Genomic methods for enhanced surveillance and persistence investigations of foodborne pathogens

The globalized food supply chain became a vast and complex network leading to an increased risk of spread of known and emerging foodborne pathogens, Listeria monocytogenes and Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium variant 4,[5],12:i:-. Based on a previous study of persistence of L. monocytogenes, 27 ST14 and 6 ST121 newly sequenced genomes collected over one year on the same rabbit meat processing plant were investigated in comparison to a selection of public genomes. cgMLST analysis of sequenced genomes showed higher discriminatory power in comparison to conventional typing methods. wgSNPs phylogeny inferred on 273 newly sequenced and publicly available ST121 and ST14 genomes confirmed that a persistent clone was circulating in the Italian rabbit-meat plant along with not persistent strains. Mass screening of a novel dataset of genes involved in physiological adaptation to food-processing environment showed a significant enrichment in ST121 genomes concerned genetic features related to sanitizing procedures adaptation, whereas genes related to biofilm forming enhanced ability and cadmium resistance was associated to ST14, as confirmed by phenotypic tests. Genomic data of 148 Salmonella enterica ser. Typhimurium monophasic variant 4,[5],12:i:- (MVSTm) isolates circulating in human and swine in Italy have been investigated in comparison to publicly available S. Typhimurium/ MVSTm strains collected in Italy and worldwide. The innovative genome-wide approach applied in this study allowed to mine population structure of a large Salmonella serovars dataset (~4,000 genomes) including Italian MVST strains belonging to a large population of ~1,300 clonal S. Typhimurium/ MVSTm isolates (2.5% of allele differences) isolated from a wide-range of countries in last two decades. cgSNPs phylogeny revealed and Genome-Wide Association Study suggested that discrete geographical segregation has had a strong impact on the accessory gene content with particular significance for a large SopE-containing prophage associated to Italian population and constituting specific biomarkers relevant in course of large epidemics

Chronic Endometritis

Chronic endometritis is a persistent inflammation of the inner lining of the uterine cavity. Several studies have demonstrated that it is a condition frequently associated with repeated unexplained implantation failure at in vitro fertilization, recurrent miscarriage, as well as poor obstetric outcomes such as preterm labor

Whole genome sequencing for typing and characterisation of Listeria monocytogenes isolated in a rabbit meat processing plant

Listeria monocytogenes is a food-borne pathogen able to survive and grow in different environments including food processing plants where it can persist for month or years. In the present study the discriminatory power of Whole Genome Sequencing (WGS)-based analysis (cgMLST) was compared to that of molecular typing methods on 34 L. monocytogenes isolates collected over one year in the same rabbit meat processing plant and belonging to three genotypes (ST14, ST121, ST224). Each genotype included isolates indistinguishable by standard molecular typing methods. The virulence potential of all isolates was assessed by Multi Virulence-Locus Sequence Typing (MVLST) and the investigation of a representative database of virulence determinant genes. The whole genome of each isolate was sequenced on a MiSeq platform. The cgMLST, MVLST, and in silico identification of virulence genes were performed using publicly available tools. Draft genomes included a number of contigs ranging from 13 to 28 and N50 ranging from 456298 to 580604. The coverage ranged from 41 to 187X. The cgMLST showed a significantly superior discriminatory power only in comparison to ribotyping, nevertheless it allows the detection of two singletons belonging to ST14 that were not observed by other molecular methods. All ST14 isolates belonged to VT107, which 7-loci concatenated sequence differs for only 4 nucleotides to VT1 (Epidemic clone III). Analysis of virulence genes showed the presence of a fulllength inlA version in all ST14 isolates and of a mutated version including a premature stop codon (PMSC) associated to attenuated virulence in all ST121 isolates

Biological age estimation using an eHealth system based on wearable sensors

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Novel Approaches to Improve Myeloma Cell Killing by Monoclonal Antibodies

The monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) have significantly changed the treatment of multiple myeloma (MM) patients. However, despite their introduction, MM remains an incurable disease. The mAbs currently used for MM treatment were developed with different mechanisms of action able to target antigens, such as cluster of differentiation 38 (CD38) and SLAM family member 7 (SLAMF7) expressed by both, MM cells and the immune microenvironment cells. In this review, we focused on the mechanisms of action of the main mAbs approved for the therapy of MM, and on the possible novel approaches to improve MM cell killing by mAbs. Actually, the combination of anti-CD38 or anti-SLAMF7 mAbs with the immunomodulatory drugs significantly improved the clinical effect in MM patients. On the other hand, pre-clinical evidence indicates that different approaches may increase the efficacy of mAbs. The use of trans-retinoic acid, the cyclophosphamide or the combination of anti-CD47 and anti-CD137 mAbs have given the rationale to design these types of combinations therapies in MM patients in the future. In conclusion, a better understanding of the mechanism of action of the mAbs will allow us to develop novel therapeutic approaches to improve their response rate and to overcome their resistance in MM patients

Relationship between Ground Reaction Forces and Morpho- Metric Measures in Two Different Canine Phenotypes Using Regression Analysis

Force plate analysis assesses gait symmetry and limb loading. However, as previously described, individual and breed variability (body size and conformation) is related to breeding, body conformation, and size. This prospective study aimed to evaluate the influence of morphometric measures on the speed (V), peak of vertical force (PVF), vertical impulse (VI), and stance time (ST) in healthy dolichomorph and mesomorph dogs and their combined effect on and interactions with V, PVF, VI, and ST in the same morphological types. Fifty dogs were enrolled in the current study, and specific morphometric measurements were recorded for each dog. A force platform was used to record the ground reaction forces (GFRs), including PVF and VI. Multiple linear regression models were used for the study purposes. According to our results, GFRs are influenced by morphometric measures (body weight, withers height, and speed) not so much as a single contribution, but by the interaction between them. It is not possible to compare GFRs in dogs that do not belong to the same breed. However, the subjective variabilities make this comparison difficult and poorly reliable. According to the author, the comparison should be made between canine morphological types rather than breeds