Characterization of the Pathogenic Potential of the Beach Sand Microbiome and Assessment of Quicklime as a Remediation Tool.

Beach sand may act as a reservoir for potential human pathogens, posing a public health risk. Despite this, the microbiological monitoring of sand microbiome is rarely performed to determine beach quality. In this study, the sand microbial population of a Northern Adriatic Sea beach sand was profiled by microbiological (CFU counts) and molecular methods (WGS, microarray), showing significant presence of potential human pathogens including drug-resistant strains.

Towards an objective theory of subjective liking: A first step in understanding the sense of beauty.

The study of the electroencephalogram signals recorded from subjects during an experience is a way to understand the brain processes that underlie their physical and emotional involvement. Such signals have the form of time series, and their analysis could benefit from applying techniques that are specific to this kind of data. Neuroaesthetics, as defined by Zeki in 1999, is the scientific approach to the study of aesthetic perceptions of art, music, or any other experience that can give rise to aesthetic judgments, such as liking or disliking a painting.

Potential Use of a Combined Bacteriophage-Probiotic Sanitation System to Control Microbial Contamination and AMR in Healthcare Settings: A Pre-Post Intervention Study.

Microbial contamination in the hospital environment is a major concern for public health, since it significantly contributes to the onset of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs), which are further complicated by the alarming level of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) of HAI-associated pathogens. Chemical disinfection to control bioburden has a temporary effect and can favor the selection of resistant pathogens, as observed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, probiotic-based sanitation (probiotic cleaning hygiene system, PCHS) was reported to stably abate pathogens, AMR, and HAIs.

Shaping the subway microbiome through probiotic-based sanitation during the COVID-19 emergency: a pre-post case-control study.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the extent to which the public transportation environment, such as in subways, may be important for the transmission of potential pathogenic microbes among humans, with the possibility of rapidly impacting large numbers of people. For these reasons, sanitation procedures, including massive use of chemical disinfection, were mandatorily introduced during the emergency and remain in place. However, most chemical disinfectants have temporary action and a high environmental impact, potentially enhancing antimicrobial resistance (AMR) of the treated microbes.

Next-generation sequencing and PCR technologies in monitoring the hospital microbiome and its drug resistance.

The hospital environment significantly contributes to the onset of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs), which represent one of the most frequent complications occurring in healthcare facilities worldwide. Moreover, the increased antimicrobial resistance (AMR) characterizing HAI-associated microbes is one of the human health's main concerns, requiring the characterization of the contaminating microbial population in the hospital environment. The monitoring of surface microbiota in hospitals is generally addressed by microbial cultural isolation.