LA POLITICA EUROPEA PER L'IMPRESA SOCIALE: OPPORTUNITÀ E VINCOLI PER L'IMPRENDITORIALITÀ CALABRESE

Il lavoro, partendo da un excursus delle politiche pubbliche che hanno incentivato le imprese sociali dalla loro introduzione nel sistema italiano (D.lgs. 155/2006), ha voluto impostare le premesse per un futuro uno studio sull’impatto economico di tali politiche sul Prodotto Interno Lordo calabrese. Tale risultato verrà raggiunto in una successiva ricerca che, partendo dalla considerazioni di questo lavoro, e tramite implementazione del modello di regressione esposto, andrà a individuare le variabili più coerenti per definire il trend del Prodotto Interno Lordo calabrese, con lo scopo di comprendere il peso economico delle imprese sociali. Il paper, che rappresenta il primo step di un processo di analisi più ampio, intende indagare l’impatto delle principali variabili, sia dal punto di vista quantitativo sia dal punto di vista qualitativo, delle politiche pubbliche di incentivazione delle imprese sociali avuto sull’economia calabrese e sul tessuto imprenditoriale. A livello europeo le politiche pubbliche volte a migliorare la situazione delle imprese sociali si distinguono in tre linee d’intervento: 1) agevolare l’accesso ai finanziamenti; 2) dare loro maggiore visibilità; 3) ottimizzare il quadro giuridico. L’ammontare dei fondi pubblici stanziati a beneficio delle imprese sociali sono oltre 85 milioni di euro. Si tratta di ingenti finanziamenti che, senza adeguate policies, rischiano di essere rilevarsi un enorme spreco dato l’impatto delle stesse imprese sociali sullo sviluppo economico locale. L’intento, quindi, è quello fornire delle riflessioni sulle politiche pubbliche

Malignant neuroendocrine tumour of the appendix in childhood with loco-regional lymph node invasion

The virtual slide(s) for this article can be found here: http://www.diagnosticpathology.diagnomx.eu/vs/1006600359152743 ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13000-015-0287-z) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users

Multidecadal variability in Atlas cedar growth in northwest Africa during the last 850 years: implications for dieback and conservation of an endangered species

Widespread forest dieback is a phenomenon of global concern that requires an improved understanding of the relationship between tree growth and climate to support conservation efforts. One priority for conservation is the Atlas cedar (Cedrus atlantica), an endangered species exhibiting dieback throughout its North African range. In this study, we evaluate the long-term context for recent dieback and develop a projection of future C. atlantica growth by exploring the periodic variability of its growth through time. First, we present a new C. atlantica tree- ring chronology (1150–2013 CE) from the Middle Atlas mountains, Morocco. We then compare the new chronology to existing C. atlantica chronologies in Morocco and use principal components analysis (PCA) to isolate the common periodic signal from the seven longest available records (PCA7, 1271–1984 CE) in the Middle and High Atlas portions of the C. atlantica range. PCA7 captures 55.7% of the variance and contains significant multidecadal ( ̃95yr, ̃57yr, ̃21yr) periodic components, revealed through spectral and wavelet analyses. Parallel analyses of historical climate data (1901–2016 CE) suggests that the multidecadal growth signal ori- ginates primarily in growing season (spring and summer) precipitation variability, compounded by slow- changing components of summer and winter temperatures. Finally, we model the long-term growth patterns between 1271–1984 CE using a small number (three to four) of harmonic components, illustrating that sup- pressed growth since the 1970s – a factor implicated in the dieback of this species – is consistent with recurrent climatically-driven growth declines. Forward projection of this model suggests two climatically-favourable periods for growth in the 21st century that may enhance current conservation actions for the long-term survival of the C. atlantica in the Middle and High Atlas mountains

Practical sulphur-selenium metabolic interactions in dairy cattle

Seventy-one dairy cattle were used to study practical sulphur-selenium metabolic interactions. Upon calving, cows were randomly assigned to one of the following four treatment groups: control (0.35% S, 0.31 mg/kg Se), S supplemented (0.15% S, 0.31 rag/kg Se), Se supplemented (0.35% S, 0.72 mg/kg Se), and S & Se supplemented (0.50% S, 0.72 mg/kg Se). The basal ration was made up of 55% forage as alfalfa cubes, 35% dairy concentrate, and 10% beet pulp. Cows were fed their respective experimental diets until dry off. During the dry period, cows were maintained on a dry cow ration low in Se (0.07 mg/kg Se) for a minimum of 45 days. Two weeks prior to parturition, cows were again assigned to their respective treatment groups. S and Se were supplemented as sodium selenate and elemental sulpher at levels of 0.40 mg/kg Se and 0.15% S, respectively, to yield the final dietary concentrations given above. Milk samples were collected on alternate days from all cows for milk progesterone analysis. Monthly blood samples were taken for plasma Se analysis. Cows from treatments 1-3 were sampled at estrus for plasma LH analysis. Treatment did not influence milk or fat yield. The total daily consumption of alfalfa cubes, 14% dairy concentrate and complete ration was found to be significantly greater during the second lactation for most treatment groups. Beet pulp consumption was not significantly altered in the subsequent lactation or among treatment groups. Response curves for plasma Se response to treatment were found to be signficantly different among treatment groups during the increasing plasma Se phase (months 1-4) and the plateau phase (months 4 - 10). Slope analysis indicated that slopes were similar among treatment groups during both phases of the Se response curve. Regression equations, however, during both phases were different among treatment groups. The Y-intercept for treatment groups 1-4 were 0.08 ± 0.02 (s.e.), 0.07 ± 0.02 (s.e.), 0.09 ±0.02 (s.e.), and 0.08 ± 0.03 (s.e.) mg/kg Se, respectively, with group 3 being significantly higher than treatment groups 1 and 2. During month 4-10, the Se response curve of treatment group 4 was significantly different (p ≤ 0.05) from all other groups. The Y-intercept during the plateau phase for treatments 1-4 was 0.10 ± 0.02 (s.e.), 0.11 ± 0.02 (s.e.), 0.09 ± 0.02 (s.e.), and 0.13 ± 0.02 (s.e.) mg/kg Se, respectively. Dry cow plasma Se levels of animals on treatment groups 1-4 were 0.06, 0.06, 0.05, and 0.07 ± 0.04 mg/kg Se (p ≤ 0.05). Calf plasma Se levels were 0.04, 0.05, 0.04, and .06 ± 0.02 mg/kg Se for calves whose dams were on treatment groups 1-4, respectively (p ≥ 0.05). Days to first service was not influenced by breed or treatment. Days open, calving interval, services/confirmed conception, and calf birth weights were significantly greater for breeds, but these parameters were not affected by treatment group. Cows entering their second lactation were assigned to the same experimental ration as the previous lactation, and were designated as being on experimental treatment groups 5, 6, 7, and 8. Milk progesterone concentrations during periods 0 and 2 of the estrous cycle were not different among treatment groups (p ≥ 0.05). During period 1, milk progesterone concentrations of treatment group 6 were significantly higher than the control group of the first lactation (2.42 and 2.06 ± 0.61 ng/ml, respectively). During period 3 of the estrous cycle, treatment groups 2, 4, 6, 7, and 8 had significantly higher milk progesterone concentrations than the control group (first lactation). During period 4 of the estrous cycle, milk progesterone concentrations of cows on treatment group 6 were higher than those of cows on treatment group 1 (9.42 and 6.56 ± 2.25 ng/ml, respectively). Also cows on treatment group 2 had significantly lower milk progesterone concentrations than cows on treatment groups 4 and 5 (8.43 and 8.45 ± 2.25, respectively). Period lengths of the estrous cycle were not influenced by treatment. Both milk progesterone concentrations and period length (days) were found to be different among the various cycle types identified. Mean cycle length among treatment groups was found to be similar. However, during the second lactation, the frequency of long estrous cycles was 15.6% in both the control and S supplemented group, 3.1% in the Se supplemented group and 12.5% in the S and Se supplemented group. The Incidence of abortion during the second lactation (based on milk progesterone concentrations) was 21.4% in both the control and S supplemented groups, while no Incidence of abortion occurred in the two Se supplemented groups. Milk progesterone concentrations at breeding time were significantly higher for Holsteins than for Ayrshires (2.00 and 1.76 ± 8.81 ng/ml, respectively). Also, milk progesterone concentrations were significantly higher for cows on treatment group 8 in comparison to control cows (2.73 and 1.53 ± 8.81 ng/ml, respectively). Plasma Se concentrations at breeding were also significantly lower in control cows in comparison to cows on treatment group 4 (0.09 and 0.12 mg/kg Se, respectively). A significant treatment by (un)successful breeding interaction for milk progesterone concentrations was observed. Mean milk progesterone levels for cows on treatment group 8 in the unsuccessful breeding group were significantly higher than mean milk progesterone concentration recorded in all other treatment groups. Basal plasma LH levels were significantly lower for Ayrshires in comparison to Holsteins (0.64 and 0.78 ± 0.49 ng/ml). Treatment did not affect LH lag time or basal LH but the preovulatory LH peak was significantly greater in the control grup (50.93 ± 13.09 ng/ml) than in either the S or Se supplemented groups (23.05 and 14.70 ± 13.09 ng/ml, respectively). The incidence of retained placenta during the second lactation for treatment group 5-8 was 22.4%, 1.1%, 0.0%, and 0.0%, respectively. The incidence of abnormal uterus was 18.8%, 10.0%, 14.3%, and 0.0% for treatment groups 5-8. Calving ease was not dependent on treatment group. However, the correlation between calving ease and dam plasma Se (r = -0.6164, n = 12) was found to be significant (p - 0.05), indicating a reduction in the degree of calving difficulties with increasing plasma Se levels. The incidence of mastitis was found to be dependent on treatment group during the first lactation with the highest incidence of mastitis occurring in the Se supplemented group. Somatic cell counts were not different among treatment groups. Other health parameters monitored were not dependent on treatment group. In summary, S does not appear to Inhibit Se metabolism as reflected by plasma Se levels in response to treatment and in view of the response in the productive, reproductive and health parameters monitored.Land and Food Systems, Faculty ofGraduat

Charles Bonnet syndrome

Charles Bonnet syndrome (CBS) is a disorder of visual hallucinations typically occurring in older patients with visual impairment or deafferentation of the visual cortex. In this paper, which reviews the relevant literature, the aetiologies, pathophysiology, and treatment of CBS are discussed. It is suggested that the ageing of the population, associated with an increased occurrence of vision and cerebral disorders, is leading to an increase in the incidence of CB