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In recent decades, the most successful strategy for controlling blood pressure has been inhibition of the angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE). ACE inhibitors of chemical synthesis (captopril, enalapril, ramipril and trandolapril) have been widely used clinically to reduce mortality in patients with heart failure, and in patients with recent myocardial infarction and heart failure or marked left ventricular dysfunction. In addition to preventive and therapeutic drugs, increased attention has been paid to identifying dietary compounds that may contribute to cardiovascular treatment and prevention. ACE inhibitory peptides, derived from a multitude of plant and animal proteins such as milk, soy or fish, represent sources of health-enhancing components. These ACE inhibitory peptides can be enzymatically released from precursor proteins in vitro and in vivo, respectively during food processing and gastrointestinal digestion. They have shown the ability to lower blood pressure by limiting the vasoconstrictory effects of Angiotensin II and potentiating the vasodilatory effects of Bradykinin. By using specific procedures they may be generated in or incorporated into functional foods for the development of 'natural' beneficial health products. Several products containing peptides with ACE inhibitory properties are currently on the market or in development. This review focuses on the use, application and future perspective of bioactive peptides with properties relevant to cardiovascular health.

Telomere length maintenance is regarded as a fundamental step in tumorigenesis, as most human brain tumors, including meningiomas, stabilize the ends of their chromosomes using telomerase. This investigation represents an introduction to telomerase expression in canine and feline meningiomas. Twenty-five archived cases (14 dogs and 11 cats) were immunohistochemically tested for human-telomerase reverse transcriptase (h-TERT), scored, and quantified; furthermore, mitoses were counted on sections stained with a modified toluidine blue. The h-TERT antibody immunolabelled the nucleus and nucleolus of meningeal neoplastic cells, with an intensity ranging from mild to strong and a speckled distribution; a significantly higher expression in cats was noted, while no significant association between h-TERT immunolabelling and sex or histotype was evident in dogs or cats. The telomerase enzyme represents a fundamental parameter of potential malignant transformation, which may occur independently of the signal to proliferate, thereby supplying the cells with unlimited growth capabilities. Telomerase expression could be a prognostic indicator independent of the kinetic parameters, although this should be evaluated using a larger dataset with available clinical information.

A well-demarcated mass was found by computed tomography in the left cerebellar hemisphere of a 4-year-old male Boxer with acute onset of progressive central vestibular syndrome. At necropsy, the pink, gelatinous mass was in the flocculonodular lobe. Histologically, neoplastic tissue arose from the granular layer of the cerebellar cortex and consisted of sheets of oval to round hyperchromatic cells, consistent with the diagnosis of medulloblastoma. Synaptophysin and neuron-specific enolase immunoreactivity supported the neuronal origin of the neoplastic cells; furthermore, a weak to moderate c-kit expression was detected, as reported in pediatric medulloblastoma. Telomerase activity of tumor cells was demonstrated by immunohistochemistry and by the telomere repeat amplification protocol, suggesting involvement of this enzymatic pathway.Keywords dog, immunohistochemistry, medulloblastoma, telomerase, telomere activity amplification protocol (TRAP) Case HistoryA 4-year-old male Boxer was evaluated because of a 2-week history of loss of balance, head tilt, and ataxia of acute onset and progressive course. On neurological examination, the dog had depressed mental status, disorientation, and a gait characterized by moderate left drifting. Ipsilateral proprioceptive deficits and bilateral loss of menace reaction were also recorded. The clinical signs were consistent with a central vestibular syndrome. A computed tomography scan of the skull revealed an irregularly isodense, space-occupying lesion in the area of the left cerebellar hemisphere that, after intravenous (IV) injection of the contrast medium (Iodixanole, 320 mg/ml; 2 ml/kg IV, as a bolus) had haphazard enhancement. Given the rapid worsening of the dog's condition, it was euthanatized at the owner's request. Necropsy FindingsAt necropsy, a pink, gelatinous, 1.5 cm  3.0 cm mass was in the left flocculonodular lobe of the cerebellum (Fig. 1) with compression of the fourth ventricle. No other central nervous system lesions were discovered, and there was no evidence of distant metastasis. Samples of the cerebellar mass were fixed in 10% neutral buffered formalin, processed routinely into paraffin, sectioned at 4 mm, and stained with hematoxylin and eosin (HE). Histologic FindingsThe neoplastic tissue arose from the granular layer of the cerebellar cortex (Fig. 2) and extended into the leptomeninges and Virchow-Robin spaces. It consisted mostly of solid nests of oval to round cells with hyperchromatic nuclei, indistinct nucleoli, and scanty cytoplasm, in a fine fibrovascular stroma (Fig. 3). There were 2 to 5 mitotic figures per 400 field. A less conspicuous population of elongated or stellate cells with slender cytoplasmic processes, consistent with astrocytes, was interspersed between the nests of neoplastic cells. Concurrent findings included foci of intratumoral mineralization, endothelial cell hypertrophy and hyperplasia, and edema of the adjacent neuropil. Based on the anatomic location, the cytologic features of the neoplastic cells, and the exten...

Wild boar (Sus scrofa ssp scrofa) is a host of porcine circovirus 2 (PCV-2), and infection in this species has been reported in many countries. This study sampled tissues from 348 wild boars in Italy in the provinces of Bologna, Padua and Pisa. No clinical signs or macroscopic lesions were recorded in the sampled animals. Immunolocalisation for PCV-2 was performed on tissues, and viral antigen was disclosed in 38 animals, 11 immunohistochemistry (IHC) positive out of 148 (7.43%) sampled in northern Italy and 27 immunofluorescence (IF) positive out of 200 (13.5%) sampled in central Italy, respectively. Histologically, 19 cases displayed post-weaning multisystemic wasting syndrome (PMWS) histological lesions, but PCV2 was only proved in nine of them (three from Bologna and Padua by IHC and six from Pisa by IF). Animals aged 7 to 8 months were the most affected by PCV2 infection, suggesting an important role of this age class in the epidemiology of the virosis in the tested populations. Moreover, the study confirmed that wild boar can be a host of PCV-2, and showed that the virus and PMWS is widespread and endemic in wild boar in Italy as in other countries

BackgroundSince 1999, field evidence of transplacental infection by porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2) and reproductive failure has been reported in pigs. The objective of this study was to evaluate the clinical and pathological consequences of PCV2 infection in conventional PCV2-seropositive gilts by insemination with PCV2b-spiked semen.ResultsSix PCV2 seropositive gilts were inseminated with PCV2b-supplemented semen (infected) and three animals with semen and cell culture medium (controls). Only three out of the six infected animals were pregnant by ultrasonography on day 29 after insemination, while two out of the three controls were pregnant. One control gilt aborted on day 23 after insemination but not due to PVC2. Viraemia was demonstrated in four out of six infected and in one control gilt that became infected with PCV2a. Anti-PCV2 antibody titres showed dynamic variations in the infected group throughout the study. Among infected gilts, the animal with the lowest anti-PCV2 titre (1/100) at the beginning of the experiment and another that reached a similar low value during the experiment showed evident seroconversion over time and had also PCV2 positive foetuses. One placenta displayed mild focal necrosis of the chorionic epithelium positively stained by immunohistochemistry for PCV2 antigen.ConclusionsPCV2-seropositive gilts can be infected with PCV2 after intrauterine exposure and low maternal antibody titre may increase the probability of a foetal infection.

Abstract. Kidney samples with interstitial nephritis from 26 pigs affected by postweaning multisystemic wasting syndrome (PMWS) were selected. A histologic evaluation was carried out to describe the type of inflammation and its relationship with viral load, as assessed by in situ hybridization (ISH). Of 26 cases, 10 revealed a tubulointerstitial, lymphoplasmacytic nephritis, 11 an interstitial granulomatous nephritis, and 5 both types of inflammation (mixed type). In 4 cases of granulomatous inflammation, the pattern was not classically nodular, and a population of macrophages and lymphocytes was present (interstitial lymphohistiocytic nephritis). ISH confirmed the presence of porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2) nucleic acid in all cases. The epithelium of the renal tubules was the most constantly ISH-positive structure. In tubulointerstitial nephritis, the higher the number of positive inflammatory cells, the more severe the inflammation. The ISH reaction was more heterogeneous and unpredictable in granulomatous nephritis, with some epithelioid and giant cells positive by ISH. To quantify macrophages distributed in the three patterns of nephritis, immunohistochemical methods using anti-major histocompatibility complex II (anti-MHC-II) and anti-lysozyme antibodies were undertaken, and semiquantitative evaluation was carried out. MHC-II was mainly expressed by lymphocytes in tubulointerstitial nephritis, but did not always stain macrophages in cases of granulomatous (including lymphohistiocytic) nephritis; the anti-lysozyme antibody revealed macrophages when present in tissues. The amount of PCV2 nucleic acid was not apparently associated with the pattern of inflammation (tubulointerstitial or granulomatous). PCV2 load seems to reflect the severity of the lymphoplasmacytic inflammation but not that of granulomatous and lympho histiocytic types.

Onchocercosis is a vector-transmitted parasitic disease involving wild and domestic ungulates, humans, and dogs. Red deer (Cervus elaphus) host numerous Onchocerca spp. which have precise anatomic sites in the host and two species, Onchocerca flexuosa Wedl, 1856 and Onchocerca jakutensis Guba-now, 1964, are found inside subcutaneous nodules. Between September and November 2007, subcutaneous nodules were observed on both thighs in shot red deer of a Tuscany population. We observed cystic structures, surrounded by a fibrous capsule, containing nematodes. Filamentous worms were male and female; microfilariae were also described. Although morphologically we could not distinguish between O. flexuosa and O. jakutensis, genetic studies implicated O. jakutensis. This is the first report of this parasite in Italy.