Starting from October 2021, several outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAIV) subtype H5N1 were reported in wild and domestic birds in Italy. Following the detection of an HPAIV in a free-ranging poultry farm in Ostia, province of Rome, despite the lack of clinical signs, additional virological and serological analyses were conducted on samples collected from free-ranging pigs, reared in the same holding, due to their direct contact with the infected poultry. While the swine nasal swabs were all RT-PCR negative for the influenza type A matrix (M) gene, the majority (%) of the tested pigs resulted serologically positive for the hemagglutination inhibition test and microneutralization assay, using an H5N1 strain considered to be homologous to the virus detected in the farm. These results provide further evidence of the worrisome replicative fitness that HPAI H5Nx viruses of the 2.3.4.4b clade have in mammalian species. Moreover, our report calls for additional active surveillance, to promptly intercept occasional spillover transmissions to domestic mammals in close contact with HPAI affected birds. Strengthened biosecurity measures and efficient separation should be prioritized in mixed-species farms in areas at risk of HPAI introduction.

The Encephalomyocarditis virus (EMCV) is a small, non enveloped, positive sense single-stranded RNA virus in the genus Cardiovirus, family Picornaviridae, with two known serotypes. It is spread worldwide and infects a huge range of vertebrate hosts with zoonotic potential for humans. The pig is the mammal most likely to be impacted on with the disease, but EMCV occurrence has also been reported in non-human primates and in a variety of domestic, captive and wild animals. Until now, human cases have been very rare and the risk appears to be almost negligible in spite of human susceptibility to the infection. Between September and November 2012 a fatal Encephalomyocarditis virus outbreak involving four Barbary macaques and 24 crested porcupines occurred at a rescue centre for wild and exotic animals in Central Italy. In this open-field zoo park located near Grosseto, Tuscany about 1000 animals belonging to different species, including various non-human primates were hosted at that time. Sudden deaths were generally observed without any evident symptoms or only with mild nonspecific clinical signs. The major gross change was characterised by grey-white necrotic foci in the myocardium and the same EMCV strain was isolated both in macaques and crested porcupines. Phylogenetic analysis has confirmed that only one EMCV strain is circulating in Italy, capable of infecting different animal species. This report confirms the susceptibility of non-human primates to the EMCV infection and describes the disease in porcupine, a common wild Italian and African species. No human cases were observed, but given the zoonotic potential of EMCV these findings are of importance in the context of animal-human interface.

Canine distemper virus (CDV) is a highly lethal contagious viral pathogen mainly found in domestic and wild canids and mustelids. Although, in Italy, circulating strains of Europe 1, Europe wildlife and Arctic type are reported, data relating to Latium and Tuscany regions are limited. In view of this, through passive surveillance, we investigated the presence of CDV and which strains were circulating in these Regions. From March 2017 to October 2019, a group of 122 subjects were tested for CDV using a PCR protocol described in the literature, with 12 detected positive; analyses were carried out on a set of target samples (brain and lung, conjunctival, nasal and rectal swabs, urine or swab from bladder and intracardiac clot) that was defined for the detection of CDV in both live and dead animals. The rectal swab, easily collected also from live animals, represented the most suitable sample for CDV diagnosis, with 9 positive of the 11 (81.82%) tested. In addition, brain and lung of 15 subjects out of 181 susceptible animals collected between 2011 and 2018, during post mortem investigations in routine diagnostic activity, were CDV positive. Molecular analyses of all positive samples, using a 287 bp fragment located within the conserved N terminus of the morbillivirus nucleoprotein gene, detected the circulation of strain CDV599/2016 (KX545421.1) belonging to the “Europe wildlife” lineage, and of strain CDV12254/2015 (KX024709.1), belonging to the Arctic-lineage, thus confirming the co-circulation of the two lineages, as already noted in previous studies.

Honey bee viruses in combination with varroa mite are very damaging for honey bee colonies worldwide. There are no effective methods to control the viral load in honey bee colonies except regular and effective control of mites. Integrated Pest Management strategies are required to effectively control mites with veterinary medicines based on organic compounds. We evaluated the effect of two brood interruption techniques, queen caging (QC) and trapping comb (TC), followed by an oxalic acid treatment, on the mite fall, colony strength, and viral load of Deformed Wing Virus (DWV) and Acute Bee Paralysis Virus (ABPV). In this paper, we report the data obtained in two experimental sites, in Slovenia and Italy, in terms of the varroacide efficacy, colony strength, and viral load. The number of adult bees after the adoption of the two techniques showed similar decreasing trends in both locations. The viral load of Acute Bee Paralysis Virus did not show any significant reduction after 25 days, reported as the number of Real-Time PCR cycles needed to detect the virus. The viral load of DWV also did not show a significant reduction after 25 days. The acaricidal efficacy of the applied protocols was high in both experimental groups and in both apiaries. Both the queen caging and trapping comb techniques, followed by an oxalic acid treatment, can be considered effective varroa treatment strategies, but further studies should be carried out to evaluate the long-term effects on viral loads to plan the Integrated Pest Management strategy with the right timing before wintering.

Tattoo skin disease (TSD) is a poxviral disease typical of cetaceans. Two juvenile and well-preserved male striped dolphins (Stenella coeruleoalba), found stranded along the Tuscany and Latium coasts of Italy in 2015 and 2016, respectively, showed typical skin lesions ascribable to TSD. Histological, ultrastructural and biomolecular investigations confirmed a poxviral aetiology for the aforementioned skin lesions. To our knowledge, this should be the first report of TSD in cetaceans stranded along the Italian coastline. As organochlorines like PCBs and DDTs are known to be highly immunotoxic, the tissue loads of these contaminants were evaluated, in order to increase our knowledge on their potential role as well as on the relationships between the level of exposure to these pollutants and poxviral infection's occurrence.

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