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The first report of African swine fever virus (ASFV) genotype II in Italy in 2022 marked the beginning of a significant invasion in at least eight Italian regions with different infection clusters. In this study, we used the multi-gene approach to investigate the epidemiological associations between ASFV strains causing cases and outbreaks in wild boar and pigs in Italy from January 2022 to the end of 2023. Our results confirm that all the tested ASFV-positive Italian samples belonged to genotype II and show high homology with genotype II ASFV sequences previously collected in Eurasian countries. Molecular characterization revealed the presence of four genetic groups in Italy. The majority of African swine fever (ASF) samples analyzed in the current study (72%) belonged to genetic group 3, which was the most representative in Europe. The results also provide evidence of the prevalence of genetic group 19 (15.9%). In addition, we identified new putative genetic groups, genetic group 25 (9.1%) and genetic group 26 (3.0%), which have never been described before. This is the first detailed report on the molecular characterization of more than 130 ASFV strains circulating in Italy.

Purpose: In today's global business environment, business learners and employees must adapt to ever-changing challenges. Active learning strategies like case-based learning and think-pair-share may be used in any business course, as they engage learners, may meet Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business standards and assist with employer needs through knowledge and skill enhancement in critical thinking, decision-making, problem-solving and collaboration. The purpose of this paper is to provide business instructors with three activities that are easily modified. The activities promote workforce skills and encourage reflection activities as an assessment. The intent of each scenario is to present solution-driven methods by which business challenges may be assessed and resolved. Design/methodology/approach: Section 2 offers a literature review on case-based learning and think-pair-share. Section 3 includes three case-based activities that instructors may implement. Section 4 sets forth student assessment findings and a conclusion. Findings: The findings demonstrated that learners reported positive benefits of case scenarios and think-pair-share on their ability to make business decisions, critically analyze, solve business problems and collaborate. Reflective observation was an insightful tool in assessing comprehension and skill-building for 68 learners in two sections of fall 2019 Legal Environment of Business courses. The contribution to literature is primarily practical. The activities foster educational effectiveness by stimulating learners to practice critical employment skills. The results also show that satisfaction, intensifying students' engagement, enhances the educational effectiveness of the courses. Originality/value: This study provides three original case-based activities with suggested content, handouts that may be copied for class use, instructor preparation, learning outcomes, objectives and assignment procedures.

African swine fever (ASF) is a severe viral disease characterized by high lethality in suids and caused by the African Swine Fever Virus (ASFV). The ASF genotype I virus was introduced to Europe in 1957, marking the onset of the first European epidemic wave. In 2007, ASFV genotype II was detected in Georgia, affecting domestic pigs and wild boars before spreading to various European and extra-European countries, including Italy. The first case of ASFV in Italy was documented on 7 January 2022, in a wild boar in the Piedmont region. Since then, several ASFV-positive wild boar carcasses have been identified in the Piedmont and Liguria regions. By June 2023, ASFV had spread to Lombardy, one of the major pig-producing regions in northern Italy; the virus was first detected in early summer in wild boar carcasses. Two months later, it was diagnosed in a commercial pig farm as a consequence of the disease’s spread amongst wild boars and an increase in the viral environmental load. This report aims to describe the features of ASFV domestic pig outbreaks that occurred in the Zinasco municipality (Lombardy) and the joint efforts to mitigate potential direct and indirect economic impacts on the Italian and global pig industry. The epidemiological investigation and the measures implemented, which were all performed according to national and European regulations, as well as exceptional ad hoc measures aimed at protecting the pig industry, are described in order to provide a practical and effective approach to combating ASF.

The African Swine Fever Virus (ASFV) is a DNA virus of the Asfarviridae family, Asfivirus genus. It is responsible for massive losses in pig populations and drastic direct and indirect economic impacts. The ever-growing handling of ASFV pathological material in laboratories, necessary for either diagnostic or research activities, requires particular attention to avoid accidental virus release from laboratories and its detrimental economic and environmental effects. Recently, the Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/689 of 17 December 2019 repealed the Commission Decision of 26 May 2003 reporting an ASF diagnostic manual (2003/422/EC) with the minimum and supplementary requirements for ASF laboratories. This decision generated a regulatory gap that has not been addressed yet. This paper aims to describe the Italian National Reference Laboratory (NRL) efforts to develop an effective and reliable biological containment tool for ASF laboratories and animal facilities. The tool consists of comprehensive and harmonized structural and procedural requirements for ASF laboratories and animal facilities that have been developed based on both current and repealed legislation, further entailing a risk assessment and internal audit as indispensable tools to design, adjust, and improve biological containment measures.

Abstract Background African Swine Fever (ASF) is a challenge for pig health worldwide. The disease has spread to multiple countries on five continents. ASF‐free countries need to apply effective strategies to prevent the introduction of infection. Methods Italy implemented a surveillance and prevention plan for ASF in 2020, supported by a dedicated information system. Several pillars for action have been identified: passive surveillance in both domestic pigs and wild boar populations, verification of the implementation of biosecurity measures on farms and an awareness campaign for all involved stakeholders. Results There were some regional differences in the management of passive surveillance. In order to identify all critical points and apply corrective measures, regional authorities were called to carry out a gap analysis exercise in July 2020. There were an adequate number of samples collected from wild boar but the number of samples collected from domestic pigs was below the target in most regions. Furthermore, sample distribution within the country was not homogeneous. Conclusions During the forthcoming year, some issues must be addressed in order to establish an effective early detection system in Italian ASF‐free regions.

Macrophages are unique immune cells attracting growing attention as a potential candidate for cell‐based therapy for infectious diseases and cancer. Strategies that can reprogramme or gene‐edit macrophages hold potential across a spectrum of acute and chronic conditions. Herein, lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) are developed containing the ionizable lipid SM‐102, helper lipid monoolein which is known for self‐assembly in aqueous solutions into the inverse cubic lyotropic liquid crystalline mesophase, and cholesterol as an mRNA nanocarrier. The immortalized alveolar macrophage cell line (MH‐S cells) is utilized to investigate how cholesterol concentration impacts on mRNA delivery which is further validated using primary mouse alveolar macrophages isolated from the bronchoalveolar compartment and human monocyte derived macrophages. By using high‐throughput synchrotron small angle X‐ray scattering (SAXS), an acidification‐induced non‐ordered to ordered internal nanostructure transition of the formulated LNPs is observed, following the transition sequence of inverse micellar to hexagonal to cubic mesophase in the pH range from 7 to 4. Cholesterol is identified as another crucial component for superior mRNA transfection in macrophages, contributing to nanostructure transition and protein corona variation. Successful ex vivo mRNA transfection is also achieved in primary macrophages, highlighting the prospectivity of reprogramming macrophages as a cell therapy for lung diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Young Innovative Companies have received considerable attention in the last decade in entrepreneurship and management literature. These firms need financial resources to develop but lack legitimacy in the eyes of investors. This paper empirically explores the determinants of fundraising by analysing 545 Italian innovative start-ups, as defined by the Law 221/2012. In an institutional perspective we propose a model that considers the effect of three different sources of legitimacy. Results show that team educational and professional diversity, incubation and IPRs play a significant role in legitimating the company in the fundraising process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Freshwater fish are facing an extinction crisis on a global scale, with increasing demand for human water consumption driving the regulation and degradation of freshwater ecosystems. Flow regulation especially poses a threat to small‐bodied floodplain and creek specialist species through increasing population fragmentation and isolation, loss and degradation of habitats, and interactions with predators and competitors, resulting in reductions in species' range and abundance. Conserving and recovering many small‐bodied fish species will likely require translocation from wild habitats to refuge habitats to reduce extinction risk and provide buffers against catastrophic natural events (e.g., drought, bushfires). We assessed the value of semi‐artificial farm dams, an abundant feature in the Australian landscape, as interim refugia for the threatened southern pygmy perch Nannoperca australis (Percicthyidae). We compared the relative abundance, population size–structure and body condition of fish introduced (3–4 years prior) into three farm dams with those of three nearby creeks to assess the feasibility of farm dams as a resource to assist small‐bodied native fish conservation and recovery. Farm dams had higher abundance of fish, and equivalent size structure and body condition compared with creek populations, highlighting that suitable farm dams are a valuable and underutilized asset for threatened species' conservation globally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

African swine fever (ASF) is a severe viral disease of domestic pigs and Eurasian wild boars (Sus scrofa) caused by the African swine fever virus (ASFV). ASF is endemic in sub-Saharan Africa, where 24 genotypes of the virus have been reported. Between the late 1950s and the early 1980s, genotype I ASFV emerged in Europe, including Italy. In June 2007, a second ASF epidemic wave caused by genotype II was registered, involving several European and extra-European countries, including Italy in 2022. The present paper aims to provide the state of the art of ASF in Italy, describing the course of ASF in wild boars and domestic pigs as an example of multiple concurring different scenarios. Sardinia is coping with the last phase of the eradication of the disease by applying the exit strategy. Conversely, four clusters of infection located in North, Central, and South Italy are still ongoing. The unique and complex Italian experience in ASF-controlling may be useful to increase know-how on the efficacy of strategies and measures, as well as issues that could be further improved.

In this article, we analyze the spread of information on social media (Twitter) and purpose a strategy based on epidemiological models. It is well known that social media represent a strong tool to spread news and, in particular, fake news, due to the fact that they are free and easy to use. First, we propose an algorithm to create a proper dataset in order to employ the ignorants–spreaders–recovered epidemiological model. Then, we show that to use this model to study the diffusion of real news, parameter estimation is required. We show that it is also possible to accurately predict the evolution of news spread and its peak in terms of the maximum number of people who share it and the time when the peak occurs trough a process of data reduction, i.e., by using only a part of the built dataset to optimize parameters. Numerical results based on the analysis of real news are also provided to confirm the applicability of our proposed model and strategy.

The first report of African swine fever virus (ASFV) genotype II in Italy in 2022 marked the beginning of a significant invasion in at least eight Italian regions with different infection clusters. In this study, we used the multi-gene approach to investigate the epidemiological associations between ASFV strains causing cases and outbreaks in wild boar and pigs in Italy from January 2022 to the end of 2023. Our results confirm that all the tested ASFV-positive Italian samples belonged to genotype II and show high homology with genotype II ASFV sequences previously collected in Eurasian countries. Molecular characterization revealed the presence of four genetic groups in Italy. The majority of African swine fever (ASF) samples analyzed in the current study (72%) belonged to genetic group 3, which was the most representative in Europe. The results also provide evidence of the prevalence of genetic group 19 (15.9%). In addition, we identified new putative genetic groups, genetic group 25 (9.1%) and genetic group 26 (3.0%), which have never been described before. This is the first detailed report on the molecular characterization of more than 130 ASFV strains circulating in Italy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

African swine fever (ASF) is responsible for important socio-economic effects in the global pig industry, especially for countries with large-scale piggery sectors. In January 2022, the African swine fever virus (ASFV) genotype II was identified in a wild boar population in mainland Italy (Piedmont region). This study describes the molecular characterization, by Sanger and next-generation sequencing (NGS), of the first index case 632/AL/2022 and of another isolate (2802/AL/2022) reported in the same month, in close proximity to the first, following multiple ASF outbreaks. Phylogenetic analysis based on the B646L gene and NGS clustered the isolates 632/AL/2022 and 2802/AL/2022 within the wide and most homogeneous p72 genotype II that includes viruses from European and Asian countries. The consensus sequence obtained from the ASFV 2802/AL/2022 isolate was 190,598 nucleotides in length and had a mean GC content of 38.38%. At the whole-genome level, ASF isolate 2802/AL/2022 showed a close genetic correlation with the other representative ASFV genotype II strains isolated between April 2007 and January 2022 from wild and domestic pigs in Eastern/Central European (EU) and Asian countries. CVR subtyping clustered the two Italian ASFV strains within the major CVR variant circulating since the first virus introduction in Georgia in 2007. Intergenic region I73R-I329L subtyping placed the Italian ASFV isolates within the variant identical to the strains frequently identified among wild boars and domestic pigs. Presently, given the high sequence similarity, it is impossible to trace the precise geographic origin of the virus at a country level. Moreover, the full-length sequences available in the NCBI are not completely representative of all affected territories.

Simple Summary: African swine fever (ASF) is a highly lethal viral disease affecting suids and caused by the African Swine Fever Virus (ASFV). ASF was described for the first time in 1921 in Kenya. The ASF genotype I virus was introduced to Europe in 1957, marking the onset of the first European wave. In 2007, ASFV genotype II was detected in Georgia, affecting domestic pigs and wild boars, and it later spread to several European and extra-European countries, including Italy. This report focuses on the strategic challenges encountered in the attempt to eradicate ASFV amongst domestic pigs in the Lombardy region. The joint efforts that were implemented facilitated the eradication of ASF in domestic pigs in just over 1.5 months, representing an example of effective and timely cooperation to mitigate both the spread of the infection and the economic repercussions for the Italian and global pig industries. African swine fever (ASF) is a severe viral disease characterized by high lethality in suids and caused by the African Swine Fever Virus (ASFV). The ASF genotype I virus was introduced to Europe in 1957, marking the onset of the first European epidemic wave. In 2007, ASFV genotype II was detected in Georgia, affecting domestic pigs and wild boars before spreading to various European and extra-European countries, including Italy. The first case of ASFV in Italy was documented on 7 January 2022, in a wild boar in the Piedmont region. Since then, several ASFV-positive wild boar carcasses have been identified in the Piedmont and Liguria regions. By June 2023, ASFV had spread to Lombardy, one of the major pig-producing regions in northern Italy; the virus was first detected in early summer in wild boar carcasses. Two months later, it was diagnosed in a commercial pig farm as a consequence of the disease's spread amongst wild boars and an increase in the viral environmental load. This report aims to describe the features of ASFV domestic pig outbreaks that occurred in the Zinasco municipality (Lombardy) and the joint efforts to mitigate potential direct and indirect economic impacts on the Italian and global pig industry. The epidemiological investigation and the measures implemented, which were all performed according to national and European regulations, as well as exceptional ad hoc measures aimed at protecting the pig industry, are described in order to provide a practical and effective approach to combating ASF. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we validated a commercial indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) to detect antibodies to glycoprotein E (gE) of Bovine alphaherpesvirus 1 (BoHV-1) in bulk milk (BM) samples using the OIE Manual of Diagnostic Tests and Vaccines for Terrestrial Animals. The assay performance characteristics were evaluated using a panel of positive (n = 36) and negative (n = 80) samples with known infectious bovine rhinotracheitis (IBR) status. The assay showed adequate repeatability (within-run and between-run), with a coefficient of variability (CV%) of replicates below 30%; only two 1:40 diluted samples had a CV% above 20%. Additionally, an agreement analysis of the qualitative results of replicates led to a Gwet’s agreement coefficient of 0.99 (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.96–1.00, p < 0.001). The estimated diagnostic sensitivity (DSe) and diagnostic specificity (DSp) were 100% (95% CI: 90.3–100%) and 97.5% (95% CI: 91.3–99.7%), respectively. Overall, a good level of agreement was observed between the assay results and the true IBR status of samples (weighted Cohen’s κ: 0.96, 95% CI: 0.78–1.00). The findings demonstrate that the indirect ELISA kit validated here is an easy-to-use and economical method to differentiate infected and gE-deleted marker vaccine-immunised animals using BM samples.

African Swine Fever (ASF), a hemorrhagic disease with a high mortality rate in suids, is transmitted via direct and indirect contact with infectious animals and contaminated fomites, respectively. ASF reached Europe in 2014, affecting 14 of the 27 EU countries including, recently, the Italian peninsula. The fast and unprecedented spread of ASF in the EU has highlighted gaps in knowledge regarding transmission mechanisms. Fomites, such as contaminated clothing and footwear, farming tools, equipment and vehicles have been widely reported in the spread of ASF. The absence of available vaccines renders biosecurity measures, cleaning and disinfection procedures an essential control tool, to a greater degree than the others, for the prevention of primary and secondary introductions of ASF in pig farms. In this review, available data on the virucidal activity of chemical compounds as disinfectants against the ASF virus (ASFV) are summarized together with laboratory methods adopted to assess the virucidal activity.

The cattle industry is a major driving force for the Italian agricultural sector totalling about 5. 6 million heads for dairy and meat production together. It is particularly developed in the northern part of the country, where 70% of the whole Italian cattle population is reared. The cattle industry development in the rest of the country is hampered by the hard orography of the territories and a variety of socioeconomic features leading to the persistence of the traditional rural farming systems. The differences in the farming systems (industrial vs. traditional) also affect the health status of the farms. Whereas, Enzootic Bovine Leukosis (EBL) is almost eradicated across the whole country, in Southern Italy where Bovine Tuberculosis and Brucellosis are still present and Bluetongue is endemic due to the presence of the competent vector (Culicoides imicola), less investments are aimed at controlling diseases with economic impact or at improving farm biosecurity. On the other hand, with the eradication of these diseases in most part of the country, the need has emerged for reducing the economic burden of non-regulated endemic disease and control programs (CPs) for specific diseases have been implemented at regional level, based on the needs of each territory (for instance common grazing or trading with neighboring countries). This explains the coexistence of different types of programs in force throughout the country. Nowadays in Italy, among cattle diseases with little or no EU regulations only three are regulated by a national CP: Enzootic Bovine Leukosis, Bluetongue and Paratuberculosis, while Bovine Genital Campylobacteriosis and Trichomonosis are nationwide controlled only in breeding bulls. For some of the remaining diseases (Infectious Bovine Rhinotracheitis, Bovine Viral Diarrhea, Streptococcus agalactiae) specific CPs have been implemented by the regional Authorities, but for most of them a CP does not exist at all. However, there is a growing awareness among farmers and public health authorities that animal diseases have a major impact not only on the farm profitability but also on animal welfare and on the use of antibiotics in livestock. It is probable that in the near future other CPs will be implemented.

With a view to enhancing the entrepreneurial activity of universities, the authors explore the concepts and features of the "experimental lab", presenting it as an effective means of supporting entrepreneurial training programmes and helping students to turn ideas into actual start-ups. In this context, the term experimental lab refers to a network of entrepreneurial individuals from universities, research laboratories, the financial sector and industry who become part of an innovative ecosystem to sustain entrepreneurship. To evaluate the educational effectiveness of an experimental lab, the authors developed a virtual platform (ExperimentaLab) and simulated its everyday dynamics through role play. Data analysis revealed that ExperimentaLab could effectively process an idea and make it potentially ready for the market and investors: It is thus found to be a valid training tool for the entrepreneurial university. Based on the simulation results, the authors propose a framework for further investigation of the technique.

In this study, we demonstrated for the first time in Italy, the serological cross-reactivity between Bovine alphaherpesvirus 2 (BoHV-2) and Bovine alphaherpesvirus 1 (BoHV-1). Five months after arriving at a performance test station in Central Italy, a 6-month-old calf, which was part of a group of 57 animals, tested positive for BoHV-1 in a commercial gB-ELISA test. It was immediately transferred to the quarantine unit and subjected to clinical observation and serological and virological investigations. During this period, the calf showed no clinical signs. The results from laboratory investigations demonstrated the presence of antibodies via competitive glycoprotein B (gB) ELISAs, indirect BoHV-1 ELISAs, and indirect BoHV-2 ELISAs. Furthermore, the plaque reduction assay provided evidence for the presence of antibodies only for BoHV-2, whereas the virus neutralization test showed negative results for both BoHV-1 and BoHV-5. These findings strongly suggest the occurrence of a serological cross-reactivity between BoHV-2 and BoHV-1. Interference of BoHV-2 antibodies in serological BoHV-1 diagnostics should be considered during routine IBR tests, especially when animals are kept in a performance test station.

Small ruminant lentiviruses (SRLVs), i.e., CAEV and MVV, cause insidious infections with life-long persistence and a slowly progressive disease, impairing both animal welfare and productivity in affected herds. The complex diagnosis of SRLVs currently combines serological methods including whole-virus and peptide-based ELISAs and Immunoblot. To improve the current diagnostic protocol, we analyzed 290 sera of animals originating from different European countries in parallel with three commercial screening ELISAs, Immunoblot as a confirmatory assay and five SU5 peptide ELISAs for genotype differentiation. A newly developed nested real-time PCR was carried out for the detection and genotype differentiation of the virus. Using a heat-map display of the combined results, the drawbacks of the current techniques were graphically visualized and quantified. The immunoblot and the SU5-ELISAs exhibited either unsatisfactory sensitivity or insufficient reliability in the differentiation of the causative viral genotype, respectively. The new truth standard was the concordance of the results of two out of three screening ELISAs and the PCR results for serologically false negative samples along with genotype differentiation. Whole-virus antigen-based ELISA showed the highest sensitivity (92.2%) and specificity (98.9%) among the screening tests, whereas PCR exhibited a sensitivity of 75%.

Small ruminant lentiviruses (SRLV) are viruses that retro-transcribe RNA to DNA and show high rates of genetic variability. SRLV affect animals with strains specific for each host species (sheep or goats), resulting in a series of clinical manifestations depending on the virulence of the strain, the host’s genetic background and farm production system. The aim of this work was to present an up-to-date overview of the genomic epidemiology and genetic diversity of SRLV in Italy over time (1998–2019). In this study, we investigated 219 SRLV samples collected from 17 different Italian regions in 178 geographically distinct herds by CEREL. Our genetic study was based on partial sequencing of the gag-pol gene (800 bp) and phylogenetic analysis. We identified new subtypes with high heterogeneity, new clusters and recombinant forms. The genetic diversity of Italian SRLV strains may have diagnostic and immunological implications that affect the performance of diagnostic tools. Therefore, it is extremely important to increase the control of genomic variants to improve the control measures.

Enzootic Bovine Leukosis (EBL), caused by the bovine leukemia virus (BLV), has been eradicated in over 20 countries, most of which are in Western Europe. The European Commission, in 2017, declared Italy to be an officially EBL-free country by means of Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2017/1910, despite the presence of some infection clusters located in four regions of Central-Southern Italy. As a consequence of persisting infection, the Italian Ministry of Health established specific eradication measures in these areas. In collaboration with the National Reference Laboratory for the Study of Ruminant Retroviral Infectious Diseases, the Ministry of Health employed data from the veterinary information system digital platform, combined with a gap analysis exercise, to monitor and verify the progress of control activities within infection clusters during the period 2018–2021. Our aim was to identify any remaining gaps and, consequently, specific measures to eliminate the factors favouring EBL persistence, on the basis of a description and analysis of the current data regarding epidemiological trends in Italian clusters. The final goal is to achieve the implementation of a less expensive surveillance plan in these areas, as well. The results of comprehensive analysis showed that the eradication activities had been effectively implemented by official local veterinary services, resulting in a drastic reduction of EBL outbreaks in most territories during the period 2018–2021.

Oncolytic viruses (OVs) are emerging as promising and potential anti-cancer therapeutic agents, not only able to kill cancer cells directly by selective intracellular viral replication, but also to promote an immune response against tumor. Unfortunately, the bioavailability under systemic administration of OVs is limited because of undesired inactivation caused by host immune system and neutralizing antibodies in the bloodstream. To address this issue, a novel hyaluronic acid based redox responsive nanohydrogel was developed in this study as delivery system for OVs, with the aim to protect the OVs following systemic administration. The nanohydrogel was formulated by water in oil (W/O) nanoemulsion method and cross-linked by disulfide bonds derived from the thiol groups of synthesized thiolated hyaluronic acid. One DNA OV Ad[I/PPT-E1A] and one RNA OV Rigvir® ECHO-7 were encapsulated into the developed nanohydrogel, respectively, in view of their potential of immunovirotherapy to treat cancers. The nanohydrogels showed particle size of approximately 300–400 nm and negative zeta potential of around −13 mV by dynamic light scattering (DLS). A uniform spherical shape of the nanohydrogel was observed under the scanning electron microscope (SEM) and transmission electron microscope (TEM), especially, the successfully loading of OV into nanohydrogel was revealed by TEM. The crosslinking between the hyaluronic acid chains was confirmed by the appearance of new peak assigned to disulfide bond in Raman spectrum. Furthermore, the redox responsive ability of the nanohydrogel was determined by incubating the nanohydrogel into phosphate buffered saline (PBS) pH 7.4 with 10 μM or 10 mM glutathione at 37 °C which stimulate the normal physiological environment (extracellular) or reductive environment (intracellular or tumoral). The relative turbidity of the sample was real time monitored by DLS which indicated that the nanohydrogel could rapidly degrade within 10 h in the reductive environment due to the cleavage of disulfide bonds, while maintaining the stability in the normal physiological environment after 5 days. Additionally, in vitro cytotoxicity assays demonstrated a good oncolytic activity of OVs-loaded nanohydrogel against the specific cancer cell lines. Overall, the results indicated that the developed nanohydrogel is a delivery system appropriate for viral drugs, due to its hydrophilic and porous nature, and also thanks to its capacity to maintain the stability and activity of encapsulated viruses. Thus, nanohydrogel can be considered as a promising candidate carrier for systemic administration of oncolytic immunovirotherapy.

Different types of vaccines against Infectious Bovine Rhinotracheitis (IBR) are commercially available. Among these, inactivated glycoprotein E (gE)-deleted marker vaccines are commonly used, but their ability to induce passive immunity is poorly known. Here, we evaluated the passive immunity transferred from dams immunised with commercial inactivated gE-deleted marker vaccines to calves. We vaccinated 12 pregnant cattle devoid of neutralising antibodies against Bovine alphaherpesvirus 1 (BoHV-1) and divided them into two groups with 6 animals each. Both groups were injected with a different inactivated gE-deleted marker vaccine administrated via intranasal or intramuscular routes. An additional 6 pregnant cattle served as the unvaccinated control group. After calving, the number of animals in each group was increased by the newborn calves. In the dams, the humoral immune response was evaluated before calving and, subsequently, at different times until post-calving day 180 (PCD180). In addition, the antibodies in colostrum, milk, and in serum samples from newborn calves were evaluated at different times until PCD180. The results indicated that inactivated glycoprotein E (gE)-deleted marker vaccines are safe and produce a good humoral immune response in pregnant cattle until calving and PCD180. Moreover, results showed that, in calf serum, passive immunity persists until PCD180.