imprinted thin layers were prepared in silica capillaries by using two different surface polymerization strategies, the first using 4,4′-azobis(4-cyanovaleric acid) as a surface-coupled radical initiator, and the second, S-carboxypropyl-S’-benzyltrithiocarbonate as a reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) agent in combination with 2,2′-azobisisobutyronitrile as a free radical initiator. The ability to generate imprinted thin layers was tested on two different polymerization systems: (i) a 4-vinylpyridine/ethylene dimethacrylate (4VP-EDMA) in methanol-water solution with 2,4,5-trichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4,5-T) as a template; and (ii) methacrylic acid/ethylene dimethacrylate (MAA-EDMA) in a chloroform solution with warfarin as the template molecule. The binding properties of the imprinted capillaries were studied and compared with those of the corresponding non-imprinted polymer coated capillaries by injecting the template molecule and by measuring its migration times relative to a neutral and non-retained marker. The role of running buffer hydrophobicity on recognition was investigated by studying the influence of varying buffer acetonitrile concentration. The 2,4,5-T-imprinted capillary showed molecular recognition based on a reversed phase mechanism, with a decrease of the template recognition in the presence of higher acetonitrile content; whereas warfarin-imprinted capillaries showed a bell-shaped trend upon varying the acetonitrile percentage, illustrating different mechanisms underlying imprinted polymer-ligand recognition. Importantly, the results demonstrated the validity of affinity capillary electrochromatography (CEC) to screen the binding properties of imprinted layers

Merging Lateral Flow Immunoassay with Electroanalysis as a Novel Sensing Platform: Prostate Specific Antigen Detection as Case of Study

The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted lateral flow immunoassay (LFIA) strips as the most known point-of-care (POC) devices enabling rapid and easy detection of relevant biomarkers by nonspecialists. However, these diagnostic tests are usually associated with the qualitative detection of the biomarker of interest. Alternatively, electrochemical-based diagnostics, especially known for diabetes care, enable quantitative determination of biomarkers. From an analytical point perspective, the combination of the two approaches might represent a step forward for the POC world: in fact, electrochemical transduction is attractive to be integrated into LFIA strips due to its simplicity, high sensitivity, fast signal generation, and cost effectiveness. In this work, a LFIA strip has been combined with an electrochemical transduction, yielding an electrochemical LFIA (eLFIA). As a proof-of-concept method, the detection of prostate-specific antigen has been carried out by combining a printed-electrochemical strip with the traditional LFIA tests. The electrochemical detection has been based on the measurement of Au ions produced from the dissolution of the gold nanoparticles previously captured on the test line. The analytical performances obtained at LFIA and eLFIA were compared, highlighting how the use of differential pulse voltammetry allowed for a lower detection limit (2.5-fold), respectively, 0.38 and 0.15 ng/mL, but increasing the time of analysis. Although the correlation between the two architectures confirmed the satisfactory agreement of outputs, this technical note has been thought to provide the reader a fair statement with regard to the strength and drawbacks about combining the two (apparently) competitor devices in a diagnostics field, namely, LFIA and electrochemical strips

COVID-19 and schools: what is the risk of contagion? Results of a rapid-antigen-test-based screening campaign in Florence, Italy

INTRODUCTION: in the COVID-19 era, the debate around the risk of contagion at school, is intense in Italy. The Department of Welfare and Wealth of Florence promoted a screening campaign with antigen rapid tests for all the students and school personnel. The aim of this study is to assess the SARS-Cov2 circulation in the school setting by means of a mass screening conducted in every primary and middle school of Florence. METHODS: All the students attending primary and middle schools of Florence and the school personnel were asked to take part. The campaign started on 16(th) November 2020 and was completed on 12(th) February 2021. If the antigen rapid test resulted positive, a molecular test was provided to confirm the result. RESULTS: 18,414 subjects were tested with 15,233 students (82.7%) and 3,181 members of the school personnel (17.3%). Only in 27 cases (0.15%) the rapid test gave a positive result. Moreover, only 14 of the 27 positive rapid tests were confirmed as positive by the molecular test. These results show a very low number of SARS-CoV-2 cases among the people tested (0.08% of the total). CONCLUSIONS: These results show that the spread of SARS-CoV-2 infection at school, during the months of the screening and with the respect of strict preventive measures was low

IN VITRO EVALUATION OF COMPATIBILITY OF FELINE TYPE-B BLOOD WITH CANINE AND FELINE BLOOD OF DIFFERENT BLOOD TYPE

Cats have no naturally occurring antibodies against canine red blood cell (RBC) antigens, therefore, xenotransfusion of canine blood to a feline recipient is still used in emergencies [1,2]. This practice is particularly helpful in type-B recipients for which it is sometimes difficult to find a compatible feline donor, due to their rarity in feline population (from 5.2% to 12.1% in North and South Italy, respectively) [3]. However, data on compatibility of canine blood with type B cats are limited. The aim of this study was to evaluate in vitro compatibility of feline type-B blood with canine blood in comparison to type-A or type-B blood. Forty-nine type-B cats were crossmatched using a slide crossmatch (XM) technique with at least one DEA1+, DEA1- canine blood and one type-A feline blood. Both major and minor XMs were performed with macro- and microscopic evaluation of agglutination. Of 49 type-B cats, 35 were also major crossmatched with at least one type-B cat. A total of 214 major XMs were performed, 165 with canine blood and 49 with type-A feline blood, of which 91 were incompatible: 43/165 (26%) with canine blood samples and 48/49 (98%) with type -A feline samples. Only the species had a statistically significant association (P<0,0001) with incompatible XM results, with type-A feline blood having a significant relative risk (RR) of 3.7 (95%CI:2.8-4.8, P<0.0001) of incompatibility with type-B feline blood. Of 201 minor XMs performed, 153 were with canine blood and 48 with type-A feline blood. Incompatibility was found in 150 minor XMs, 131/153 (86%) canine samples and 19/48 (40%) type-A feline samples. Species (P<0.0001) and DEA blood type (P=0.0001) were significantly associated with incompatibility, with canine blood and DEA1+ type having respectively a RR of 2.1 (95%CI:1.5-3.0, P<0.0001) and 1.3 (95%CI:1.1-1.5, P=0.0006) of incompatible minor XM. Relative to the 35 type-B cats crossmatched with type-B cats, of 71 major XMs performed, 25 (35%) were incompatible. No signi ficant difference (P=0.1555) was found for type-B blood major XM incompatibilities between canine blood and feline type-B blood. In emergencies, when compatible feline blood is not readily available, type-B cats could be transfused with canine blood, if possible, using DEA1- packed RBCs. Due to incompatibility outside the AB feline blood group system, major XM should be always performed before feline transfusions, even when blood type compatible blood is being transfused