Analytical validation and clinical application of rapid serological tests for sars-cov-2 suitable for large-scale screening

Recently, large-scale screening for COVID-19 has presented a major challenge, limiting timely countermeasures. Therefore, the application of suitable rapid serological tests could provide useful information, however, little evidence regarding their robustness is currently available. In this work, we evaluated and compared the analytical performance of a rapid lateral-flow test (LFA) and a fast semiquantitative fluorescent immunoassay (FIA) for anti-nucleocapsid (anti-NC) antibodies, with the reverse transcriptase real-time PCR assay as the reference. In 222 patients, LFA showed poor sensitivity (55.9%) within two weeks from PCR, while later testing was more reliable (sensitivity of 85.7% and specificity of 93.1%). Moreover, in a subset of 100 patients, FIA showed high sensitivity (89.1%) and specificity (94.1%) after two weeks from PCR. The coupled application for the screening of 183 patients showed satisfactory concordance (K = 0.858). In conclusion, rapid serological tests were largely not useful for early diagnosis, but they showed good performance in later stages of infection. These could be useful for back-tracing and/or to identify potentially immune subjects

Seasonal variation of antiretroviral drug exposure during the year: The experience of 10 years of therapeutic drug monitoring

Although studies show an annual trend for immunosuppressive drugs, particularly during different seasons, no data are available for antiretroviral drugs exposures in different periods of the year. For this reason, the aim of this study was to investigate an association between seasonality and antiretroviral drugs plasma concentrations. Antiretroviral drugs exposures were measured with liquid chromatography validated methods. A total of 4148 human samples were analysed. Lopinavir, etravirine and maraviroc levels showed seasonal fluctuation. In detail, maraviroc and etravirine concentrations decreased further in summer than in winter. In contrast, lopinavir concentrations had an opposite trend, increasing more in summer than in winter. The etravirine efficacy cut-off value of 300 ng/mL seems to be affected by seasonality: 77.1% and 22.9% of samples achieved this therapeutic target, respectively, in winter and summer, whereas 30% in winter and 70% in summer did not reach this value. Finally, age over 50 years and summer remained in the final multivariate regression model as predictors of the etravirine efficacy cut-off. This study highlights the seasonal variation in antiretroviral drugs plasma concentrations during the year, leading to a better understanding of inter-individual variability in drug exposures. Studies are required in order to confirm these data, clarifying which aspects may be involved

Materials characterisation and software tools as key enablers in Industry 5.0 and wider acceptance of new methods and products

Recently, the NMBP-35 Horizon 2020 projects -NanoMECommons, CHARISMA, and Easi-stress -organised a collaborative workshop to increase awareness of their contributions to the industry "commons" in terms of characterisation and digital transformation. They have established interoperability standards for knowledge management in characterisation and introduced new solutions for materials testing, aided by the standardisation of faster and more accurate assessment methods. The lessons learned from these projects and the discussions during the joint workshop emphasised the impact of recent developments and emerging needs in the field of characterisation. Specifically, the focus was on enhancing data quality through harmonisation and stand-ardisation, as well as making advanced technologies and instruments accessible to a broader community with the goal of fostering increased trust in new products and a more skilled society. Experts also highlighted how characterisation and the corresponding experimental data can drive future innovation agendas towards tech-nological breakthroughs. The focus of the discussion revolved around the characterisation and standardisation processes, along with the collection of modelling and characterisation tools, as well as protocols for data ex-change. The broader context of materials characterisation and modelling within the materials community was explored, drawing insights from the Materials 2030 Roadmap and the experiences gained from NMBP-35 pro-jects. This whitepaper has the objective of addressing common challenges encountered by the materials com-munity, illuminating emerging trends and evolving techniques, and presenting the industry's perspective on emerging requirements and past success stories. It accomplishes this by providing specific examples and high-lighting how these experiences can create fresh opportunities and strategies for newcomers entering the market. These advancements are anticipated to facilitate a more efficient transition from Industry 4.0 to 5.0 during the industrial revolution

SUSTAINABLE CHEMISTRY FOR SUSTAINABLE INDUSTRY

Foundry Alfe Chem is an industrial reality working in the field of lubrication and chemical auxiliaries for industrial processes, which falls within the framework of the emerging and increasingly important «green chemistry». The goal of the company is to develop products that are more environmentally friendly by using raw materials from renewable sources; specifically, Foundry Alfe Chem has a program of self-sustainability that contemplates, for the foreseeable future, the direct production of renewable raw materials. The company has developed a new dedicated product line, Olitema, whose purpose is to offer highly technological solutions with complete environmental sustainability. In this context, Foundry Alfe CHEM has created a new product which represents a breakthrough in the class of HFC hydraulic fluids: Ecosafe Plus is a biodegradable fire-resistant hydraulic fluid with high engineering and technological performances, high environmental sustainability and the best security guarantees in workplaces. Its formulation is glycols-free, and it allows for easier disposal of the exhausted fluid, compared to a traditional water/ glycol-based HFC hydraulic fluid. For what concern the technological properties, Ecosafe Plus has been tested by accredited laboratories with tribological trials (4 Ball wear test ASTM D 4172, Ball on disc test ASTM 6425, Brugger test DIN 51347, Vickers test ASTM D 2882), with elastomer compatibility test (ASTM D 471) and biodegradability test (OECD 310 F)

Novel perfluoropolyethers containing 2,2,4-trifluoro-5-trifluoromethoxy-1,3-dioxole blocks: synthesis and characterization

Peroxidic perfluoropolyethers (PFPEs) are industrial intermediates used by Solvay Solexis for the preparation of different classes of (per)fluoropolyethers (Fomblin®, Galden®, Solvera®, Fluorolink®). The chemistry of these peroxidic compounds has been recently exploited for the synthesis of novel PFPE block copolymers. In the present work we report the synthesis, the structural and physical-chemical characterization of block copolymers obtained by the reaction of peroxidic PFPEs with 2,2,4-trifluoro-5-trifluoromethoxy-1,3-dioxole, a cyclic homopolymerizable perfluoroolefin. These block copolymers combine the most attractive properties of the PFPEs, like the excellent lubrication, the high thermal stability and the optical transparency, with new specific properties which are related to the perfluorodioxolenic block