Publications by authors named "Gastaldo C"

Single-solute batch kinetic and isotherm experiments were conducted in Type 1 (18.2 MΩ·cm resistivity) water supplemented with 10 mM carbonate buffer (pH 7.75, 25 °C) for nine drinking water relevant perfluoroalkyl chemicals and three bituminous-coal based granular activated carbons (GACs).

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Article Synopsis
  • COVID-19 patients appear to have a higher prevalence of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) compared to non-COVID-19 patients, with a significant difference found before matching groups.
  • Antimicrobial use (AMU) was initially higher in COVID-19 patients, but this difference diminished after matching patients for factors like age and severity of conditions.
  • The study suggests that the increased risk of HAIs in COVID-19 patients may stem from underlying health issues rather than the virus itself, highlighting the need for better management of antimicrobials in these patients.
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Background: In November 2022, Italy participated in the third edition of the European Centre for disease prevention and control (ECDC) point prevalence survey (PPS) of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) in acute-care hospitals. A questionnaire based on the WHO infection prevention and control assessment framework (IPCAF) was included, which aims to investigate multimodal strategies for the implementation of IPC interventions.

Methods: A PPS was conducted using the ECDC PPS protocol version 6.

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Article Synopsis
  • - The study assessed how selective certain drinking water-related PFAS compounds are for chloride ions using three types of anion exchange resins, focusing on low concentrations relevant to drinking water (≤500 ng/L).
  • - Results showed that most PFAS behaved according to traditional ion exchange principles, with selectivity increasing with both PFAS carbon chain length and chloride concentrations, while maintaining a much higher selectivity than inorganic anions like nitrate.
  • - A competition experiment confirmed that selectivity values for individual PFAS could be used in a multisolute context, paving the way for improved models in water treatment processes involving PFAS.
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A coconut shell (AC1230CX) and a bituminous coal based (F400) granular activated carbon (GAC) were ground with mortar and pestle (MP), a blender, and a bench-scale ball milling unit (BMU). Blender was the most time-efficient for particle size reduction. Four size fractions ranging from 20 × 40 to 200 × 325 were characterized along with the bulk GACs.

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When implementing anion exchange (AEX) for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances treatment, temporal drinking water quality changes from concurrent inorganic anion (IA) removal can create unintended consequences (e.g., corrosion control impacts).

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Hand hygiene (HH) is one of the most important infection prevention and control strategies at the hospital level. The aim of this study was to evaluate the potential COVID-19 pandemic impact on HH practices and rate of healthcare-associated infections. Data on alcohol-based handrub consumption (AHC) and antimicrobial resistance across 27 Italian hospitals over the period 2017-2021 were considered.

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species are characterized by a net of laticifers producing large amounts of triterpenes. These hydrocarbon-like metabolites can be converted into fuel by the methods of the oil industry. is easily grown at an industrial scale.

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S-Carvone has been described as a negative regulator of mevalonic acid (MVA) production by interfering with 3-hydroxy-3-methyl glutaryl coenzyme A reductase (HMGR) activity, a key player in isoprenoid biosynthesis. The impact of this monoterpene on the production of capsidiol in Nicotiana tabacum, an assumed MVA-derived sesquiterpenoid phytoalexin produced in response to elicitation by cellulase, was investigated. As expected, capsidiol production, as well as early stages of elicitation such as hydrogen peroxide production or stimulation of 5-epi-aristolochene synthase activity, were repressed.

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