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Despite their remote locations, high-mountain lakes located in the Alps are vulnerable to chemical pollution. This discussion explores the important aspects of these lakes as repositories of Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) and Contaminants of Emerging Concern (CECs), elucidating their sources and implications for both the environment and human health. In terms of the presence of POPs in high-altitude lakes of the Alps, 14 studies have been identified examining the occurrence of polychlorinated biphenyls, dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane an its metabolites, polybrominated diphenyl ethers, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. The bulk of research on POPs in high-mountain lakes is concentrated in the Italian Alps (63%), followed by Switzerland (22%), Austria (12%), and France (3%), respectively. Sediment is predominantly investigated (65%), followed by fish (33%) and water (2%). Similarly, in relation to the presence of CECs in high-mountain lakes of the Alps, six studies have been identified investigating the occurrence of musks, perfluorinated compounds, and microplastics. Investigations into CECs predominantly occur in Switzerland (42%), France (33%), and Italy (25%), with fish samples (muscle and liver) being the primary focus (46%), followed by sediment (17%) and water (17%). Other compartments like zooplankton, frog/tadpoles, and snow remain less explored. The discussion also shed light on various pathways through which pollutants reach these remote landscapes, including atmospheric transport, glacial meltwater, and human activities. Protecting these pristine peaks demands concerted efforts encompassing ongoing research, vigilant monitoring, and dedicated conservation initiatives., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Border disease virus (BDV) is widespread both in domestic small ruminants and wildlife. Here we report the genome of BDV genotype 8 from chamois, strain Italy‑58987, obtained by next generation sequencing and the comparison with other pestiviruses. The sequence of 12,245 bp long was aligned to 22 pestivirus genomes and it showed a nt/aa similarity of 81.3/89.4% with BDV genotypes, and 65.9/67.8% with the other  pestiviruses. The genome showed a mean nt/aa similarity of 91.2/95.0% with three Swiss genomes closely related to the BDV‑8 5'‑UTR and Npro sequences. The identification of divergent BDV‑8 isolates in North‑Western Italy and in Switzerland suggests that this genotype may have been circulating in a wider area than previously supposed, and may have a high host adaptability.