Disentangling the Diversity of Forest Care Initiatives: A Novel Research Framework Applied to the Italian Context

In the effort of advancing the knowledge and disentangling the diversity of emerging forest-based initiatives for wellbeing, we propose (i) an umbrella definition – i.e. Forest Care Initiatives (FCIs), (ii) a custom-made repository to collect and systematize information on FCIs in Italy, (iii) and discuss a categorization scheme to cluster initiatives into three main categories according to target users, substitutability of the forest ecosystem and the specificity of the health contributions they aim to. We analysed 232 initiatives, showing a lively panorama of Italian FCIs mainly provided by privates and civil society. FCIs development appear to be occasions for, but not only, rural and marginal areas to deliver inclusive wellbeing services to a wide target of users and business opportunities. However, due to the novelty of this area of investigation, further research is needed to account for benefits, opportunities, and increase the knowledge on enabling forest environments

Il fenomeno della violenza “sommersa”: una ricerca svolta nel Pronto Soccorso di Parma

La ricerca che presentiamo di seguito è nata dall’esigenza da parte di alcuni enti presenti nel territorio di Parma, in particolare il Pronto Soccorso e il Centro Antiviolenza della città, di rilevare la diffusione del fenomeno della violenza perpetrata nei confronti delle donne. Particolare attenzione è stata attribuita a quella parte di abusi che rimane spesso “sommersa”, quindi difficilmente identificabile ed invisibile ai servizi stessi. Da alcuni anni nella regione Emilia-Romagna si stanno realizzando ricerche ed interventi sempre più mirati alla sensibilizzazione sul fenomeno della violenza. Questo ha spesso visto una proficua collaborazione tra associazioni, ospedali ed enti di ricerca. Pensiamo, quindi, che questo lavoro si presenti come un’occasione per iniziare anche nel territorio di Parma quello che ci auspichiamo possa tradursi in un percorso più ampio di ricerca e intervento finalizzato ad arginare il perpetrarsi del sommerso e a progettare interventi più consoni per la presa in carico. È ormai noto come la violenza nelle sue diverse forme (fisica, economica, psicologica) rimanga sempre più confinata all’interno delle quattro mura domestiche; ne consegue la difficoltà di conoscere e quantificare il fenomeno. Tuttavia, riteniamo che tentare di scattare una fotografia il più possibile somigliante alla diffusione della violenza sia essenziale per lo sviluppo, a livello istituzionale, delle politiche e dei servizi necessari per affrontarli. In questo senso, il Pronto Soccorso, luogo di prima accoglienza rispetto alle problematiche sanitarie che spesso sono legate in differenti modi alla violenza e non esclusivamente all’emergenza della violenza sessuale, si configura come un contesto idoneo al monitoraggio di questa problematica. Inoltre lo screening nei contesti medici delle donne che subiscono violenza, oltre a fornire dati su un fenomeno che resta, in gran parte, oscuro può mostrare l’empatia, facilitare la donna nell’accesso alle risorse, sottolineare che non è sola e mitigare i danni psicologici. Alcune esperienze anche in Italia sono state avviate: strutture sanitarie, gruppi di operatrici e operatori si sono dati organizzazione e collocazione diversificata nelle varie realtà, declinate in Centri Soccorso Violenza Sessuale, Centri d’Ascolto, Centri per individuare l’abuso sessuale e i maltrattamenti sui minori, Spazi Consultoriali e Spazi Giovani. Anche nel territorio di Parma appare oggi sempre più evidente la necessità di rendere omogeneo lo sviluppo di servizi idonei all’assistenza alle vittime di violenza sessuale e domestica presso i Pronto Soccorso ospedalieri, intesi come ambiti privilegiati per l’apertura di sportelli dedicati e promuovere la formazione capillare del personale sanitario

A preliminary review of forest care initiatives for health in italy: identifying models and success factors

INTRODUCTION: Forest Care Initiatives (FCIs) \u2013 meant as organized initiatives supporting active and passive interaction with forest ecosystems aimed at increasing levels of human wellbeing and quality of life- are becoming increasingly popular in many countries. On the one side FCIs can be a cost-effective solution to the increasing societal demand for health and well-being services; on the other they can be an opportunity for valuing forest resources and supporting development and social innovation in marginal areas. While the positive effects of contact with trees and forest ecosystems on health are increasingly studied and confirmed by scientific literature, there is a general lack of knowledge about the FCIs management models and their economic and institutional framework. In order to contribute filling this gap, this paper considers the Italian context, where FCIs have been recently introduced and are rapidly growing. The paper aims to present a review of the FCIs for health (FCIH), identifying different management models and the success factors of selected case studies, to support the development of future initiatives and inform policies. METHODS: Through an extended literature review encompassing scientific and grey contributions, formal and informal contacts with experts and practitioners, an updated state-of-the-art of the FCIH in Italy is developed, and representative case studies are selected. Quantitative and qualitative data are collected through interviews and participant observation. The contextual biophysical and institutional conditions and their interplay are presented through a conceptual framework, which helps identifying models and critical success factors (e.g. type and number of partnerships, type and number of services, type of forest ownership and management, target beneficiaries, business model, etc.). RESULTS: FCIH in Italy are quite recent -the first registered project was started in 2013- and still poorly coordinated. At present, the only example of network at national level is \u201cMontagna Terapia\u201d that keeps in connection dozens of different initiatives where forests are used as set for rehabilitation and social inclusion initiatives. Within analysed FCIH the role of forest resources ranges from a simple frame for the activities, to an \u201cactive\u201d instrumental function as a medium, and management activities vary accordingly. The target beneficiaries range from the general population, to people with very special needs and this heterogeneity reflects also on the organizational and business models. Common success factors among FCIH include the level of engagement of public sector agencies and key actors, and the value proposition. CONCLUSIONS: Understanding success factors, business models and the institutional context of FCIs is critical for the replicability and successful implementation of novel solutions. This paper represents a preliminary analysis of selected FCIH in Italy and a testing of the assessment conceptual framework. Although these first results are promising, further research and tests are needed to fine-tune the framework and facilitate the assessment and eventual transfer, up-scaling and innovation of successful models. While supporting the development of FCIs and benefiting the management of forest resource, research in this field might contribute to enhance stakeholders\u2019 awareness about FCIs and get informed about new opportunities for job creation and income diversification

Mechanisms of HIV-1 Nucleocapsid Protein Inhibition by Lysyl-Peptidyl-Anthraquinone Conjugates

The Nucleocapsid protein NCp7 (NC) is a nucleic acid chaperone responsible for essential steps of the HIV-1 life cycle and an attractive candidate for drug development. NC destabilizes nucleic acid structures and promotes the formation of annealed substrates for HIV-1 reverse transcription elongation. Short helical nucleic acid segments bordered by bulges and loops, such as the Trans-Activation Response element (TAR) of HIV-1 and its complementary sequence (cTAR), are nucleation elements for helix destabilization by NC and also preferred recognition sites for threading intercalators. Inspired by these observations, we have recently demonstrated that 2,6-disubstituted peptidylanthraquinone-conjugates inhibit the chaperone activities of recombinant NC in vitro, and that inhibition correlates with the stabilization of TAR and cTAR stem-loop structures. We describe here enhanced NC inhibitory activity by novel conjugates that exhibit longer peptidyl chains ending with a conserved Nterminal lysine. Their efficient inhibition of TAR/cTAR annealing mediated by NC originates from the combination of at least three different mechanisms, namely, their stabilizing effects on nucleic acids dynamics by threading intercalation, their ability to target TAR RNA substrate leading to a direct competition with the protein for the same binding sites on TAR, and, finally, their effective binding to the NC protein. Our results suggest that these molecules may represent the stepping-stone for the future development of NC-inhibitors capable of targeting the protein itself and its recognition site in RNA

Breg Cells in Celiac Disease Isolated or Associated to Hashimoto's Thyroiditis

Hashimoto's thyroiditis (HT) may occur associated with celiac disease (CD). Regulatory B cells (Breg) subsets have been shown to play a significant role in autoimmune processes. Therefore, we have characterized their distribution in the peripheral blood obtained from 10 patients with isolated HT, 10 patients with HT + CD, 9 patients with isolated CD, and 9 healthy donors (HD). Th17 cells were significantly increased in patients with HT and in patients bearing both HT and CD, while patients with isolated CD exhibited a lower percentage of Th17, as compared with healthy donors. CD24hiCD38hi Breg cells were significantly higher in patients with HT + CD and in patients with isolated CD as compared to both HD patients and patients with isolated HT (p = 0.0010). On the contrary, Breg memory phenotypes (CD24hiCD38- and CD24hiCD27+) significantly decreased in patients with HT + CD as compared with the isolated disorders. Following CpG oligodeoxynucleotide stimulation, IL-10+ CD24hiCD38hi Breg cells were similar in all groups of patients, despite these cells would have been higher in CD patients. In conclusion, celiac disease, isolated and even more when associated with HT, determines a peculiar behavior of Breg cells which are increased in number but possibly functionally defective. Furthermore, the association CD + HT was characterized by a reduction of Breg memory subsets as compared with the isolated disorders. The behavior of Th17 subset in patients with celiac disease associated with HT might have been sensitive to the effect of long-lasting GFD, and it is essentially determined by the presence of thyroid autoimmunity

Distinct MRI pattern of "pseudoresponse" in recurrent glioblastoma multiforme treated with regorafenib: Case report and literature review

: Antiangiogenic agents can induce a distinct MRI pattern in glioblastoma, characterized by a decrease in the contrast enhancement on T1-weighted images and a simultaneous hyperintensity on T2-weighted or fluid-attenuated inversion recovery images

A theoretical scenario for Galactic RR Lyrae in the Gaia data base: constraints on the parallax offset

On the basis of an extended set of non-linear convective RR Lyrae pulsation models we derive the first theoretical light curves in the Gaia bands G, GBP, and GRP and the corresponding intensity-weighted mean magnitudes and pulsation amplitudes. The effects of chemical composition on the derived Bailey diagrams in the Gaia filters are discussed for both Fundamental and first overtone mode pulsators. The inferred mean magnitudes and colours are used to derive the first theoretical Period-Wesenheit relations for RR Lyrae in the Gaia filters. The application of the theoretical Period-Wesenheit relations for both the Fundamental and first overtone mode to Galactic RR Lyrae in the Gaia Data Release 2 data base and complementary information on individual metal abundances allows us to derive theoretical estimates of their individual parallaxes. These results are compared with the astrometric solutions to conclude that a very small offset, consistent with zero, is required in order to reconcile the predicted distances with Gaia results

Sonic Hedgehog Therapy in a Mouse Model of Age-Associated Impairment of Skeletal Muscle Regeneration

Sonic hedgehog (Shh) is a morphogen regulating muscle development during embryogenesis. We have shown that the Shh pathway is postnatally recapitulated after injury and during regeneration of the adult skeletal muscle and regulates angiogenesis and myogenesis after muscle injury. Here, we demonstrate that in 18-month-old mice, there is a significant impairment of the upregulation of the Shh pathway that physiologically occurs in the young skeletal muscle after injury. Such impairment is even more pronounced in 24-month-old mice. In old animals, intramuscular therapy with a plasmid encoding the human Shh gene increases the regenerative capacities of the injured muscle, in terms of Myf5-positive cells, regenerating myofibers, and fibrosis. At the molecular level, Shh treatment increases the upregulation of the prototypical growth factors, insulin-like growth factor-1 and vascular endothelial growth factor. These data demonstrate that Shh increases regeneration after injury in the muscle of 24-month-old mice and suggest that the manipulation of the Shh pathway may be useful for the treatment of muscular diseases associated with aging

YMCA-1: A New Remote Star Cluster of the Milky Way?

We report the possible discovery of a new stellar system (YMCA-1), identified during a search for small scale overdensities in the photometric data of the YMCA survey. The object's projected position lies on the periphery of the Large Magellanic Cloud about 13° apart from its center. The most likely interpretation of its color-magnitude diagram, as well as of its integrated properties, is that YMCA-1 may be an old and remote star cluster of the Milky Way at a distance of 100 kpc from the Galactic center. If this scenario could be confirmed, then the cluster would be significantly fainter and more compact than most of the known star clusters residing in the extreme outskirts of the Galactic halo, but quite similar to Laevens 3. However, much deeper photometry is needed to firmly establish the actual nature of the cluster, and the distance to the system. * This work is based on INAF-VST guaranteed observing time under ESO program: 0104.D-0427(A)