To explore the possible role of the sympathetic nervous activity in the asymmetrical cross-talk between the brain and immune system, catecholamine (E, NE) plasma levels, IFN-y serum levels and antibodies production induced by rabies vaccine in dogs selected for their paw preference were measured. The results showed an association between the direction of behavioural lateralisation and both epinephrine levels and immune response in dogs. Different kinetic of epinephrine levels after immunization was observed in left-pawed dogs respect to both right-pawed and ambidextrous dogs. The titers of anti-rabies antibodies were lower in left-pawed dogs than in right-pawed and ambidextrous dogs. Similarly, the IFN-y serum levels were lower in left-pawed dogs respect to the other two groups. Taking together, these findings showed that the left-pawed group appeared to be consistently the different group stressing the fundamental role played by the sympathetic nervous system as a mechanistic basis for the crosstalk between the brain and the immune system.

Pestiviruses have a worldwide distribution where ruminants farming is extensive and infection in their hosts can vary from subclinical manifestations to severe clinical signs. Although biomolecular methods are successfully employed for pestiviruses identification, they require the presence of the virus at the time of sampling. Because persistent infection is unusual in goats and acute infection is transient, for a retrospective assessment serology is the most useful approach to evaluate pestiviruses spread among ruminants. The prevalence of pestiviruses in the Italian goat population was the main target of the study and the possible influence of the co-habitation with cattle on the seropositivity of goats was taken into account. A total of 7096 sera from healthy goats were tested using an indirect ELISA. The positive samples were confirmed with a virus neutralization (VN) test and were screened for BDV too. The ELISA assay identified 57 farms (33.13%) with positive goats and an overall seropositivity of 1.63%, higher in Calabria (1.74%, 95% CI 1.68% to 1.79%) than in Apulia (1.59%, 95% CI 1.52% to 1.66%). A higher variability among farms was observed, with a significant influence of multi-species (goat and cow) grazing. Despite the huge economic losses, the impact on small ruminant productions in Italy has not yet been assessed and pestivirus infection is largely underestimated and scarcely considered. Nevertheless, the focus on pestiviruses of small ruminants should be strengthened. Considering that pestivirus infections are often subclinical, serological surveillance, the prerequisite for the implementation of control programmes, should be strongly recommended and should be considered in any pestivirus eradication programme, especially in areas such as the Southern Italy, where small ruminants farming is predominant.

An epidemiological survey for Canine parvovirus 2 (CPV-2) and Canine coronavirus (CCoV) was conducted in Albania. A total of 57 fecal samples were collected from diarrheic dogs in the District of Tirana during 2011-2013. The molecular assays detected 53 and 31 CPV- and CCoV-positive specimens, respectively, with mixed CPV-CCoV infections diagnosed in 28 dogs. The most frequently detected CPV type was 2a, whereas IIa was the predominant CCoV subtype. A better comprehension of the CPV-CCoV epidemiology in eastern European countries will help to assess the most appropriate vaccination strategies to prevent disease due to infections with these widespread agents of acute gastroenteritis in the dog.

A Hobi-like pestivirus pair consisting of cytopathogenic (cp) and non-cytopathogenic (noncp) strains, Italy 83/10cp and Italy 83/10ncp, was isolated from the lung of a heifer that died of respiratory disease. The noncp and cp viruses were isolated on Madin–Darby bovine kidney cells and separated by plaque purification and end point dilution. Analysis of the nearly full-length genomes revealed that the two viruses were very closely related to each other and to the noncp Hobi-like strain Italy 1/10-1, which had been isolated a few weeks earlier from the same herd. One major difference between noncp and cp viruses concerned the presence of a cellular Jiv sequence in the 39 domain of the NS2-encoding region of the cp strain. This is the first study, to our knowledge, reporting the isolation and molecular characterization of a Hobi-like virus pair.

The clinical features and economic impact of the infection caused by an emerging group of pestiviruses, namely HoBi-like pestivirus, in a cattle herd of southern Italy are reported. In 2011, the virus was first associated with respiratory disease, causing an abortion storm after 1 year and apparently disappearing for the following 3 years after persistently infected calves were slaughtered. However, in 2014, reproductive failures and acute gastroenteritis were observed in the same herd, leading to a marked decrease of productivity. A HoBi-like strain closely related to that responsible for previous outbreaks was detected in several animals. Application of an intensive eradication programme, based on the detection and slaughtering of HoBi-like pestivirus persistently infected animals, resulted in a marked improvement of the productive performances.