Past, present and future of chamois science

The chamois Rupicapra spp. is the most abundant mountain ungulate of Europe and the Near East, where it occurs as two spe- cies, the northern chamois R. rupicapra and the southern chamois R. pyrenaica. Here, we provide a state-of-the-art overview of research trends and the most challenging issues in chamois research and conservation, focusing on taxonomy and systematics, genetics, life history, ecology and behavior, physiology and disease, management and conservation. Research on Rupicapra has a longstanding history and has contributed substantially to the biological and ecological knowledge of mountain ungulates. Although the number of publications on this genus has markedly increased over the past two decades, major differences persist with respect to knowledge of species and subspecies, with research mostly focusing on the Alpine chamois R. r. rupicapra and, to a lesser extent, the Pyrenean chamois R. p. pyrenaica. In addition, a scarcity of replicate studies of populations of different subspecies and/or geographic areas limits the advancement of chamois science. Since environmental heterogeneity impacts behavioral, physiological and life history traits, understanding the underlying processes would be of great value from both an evolutionary and conservation/management standpoint, especially in the light of ongoing climatic change. Substantial contri- butions to this challenge may derive from a quantitative assessment of reproductive success, investigation of fine-scale foraging patterns, and a mechanistic understanding of disease outbreak and resilience. For improving conservation status, resolving taxonomic disputes, identifying subspecies hybridization, assessing the impact of hunting and establishing reliable methods of abundance estimation are of primary concern. Despite being one of the most well-known mountain ungulates, substantial field efforts to collect paleontological, behavioral, ecological, morphological, physiological and genetic data on different popu- lations and subspecies are still needed to ensure a successful future for chamois research and conservation

Left ventricular apical diseases

There are many disorders that may involve the left ventricular (LV) apex; however, they are sometimes difficult to differentiate. In this setting cardiac imaging methods can provide the clue to obtaining the diagnosis. The purpose of this review is to illustrate the spectrum of diseases that most frequently affect the apex of the LV including Tako-Tsubo cardiomyopathy, LV aneurysms and pseudoaneurysms, apical diverticula, apical ventricular remodelling, apical hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, LV non-compaction, arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia with LV involvement and LV false tendons, with an emphasis on the diagnostic criteria and imaging features

Do it right or don't do it at all! Genetic screening of S. marmoratus exemplifies the need to revise many or most salmonid conservation and restocking programmes

Demographic collapse of Italian trout populations, owing to the last century freshwater quantitative and qualitative impoverishment, was contrasted by massive stocking of exotic congenerics to sustain angling pressure. After the restoration - or at least regulation - of sustainable water use and management, the envisaged solution to halt population depletion turned out to be the new problem: all native Italian trout populations resulted to be heavily impacted by Atlantic brown trout through hybridisation and genetic introgression. In order to contrast the native trout decline, dozens of projects based on captive breeding programs were then started. Despite a formal general agreement that supportive or supplemental breeding should base on strong genetic data, in order to recover and conserve micro-scale diversity and evolutionary significant units, most breeding programs - sustained by from the smallest local angling association up to the European Community - still exclusively depend on i) morphological selection of breeders, ii) maintenance of captive semi-domesticated breeding stocks, and/or iii) stocking of selected conspecific from different water systems. The outcome of such management actions is, at times, favouring a phenotypic shift of hybrids to the expected or desired morphology patterns, accelerating introgression by fostering the reproduction of hybrids, promoting artificial versus natural selection in non-natural breeding conditions, depleting local biodiversity by mixing and homogenising different management units. We here report a multi-year case study on a drainage-scale management plan of marble trout (Salmo marmoratus) in the North – East of Italy. We present the outcomes of an extensive genetic screening of breeding stocks derived from different generations of phenotype selection and maintained for supportive breeding, demonstrating all the main limitations of such a scheme; we introduce the shift to supplemental breeding, based on strict genetic evaluation of wild spawners; and we finally show the first evaluation of the qualitative and quantitative effects of this change of pace. We thus try to exemplify the way to avoid that the foreseen solution to the problem, i.e. conservation projects, will once more translate to the next and final sprint in the race to native trout genomic extinction

Precordial abscess inducing chest pain 20 years after surgical repair of a pentalogy of fallot

A 25-year-old male asylum-seeker presented with chest pain, exertional dyspnea, and orthopnea 20 years after the surgical repair of a pentalogy of Fallot. An extracardiac mass compressing the right ventricle was subsequently detected and surgical decompression was performed to relieve the resulting right intraventricular hypertension. At operation, the mass proved to be a coagulase-negative, staphylococcal abscess. In addition, the removal of the mass unmasked a previously nonrecognized pulmonary outflow stenosis that required balloon dilatation and beta-blocker therapy. While infections are known to occur after sternotomy, the formation of an abscess in the anterior mediastinum several years after the intervention appears to be exceptional; this diagnosis came to mind only after the more common complications had been considered, e.g., pseudoaneurysm or pericardial hematoma. To our knowledge, this is the first report of an abscess in the anterior mediastinum that had probably formed over many years following a sternotomy, compressed the right ventricle and masked a pulmonary stenosis