The Italian repetitive prefix ri-: Incorporation vs. cliticization

University of Venice Working Papers in Linguistic

Clitics in Northern Italian Dialects: Phonology, Syntax and Microvariation

University of Venice Working Papers in Linguistic

Morphosyntactic Skills Influence the Written Decoding Accuracy of Italian Children With and Without Developmental Dyslexia

Some types of developmental dyslexia (DD) are associated with morphology. Deep DD leads to morphological and semantic errors, and possible comorbidity with syntactic deficits; phonological-output-buffer DD causes problems in decoding longer morphologically complex words. In addition, cross-linguistic studies highlight the effects of morphological awareness on reading accuracy and fluency. The role of morphosyntactic abilities in reading is, however, not clear. This study explores the influence of morphosyntactic competence on reading in Italian children with and without DD. A total of 14 children with DD and 28 with Typical Development (TD) attending the Italian primary school were tested on written decoding, syntactic comprehension of different grammatical structures, and syntactic production of direct object clitic pronouns. DD children were significantly less accurate and slower in reading than TD children. Syntactic skills of the two groups did not differ significantly, but some differences in their acquisitional pace emerged. Syntactic comprehension and production of direct-object-clitic pronouns predicted reading accuracy standard scores, thus suggesting that morphosyntactic abilities, beyond clitics’ weak phonological status, affect decoding accuracy. Decoding accuracy was influenced by reading errors related to morphology (morphological, semantic, and phonological-output-buffer errors). Decoding speed was a specific weakness of DD children and was rather affected by multi-letter combinations. Consistent with a dual-route approach to orthographic processing, we argue that accuracy depends on fine-grained decoding strategies maximizing the precise ordering of letters, thus it is more sensitive to morphosyntactic skills. Morphological reading errors were associated with phonologically weak (determiners, clitic pronouns, and prepositions) and salient words (verbs). This suggests that the decoding of function words and morphologically complex words is particularly demanding and related to both phonological and morphosyntactic skills. Age had a negative predictive effect on semantic errors, compatible with the gradual acquisition of lexical decoding strategies, which seemed to be slowed down by DD. We conclude that oral morphosyntactic skills play a role in reading accuracy in the Italian shallow orthography for both DD and TD children. It is then advisable to assess children’s linguistic profile during DD diagnoses to establish whether some reading errors are related to morphosyntactic weakness. In this case, ad hoc morphosyntactic training might support reading accuracy

Chemical composition and apparent digestibility of a panel of dried microalgae and cyanobacteria biomasses in rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss)

Despite a growing interest in microalgae and cyanobacteria as potential sources of nutrients in aquafeeds, little information is presently available on their nutritive value for carnivorous fish species. The aim of this study was to evaluate chemical composition and nutrient digestibility of a panel of microalgae and cyanobacteria dried biomasses (MACB), using rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss W.) as a fish model. Nine test diets were obtained by mixing 80 parts of a reference diet, added with 20 g/kg of acid insoluble ash as an indigestible marker, to 20 parts of each of the following dried whole-cell biomass: Arthrospira platensis, Nostoc sphaeroides, two strains of Chlorella sorokiniana, Nannochloropsis oceanica, Tisochrysis lutea, Phaeodactylum tricornutum, Porphyridium purpureum and Tetraselmis suecica. The digestibility measurements were conducted with rainbow trout (52.4 \ub1 1.5 g) kept in six tank units each including three 60-L vessels singularly stocked with 12 fish and fitted with a settling column for faecal recovery. Per each diet, faeces were collected over three independent 10-day periods. Apparent digestibility coefficients (ADCs) of dry matter, crude protein (CP), organic matter and gross energy (GE) of single MACB were calculated by difference relative to those of the reference diet. The MACBs had heterogeneous chemical composition (CP, from 20 to 69%; Lipid, 5\u201327%; GE, 12.5-\u201322.6 MJ/kg dry matter basis) reflecting their overall biodiversity. Most of them can be considered as virtually good sources of minerals and trace elements and exhibit an essential amino acid profile comparable or even better than that of soybean meal commonly used in fish feeds with P. purpureum showing the best protein profile. The digestibility results obtained with rainbow trout allowed ranking the MACBs into two major groups. A first one, including C. sorokiniana, N. oceanica and T. suecica, resulted in markedly lower (P < 0.05) crude protein and energy ADC (64\u201373%; 51\u201359%, respectively) compared to a second group including P. purpureum, T. lutea and cyanobacteria (CP-ADC, 83\u201388%; GE-ADC, 74\u201390%) while P. tricornutum resulted in intermediate values. Overall, the present study confirms the consistently reported role of cell-wall structure/composition in affecting accessibility of nutrients to digestive enzyme. Based on the overall outcomes, only T. lutea and cyanobacteria actually meet the requirements for being used as protein sources in aquafeeds provided their mass production becomes more feasible and costeffective, hence attractive for the feed-mill industry in the near future

Anaphora Resolution in Near-Native Speakers of Italian

This study presents data from an experiment on the interpretation of intrasentential anaphora in Italian by native Italian speakers and by English speakers who have learned Italian as adults and have reached a near-native level of proficiency in this language. The two groups of speakers were presented with complex sentences consist-ing of a main clause and a subordinate clause, in which the subor-dinate clause had either an overt pronoun or a null subject pronoun. In half of the sentences the main clause preceded the subordinate clause (forward anaphora) and in the other half the subordinate clause preceded the main clause (backward anaphora). Participants performed in a picture verification task in which they had to indi-cate the picture(s) that corresponded to the meaning of the subor-dinate clause, thus identifying the possible antecedents of the null or overt subject pronouns. The patterns of responses of the two groups were very similar with respect to the null subject pronouns in both the forward and backward anaphora conditions. Compared to native monolingual speakers, however, the near-natives had a significantly higher preference for the subject of the matrix clause as a possible antecedent of overt subject pronouns, particularly in the backward anaphora condition. The results indicate that near-native speakers have acquired the syntactic constraints on pronom-inal subjects in Italian, but may have residual indeterminacy in the interface processing strategies they employ in interpreting pronom-inal forms

Evaluation du risque Brettanomyces dans le vignoble libanais et étude cinétique de la bioconversion de l'acide p-coumarique en 4-éthylphénol

Les altérations sensorielles des vins dues à la présence des levures du genre Brettanomyces se caractérisent par une augmentation de la teneur en phénols volatils tel que le 4-éthylphénol. Le premier objectif de ce travail était de faire un état des lieux sur le risque éthylphénol au Liban en s'intéressant à la présence d'un précurseur (acide p-coumarique), du microorganisme responsable (Brettanomyces) et du produit final (4-éthylphénol) dans les vins élaborés dans ce pays. Une forte hétérogénéité de concentrations en acide p-coumarique a été observée avec des valeurs variant de 0 à 31,4 mg.L-1. Des niveaux importants de 4-éthylphénols de l'ordre de 1,367 mg.L-1 ont été détectés sur certains vins. Un dépistage du contaminant microbien a permis de confirmer pour la première fois la présence de Brettanomyces au Liban, les proportions restant toutefois assez faibles (3 % des échantillons testés). Une étude génétique a caractérisé les souches retenues qui se sont montrées diverses au sein de l'espèce. Le travail a porté ensuite sur l'analyse cinétique des étapes réactionnelles constituant le processus enzymatique de la bioconversion des substrats acide p-coumarique et 4-vinlphénol en 4-éthylphénol pour 5 souches de Brettanomyces bruxellensis d'origines libanaises et françaises. La variabilité entre les souches s'est exprimée aux niveaux génétique et cinétique. Des profils hétérogènes de bioréaction ont été mis en évidence en fonction de la nature des souches. L'analyse du bilan-matière a révélé l'existence probable de phénomènes d'adsorption sur les parois des Brettanomyces qui sont souche-dépendants. La dernière partie a été consacrée à l'évaluation du lien entre quantité de biomasse et production de 4-éthylphénol ainsi qu'à l'influence de quelques paramètres environnementaux (pH, source d'ammonium et milieu de culture) sur la cinétique réactionnelle.Wine sensory alterations due to the presence of Brettanomyces yeasts are characterized by an increased content of volatile phenols such as 4-ethylphenol. The first aim of this work was to make an inventory of the "ethylphenol" risks in Lebanon by focusing on the presence of one precursor (p-coumaric acid), the microorganism provoking these risks (Brettanomyces) and the final product (4-ethylphenol) in wines produced in this country. High heterogeneity of p-coumaric acid concentration was observed with values ranging from 0 to 31,4 mg.L-1. Significant levels of 4-ethylphenols of about 1,367 mg L-1 have been detected in some wines. Screening of microbial contaminants confirmed the presence of Brettanomyces for the first time in Lebanon, with proportions remaining relatively low (3 % of samples tested). A genetic study has characterized the selected strains which are shown to be various within the species. The second objective of this study was the kinetic analysis of the reaction steps constituting the bioconversion enzymatic process of both substrates p-coumaric acid and 4-vinlphenol into 4-ethylphenol for 5 strains of Brettanomyces bruxellensis of different origins (Lebanon and France). Variability between strains was expressed at both levels, genetic and kinetic. Heterogeneous bioreaction profiles were identified according to strain's nature. The mass balance analysis revealed the possible existence of adsorption phenomena on the cell walls of Brettanomyces which are strain-dependent. The last part was devoted to the evaluation of the relationship between biomass concentration and production of 4-ethylphenol as well as the influence of some environmental parameters (pH, ammonium source and culture medium) on the reaction's kinetic.TOULOUSE-INP (315552154) / SudocSudocFranceF

Ultimate attainment of anaphora resolution in L2 Chinese

The current study tests the Interface Hypothesis through forward and backward anaphora in complex sentences with temporal subordinate clauses in highly proficient English-speaking learners’ second-language (L2) Chinese. Forward anaphora is involved when the overt pronoun ta ‘he/she’ or a null element appears in the subject position of the main clause, whereas backward anaphora is involved when it is in the subject position of the temporal clause, because the main clause always follows the temporal clause in Chinese. Specifically, the article tests the syntactic and discourse constraints in the interpretation and representation of ta and the null element in complex sentences. Ta is constrained by the syntactic cyclic-c-command condition. Thus it is possible for ta to refer to the other sentential subject in forward anaphora, but not in backward anaphora in Chinese. Unlike English, Chinese allows a null element in subject positions of finite subordinate and main clauses. It is proposed in the article that the null element in these positions is a Øtopic, a syntax–discourse interface category. Results from an acceptability judgement task and a picture judgment task indicate that Øtopic at the external interface has been acquired, whereas the cyclic-c-command condition within narrow syntax is fossilized in L2 Chinese

Linguistic assessment tools for the Digisonic® Dual electric-acoustic speech processor

Interdisciplinary domains LUC

Early and Late Response and Glucocorticoid-Sparing Effect of Belimumab in Patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus with Joint and Skin Manifestations: Results from the Belimumab in Real Life Setting Study—Joint and Skin (BeRLiSS-JS)

Aim. To assess the efficacy of belimumab in joint and skin manifestations in a nationwide cohort of patients with SLE. Methods. All patients with skin and joint involvement enrolled in the BeRLiSS cohort were considered. Belimumab (intravenous, 10 mg/kg) effectiveness in joint and skin manifestations was assessed by DAS28 and CLASI, respectively. Attainment and predictors of DAS28 remission (&lt;2.6) and LDA (≥2.6, ≤3.2), CLASI = 0, 1, and improvement in DAS28 and CLASI indices ≥20%, ≥50%, and ≥70% were evaluated at 6, 12, 24, and 36 months. Results. DAS28 &lt; 2.6 was achieved by 46%, 57%, and 71% of patients at 6, 12, and 24 months, respectively. CLASI = 0 was achieved by 36%, 48%, and 62% of patients at 6, 12, and 24 months, respectively. Belimumab showed a glucocorticoid-sparing effect, being glucocorticoid-free at 8.5%, 15.4%, 25.6%, and 31.6% of patients at 6, 12, 24, and 36 months, respectively. Patients achieving DAS-LDA and CLASI-50 at 6 months had a higher probability of remission at 12 months compared with those who did not (p = 0.034 and p = 0.028, respectively). Conclusions. Belimumab led to clinical improvement in a significant proportion of patients with joint or skin involvement in a real-life setting and was associated with a glucocorticoid-sparing effect. A significant proportion of patients with a partial response at 6 months achieved remission later on during follow-up