The project ANSER (Adriatic Transborder Interreg IIIA) for the evaluation of wetland ecological role for waterbird resting and wintering in Northern Adriatic

La Regione Friuli Venezia Giulia ha avviato nel 2005, in qualità di Lead Partner, il progetto ANSER, che mira a valutare il ruolo ecologico delle zone umide per la sosta e lo svernamento degli uccelli acquatici nell’Adriatico settentrionale ed a definire linee guida per la conservazione del patrimonio naturale marino costiero. Il progetto viene realizzato in partenariato con le Università degli Studi di Udine e Trieste, la Regione Emilia- Romagna, l’ Ente pubblico per la gestione delle aree protette nella contea di Spalato e Dalmazia (Croazia) ed il Museo di Scienze Naturali di Tirana (Albania). L’esigenza di mettere in atto tale progetto deriva dalla considerazione dell’eccezionale importanza dell’area adriatica per la nidificazione, la sosta e lo svernamento di molte specie di uccelli, della contestuale fragilità delle zone umide costiere, tradottasi spesso in degrado degli habitat, e della odierna necessità di conciliare le esigenze di conservazione con il diritto, per gli abitanti delle aree interessate dalla presenza di zone umide, al raggiungimento di livelli economici e occupazionali analoghi a quelli di altri territori. Il progetto trova quindi ulteriore motivazione nella necessità per le amministrazioni competenti di dare piena attuazione agli strumenti legislativi di riferimento per la protezione della natura nei paesi dell’Unione Europea come la “Direttiva Uccelli” (79/409/CEE) e la “Direttiva Habitat” (92/43/CEE) che hanno permesso di individuare le aree particolarmente meritevoli di conservazione in previsione di un loro piano di gestione e sviluppo. Da questo punto di vista l’acquisizione di dati attraverso studi, ricerche, attività di monitoraggio costituisce la premessa indispensabile per orientare le scelte gestionali, affinché qualsiasi intervento di conservazione non si riveli inefficace o addirittura dannoso. In questa direzione, il progetto si pone tra gli obiettivi di individuare i fattori di sovrapposizione ecologica delle diverse componenti ambientali ed antropiche e di raggiungere un forte coordinamento ed una forte sinergia tra Amministrazioni pubbliche, Istituti di ricerca e Università, ai fini di una corretta gestione di un sistema così complesso quali sono le zone umide. A tale scopo si prevede la messa a punto di metodologie di monitoraggio che, ricorrendo a indicatori di interesse gestionale, possano fornire dati certi e immediatamente utilizzabili relativamente alla situazione in atto e alle tendenze evolutive degli ecosistemi considerati, così da consentire l’adozione di provvedimenti correttivi adeguati. Il progetto inoltre individuerà nuove metodologie strumentali di ricerca e contribuirà concretamente alla formazione di nuove professionalità tecniche nel settore del biomonitoraggio, che portino ad una maggiore integrazione tecnico-scientifica delle istituzioni partner e delle altre realtà, istituzionali e non, territorialmente coinvolte. acquatici nell’Adriatico settentrionaleSince 2005, the Region Friuli Venezia Giulia is the lead partner of the project ANSER, aimed at evaluating the ecological role of wetlands for waterbird resting and wintering in Northern Adriatic. One of the final aims of the project is to define a series of guidelines for the conservation of coastal wetlands and waterbirds. The project is carried out in collaboration with the universities of Udine and Trieste, the Region Emilia-Romagna, the Institution for protected area management of Spalato and Dalmatia (Croatia) and the Natural History Museum of Tirana (Albania). With regard to the Region Friuli Venezia Giulia, the project will be carried out until december 2008 and will involve all regional coastal wetlands. The reason for carrying out such a project is related to the great importance of the Adriatic area for the breeding, resting and wintering of a high number of birds, to the fragility of coastal wetlands, that are often characterized by habitat degradation, and to the need of integrating the conservation requirements to the social and economic development of such areas. The project is also related to the need of implementing the European environmental legislation, and in particular the Birds (79/409/EEC) and Habitats (92/43/EEC) directives, that have allowed to identify the areas where conservation, management and development plans should be applied. Data collection through research and monitoring activities is of the utmost importance for the definition of efficient and exhaustive management strategies. Indeed, the project aims at determining the factors of ecological overlap between environmental and human components, and at reaching a strong coordination among public administrations, research institutions and universities, in order to achieve a proper management of wetlands. For this reason, the monitoring methods are related to the development of indicators of management interest, that are accurate and can be immediately used for describing the evolutionary tendencies of the ecosystems, and adopt the required adjustments. The project will also define new research methods and form experts in biomonitoring, leading to a stronger technical-scientific integration of the partner institutions and of the other stakeholders

Design artefacts as exploratory tools of Urban Biodiversity debates: eight case studies on Milan

The poster demonstrates methods to map and communicate debates about urban biodiversity in Milan. Advocating for urban biodiversity through dedicated policies has become a necessity in our increasingly urbanized environment. However, this process is not without its challenges: What happens when these policies impact a relatively small area and group of people? What reactions do they provoke? How can we gauge the extent of the debate? The research was guided by the theoretical framework of Digital Methods and Issue Mapping. We used various web platforms as a lens to delve into the dynamics of a portion of the debate. This included analyzing the most viewed YouTube videos, images used by online media outlets, comments on Facebook, and transcripts of municipal meetings. The research focused on eight hyper-local debates in the city of Milan: the construction of the Olympic village; the redevelopment of La Goccia, a former industrial area north of Milan; the future of Piazza d'Armi in Baggio; the maintenance of Milan parks; the Forestami reforestation project; the regeneration of via Pacini; the wisteria of Piazza Baiamonti; and the wood of via Falck. Information design and data visualization approaches were employed to develop informative artifacts that were later displayed in a public exhibition. The research allowed for an analysis of how various debates are structured around the theme of urban biodiversity: the most used terms, citizens' fears and expectations, the linguistic variety of different political positions on the issue, and the identification of the role of urban biodiversity in collective perception

Geographic Information System for the definition of the ecological role of coastal wetlands of Friuli-Venezia Giulia for waterbirds

In June 2006 a new coordinated waterbird monitoring programme was developed within the framework of an Interreg project. Census data, gathered on the basis of a kilometric grid, were stored in a database and processed by a GIS, created for integration with all environmental databases. Preliminary maps, describing spatial variation of bird richness and abundance, are presented

Experts’ consensus on the definition and management of high risk multiple myeloma

High risk multiple myeloma (HRMM) at diagnosis is currently recognized according to the Revised International Staging System (R-ISS) which was set up in 2015. Since then, new clinical and biological prognostic factors have been developed, which could implement the definition of High Risk (HR) category. We conducted a survey in order to identify which additional parameters, both clinical and biological, are considered more useful for the clinical practice and to evaluate if the management of Multiple Myeloma (MM) should change on the basis of the risk category. A questionnaire, consisting of 8 statements, was submitted to 6 Italian experts, from the European Myeloma Network (EMN) Research Italy, using the Delphi method. The colleagues were asked to answer each question using a scale between 0 and 100. If a statement did not reach at least 75 out of 100 points from all the participants, it was rephrased on the basis of the proposal of the experts and resubmitted in a second or further round, until a consensus was reached among all. From the first round of the survey a strong consensus was reached regarding the opportunity to revise the R-ISS including chromosome 1 abnormality, TP53 mutation or deletion, circulating plasma cells by next generation flow and extramedullary plasmacytomas. No consensus was reached for the definition of “double hit” MM and for the application in clinical practice of treatment strategies based on the risk category. In the second round of the Delphi questionnaire, “double-hit” MM was recognized by the association of at least two high-risk cytogenetic or molecular abnormalities. Moreover, the experts agreed to reserve an intensified treatment only to specific conditions, such as plasma cell leukaemia or patients with multiple extramedullary plasmacytomas, while they admitted that there are not sufficient real word data in order to modify treatment on the basis of MRD assessment in clinical practice. This survey suggests that the definition of HRMM should be implemented by additional clinical and biological risk factors, that will be useful to guide treatment in the future

The wetland geodatabase for International Waterbird Census - IWC in Friuli-Venezia Giulia, NE Italy

The first version of the wetland geodatabase for International Waterbird Census in Friuli- Venezia Giulia was completed in 2005, as a part of a wider national database. The database was created on the basis of the official list of wetlands published by National Institute for Wild Fauna: 136 wetland perimeters have been digitized through interpretation of topographic maps and aerial photographs. Information has been completed through field surveys. Alphanumeric attributes have been associated to geometries, concerning basic information about wetlands. Database has been published on the web in the Regional Environmental and Territorial Data Catalogue. The database is expected to be an important tool for waterbird censuses and, in the near future, for further research and management applications

Clinical characteristics and outcome of 125 polymicrobial bloodstream infections in hematological patients: an 11-year epidemiologic survey

Background Polymicrobial bloodstream infections (pBSI) occurring in hematological patients are still poorly understood, and specifc information are very limited. Objectives and methods In this epidemiologic survey, we describe clinical characteristics and outcome of 125 consecutive pBSI occurred in oncohematological patients. Polymicrobial bloodstream infections (pBSI) were defned with the isolation of 2 or more bacteria from blood culture specimens obtained within 72 h. Results Over an 11-year period, we documented 500 bacterial bloodstream infections (BSI) in 4542 hospital admissions and 25% (125) of these were pBSI. Most common underlying hematological disease was acute myeloid leukemia and 89% of patients had severe neutropenia. Fifty pBSI (40%) occurred in patients undergoing a stem cell transplantation (SCT), mostly within 30 days from transplant (42/50–84%). Principal bacterial association was Gram-positive plus Gram-negative (57%). Resolution rate of pBSI was 82%, without diferences between SCT and non-SCT cases. pBSI-related mortality was 15% (6% in SCT cases). Septic shock occurred in 16% of cases and septic shock–related mortality was 65% (75% in SCT cases and 63% in non-SCT cases; p=0.6). Multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacteria were involved in 22% of pBSI and the MDRpBSI–related mortality was signifcantly higher in SCT patients (p=0.007). Conclusions This observational study highlights that pBSI is not a rare bloodstream infectious complication in oncohematological patients. pBSI-related mortality is lower than 20%, but, if septic shock occurs, mortality reaches 65%. MDR bacteria were involved in 22% of cases and pBSI-MDR–related mortality was signifcantly higher in SCT patients

The Role of Allogeneic Transplantation in Chronic Myeloid Leukemia in 2023: A Case-Based Concise Review

Tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) have revolutionized the treatment of chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), granting patients a life expectancy close to that of the normal population and, in a subset of patients, the possibility to discontinue therapy. Nonetheless, for a not negligible minority of patients, TKIs are not able to control CML. Allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) has long been a pivotal therapy for CML. At present, allogeneic HCT is considered an option in CML patients diagnosed or progressing to blast phase (BP), for those in chronic phase (CP) resistant to multiple lines of TKI therapy or for those experiencing severe toxicity, mostly hematologic, under TKIs. Moving from real-world cases, we reviewed the results of allogeneic HCT in the setting of advanced-phase CML or failure of TKIs, with a focus on the progresses in transplant technology that has extended transplant options in elderly CML patients and in those lacking a sibling donor, and on the post-HCT strategies for prevention and treatment of disease relapse