Landscapes of the Anthropocene, increasingly shaped by deforestation, climate change, and productive activities, are key settings for pathogen emergence and re-emergence. In this context, wildlife health surveillance is critical for early detection and risk mitigation. We describe the development, implementation, and operational outcomes of an integrated wildlife health surveillance system in protected areas of Argentina between 2022 and 2025, following its transition from marsh deer (Blastocerus dichotomus) mortality monitoring to a multispecies framework. The system integrated participatory, passive, and active surveillance modalities, with participatory surveillance functioning as a cross-cutting component supporting both mortality event detection and field implementation. The participatory network involved 110 members and was strengthened through training, standardized protocols, and field-based collaboration. Passive surveillance documented 205 records of wildlife morbidity and mortality, structured through three complementary reporting channels: surveillance network reports, wildlife rescue centers, and research team detections. Active surveillance focused on Ehrlichia chaffeensis and Theileria cervi, combining standardized grid-based sampling with complementary sampling of domestic dogs and environmental matrices. Grid-based sampling integrated rodent trapping, tick dragging, and camera trapping within a unified spatial design, yielding 471 rodents, 696 questing ticks, and records of 14 mammal species. Additional components included 185 domestic dogs sampled in one peri-protected area and 263 environmental samples across multiple matrices. System performance varied across implementation contexts, shaped by territorial presence of personnel, local infrastructure, and continuity of field activities. Integration of surveillance modalities enabled coordinated workflows, strengthened interinstitutional collaboration, and improved sample use efficiency across concurrent research efforts, expanding detection capacity, enhancing sample quality, and reducing redundant animal handling. The diagnostic network incorporated 12 institutions supporting coordinated sample processing. This study provides an operational framework for integrated wildlife health surveillance in resource-limited settings, highlighting the role of participatory approaches and the importance of institutional support, local capacity, and sustained engagement for long-term sustainability and consolidation of existing surveillance programs under a One Health perspective.

Arnica montana is a popular herbal supplement used to minimize bruising, swelling, and discomfort after surgery, but evidence of its efficacy remains inconsistent across surgical specialties. This systematic review, conducted according to PRISMA guidelines, searched PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, Trip Database, and ClinicalTrials.gov on June 13, 2025, for studies evaluating perioperative A. montana (oral or topical) in human surgical patients with reported postoperative outcomes. Risk of bias was assessed using Cochrane RoB 2 for randomized trials, and results were synthesized narratively with subgroup analysis by specialty. Of 266 records identified, 27 studies met inclusion criteria, with plastic surgery accounting for the largest proportion (n = 10), followed by orthopaedics (n = 5), breast surgery, cardiothoracic surgery, hand surgery, otolaryngology, vascular surgery, general surgery, obstetrics/gynecology, and urology. Across all specialties, 55.6% (n = 15) of studies reported measurable benefit from A. montana, 33.3% (n = 9) found no significant effect, and 11.1% (n = 3) were ongoing trials without published results. Plastic surgery demonstrated the highest proportion of reported benefit, while evidence in other specialties was mixed. Overall, A. montana shows moderate potential as an adjunct in postoperative recovery, particularly in plastic surgery, but inconsistency across trials highlights the need for standardization of dosing, administration route, and outcome measurement. Further high-quality randomized studies are warranted to clarify its role in surgical recovery protocols.

In phylogeographic studies, genetic distances between individuals are typically small: In the European endemic, declining medicinal plant Arnica montana L., range-wide biogeographic patterns so far remained obscure as sequence diversity in plastome marker regions is very low. While entire chloroplast genomes promise higher resolution, comparing them in great detail is a technical challenge, requiring high accuracy and repeatability in sequencing, assembly and annotation, automated across large sample sets. Using A. montana as our working example, we developed the PlastidPipeline, which consistently and repeatably provides structurally standardized and annotated, ready-to-analyze plastomes from short-read sequences. The PlastidPipeline combines well-tested standard software tools with own scripts, from data cleanup through plastome assembly, structural standardization, annotation, to quality control and raw read backmapping. Using publicly available read data of diverse provenance, we obtained plastid genomes for eight A. montana accessions across Europe, four further species of Arnica and three outgroup species. All A. montana plastomes formed a well-supported clade, split further into an Iberian and a Central/Northern European geographic group, which are, however, connected by patterns of potential heteroplasmy. Beyond demonstrating that pan-plastome phylogeography is both feasible and useful, we recommend the analysis of within-sample read variation, and improved standardization of newly reported plastomes.

Helenalin, a naturally occurring sesquiterpene lactone derived primarily from Arnica montana, has emerged as a promising multitarget therapeutic agent due to its diverse anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, cytotoxic, and antimicrobial activities. The review summarized the pharmacological spectrum and molecular mechanisms underlying helenalin bioactivity. Helenalin exerts anticancer activities by regulating key oncogenic signaling, especially, NF-κB and STAT3/MYC pathway. Helenalin demonstrated Nrf2 antioxidant pathway activation and muted P2X7R-dependent inflammation in osteoarthritis models. It was also found to have antimicrobial activity and was effective in melting the redox and quorum sensing in the pathogens, which were interesting to use in the drug-resistant infections. ADMET predictions support the good drug likeness, pharmacokinetics, and oral bioavailability, and it satisfies the Lipinski Rule of Five. The network pharmacological and GO/KEGG enrichment analyses indicated the implication of helenalin in cancer and inflammation -related pathways. Molecular docking also showed strong binding with COX-1, Bcl-2, and hub target proteins having docking scores of - 9.2 to 11.3, respectively, which confirmed its potential as a pharmacological agent. The learning of this multifaceted pharmacology profile together with the tools of systems biology, however, establishes helenalin as an attractive lead compound towards the development of novel anticancer, anti-inflammatory, antiarthritic, antioxidant, antiviral, antibacterial, and antiangiogenic agents. Its therapeutic index should be further confirmed using future translational research.

Climate change and increasing dog importation and travel may facilitate the emergence of canine vector-borne diseases in previously non-endemic regions. Competent vectors of Dirofilaria spp. are widespread in Switzerland, and phlebotomine sand flies have been repeatedly documented in Ticino, adjacent to highly endemic areas of canine leishmaniosis and dirofilariosis in Italy. This study provided insights into the epidemiology of Leishmania infantum and Dirofilaria spp. infections in dogs in Ticino, and evaluated current diagnostic, management, and prevention practices. A multi-stakeholder approach was applied, combining structured interviews with animal shelter representatives, standardized online questionnaires for veterinarians and dog owners, along with a 25-year retrospective review of clinical records. Data comprised responses from 3/4 public shelters, 44/56 veterinarians, 8 dog owners, and 106 clinical records (91 L. infantum, 15 D. immitis). Leishmania infantum infections were reported by 2/3 shelters and 36/44 (81.8%) veterinarians within the year preceding data collection. Dirofilaria immitis infections were less frequent (1/3 shelters; 8/44 (18.2%) veterinarians); Dirofilaria repens was not reported. Most infected dogs originated from Italy; one D. immitis positive dog had no history of travel abroad. Veterinarians frequently reported asymptomatic L. infantum infections. Preventive recommendations were generally appropriate, but owner compliance was inconsistent. Retrospective analysis revealed incomplete diagnostic staging of dogs with L. infantum infection (retrospective LeishVet classification achievable in one-third of cases, primarily due to omitted urinalysis). The high number of - often asymptomatic - infected dogs and gaps in testing and vector prophylaxis, indicates a risk of endemic establishment of L. infantum and sustained transmission of Dirofilaria spp. in southern Switzerland.

Arnica montana L. is a valuable medicinal plant with strong anti-inflammatory properties attributed to its high levels of antioxidants and specific metabolites. The species is endemic to Europe, and its natural populations are threatened by habitat disturbance and poor management. In vitro plant cultures are an alternative method for rapid plant multiplication and the controlled synthesis of biologically active substances. Elicitation is a common strategy for inducing physiological changes and defense responses in plants, thereby increasing their antioxidant potential and the synthesis of specialized metabolites. Methyl jasmonate, a plant growth regulator involved in the modulation of plant growth and development at morphological and molecular levels, has gained increasing attention as an elicitor. In the present study, three concentrations of MeJA (50, 100, and 200 μM) were applied for 3 and 7 days to evaluate their effects on growth, antioxidant capacity, and accumulation of caffeoylquinic acids in in vitro shoots of arnica. Seven-day MeJA treatment reduced growth parameters and was accompanied by increased activities of antioxidant enzymes SOD and APX, as well as elevated levels of water-soluble antioxidants, which correlated with the enhanced accumulation of caffeoylquinic acids, total phenolics, and flavonoids. The results demonstrate that MeJA affected shoot growth and antioxidant potential of A. montana, with concentration and treatment duration playing a critical role in response magnitude.

This study investigated the phytochemical composition, antioxidant potential, and antimicrobial activity of ethanolic extracts obtained from Arnica montana L., Melissa officinalis L., and Capsella bursa-pastoris Medik., as well as their ternary mixtures. Liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry analysis revealed the presence of several phenolic compounds, including luteolin, apigenin, acacetin, and phenolic acids, while rutin and hyperoside were previously reported as dominant constituents in Capsella bursa-pastoris Medik. The extracts and their mixtures exhibited significant antioxidant activity in different radical scavenging and reducing power assays, with the highest activity observed for the ACM4 mixture. Antimicrobial activity was evaluated against Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus pneumoniae, showing inhibitory effects with minimum inhibitory concentration values ranging from below 100 mg/L for Melissa officinalis L. extracts to above 250 mg/L for Capsella bursa-pastoris Medik. extracts. These findings suggest that the phenolic compounds identified in the studied plants contribute to their antioxidant and antibacterial properties and support the potential use of these extracts and their combinations as natural sources of bioactive compounds.