Introduction

Since the 1990s, Albania has aimed to introduce democratic values into its legislation. This process can come to fruition only by the recognition and protection of private property. As a result, a new Civil Code was enacted at the beginning of the 1990s through intensive collaboration between Albanian and foreign scholars. Book II of the Albanian Civil Code of 1994 highlights the importance of private property. This book fills the gap in the national and international scientific literature since there is no scientific contribution written in English that examines the development of the Albanian law of property showing the similarities and differences between the Albanian and the Italian civil codes. Another novelty rests on its identification of the rules of the Albanian Civil Codes of 1929 and of 1982 that regulate the various legal institutional parts of the property law. Furthermore, this research summarizes the EU impact on Albanian property law by examining the differences between the legal institutions established at the supranational level such as Dir. 2014/60/EU, Dir. 2008/122/EC, Dir. 1346/2000/EC, and Reg. 2015/848 with the current Albanian system. In the conclusions, this research demonstrates that the Albanian law of property of 1994 is similar, sometimes identical, to the rules established in the Italian Civil Code of 1942

Ensemble modelling, uncertainty and robust predictions of organic carbon in long-term bare-fallow soils

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This study was supported by the project “C and N models inter-comparison and improvement to assess management options for GHG mitigation in agro-systems worldwide” (CN-MIP, 2014- 2017), which received funding by a multi-partner call on agricultural greenhouse gas research of the Joint Programming Initiative ‘FACCE’ through national financing bodies. S. Recous, R. Farina, L. Brilli, G. Bellocchi and L. Bechini received mobility funding by way of the French Italian GALILEO programme (CLIMSOC project). The authors acknowledge particularly the data holders for the Long Term Bare-Fallows, who made their data available and provided additional information on the sites: V. Romanenkov, B.T. Christensen, T. Kätterer, S. Houot, F. van Oort, A. Mc Donald, as well as P. Barré. The input of B. Guenet and C. Chenu contributes to the ANR “Investissements d’avenir” programme with the reference CLAND ANR-16-CONV-0003. The input of P. Smith and C. Chenu contributes to the CIRCASA project, which received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme under grant agreement no 774378 and the projects: DEVIL (NE/M021327/1) and Soils‐R‐GRREAT (NE/P019455/1). The input of B. Grant and W. Smith was funded by Science and Technology Branch, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, under the scope of project J-001793. The input of A. Taghizadeh-Toosi was funded by Ministry of Environment and Food of Denmark as part of the SINKS2 project. The input of M. Abdalla contributes to the SUPER-G project, which received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme under grant agreement no 774124.Peer reviewedPostprin

Expression of CD11c Is Associated with Unconventional Activated T Cell Subsets with High Migratory Potential

Ajudes rebudes: Marie Curie Career Integration Grant; Dexeus Foundation for Women's Health Research; i Contratos Ramón y CajalCD11c is an α integrin classically employed to define myeloid dendritic cells. Although there is little information about CD11c expression on human T cells, mouse models have shown an association of CD11c expression with functionally relevant T cell subsets. In the context of genital tract infection, we have previously observed increased expression of CD11c in circulating T cells from mice and women. Microarray analyses of activated effector T cells expressing CD11c derived from naïve mice demonstrated enrichment for natural killer (NK) associated genes. Here we find that murine CD11c+ T cells analyzed by flow cytometry display markers associated with non-conventional T cell subsets, including γδ T cells and invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells. However, in women, only γδ T cells and CD8+ T cells were enriched within the CD11c fraction of blood and cervical tissue. These CD11c+ cells were highly activated and had greater interferon (IFN)-γ secretory capacity than CD11c- T cells. Furthermore, circulating CD11c+ T cells were associated with the expression of multiple adhesion molecules in women, suggesting that these cells have high tissue homing potential. These data suggest that CD11c expression distinguishes a population of circulating T cells during bacterial infection with innate capacity and mucosal homing potential

Src Kinases Are Required for a Balanced Production of IL-12/IL-23 in Human Dendritic Cells Activated by Toll-Like Receptor Agonists

BACKGROUND: Pathogen recognition by dendritic cells (DC) is crucial for the initiation of both innate and adaptive immune responses. Activation of Toll-like Receptors (TLRs) by microbial molecular patterns leads to the maturation of DC, which present the antigen and activate T cells in secondary lymphoid tissues. Cytokine production by DC is critical for shaping the adaptive immune response by regulating T helper cell differentiation. It was previously shown by our group that Src kinases play a key role in cytokines production during TLR4 activation in human DC. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: In this work we investigated the role of Src kinases during different TLRs triggering in human monocyte-derived DC (MoDC). We found that Src family kinases are important for a balanced production of inflammatory cytokines by human MoDC upon stimulation of TLR3 and 8 with their respective agonists. Disruption of this equilibrium through pharmacological inhibition of Src kinases alters the DC maturation pattern. In particular, while expression of IL-12 and other inflammatory cytokines depend on Src kinases, the induction of IL-23 and co-stimulatory molecules do not. Accordingly, DC treated with Src inhibitors are not compromised in their ability to induce CD4 T cell proliferation and to promote the Th17 subset survival but are less efficient in inducing Th1 differentiation. CONCLUSIONS: We suggest that the pharmacological modulation of DC maturation has the potential to shape the quality of the adaptive immune response and could be exploited for the treatment of inflammation-related diseases

Adhesion Molecules Associated with Female Genital Tract Infection

Altres ajuts: Marie Curie Career Integration Grant i una beca Fundació Dexeus Salut de la DonaEfforts to develop vaccines that can elicit mucosal immune responses in the female genital tract against sexually transmitted infections have been hampered by an inability to measure immune responses in these tissues. The differential expression of adhesion molecules is known to confer site-dependent homing of circulating effector T cells to mucosal tissues. Specific homing molecules have been defined that can be measured in blood as surrogate markers of local immunity (e.g. α4β7 for gut). Here we analyzed the expression pattern of adhesion molecules by circulating effector T cells following mucosal infection of the female genital tract in mice and during a symptomatic episode of vaginosis in women. While CCR2, CCR5, CXCR6 and CD11c were preferentially expressed in a mouse model of Chlamydia infection, only CCR5 and CD11c were clearly expressed by effector T cells during bacterial vaginosis in women. Other homing molecules previously suggested as required for homing to the genital mucosa such as α4β1 and α4β7 were also differentially expressed in these patients. However, CD11c expression, an integrin chain rarely analyzed in the context of T cell immunity, was the most consistently elevated in all activated effector CD8+ T cell subsets analyzed. This molecule was also induced after systemic infection in mice, suggesting that CD11c is not exclusive of genital tract infection. Still, its increase in response to genital tract disorders may represent a novel surrogate marker of mucosal immunity in women, and warrants further exploration for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes

Imitation of β-lactam binding enables broad-spectrum metallo-β-lactamase inhibitors

Carbapenems are vital antibiotics, but their efficacy is increasingly compromised by metallo-beta-lactamases (MBLs). Here we report the discovery and optimization of potent broad-spectrum MBL inhibitors. A high-throughput screen for NDM-1 inhibitors identified indole-2-carboxylates (InCs) as potential beta-lactamase stable beta-lactam mimics. Subsequent structure-activity relationship studies revealed InCs as a new class of potent MBL inhibitor, active against all MBL classes of major clinical relevance. Crystallographic studies revealed a binding mode of the InCs to MBLs that, in some regards, mimics that predicted for intact carbapenems, including with respect to maintenance of the Zn(II)-bound hydroxyl, and in other regards mimics binding observed in MBL-carbapenem product complexes. InCs restore carbapenem activity against multiple drug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria and have a low frequency of resistance. InCs also have a good in vivo safety profile, and when combined with meropenem show a strong in vivo efficacy in peritonitis and thigh mouse infection models.Peer reviewe

FERTILISATION STRATEGIES ACROSS EUROPE: CURRENT SITUATION, POTENTIAL AND LIMITS FOR A HARMONISED APPROACH

Peer reviewe

Mitochondrial physiology

As the knowledge base and importance of mitochondrial physiology to evolution, health and disease expands, the necessity for harmonizing the terminology concerning mitochondrial respiratory states and rates has become increasingly apparent. The chemiosmotic theory establishes the mechanism of energy transformation and coupling in oxidative phosphorylation. The unifying concept of the protonmotive force provides the framework for developing a consistent theoretical foundation of mitochondrial physiology and bioenergetics. We follow the latest SI guidelines and those of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) on terminology in physical chemistry, extended by considerations of open systems and thermodynamics of irreversible processes. The concept-driven constructive terminology incorporates the meaning of each quantity and aligns concepts and symbols with the nomenclature of classical bioenergetics. We endeavour to provide a balanced view of mitochondrial respiratory control and a critical discussion on reporting data of mitochondrial respiration in terms of metabolic flows and fluxes. Uniform standards for evaluation of respiratory states and rates will ultimately contribute to reproducibility between laboratories and thus support the development of data repositories of mitochondrial respiratory function in species, tissues, and cells. Clarity of concept and consistency of nomenclature facilitate effective transdisciplinary communication, education, and ultimately further discovery