Affective profiles in Italian high school students: life satisfaction, psychological well-being, self-esteem, and optimism

The affective profiles model distinguishes between individuals who are self-fulfilling (high positive affect, low negative affect), high affective (high positive affect, high negative affect), low affective (low positive affect, low negative affect), and self-destructive (low positive affect, high negative affect). The literature shows that the affective profiles model has been used with Swedish people in particular in order to determine differences among profiles in relation to life satisfaction, psychological well-being, self-esteem, and optimism. The present research investigated these differences in Italian high school students. Two studies were conducted: the first with 156 Italian high school students and the second with 148 Italian high school students. The first study analyzed differences among affective profiles with regard to life satisfaction and psychological well-being while the second study analyzed differences among affective profiles with regard to self-esteem and optimism. In the first study, the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS), the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS), and the Meaningful Life Measure (MLM) were administered to the participants. In the second study, the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS), the Self-Esteem Scale (SES), the Life Orientation Test - revised (LOT-r) were administered to the participants. The results of the first study showed that, with respect to the other profiles, the self-fulfilling participants had greater life satisfaction and psychological well-being. The results of the second study showed that, with respect to the other profiles, the self-fulfilling participants had higher self-esteem and optimism. These results revealed differences among affective profiles regarding life satisfaction, psychological well-being, self-esteem, and optimism in the Italian context as well thereby offering new possibilities for cross-cultural research and for enhancing self-fulfilling profiles

Spectral properties of incommensurate charge-density wave systems

The concept of frustrated phase separation is applied to investigate its consequences for the electronic structure of the high T_c cuprates. The resulting incommensurate charge density wave (CDW) scattering is most effective in creating local gaps in k-space when the scattering vector connects states with equal energy. Starting from an open Fermi surface we find that the resulting CDW is oriented along the (10)- and (or) (01)-direction which allows for a purely one-dimensional or a two-dimensional ``eggbox type'' charge modulation. In both cases the van Hove singularities are substantially enhanced, and the spectral weight of Fermi surface states near the M-points, tends to be suppressed. Remarkably, a leading edge gap arises near these points, which, in the eggbox case, leaves finite arcs of the Fermi surface gapless. We discuss our results with repect to possible consequences for photoemission experiments

Green Positive Guidance and Green Positive Life Counseling for Decent Work and Decent Lives: Some Empirical Results

This article discusses green positive guidance and green positive life counseling for decent work and decent lives. From a green guidance perspective, the connectedness to nature construct is important both in terms of the meaning of work and life construction. The study discussed in this article analyzed the relationship between empathy and connectedness to nature, controlling for the effects of fluid intelligence and personality traits. In this connection, the Advanced Progressive Matrices (APM), the Big Five Questionnaire (BFQ), and the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) were administered to 144 Italian high school students. The study revealed that connecteness to nature was not associated with fluid intelligence and was only moderately associated with personality traits. It was empathy that showed the highest association with connectedness to nature. The results open new opportunities for future research and interventions in green positive guidance/life counseling and green positive decent work

Marked efficacy of Rituximab in multifocal motor neuropathy associated with chronic lymphocytic leukemia

The authors describe a patient who presented a multifocal motor neuropathy (MMN) associated with a high anti-ganglioside antibody (anti-GM1 and anti-GD1) titer at the clinical onset of a B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia (B-CLL). Immunomodulation (IVIg plus cyclosporine) resulted in a neurological improvement and reduced anti-ganglioside antibody titers, both of which remained stable for at least six years. After this period, the patient had a severe relapse of the neuropathy, which was independent of the clinical course of the B-CLL. Both IVIg and cyclophosphamide were ineffective, and the patient became tetraplegic within six months; in the meantime, the patient displayed an increased antiganglioside antibody titer. Treatment with rituximab (RTX), which is designed to selectively inhibit B cell function, resulted in a dramatic, prompt and long-lasting neurological improvement as well as a reduced anti-ganglioside antibody titer. Although there are no previous reports of MMN in patients with B-CLL, the efficacy of RTX in the treatment of MMN in this patient may be considered remarkable. The expansion of B-cell clones may be a prerequisite for RTX effectiveness in MMN, and in dysimmune neuropathies in general

Marked efficacy of rituximab in multifocal motor neuropathy associated with chronic lymphocytic leukemia

The authors describe a patient who presented a multifocal motor neuropathy (MMN) associated with a high anti-ganglioside antibody (anti-GM1 and anti-GD1) titer at the clinical onset of a B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia (B-CLL). Immunomodulation (IVIg plus cyclosporine) resulted in a neurological improvement and reduced anti-ganglioside antibody titers, both of which remained stable for at least six years. After this period, the patient had a severe relapse of the neuropathy, which was independent of the clinical course of the B-CLL. Both IVIg and cyclophosphamide were ineffective, and the patient became tetraplegic within six months; in the meantime, the patient displayed an increased antiganglioside antibody titer. Treatment with rituximab (RTX), which is designed to selectively inhibit B cell function, resulted in a dramatic, prompt and long-lasting neurological improvement as well as a reduced antiganglioside antibody titer. Although there are no previous reports of MMN in patients with B-CLL, the eficacy of RTX in the treatment of MMN in this patient may be considered remarkable. The expansion of B-cell clones may be a prerequisite for RTX effectiveness in MMN, and in dysimmune neuropathies in general

A Phasin with Many Faces: Structural Insights on PhaP from Azotobacter sp. FA8

Phasins are a group of proteins associated to granules of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs). Apart from their structural role as part of the PHA granule cover, different structural and regulatory functions have been found associated to many of them, and several biotechnological applications have been developed using phasin protein fusions. Despite their remarkable functional diversity, the structure of these proteins has not been analyzed except in very few studies. PhaP from Azotobacter sp. FA8 (PhaPAz) is a representative of the prevailing type in the multifunctional phasin protein family. Previous work performed in our laboratory using this protein have demonstrated that it has some very peculiar characteristics, such as its stress protecting effects in recombinant Escherichia coli, both in the presence and absence of PHA. The aim of the present work was to perform a structural characterization of this protein, to shed light on its properties. Its aminoacid composition revealed that it lacks clear hydrophobic domains, a characteristic that appears to be common to most phasins, despite their lipid granule binding capacity. The secondary structure of this protein, consisting of α-helices and disordered regions, has a remarkable capacity to change according to its environment. Several experimental data support that it is a tetramer, probably due to interactions between coiled-coil regions. These structural features have also been detected in other phasins, and may be related to their functional diversity.Fil: Mezzina, Mariela Paula. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; ArgentinaFil: Wetzler, Diana Elena. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; ArgentinaFil: Catone, Mariela Verónica. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; ArgentinaFil: Bucci, Hernán Andrés. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; ArgentinaFil: Di Paola, Matías Ezequiel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; ArgentinaFil: Pettinari, María Julia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; Argentin

Middle Pleistocene to Holocene activity of the Gondola Fault Zone (Southern Adriatic Foreland): deformation of a regional shear zone and seismotectonic implications

Recent seismicity in and around the Gargano Promontory, an uplifted portion of the southern Adriatic Foreland domain, indicates active E-W strike-slip faulting in a region that has also been struck by large historical earthquakes, particularly along the Mattinata Fault. Seismic profiles published in the past two decades show that the pattern of tectonic deformation along the E-W–trending segment of the Gondola Fault Zone, the offshore counterpart of the Mattinata Fault, is strikingly similar to that observed onshore during the Eocene-Pliocene interval. Based on the lack of instrumental seismicity in the south Adriatic offshore, however, and on standard seismic reflection data showing an undisturbed Quaternary succession above the Gondola Fault Zone, this fault zone has been interpreted as essentially inactive since the Pliocene. Nevertheless, many investigators emphasised the genetic relationships and physical continuity between the Mattinata Fault, a positively active tectonic feature, and the Gondola Fault Zone. The seismotectonic potential of the system formed by these two faults has never been investigated in detail. Recent investigations of Quaternary sedimentary successions on the Adriatic shelf, by means of very high-resolution seismic-stratigraphic data, have led to the identification of fold growth and fault propagation in Middle-Upper Pleistocene and Holocene units. The inferred pattern of gentle folding and shallow faulting indicates that sediments deposited during the past ca. 450 ka were recurrently deformed along the E-W branch of the Gondola Fault Zone. We performed a detailed reconstruction and kinematic interpretation of the most recent deformation observed along the Gondola Fault Zone and interpret it in the broader context of the seismotectonic setting of the southern Apennines-foreland region. We hypothesise that the entire 180 km-long Molise-Gondola Shear Zone is presently active and speculate that also its offshore portion, the Gondola Fault Zone, has a seismogenic behaviour

Middle Pleistocene to Holocene activity of the Gondola Fault Zone (Southern Adriatic Foreland): deformation of a regional shear zone and seismotectonic implications

Recent seismicity in and around the Gargano Promontory, an uplifted portion of the Southern Adriatic Foreland domain, indicates active E–W strike-slip faulting in a region that has also been struck by large historical earthquakes, particularly along the Mattinata Fault. Seismic profiles published in the past two decades show that the pattern of tectonic deformation along the E–W-trending segment of the Gondola Fault Zone, the offshore counterpart of the Mattinata Fault, is strikingly similar to that observed onshore during the Eocene–Pliocene interval. Based on the lack of instrumental seismicity in the south Adriatic offshore, however, and on standard seismic reflection data showing an undisturbed Quaternary succession above the Gondola Fault Zone, this fault zone has been interpreted as essentially inactive since the Pliocene. Nevertheless, many investigators emphasised the genetic relationships and physical continuity between the Mattinata Fault, a positively active tectonic feature, and the Gondola Fault Zone. The seismotectonic potential of the system formed by these two faults has never been investigated in detail. Recent investigations of Quaternary sedimentary successions on the Adriatic shelf, by means of very high-resolution seismic–stratigraphic data, have led to the identification of fold growth and fault propagation in Middle–Upper Pleistocene and Holocene units. The inferred pattern of gentle folding and shallow faulting indicates that sediments deposited during the past ca. 450 ka were recurrently deformed along the E–W branch of the Gondola Fault Zone. We performed a detailed reconstruction and kinematic interpretation of the most recent deformation observed along the Gondola Fault Zone and interpret it in the broader context of the seismotectonic setting of the Southern Apennines-foreland region. We hypothesise that the entire 180 km-long Molise–Gondola Shear Zone is presently active and speculate that also its offshore portion, the Gondola Fault Zone, has a seismogenic behaviour

On the complexity of surface ruptures during normal faulting earthquakes: Excerpts from the 6 April 2009 L'Aquila (central Italy) earthquake (M w 6.3)

Abstract. Over the past few years the assessment of the earthquake potential of large continental faults has increasingly relied on field investigations. State-of-the-art seismic hazard models are progressively complementing the information derived from earthquake catalogs with geological observations of active faulting. Using these observations, however, requires full understanding of the relationships between seismogenic slip at depth and surface deformation, such that the evidence indicating the presence of a large, potentially seismogenic fault can be singled out effectively and unambiguously. We used observations and models of the 6 April 2009, Mw 6.3, L'Aquila, normal faulting earthquake to explore the relationships between the activity of a large fault at seismogenic depth and its surface evidence. This very well-documented earthquake is representative of mid-size yet damaging earthquakes that are frequent around the Mediterranean basin, and was chosen as a paradigm of the nature of the associated geological evidence, along with observational difficulties and ambiguities. Thanks to the available high-resolution geologic, geodetic and seismological data aided by analog modeling, we reconstructed the full geometry of the seismogenic source in relation to surface and sub-surface faults. We maintain that the earthquake was caused by seismogenic slip in the range 3–10 km depth, and that the slip distribution was strongly controlled by inherited discontinuities. We also contend that faulting was expressed at the surface by pseudo-primary breaks resulting from coseismic crustal bending and by sympathetic slip on secondary faults. Based on our results we propose a scheme of normal fault hierarchization through which all surface occurrences related to faulting at various depths can be interpreted in the framework of a single, mechanically coherent model. We stress that appreciating such complexity is crucial to avoiding severe over- or under-estimation of the local seismogenic potential