Structured reporting for fibrosing lung disease: a model shared by radiologist and pulmonologist

Objectives: To apply the Delphi exercise with iterative involvement of radiologists and pulmonologists with the aim of defining a structured reporting template for high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) of patients with fibrosing lung disease (FLD). Methods: The writing committee selected the HRCT criteria\ue2\u80\u94the Delphi items\ue2\u80\u94for rating from both radiology panelists (RP) and pulmonology panelists (PP). The Delphi items were first rated by RPs as \ue2\u80\u9cessential\ue2\u80\u9d, \ue2\u80\u9coptional\ue2\u80\u9d, or \ue2\u80\u9cnot relevant\ue2\u80\u9d. The items rated \ue2\u80\u9cessential\ue2\u80\u9d by < 80% of the RP were selected for the PP rating. The format of reporting was rated by both RP and PP. Results: A total of 42 RPs and 12 PPs participated to the survey. In both Delphi round 1 and 2, 10/27 (37.7%) items were rated \ue2\u80\u9cessential\ue2\u80\u9d by more than 80% of RP. The remaining 17/27 (63.3%) items were rated by the PP in round 3, with 2/17 items (11.7%) rated \ue2\u80\u9cessential\ue2\u80\u9d by the PP. PP proposed additional items for conclusion domain, which were rated by RPs in the fourth round. Poor consensus was observed for the format of reporting. Conclusions: This study provides a template for structured report of FLD that features essential items as agreed by expert thoracic radiologists and pulmonologists

Next Generation Sequencing ({NGS}) approach applied to species identification in mixed processed seafood products

Multi-species fish products are a growing market segment driven by several inputs, including urbanization, modern lifestyles and the availability of new technologies. These products are characterized by the absence of species-related morphological traits, as well as by the use of discards or fish waste as ingredients, that cannot be traced using a classical molecular approach. This historic inability to identify ingredients, coupled with a rather lean list of mandatory information required by current legislation, make these products the perfect target for substitution fraud. New molecular tools are now available to overcome this gap, such as the metabarcoding approach which can be used to trace species from complex food matrices. In this study, we used such an approach to sequence a fragment of 16S rRNA mitochondrial gene from 20 multispecies processed seafood products, sold on the Italian market and including breaded, burger and surimi, in order to evaluate mislabelling rates and formulate hypotheses regarding the potential drivers of fraudulent activities. Our results highlighted the presence of 120 marine taxa with an overall mislabelling rate of 45%, including some low-abundance taxa not included in the current Italian legislation, found mainly in the surimi samples. The presence of Tetraodontidae and swine DNA raise concerns regarding consumer safety and protection with regard to ethical or religious issues, as well the inclusion of undeclared molluscs potentially causing allergies. The high number of low-frequency taxa confirms the inclusion of discards and fish waste, doubtless positive for sustainable fisheries, but also boosting profits for the fish industry. Such practice, however, without an adequate labelling and traceability system, is a source of risk for consumers and marine ecosystems. In this context, a revision of national and international food safety legislation is needed; indeed, metabarcoding assessments can provide useful information to stakeholders and act as the future operational tool for inspective monitoring

Arcobacter species detection in Italian composite foods

Considering that composite foods are frequently involved in the transmission of foodborne diseases and given the growing public health interest around the emerging genus Arcobacter, the aim of the present study was to assess the occurrence of Arcobacter spp. carrying virulence-associated genes in composite foods, in order to contribute to outlining the specific risks posed by emerging pathogens. Overall, Arcobacter spp. were detected in 18/75 (24%) samples. Biomolecular assays revealed A. butzleri in 36/54 (67%) and Arcobacter spp. in 18/54 (33%) isolates. PCRs aimed at the nine putative virulence genes demonstrated widespread distribution of these genes among A. butzleri isolates, while Arcobacter spp. isolates harboured only ciaB, mviN and hecA genes. This study provides more information regarding the health risks associated with the consumption of composite foods, underlying their role as a potential source of human Arcobacter infection

Species authentication of canned mackerel: Challenges in molecular identification and potential drivers of mislabelling

The market for canned mackerel is growing, due to their competitive price and to the excellent properties of the meat. However, the weak rules of current legislation, coupled with the loss of discrimination power due to being obliged to use short barcode regions, open up new challenges for traceability in processed products. In this study, for the first time, we applied a two-step mini-barcoding approach to identify canned mackerel sold in Italian markets and make assumptions on the potential drivers of mislabelling. Preliminary identification was performed using mini-barcode universal primers targeting a COI-fragment; then, in order to discriminate within the complex Scomber colias/S. japonicus/S. australasicus, we applied a second step, using new specific primers designed in the mitochondrial control region (D-loop). Comparison between labels and molecular identifications highlighted that the chance of mislabelling could be either 45% or 0%, depending on the interpretation of the generic terms used on the labels. Therefore, the study revealed that the ambiguous use, in the ingredient list, of ‘umbrella’ terms for naming fish species, such as ‘sgombro’ could be related to geographic origin of products and creates opportunities for fraudulent activities, but also misleads consumers. In light of this pattern, an urgent update of European legislation is needed to face current and future challenges for full chain traceability

Occurrence and characterization of Arcobacter spp. from ready-to-eat vegetables produced in Southern Italy

Given that the number of foodborne illness outbreaks linked to the consumption of ready-to-eat vegetables has been widely documented and considering that data on the occurrence of Arcobacter spp. in such foodstuffs are lacking, the aim of the present study was to evaluate the presence of Arcobacter spp. and the occurrence of virulence factors as well as to genotype Arcobacter spp. in ready-to-eat (RTE) vegetable samples, using cultural and biomolecular assays. Arcobacter spp. was detected in 16/110 (14.5%) samples, with A. butzleri being detected in 15/16 and A. cryaerophilus in 1/16 isolates. PCRs aimed at the nine putative virulence genes demonstrated widespread distribution of such genes among A. butzleri and A. cryaerophilus isolates. In addition, multilocus sequence type (MLST) analysis revealed a low genetic diversity within the arcobacters isolates. The results underline the need to develop an appropriate surveillance system based on biomolecular characterization for an integrated microbiological risk assessment of ready-toeat vegetables, and consequently of composite foods