Transcranial direct current stimulation to optimise participation in stroke rehabilitation – A Sham-Controlled Cross-Over feasibility study

Background: Fatigue and attentional decline limit the duration of many therapy sessions in older adults poststroke. Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) may facilitate participation in rehabilitation, potentially via reduced fatigue and improved sustained attention poststroke. Objective: To evaluate whether tDCS results in an increase in the number of completed rehabilitation therapy sessions in stroke survivors. Methods: Nineteen participants were randomly allocated to receive 10 sessions of 2-mA anodal (excitatory) tDCS, or sham tDCS, applied to the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) for 20 minutes within 1 hour prior to the first rehabilitation therapy session of the day. After a 2-day washout period, participants then crossed-over. Researchers applying the tDCS, and those recording measures were blinded to group allocation. The number of first rehabilitation therapy sessions completed as planned, as well as the total duration of rehabilitation therapy, were used to determine the influence of tDCS on participation in stroke rehabilitation. Results: The total number of first therapy sessions completed as planned did not vary according to group allocation (111 of 139 sessions for tDCS, 110 of 147 sessions for sham treatment; chi-square 1.0; P = .31). Conclusions: Our results suggest that, while tDCS to the DLPFC was well tolerated, it did not significantly influence the number of completed rehabilitation therapy sessions in stroke survivors

Molecular detection of bovine herpesvirus 1 (BoHV-1) in cattle in Serbia

The presence of bovine herpesvirus 1 (BoHV-1) was examined in 110 samples of bovine nasal swabs collected between October 2007 and November 2015. BoHV-1 was detected in four samples by virus isolation and polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The phylogenetic analysis of glycoprotein B (gB) gene nucleotide sequences of all four BoHV-1 strains showed that they were 100% similar to each other and branched with BoHV-1 strains isolated in Egypt and USA. BoHV-1 strains isolated in Israel, India, Brasil and USA belonging to the second branch were 100% similar to each other and 98% to 99% similar to the strains from Serbia. The phylogenetic analysis of the tk gene nucleotide sequences of all four BoHV-1 strains showed that they were 100% similar and grouped together in one branch. BoHV-1 strains from USA and Australia clustered with Serbian BoHV-1 strains sharing similarity of 99%. BoHV-1 strains from India and USA clustered separately. The presented work is one of the first reports of the phylogenetic analysis of BoHV-1 isolates from Serbia

The presence of malignant ovine babesiosis in Bosnia and Herzegovina indicates a possible emerging risk for Balkan region

Malignant ovine babesiosis or ovine babesiosis caused by Babesia ovis is an important hemoprotozoan tick-borne disease of sheep. After 70 years, a study was conducted in Bosnia and Herzegovina, in the geographical areas of Podrinje and Eastern Herzegovina, aiming to molecularly identify and determine the presence of B. ovis infection in the sheep population. From 2019 to 2021, a clinical and molecular study was conducted in 53 flocks, and 192 sheep were examined, divided into two groups: clinically suspected and asymptomatic sheep. The presence of B. ovis was confirmed by PCR in blood samples of 75% and 11.21% of clinically affected and asymptomatic sheep, respectively. The majority of clinical cases of malignant ovine babesiosis were confirmed in the Rudo epidemiological unit (78.78%) within the Podrinje region indicating typical seasonal patern of disease occurence and endemic focus. Rhipicephalus bursa was only tick species identified in Podrinje and Eastern Herzegovina. Acute form of disease was observed with dominant clinical signs of depression, fever, loss of appetite and respiratory distress. Fatal outcome was recorded in 12.28% of cases. This study describes the molecular detection of B. ovis in sheep in Bosnia and Herzegovina for the first time. To the authors knowledge, this survey represents a report of the highest number of clinical cases of malignant ovine babesiosis in Europe. Since the disease has been recorded in the south-eastern border of Bosnia and Herzegovina, there is a high risk of disease transmission to a wider area of the Balkan region