Sport for Vulnerable Youth: The Role of Multi-Professional Groups in Sustaining Intersectoral Collaboration

Intersectoral actions in the sport-for-development field constitute a pre-condition for the implementation of sport-based interventions. At an operational level, the multi-professional group is the tool through which intersectoral collaboration may successfully achieve its aims. Despite the prominent role of the group, this topic is under-researched in terms of understanding intersectoral actions in the sport-for-development field. By applying a psycho-sociological perspective, our research explores the role of the multi-professional group as a limit/resource for sport-for-development workers that operate with vulnerable youth. Following a phenomenological interpretive approach, 12 practitioners (six sport workers and six social workers) participated in semi-structured interviews to explore the role of multi-professional groups as a resource/limit in working with socially vulnerable youth through sport. The results indicate that, in the participants’ experience, belonging to a multi-professional group is a meaningful resource to trigger reflexivity, promote collaboration and integrate their different professions. The interviews highlighted the positive potential of this tool to address the challenges that emerge when working with socially vulnerable youth, including the management of negative emotions, unexpected events and the relationship with young people. Some interviews also suggested that the presence of multiple professions, under certain circumstances, may be a risk when working with youth. These findings have significant value for programme design, strategy and management as they show the value of trans-disciplinary practices as an agenda for social inclusion through sport

UNDERSTANDING THE CONDITIONS TO PROMOTE SOCIAL INCLUSION THROUGH SPORT: LEARNINGS FROM THE DIALOGIC EVALUATION OF A SPORT-BASED PROGRAMME IN ITALY FOR SOCIALLY VULNERABLE YOUTH

In determinate circostanze, i giovani vulnerabili possono sperimentare inclusione sociale attraverso lo sport. Dal momento che la comprensione di tali circostanze rimane poco studiata, la tesi fornisce approfondimenti su questo argomento mostrando i risultati della valutazione dialogica di un programma sportivo italiano. I risultati mostrano che: I. Promuovere l'accesso allo sport attraverso tasse sportive agevolate, servizi burocratici e trasporti inclusivi sono presupposti fondamentali per introdurre i giovani allo sport; II. Introdurre professionisti che facciano da ponte tra le società sportive locali e le diverse agenzie che si occupano di giovani vulnerabili è una condizione fondamentale che fornisce maggiori risorse sociali ai giovani, soprattutto in caso di grave vulnerabilità sociale. III. Coinvolgere i club sportivi in una formazione mirata a migliorare la loro capacità di essere inclusivi è una condizione significativa da considerare poiché "competizione" e "inclusione" sono percepiti come valori opposti difficilmente integrabili nel lavoro degli allenatori sportivi. IV. L'esperienza di inclusione attraverso lo sport è collegata all'autoefficacia sportiva e all'interesse dei giovani verso certi sport. Il lavoro discute il ruolo dei processi dialogici nella traduzione della conoscenza scientifica alla pratica e viceversa. I risultati forniscono suggerimenti orientati alla pianificazione e la gestione dei programmi sportivi.Under certain circumstances, vulnerable youngsters might experience social inclusion through sport. Since the understanding of such circumstances remains under-researched, the dissertation provides insights into this topic by showing the dialogic evaluation outcomes of an Italian sport-based programme. The results shows that: I. Promoting access to sport through subsidised sports fees, inclusive bureaucracy services and transport are fundamental preconditions to introducing youth to the sports; II. Introducing professionals who bridge the gap between local sports clubs and diverse agencies dealing with vulnerable youth is a fundamental condition that provides increased social resources to youngsters, especially in case of severe social vulnerability. III. Involving sports clubs in training aimed at enhancing their capacity to be inclusive is a meaningful condition to consider since “competition” and “inclusion” are perceived as opposite values that can hardly be integrated into sports coaches work. IV. The experience of inclusion through sport is connected to sport self-efficacy and the interest of youth toward certain sports. The work discusses the role of dialogic processes in the translation of scientific knowledge to practice and vice versa. Results provide action-oriented evidence for sport for development planning and management

Application of an Additive Manufactured Hybrid Metal/Composite Shock Absorber Panel to a Military Seat Ejection System

In this work, a preliminary numerical assessment on the application of an additive manufactured hybrid metal/composite shock absorber panels to a military seat ejection system, has been carried out. The innovative character of the shock absorber concept investigated is that the absorbing system has a thickness of only 6 mm and is composed of a pyramid-shaped lattice core that, due to its small size, can only be achieved by additive manufacturing. The mechanical behaviour of these shock absorber panels has been examined by measuring their ability to absorb and dissipate the energy generated during the ejection phase into plastic deformations, thus reducing the loads acting on pilots. In this paper the effectiveness of a system composed of five hybrid shock absorbers, with very thin thickness in order to be easily integrated between the seat and the aircraft floor, has been numerically studied by assessing their ability to absorb the energy generated during the primary ejection phase. To accomplish this, a numerical simulation of the explosion has been performed and the energy absorbed by the shock-absorbing mechanism has been assessed. The performed analysis demonstrated that the panels can absorb more than 60% of the energy generated during the explosion event while increasing the total mass of the pilot-seat system by just 0.8%

The Challenges of Promoting Social Inclusion through Sport: The Experience of a Sport- Based Initiative in Italy

Social inclusion is broadly recognized as a priority to accomplish at an international level. While the influence of sport toward this social mission has been largely debated, literature lacks contributions capturing the challenges of sport when promoting social inclusion. Based in case study methodology, the investigation explores the impact of a multi-stakeholder sport initiative developing social inclusion for socially vulnerable youth and the related challenges of the intervention through in- depth interviews with diverse program stakeholders. The main findings indicated the emergence of four challenges: limited transferability of program outcomes for youth in living conditions of severe vulnerability; drop-out of youth in living conditions of severe vulnerability; limited sustainability of program social workers; lack of sports club management skills. The work highlights some limits of sport-based programs for social inclusion and discusses some implications for practice to maximize the societal impact of such interventions

Antagonizing S1P3 receptor with Cell-Penetrating Pepducins in Skeletal Muscle Fibrosis

Bioactive lipids, derived from the metabolism of plasma membrane, are important mediators of cellular signaling in vertebrates. In recent years there has been a growing interest on sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) which is the final metabolite produced during the sequential degradation of plasma membrane glycosphingolipids and sphingomyelin. The S1P acts through five known subtypes of heptameric G-protein coupled receptors (GPCR), namely S1P1-S1P5 (S1PR). Recent evidence indicates that S1P signaling axis contributes to the development and maintenance of the fibrotic process [1]. Fibrosis is a pathological condition that can affect every organ, consequence of a persisting inflammatory and tissue remodeling condition. In different fibrotic models an extensive crosstalk between TGFβ and S1P signaling axis has been demonstrated. S1P3 plays a pivotal role in fibrosis development in different tissues such as skeletal muscle, liver, and kidney [2]. Thus, selective antagonists of the S1P3 receptor could be useful to deeply study its role in fibrosis as well as to develop new therapeutic entities to treat fibrotic diseases. Pepducins specifically target the intracellular loops, acting as allosteric modulators of GPCR activity. Using this approach, we have synthesized a pepducin based S1P3 antagonist namely KRX-725-II (Myristoyl-GRPYDAN-NH2) [3]. Here to improve the S1P1 vs S1P3 selectivity, we have synthesized several derivatives of KRX-725-II pointing our attention on the aromatic residue of the sequence, Tyr4, and with the aim to introduce molecular constraints. The new molecular entities have been evaluated for their selectivity profile by using mouse aortas. This screening allowed us to identify compounds V and VII (embodying respectively L- and D-Tic) as the most selective S1P3 antagonists. The selected compounds also displayed the ability to significantly reduce the profibrotic action of TGFβ1 in C2C12 myoblasts. To explain the higher selectivity observed for compounds V and VII, they were analyzed by Molecular Dynamics (MD) Simulations. The middle conformations of V and VII were compared by superimposing their GRP residues, which adopt a similar backbone orientation (see Figure). This revealed that the DAN residues with β-turn-like motif are located on opposite sides of the plane defined by the L- or D-Tic residue. This difference may explain, in structural terms, the selective S1P3 antagonism of V and VII in comparison to the unselective antagonist KRX-725-II, whose flexibility seems to be high enough for the adaptation to the binding regions of the individual receptor subtypes S1P1 and S1P3. Peptides V and VII possess, indeed, a highly constrained D- or L-Tic residue that hinder the pharmacophore from interacting properly with the binding pocket of the S1P1 receptor, therefore leading to S1P3 selectivity

Antagonizing S1P3 Receptor with Cell-Penetrating Pepducins in Skeletal Muscle Fibrosis

S1P is the final product of sphingolipid metabolism, which interacts with five widely expressed GPCRs (S1P1-5). Increasing numbers of studies have indicated the importance of S1P3 in various pathophysiological processes. Recently, we have identified a pepducin (compound KRX-725-II) acting as an S1P3 receptor antagonist. Here, aiming to optimize the activity and selectivity profile of the described compound, we have synthesized a series of derivatives in which Tyr, in position 4, has been substituted with several natural aromatic and unnatural aromatic and non-aromatic amino acids. All the compounds were evaluated for their ability to inhibit vascular relaxation induced by KRX-725 (as S1P3 selective pepducin agonist) and KRX-722 (an S1P1-selective pepducin agonist). Those selective towards S1P3 (compounds V and VII) were also evaluated for their ability to inhibit skeletal muscle fibrosis. Finally, molecular dynamics simulations were performed to derive information on the preferred conformations of selective and unselective antagonists

Engagement of young immigrants: The impact of prosocial and recreational activities

The participation of immigrants in the host community is recognized in the literature as an important protective factor of integration and well-being. Research suggests that there are psychological and social benefits to community engage- ment, but also differences among forms of participation. The first aim is to compare levels of Sense of Community and Self- esteem in engaged and not engaged immigrant youth. Within the subgroup of engaged youth, the second and the third aims are to identify the differences in self-esteem, sense of community (aim 2), motivations, and barriers (aim 3), of those engaged in prosocial activities and in recreational ones. Participants are 510 Italian immigrant youth aged from 19 to 29 (M 1⁄4 23.75, SD 1⁄4 2.92). ANOVA results show that (1) engaged immigrant youths report higher levels of both Sense of Community and Self-Esteem than not engaged ones; (2) for engaged youth, recreational activities better support these outcomes than prosocial; (3) immigrants youths engaged in prosocial activities reported higher levels of prosocial values than those engaged in recreation activities. These last perceive as barriers the difficulty in the Italian language, not having enough information regarding the volunteer and fear of con- flicts more than other groups; those engaged in prosocial activities report health-related problems