Background: Knowledge of epidemiology is important for recognition of cardiovascular malformations. Objective: Review the incidence of congenital heart defects in dogs in Italy and assess breed and sex predispositions. Animals: Nine hundred and seventy-six dogs diagnosed with congenital heart disease (CHD) of 4,480 dogs presented to Clinica Veterinaria Gran Sasso for cardiovascular examination from 1997 to 2010.Methods: A retrospective analysis of medical records regarding signalment, history, clinical examination, radiography, electrocardiography, echocardiography, angiography, and postmortem examination was performed. Breed and sex predisposition were assessed with the odds ratio test.Results: CHD was observed in 21.7% of cases. A total of 1,132 defects were observed with single defects in 832 cases (85%), 2 concurrent defects in 132 cases (14%), and 3 concurrent defects in 12 cases (1%). The most common defects were pulmonic stenosis (PS; 32.1%), subaortic stenosis (SAS; 21.3%), and patent ductus arteriosus (20.9%), followed by ventricular septal defect (VSD; 7.5%), valvular aortic stenosis (AS; 5.7%), and tricuspid dysplasia (3.1%). SAS, PS, and VSD frequently were associated with other defects. Several breed and sex predispositions were identified.Conclusions and Clinical Relevance: The results of this study are in accordance with previous studies, with slight differences. The breed and sex predilections identified may be of value for the diagnosis and screening of CHD in dogs. Additionally, the relatively high percentage of concurrent heart defects emphasizes the importance of accurate and complete examinations for identification. Because these data are from a cardiology referral center, a bias may exist.

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AIP56 (apoptosis-inducing protein of 56 kDa) is a major virulence factor of Photobacterium damselae piscicida (Phdp), a Gram-negative pathogen that causes septicemic infections, which are among the most threatening diseases in mariculture. The toxin triggers apoptosis of host macrophages and neutrophils through a process that, in vivo, culminates with secondary necrosis of the apoptotic cells contributing to the necrotic lesions observed in the diseased animals. Here, we show that AIP56 is a NF-κB p65-cleaving zinc-metalloprotease whose catalytic activity is required for the apoptogenic effect. Most of the bacterial effectors known to target NF-κB are type III secreted effectors. In contrast, we demonstrate that AIP56 is an A-B toxin capable of acting at distance, without requiring contact of the bacteria with the target cell. We also show that the N-terminal domain cleaves NF-κB at the Cys39-Glu40 peptide bond and that the C-terminal domain is involved in binding and internalization into the cytosol.

Although symmetric midline hand stereotypies were not specific to patients with an MECP2 mutation, some of the other stereotypies seemed to be more characteristic of this group. In patients younger than 10 years and meeting the necessary diagnostic criteria of Rett syndrome, the association of hand stereotypies without hand gaze, bruxism, and two or more of the other stereotypies seemed to be highly indicative of the presence of an MECP2 mutation.

Objective: Pain control in trigeminal neuralgia (TN) is achieved using anticonvulsivants, mainly carbamazepine. When this drug cannot be used, other drugs like gabapentin (GBP) have been used to provide adequate pain control. To improve the therapeutic effect of GBP, we evaluated the clinical efficacy of associating GBP with ropivacain (ROP) analgesic block of facial trigger points in TN patients.Design: Thirty-six TN patients were randomly assigned during 4 weeks to 1 of the following protocols: Protocol I-daily oral GBP administered in a titrated dose; Protocol II-ROP applied as analgesic block to TN trigger points once a week; Protocol III-daily oral GBP plus ROP once a week. Protocol II had to be discontinued in 7/12 patients owing to insufficient pain control. Pain intensity was evaluated by the Visual Analog Scale (VAS) and disability was assessed by Sickness Impact Profile.Results: When compared with Protocol I, Protocol III (GBP+ROP) patients showed (1) a reduction of VAS score after 7 and 28 days of treatment, an effect that was still present 6 and 12 months later; (2) a faster reduction of VAS score using a significantly lower dose of GBP; (3) a smaller total and daily GBP dose at the end of the treatment, which resulted in a total absence of adverse side effects; and (4) an improvement of the functional well-being measured by the Sickness Impact Profile. The number needed to treat (NNT) (GBP+ROP vs. GBP protocols) to obtain 1 GBP+ROP-treated patient with at least 50% pain relief was 1.71 (day 7) and 2.40 (day 28). Conclusions:The association of GBP and ROP is safe, without side effects and results in an important clinical benefit associated to an improvement of the functional health status of TN patients when compared with GBP alone. This may constitute a therapeutic alternative for pain control in TN patients who cannot be treated with carbamazepine.