La traduzione automatica nei CAT-Tool : tre modalità di visualizzazione a confronto – interattiva, nel segmento o come suggerimento?

Nel settore della traduzione l’importanza di tradurre contenuti in modo rapido e qualitativo è sempre più marcata. La tesi ha l’obiettivo di identificare la modalità migliore di visualizzare i risultati della traduzione automatica (TA) nei CAT-Tool per aumentare la produttività, senza porre limiti alla qualità. A tal fine è stato condotto un esperimento con sette partecipanti (traduttori professionisti e studenti) e tre modalità a confronto: TA direttamente nel segmento (post-editing convenzionale), TA all’esterno del segmento come suggerimento e TA interattiva. Ogni partecipante ha tradotto tre brevi testi, uno per ogni modalità. Il processo di traduzione è stato registrato attraverso il keystroke logging e la registrazione dello schermo. Al termine dell’esperimento i partecipanti hanno completato un questionario on-line sulle loro preferenze e opinioni riguardo alle tre modalità. Infine, tre esperti hanno va-lutato la qualità dei testi finali. I risultati indicano che il post-editing convenzionale ha richiesto lo sforzo temporale, tecnico e cognitivo minore e ha permesso di ottenere una qualità finale leggermente maggiore rispetto alle altre due modalità. La maggior parte dei partecipanti ha preferito tradurre con il post-editing convenzionale. Si può concludere che il post-editing convenzionale permette di aumentare la produttività senza compromettere la qualità dei testi di arrivo.Finding productive ways to translate while maintaining high quality levels is becoming increasingly important. This thesis aims to identify the best way to display machine translation (MT) results in the CAT-Tool to boost productivity without compromising quality: directly in the segment (conventional post-editing), as a suggestion outside of the segment or interactively. An experiment with seven participants (professional translators and students) has been conducted for this purpose. Each participant translated three short texts, one for each mode. The translation process was registered with screen recording and keystroke logging. After the experiment, the participants completed an online questionnaire with questions about their preferences and opinions regarding the three modes. The quality of the final texts was then assessed by three experts. The results show that conventional post-editing required the least temporal, technical, and cognitive effort and produced target texts with a slightly higher quality. Most participants preferred to translate with conventional post-editing. The main conclusion that is drawn is that conventional post-editing increases productivity without compromising the quality of the target texts

Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma (DLBCL) in an Aged Raccoon (Procyon lotor)

A 15-years-old, captive, female raccoon (Procyon lotor) was necropsied after a one-week history of apathy and self-isolation. Gross changes consisted of the severe enlargement of the mesenteric lymph node; hepatosplenomegaly with multifocal to coalescing, white tan nodules in the spleen and liver,; and pale kidneys. Histologically, neoplastic CD79α-positive lymphocytes effaced the mesenteric lymph node and multifocally infiltrated the spleen, liver, and kidneys, and focally infiltrated the heart. Based on pathological and immunohistochemical findings, as well as the canine-adapted World Health Organization (WHO) diagnostic criteria, a diagnosis of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) was made

Impact of DEFB1 gene regulatory polymorphisms on hBD-1 salivary concentration

Human \u3b2-defensin 1 (hBD-1) is an antimicrobial peptide involved in epithelial defence of various tissues, also present in the saliva. Individual genetic variations within the DEFB1 gene, encoding for hBD-1, could influence gene expression and protein production

Quality Assessment of PBM Protocols for Oral Complications in Head and Neck Cancer Patients: Part 1

Radiotherapy and chemotherapy are frequently employed in head and neck cancer (HNC) patients causing significant side effects that impair life quality and prognosis. Photobiomodulation (PBM) has become a growing approach to managing such oral complications. Despite its proven efficacy and absence of contraindications, there is still a lack of universally accepted disease-specific PBM protocols

DEFB1 polymorphisms and salivary hBD-1 concentration in Oral Lichen Planus patients and healthy subjects

The aetiology of Oral Lichen Planus (OLP), a chronic inflammatory disease of oral mucosa, is not yet well understood. Since innate immunity may be hypothesized as involved in the susceptibility to OLP, we studied human beta defensin 1 (hBD-1) an antimicrobial peptide constitutively expressed in the saliva, looking at functional genetic variants possibly able to diminish hBD-1 production an consequently conferring major susceptibility to OLP

Knowledge and awareness of oral cancer: A cross-sectional survey in Trieste, Italy

The aim of the study was to verify the knowledge on oral cancer and to assess possible differences in awareness and information basing on different demographic and subject-related factors. An anonymous survey was provided to 750 random subjects using online-based questionnaires. Statistical analysis was performed in order to evaluate the influence of demographic variables (gender, age, education) on knowledge of oral cancer and its risk factors. 68.4% of individuals knew about the existence of oral cancer, mostly from media and family/friends. Awareness was significantly influenced by gender and higher education, but not by age. Most participants recognized smoking as a risk factor, but alcohol abuse and sunlight exposure are less known, especially among less educated subjects. On the contrary, our study shows a diffusion of false information: more than 30% of the participants indicated the possible role of amalgam fillings in oral cancer onset, independently of gender, age or education. The results of our study suggest the need for oral cancer awareness campaigns, where school and healthcare professionals should be actively involved in promoting, organizing and finding methods to monitor the medium and long-term efficacy with proper methodological quality

Photobiomodulation at Multiple Wavelengths Differentially Modulates Oxidative Stress In Vitro and In Vivo

Photobiomodulation (PBM) is emerging as an effective strategy for the management of multiple inflammatory conditions, including oral mucositis (OM) in cancer patients who receive chemotherapy or radiotherapy. Still, the poor understanding of the mechanisms by which the light interacts with biological tissues and the heterogeneity of light sources and protocols employed worldwide significantly limits its applicability. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are massively generated during the early phases of OM and play a major role in the pathogenesis of inflammation in general. Here, we report the results of a clinical and experimental study, aimed at evaluating the effect of laser light at different wavelengths on oxidative stress in vivo in oncologic patients suffering from OM and in vitro in two cell types abundantly present within the inflamed oral mucosa, neutrophil polymorphonuclear (PMN) granulocytes, and keratinocytes. In addition to standard ROS detection methods, we exploited a roGFP2-Orp1 genetically encoded sensor, allowing specific, quantitative, and dynamic imaging of redox events in living cells in response to oxidative stress and PBM. We found that the various wavelengths differentially modulate ROS production. In particular, the 660\u2009nm laser light increases ROS production when applied either before or after an oxidative stimulus. In contrast, the 970\u2009nm laser light exerted a moderate antioxidant activity both in the saliva of OM patients and in both cell types. The most marked reduction in the levels of ROS was detected in cells exposed either to the 800\u2009nm laser light or to the combination of the three wavelengths. Overall, our study demonstrates that PBM exerts different effects on the redox state of both PMNs and keratinocytes depending on the used wavelength and prompts the validation of a multiwavelength protocol in the clinical settings

Validation of 34betaE12 immunoexpression in clear cell papillary renal cell carcinoma as a sensitive biomarker

Clear cell papillary renal cell carcinoma (CCPRCC) is a recently recognised neoplasm with a broad spectrum of morphological characteristics, thus representing a challenging differential diagnosis, especially with the low malignant potential multicystic renal cell neoplasms and clear cell renal cell carcinoma. We selected 14 cases of CCPRCC with a wide spectrum of morphological features diagnosed on morphology and CK7 immunoreactivity and analysed them using a panel of immunohistochemical markers, focusing on 34 beta E12 and related CKs 1,5,10 and 14 and several molecular analyses such as fluorescence in situ hybridisation (FISH), array comparative genomic hybridisation (aCGH), VHL methylation, VHL and TCEB1 sequencing and multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA). Twelve of 13 (92%) CCPRCC tumours were positive for 34 beta E12. One tumour without 3p alteration by FISH revealed VHL mutation and 3p deletion at aCGH; thus, it was re-classified as clear cell RCC. We concluded that: (1) immunohistochemical expression of CK7 is necessary for diagnostic purposes, but may not be sufficient to identify CCPRCC, while 34 beta E12, in part due to the presence of CK14 antigen expression, can be extremely useful for the recognition of this tumour; and (2) further molecular analysis of chromosome 3p should be considered to support of CCPRCC diagnosis, when FISH analysis does not evidence the common loss of chromosome 3p.Peer reviewe

Toxic properties of microsome-associated alpha-synuclein species in mouse primary neurons

α-synuclein (αS) is a small protein that self-aggregates into α-helical oligomer species and subsequently into larger insoluble amyloid fibrils that accumulate in intraneuronal inclusions during the development of Parkinson's disease. Toxicity of αS oligomers and fibrils has been long debated and more recent data are suggesting that both species can induce neurodegeneration. However while most of these data are based on differences in structure between oligomer and aggregates, often preassembled in vitro, the in vivo situation might be more complex and subcellular locations where αS species accumulate, rather than their conformation, might contribute to enhanced toxicity. In line with this observation, we have shown that αS oligomers and aggregates are associated with the endoplasmic reticulum/microsomes (ER/M) membrane in vivo and how accumulation of soluble αS oligomers at the ER/M level precedes neuronal degeneration in a mouse model of α-synucleinopathies. In this paper we took a further step, investigating the biochemical and functional features of αS species associated with the ER/M membrane. We found that by comparison with non-microsomal associated αS (P10), the ER/M-associated αS pool is a unique population of oligomers and aggregates with specific biochemical traits such as increased aggregation, N- and C-terminal truncations and phosphorylation at serine 129. Moreover, when administered to murine primary neurons, ER/M-associated αS species isolated from diseased A53T human αS transgenic mice induced neuronal changes in a time- and dose-dependent manner. In fact the addition of small amounts of ER/M-associated αS species from diseased mice to primary cultures induced the formation of beads-like structures or strings of fibrous αS aggregates along the neurites, occasionally covering the entire process or localizing at the soma level. By comparison treatment with P10 fractions from the same diseased mice resulted in the formation of scarce and small puncta only when administered at high amount. Moreover, increasing the amount of P100/M fractions obtained from diseased and, more surprisingly, from presymptomatic mice induced a significant level of neuronal death that was prevented when neurons were treated with ER/M fractions immunodepleted of αS high molecular weight (HMW) species. These data provide the first evidence of the existence of two different populations of αS HMW species in vivo, putting the spotlight on the association to ER/M membrane as a necessary step for the acquisition of αS toxic features

Randomized Clinical Trial on Ivermectin versus Thiabendazole for the Treatment of Strongyloidiasis

Strongyloidiasis is the infection caused by the worm Strongyloides stercoralis. Due to its peculiar life cycle Strongyloides may remain indefinitely in the host, if not effectively cured. Although the disease is usually mild, in case of weakening of the host's immune defenses the worm may invade virtually all organs and tissues (disseminated strongyloidiasis, almost invariably fatal). The treatment must then reach the goal of the complete elimination of the parasite. Small size clinical trials showed similar, high efficacy of the two drugs ivermectin (used as a single dose) and thiabendazole (used twice daily for two consecutive days). All trials used as the criterion for cure the absence of larvae in stool exams. The latter however may easily miss the infection, falsely suggesting that the infection has been cured. This trial, using a test detecting specific Strongyloides antibodies as an additional and more sensitive diagnostic tool, confirms previous reports: the two drugs have similar efficacy but ivermectin is better tolerated and is therefore the first choice. However the cure rate was lower than 70% for the standard, single dose. The authors then conclude that a larger, multi center trial is needed to find the optimal dose schedule of ivermectin