European Hedgehogs as Hosts of Chaphamaparvovirus, Italy.

In 2022, a novel parvovirus was identified from an outbreak of fatal enteritis in weaned European hedgehogs () at a wildlife rescue center in Southern Italy. During sequence analysis, the strain was found to be closely related (90.4% nucleotide identity) to a chaphamaparvovirus (ChPV) discovered in Amur hedgehogs () during a large metaviromic investigation in game animals in China.

Detection and Genomic Characterization of Novel Mammarenavirus in European Hedgehogs, Italy.

Mammarenaviruses are noteworthy zoonotic pathogens, and the main reservoirs are rodent species. We report the detection of a novel mammarenavirus in 6/183 (3.3%) in necropsied European hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) collected in Italy.

Improving the diffraction quality of heat-shock protein 47 crystals.

Heat-shock protein 47 (HSP47) is a potential target for inhibitors that ameliorate fibrosis by reducing collagen assembly. In an effort to develop a structure-based drug-design system, it was not possible to replicate a previous literature result (PDB entry 4au4) for apo dog HSP47; instead, crystal forms were obtained in which pairs of dog HSP47 molecules interacted through a noncleavable C-terminal His-tag to build up tetramers, all of which had multiple molecules of HSP47 in the asymmetric unit and none of which diffracted as well as the literature precedent. To overcome these difficulties, a two-pronged approach was followed: (i) the His-tag was moved from the C-terminus to the N-terminus and was made cleavable, and (ii) Adnectin (derived from the tenth domain of human fibronectin type III) crystallization chaperones were developed.

Survey in Captive Non-Human Primates, Italy.

Circoviruses (CVs) and cycloviruses (CyVs), members of the family , have been identified only occasionally in non-human primates (NHPs). In this study, we investigated the presence and genetic features of these viruses in 48 NHPs housed in the Bioparco-Rome Zoological Garden (Italy) and in the Anima Natura Wild Sanctuary Semproniano (Grosseto, Italy), testing fecal, saliva, and serum samples with a broadly reactive consensus nested PCR able of amplifying a partial region of the replicase (Rep) gene of members of the family . Viral DNA was detected in a total of 10 samples, including a saliva swab and 9 fecal samples collected, respectively from five Japanese macaques () and four mandrills (), with an overall prevalence of 18.

Feline Morbillivirus: Clinical Relevance of a Widespread Endemic Viral Infection of Cats.

Feline morbillivirus (FeMV) was first isolated in 2012 from stray cats in Hong Kong. It has been found in association with tubulointerstitial nephritis (TIN), the most common cause of feline chronic kidney disease (CKD). However, viral host spectrum and virus tropism go beyond the domestic cat and kidney tissues.