Isolation of Mycobacterium caprae (Lechtal genotype) from red deer (Cervus elaphus) in Italy.

During tuberculosis (TB) surveillance, 53 hunted red deer (Cervus elaphus) were collected to determine whether TB was present in free-ranging animals from an Italian alpine area. Samples (lungs, liver, intestine, and lymph nodes) were cultured and analyzed by real-time PCR assay carried out directly on tissue. Mycobacterium caprae was isolated from small granulomatous, tuberculosis-like lesions in the liver of a 12-yr-old female. Identification of suspect colonies was done by PCR restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis of the gyrb gene, and genotyping was performed by spoligotyping and mycobacterial interspersed repetitive unit variable number tandem repeat analysis. The isolated strain was genetically identical to strains isolated in the study area in 2001 from dairy cows imported from Austria and in 2010 from an indigenous cow. The genotype, called "Lechtal," is the most frequently detected in the TB outbreaks in Austria and Germany. The possibility that red deer act as a maintenance host of M. caprae between TB outbreaks could be not excluded. Despite the high red deer population density, the detection of only one infected red deer could suggest that the wildlife management measures applied in the study area (prohibition of artificial feeding and secure removal of offal from hunted animals) may reduce the risk of TB spreading.

Serosurvey for schmallenberg virus in alpine wild ungulates.

Because Schmallenberg virus (SBV) was first reported in domestic ruminants in Northern Italy in February 2012, we conducted a serosurvey to assess the presence of SBV-specific antibodies in free-ranging alpine ruminants. The tested serum samples were from chamois (23) and red deer (352) hunted from 2007 to 2013. All of the serum samples collected through September, 2012, tested negative, whereas a single chamois serum and 21 red deer sera taken during the 2012-2013 hunting season tested positive for the presence of SBV antibodies. Because this serosurvey is suggestive of an active SBV circulation in Alpine wildlife, targeted surveillance should be performed on wild ruminants to monitor the spread of the virus and to assess the epidemiological role of wildlife at the interface with domestic animals.

Epidemic of diarrhoea caused by porcine epidemic diarrhoea virus in Italy.

There was an epidemic of diarrhoea affecting pigs of all ages in Italy between May 2005 and June 2006. In 63 herds the cause was confirmed as porcine epidemic diarrhoea virus by electron microscopy, immunoelectron microscopy, pcr and serology. Watery diarrhoea without mucus and blood was usually associated with a reduction of feed consumption. In farrowing-to-weaning herds, diarrhoea affected the sows and suckling piglets, and the mortality in newborn piglets was up to 34 per cent. In growers and fatteners the morbidity ranged from 20 to 80 per cent, but there was either no mortality or it was very low. Depending on the size of the herd and the type of operation, the clinical disease lasted for weeks or months.