One-Year Surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 Exposure in Stray Cats and Kennel Dogs from Northeastern Italy.

Dogs and cats are susceptible to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). During the pandemic, several studies have been performed on owned cats and dogs, whereas limited data are available on the exposure to stray animals. The objective of this study was to investigate the exposure to SARS-CoV-2 of feral cats and kennel dogs in northeastern Italy, through serological and molecular methods.

Corneal transplantation during the COVID-19 pandemic: An operational guide.

Purpose: To provide an operational guide for corneal transplantation during the COVID-19 pandemic aimed to maintain surgery and avoid spreading of SARS-CoV-2.

Methods: Prospective observational case series study in patients requiring corneal graft manage toward separate free and restricted pathways for those COVID-19 negative or positive, respectively.

Results: During the national lockdown, 30 consecutive patients underwent endothelial ( = 16), penetrating ( = 9), and anterior lamellar keratoplasty ( = 5).

Assessment of the direct quantitation of SARS-CoV-2 by droplet digital PCR.

Droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) is a sensitive and reproducible technology widely used for quantitation of several viruses. The aim of this study was to evaluate the 2019-nCoV CDC ddPCR Triplex Probe Assay (BioRad) performance, comparing the direct quantitation of SARS-CoV-2 on nasopharyngeal swab with the procedure applied to the extracted RNA. Moreover, two widely used swab types were compared (UTM 3 mL and ESwab 1 mL, COPAN).

Assessment of the interlaboratory variability and robustness of JAK2V617F mutation assays: A study involving a consortium of 19 Italian laboratories.

To date, a plenty of techniques for the detection of JAK2V617F is used over different laboratories, with substantial differences in specificity and sensitivity. Therefore, to provide reliable and comparable results, the standardization of molecular techniques is mandatory.A network of 19 centers was established to 1) evaluate the inter- and intra-laboratory variability in JAK2V617F quantification, 2) identify the most robust assay for the standardization of the molecular test and 3) allow consistent interpretation of individual patient analysis results.

Significance of anti-HBc only in blood donors: a serological and virological study after hepatitis B vaccination.

Background: Blood donors positive only for anti-HBc may have a resolved hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection, low grade chronic infection or infection with variant strains of HBV. We aimed to assess the significance of this serological pattern after hepatitis B vaccination in such cases.

Materials And Methods: Twenty-four anti-HBc only blood donors were vaccinated with the Engerix HBV vaccine and a serological and virological evaluation was performed before HBV vaccination and 7-10 days after each dose.

A multicenter evaluation of the Abbott RealTime HCV Genotype II assay.

Genotype determination is recommended before starting anti-HCV therapy to determine the duration of treatment (PEG-Interferon+ribavirin). The Versant HCV Genotype 2.0 assay, based on the reverse hybridization of the 5'UTR segment and core region of hepatitis C virus (HCV), has been one of the assays used most widely for HCV genotyping.