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BackgroundMost people infected with Leishmania remain asymptomatic, which is a common element that may promote the resurgence of clinically evident leishmaniasis in individuals with impaired cell-mediated immune responses. Unfortunately, there is no universally accepted assay to identify asymptomatic infection. This cross-sectional study focuses on the employment of three methods targeting different features of the parasitic infection to be used in combination for the screening of latent leishmaniasis in a newly endemic area of northeastern Italy.Methodology/principal findingsThe selected methods included highly sensitive Real-Time PCR for detection of parasitic kinetoplast (k)DNA in peripheral blood, Western Blot (WB) for detection of specific IgG, and Whole Blood stimulation Assay (WBA) to evaluate the anti-leishmanial T-cell response by quantifying the production of IL-2 after stimulation of patients' blood with Leishmania specific antigens. Among 145 individuals living in a municipality of the Bologna province, northeastern Italy, recruited and screened for Leishmania infection, 23 subjects tested positive (15.9%) to one or more tests. Positive serology was the most common marker of latent leishmaniasis (15/145, 10%), followed by the detection of specific cell-mediated response (12/145, 8%), while only few individuals (6/145, 4%) harbored parasitic DNA in the blood.Conclusions/significanceCombining different tests substantially increased the yield of positivity in detecting latent Leishmania infection. The test combination that we employed in this study appears to be effective to accurately identify latent leishmaniasis in an endemic area.

In August 2022, Italy launched a vaccination campaign to combat the spread of the monkeypox virus, which the WHO has designated as a public health emergency. Priority targets for the campaign included laboratory personnel and men who have sex with men with specific risk criteria. Primary immunization involved two doses of the Imvanex/Jynneos vaccine, followed by a single booster dose. We conducted a study in two Italian towns, Bologna and Forlì, in October and November 2022 to investigate adverse events following immunization (AEFIs) of the monkeypox vaccine through participant-based active surveillance. Participants who received the vaccine and were aged 18 and over were invited to complete an e-questionnaire by scanning a QR code during their second vaccine appointment or by email one month after the booster dose. A descriptive analysis of AEFI incidences was conducted, with the results stratified by type and severity of symptoms. A total of 135 first-dose, 50 second-dose, and 6 single-dose recipients were included, with a mean age of 36.4 ± 8.7 years. Systemic reactions after the first and second doses were reported by 39.3% and 26.0% of participants, respectively, with asthenia being the most common symptom. Local site reactions were reported by 97.0% and 100.0% of participants, respectively, with redness, swelling, and itching being the most common local AEFIs. Grade 3 or 4 AEFIs were reported for local AEFIs only by 16.8% and 14.0% of participants after the first and second doses, respectively. Our findings suggest that the monkeypox vaccine has a high tolerability profile in terms of short-term common systemic AEFIs. However, the high incidence and severity of local AEFIs highlight the need to monitor their persistence following intradermal administration of the vaccine.

(1) Background: vaccination is the most effective way to prevent influenza and reduce its complications. The main aim of the study is to assess a possible increase of parents’/caregivers’ pediatric flu vaccination adherence due to a nasal administration as an alternative to injection in Bologna. (2) Methods: 169 parents/guardians of children who were joining the COVID-19 pediatric vaccination session in Bologna were interviewed. The results were summarized using descriptive statistics. A multiple logistic regression model was used to assess the determinants of the change in flu vaccine uptake if offered without injection administration. All analyses were conducted using STATA and R-Studio software. (3) Results: Only 29.0% of parents were informed about pediatric flu vaccination by pediatricians, and 32.5% heard about pediatric flu vaccination. Almost 72.2% of parents declared that they would not have their children vaccinated against influenza. Thus, 40.2% of them changed their opinion after being informed about the existence of a non-injective vaccine. Needle fear in children turned out to be a determinant of this opinion change (OR = 3.79; 95% CI = 1.63–9.43; p = 0.003). (4) Conclusions: the study has confirmed that needle fear is a determinant of vaccine hesitancy and that a different method of administration may increase parents’/guardians’ adherence.

The authors present a 2014 updated list of 1,110 macromycetes found in the hilly territory of the Province of Bologna , Italy, covering about 1,200 km2 at an altitude ranging mainly between 100 and 600 m. a.s.l.. Moreover, some shorter lists have been extracted from the data, including 36 "very rare" mushrooms (in Italy known only in the Province of Bologna), 20 "rare" (known only in Emilia-Romagna), 86 "vulnerable" (no longer found in the last 22 years in the territory investigated) and 6 which the European Council for Conservation of Fungi has proposed for protection at the European level. The authors suggest a deepening of studies of the entities on these lists, with a census of locations and habitats, aimed at their protection and at the conservation of their natural environments.