Il dialogo di civiltà alla luce dell’esperienza kazakistana

La Repubblica del Kazakhstan, che ha acquisito l’indipendenza nel 1991 in seguito alla dissoluzione dell’URSS, è uno dei Paesi più variegati del mondo sotto il profilo della composizione nazionale e religiosa: sul suo vasto territorio si contano infatti oltre 130 gruppi etnici e 40 confessioni all’interno di una popolazione di circa 16 milioni di abitanti. Una realtà che si potrebbe definire tanto complessa quanto poco conosciuta, specialmente in Italia. Il testo si concentra sulla strategia perseguita dal governo kazako (la c.d. unità nella diversità, o in alcuni documenti l’unità attraverso la diversità), che a partire dall’indipendenza si è trovato a governare in piena autonomia su una realtà estremamente eterogenea. La scelta delle autorità è stata quella di puntare sulla costruzione di una identità “kazakistana”, ossia civile, laica e sovranazionale, che ambisce a garantire una convivenza pacifica proponendosi come modello di dialogo fra civiltà. La distinzione tra identità “kazaka” (cioè etnicamente e linguisticamente connotata) e identità “kazakistana” (chiamata ad accogliere popoli diversi sotto una cittadinanza esplicitamente multiculturale) costituisce il cuore di questa strategia

Comic Book (Extended Intellectual Output 2 of Blurred Lives Project: a Cross-National Co-Participatory Exploration of Cyberbullying, Young People and Socio-Economic Disadvantage)

Pupils aged 14-16 years from all over Europe have developed a comic book on the impact of cyberbullying and how to act against it. The comics are developed by the pupils and redrawn by a professional illustrator. Each story is aimed at raising awareness among young people of your age regarding the problem of cyberbullying and offers tools to combat it. In addition, the comic books include reflective questions and assignments to help you to better understand cyberbullying and think of effective solutions

Coping with cybervictimization: The role of direct confrontation and resilience on adolescent wellbeing

Background. Recent studies have consistently identified the negative consequences of cyberbullying on adolescent mental health. Nevertheless, not all cybervictims are alike, and in the last few years some evidence has appeared indicating that faced with cyberbullying, victims may manifest different emotional outcomes. In this study, we explored whether cybervictim resilience fully or partially mediates the effects of cybervictimization and whether a confrontational coping strategy impacts emotional symptoms. Methods. The study was carried out with a sample of 474 high school students equally distributed between males and females. Data were collected using a questionnaire comprising four measures assessing cybervictimization, direct confrontation coping strategy, resilience and emotional symptoms. Results. Structural equation modelling indicated that the effects of cybervictimization and confrontational coping strategy on emotional symptoms were mediated by resilience, with cybervictimization showing a positive effect while direct confrontation a negative effect. Cybervictimization also showed a positive direct effect on emotional symptoms. Conclusions. These results are presented in light of their implications for designing effective interventions able to protect and promote adolescents\u2019 psychological wellbeing

Melanocortins and the cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway.

Experimental evidence indicates that small concentrations of inflammatory molecules produced by damaged tissues activate afferent signals through ascending vagus nerve fibers, that act as the sensory arm of an "inflammatory reflex". The subsequent activation of vagal efferent fibers, which represent the motor arm of the inflammatory reflex, rapidly leads to acetylcholine release in organs of the reticuloendothelial system. Acetylcholine interacts with α7 subunit-containing nicotinic receptors in tissue macrophages and other immune cells and rapidly inhibits the synthesis/release of tumor necrosis factor-α and other inflammatory cytokines. This neural anti-inflammatory response called "cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway" is fast and integrated through the central nervous system. Preclinical studies are in progress, with the aim to develop therapeutic agents able to activate the cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway. Melanocortin peptides bearing the adrenocorticotropin/α-melanocyte-stimulating hormone sequences exert a protective and life-saving effect in animals and humans in conditions of circulatory shock. These neuropeptides are likewise protective in other severe hypoxic conditions, such as prolonged respiratory arrest, myocardial ischemia, renal ischemia and ischemic stroke, as well as in experimental heart transplantation. Moreover, experimental evidence indicates that melanocortins reverse circulatory shock, prevent myocardial ischemia/reperfusion damage and exert neuroprotection against ischemic stroke through activation of the cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway. This action occurs via stimulation of brain melanocortin MC3/MC4 receptors. Investigations that determine the molecular mechanisms of the cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway activation could help design of superselective activators of this pathway

Recycling of bottom ash from biomass combustion in porcelain stoneware tiles: Effects on technological properties, phase evolution and microstructure

This work aims to evaluate the use of bottom biomass ash as an alternative raw material in porcelain stoneware bodies. For this purpose, ash coming from a biomass thermoelectric power plant in Emilia-Romagna (Italy) was selected and its chemical, mineralogical and thermal properties determined. Data indicated its technological role as a flux, so it was introduced in a porcelain stoneware batch in partial replacement of feldspars and experimented at laboratory scale. A bottleneck, relative to the rheological behavior of the slips, was overcome by a slight deflocculant increase. The powder compacts were fired from 1000° to 1220 °C in order to follow the evolution of the technological properties, phase composition (XRPD-Rietveld) and microstructure (SEM). The introduction of ash allowed to lower the firing temperature by 20 °C, while keeping the technological properties comparable with those of the benchmark. Moreover, the mineralogical and microstructural data revealed different sintering kinetics

Pharmacologic or Genetic Targeting of Glutamine Synthetase Skews Macrophages toward an M1-like Phenotype and Inhibits Tumor Metastasis.

Glutamine-synthetase (GS), the glutamine-synthesizing enzyme from glutamate, controls important events, including the release of inflammatory mediators, mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) activation, and autophagy. However, its role in macrophages remains elusive. We report that pharmacologic inhibition of GS skews M2-polarized macrophages toward the M1-like phenotype, characterized by reduced intracellular glutamine and increased succinate with enhanced glucose flux through glycolysis, which could be partly related to HIF1α activation. As a result of these metabolic changes and HIF1α accumulation, GS-inhibited macrophages display an increased capacity to induce T cell recruitment, reduced T cell suppressive potential, and an impaired ability to foster endothelial cell branching or cancer cell motility. Genetic deletion of macrophagic GS in tumor-bearing mice promotes tumor vessel pruning, vascular normalization, accumulation of cytotoxic T cells, and metastasis inhibition. These data identify GS activity as mediator of the proangiogenic, immunosuppressive, and pro-metastatic function of M2-like macrophages and highlight the possibility of targeting this enzyme in the treatment of cancer metastasis

Tailoring CD19xCD3-DART exposure enhances T-cells to eradication of B-cell neoplasms.

Many patients with B-cell malignancies can be successfully treated, although tumor eradication is rarely achieved. T-cell-directed killing of tumor cells using engineered T-cells or bispecific antibodies is a promising approach for the treatment of hematologic malignancies. We investigated the efficacy of CD19xCD3 DART bispecific antibody in a broad panel of human primary B-cell malignancies. The CD19xCD3 DART identified 2 distinct subsets of patients, in which the neoplastic lymphocytes were eliminated with rapid or slow kinetics. Delayed responses were always overcome by a prolonged or repeated DART exposure. Both CD4 and CD8 effector cytotoxic cells were generated, and DART-mediated killing of CD4+ cells into cytotoxic effectors required the presence of CD8+ cells. Serial exposures to DART led to the exponential expansion of CD4 + and CD8 + cells and to the sequential ablation of neoplastic cells in absence of a PD-L1-mediated exhaustion. Lastly, patient-derived neoplastic B-cells (B-Acute Lymphoblast Leukemia and Diffuse Large B Cell Lymphoma) could be proficiently eradicated in a xenograft mouse model by DART-armed cytokine induced killer (CIK) cells. Collectively, patient tailored DART exposures can result in the effective elimination of CD19 positive leukemia and B-cell lymphoma and the association of bispecific antibodies with unmatched CIK cells represents an effective modality for the treatment of CD19 positive leukemia/lymphoma

Influence of zeolites on the sintering and technological properties of porcelain stoneware tiles

Low-cost zeolitic rocks are promising substitutes for feldspathic fluxes in ceramic bodies, since their fusibility, modest hardness and high cation exchange capacity (CEC) should improve grinding and sintering. Five large-scale Italian deposits of natural zeolites with different mineralogy were characterised and tested in porcelain stoneware bodies. Their behaviour during processing was appraised and compared with that of zeolite-free bodies. Zeolites increased the slip viscosity during wet grinding, causing a coarser grain size distribution and consequently some drawbacks in both unfired and fired tiles. After overcoming this hindrance by dry grinding of zeolite rocks, the technological behaviour of zeolite-bearing tiles appear to be similar to that of current porcelain stoneware, though with larger firing shrinkage and residual closed porosity