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Gastrointestinal basidiobolomycosis (GIB), an unusual fungal infection caused by the fungus Basidiobolus ranarum, is rarely reported in the medical literature. GIB is difficult to diagnose because its clinical presentation is non-specific and has no identifiable risk factors. We report here the first case of GIB diagnosed in Italy in a patient suffering from a duodenal ulcer with perforation. The patient was successfully treated with itraconazole. The absence of non-specific signs and symptoms of GIB may delay a definitive diagnosis and treatment. A microbiological investigation should always be requested in order to reach a rapid and definitive diagnosis and to rule out other intestinal diseases.

Aspergillus species are the cause of invasive mold infections in immunocompromised patients: Aspergillus fumigatus, A. flavus and A. terreus account for most cases of invasive aspergillosis (IA). As certain species are associated with higher mortality and vary in their resistance to antifungal therapy, diagnosis requires increasingly rapid molecular methods that enable sensitive detection and species discrimination. We have developed PCR and Multiplex PCR assays for the detection of six medically important Aspergillus spp. species DNA in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) specimens from hematology and intensive care unit (ICU) patients at risk of IA, using different species and genus-specific PCR primers, selected within the SCW4 gene, encoding a cell wall glucanase of A. fumigatus, similar to mannoprotein Mp65 of Candida albicans. The genus-specific PCR primers were able to amplify only Aspergillus DNAs but not that belonging to other fungal genera tested. The species-specific PCR primers allowed differentiation of each Aspergillus species by the amplicon length produced. The methods described in this study are rapid (less than 4 h), reproducible, simple and specific and demonstrate potential application in the clinical laboratory.

This study investigated the genetic bases of attenuation in the Bacillus anthracis vaccine strain "Carbosap" used in Italy against anthrax in cattle and sheep. Twelve genes involved in virulence regulatory pathways underwent sequence analysis in comparison with a B. anthracis virulent strain.

There is little information on the epidemiology of Human Adenoviruses (HAdVs) in Italy. In this study, 103 HAdV isolates, collected by the A. Gemelli Hospital (Catholic University Medical School of Rome, Italy) between 1987 and 2005, were genotyped by sequencing and phylogenetic analysis on a partial hexon gene region. Nine different serotypes belonging to all six HAdV species were identified. Serotype 2 was the most frequent (53.4%), followed by serotype 1 (15.53%) and serotype 41 (9.7%). Partial-hexon-based identification was confirmed as an effective tool for studying the molecular epidemiology of HAdVs.