Environmental contamination and hygienic measures after feline calicivirus field strain infections of cats in a research facility

Feline calicivirus (FCV) can cause painful oral ulcerations, salivation, gingivitis/stomatitis, fever and depression in infected cats; highly virulent virus variants can lead to fatal epizootic outbreaks. Viral transmission occurs directly or indirectly via fomites. The aim of this study was to investigate the presence and viability of FCV in the environment after sequential oronasal infections of specified pathogen-free cats with two FCV field strains in a research facility. Replicating virus was detected in saliva swabs from all ten cats after the first and in four out of ten cats after the second FCV exposure using virus isolation to identify FCV shedders. In the environment, where cleaning, but no disinfection took place, FCV viral RNA was detectable using RT-qPCR on all tested items and surfaces, including cat hair. However, only very limited evidence was found of replicating virus using virus isolation. Viral RNA remained demonstrable for at least 28 days after shedding had ceased in all cats. Disinfection with 5% sodium bicarbonate (and IncidinTM Plus) and barrier measures were effective in that no viral RNA was detectable outside the cat rooms. Our findings are important for any multicat environment to optimize hygienic measures against FCV infection

Acute Delta Hepatitis in Italy spanning three decades (1991–2019): Evidence for the effectiveness of the hepatitis B vaccination campaign

Updated incidence data of acute Delta virus hepatitis (HDV) are lacking worldwide. Our aim was to evaluate incidence of and risk factors for acute HDV in Italy after the introduction of the compulsory vaccination against hepatitis B virus (HBV) in 1991. Data were obtained from the National Surveillance System of acute viral hepatitis (SEIEVA). Independent predictors of HDV were assessed by logistic-regression analysis. The incidence of acute HDV per 1-million population declined from 3.2 cases in 1987 to 0.04 in 2019, parallel to that of acute HBV per 100,000 from 10.0 to 0.39 cases during the same period. The median age of cases increased from 27 years in the decade 1991-1999 to 44 years in the decade 2010-2019 (p < .001). Over the same period, the male/female ratio decreased from 3.8 to 2.1, the proportion of coinfections increased from 55% to 75% (p = .003) and that of HBsAg positive acute hepatitis tested for by IgM anti-HDV linearly decreased from 50.1% to 34.1% (p < .001). People born abroad accounted for 24.6% of cases in 2004-2010 and 32.1% in 2011-2019. In the period 2010-2019, risky sexual behaviour (O.R. 4.2; 95%CI: 1.4-12.8) was the sole independent predictor of acute HDV; conversely intravenous drug use was no longer associated (O.R. 1.25; 95%CI: 0.15-10.22) with this. In conclusion, HBV vaccination was an effective measure to control acute HDV. Intravenous drug use is no longer an efficient mode of HDV spread. Testing for IgM-anti HDV is a grey area requiring alert. Acute HDV in foreigners should be monitored in the years to come

Co-infection with feline retrovirus is related to changes in immunological parameters of cats with sporotrichosis.

Feline sporotrichosis due to Sporothrix brasiliensis is frequently severe and often correlated to zoonotic transmission. Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (FIV) and Feline Leukemia Virus (FeLV) cause immunodeficiency in cats; no association has been identified with critical cases of sporotrichosis. Moreover, the cytokine profile in Sporothrix-infected cats and a potential impact of retrovirus co-infections on their immunity is unknown. This study assessed immunological parameters in cats with sporotrichosis with and without FIV or FeLV co-infection. FeLV infection was detected by antigen ELISA and by provirus PCR. FIV infection was investigated through ELISA and Western blot. Cytokine transcription (IFN-γ, IL-4, IL-5, IL-6, IL-10, IL-12, TNF-α) was quantified using RT-qPCR and lymphocyte subpopulations (CD4, CD8, CD5 and CD21) were assessed by flow cytometry. Thirty cats with sporotrichosis were recruited to the study, including three FIV-positive and five FeLV-positive (progressive infection) cats. One cat with regressive FeLV infection was excluded from statistics. In comparison to retrovirus-negative cats, FIV-positive cats and FeLV-positive cats had higher IL-10 levels, FeLV-positive cats had lower IL-4 levels and FIV-positive cats had lower IL-12 levels and a lower CD4+/CD8+ ratio. Remarkably, all cats with poor general condition were FeLV (progressive infection) or FIV-positive, but the retrovirus status was not associated with the sporotrichosis treatment length or outcome. The immunological changes and the more severe clinical presentation observed in cats with retrovirus co-infections encourage future prospective studies that address the impact of these changes on prognostic determinants of feline sporotrichosis and the development of new therapy strategies that control disease spread

Primera evidencia molecular de especies de micoplasmas hemotrópicos (Mycoplasma spp.) en animales de importancia económica y social en Cuba : [First molecular evidence of hemotropic mycoplasma species (Mycoplasma spp.) in animals of economic and social importance in Cuba]

Introduction: Hemotropic mycoplasmas are widely distributed in several regions of the world. The aim of the present work was to determine the presence of hemotropic mycoplasma species in cattle, buffaloes, dogs and ticks in Cuba. Methods: They were analyzed thirty-nine buffalo and 41 cattle blood samples to investigate the presence of Mycoplasma wenyonii and ‘Candidatus Mycoplasma haemobos’. They were analyzed and 391 dog blood samples and 247 tick pools to detect the presence of Mycoplasma haemocanis and ‘Candidatus Mycoplasma haematoparvum’. In all cases it was used the species-specific TaqMan® real-time PCR assay. Results: For M. wenyonii 53 animals were positive and 33 for ‘Ca. Mycoplasma haemobos’; in coinfection with M. wenyonii, with similar prevalence in cattle and buffalo. 17.9% of dog samples were positive for at least one hemoplasma species, with 15.1% positive for M. haemocanis, 4.4% for ‘Ca. Mycoplasma haematoparvum’, and 1.5% co-infected. The ticks were identified as Rhipicephalus sanguineus sensu lato; none of the pools were positive for the canine mycoplasma species under study. It was demonstrated he presence of five different haplotypes for M. haemocanis and four haplotypes for ‘Ca. M. haematoparvum’; one of these haplotypes showed 100 % identity with one isolated from Grenada, which was associated with cases of zoonotic exposure. Conclusions. These results constitute the first molecular evidence of infection by hemoplasma species in cattle and buffaloes in Cuba and the Caribbean and the first molecular report of the occurrence of single infections and co-infections caused by M. haemocanis and ‘Ca. M. haematoparvum’ in dogs in Cuba. For the first time is evident the circulation of a genotype of ‘Ca. M. haematoparvum’ with zoonotic potential, common between the Greater and Lesser Antilles of the Caribbean.Introducción: Los micoplasmas hemotrópicos se encuentran ampliamente distribuidos envarias regiones del mundo. El presente trabajo tuvo como objetivo determinar la presencia deespecies de micoplasmas hemotrópicos en bovinos, bufalinos, perros y garrapatas de Cuba. Métodos: Se analizaron 39 muestras de sangre de búfalos y 41 bovinos para investigar lapresencia de Mycoplasma wenyonii y ‘Candidatus Mycoplasma haemobos’; 391 muestrasde sangre de perros y 247 pools de garrapatas para detectar la presencia de Mycoplasmahaemocanis y ‘Candidatus Mycoplasma haematoparvum’ mediante ensayos de PCR en tiemporeal TaqMan® (especie específicos). Resultados: Para M. wenyonii 53 animales fueronpositivos y 33 para ‘Ca. Mycoplasma haemobos’; en coinfección con M. wenyonii, con prevalenciassimilares en bovinos y bufalinos. El 17,9 % de las muestras de perros fueron positivaspara al menos una especie de hemoplasma, con el 15,1 % positivo para M. haemocanis, el4,4 % para ‘Ca. Mycoplasma haematoparvum’, y el 1,5 % coinfectados. Las garrapatas seidentificaron como Rhipicephalus sanguineus sensu lato; y ninguno de los pools fue positivoa las especies de micoplasmas caninos en estudio. Se demostró la presencia de 5 haplotiposdiferentes para M. haemocanis y 4 haplotipos para ‘Ca. M. haematoparvum’; uno de estoshaplotipos mostró 100 % de identidad con un aislado de Granada, que se asoció con casosde exposición zoonótica. Conclusiones: Estos resultados constituyen la primera evidencia molecular de la infección por especies de hemoplasmas en bovinos y bufalinos de Cuba y elCaribe y el primer reporte molecular de la ocurrencia de infecciones simples y coinfeccionescausadas por M. haemocanis y ‘Ca. M. haematoparvum’ en perros de Cuba. Por primera vezse evidencia la circulación de un genotipo de ‘Ca. M. haematoparvum’ con potencial zoonótico,común entre las Antillas mayores y menores del Caribe

We are against something that doesn't exist. Conversation with Giovanna Costanza Meli

What does the art system mean if you think of the analysis we just formulated? In that world defined by the media, why should we care about an art system? It is the same kind of propagandistic model. The real country, the real situation is different. So the work of the intellectuals I think is to reconnect the "discourse" to the reality. In the non profit field, curators, artists and intellectuals are used to speaking about a way of being out of the system, or against the system, and I also thought to be against something huge. But then I started to consider everything form a different point of view, looking at the reality. So I say there is no art system in Italy, and if we are against this art system, we are against something that doesn't exist. I would say it is sincere to care about the reality

The small Museum of Migrations in Lampedusa

If we consider the museum as an institution, we spontaneously relate it to concepts such as tradition, collection, scientific committee, administration, more or less codified cultural representations, more or less marked cultural policies, dialogue with its context and search for a public. If we refer to the internal debate within contemporary museums, we immediately think of integration and cultural mediation, alongside the debate concerning their public and social function and the educational departments's research. All this plays a big role in the mental image shared by art historians, anthropologists and curators researching hybridization and crossbreeding, and what these notions could mean within the various discourses on identity, on the one end, and self-representation on the other hand. But what is happening in Lampedusa? What have this island and its population to do with cultural and scientific museological debate?The aim of this journey was not to expose ourselves to the famous cultural legacy of classical antiquity and the Italian Renaissance, but to explore – as artists and non-academic researchers – Italy’s contemporary artistic, social and political scene through active witnesses. We started in Rome and ended in Palermo, passing through Florence, Bologna, Lugo, Milan, Viganella, Turin, Rivoli, Lecce, Matera, Bari, Santa Maria di Leuca, Naples and Gibellina