Impact of an air bubble within the syringe on test results obtained with a modern blood gas analyzer.

Background: Minimizing air aspiration by carefully filling blood gas syringes is crucial to prevent air contamination from causing undesirable variations in gasses and other molecules. While some previous studies investigated this aspect, these are now outdated and only analyzed a limited number of blood gas parameters. Thus, we investigated the effects air contamination in the syringe using a modern blood gas analyzer.

Preanalytical Impact of Incomplete KEDTA Blood Tube Filling in Molecular Biology Testing.

Background And Aims: The aim of this study was to investigate the possible preanalytical effect of incomplete filling of blood tubes on molecular biology assays.

Materials And Methods: The study population consisted of 13 healthy volunteers from whom 11 mL of whole blood was collected and then distributed in different volumes (1.5, 3.

Effects of recombinant SARS-CoV-2 spike protein variants on red blood cells parameters and red blood cell distribution width.

We planned a series of experiments to investigate the possible role of spike protein of different SARS-CoV-2 variants in influencing erythrocyte biology. The values of erythrocyte count, hemoglobin, and mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MHC) did not vary across all samples challenged with both concentrations of the four different SARS-CoV-2 recombinant spike proteins. A significant increase in mean corpuscular volume (MCV) was observed with the recombinant SARS-CoV-2 Alpha and Delta spike proteins at both 2 and 20 ng/mL final concentrations.

Analytical evaluation of the novel Mindray high sensitivity cardiac troponin I immunoassay on CL-1200i.

Objectives: The current study was designed to evaluate the analytical performance of the new Mindray highly sensitive cardiac troponin I (hs-cTnI) chemiluminescent immunoassay on Mindray CL-1200i, as a thorough validation of novel hs-cTnI methods is required before introduction into clinical practice.

Methods: The evaluation of the analytical performance of this hs-cTnI immunoassay encompassed the calculation of the limit of blank (LOB), limit of detection (LOD), functional sensitivity, imprecision, linearity, 99th percentile upper reference limit (URL) and concordance with another previously validated hs-cTnI chemiluminescent immunoassay.

Results: The LOB and LOD were 0.

Vaccination time does not influence total anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies response.

We measured total anti-SARS-CoV-2 receptor-biding domain (RBD) antibodies in 249 healthcare workers (mean age: 44 ± 13 years; 151 women), who received the first dose of mRNA-based Comirnaty COVID-19 vaccine at different times of the day. Compared with the reference vaccination time point (i.e.

Urine dipstick for screening plasma glucose and bilirubin in low resource settings: a proof-of-concept study.

Objectives: The purpose of this proof-of-concept study was to investigate whether a commercially available urine dipstick may provide potentially useful information for screening plasma glucose and bilirubin in human plasma samples.

Methods: Glucose and bilirubin were assayed in 60 anonymized lithium-heparin residual plasma samples using the Roche COBAS 8000 or after pipetting 10 µL of plasma onto the pads of a commercial urine dipstick. Semiquantitative urine test results obtained with the dipstick were directly compared to paired test results obtained with COBAS.

Are anti-SARS-CoV-2 S/N IgG/IgM antibodies always predictive of previous SARS-CoV-2 infection?

Objectives: We planned this study to verify whether immunoassays for quantifying anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG/IgM antibodies against both spike (S) and nucleocapsid (N) proteins may be used for identifying previous SARS-CoV-2 infections.

Methods: The study population consisted of a cohort of fully vaccinated healthcare workers. All study subjects underwent regular medical visits and molecular testing for diagnosing SARS-CoV-2 infections every 2-4 weeks between 2020-2022.

Effect of syringe underfilling on the quality of venous blood gas analysis.

Objectives: There is limited information on the influence of collecting small amounts of blood on the quality of blood gas analysis. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of different degrees of underfilling of syringes on test results of venous blood gas analysis.

Methods: Venous blood was collected by venipuncture from 19 healthcare workers in three 1.

Plasma Bile Acid Profiling and Modulation of Secreted Mucin 5AC in Cholangiocarcinoma.

Studies investigating the potential role of circulating bile acids (BAs) as diagnostic biomarkers for cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) are sparse and existing data do not adjust for confounding variables. Furthermore, the mechanism by which BAs affect the expression of the oncogenic mucin 5AC (MUC5AC) has never been investigated. We performed a case-control study to characterise the profile of circulating BAs in patients with CCA ( = 68) and benign biliary disease (BBD, = 48) with a validated liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry technique.

Incomplete filling of spray-dried KEDTA evacuated blood tubes: impact on measuring routine hematological parameters on Sysmex XN-10.

Objectives: Because there is little published evidence on the effects of incomplete filling of KEDTA evacuated blood tubes on routine hematological testing, this original study aimed to provide updated information on this preanalytical aspect.

Methods: The study population consisted of 17 ostensibly healthy volunteers. Blood was drawn by venipuncture with a 10 mL syringe and dispensed in varying amounts (0.

Effects of Recombinant SARS-CoV-2 Spike Protein Variants on Platelet Morphology and Activation.

Platelets are central elements of hemostasis and also play a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of thrombosis in coronavirus disease 2019. This study was planned to investigate the effects of different severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) recombinant spike protein variants on platelet morphology and activation. Citrated whole blood collected from ostensibly healthy subjects was challenged with saline (control sample) and with 2 and 20 ng/mL final concentration of SARS-CoV-2 recombinant spike protein of Ancestral, Alpha, Delta, and Omicron variants.

Effects of Different Types of Recombinant SARS-CoV-2 Spike Protein on Circulating Monocytes' Structure.

This study investigated the biological effects on circulating monocytes after challenge with SARS-CoV-2 recombinant spike protein. Whole blood collected from seven ostensibly healthy healthcare workers was incubated for 15 min with 2 and 20 ng/mL final concentration of recombinant spike protein of Ancestral, Alpha, Delta, and Omicron variants. Samples were analyzed with Sysmex XN and DI-60 analyzers.

SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in inflammatory neurological conditions: a multicentre retrospective comparative study.

It is well established that neurological and non-neurological autoimmune disorders can be triggered by viral infections. It remains unclear whether SARS-CoV-2 infection induces similar conditions and whether they show a distinctive phenotype. We retrospectively identified patients with acute inflammatory CNS conditions referred to our laboratory for antibody testing during the pandemic (March 1 to August 31, 2020).

Clinical assessment of SNIBE Maglumi SARS-CoV-2 antigen fully-automated chemiluminescent immunoassay.

Objectives: Given that SARS-CoV-2 antigen tests will represent a pillar for supporting or surrogating molecular testing in the endemic period, we report here the clinical performance of the new SNIBE Maglumi SARS-CoV-2 antigen fully-automated chemiluminescent immunoassay (MAG-CLIA SARS-CoV-2 Ag).

Methods: The study population consisted of 181 subjects (mean age 61 ± 21 years; 92 females) undergoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) testing at the local diagnostic facility, from December 2022 to February 2023. Routine diagnostic practice involved the collection of a double nostril nasopharyngeal swab, analyzed in duplicate with SARS-CoV-2 antigen (MAG-CLIA SARS-CoV-2 Ag) and molecular (Altona Diagnostics RealStar SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR Kit) tests.

Association analysis of 10 candidate genes causing Mendelian calcium nephrolithiasis in the INCIPE study: a South European general population cohort.

Background: Idiopathic calcium nephrolithiasis (ICN) is a common condition with a complex phenotype influenced by both environmental and genetic factors. In our study we investigated the association of allelic variants with the history of nephrolithiasis.

Methods: We genotyped and selected 10 candidate genes potentially related to ICN from 3046 subjects participating in the INCIPE survey cohort (Initiative on Nephropathy, of relevance to public health, which is Chronic, possibly in its Initial stages, and carries a Potential risk of major clinical End-points), a study enrolling subjects from the general population in the Veneto region in Italy.