HYDROTHERMAL LIQUEFACTION OF MICROALGAE IN THE PRESENCE OF HOMOGENEOUS AND HETEROGENEOUS CATALYSTS

The continuous raise in the prices of fossil fuels and the awareness of the society challenges related to their use has recently driven a strong growth of interest on the investigation of different biochemical or thermochemical processes for the production of liquid biofuels

Epidemiological Characteristics of COVID-19 Cases in Non-Italian Nationals in Sicily: Identifying Vulnerable Groups in the Context of the COVID-19 Pandemic in Sicily, Italy

As in other parts of the world, undocumented migrants in Italy suffer worse health status due to their immigration enforcement situation and other vulnerabilities such as precarious illegal jobs, exploitation and abuse or barriers to higher education, with higher prevalence of chronic noncommunicable diseases. The COVID-19 pandemic, as other pandemics, has not affected everyone equally. The undocumented was one of the most affected groups with regard to hospitalization rates and mortality worldwide. Sicily is one of the gates of entrance to Europe for migrants and asylum seekers from Africa and Asia. Herein, we described the epidemiological characteristics of COVID-19 cases in Sicily to compare hospitalization rate and mortality between Italian nationals and foreigners. We extracted data from the integrated national surveillance system established by the Italian National Institute of Health (Istituto Superiore di Sanità, ISS) to collect information on all COVID-19 cases and deaths in Sicily. We found that the hospitalization rates were higher in undocumented foreigners, and they were most likely to present a more severe clinical outcome compared to Italian nationals. Inclusive public health policies should take this population group into consideration to achieve the Health for All goal

Epidemiological Characteristics of COVID-19 Cases in Non-Italian Nationals in Sicily: Identifying Vulnerable Groups in the Context of the COVID-19 Pandemic in Sicily, Italy

As in other parts of the world, undocumented migrants in Italy suffer worse health status due to their immigration enforcement situation and other vulnerabilities such as precarious illegal jobs, exploitation and abuse or barriers to higher education, with higher prevalence of chronic noncommunicable diseases. The COVID-19 pandemic, as other pandemics, has not affected everyone equally. The undocumented was one of the most affected groups with regard to hospitalization rates and mortality worldwide. Sicily is one of the gates of entrance to Europe for migrants and asylum seekers from Africa and Asia. Herein, we described the epidemiological characteristics of COVID-19 cases in Sicily to compare hospitalization rate and mortality between Italian nationals and foreigners. We extracted data from the integrated national surveillance system established by the Italian National Institute of Health (Istituto Superiore di Sanita, ISS) to collect information on all COVID-19 cases and deaths in Sicily. We found that the hospitalization rates were higher in undocumented foreigners, and they were most likely to present a more severe clinical outcome compared to Italian nationals. Inclusive public health policies should take this population group into consideration to achieve the Health for All goal

An Analysis of the Neutralizing Antibodies against the Main SARS-CoV-2 Variants in Healthcare Workers (HCWs) Vaccinated against or Infected by SARS-CoV-2

Although the anti-COVID-19 vaccination has proved to be an effective preventive tool, “breakthrough infections” have been documented in patients with complete primary vaccination courses. Most of the SARS-CoV-2 neutralizing antibodies produced after SARS-CoV-2 infection target the spike protein receptor-binding domain which has an important role in facilitating viral entry and the infection of the host cells. SARS-CoV-2 has demonstrated the ability to evolve by accumulating mutations in the spike protein to escape the humoral response of a host. The aim of this study was to compare the titers of neutralizing antibodies (NtAbs) against the variants of SARS-CoV-2 by analyzing the sera of recovered and vaccinated healthcare workers (HCWs). A total of 293 HCWs were enrolled and divided into three cohorts as follows: 91 who had recovered from SARS-CoV-2 infection (nVP); 102 that were vaccinated and became positive after the primary cycle (VP); and 100 that were vaccinated with complete primary cycles and concluded the follow-up period without becoming positive (VN). Higher neutralization titers were observed in the vaccinated subjects’ arms compared to the nVP subjects’ arms. Differences in neutralization titers between arms for single variants were statistically highly significant (p p < 0.05). Within the nVP group, the number of subjects with an absence of neutralizing antibodies was high. The presence of higher titers in patients with a complete primary cycle compared to patients who had recovered from infection suggested the better efficacy of artificial immunization compared to natural immunization, and this further encourages the promotion of vaccination even in subjects with previous infections