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Biomedical subjects

M L Profeta

Publications and source records attributed to M L Profeta.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1997

Simultaneous influenza and pneumococcal vaccination in elderly individuals.

The study was performed to evaluate the effects of influenza and pneumococcal vaccines administered alone or in combination. 124 elderly subjects living in community were vaccinated either with influenza split vaccine or with pneumococcal 23-valent or with both vaccines at the same time in different sites. Sera were tested for hemoagglutination inhibiting antibodies for influenza and for antibodies against 23-valent vaccine for streptococcus pneumoniae. No side effects were observed in the vaccinated population. Serological results indicated that influenza vaccine increased significantly antibody levels. No difference was observed between the group which received influenza vaccine alone and that which received influenza and pneumococcal vaccines associated, considering either G.M.T or the percentages of protected individuals or the percentages of subjects who seroconverted. When pneumococcal vaccine was administered at the same time with influenza vaccine, there was a not statistically significant reduction in both mean antibody concentration and mean fold increase. It is concluded that the simultaneous administration of influenza and pneumococcal vaccines to elderly individuals, including subjects at risk, is safe, effective and economically advantageous.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

A seroepidemiologic survey of immunity against poliomyelitis in a group of HIV positive and HIV negative drug addicts.

In a seroepidemiological study performed to investigate immunity against poliomyelitis in a population of drug addicts in a rehabilitative residential centre we demonstrated a widespread lack of poliovirus neutralizing antibodies. This was more evident in the HIV positive subjects, 27% of whom were seronegative for poliovirus type 1, 27% for type 2 and 34% for type 3, with 11% seronegative for all three types. These results indicate a gap in immunity to poliomyelitis in the examined population.

AIDS Serodiagnosis↗
PubMed1995

Effect of hepatitis C genotype on mother-to-infant transmission of virus.

We evaluated vertical transmission of hepatitis C virus (HCV) in 37 pregnant women, 20 of whom also had human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) antibody. The HCV subtypes 1a and 3a were prevalent among pregnant women with HIV infection. Infection with HCV was transmitted from 30.7% of the 13 mothers with HCV ribonucleic acid (RNA) and HIV antibody and from 25% of the 8 with HCV RNA alone. No mother with HCV antibody but no HCV RNA transmitted HCV to her infant. Subtypes 1b and 3a seemed to be the most common HCV genotypes transmitted.

Adult↗
PubMed1994

Attitudes and behavior of health care personnel regarding influenza vaccination.

This paper reports the results of a study conducted by the Italian Association for Immune-Prophylaxis Promotion (AIP.I) with the aim of surveying the attitudes and perceptions of Italian health care workers regarding the use and efficacy of influenza vaccine. The results clearly show that a high proportion of the questioned health care workers showed a general lack of concern about the severity of the disease. Doubts about vaccine efficacy and fear of post-vaccination side effects were also observed to have an important influence on the vaccination acceptance rates. These data underline the need for a systematic education program to provide influenza vaccination within the public and private health-care sectors in Italy.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗
PubMed1993

Is HCV transmitted by the vertical/perinatal route?

Hepatitis type C is the major aetiological cause of both parenterally transmitted and cryptogenic, sporadic or community acquired nonAnonB hepatitis. The lack of known parenteral risk factors in a consistent number of cases with nonAnonB hepatitis has stimulated the search of other possible modes of viral transmission. The aim of this report is to review the evidence both for and against vertical/perinatal transmission of HCV from anti-HCV positive mothers to infants.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

Seroimmunity to poliomyelitis in an Albanian immigrant population.

The immunity against poliomyelitis in a representative sample of the Albanian population recently immigrant to Italy was evaluated. A significant number of the subjects examined lacked protective antibodies against one or more polioviruses. The most prevalent seronegativity related to poliovirus type 3 (41.3%), followed by poliovirus type 1 (21.5%). This result was more consistent in the younger age groups. Our data suggest the hypothesis that this problem arises from the use of a vaccine of discontinuous efficacy caused by defective preservation. A poliovaccine booster dose for all emigree subjects aged less than 15 years is suggested.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1988

HIV antibody screening and confirmatory testing of Italian blood donors. One-year experience of a reference center.

During the first year (1986) of blood donor screening for antibody to HIV, 201,750 subjects were tested in 40 blood banks of Lombardia (Italy). All sera repeatedly positive by ELISA were submitted to our reference center for confirmation by Western blot (WB). Only 40 (0.02%) of 286 repeatedly reactive donors were positive by WB, whereas another 45 (0.022%) gave atypical antibody reactivities on WB, mainly directed against HIV core proteins. Of the 16 donors with inconclusive WB results followed for 4-12 months, 3 developed a full-blown antibody response, 5 maintained the anti-core reactivity throughout the follow-up period, and 8 lost all reactivities. The use of recombinant env and core antigen ELISAs seems to decrease the proportion of sera with inconclusive WB reactions, and to identify as true positive all seroconverting donors in advance of the WB test. The large majority (35 out of 40) of WB-positive donors and all seroconverters for antibody to HIV admitted to belong to a group at risk for AIDS. Among the 19 first-time donors with HIV infection, we found 3 subjects with serological evidence of LAV-2 infection. We describe also the diagnostic and ethical issues when a donor notification policy is based on WB confirmatory procedures.

Blood Donors↗
PubMed1987

Relative antigenicity in mice of H1N1, H3N2 and B strains present in inactivated influenza virus vaccines.

The results of a study on serum HAI and neutralizing antibodies induced in mice by whole influenza virus vaccines containing A/Brazil/11/78 (H1N1), A/Bangkok/1/79 (H3N2) and B/Singapore/222/79 viruses are reported. According to the GMT of HAI, the antigenic potency of the three vaccine strains appear to be different. The A/Brazil/11/78 antigen induced the lowest HAI antibody responses and the A/Bangkok/1/79 antigen the greatest. This behaviour, with a few exceptions, was noted regardless of the HA amount (0.08 microgram 0.4 microgram, 2 micrograms) of each strain present in the vaccine, the number of doses (one or two), or the kind of preparation (monovalent or trivalent). The data obtained with the neutralization test with vaccines with medium HA content are concordant with previous findings. On the basis of the ratios of the GMT of the neutralizing antibodies to the GMT of the HAI antibodies, it was concluded that the HAI antibodies to A/Bangkok/1/79 antigen possess, on the whole, a neutralizing activity that is higher than that found for the HAI antibodies to A/Brazil/11/78 and B/Singapore/222/79 strains. For the latter strains, the neutralizing activity increased after the second dose. The observation of the different degrees of antigenicity of the three vaccine strains suggests that, with currently used inactivated influenza virus vaccines containing equivalent amounts of all three antigens, the dosage should be taken into consideration when the vaccines are used for subjects lacking in previous exposure to vaccine strains.

Animals↗
PubMed1987

[Relation between serologic verification and anamnestic data on the principal virus diseases of infancy].

Serologic status of about 300 subjects (age: 2-15 years) for measles, rubella, varicella and mumps was compared with the anamnestic recall of their mothers. Measles, rubella and varicella antibodies were determined by ELISA methods. Mumps antibodies were titrated by hemagglutination-inhibition test. Serology agreed with the clinical history of the subject in 83% of the cases for measles, in 69% for rubella, in 87% for varicella and in 82% for mumps. The frequency of seronegative subjects who were reported to have had the disease was low (less than 8%) for each of the four viruses. The opposite situation was found in the 8% of the subjects for measles, in 23% for rubella, in 10% for varicella and in 13% for mumps. In general there was no significant difference in the rate of disagreements between serology and history of the disease in relation to mothers' schooling and occupation (house wives or mothers who work outside the home). Geometric mean titers of hemagglutination-inhibiting antibody to mumps virus sharply declined 3-4 years after the disease and stabilized thereafter. Prevalence of antibodies according to age shows that measles, rubella and varicella antibodies are acquired early in life, while 29% of the subjects 14-15 years of age still lacked mumps antibodies.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1986

A survey on factors affecting acceptance of measles vaccine.

The reasons for the low level of acceptance of measles vaccine were investigated through interviews with the mothers at the time of their children enrollment in the first year of attendance at several nursery schools in Milan city and its suburbs. Data were also collected on the natural disease. Only 192 (13.8%) of the 1386 children included in the study had already suffered natural measles and 45 of them before the age of 12 months. Of the total, 10% of the children had been vaccinated, more in the city of Milan than in the suburbs. Approximately one-half of the vaccinations had been administered by family doctors and the other half in Public Health facilities. Less than half of the vaccinations administered in the city of Milan proved to have been registered in Public Health Office records. The frequency of vaccinated children was significantly higher among mother with higher levels of education than among those with lower levels of education. The reasons for the lack of vaccination most frequently given by the mothers of the 1247 unvaccinated children were "ignorance about the vaccine" (38% of the mothers) and the "belief that measles is an innocuous disease" (36%). These were followed by "fear of post-vaccinal reactions" and "advice against measles vaccine" given, in most cases, by family doctors. The frequency of responses for each one of these reasons was significantly different in Milan with respect to the suburbs. This difference was also evident in the comparisons between mothers with higher levels of education with respect to mothers with low levels of education.

Adult↗
PubMed1986

Serological evidence of human infections with avian influenza viruses. Brief report.

Two hundred ninety-four subjects from Milan were tested for serum hemagglutination-inhibiting (HI) and neuraminidase-inhibiting (NI) antibodies to five avian influenza viruses. No HI antibodies were found in all the serum samples. On the contrary, NI antibodies to each strain were detected depending on the year of birth of the subjects.

Hemagglutination Inhibition Tests↗
PubMed1983

[Neutralizing and inhibiting activity of hemagglutination of serum antibodies after natural infection and after vaccination with influenza virus A/USSR/90/77 (H1N1) strain].

Sera with different content of hemagglutination-inhibiting antibody (h.i.a.) collected from healthy subjects in late summer 1978, from influenza cases which occurred in winters 1977-78 and 1978-79 and from vaccinees in autumn 1978 were checked for neutralizing antibodies (n.a.) to A/USSR/90/77 influenza virus strain. Neutralizing activity (Geometric mean titer of n.a.) of h.i.a. was found dependent chiefly on the previous antigenic experience of the subjects. This because, given the same h.i.a. level, geometric mean titers of n.a. were lower in children and adolescents than in adults more than 24-year-old. For the age of the subjects and for time of collection of sera, the presence of antibodies in the former group is very likely due to the first antigenic stimulus. Moreover among the vaccinated adults the Geometric mean titers of n.a. in sera with the same h.i.a. content were higher in the age group 25-40 years. With any probability this is the cohort with an original antigenic sin due to H1N1 variants. The results have been also discussed in relation to the epidemiological behaviour of H1N1 strains in the first years of the second prevalence era. The above observations suggest caution in adopting the only hemagglutination-inhibition test for evaluating the immune status of populations and the immunizing efficacy of influenza virus vaccines.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1983

[An influenza outbreak of type A and type B influenza viruses].

Results of investigations carried out during an outbreak of influenza occurred in January 1981 in a School of Milan are reported and discussed. A total of 9 type A (H1N1) influenza virus strains, antigenically intermediate between A/USSR/90/77 and A/Brazil/11/78 variants, and 2 type B influenza virus strains, antigenically intermediate between B/Hong Kong/8/73 and B/Singapore/222/79 variants, have been isolated. In one case both epidemic strains have been simultaneously detected. From the results of type-specific complement-fixing antibody titration it appears that an influenza virus infection occurred in 64% of the 300 subjects serologically examined. In 43% of the cases type A strain was involved, in 12% type B strain and in 9% both serotypes. Judging from the data of school absenteeism it seems that infections by type A virus were more severe than those by type B virus. Finally, because a group of pupils attending the school had been vaccinated in December 1978, it has been demonstrated that the rate of type A presumptive infections was correlated to the hemagglutination-inhibiting antibody titers attained after vaccination.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1981

[Capacity of anti-influenza subunit vaccines to elicit the formation of heterologous antibodies].

The hemoagglutination-inhibiting antibody (h.i.a) response to A/Brazil/11/78 (H1 N1), A/Bangkok/1/79 (H3 N2) and B/Singapore/222/79 strains was evaluated in children and adults after administration of trivalent A/USSR/ 90/77 (H1 N1), A/Texas/1/77 (H3 N2), B/Hong Kong/8/73 influenza vaccines, two containing sub-unit and one whole virus. For each group of vaccinees, the behaviour of heterologous h.i.a. was compared to that of homologous antibodies. The rates of titer increases and the post-vaccinal geometric mean titers indicate that sub-unit vaccines are as immunogenic as whole virus vaccine in evoking heterologous antibodies. The greater difference between homologous and heterologous h.i.a. titers was found in adults for H3 N2 strains, the smaller for H1 N1 viruses. For the latter strains low post-vaccinal h.i.a. levels have been observed in all groups of vaccinees. In this regard the hypothesis has been put forward that immunogenicity of vaccines may be dependent on some intrinsic virus properties.

Adult↗
PubMed1980

[Comparison between killed subunit influenza vaccines and whole virion preparations: study of reactions and protective efficacy in children and adults].

Three hundred eight subjects (of whom 103 children aged 6-12 years) were vaccinated with trivalent--A/USSR/90/77 (H1N1), A/Texas/1/77 (H3N2), B/Hong Kong/8/73 strains--influenza virus vaccines, two of them sub-unit and the third whole-virus preparation. Children and adolescent received two doses with an interval of 4 weeks, adults one dose only. The results of the determination by single radial diffusion test of the hemagglutinin amount for each of the three vaccinal strains and the data of the mouse immunogenicity test show that the antigenic content of A/USSR/90/77 strain in the sub-unit preparations was lower than expected from the concentration in I.U. reported by the vaccine manufacturers. Therefore it is pointed out the necessity to control the antigenic content of inactivated influenza virus vaccines with methods more adequate than those currently adopted. Sub-unit vaccines were much less reactogenic than the whole-virus preparation particularly in the youngest group of vaccinees. The immunogenicity (assessed by serum h.i.a. titers) of sub-unit vaccines, even after a single dose, turned out to be good and equal to that of the whole-virus preparation in primed subjects. In unprimed individuals, as it is shown by the data relative to the A/USSR/90/77 strain in sero-negative children, a two dose regimen is required. In these vaccines the whole-virus vaccine was more immunogenic than the sub-unit preparations, probably because of the lower content in the H1N1 strain of the latter. The increase from 1 ml (1 dose) to 1.6 ml the amount of vaccine, as experimented in adults with one sub-unit preparation, was not followed by an increase in reactogenicity. The larger dose did not influence the antibody response of primed subjects. On the contrary in unprimed vaccinees, as the youngest under 24 years without preexisting antibodies to the H1N1 strain in the present trial, the higher antigenic content produced a marked positive effect.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1979

[Serologic survey of human type A influenza virus infection following 10-year periods of prevalence of H3N2 strains].

Distribution of h.i.a. against A/New Jersey/8/76 (Hsw1N1), A/PR/8/34 (H0N1), A/FM/1/47 (H1N1), A/Japan/305/57 (H2N2) influenza virus strains was determined in 553 serum samples, previously tested for A/Hong Kong/1/68 virus, collected in the late summer of 1977 in Milan and Bari. For all variants, distinctive antibody patterns were obtained which reflect periods of prevalence of these viruses in man. So, the peak of positivity and the higher h.i.a. levels were found for A/New Jersey/8/76 strain in subjects born between 1907 and 1916, in the case of A/PR/8/34 virus for the birth years 1927-36, ten years later (1937-46) for A/FM/1/47 strain and for A/Japan/305/57 and A/Hong Kong/1/68 variants respectively for the birth years 1947-56 and 1962-66. The presence of antibodies to influenza A viruses not supposed to have been current during the person's lifetime has been discussed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1979

[Characteristics of the virus and of measles vaccines (author's transl)].

Characteristics of measles virus and some aspects of virus-cell interaction are reported. For their interest, findings from recents investigations on comparison between SSPE isolates and wild strains are summarized. Both inactivated and live attenuated measles vaccines are then briefly described. The former has been used in the U.S.A. from 1963 to 1968 and discontinued thereafter mainly for safety problems, the latter, prepared with Schwarz or with Moraten strain, are in use today for the prophylaxis against measles.

Animals↗