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by Elisabetta Ferraro, Graziana Da Rold, Roberto Celva, Elisa Dalla Libera, Stefania Leopardi, Giulia Simonato, Paola De Benedictis, Nadia Cappai, Arianna Dissegna, Carlo Vittorio Citterio, Rudi Cassini, Federica Obber
The grey wolf (Canis lupus) population is expanding in parts of Europe due to legal protection and favorable ecological conditions. As wolves increasingly move into urban and suburban areas, interactions with domestic dogs become more frequent, raising the risk of pathogen transmission and posing potential threats to both wolf conservation and public health. This study investigated the health status of wolves in the Foreste Casentinesi National Park (Italy) using non-invasive fecal sampling conducted between May 2019 and March 2020. Samples were genetically analyzed to identify individuals and then screened for viral pathogens, Canine Coronavirus and Parvovirus, using PCR, Sanger sequencing, and phylogenetic analysis. Parasitological examinations were performed using flotation techniques on whole samples, and real-time PCR targeting Echinococcus granulosus and E. multilocularis was conducted on selected samples. Of the 260 samples collected, genetic analysis identified 80 individual wolves belonging to 8 packs. Only one sample tested positive for Coronavirus (1.2%), and none for Parvovirus. The detected sequence clustered with strains previously reported in wolves and foxes in Italy. Copromicroscopy revealed a high prevalence of veterinary-relevant endoparasites, including Eucoleus spp. (90.0%), Sarcocystis spp. (42.5%), Taeniids (28.7%), and Ancylostomatids (26.2%). Trichuris vulpis, Toxocara canis, and coccidia showed prevalence rates below 2%. All 104 samples tested for E. granulosus or E. multilocularis were negative. These findings suggest that while wolves in the FCNP commonly harbor several canine parasites, their role in the transmission of zoonotic pathogens appears limited. Although phylogenetic data suggest that coronavirus strains tend to cluster within wildlife species, molecular data on domestic dogs remain scarce. Nonetheless, the high prevalence of shared parasites highlights the need for ongoing surveillance in both wild canids and domestic carnivores. As wolves increasingly inhabit human-dominated landscapes, understanding disease dynamics at the wildlife–domestic interface is essential for effective conservation and public health strategies.Endometriosis is a common, benign, chronic inflammatory disease with multiple consequences, from chronic pain to systemic comorbidities and poor quality of life. As it usually affects people of reproductive age, one of the most distressing consequences is infertility, which can be only partly overcome by medically assisted reproduction. Poor outcomes are, in fact, frequent adverse events. As no definitive therapy exists for endometriosis-related infertility, affected women often tend to try either complementary and alternative medicine or self-management strategies to improve their quality of life, with the hope of also enhancing their fertility. Among available options, dietary interventions are commonly explored, even if no robust evidence is available on the optimal type of diet and its effects on reproductive outcomes. This trial will investigate whether an anti-inflammatory dietary intervention can improve fertility outcomes in women affected by endometriosis undergoing in vitro fertilisation (IVF).
The DietAry interveNtion in ameliorating fertiliTy parameters in women with Endometriosis undergoing IVF (DANTE) study is a single-centre, randomised, controlled, non-pharmacological interventional trial in patients living with endometriosis who are infertile and require IVF. Participants will be allocated to either a 12-week intervention based on an anti-inflammatory diet or no diet before the beginning of controlled ovarian stimulation. Following baseline assessment, 438 participants aged
The study has received ethics approval from Comitato Etico Territoriale Lombardia 3 (#5587_18.12.2024). Results will be presented in peer-reviewed journals and at international conferences.
The purpose of this study was to analyse the speech-language pathology (SLP) literature from 2012 to 2022 and evaluate authorship trends and factors associated with gender disparities.
Authorship across journals published by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) was evaluated. Outcomes collected from each article included the gender of the first and senior authors, author department affiliations, study type, reported funding source and the country of origin. Three sets of linear regression models were explored to determine the probability of male first authorship, of male senior authorship, and of a study being funded.
A total of 2754 articles were identified for inclusion. The majority of the literature was authored by females, with 77% of first authors and 68% of senior authors being female. Studies with a male senior author were shown to be 4.05–4.67 times more likely to have a male first author than with a female senior author. Male senior authors were over-represented relative to their proportion of ASHA membership compared with female senior authors. Male authorship was associated with certain subtopics, including voice, stuttering and motor speech. Funding probability decreased for all authors regardless of gender between 2012 and 2022.
Implicit gender bias and societal gender stereotypes lead to a greater number of women in the field of SLP; the same biases and stereotypes often limit the research productivity and academic leadership potential of women in the field. Addressing these biases and stereotypes is vital to move towards gender equity in the field.
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