Prefabrication as large-scale efficient strategy for the energy retrofit of the housing stock: an Italian case study

In this work a multi-story residential building located in Cinisello Balsamo, near Milan, was considered as case study for the application of two new prefabricated building systems for the energy retrofit. The first one, developed within EASEE, a European project funded by 7th Framework Program, consists in a preassembled insulated panel for the retrofit of facades, based on two TRC thin precast layers rigidly connected to an EPS core. The panels can be easily applied on the external side of existing facades without the use of scaffoldings, providing an additional efficient insulation as well a new external cladding. The second one consists in a preassembled timber panel for existing pitched roofs. The process includes the substitution of the existing roof with modular integrated panels with a high content of recycled materials that can be easily fixed on the existing structures (timber frames, concrete, masonry, etc.). The combination of the two prefabricated construction systems, applied on the case study, allowed the reduction of the building energy demand by 82%

Whole blood transcriptome analysis in ewes fed with hemp seed supplemented diet

the hemp plant (Cannabis sativa L.) has a long tradition of being used for many di erent purposes such as industry, medicine and nutrition. In particular, because hemp seed (HS) is rich in oil protein and considerable amounts of dietary ber, vitamins and minerals that are particularly suitable also for animal nutrition. Di erent studies have evaluated HS on qualitative and quantitative properties of livestock products but as of today, nobody has investigated the molecular pathway behind HS supplementation in farm animals. Thus, in this study, we will report the rst RNA sequencing of the whole-blood transcriptome of ewes fed either with a controlled diet (CTR, n = 5) or with a diet supplemented with 5% of hemp seed (HSG, n = 5). Applying a false discovery rate (FDR) <0.05 and a log2FC either higher than 0.5 or lower than −0.5, we identi ed 314 di erentially regulated genes in the HS-supplemented group compared to the CTR group. Several genes encoding for di erent subunits belonging to the complex I, II, III, IV and ATP-synthase were up-regulated making oxidative phosphorylation (FDR: 3.05e-19) and thermogenesis (FDR: 2.17e-16) the highest up-regulated pathways in our study. Moreover, we found up-regulation in di erent genes involved in lactose biosyntheses such as GALK1 and PGM1 and, as a result, we observed a statistically higher lactose percentage in the HSG group (p < 0.05). These results indicate that HS supplementation positively a ects the energy production pathway in lactating ewes conferring them also more resistance to adverse climatic conditions such as low temperature. Finally, the higher milk lactose content makes the derived dairy products more pro table

Pulmonary Artery Catheter Monitoring in Patients with Cardiogenic Shock: Time for a Reappraisal?

Cardiogenic shock represents one of the most dramatic scenarios to deal with in intensive cardiology care and is burdened by substantial short-term mortality. An integrated approach, including timely diagnosis and phenotyping, along with a well-established shock team and management protocol, may improve survival. The use of the Swan-Ganz catheter could play a pivotal role in various phases of cardiogenic shock management, encompassing diagnosis and haemodynamic characterisation to treatment selection, titration and weaning. Moreover, it is essential in the evaluation of patients who might be candidates for long-term heart-replacement strategies. This review provides a historical background on the use of the Swan-Ganz catheter in the intensive care unit and an analysis of the available evidence in terms of potential prognostic implications in this setting

A follow-up study of heroin addicts (VEdeTTE2): study design and protocol

BACKGROUND: In Italy, a large cohort study (VEdeTTE1) was conducted between 1998–2001 to evaluate the effectiveness of treatments in reducing mortality and increasing treatment retention among heroin addicts. The follow-up of this cohort (VEdeTTE2) was designed to evaluate the effectiveness of treatments on long-term outcomes, such as rehabilitation and social re-integration. The purpose of this paper is to describe the protocol of the VEdeTTE2 study, and to present the results of the pilot study carried out to assess the feasibility of the study and to improve study procedures. METHODS: The source population for the VEdeTTE2 study was the VEdeTTE1 cohort, from which a sample of 2,200 patients, traced two or more years after enrolment in the cohort, were asked to participate. An interview investigates drug use; overdose; family and social re-integration. Illegal activity are investigated separately in a questionnaire completed by the patient. Patients are also asked to provide a hair sample to test for heroin and cocaine use. Information on treatments and HIV, HBV and HCV morbidity are obtained from clinical records. A pilot phase was planned and carried out on 60 patients. RESULTS: The results of the pilot phase pointed out the validity of the procedures designed to limit attrition: the number of traced subjects was satisfactory (88%). Moreover, the pilot phase was very useful in identifying possible causes of delays and attrition, and flaws in the instruments. Improvements to the procedures and the instruments were subsequently implemented. Sensitivity of the biological test was quite good for heroin (78%) but lower for cocaine (42.3%), highlighting the need to obtain a hair sample from all patients. CONCLUSION: In drug addiction research, studies investigating health status and social re-integration of subjects at long-term follow-up are lacking. The VEdeTTE2 study aims to investigate these outcomes at long-term follow-up. Results of the pilot phase underline the importance of the pilot phase when planning a follow-up study

Different Molecular Signatures in Magnetic Resonance Imaging-Staged Facioscapulohumeral Muscular Dystrophy Muscles

Facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD) is one of the most common muscular dystrophies and is characterized by a non-conventional genetic mechanism activated by pathogenic D4Z4 repeat contractions. By muscle Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) we observed that T2-short tau inversion recovery (T2-STIR) sequences identify two different conditions in which each muscle can be found before the irreversible dystrophic alteration, marked as T1-weighted sequence hyperintensity, takes place. We studied these conditions in order to obtain further information on the molecular mechanisms involved in the selective wasting of single muscles or muscle groups in this disease

Integrated Design Strategies for Refurbishment of Large Social Housing, Complexes in European Suburbs

The decay of urban suburbs asks for integrated measures for the refurbishment of the existing building stock, overall of the residential building stock built after the Second World War which characterizes wide areas of the European territory outside the historical centre of large cities. The evident conditions of obsolescence of those buildings point out the need of refurbishment measures considering at the same level and at the same time function and performance requirements. The upgrade of spatial quality and life conditions must go hand in hand with energy efficiency and resource savings. In Europe, the concept of energy efficiency is getting significance, due to the clear regulatory framework at European and national level. Another important issue supporting the importance of sustainable and energy-efficient refurbishment is the reduction of depletion of resources: the extension of materials’ life-cycle could be obtained by promoting the extension of life expectancy in buildings, i.e. by means of conversion/transformation of existing buildings instead of new construction. As the largest part of the embodied energy is in the load-bearing structure, the refurbishment of existing building enable further use of load-bearing structure and a great potential for resource and energy savings. This paper describes the strategies to deal with the refurbishment of large social housing complexes following an integrated design approach. Three case studies, located in three European big cities (Rome, Paris and Milan), show the relevance of a global, integral process involving urban-planning, functional and architectural issues related to energy savings. They are three building complexes built in the 20th century with precast concrete panels. Taking into account the architectural, technical and morphological features of the existing buildings, light and reversible technologies are adopted to improve envelope energy performances and make building extensions. On the urban-planning level, the increased density of site through additional storeys, building addition or extension is a measure that makes better use of developed land and also offers energy savings. The Structure/Envelope technologies enable optimum performances, time and site operations rationalization and cost savings adaptability to future changes

A new modular preassembled timber panel for the energy retrofit of the housing stock

This paper is focused on the design of a modular preassembled timber panel for the retrofit of pitched roofs. There are several benefits in substituting the existing roofs with preassembled timber modular panels: an optimization of the duration of the on-site work during the construction phase, a lower cost of on-site installation, a better control of the hygrometric performance of the elements, and, generally, a better quality of the built asset. The main objective of the work is to develop a solution which contains a high percentage of recycled materials and can be easily produced and assembled by non-skilled workers of social cooperatives. Appropriate studies of the technological details, as well as structural and economic analyses were carried out in order to optimize the manufacturing process and the onsite installation. Finally, in order to measure the affordability of the developed solution a multi-storey residential building located near Milan was considered as case study

Teaching video neuroimages: complicated scapular winging

No abstract avalaibl

Innovative design tools for sustainable refurbishment of large building complexes

The increase of energy costs will justify in the next future major investments on the refurbishment of existing building stock. Most of buildings built after the Second World War in Italy need cost-effective refurbishment measures considering both energy efficiency and improvement of architectural features. The paper shows the results of a research project carried out at Politecnico di Milano aiming at the definition of a simple and useful design tool supporting decision makers. It points out different options and levels for refurbishment, in terms of type, value and quality. Beginning from the observation of transformation processes in the northern region, different strategies of refurbishment are considered adopting traditional or new technologies and low environmental impact materials. Holistic design issues supported the analys of existing buildings, addressing architectural, technical and morphological characteristics. Reversible, light and flexible criteria pervade the identification of design strategies aiming at transformation of existing building stock according to changing housing demand

Business judgment rule e mercati finanziari. Efficienza economica e tutela degli investitori

Lo studio si occupa dei limiti e dei criteri rispetto ai quali è possibile sottoporre a scrutinio il merito delle scelte degli amministratori di società per azioni in sede giudiziale ponendo a confronto tra loro la regola giurisprudenziale utilizzata negli Stati Uniti d’America (la business judgment rule – “BJR”) con la disciplina sviluppatasi nei paesi di civil law europei ed in particolare in Italia. Il lavoro analizza, in primo luogo, il contenuto della BJR come emerso nella giurisprudenza americana e che evidenzia la presenza di standard e regole che tengono conto del delicato trade off fra la necessità di non disincentivare investimenti rischiosi che possono avere effetti positivi sullo sviluppo economico e la necessità di assicurare un’adeguata tutela degli investitori attraverso efficaci rimedi giudiziali. Successivamente viene rapidamente analizzata l’evoluzione storica della disciplina della responsabilità degli amministratori nell’Europa continentale per giungere ad analizzare l’attuale normativa italiana e la declinazione concreta che ne è risultata nell’esperienza giurisprudenziale civilistica. Il lavoro, infine, passa ad esaminare i limiti e le finalità dello scrutinio sulle scelte gestionali degli amministratori delle società vigilate (società quotate, intermediari e società di gestione dei mercati) compiuto dall’Autorità di vigilanza sui mercati finanziari. Viene evidenziato come la vigilanza sulla trasparenza dell’informativa e sulla correttezza dei comportamenti è compiuta utilizzando gli stessi criteri, metodi ed approcci definiti nella giurisprudenza civilistica in materia di BJR soprattutto in quelle materie in cui occorra valutare le scelte compiute dagli amministratori (si allude in particolare all’adeguatezza degli assetti organizzativi e delle procedure e alla ragionevolezza delle ipotesi alla base dell’informativa previsionale e di talune poste contabili). Il lavoro, dopo avere evidenziato come molti Paesi europei abbiano recentemente introdotto nei rispettivi ordinamenti giuridici la BJR (mentre in Italia solo la innovativa disciplina delle operazioni con parti correlate si è avvicinata a tale regola), conclude evidenziando i potenziali benefici che potrebbero derivare anche per il nostro ordinamento giuridico dall’introduzione nella normativa primaria della BJR (facendo propri i risultati raggiunti dalla giurisprudenza della Corte di Cassazione e ampiamente condivisi dalla dottrina) sia in termini di garanzia di una maggiore certezza del diritto sia quale più efficace punto di riferimento per l’attività di enforcement delle Autorità di vigilanza sui mercati finanziari. Ne potrebbero discendere importanti ricadute sull’efficienza e la crescita economica, perché si incoraggerebbero gli investimenti in settori innovativi e altamente rischiosi, e, allo stesso tempo, si potrebbe avere un deflazionamento del contezioso sia in sede civile che amministrativa