Fatal Interstitial Pneumonia Associated with Bovine Coronavirus in Cows from Southern Italy.

An outbreak of winter dysentery, complicated by severe respiratory syndrome, occurred in January 2020 in a high production dairy cow herd located in a hilly area of the Calabria region. Of the 52 animals belonging to the farm, 5 (9.6%) died with severe respiratory distress, death occurring 3-4 days after the appearance of the respiratory signs (caught and gasping breath). Microbiological analysis revealed absence of pathogenic bacteria whilst Real-time PCR identified the presence of RNA from Bovine Coronavirus (BCoV) in several organs: lungs, small intestine (jejunum), mediastinal lymph nodes, liver and placenta. BCoV was therefore hypothesized to play a role in the lethal pulmonary infection. Like the other CoVs, BCoV is able to cause different syndromes. Its role in calf diarrhea and in mild respiratory disease is well known: we report instead the involvement of this virus in a severe and fatal respiratory disorder, with symptoms and disease evolution resembling those of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndromes (SARS).

Treatment outcome of patients with comorbid type 1 diabetes and eating disorders.

BACKGROUND: Co-morbidity between Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus (T1DM) and eating disorders (ED) has been previously described; however the effect of this illness on the outcomes for conventional ED treatments has not been previously investigated. This study aims to compare clinical, psychopathological and personality features between two samples of ED individuals: those with comorbid T1DM and those without (No-DM); and to identify differences in treatment outcomes between the groups. METHODS: This study compares treatment outcome, dropouts, ED psychopathology and personality characteristics for 20 individuals with ED and T1DM and 20 ED patients without diabetes, matched for diagnostic and treatment type. RESULTS: The study found higher dropout rates from therapy in individuals with T1DM and worse treatment outcome in spite of having no significant differences in eating disorder psychopathology, although individuals with T1DM report misusing insulin. CONCLUSIONS: The low levels of motivation to change, and insulin abuse in T1DM patients, may suggest that treatment for patients with ED and T1DM should consider the individual's personality and role of insulin abuse when determining the appropriate intervention.

PCR detection of Neospora caninum in water buffalo foetal tissues.

The seroprevalence of Neospora caninum was surveyed by an ELISA kit on two water buffalo herds of Southern Italy. Seropositive samples were detected in 47% and 59% of individuals, respectively, thus indicating high level of exposure to the parasite even if the possibility of vertical transmission cannot be excluded. Tissue samples collected from three aborted fetuses from the same herds were investigated for N. caninum presence by PCR assays targeting the 18S and the Nc5 DNA sequences, respectively. Both methods have shown the presence of N. caninum DNA in heart and brain. Sequencing of the Nc5 genomic DNA confirmed the presence of N. caninum in the samples; phylogenetic analysis of the obtained sequences showed high homology among the Neospora recovered from different samples. The present study suggests an important role of N. caninum as a possible abortive agent for water buffaloes.

Cognitive-behavioral therapy for pathological gambling in Parkinson's disease: a pilot controlled study.

OBJECTIVES: The main objective of this study was to compare the clinical characteristics and differences in response to treatment of two groups of pathological gamblers: with comorbid Parkinson's disease (PG + PD) and without (PG - PD). METHODS: Clinical and psychopathological profiles and response to cognitive-behavioral treatment were assessed in 15 PG + PD and 45 PG - PD individuals consulting a specialized hospital Unit. RESULTS: Statistically significant differences were observed between the two groups on a series of clinical variables. PG + PD patients were older and presented later onset of problematic gambling behaviors, lower alcohol consumption and higher bingo playing than PG - PD patients. No significant differences were noted in psychopathology except for lower measures of hostility in the PG + PD group. No statistical differences were detected between groups in terms of response to treatment. CONCLUSION: These results may provide guidance for obtaining accurate diagnostic information in pathological gamblers by properly identifying patients with specific needs that may be targeted with treatment.

Effect of executive functioning, decision-making and self-reported impulsivity on the treatment outcome of pathologic gambling.

BACKGROUND: Impairments in self-regulatory behaviour reflect a deficit in executive functioning and decision-making, as well as higher levels of self-reported impulsivity, and may be involved in the development and maintenance of addictive disorders. We sought to explore the association between self-reported impulsivity and neurocognitive measures, and their association with treatment outcome in pathologic gambling. METHODS: We assessed patients with pathologic gambling using executive functioning and decision-making tests and self-report measures of impulsivity. Patients underwent cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) for pathologic gambling. RESULTS: We included 88 patients (8% women) in our study. High self-reported extravagance was associated with poor performance in the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT)-ABCD version. High impulsiveness, low disorderliness, high exploratory excitability (trend), poor backward block span and poor IGT-EFGH scores (trend) predicted dropout. We observed no self-reported or neurocognitive predictors of relapse or number of treatment sessions attended. LIMITATIONS: Most participants were slot-machine gamblers seeking treatment. No follow-up data and no control group were included in the study. The missing sample (i.e., individuals who were recruited and assessed in the pretreatment stage but who chose not to begin treatment) had higher extravagance scores than the final sample. CONCLUSION: Neurocognitive reward sensitivity was related to self-reported overspending behaviour. Self-regulatory impairments (especially rash impulsiveness and punishment sensitivity) and executive dysfunction predicted only dropout of CBT in participants with pathologic gambling. Different neurocognitive processes and personality traits might mediate treatment response to psychological therapy of pathologic gambling according to the specific target variable assessed.

Age of onset in pathological gambling: clinical, therapeutic and personality correlates.

We aimed to explore the association between age of onset of gambling problems and current psychopathological and clinical status, personality profile and therapeutic outcome in a sample of pathological gamblers. A total of 904 consecutive pathological gambling patients were administered several instruments about gambling behavior, psychopathology and personality. They received a 4-month cognitive-behavioral group treatment. Information of dropouts and relapses during treatment was registered. Older age of onset of gambling problems was associated with higher general psychopathology (SCL-90-R Paranoid Ideation, Psychoticism, Depression; P < 0.015). Younger age of onset was related to greater severity of pathological gambling (P < 0.015), higher novelty seeking, and lower self-directedness (P < 0.015). No statistically significant association was found between age of onset and relapse and dropouts during treatment. Age of onset of gambling problems seems to influence the clinical presentation of pathological gambling but not treatment outcome.