Sorveglianza dinamica e regime aperto. Cambiamenti normativi, organizzativi e psicosociali

La condanna che la Corte Europea dei Diritti Umani (2013) ha inflitto all'Italia alla luce della sentenza Torreggiani che puntava l'indice sul trattamento inumano e sul sovraffollamento degli istituti penali, ha imposto al nostro Paese repentini cambiamenti nell'assetto organizzativo che hanno, chiaramente, influenzato la quotidianità sia dei ristretti sia degli operatori penitenziari. A questi ultimi è chiesto, infatti, un impegno nella sperimentazione della gestione di nuovi spazi e di un nuovo modus operandi che va a modificare il modo di relazionarsi con l’utente e con il gruppo di lavoro, esaltando le rispettive potenzialità professionali. Ai ristretti, ancora, è riconosciuta la possibilità di godere di un ampliamento degli spazi utilizzabili per frequentare corsi (scolastici, di formazione professionale, attività lavorative, culturali, ricreative, sportive), ciò al fine di rendere meno dannosa la situazione di sovraffollamento, promuovendo un modello di trattamento che comprenda sicurezza, accoglienza e rieducazione (DAP, 2011). Riassetti che rinviano alle nuove esigenze di tutti i protagonisti dell'istituzione penale che, in questa sede, divengono oggetto di riflessione

The ECHR Condemns Prison Overcrowding in Italy: The Total Reorganization of the Institution and the Social Reintegration of the Prisoner

This contribution analyses the current Italian prison system, which has been called upon to resolve its structural problems. In 2013, The Council of Europe condemned Italy for inhuman treatment in its prisons. The principal accusation concerns the problem of overcrowding. The country has responded with solutions such as the application of the open system, which provides cells that are used exclusively for sleeping in at night, and dynamic monitoring, an effective system for ensuring order in the institutions. These initiatives aim to promote re-educational activities and the social re-integration of prisoners. In addition, Italian institutions have made greater use of alternatives to custodial penalties in order to tackle overcrowding and to provide more opportunities for re-integration. This contribution focuses on the need to increase prisoners\u2019 employment opportunities. In fact, Italy seems to have neglected this area, which is fundamental for re-integration into the community sphere

The importance of international exchanges of plant genetic resources for national crop improvement in Costa Rica

One of the main considerations underlying the establishment of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture and its Multilateral System of Access and Benefit Sharing is the recognition of countries’ high interdependence on the genetic resources of the crops and forages which they depend upon for their food security. A continued appreciation of how countries have benefited from facilitated exchange of germplasm in the past and are likely to continue doing so in the future is needed, in order to move forward the implementation of the Multilateral System and creating a truly global pool of genetic resources for countries’ agricultural development and adaptation to climate change. Using Costa Rica as a case and rice and bean as key crops, the paper presents a picture of the dynamics of their genetic resources, both inside and outside of the country, over past years and into the future. It illustrates the extent to which Costa Rica is dependent upon germplasm from other countries for its food security, and how, in a complementary manner, other countries rely upon germplasm from Costa Rica. It is hoped that the information presented here may encourage and facilitate the implementation of the International Treaty and its Multilateral System in the country

Metal coordination and peripheral substitution modulate the activity of cyclic tetrapyrroles on αS aggregation: A structural and cell-based study.

The discovery of aggregation inhibitors and the elucidation of their mechanism of action are key in the quest to mitigate the toxic consequences of amyloid formation. We have previously characterized the antiamyloidogenic mechanism of action of sodium phtalocyanine tetrasulfonate ([Na4(H2PcTS)]) on α-Synuclein (αS), demonstrating that specific aromatic interactions are fundamental for the inhibition of amyloid assembly. Here we studied the influence that metal preferential affinity and peripheral substituents may have on the activity of tetrapyrrolic compounds on αS aggregation. For the first time, our laboratory has extended the studies in the field of the bioinorganic chemistry and biophysics to cellular biology, using a well-established cell-based model to study αS aggregation. The interaction scenario described in our work revealed that both N- and C-terminal regions of αS represent binding interfaces for the studied compounds, a behavior that is mainly driven by the presence of negatively or positively charged substituents located at the periphery of the macrocycle. Binding modes of the tetrapyrrole ligands to αS are determined by the planarity and hydrophobicity of the aromatic ring system in the tetrapyrrolic molecule and/or the preferential affinity of the metal ion conjugated at the center of the macrocyclic ring. The different capability of phthalocyanines and meso-tetra (N-methyl-4-pyridyl) porphine tetrachloride ([H2PrTPCl4]) to modulate αS aggregation in vitro was reproduced in cell-based models of αS aggregation, demonstrating unequivocally that the modulation exerted by these compounds on amyloid assembly is a direct consequence of their interaction with the target protein

Cognitive stimulation as alternative treatment to improve psychological disorders in patients with mild cognitive impairment

(1) Background: Mild cognitive impairment is becoming one of the most common clinical manifestations affecting older people. For this reason, developing non-pharmacological strategies to help improve or maintain the physical condition of patients with mild dementia has become a priority. Therefore, the objective of this study is to provide evidence about the effects of a cognitive stimulation program on cognitive performance, anxiety, depression, and quality of life in people with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and aged > 70. (2) Methods: This study is a randomized clinical trial. A total of 72 elderly people with MCI participated: 35 in the control group who did not receive any intervention and 36 in the experimental group who received a cognitive stimulation program for 12 weeks. Cognitive performance, depression, anxiety and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) were measured using the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), the Yesavage Geriatric Depression Scale, the Hamilton Rating Scale, and the SF-12, respectively. (3) Results: In the experimental group, significant results were obtained on cognitive performance, depression, anxiety and general health, emotional role, social functioning, vitality, mental health and mental component summary domains of the SF-12. (4) Conclusions: a cognitive stimulation program of 12 weeks improves cognitive performance, anxiety, depression, and HRQoL in people with MCI aged > 70

ASPETTI DELLA PRODUZIONE DEI PICCOLI RUMINANTI CON IMPATTO SULLA SALUTE UMANA

Negli ultimi anni l’attenzione del consumatore si è sempre più orientata verso le caratteristiche nutrizionali degli alimenti. Queste proprietà sono di grande importanza anche per quanto riguarda le produzioni dei piccoli ruminanti. Il presente lavoro ha lo scopo di riassumere i principali risultati emersi dal progetto di ricerca “Aspetti della produzione dei piccoli ruminanti con particolare impatto sulla salute umana”. Sono stati analizzati mediante i metodi descritti in letteratura: 1) i polimorfismi genetici dei biopeptidi del latte dei piccoli ruminanti; 2) le attività di alcuni enzimi della membrana del globulo di grasso e la frazione lipidica del latte ovino; 3) la qualità nutrizionale del latte e del formaggio ovino in relazione all’intensità di pascolamento; 4) le componenti bioattive di siero e scotta residui alla produzione dei formaggi ovi-caprini; 5) la resistenza genetica alle encefalopatie spongiformi trasmissibili e l’efficienza economica e biologica in razze ovine. I risultati ottenuti evidenziano, da svariati punti di vista, numerose potenzialità legate alle produzioni dei piccoli ruminanti e alle loro ricadute sulla salute umana