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This study evaluated the effectiveness of a comprehension program integrated with social studies instruction designed for at-risk second graders. The program included instruction in cause-effect text structure, emphasizing clue words, generic questions, graphic organizers, and the close analysis of specially constructed cause-effect target paragraphs. This program was compared (a) to a content-only program that focused only on social studies and did not include text structure instruction and (b) to a no-instruction control. Fifteen classroom teachers, randomly assigned to treatment, provided the instruction. The program improved the comprehension of instructional cause-effect texts, and there were transfer effects on some comprehension measures. The performance of the 2 instructed groups did not differ on any of the content measures, indicating that such integrated instruction can be accomplished without a loss in the amount of content acquired. This study supports our previous findings on the effectiveness of explicit instruction at the primary-grade level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Detection of SARS-CoV-2 in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) is considered as a promising alternative method to detect COVID-19 infection. STANDARD™ M10 SARS-CoV-2 assay on 150 negative and 50 positives BAL samples for SARS-CoV-2 showed 96 % sensitivity, 100 % specificity compared to Allplex™ SARS-CoV-2 assay and a 31.25 genomic copies/mL limit of detection., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: Outside of the submitted work, AA and GMR received honoraria from SD Biosensor for presentations at meetings within educational workshops., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Inc.) more...

Antibiotic resistance is a major global health threat, necessitating the development of new treatments and diverse molecules to combat severe infections and preserve the efficacy of existing drugs. Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) offer a versatile arsenal against bacteria, and peptide structure branching can enhance their resistance to proteases and improve their overall efficacy. A small library of peptides derived from natural host defense peptides and synthesized in a tetrabranched form was selected against E. coli . Six selected branched peptides were further studied for antibacterial activity against a panel of strains, biofilm inhibition, protease resistance, and cytotoxicity. Their structure was predicted computationally and their mechanism of action was investigated by electron microscopy and by using fluorescent dyes. The peptide BAMP2 showed promise in a mouse skin infection model, indicating the potential for local infection treatment. more...

FIM-1 metallo-β-lactamase was previously detected in sporadic Pseudomonas aeruginosa clinical isolates. Here, we report on FIM-1-positive P. aeruginosa from two patients who had shared the same ward in a long-term acute care rehabilitation hospital. Whole-genome sequencing analysis revealed close relatedness of these isolates, which belonged to an ST235 sublineage (clade 8/14) different from those previously reported. Results highlighted the occurrence of clonal diversity among FIM-positive strains and the possibility of their cross-transmission in some healthcare settings., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest. more...

Purpose: Campylobacter is a frequent cause of enteric infections with common antimicrobial resistance issues. The most recent reports of campylobacteriosis in Italy include data from 2013 to 2016. We aimed to provide national epidemiological and microbiological data on human Campylobacter infections in Italy during the period 2017-2021., Methods: Data was collected from 19 Hospitals in 13 Italian Regions. Bacterial identification was performed by mass spectrometry. Antibiograms were determined with Etest or Kirby-Bauer (EUCAST criteria)., Results: In total, 5419 isolations of Campylobacter spp. were performed. The most common species were C. jejuni (n = 4535, 83.7%), followed by C. coli (n = 732, 13.5%) and C. fetus (n = 34, 0.6%). The mean age of patients was 34.61 years and 57.1% were males. Outpatients accounted for 54% of the cases detected. Campylobacter were isolated from faeces in 97.3% of cases and in 2.7% from blood. C. fetus was mostly isolated from blood (88.2% of cases). We tested for antimicrobial susceptibility 4627 isolates (85.4%). Resistance to ciprofloxacin and tetracyclines was 75.5% and 54.8%, respectively; resistance to erythromycin was 4.8%; clarithromycin 2% and azithromycin 2%. 50% of C. jejuni and C. coli were resistant to ≥ 2 antibiotics. Over the study period, resistance to ciprofloxacin and tetracyclines significantly decreased (p < 0.005), while resistance to macrolides remained stable., Conclusion: Campylobacter resistance to fluoroquinolones and tetracyclines in Italy is decreasing but is still high, while macrolides retain good activity., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.) more...

FIM-1 is an acquired metallo-β-lactamase identified in a multidrug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa (index strain FI-14/157) of clinical origin isolated in 2007 in Florence, Italy. Here we report on a second case of infection by FIM-1-positive P. aeruginosa (FI-17645), which occurred in 2020 in the same hospital. Both FIM-1-positive strains exhibited resistance to all anti- Pseudomonas antibiotics except colistin and cefiderocol. Comparative genomic characterization revealed that the two FIM-positive strains were closely related [core genome difference, 16 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs)], suggesting a local circulation of similar strains. In the FI-14/157 index strain, the bla FIM-1 gene was associated with an IS CR19 -like element that likely contributed to its capture downstream an integron platform inserted aboard a Tn 21 -like transposon, named Tn 7703.1 , which was associated with a large integrative and conjugative element (ICE) named ICE 7705 .1, integrated into an att site located within the 3'-end of tRNA Gly CCC gene of the P. aeruginosa chromosome. In strain FI-17645, bla FIM-1 was associated with a closely related ICE, named ICE 7705 . 2 , integrated in the same chromosomal site. Similar ICE platforms, lacking the bla FIM-1 -containing region, were detected in other ST235 P. aeruginosa strains from different geographic areas, suggesting a common ancestry and underscoring the role of these elements in the dissemination of resistance genes in P. aeruginosa . Sequence database mining revealed two draft P. aeruginosa genomes, one from Italy and one from the USA (both isolated in 2012), including a contig with bla FIM-1 , suggesting that this resistance gene could have a broader distribution than originally anticipated., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest. more...

Diagnosing COVID-19 and treating its complications remains a challenge. This review reflects the perspective of some of the Dragon (IMI 2-call 21, #101005122) research consortium collaborators on the utility of bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) in COVID-19. BAL has been proposed as a potentially useful diagnostic tool to increase COVID-19 diagnosis sensitivity. In both critically ill and non-critically ill COVID-19 patients, BAL has a relevant role in detecting other infections or supporting alternative diagnoses and can change management decisions in up to two-thirds of patients. BAL is used to guide steroid and immunosuppressive treatment and to narrow or discontinue antibiotic treatment, reducing the use of unnecessary broad antibiotics. Moreover, cellular analysis and novel multi-omics techniques on BAL are of critical importance for understanding the microenvironment and interaction between epithelial cells and immunity, revealing novel potential prognostic and therapeutic targets. The BAL technique has been described as safe for both patients and healthcare workers in more than a thousand procedures reported to date in the literature. Based on these preliminary studies, we recognize that BAL is a feasible procedure in COVID-19 known or suspected cases, useful to properly guide patient management, and has great potential for research., Competing Interests: ST declares consultancy and speaker’s fees from Roche and Boehringer Ingelheim. The remaining authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Tomassetti, Ciani, Luzzi, Gori, Trigiani, Giuntoli, Lavorini, Poletti, Ravaglia, Torrego, Maldonado, Lentz, Annunziato, Maggi, Rossolini, Pollini, Para, Ciurleo, Casini, Rasero, Bartoloni, Spinicci, Munavvar, Gasparini, Comin, Cerinic, Peired, Henket, Ernst, Louis, Corhay, Nardi and Guiot.) more...