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Background: Cases of COVID-19 infection have increased sharply in Europe since August 2020, and the WHO recommend the use of respirators in situations where keeping distance is not possible. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of the use of respirators on infection cases and viral deaths in European countries., Methods: COVID-19 cases and related deaths in 29 countries relative to population were searched through the WHO database on 15.10.2020. Recent 14-day cases in relation to the population were retrieved from the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control's website, covering the period from 1 to 14 October 2020. Information related to the use of respirators was retrieved from the IHME database of the University of Washington at time point, 1.6.2020., Results: The proportion of people using of respirators at 1.6.2020 correlate negatively to the reported cases of disease (Rs = -0.528) and to deaths (Rs = -0.553). No significant correlation was found for recent cases or mortality. Countries with at least 60% respirator use did not differ from other countries., Conclusion: Long-term use of respirators appears to reduce disease incidence and death in the population., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest statement The authors declare no conflict of interest., (©2021 Pacini Editore SRL, Pisa, Italy.)

These updated EBMT guidelines review the clinical evidence, registry activity and mechanisms of action of haematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) in multiple sclerosis (MS) and other immune-mediated neurological diseases and provide recommendations for patient selection, transplant technique, follow-up and future development. The major focus is on autologous HSCT (aHSCT), used in MS for over two decades and currently the fastest growing indication for this treatment in Europe, with increasing evidence to support its use in highly active relapsing remitting MS failing to respond to disease modifying therapies. aHSCT may have a potential role in the treatment of the progressive forms of MS with a significant inflammatory component and other immune-mediated neurological diseases, including chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy, neuromyelitis optica, myasthenia gravis and stiff person syndrome. Allogeneic HSCT should only be considered where potential risks are justified. Compared with other immunomodulatory treatments, HSCT is associated with greater short-term risks and requires close interspeciality collaboration between transplant physicians and neurologists with a special interest in these neurological conditions before, during and after treatment in accredited HSCT centres. Other experimental cell therapies are developmental for these diseases and patients should only be treated on clinical trials.

Longhorn beetles are ecologically important insects in forest ecosystems as decomposers of woody substrates, microhabitat engineers, and as components of forest food webs. These species can be greatly affected both positively and negatively by modern forestry management practices, and should be monitored accordingly. Through headspace sampling, coupled gas chromatography-electroantennography, gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, and field bioassays, we identified two compounds, 2-methyl-1-butanol and 3-hydroxy-2-hexanone, that constitute aggregation-sex pheromone attractants of three cerambycid species which breed primarily in different types of fresh, recently dead oak wood in Northern Europe: Pyrrhidium sanguineum (L.), Phymatodes alni ssp. alni (L.), and Phymatodes testaceus (L.) (Cerambycinae: Callidiini). Analyses of headspace volatiles collected from live insects indicated that the male-produced aggregation-sex pheromone of P. sanguineum is a 1-15:100 blend of (R)-2-methyl-1-butanol and (R)-3-hydroxy-2-hexanone, whereas the corresponding ratios for P. alni were 70-110:100. In field bioassays, adult P. sanguineum and P. alni were significantly attracted to multiple blends with varying ratios of the two compounds. When tested individually, the compounds were minimally attractive. In contrast, adult P. testaceus exhibited nonspecific attraction to both of the individual compounds and to different blends, despite the hydroxyketone not being part of its pheromone, which consists of (R)-2-methyl-1-butanol alone. Overall, our results suggest that a blend of 50:100 of racemic 2-methyl-1-butanol and 3-hydroxy-2-hexanone is appropriate for parallel, cost-efficient pheromone-based monitoring of all three species. In particular, these species could serve as useful indicators of how modern forestry practices affect a whole guild of saproxylic insects that require ephemeral deadwood substrates for successful breeding.