Brief reflections on Dig. 39.3.1.4,5,9 Ulp. 53 ad Ed.

I §§ 4,5,9 Dig. 39.3.1 rendono conto del tentativo della giurisprudenza di individuare la soluzione migliore in tema di esperibilità dell’actio aquae pluviae arcendae nel caso di scavo di fossae o sulci aquarii a seconda che questi manufatti di piccola bonifica agraria siano o non siano funzionali alle tecniche di coltivazione della terra. Il presente contributo propone un’esegesi alternativa a quelle di Hugo Burckhard e, in tempi più recenti, di Francesco Sitzia, il più possibile attenta anche al contesto dell’agricoltura di età romana.Paragraphs 4,5,9 Dig. 39.3.1 inform about the attempt of the Roman jurists to find the best solution with regard to the exercise of actio aquae pluviae arcendae in the case of excavation of fossae or sulci aquarii depending on whether or not these land reclamation artifacts are functional to the techniques of cultivation of the land. This paper offers a substitute exegesis for those of Hugo Burckhard and, more recently, Francesco Sitzia, paying the best attention to the context of agriculture during the Roman period

BREVI RIFLESSIONI SU DIG. 39.3.1.4,5,9 ULP. 53 AD ED.

I §§ 4,5,9 Dig. 39.3.1 rendono conto del tentativo della giurisprudenza di individuare la soluzione migliore in tema di esperibilità dell’actio aquae pluviae arcendae nel caso di scavo di fossae o sulci aquarii a seconda che questi manufatti di piccola bonifica agraria siano o non siano funzionali alle tecniche di coltivazione della terra. Il presente contributo propone un’esegesi alternativa a quelle di Hugo Burckhard e, in tempi più recenti, di Francesco Sitzia, il più possibile attenta anche al contesto dell’agricoltura di età romana

Clothing in Transition: Social, Symbolic, and Legal Aspects of Garments from Prehistory to the Early Byzantine Period

Since ancient times, garments served a wide range of purposes: Either functional, providing protection by covering the body, or symbolic, as an element of non-verbal communication and marker of identity. In particular, this stimulates the development of specific characteristics in shape, decoration, or material composition, which generate distinctions among garments, as acknowledged by Roman jurists too. These distinctions are determined by various factors. One important factor is the social meaning of clothing: There are garments for public life, garments expressing rank, garments suited for special professions, or garments intended for sacred/priestly rites reflecting particular religious symbols. And, of course, clothes that differ between men and women or stages of life. Social meaning subdivides clothing within a society, with legal implications. Another factor is “fashion”; tastes that change over time, and that clothing adapts to. New norms, socioeconomic conditions, innovative techniques, and foreign influences introduce changes in fashion and transitions in clothing. Fashion subdivides clothing on a chronological or regional level. Looking backwards in history, changes to clothing are difficult to detect and to date. It is even more challenging to trace the factors causing these changes. This article will present four case studies of clothing in transition: From Prehistory, the Roman Age, the Early Christian Era, and the Early Byzantine Period. Across these four periods, it can be observed that both similar and dissimilar factors shaped clothing transitions. The sources analyzed are written evidence, Roman legal sources, iconographic sources, and material finds

Biotimer assay: A reliable and rapid method for the evaluation of central venous catheter microbial colonization

Adherent bacteria and biofilm frequently colonize central venous catheters (CVCs). CVC colonization is correlated to infections and particularly to bloodstream ones. The classical microbiological methods to determine of CVC colonization are not fully reliable and are time-consuming. BioTimer Assay (BTA) is a biological method already used to count bacteria adherent to abiotic surfaces and biofilm without sample manipulation. BTA employs specific reagents whose color changed according to bacterial metabolism. BTA is based on the principle that a metabolic reaction will be faster when more bacteria are present in the sample. Therefore, the time required for color changes of BTA reagents determines the number of bacteria present in the sample through a correlation line. Here, for the first time, we applied BTA and a specifically developed laboratory procedure to evaluate CVC colonization in comparison with the routine microbiological method (RMM). 125 CVCs removed from patients for suspected catheter-related bloodstream infection (CRBSI) or at hospital discharge were examined. BTA was reliable in assessing sterility and CVC colonization (100% agreement with RMM) and in recognizing the presence of fermenting or non-fermenting bacteria (97.1% agreement with RMM) shortening the analytical time by between 2- and 3-fold. Moreover, the reliability of BTA as early alert of CRBSI was evaluated. The sensitivity, specificity, positive, and negative predictive values for BTA as an early alert of CRBSI were 100, 40.0, 88.8 and 100%, respectively. In conclusion, BTA and the related laboratory procedure should be incorporated into routine microbiological methods since it can be considered a reliable tool to evaluate CVC colonization in a very short time and a rapid alert for CRBSIs

Chrysanthemum species used as food and medicine: Understanding quality differences on the global market

Background: Chrysanthemum flowers [Ch. x morifolium (Ramat.) Hemsl. and Ch. indicum L.] are a globally used and pharmacologically interesting botanical drug, however, with variable product quality. Objective: We aim at understanding the chemical variability of primary material available commercially based on different origins and associated quality problems like contamination with heavy metals. This needs to be assessed in the context of the current regulations for this botanical drug and associated problems. Material and Methods: 15 C. indicum L. and 50 C. x morifolium (Ramat.) Hemsl., including a range of geographical cultivars recognized in China, samples from the USA, Europe and China were analyzed using High Performance Thin Layer Chromatography (HPTLC) to compare their general chemical profile. Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-OES) was used to quantify heavy metal contamination. Results: The: HPTLC fingerprints of C. indicum samples are clearly distinguishable from C. x morifolium. Fingerprints of samples from the same cultivars collected from markets in different countries (USA and China) show different patterns. Large variance of fingerprints within each cultivar group was observed. The heavy metal analysis showed excessive amounts of some harmful heavy metal in some commercial products with excessive cadmium being the most frequent problem. Conclusions: The Chinese medicinal cultivars vary. Differences between samples sourced from the USA and China might be ascribable to geographical factors (e.g. soil composition), degradation during transport/storage or adulteration, but geographical differences should also be taken into account. Importantly, a much more detailed definition of the drug are needed for better quality control. In addition, with continuous contamination problem observed, a more widespread regulation is an essential requirement for better quality

Treatment of Secondary Raw Materials by Innovative Processes

This paper presents an overview of the various innovative methodologies used in the recovery of valuable metals and critical raw materials from secondary sources. The review also highlights the used varieties of application on large scale in real situations and hopes to provide insights into valorization of spent sources

Sustainable recovery of secondary and critical raw materials from classified mining residues using mycorrhizal-assisted phytoextraction

In this work, mycorrhizal-assisted phytoextraction (MAP, Helianthus annuus–arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus Rhizophagus intraradices–Zn-volcanic ashes) was applied for the recovery of secondary and critical raw materials (SRMs and CRMs, respectively) from Joda West (Odisha, India) mine residues, within a novel multidisciplinary management strategy. Mine residues were preliminarily characterized by using advanced analytical techniques, and subsequently mapped, classified and selected using multispectral satellite Sentinel-2A images and cluster analysis. Selected mine residues were treated by MAP at laboratory scale, and the fate of several SRMs (e.g., Zn, Cr, As, Ni, Cu, Ca, Al, K, S, Rb, Fe, Mn) and CRMs (such as Ga, Ti, P, Ba and Sr) was investigated. Bioconcentration factors in shoots (BCS) and roots (BCR) and translocation factors (TF) were: 5.34(P) > BCS > 0.00(Al); 15.0(S) > BCR > 0.038(Ba); 9.28(Rb) > TF > 0.02(Ti). Results were used to predict MAP performance at larger scale, simulating a Vegetable Depuration Module (VDM) containing mine residues (1 m3). Estimated bio-extracting potential (BP) was in the range 2417 g/m3 (K) > BP> 0.14 g/m3 (As), suggesting the eventual subsequent recovery of SRMs and CRMs by hydrometallurgical techniques, with final purification by selective electrodeposition, as a viable and cost-effective option. The results are promising for MAP application at larger scale, within a circular economy-based approach.Fil: Scotti, Adalgisa. Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica; ArgentinaFil: Stefano, Milia. Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche; ItaliaFil: Silvani, Vanesa Analia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada; ArgentinaFil: Giovanna, Cappai. Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche; ItaliaFil: Guglietta, Daniela. Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche; ItaliaFil: Francesca, Trapasso. Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche; ItaliaFil: Emanuela, Tempesta. Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche; ItaliaFil: Daniele, Passeri. Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche; ItaliaFil: Godeas, Alicia Margarita. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada; ArgentinaFil: Gomez, Martin. Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica; ArgentinaFil: Stefano, Ubaldini. Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche; Itali

The crucial questions on synovial biopsy: when, why, who, what, where, and how?

In the majority of joint diseases, changes in the organization of the synovial architecture appear early. Synovial tissue analysis might provide useful information for the diagnosis, especially in atypical and rare joint disorders, and might have a value in case of undifferentiated inflammatory arthritis, by improving disease classification. After patient selection, it is crucial to address the dialogue between the clinician and the pathologist for adequately handling the sample, allowing identifying histological patterns depending on the clinical suspicion. Moreover, synovial tissue analysis gives insight into disease progression helping patient stratification, by working as an actionable and mechanistic biomarker. Finally, it contributes to an understanding of joint disease pathogenesis holding promise for identifying new synovial biomarkers and developing new therapeutic strategies. All of the indications mentioned above are not so far from being investigated in everyday clinical practice in tertiary referral hospitals, thanks to the great feasibility and safety of old and more recent techniques such as ultrasound-guided needle biopsy and needle arthroscopy. Thus, even in rheumatology clinical practice, pathobiology might be a key component in the management and treatment decision-making process. This review aims to examine some essential and crucial points regarding why, when, where, and how to perform a synovial biopsy in clinical practice and research settings and what information you might expect after a proper patient selection

Transcriptional dynamics of induced pluripotent stem cell differentiation into β cells reveals full endodermal commitment and homology with human islets.

Abstract Background aims Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) have the capacity to generate β cells in vitro, but the differentiation is incomplete and generates a variable percentage of off-target cells. Single-cell RNA sequencing offers the possibility of characterizing the transcriptional dynamics throughout differentiation and determining the identity of the final differentiation product. Methods Single-cell transcriptomics data were obtained from four stages across differentiation of iPSCs into β cells and from human donor islets. Results Clustering analysis revealed that iPSCs undertake a full endoderm commitment, and the obtained endocrine pancreatic cells have high homology with mature islets. The iPSC-derived β cells were devoid of pluripotent residual cells, and the differentiation was pancreas-specific, as it did not generate ectodermal or mesodermal cells. Pseudotime trajectory identified a dichotomic endocrine/non-endocrine cell fate and distinct subgroups in the endocrine branch. Conclusions Future efforts to produce β cells from iPSCs must aim not only to improve the resulting endocrine cell but also to avoid differentiation into non-pancreatic endoderm cells

Quality of Life and Lung Function in Survivors of Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation for Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome

Abstract Editor's Perspective What We Already Know about This Topic What This Article Tells Us That Is New Background Survivors of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) have long-term impairment of pulmonary function and health-related quality of life, but little is known of outcomes of ARDS survivors treated with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation. The aim of this study was to compare long-term outcomes of ARDS patients treated with or without extracorporeal membrane oxygenation. Methods A prospective, observational study of adults with ARDS (January 2013 to December 2015) was conducted at a single center. One year after discharge, survivors underwent pulmonary function tests, computed tomography of the chest, and health-related quality-of-life questionnaires. Results Eighty-four patients (34 extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, 50 non–extracorporeal membrane oxygenation) were studied; both groups had similar characteristics at baseline, but comorbidity was more common in non–extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (23 of 50 vs. 4 of 34, 46% vs. 12%, P < 0.001), and severity of hypoxemia was greater in extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (median Pao2/Fio2 72 [interquartile range, 50 to 103] vs. 114 [87 to 133] mm Hg, P < 0.001) and respiratory compliance worse. At 1 yr, survival was similar (22/33 vs. 28/47, 66% vs. 59%; P = 0.52), and pulmonary function and computed tomography were almost normal in both groups. Non–extracorporeal membrane oxygenation patients had lower health-related quality-of-life scores and higher rates of posttraumatic stress disorder. Conclusions Despite more severe respiratory failure at admission, 1-yr survival of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation patients was not different from that of non–extracorporeal membrane oxygenation patients; each group had almost full recovery of lung function, but non–extracorporeal membrane oxygenation patients had greater impairment of health-related quality of life