Haplotype data and forensic evaluation of 23 Y-STR and 12 X-STR loci in eight ethnic groups from Eritrea.

Eritrea is a multi-ethnic country of over 3 million of people consisting of different ethnic groups, having each its own language and cultural tradition. Due to the lack of population genetic data for markers of forensic interest, in this study, we analyzed the genetic polymorphisms of 23 Y-chromosome STR loci and of 12 X-chromosome STR loci in a sample of 255 unrelated individuals from 8 Eritrean ethnic groups, with the aim to generate a reference haplotype database for anthropological and forensic applications. X- and Y-chromosomes markers may indeed offer information especially in personal identification and kinship testing, when relying on the availability of large local population data to derive sufficiently accurate frequency estimates.

Detection of bovine central nervous system tissues in rendered animal by-products by one-step real-time reverse transcription PCR assay.

Contamination of rendered animal byproducts with central nervous system tissues (CNST) from animals with bovine spongiform encephalopathy is considered one of the vehicles of disease transmission. Removal from the animal feed chain of CNST originated from cattle of a specified age category, species-labeling of rendered meat products, and testing of rendered products for bovine CNST are tasks associated with the epidemiological control of bovine spongiform encephalopathy. A single-step TaqMan real-time reverse transcriptase (RRT) PCR assay was developed and evaluated for specific detection of bovine glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) mRNA, a biomarker of bovine CNST, in rendered animal by-products.

Candidemia in intensive care unit: a nationwide prospective observational survey (GISIA-3 study) and review of the European literature from 2000 through 2013.

Background: Candida bloodstream infections (BSI) represent an important problem in Intensive Care Units (ICUs). The epidemiology of candidemia is changing with an increase in the proportion of Candida (C.) non-albicans.

Antifungal susceptibility of invasive yeast isolates in Italy: the GISIA3 study in critically ill patients.

Background: Yeasts are a common cause of invasive fungal infections in critically ill patients. Antifungal susceptibility testing results of clinically significant fungal strains are of interest to physicians, enabling them to adopt appropriate strategies for empiric and prophylactic therapies. We investigated the antifungal susceptibility of yeasts isolated over a 2-year period from hospitalised patients with invasive yeast infections.

High-resolution epitope mapping for monoclonal antibodies to the structural protein Erns of classical swine fever virus using peptide array and random peptide phage display approaches.

The structural glycoprotein E(rns) (an envelope protein with RNase activity) of classical swine fever virus (CSFV) is not well characterized with respect to its antigenic structure and organization. Here, we investigated the antigenic sites on E(rns) by raising mAbs against the Escherichia coli expressed E(rns) of CSFV strain Alfort/187 and defined the B-cell epitopes recognized by these antibodies. Eighteen mAbs to E(rns) were identified and they were classified as either immunoglobulin subclass G1 or G2b.