A Multicenter Study on Legionella Air Contamination in Italian Healthcare Facilities: Comparison of Different Sampling Methods

Background: Healthcare facilities (HF) represent an at-risk environment for legionellosis transmission occuring after inhaling aerosols produced from contaminated water sources. The control of water is preferred to that of air because to date there are not standardized protocols sampling. Methods: Legionella air contamination was investigated in the bathrooms of 11 HF contaminated with Legionella by active sampling (Surface Air System and Coriolis®?) and passive sampling. During the 8-hour sampling, hot tap water was sampled three times and analyzed for Legionella. Air samples were evaluated using culture based methods, whereas liquid samples collected using the Coriolis©? were also analyzed by real-time PCR. Legionella presence in air and water was compared by sequence-based typing (SBT) methods. Results: Air contamination was found in four HF (36.4%) by at least one of the culturable methods. The culturable investigation by Coriolis did not yield Legionella. However, molecular investigation using Coriolis resulted in eight HF being positive for Legionella in air, which was greater than the number of positives obtained by culturable methods

Meso-Cenozoic paleotopographies and paleolandscapes in the Deseado Massif (Santa Cruz province, Argentina)

International audienceThe Deseado Massif is the southernmost part of a continent, outside of Antarctica, where Gondwana Landscapes may be observed and investigated. This paper present preliminary observations and field data about the Gondwana Landscapes of this cratonic area of Southern Argentina, one of the most remote, isolated and less populated places on Earth. Under extreme cold-arid climate conditions, the region presents very scarce vegetation cover, which further enables the geomorphological observations. Remnants of planation surfaces of undisputable Late Mesozoic age, developed on Jurassic volcanic units and covered by Late Cretaceous and Paleogene sedimentary rocks, are exposed along tens of thousands square kilometres of this cratonic unit. In those remote times, the climate of this portion of Patagonia was very wet and warm, responsible for the development of extensive chemical weathering. Volcanic and sedimentary paleosurfaces of younger ages were also recognized in the regional landscape, allowing a reconstruction of uplift and denudation histories since the Late Mesozoic