A diagnostic study comparing conventional and real-time PCR for Strongyloides stercoralis on urine and on faecal samples

Abstract Strongyloides stercoralis is a soil-transmitted helminth with a wide distribution in tropical and subtropical areas. The diagnosis of S. stercoralisinfection can be challenging, due to the low sensitivity of microscopic examination of stool samples and coproculture. In the last decade, different in-house molecular biology techniques for S. stercoralis have been implemented. They demonstrated good accuracy, although sensitivity does not seem sufficiently high yet. Recently, a novel PCR technique has been evaluated for the detection of S. stercoralis DNA in urine. Aim of this work was to compare the sensitivity of the real-time PCR (qPCR) on feces routinely used at the Centre for Tropical Disease (CTD) of Negrar, Verona, Italy, with that of the novel based PCR on urine. As secondary objective, we evaluated a Urine Conditioning Buffer ® (Zymoresearch) with the aim of improving nucleic acid stability in urine during sample storage/transport at ambient temperatures. Patients attending the CTD and resulting positive at routine screening with serology for S. stercoralis were invited, previous written consent, to supply stool and urine samples for molecular biology. A convenience sample of 30 patients was included. The sensitivity of qPCR on feces resulted 63%, and that of based PCR on urine was 17%. In all the samples treated with the Urine Conditioning Buffer ® there was no detectable DNA. In conclusion, the sensitivity of the novel technique resulted low, and needs further implementation before being considered as a valid alternative to the validated method

The AMMA mulid network for aerosol characterization in West Africa

Three ground based portable low power consumption microlidars (MULID) have been built and deployed at three remote sites in Banizoumbou (Niger), Cinzana (Mali) and M'Bour (Senegal) in the framework of the African Monsoon Multidisciplinary Analyses (AMMA) project for the characterization of aerosols optical properties. A description of the instrument and a discussion of the data inversion method, including a careful analysis of measurement uncertainties (systematic and statistical errors) are presented. Some case studies of typical lidar profiles observed over the Banizoumbou site during 2006 are shown and discussed with respect to the AERONET 7-day back-trajectories and the biomass burning emissions from the Combustion Emission database for the AMMA campaign

The Italian health system and the COVID-19 challenge

The article illustrates the response of the Italian Health System to the COvid-19 epidemic challeng

COVID-19: leave no healthcare worker behind

The article comments on guarantees of perosna protection granted to Italian health workers during the Covid-19 epidemi

So close yet so distant: evidence from Lombardy and Veneto to plan COVID-19 recovery strategy

As Italy is approaching a new phase in the response to the COVID-19 epidemic, the analysis of policy choices and their impact offer a useful learning opportunity. Lombardy and Veneto, two neighbouring Regions with comparable socio-economic features, implemented different policies in response to the epidemic, which resulted in divergent outcomes.&nbsp;</p

So close yet so distant: evidence from Lombardy and Veneto to plan COVID-19 recovery strategy

The article analyses the recovery strategy of two Regions in Italy, Lombardy and Veneto, their differences and impact

The impact of COVID-19 on communicable and non-communicable diseases in Africa: a narrative review

The global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has disproportionately impacted global human health, economy, and security. Because of weaker health-care systems, existing comorbidities burden (HIV, malaria, tuberculosis, and non-communicable conditions), and poor socioeconomic determinants, initial predictive models had forecast a disastrous impact of COVID-19 in Africa in terms of transmission, severity, and deaths. Nonetheless, current epidemiological data seem not to have matched expectations, showing lower SARS-CoV-2 infection and fatality rates compared to Europe, the Americas and Asia. However, only few studies were conducted in low- and middle-income African settings where high poverty and limited access to health services worsen underlying health conditions, including endemic chronic infectious diseases such as HIV and tuberculosis. Furthermore, limited, and heterogeneous research was conducted to evaluate the indirect impact of the pandemic on general health services and on major diseases across African countries. International mitigation measures, such as resource reallocation, lockdowns, social restrictions, and fear from the population have had multi-sectoral impacts on various aspects of everyday life, that shaped the general health response. Despite the vast heterogeneity of data across African countries, available evidence suggests that the COVID-19 pandemic has severely impacted the control and prevention programs, the diagnosis capacity and the adherence to treatment of major infectious diseases (HIV, TB, and Malaria) - including neglected diseases - and non-communicable diseases. Future research and efforts are essential to deeply assess the medium- and long-term impact of the pandemic, and to implement tailored interventions to mitigate the standstill on decades of improvement on public health programs

Le cycle des aérosols terrigènes au Sahel : ce qu'AMMA nous a appris

Les aérosols terrigènes sont une composante majeure de l'atmosphère au Sahel. Leurs impacts, notamment sur le climat, les cycles biogéochimiques et la santé, en font un objet d'étude tout à fait d'actualité. Pour quantifier ces impacts, il faut d'abord connaître précisément le cycle de ces aérosols (émission, transport, dépôt) et identifier les facteurs qui le contrôlent afin de le modéliser. Dans cet objectif, des expériences intensives ou sur le long terme, faisant appel à des dispositifs de mesure originaux, ont été mises en place grâce au programme AMMA. Cet article rassemble les principaux résultats acquis au cours de ces campagnes. Ils ont permis de mettre en évidence le rôle des états de surface et de la dynamique atmosphérique sur les concentrations en aérosols terrigènes au Sahel et plus particulièrement la contribution majeure des apports sahariens à ces concentrations.Dust emitted from soil by wind erosion is a main atmospheric compound in the Sahel. Its impacts on climate, biogeochemical cycles and human health explain the present increasing interest of this topic. The different terms of the dust life cycle (emission, transport, deposition) and the parameters controlling this cycle have to be understood and described. The following step is to model the dust cycle to quantify these impacts. In this objective, intensive and long term observing periods, using original experimental set up, were implemented in the frame of AMMA project. This paper summarizes the most significant results obtained during these campaigns. They highlight the major role played by surface features and atmospheric dynamics on dust concentrations in the Sahel as well as the major contribution of Saharan emissions to the Sahelian dust load