Italian Manufacturing Productivity, 1976–2016: Sectoral Reallocation Versus Firms’ Heterogeneity

Based on new datasets collecting financial statements and off-balance sheet data on a wide number of medium and large Italian enterprises between the 1970s and the 2010s, the work aims at contributing to the debate about the productivity growth gap that affected the Italian industry, as compared to other advanced economies, at the end of the last century. It also aims at understanding whether productivity gaps were mainly determined by differences among firms (within-effect) or by resources’ reallocation across industries (between-effect). What emerges from the long term analysis is a contraction of most productive sectors and a productivity slowdown affecting almost all industries. In the long run, the reallocation of resources across sectors has had a negative impact on productivity trends, preceding and somehow offsetting any positive contributions from the within-effect

Bubble solution for the critical Hartree equation in a pierced domain

In this article, we establish the existence of solutions to the following critical Hartree equation: (Formula Presented) where (Formula Presented) is the upper critical exponent in the sense of the Hardy-Littlewood-Sobolev inequality, N ≥ 3, 0 < μ < 4, Ωε := Ω\B(0, ε) where Ω is a bounded smooth domain in RN which contains the origin, and ε is a positive parameter. As ε goes to zero, we construct a bubble solution which blows up at the origin

A Data-Knowledge Hybrid Decision Support System for Wastewater Treatment Operations: The Acqua Dei Corsari Plant Case Study

This research introduces a Data-Knowledge Hybrid Decision Support System that combines embedded knowledge and data-driven approaches to address critical operational challenges in wastewater treatment plant management. The proposed methodology extends traditional decision support capabilities by combining fuzzy logic principles with advanced data augmentation techniques and deep neural networks, aiming to reduce discrepancies between theoretical recommendations and operational limitations in wastewater treatment facilities. In light of the escalating environmental regulations and growing operational complexities, this novel approach was implemented and validated at the “Acqua dei Corsari” wastewater treatment plant in Palermo, where it demonstrated the ability in handling real-world operational limitations while maintaining theoretical optimization principles. The system’s distinctive architecture leverages fuzzy logic to encode expert knowledge, while employing a sophisticated data augmentation strategy to overcome the limited data availability. Results from extensive field testing validate not only the system’s effectiveness, but also its unique ability to adapt to plant-specific constraints without compromising theoretical optimization principles. This study presents an approach to integrate domain expertise with machine learning techniques through a framework designed to bridge theoretical understanding with practical implementation constraints. This innovative approach provides a methodology for developing data-driven expert decision support systems, offering a practical solution for modern wastewater treatment plants operating under infrastructure limitations and strict regulatory requirements. The work represents a notable advance in intelligent water management systems, establishing a systematic path from domain knowledge to automated operational guidance

The most bothersome symptoms in neuromuscular diseases: the ERN EURO NMD Survey

Background: Neuromuscular diseases (NMDs) comprise a range of genetic and acquired rare disorders that affect motor neurons, peripheral nerves, neuromuscular junctions and skeletal muscles, leading to significant impairments such as muscle weakness and fatigue resulting in functional limitations. This study aims to investigate the prevalence and severity of disease-related symptoms in adult patients with NMDs registered in the European Reference Network (ERN) EURO-NMD. A cross-sectional electronic survey was conducted with 1,253 participants who reported the severity of 28 symptoms, which were scored using multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA). Results: The results identified muscle fatigue, weakness and impaired physical function/activity as the most severe and prevalent symptoms in all NMD groups, followed by coordination and/or balance problems, muscle stiffness, mental fatigue, and pain. Notably, the analysis highlighted differences in symptom severity between disease subtypes and underlined the need for standardised patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) to address the broad heterogeneity of NMDs. Conclusions: The findings stress the critical importance of capturing patient perspectives to guide clinical care, research priorities and therapeutic development. This work argues for the development of uniform PROMs to better assess disease impact, natural history and treatment efficacy, contributing to improved patient-centred care across diverse NMD populations

Infrastructure as a sociological category: Concept, applications, 123 and paradigmatic turns?

Il saggio analizza limiti e prospettive della svolta infrastrutturale nelle scienze social

Dynamic Response of Beams Under Random Loads

In engineering, the study of the dynamic response of structures subjected to non-deterministically variable loads is particularly important, especially when considering the damage that such loads can cause due to fatigue phenomena. This is the case, for example, of the vibrations that a satellite must withstand during the launch phase. In the preliminary design phases, it is very useful to have semi-analytical calculation methodologies that are sufficiently reliable but, at the same time, simple. In the technical literature, there are numerous publications that deal with the study of the random dynamic response of beam models. In general, the presented studies are rather complex, and the dynamic solutions are often obtained in the time domain. The case of a linear elastic uniform cantilever beam model is considered here, for which the analytical expressions of the transfer functions for acceleration, displacement, bending moment, and bending stress are calculated, taking as input the acceleration assigned to the root section or an external lateral load. Knowing the spectral density of the input loads, the spectral densities of all the above-mentioned variables are calculated along the beam axis, assuming stationary and ergodic random processes. Using the spectral density of each output variable, the effective value (RMS) is obtained via integration, which allows for a preliminary estimate of the severity of the working conditions of the beam. The spectral density of the responses also allows us to quickly highlight the contribution of each natural vibration mode as the spectrum of the load varies. The results were obtained using simple spreadsheets available to the reader

Circulating mitochondrial DNA signature in cardiometabolic patients

Background: Mitochondrial dysfunction is a hallmark of cardiometabolic diseases. Circulating mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) profiles could refine risk stratification, but current methods do not account for different fractions of circulating mtDNA. We investigated whether patients with type 2 diabetes and/or heart failure (HF) have a specific signature of the total circulating mtDNA profile, including intracellular and cell-free fractions. Methods: We performed a complete clinical assessment, including blood tests, 12-lead ECG and ultrasound at rest and during cardiopulmonary exercise. Ultrasound congestion was defined at rest as inferior vena cava of ≥ 21 mm, lung B-lines ≥ 4, or discontinuous renal venous flow. In fasting whole blood and plasma samples collected at rest, we simultaneously measured the copy number of the cellular and cell-free components of mtDNA by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) using custom standards. We calculated the ratio of cell mtDNA to cell-free mtDNA as an index of mitochondrial efficiency. Results: We enrolled 120 consecutive patients: 50 (42%) with HF and preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), 40 (33%) with HF and reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) and 30 (25%) at risk of developing HF; 42/120 (35%) had diabetes. Cell-free mtDNA was increased in patients with HF (with higher levels in HFrEF than HFpEF) and those with diabetes. Cell-free mtDNA was also higher in patients with systemic inflammation (expressed by high-sensitivity C-reactive protein [hs-CRP] ≥ 0.2 mg/dL with neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio [NLR] > 3) and more ultrasound signs of congestion. The cell/cell-free mtDNA ratio showed opposite trends (all p < 0.05), but there were no significant differences in cell mtDNA. Cell-free mtDNA and mtDNA ratio independently predicted the presence of ≥ 2 ultrasound signs of congestion and effort intolerance (peak oxygen consumption < 16 mL/kg/min) at ROC analysis and using multivariable regressions after adjustment for age, sex, hs-CRP, NLR, high-sensitivity Troponin T and NT-proBNP. Conclusions: Patients with HF and diabetes have an altered circulating mtDNA signature characterised by higher cell-free mtDNA and lower mtDNA ratio, whereas cellular mtDNA remains unaffected. Cell-free mtDNA and mtDNA ratio are associated with impaired response to exercise, higher systemic inflammation and increased congestion. Circulating mitochondrial profile could be a new biomarker of mitochondrial status in cardiometabolic diseases

The S862C amino acid change in CpMrr1 confers fluconazole resistance in Candida parapsilosis

Background: Candida parapsilosis is an opportunistic pathogen with increasing rates of resistance to fluconazole and voriconazole. Recently, in an outbreak at the Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria Pisana, a new amino acid substitution, S862C in the CpMrr1 protein, was found only in azole-resistant strains. The contribution of this mutation to the acquisition of an azole-resistant phenotype was investigated in this study. Methods: Antifungal resistance in C. parapsilosis clinical strains isolated from the outbreak (n= 16) was tested by the broth microdilution method and Etest strip. WGS and Sanger sequencing analyses were used for the detection of SNPs. A CRISPR-Cas9–based genome editing strategy was used to induce the C2585G substitution in the CpMRR1 gene of susceptible C. parapsilosis isolates to investigate its role in the acquisition of azole resistance. Results: The A395T and the newly found C2585G substitution in the CpMRR1 gene were present in all resistant isolates, but not in the susceptible ones. Such mutations were later induced in the C. parapsilosis reference strain ATCC 22019 and in two azole-susceptible clinical isolates in homozygosis, and in heterozygosis only for ATCC 22019 and one azole-susceptible clinical isolate. Both heterozygous and homozygous mutants carrying the C2585G mutation were fluconazole resistant, with some clones also presenting intermediate susceptibility or resistance to voriconazole. Conclusions: To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to report the effect on azole resistance of a novel C2585G nucleotide substitution in the CpMRR1 gene found in clinical isolates recovered during an outbreak of azole-resistant C. parapsilosis in a healthcare setting

Association of Myo-Inositol and Microlipodispersed Magnesium in Androgen-Dependent Dermatological Diseases: A Retrospective Study

Background: Acne is a pathology of the pilosebaceous unit. It is characterized by a highly complex etiopathology which includes inflammation, hyperkeratinization, increased sebum production, colonization of Cutibacterium acne, hyperandrogenemia, and hyperinsulinemia. This condition, together with hirsutism, androgenic alopecia, and acanthosis nigricans, are highly prevalent cutaneous manifestations of the polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). While conventional therapies represent effective treatment options, they are not free from side effects which may reduce compliance. In this context, considerable attention has been directed toward nutraceutical supplements, which include different molecules with great potential to reduce inflammation, hyperkeratinization, hyperseborrhea, and hyperinsulinemia. Myo-inositol has been shown to be effective in improving some of the signs and symptoms of patients with microcystic ovaries: reducing body mass index (BMI), testosterone free levels, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS) levels, and improving ovarian function and insulin sensitivity. Methods: The authors conducted a retrospective study that included 200 patients suffering from PCOS. Over 6 months, they analyzed the effects of the supplementation of LEVIGONTM (Sanitpharma; Milan, Italy)—a specific nutraceutical formulation containing myo-inositol, microlipodispersed magnesium, and folic acid—on the clinical picture of acne and hirsutism. Results: The supplementation of LEVIGONTM showed a significant reduction of BMI, testosterone, testosterone free, and DHEAS levels, thus improving the clinical picture of acne and hirsutism. Moreover, the impact of acne on the quality of life, assessed using the Cardiff Acne Disability Index (CADI) and Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) scale, improved significantly after 3 and 6 months. Women with hirsutism benefited also from a significant improvement of the Ferriman-Gallwey score after both 3 and 6 months (p < 0.0001; p < 0.0001 respectively compared to the baseline). Conclusions: Myo-inositol supplementation, associated with microlipodispersed magnesium in a bioaccessible form, proved to be extremely useful in reducing acne and hirsutism in patients suffering from microcystic ovaries. In addition, there were no side effects, thus confirming excellent compliance. Further long-term randomized clinical trials are needed to confirm this preliminary evidence

Observation of the Open-Charm Tetraquark Candidate T_{cs0}^{*}(2870)^{0} in the B^{-}→D^{-}D^{0}K_{S}^{0} Decay

An amplitude analysis of B^{-}→D^{-}D^{0}K_{S}^{0} decays is performed using proton-proton collision data, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 9 fb^{-1}, collected with the LHCb detector at center-of-mass energies of 7, 8, and 13 TeV. A resonant structure of spin-parity 0^{+} is observed in the D^{0}K_{S}^{0} invariant-mass spectrum with a significance of 5.3σ. The mass and width of the state, modeled with a Breit-Wigner line shape, are determined to be 2883±11±8 MeV/c^{2} and 87_{-47}^{+22}±17 MeV, respectively, where the first uncertainties are statistical and the second systematic. These properties and the quark content are consistent with those of the open-charm tetraquark candidate T_{cs0}^{*}(2870)^{0} observed previously in the D^{+}K^{-} final state of the B^{-}→D^{-}D^{+}K^{-} decay. This result confirms the existence of the T_{cs0}^{*}(2870)^{0} state in a new decay mode. The T_{cs1}^{*}(2900)^{0} state, reported in the B^{-}→D^{-}D^{+}K^{-} decay, is also searched for in the D^{0}K_{S}^{0} invariant-mass spectrum of the B^{-}→D^{-}D^{0}K_{S}^{0} decay, without finding evidence for it