Aquileia porto fluviale - sponda orientale: nuovi dati e riflessioni sui depositi di anfore da allume

The paper illustrates a ceramic assemblage recently excavated by Ca’ Foscari University of Venice on the eastern riverbank of the river port of Aquileia. The deposit has been interpreted as a level of debris connected with the demolition of an artisanal installation, currently under excavation, consisting of at least one tank, lined with wood and connected to a system of water channels. The deposit consists of ca. 3750 fragmentary amphorae, originally transporting the alum extracted in Lipari and Melos (now Milos). The majority of the amphorae was produced in the Lipari Islands and can be classified as Lipari morphological types 1a and 2a-b. In addition, a number of fragmentary containers produced in the Aegean island of Milos, are also present in the examined context (variant 1 and 2), in the ratio of 9:1. So far, less than a couple of dozens of alum amphorae were known from Aquileia: therefore, the new data from Aquileia allow us to fill an anomalous gap in current distribution maps and, in addition, contribute to stimulate reflexion and discussion on aspects of production, trade and use of alum in the Roman period

The role of Human Papillomaviruses and their replication in nonmelanoma skin cancer

Nonmelanoma skin cancer (NMSC) is the commonest cancer worldwide and is a significant and increasing burden on health care resources. NMSC aetiology is fundamentally linked to sun exposure although infection with oncogenic viruses including Human Papillomaviruses (HPV) is thought to be a cofactor. Fair skinned populations residing in geographical areas with high sun exposure have an increased incidence of NMSC and an excess of NMSC is also observed in certain patient groups including immunosuppressed organ transplant recipients. This thesis describes the epidemiology of NMSC in the immunosuppressed renal transplant population in the West of Scotland. Clinical samples from this population were investigated for the presence of HPV utilising a PCR reverse hybridisation technique. This assay specifically examined for HPV of the genus Beta that have been previously linked to NMSC. The effect of presence of HPV in these samples was evaluated through an investigation of the expression of cellular biomarkers. A biomarker expression pattern specific to HPV infected lesions would add further support to the link between HPV and NMSC. Samples were probed for Ki67, p16, p53, MCM2 and MCM5 antigens in addition to novel antigen, Topoisomerase II Beta Binding Protein 1 (TopBP1). TopBP1 is a host cellular protein that is involved in the DNA damage response and is an interacting partner for HPV thus making it a likely candidate for involvement in cutaneous carcinogenesis. A biomarker expression pattern specific to HPV infected NMSC was not identified although aberrant expression of TopBP1 was identified in a subset of skin cancers. To investigate this novel observation, a molecular investigation of the interaction between TopBP1 and the viral replication factor E2 was carried out, firstly in HPV-16 before extending the work to the cutaneous virus HPV-8. A mutant of HPV-16E2 that failed to bind TopBP1 was generated. Failure to bind TopBP1 resulted in a phenotype exhibiting compromised viral replication. The equivalent mutation generated in HPV-8E2 resulted in an even more compromised replicative phenotype. In addition to this work, gene targets of TopBP1 were also identified by a microarray analysis. This was carried out using MCF7 cells untreated or damaged by ultraviolet radiation (UVR) with endogenous TopBP1 depleted by SiRNA treatment. These studies showed that TopBP1 is involved in a number of cellular processes and is likely to be involved in controlling DNA damage targets following UVR induced DNA damage. The work described in this thesis provides further evidence supporting the role of HPV in the aetiology of nonmelanoma skin cancer. Generation of an E2 mutant that fails to bind TopBP1 and exhibits a compromised replication phenotype provides further evidence to support the hypothesis that the E2-TopBP1 interaction is essential for viral replication and therefore the viral life cycle. This work may facilitate the development of anti-viral therapies for HPV-associated disease by targeting HPV DNA replication through disruption of the E2/TopBP1 interaction.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

Aquileia porto fluviale – sponda orientale: nuovi dati e riflessioni sui depositi di anfore di allume

The paper illustrates a ceramic assemblage recently excavated by Ca’ Foscari University of Venice on the eastern riverbank of the river port of Aquileia. The deposit has been interpreted as a level of debris connected with the demolition of an artisanal installation, currently under excavation, consisting of at least one tank, lined with wood and connected to a system of water channels. The deposit consists of ca. 3750 fragmentary amphorae, originally transporting the alum extracted in Lipari and Melos (now Milos). The majority of the amphorae was produced in the Lipari Islands and can be classified as Lipari morphological types 1a and 2a-b. In addition, a number of fragmentary containers produced in the Aegean island of Milos, are also present in the examined context (variant 1 and 2), in the ratio of 9:1. So far, less than a couple of dozens of alum amphorae were known from Aquileia: therefore, the new data from Aquileia allow us to fill an anomalous gap in current distribution maps and, in addition, contribute to stimulate reflexion and discussion on aspects of production, trade and use of alum in the Roman period

Habitat creation for animals by teredinid bivalves in Indonesian mangrove ecosystems

A better understanding of the fundamental role large woody debris (LWD) plays within mangrove ecosystems may provide further insights into important ecological processes, such as wood degradation and biodiversity maintenance within mangrove forests.Though the volume of fallen wood in mangrove forests can be huge, little is known of the breakdown pathways and biodiversity maintenance of LWD in mangrove ecosystems. The degree of mangrove fauna dependent upon LWD and the need for such substratum in mangrove ecosystems may provide further insights in to the important role of woody biomass in these otherwise globally shrinking habitats due to forest harvesting. The breakdown, recycling and flux of nutrients from LWD within mangrove forests is maintained by biodegrading organisms in areas from terrestrial to marine habitats. The tidal inundation sets limits on the wood degrading communities within the mangrove forests of Sulawesi. This study presents details of the environmental and biological association of biodegrading organisms within the forests in the Wakatobi Marine Park (WMP), Sulawesi. Wood boring animals belonging to the family Teredinidae are the dominant biodegraders of LWD in the mid- to low intertidal areas of the mangrove forests. Teredinid attack greatly reduces the volume of LWD in the mid- to low intertidal areas of the forests. Within the forests, emersion time was the greatest influence of the distribution of the biodegrading organisms spanning from the supra-tidal down to the low intertidal. The response of Rhizophora stylosa prop-roots to physical damage and the activity of teredinids upon damaged prop-roots were investigated. With severe levels of root damage, the level of teredinid activity increases, resulting in root death and detrital input. However, when the roots were exposed to a superficial and moderate level of damage, an over-compensation of tissue re-growth was observed. LWD in the intertidal zone is often tunnelled by teredinids. The tunnels are blind-ending cylinders that taper to a small opening at the wood surface. However, larger openings appear when wood is heavily tunnelled and the surface is broken open. Teredinid death then leaves niches for cryptofauna. The greater the number of teredinid tunnels within LWD, the more diversity was found. Animals of particular interest were the dartfish, Parioglossus interruptus and the intertidal spider, Desis martensi found in the vacant teredinid tunnels. Desid spiders were abundant within the LWD and dartfish collected from within teredinid-attacked LWD were smaller than dartfish populations not within LWD. Desids and dartfish residing within the wood may benefit from the significantly lower temperatures within teredinid-attacked detritus compared to external air temperatures. Desis martensi has a life-history strategy centred on strong parental care, with lots of energy invested in to its young. Vulnerable stages of dartfish exploit the vacant teredinid tunnels. If it were not for the tunnels created by the teredinids the unusual behaviour adopted by dartfish and spiders would not be possible. Thus, many animals in mangrove forests of the WMP rely on LWD as a predation refuge enhanced by the teredinid tunnels within the LWD. A variety of different species were found inside teredinid attacked LWD, and the cryptic behaviour of the fauna ranged from breeding to predator avoidance. These findings indicate that in forests where wood is harvested, reduced availability of LWD will result in reduced biodiversity.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

Scambi e commerci in area vesuviana. I dati delle anfore dai saggi stratigrafici I.E. (Impianto Elettrico) 1980-81 nel Foro di Pompei

Le anfore da trasporto sono uno dei migliori indicatori archeologici per valutare l'economia e il commercio delle società del mondo antico. Questa monografia, realizzata da ricercatori dell'Università di Cadice e dell'Università Ca' Foscari Venezia, comprende lo studio di quasi mezzo migliaio di questi contenitori commerciali, recuperati durante i pioneristici scavi stratigrafici effettuati da P. Arthur per conto della Sopritendenza nel 1980-1981 presso il Foro di Pompei, denominati convenzionalmente "Impianto Elettrico" e fino ad oggi rimasti inediti. Il lavoro rappresenta la prima monografia pompeiana dedicata esclusivamente all'analisi delle testimonianze anforiche portate alla luce da attività di scavo archeologico nella città sepolta dall’eruzione del Vesuvio, ed analizza in prospettiva diacronica tutte le produzioni in circolazione tra il VI/V a.C. e l'anno 79 d.C. I quattordici capitoli del volume offrono al lettore i dati relativi alle anfore arcaiche, non abbondanti ma molto significative per le fasi più antiche delle insediamento, alle anfore greche, specialmente rodie di epoca ellenistica, che si distinguono per l’abbondanza di esemplari bollati; alle anfore vinarie italiche di epoca repubblicana, che disegnano un panorama commerciale di grande vitalità, nel quale la Campania gioca un ruolo preminente, intrecciando le sue produzioni con quelle di altre aree della penisola. Si passano quindi in rassegna le anfore africane, o di tradizione punica, caratterizzate da una complessa seriazione tipologica che ben illustra gli intensi rapporti commericali con il nord Africa e l’isola di Ibiza; seguono poi le anfore punico-gaditane da garum, identificate per la prima volta in area vesuviana proprio in questo studio; le Dressel 21-22, contenitori per il commercio italico di salagione e di recente caratterizzazione e, infine, le produzioni del periodo tardo-repubblicano e giulio-claudio. Completano il volume una serie di analisi complementari effettuate su alcune delle anfore prese in esame: si indaga quindi il paleocontenuto di alcune serie (con le analisi dei residui organici), si effettua la caratterizzazione minero-petrografica di alcuni impasti, si studiano i sistemi di chiusura e sigillatura delle anfore e del loro contenuto (opercula) e si illustrano alcuni esemplari riutilizzati e rifunzionalizzati come affilatoi, lisciatoi o a fini statici. Tutto questo materiale, analizzato con un approccio integrato ed interdisciplinare, e corredato di dei capitoli che sintetizzano lo stato della ricerca e le prospettive future, consente di trarre molteplici conclusioni, fondamentali per comprendere la ricca e articolata storia quotidiana di Pompei, dei suoi mercanti e dei suoi abitanti (i consumatori ai quali le anfore erano destinate) ma utile anche per meglio definire la storia economica di alcune delle regioni circum-mediterranee (da Gades all'Egeo) con le quali Pompei aveva forti legami commerciali nell'antichità, come testimoniano le anfore qui presentate

Vicus Costanziaci between land and sea: Remote Sensing applications for the detection of the lost islands in the Venetian Lagoon

“Vicus Costanziaci” is a project for the recovery, protection and evaluation of the historical and archaeological heritage of Costanziaco, an ancient small group of islands in the Lagoon north of Venice, of which currently just two emerged strips survive, namely: the abandoned islands of S. Ariano and La Cura. The project is being co-directed by D. Cottica (University Ca’ Foscari of Venice) in collaboration with the Superintendency of Archeological Heritage of Veneto. Exploring the area lying between the mainland and the lagoon represents an important opportunity for reconstructing the history of Venice before the well known medieval city arose. Through survey and excavations of the Costanziaco area, the project aims to shed new light on early patterns of occupation in the Venetian Lagoon, that is the history of ‘Venice before Venice’, to explore the communication network between the mainland and the sea and to examine the evolution of settlements along the commercial routes of the Lagoon. The particular environment of research, the Lagoon, makes necessary the close collaboration of archaeologists and scientists of differing expertise. Remote sensing (RS) in this case is critical for investigating the ancient extent of the lost islands

Vivere d’acqua. Archeologie tra Lio Piccolo e Altino

Vivere d’acqua. Archeologie tra Lio Piccolo e Altino: Mostra Archeologica, Centro Culturale Manin, Ca’ Savio (Comune di Cavallino-Treporti). La mostra mira a mettere in risalto le strutture e le forme del paesaggio dell’area lagunare/litoranea antica dell’attuale territorio di Lio Piccolo e Cavallino/Treporti. La narrazione ha come filo conduttore l’importante attività pionieristica condotta da “Tito” Ernesto Canal alla fine del secolo scorso, seguendo un percorso cronologico che si snoda dall’età imperiale romana fino al VI-VII secolo d.C. Attraverso l’esposizione dei materiali archeologici, che sono stati rinvenuti in occasione delle ricerche archeologiche e la ricostruzione delle strutture antiche, il visitatore può comprendere le complesse vicende insediative legate a un territorio molto dinamico, in sospeso tra terre, mare e lagune. In questi luoghi le comunità, profondamente collegate al centro di Altino, hanno imparato a costruire, vivere e “dare forma e struttura” alle acque ed alle barene della Laguna. Qui si sono formati quei gruppi umani che hanno fatto di quell’ambiente la loro cultura. Il percorso espositivo, narrato in maniera semplice e diretta, vuole descrivere le caratteristiche di quelle che erano le infrastrutture della Laguna antica, tardoantica ed altomedievale: saline, peschiere e luoghi di approdo e di approvvigionamento idrico descrivono una zona a lungo sfruttata per la produzione di attività economiche molto redditizie e per il mantenimento dell’efficiente macchina portuale al servizio di Altino. Un focus specifico è dedicato alla villa romana di Lio Piccolo, luogo che ha un posto particolare nella memoria della comunità di Cavallino-Treporti e che ben racconta la vita lagunare di 2000 anni fa