The Dramatic Writing of Oriana Fallaci Between Journalism and Literature

This paper focuses on the famous “Fallaci interviews”, which are an example of what has been defined as “journalit” (Krim 1970), i.e., a non-fictional practice that is based on real events but still uses the resources of fiction and is permeated by real inventions and creative licenses (Castellana 2021; Mongelli 2015). Fallaci is a skilled playwright who knows how to “write the journalistic piece by the means of fiction and the story by the means of journalism” (Aricò 2010) to increase the dramatic character of her writings. But she also loves to show herself as a self-made woman always ready to go “on stage” (Scheer 1981: 92): the writer is a sort of “fictional witness”, a testimonial character that plays a privileged role through her writing and her presence, approaching the genre of autofiction (Doubrovsky 1977; Grell 2014; Marchese 2014, 2019) and, in some ways, of the testimonio novelizado (Beverley 1992, 1993; Jara and Vidal 1986). For these reasons, Fallaci can be put on an ideal guideline that goes from Malaparte to Pasolini (and, today, maybe to Roberto Saviano) (Altamura 2019). Like the “corsaro”, she is convinced that writing is a creative, critical, “instinctive” practice capable of undermining power, which is by its nature ambiguous and obscurantist. But, in our view, she has neither the expressiveness of Malaparte, nor the civil tension and poetic consistency of Pasolini. Her dimension seems to refer rather to the category of “midcult” (Macdonald 2018), i.e. a cultural typology based on the late or postmodern re-use of ideas, resources, languages from high culture, but not always endowed with intrinsic originality and innovativeness and able to express universal values. Net of all this, Fallaci’s writing remains an admirable example of how it is possible (even at the cost of some contradictions) to combine the ethical values ​​of journalistic-literary testimony with the codes of mass spectacularity, guaranteeing a productivity which, however, does not limit the quality standard of the work

Development and validation of a luminescence-based, medium-throughput assay for drug screening in Schistosoma mansoni

Schistosomiasis, one of the world's greatest neglected tropical diseases, is responsible for over 280,000 human deaths per annum. Praziquantel, developed in the 1970s, has high efficacy, excellent tolerability, few and transient side effects, simple administration procedures and competitive cost and it is currently the only recommended drug for treatment of human schistosomiasis. The use of a single drug to treat a population of over 200 million infected people appears particularly alarming when considering the threat of drug resistance. Quantitative, objective and validated methods for the screening of compound collections are needed for the discovery of novel anti-schistosomal drugs. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: The present work describes the development and validation of a luminescence-based, medium-throughput assay for the detection of schistosomula viability through quantitation of ATP, a good indicator of metabolically active cells in culture. This validated method is demonstrated to be fast, highly reliable, sensitive and automation-friendly. The optimized assay was used for the screening of a small compound library on S. mansoni schistosomula, showing that the proposed method is suitable for a medium-throughput semi-automated screening. Interestingly, the pilot screening identified hits previously reported to have some anti-parasitic activity, further supporting the validity of this assay for anthelminthic drug discovery. CONCLUSIONS: The developed and validated schistosomula viability luminescence-based assay was shown to be successful and suitable for the identification of novel compounds potentially exploitable in future schistosomiasis therapies

Cadmium and arsenic-induced-stress differentially modulates Arabidopsis root architecture, peroxisome distribution, enzymatic activities and their nitric oxide content

In plant cells, cadmium (Cd) and arsenic (As) exert toxicity mainly by inducing oxidative stress through an imbalance between the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and reactive nitrogen species (RNS), and their detoxification. Nitric oxide (NO) is a RNS acting as signalling molecule coordinating plant development and stress responses, but also as oxidative stress inducer, depending on its cellular concentration. Peroxisomes are versatile organelles involved in plant metabolism and signalling, with a role in cellular redox balance thanks to their antioxidant enzymes, and their RNS (mainly NO) and ROS. This study analysed Cd or As effects on peroxisomes, and NO production and distribution in the root system, including primary root (PR) and lateral roots (LRs). Arabidopsis thaliana wild-type and transgenic plants enabling peroxisomes to be visualized in vivo, through the expression of the 35S-cyan fluorescent protein fused to the peroxisomal targeting signal1 (PTS1) were used. Peroxisomal enzymatic activities including the antioxidant catalase, the H2O2-generating glycolate oxidase, and the hydroxypyruvate reductase, and root system morphology were also evaluated under Cd/As exposure. Results showed that Cd and As differently modulate these activities, however, catalase activity was inhibited by both. Moreover, Arabidopsis root system was altered, with the pollutants differently affecting PR growth, but similarly enhancing LR formation. Only in the PR apex, and not in LR one, Cd more than As caused significant changes in peroxisome distribution, size, and in peroxisomal NO content. By contrast, neither pollutant caused significant changes in peroxisomes size and peroxisomal NO content in the LR apex

Research on construction techniques of the “genoese” coastal towers in southern Corsica (built between XVI and XVII century)

[EN] The research comes from the study of techniques adopted in the building of the coastal towers on the island of Corsica between XVI and XVII century. The research is structured in a first phase of acquisition of the archival material, historical-iconographic, bibliographic and cartographic and then developed in the direct study of the artifacts and leads through instrumental relief and photographic documentation, stratigraphic analysis and the investigation of building materials.. All the material has been prepared for the graphical restitution of the complete volumes of the towers, and compared with the rich archival documentation of scale models of the towers and of the metrical estimate calculations. The archival research and surveys in the site led to the identification and recognition about the artefacts, in particular about those reduced to ruins, of the construction techniques on the masonry, quality and utilitazion of mortars, quality and use of bricks and of the stone material, particular technique of “opus gallicum” for reinforcement of the vaults.Altamura, PR. (2015). Research on construction techniques of the “genoese” coastal towers in southern Corsica (built between XVI and XVII century). En Defensive architecture of the mediterranean: XV to XVIII centuries. Vol. II. Editorial Universitat Politècnica de València. 3-10. https://doi.org/10.4995/FORTMED2015.2015.1762OCS31

Radiation damage of FBK Silicon Photomultipliers for HEP applications

Silicon Photomultipliers (SiPMs) are photo-detectors currently experiencing a significant development in several fields: from medical applications to LiDAR, homeland security, analytical instrumentation, High Energy Physics (HEP). In particular, this work deals with SiPMs in HEP with a focus on their tolerance to the radiation. In fact, in HEP sensors are usually exposed to a large amount of radiation and they are expected to survive in such an environment. After a detailed introduction on the main SiPM characteristics, the main mechanisms of damage in SiPMs are addressed. They mainly consist into the generation of defects into the bulk, resulting in an increase of the noise, and in the surface layer, resulting in the generation of fixed charge in the oxide and defects at interface between the oxide and the silicon and, as a consequence, in an increase of the leakage current. This work aims to verify these theoretical assumptions through three irradiation test campaigns, where FBK SiPMs are exposed to the effects of both ionizing and non-ionizing radiation at medium-high doses. The first irradiation test took place at the Laboratori Nazionali del Sud (LNS) in 2019, where SiPMs were exposed to increasing 62 MeV proton fluences up to about 10^14 n_eq/cm^2. The main SiPMs parameters were assessed after irradiation and some information about the damage into the bulk of the sensors were derived. In fact, the noise was observed to increase significantly with respect to the non-irradiated SiPM, as expected from theory. Information were then extracted about activation energy, and a preferred spatial localization of the defects inside the single microcell was also observed. During the second irradiation test, FBK SiPMs were irradiated at the Trento Protontherapy Center with 74 MeV protons at increasing fluences, up to 6.4x10^11 n_eq/cm^2, using a custom setup which allowed direct reverse current-voltage measurement shortly after each irradiation step, reducing the impact of the annealing on the results. SiPMs were characterized extracting DCR, breakdown voltage and other key parameters from reverse current measurements. Then, the several technologies under test were compared using figures of merit such as Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR) and energy resolution, in X-rays or gamma-rays spectroscopy, assumed as possible applications. The NUV-HD technologies with smaller cell sizes showed the best best performances, in terms of energy resolution, SNR and noise level after annealing. The third irradiation campaign aimed to test the tolerance of FBK SiPMs to ionizing radiation through an X-rays irradiation at the TIFPA facility in Trento up to a dose of 100 kGy. SiPMs were irradiated using the same custom setup used in the second irradiation test, performing reverse current measurement after each irradiation step. After a 30-day annealing, samples irradiated at 100 kGy were fully characterized and compared to the non-irradiated ones. RGB-HD was the only technology to show a decrease of the PDE due to border effects in the electric field inside the microcells of the SiPM, while the NUV-HD-cryo was the only technology not showing variations neither in the noise nor in the PDE

Indole-3-butyric acid induces ectopic formation of metaxylem in the hypocotyl of Arabidopsis thaliana without conversion into indole-3-acetic acid and with a positive interaction with ethylene

The role of the auxins indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) and indole-3-butyric acid (IBA) and of the auxin-interacting phytohormone ethylene, on the ectopic formation of primary xylem (xylogenesis in planta) is still little known. In particular, auxin/ethylene-target tissue(s), modality of the xylary process (trans-differentiation vs. de novo formation), and the kind of ectopic elements formed (metaxylem vs. protoxylem) are currently unknown. It is also unclear whether IBA may act on the process independently of conversion into IAA. To investigate these topics, histological analyses were carried out in the hypocotyls of Arabidopsis wild type seedlings and ech2ibr10 and ein3eil1 mutants, which are blocked in IBA-to-IAA conversion and ethylene signalling, respectively. The seedlings were grown under darkness with either IAA or IBA, combined or not with the ethylene precursor 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid. Adventitious root formation was also investigated because this process may compete with xylogenesis. Our results show that ectopic formation of protoxylem and metaxylem occurred as an indirect process starting from the pericycle periclinal derivatives of the hypocotyl basal part. IAA favoured protoxylem formation, whereas IBA induced ectopic metaxylem with ethylene cooperation through the EIN3EIL1 network. Ectopic metaxylem differentiation occurred independently of IBA-to-IAA conversion as mediated by ECH2 and IBR10, and in the place of IBA-induced adventitious root formation

Jasmonic acid methyl ester induces xylogenesis and modulates auxin-induced xylary cell identity with NO Involvement

In Arabidopsis basal hypocotyls of dark-grown seedlings, xylary cells may form from the pericycle as an alternative to adventitious roots. Several hormones may induce xylogenesis, as Jasmonic acid (JA), as well as indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) and indole-3-butyric acid (IBA) auxins, which also affect xylary identity. Studies with the ethylene (ET)-perception mutant ein3eil1 and the ET-precursor 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC), also demonstrate ET involvement in IBA-induced ectopic metaxylem. Moreover, nitric oxide (NO), produced after IBA/IAA-treatments, may affect JA signalling and interact positively/negatively with ET. To date, NO-involvement in ET/JA-mediated xylogenesis has never been investigated. To study this, and unravel JA-effects on xylary identity, xylogenesis was investigated in hypocotyls of seedlings treated with JA methyl-ester (JAMe) with/without ACC, IBA, IAA. Wild-type (wt) and ein3eil1 responses to hormonal treatments were compared, and the NO signal was quantified and its role evaluated by using NO-donors/scavengers. Ectopic-protoxylem increased in the wt only after treatment with JAMe(10 μM), whereas in ein3eil1 with any JAMe concentration. NO was detected in cells leading to either xylogenesis or adventitious rooting, and increased after treatment with JAMe(10 μM) combined or not with IBA(10 μM). Xylary identity changed when JAMe was applied with each auxin. Altogether, the results show that xylogenesis is induced by JA and NO positively regulates this process. In addition, NO also negatively interacts with ET-signalling and modulates auxin-induced xylary identity

Nitric oxide alleviates cadmium- but not arsenic-induced damages in rice roots

Nitric oxide (NO) has signalling roles in plant stress responses. Cadmium (Cd) and arsenic (As) soil pollutants alter plant development, mainly the root-system, by increasing NO-content, triggering reactive oxygen species (ROS), and forming peroxynitrite by NO-reaction with the superoxide anion. Interactions of NO with ROS and peroxynitrite seem important for plant tolerance to heavy metal(oid)s, but the mechanisms underlying this process remain unclear. Our goal was to investigate NO-involvement in rice (Oryza sativa L.) root-system after exposure to Cd or As, to highlight possible differences in NO-behaviour between the two pollutants. To the aim, morpho-histological, chemical and epifluorescence analyses were carried out on roots of different origin in the root-system, under exposure to Cd or As, combined or not with sodium nitroprusside (SNP), a NO-donor compound. Results show that increased intracellular NO levels alleviate the root-system alterations induced by Cd, i.e., inhibition of adventitious root elongation and lateral root formation, increment in lignin deposition in the sclerenchyma/endodermis cell-walls, but, even if reducing As-induced endodermis lignification, do not recover the majority of the As-damages, i.e., enhancement of AR-elongation, reduction of LR-formation, anomalous tissue-proliferation. However, NO decreases both Cd and As uptake, without affecting the pollutants translocation-capability from roots to shoots. Moreover, NO reduces the Cd-induced, but not the As-induced, ROS levels by triggering peroxynitrite production. Altogether, results highlight a different behaviour of NO in modulating rice root-system response to the toxicity of the heavy metal Cd and the metalloid As, which depends by the NO-interaction with the specific pollutant