Dialogues:Anthropology and theology

The past five years have witnessed an increased interest in a dialogue between anthropology and theology, evidenced in part by a suite of edited volumes (e.g. Lauterbach & Vähäkangas 2020; Lemons 2018; Tomlinson & Mathews 2018). Analyses informed by this interdisciplinary nexus have demonstrated the utility of theological concepts for anthropological inquiry (e.g. Robbins 2020; Tomlinson 2020; Williams Green 2021). The following series of dialogues between anthropologists and theologians builds on this growing body of work, expanding it at two main points. First, while the above conversations are all focused on Christian theology, mainly as a means of engaging Christian practice, our dialogues move beyond this religion. The following conversations engage the intersection of anthropology and Islamic, Buddhist, Hindu, as well as Christian, theology.1 Second, many of these dialogues foreground particular experiences of scholars in both anthropology and theology who identify in some way with the religious traditions they study. Some of these dialogues took place between scholars who had an established relationship; others involved partners who had not previously met, but who agreed to correspond in view of a shared interest in this interdisciplinary dialogue. As a starting point, participants were given a series of questions to orient their exchanges, such as, ‘How does faith relate to knowledge in both disciplines?’ Conversations mostly took place over email and were later edited with the help of one of the journal editors, Adam Reed, and one of the members of our Editorial Board, Naomi Haynes.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Acqua e salute in Italia. Revisione sistematica degli studi italiani sulle malattie infettive idrotrasmesse nel decennio 2000-2009

Scopo della ricerca - Effettuare una revisione degli studi riguardanti le infezioni veicolate all’acqua (potabile, superficiali, ricreative, ecc), verificatesi in Italia tra il 2000 ed il 2010 e pubblicati su riviste scientifiche italiane e straniere, al fine di quantificarne l’impatto, la distribuzione territoriale, gli agenti responsabili e la tipologia di acqua coinvolta. Metodo – Attraverso parole chiave, sono stati consultati: la banca dati PubMed, riviste ed atti di congressi italiani non recensiti da PubMed, letteratura grigia. La revisione ha incluso tutti i lavori nei quali è stata documentata l’associazione tra gli eventi infettivi e l’esposizione ad un’acqua contaminata o a frutti di mare. Risultati – La revisione ha portato alla selezione di 24 lavori (18 dei quali su rivista internazionale), che hanno descritto 30 epidemie. In 2 epidemie (722 casi) l’agente eziologico non è stato isolato. Nelle restanti 28 epidemie, 9 (32%) sono state causate da virus enterici (Norovirus, Astrovirus, Rotavirus, etc); 7 (25%) da Legionella pneumophila; 4 (14%) da Ostereopsis ovata; 3 (11%) da virus dell’Epatite A; le restanti 4 (14%) da F. tularensis, C. perfringens, S. aureus e S. enteritidis. Le 12 epidemie di origine virale hanno determinato il maggior numero di casi pari a 3849 da enterovirus e 1351 da epatite A. Sei epidemie da enterovirus (3543 casi) sono state causate dal consumo di acqua di rete contaminata, mentre altre 6 (306 casi da enterovirus e 1351 casi da virus dell’epatite A) dal consumo di frutti di mare. Le regioni più interessate sono state Puglia, Campania, Lombardia, Veneto e Friuli VG. Le epidemie di legionellosi hanno riguardato un totale di 29 casi occorsi in ospedale ed in comunità per la contaminazione dell’acqua delle torri di raffreddamento di impianti di climatizzazione o di reti idriche di impianti sportivi. Gli agenti responsabili sono stati vari sierogruppi di L. pneumophila, soprattutto 1 e 5. Le 4 epidemie da Ostereopsis ovata, da contaminazione algale delle acque di balneazione, hanno causato 278 episodi di dermatiti e/o lesioni cutanee di maggiore gravità. Le regioni interessate sono state Puglia e Liguria. Le restanti 4 epidemie batteriche hanno determinato 307 casi complessivi e sono state causate dal consumo di frutti di mare e o di acqua contaminata. Conclusioni – Le epidemie delle reti idriche sono principalmente determinate da contaminazioni causate da virus enterici. Tali agenti si rendono responsabili anche del numero più rilevante di casi. Sarà pertanto opportuno verificare l’efficacia dei trattamenti di potabilizzazione oggi in uso. Altrettanto importante risulta essere la sorveglianza della qualità delle acque costiere e di balneazione, nonché delle reti idriche degli impianti ospedalieri, sportivi e degli esercizi commerciali

PITUITARY CHANGES OF DESACETYL-a-MELANOCYTE-STIMULATING HORMONE THROUGHOUT DEVELOPMENT.

Adrenocorticotropin (ACTH), alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone (alpha-MSH) and desacetyl-alpha-MSH (des-alpha-MSH) concentrations were evaluated in 4 embryos and 18 fetal pituitaries collected after spontaneous (n = 9) and prostaglandin-induced abortion (n = 9) at 13-25 weeks of gestation. The peptides were measured by radioimmunoassays after a high-performance liquid chromatographic separation of the homogenates. In both embryonic and fetal pituitaries, des-alpha-MSH concentrations were 2-4 times higher than those of alpha-MSH and 1- to 50-fold increased in comparison to those of ACTH. Either melanotropin showed the highest pituitary content in the first part of the second trimester, while the ACTH content remained constant. In the oldest fetuses (over 20th week), the pituitaries collected after prostaglandin-induced abortion showed markedly increased values of both des-alpha-MSH and alpha-MSH in comparison to samples collected after spontaneous abortion. In conclusion, des-alpha-MSH, the typical melanotropic hormone of fetal pituitary, undergoes important changes during development. Des-alpha-MSH seems to be the end product of proopiomelanocortin cleavage and its pituitary content increases in concomitance with the fetal adrenal sprout. Moreover, these data indicate that the intermediate pituitary lobe could be activated by the stress of labor after the 20th week of pregnanc

Pituitary changes of desacetyl-alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone throughout development.

Adrenocorticotropin (ACTH), alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone (alpha-MSH) and desacetyl-alpha-MSH (des-alpha-MSH) concentrations were evaluated in 4 embryos and 18 fetal pituitaries collected after spontaneous (n = 9) and prostaglandin-induced abortion (n = 9) at 13-25 weeks of gestation. The peptides were measured by radioimmunoassays after a high-performance liquid chromatographic separation of the homogenates. In both embryonic and fetal pituitaries, des-alpha-MSH concentrations were 2-4 times higher than those of alpha-MSH and 1- to 50-fold increased in comparison to those of ACTH. Either melanotropin showed the highest pituitary content in the first part of the second trimester, while the ACTH content remained constant. In the oldest fetuses (over 20th week), the pituitaries collected after prostaglandin-induced abortion showed markedly increased values of both des-alpha-MSH and alpha-MSH in comparison to samples collected after spontaneous abortion. In conclusion, des-alpha-MSH, the typical melanotropic hormone of fetal pituitary, undergoes important changes during development. Des-alpha-MSH seems to be the end product of proopiomelanocortin cleavage and its pituitary content increases in concomitance with the fetal adrenal sprout. Moreover, these data indicate that the intermediate pituitary lobe could be activated by the stress of labor after the 20th week of pregnancy

Indagini geofisiche per la caratterizzazione preliminare dei terreni interessati da progetti di gallerie ferroviarie. Un caso pratico

SGE, Padov