Report of two cases of influenza virus A/H1N1v and B co-infection during the 2010/2011 epidemics in the Italian Veneto Region

From October 2010 to April 2011, in the Italian Veneto Region, 1403 hospitalized patients were tested for influenza virus infection by specific real time RT-PCR. Overall, 327 samples were positive for either influenza A (75%) or B (25%) viruses. Among these positive patients two resulted co-infected by A/H1N1v and B viruses. Even though co-infection with both influenza A and B viruses appears to be a rare event, it occurs naturally and may play a role in epidemiology and pathogenicity. In the present study the two co-infected patients were a transplant recipient immunocompromised adult and a child displaying a severe respiratory illness. The co-infection was confirmed by inoculation of the nasopharyngeal swabs in MDCK.2 cells, followed by immunofluorescence and real time RT-PCR assays. Moreover, in the case of the adult patient, the immune system response against both viruses was assayed by hemoagglutination inhibition test against reference influenza virus strains. Both patients fully recovered from infection, without significant differences with mono-infected patients

Síntese e avaliação preliminar da atividade antibacteriana e antifúngica de derivados N-acilidrazônicos

We describe the synthesis and evaluation of N-acylhydrazone compounds bearing different electron-donating groups in one of its aromatic rings, obtained using a four-step synthetic route. IC50 values against pathogenic fungi and bacteria were determined by serial microdilution. Compounds showed low activity against Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. By contrast, a derivative with a meta-oriented electron-donating group showed significant activity (IC50) against Candida albicans (17 µM), C. krusei (34 µM) and C. tropicalis (17 µM). Results suggest this is a promising lead-compound for synthesis of potent antifungal agents

Search for eccentric black hole coalescences during the third observing run of LIGO and Virgo

Despite the growing number of confident binary black hole coalescences observed through gravitational waves so far, the astrophysical origin of these binaries remains uncertain. Orbital eccentricity is one of the clearest tracers of binary formation channels. Identifying binary eccentricity, however, remains challenging due to the limited availability of gravitational waveforms that include effects of eccentricity. Here, we present observational results for a waveform-independent search sensitive to eccentric black hole coalescences, covering the third observing run (O3) of the LIGO and Virgo detectors. We identified no new high-significance candidates beyond those that were already identified with searches focusing on quasi-circular binaries. We determine the sensitivity of our search to high-mass (total mass M>70 M⊙) binaries covering eccentricities up to 0.3 at 15 Hz orbital frequency, and use this to compare model predictions to search results. Assuming all detections are indeed quasi-circular, for our fiducial population model, we place an upper limit for the merger rate density of high-mass binaries with eccentricities 0<e≤0.3 at 0.33 Gpc−3 yr−1 at 90\% confidence level

Ultralight vector dark matter search using data from the KAGRA O3GK run

Among the various candidates for dark matter (DM), ultralight vector DM can be probed by laser interferometric gravitational wave detectors through the measurement of oscillating length changes in the arm cavities. In this context, KAGRA has a unique feature due to differing compositions of its mirrors, enhancing the signal of vector DM in the length change in the auxiliary channels. Here we present the result of a search for U(1)B−L gauge boson DM using the KAGRA data from auxiliary length channels during the first joint observation run together with GEO600. By applying our search pipeline, which takes into account the stochastic nature of ultralight DM, upper bounds on the coupling strength between the U(1)B−L gauge boson and ordinary matter are obtained for a range of DM masses. While our constraints are less stringent than those derived from previous experiments, this study demonstrates the applicability of our method to the lower-mass vector DM search, which is made difficult in this measurement by the short observation time compared to the auto-correlation time scale of DM

Chemical study and antimicrobial activity of bacteria assoaciated with the stingless bee Scaptotrigona depilis

Seres vivos interagem entre si vivendo em ambientes naturais e são capazes de produzir metabólitos secundários que desempenham papel importante na mediação das interações entre espécies. Os micro-organismos estão presentes em muitos ambientes e estabelecem diferentes tipos de associações com outros organismos, incluindo relações mutualísticas. Recentemente uma simbiose envolvendo abelhas nativas sem ferrão e micro-organismos foi relatada envolvendo o mecanismo de simbiose nutricional entre abelhas sem ferrão Scaptotrigona depilis e um fungo que cresce dentro das células de cria, fornecendo precursores esteroidais essenciais para a completa metamorfose das larvas. Ainda estão presentes outros fungos nas células de cria, que modulam o crescimento deste fungo alimento. A literatura mostra que a associação protetora entre insetos Hymenoptera e actinobactérias é amplamente distribuída. No entanto, nenhuma associação protetora entre actinobactérias e S. depilis foi descrita ainda. Portanto, o objetivo do presente trabalho foi isolar as actinobactérias associadas a S. depilis e verificar suas propriedades antimicrobianas. Foram isolados 130 micro-organismos associados às abelhas da espécie S. depilis e de sua colônia, totalizando 26 actinobactérias. Ensaios de antagonismo foram realizados contra três diferentes micro-organismos entomopatogênicos - Beauveria bassiana, Metarhizium anisopliae e Paenibacillus larvae. Os resultados indicaram cinco linhagens de actinobactérias interessantes, das quais foram obtidos extratos das culturas em acetato de etila a fim de isolar os compostos bioativos. Do extrato obtido de Streptomyces sp. ICBG 2041 foi isolado e identificado o composto bioativo antimicina A, comumente isolado de actinobactérias do gênero Streptomyces sp. e conhecido por sua atividade antifúngica. O fracionamento dos extratos obtidos de Micromonospora sp. ICBG 2040 possibilitou o isolamento de algumas bandas cromatográficas, porém não permitiu a identificação dos compostos bioativos devido ao baixo rendimento obtido, o qual não foi satisfatório para análises espectroscópicas. Análises espectrométricas dos extratos brutos de Bacillus sp. ICBG 2045 permitiram identificar o composto bioativo surfactina, comumente isolado de bactérias e conhecido por sua capacidade antimicrobiana. Ensaios biológicos e análises filogenéticas das linhagens de actinobactérias selecionadas foram realizados, ampliando o conhecimento sobre a relação existente entre abelhas S. depilis e seus micro-organismos associados. Este trabalho relata pela primeira vez uma possível relação simbiótica protetiva existente entre bactérias e abelhas sem ferrão S. depilis, que podem auxiliar no controle de patógenos dentro das colônias.All living organisms interact in their natural environments, and secondary metabolites play an important role in mediating these interactions. Microorganisms are ubiquitous and establish different types of associations with other organisms, including mutualistic relationships. Recently, an unprecedented symbiosis involving Brazilian stingless bees and microorganisms was described, involving the molecular mechanism underpinning the nutritional mutualism between the stingless bee Scaptotrigona depilis and a fungus that grows inside the brood cells, providing steroidal precursors essential to complete larvae metamorphosis. Other fungi in the brood cell seem to control the development of the fungal food source. Literature has also shown that the protective association between Hymenopteran insects and actinobacteria seems to be widespread. However, no protective association between actinobacteria and S. depilis has been described. Therefore, the aim of the current work was to recover actinobacterial symbionts associated with S. depilis and to test their antimicrobial properties. As a result, 130 microbial strains were isolated from parts of the colony and from the bees, being 26 predicted as actinobacteria. Antagonism assays against pathogenic microorganisms - Beauveria bassiana, Metarhizium anisopliae and Paenibacillus larvae - were performed. Five strains were selected and their extracts presented antimicrobial activity against the pathogens. The ethyl acetate extracts from selected actinobacteria were obtained for the isolation of bioactive compounds. Streptomyces sp. ICBG 2041 yielded one bioactive compound identified as antimycin A, a known antifungal natural product isolated from actinobacteria of the genus Streptomyces sp. Micromonospora sp. ICBG 2040 allowed the isolation of some chromatographic bands, but it was no possible to identify the compounds due to the low yields obtained, which are not satisfactory for spectroscopic analyses. Biological assays and phylogenetic analyses were performed, improving the knowledge about the relationship between S. depilis bees and their associated microorganisms. This work reports for the first time a possible protective symbiotic association between S. depilis bees and its associated bacteria that might control microbial pathogens within the colony

Perceived Social Support Mediates the Negative Impact of Insecure Attachment Orientations on Internalized Homophobia in Gay Men

The mediating effect of perceived social support on the influence of insecure attachment orientations on internalized homophobia was assessed in a group of 70 Italian gay men (mean age\ua0=\ua028.8, SD\ua0=\ua06.2, range: 19-46\ua0years). Participants completed self-report measures of adult attachment (Experiences in Close Relationships-Revised), perceived social support (Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support), and internalized homophobia (Measure of Internalized Sexual Stigma for Lesbians and Gay). Higher levels of attachment anxiety and avoidance, and perceptions of lower social support were correlated with higher levels of internalized homophobia. The mediation analyses showed that only attachment anxiety, but not avoidance, may have a direct link with internalized homophobia, while both anxiety and avoidance may have an indirect influence on internalized homophobia mediated by perceived social support. Improving social support can reduce the negative effects of homophobia on gay men, thus mitigating the detrimental fallout of any insecure attachment orientations

Stress, Resilience, and Well-Being in Italian Children and Their Parents during the COVID-19 Pandemic

The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak has forced parents and children to adopt significant changes in their daily routine, which has been a big challenge for families, with important implications for family stress. In this study, we aimed to analyze the potential risk and protective factors for parents\u2019 and children\u2019s well-being during a potentially traumatic event such as the COVID-19 quarantine. Specifically, we investigated parents\u2019 and children\u2019s well-being, parental stress, and children\u2019s resilience. The study involved 463 Italian parents of children aged 5\u201317. All participants completed an online survey consisting of the Psychological General Well Being Index (PGWB) to assess parental well-being, the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) to measure children\u2019s well-being, the Parent Stress Scale (PSS) to investigate parental stress, and the Child and Youth Resilience Measure (CYRM-R) to measure children\u2019s resilience. The results show that confinement measures and changes in daily routine negatively affect parents\u2019 psychological dimensions, thus exposing children to a significant risk for their well-being. Our results also detect some risk factors for psychological maladjustments, such as parental stress, lower levels of resilience in children, changes in working conditions, and parental psychological, physical, or genetic problems. In this study, we attempted to identify the personal and contextual variables involved in the psychological adjustment to the COVID-19 quarantine to identify families at risk for maladjustment and pave the way for ad hoc intervention programs intended to support them. Our data show promising results for the early detection of the determinants of families\u2019 psychological health. It is important to focus attention on the needs of families and children\u2014including their mental health\u2014to mitigate the health and economic implications of the COVID-19 pandemic