A Tiny Heart Beating: Student-Edited Legal Periodicals in Good ol\u27Europe

This paper has a twofold aim: to analyze the possible opportunities disclosed by the observed growth of student-edited law reviews in Europe and to propose an innovative model of student participation to legal publication. The first part explores the phenomenon of student-edited law reviews in the U.S., focusing on its recognized educational benefits. Among others, it is observed that participation in student-edited law reviews might promote greater scholarly maturity among J.D. students, who might in turn be better equipped for a career in the academia after finishing law school, in comparison to their same-age European peers. Hence, there follows an examination of the possible beneficial repercussions that the establishment of student-edited law reviews may yield on the process of faculty education in (continental) Europe, in light of the general practice therein endorsed of academic apprenticeship under a mentor. Such benefits may consist, among others, in the enticement of larger numbers of potential academicians and in their possible greater intellectual maturity, providing new meaning to the aforementioned time-honored European practice. The second part of the paper focuses, instead, on the drawbacks brought about by excessive proliferation of student-edited law reviews in the U.S., such as alleged decrease in the quality of published scholarship as a consequence of the superficial quality control that student editors sometimes perform. In view of the foregoing, an innovative model of student publication is proposed, in order to prevent the onset of such drawbacks in Europe, while retaining the above-outlined benefits of early student involvement in academic discourse. It is suggested to complement few, authoritative sources of published scholarship in the form of peer-reviewed journals with student-edited working paper series which, if based on the guideline to provide substantial constructive feedback to authors, could ultimately help foster a quality improvement of published scholarship

A Tiny Heart Beating: Student-Edited Legal Periodicals in Good ol\u27Europe

This paper has a twofold aim: to analyze the possible opportunities disclosed by the observed growth of student-edited law reviews in Europe and to propose an innovative model of student participation to legal publication. The first part explores the phenomenon of student-edited law reviews in the U.S., focusing on its recognized educational benefits. Among others, it is observed that participation in student-edited law reviews might promote greater scholarly maturity among J.D. students, who might in turn be better equipped for a career in the academia after finishing law school, in comparison to their same-age European peers. Hence, there follows an examination of the possible beneficial repercussions that the establishment of student-edited law reviews may yield on the process of faculty education in (continental) Europe, in light of the general practice therein endorsed of academic apprenticeship under a mentor. Such benefits may consist, among others, in the enticement of larger numbers of potential academicians and in their possible greater intellectual maturity, providing new meaning to the aforementioned time-honored European practice. The second part of the paper focuses, instead, on the drawbacks brought about by excessive proliferation of student-edited law reviews in the U.S., such as alleged decrease in the quality of published scholarship as a consequence of the superficial quality control that student editors sometimes perform. In view of the foregoing, an innovative model of student publication is proposed, in order to prevent the onset of such drawbacks in Europe, while retaining the above-outlined benefits of early student involvement in academic discourse. It is suggested to complement few, authoritative sources of published scholarship in the form of peer-reviewed journals with student-edited working paper series which, if based on the guideline to provide substantial constructive feedback to authors, could ultimately help foster a quality improvement of published scholarship

Anterior mitral valve aneurysm perforation in a patient with preexisting aortic regurgitation

We report the case of a 71-year-old man hospitalized for acute heart failure. Transthoracic and transesophageal echocardiography showed mitral valve aneurysm (MVA) rupture and severe mitral regurgitation. No vegetations but significant aortic regurgitation were also observed. MVA perforation is a rare life-threatening condition that typically occurs as a complication of endocarditis but may also be associated with other diseases, in particular connective tissue disorders. In the present case, the absence of such etiology suggests a possible role for of aortic regurgitation in MVA rupture secondary to a “jet lesion” mechanism

Trabecular Meshwork Gene Expression after Selective Laser Trabeculoplasty

BACKGROUND: Trabecular meshwork and Schlemm's canal are the tissues appointed to modulate the aqueous humour outflow from the anterior chamber. The impairment of their functions drives to an intraocular pressure increase. The selective laser trabeculoplasty is a laser therapy of the trabecular meshwork able to decrease intraocular pressure. The exact response mechanism to this treatment has not been clearly delineated yet. The herein presented study is aimed at studying the gene expression changes induced in trabecular meshwork cells by selective laser trabeculoplasty (SLT) in order to better understand the mechanisms subtending its efficacy. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Primary human trabecular meshwork cells cultured in fibroblast medium underwent selective laser trabeculoplasty treatment. RNA was extracted from a pool of cells 30 minutes after treatment while the remaining cells were further cultured and RNA was extracted respectively 2 and 6 hours after treatment. Control cells stored in incubator in absence of SLT treatment were used as reference samples. Gene expression was evaluated by hybridization on miRNA-microarray and laser scanner analysis. Scanning electron microscopic examination was performed on 2 Trabecular meshwork samples after SLT at 4(th) and 6(th) hour from treatment. On the whole, selective laser trabeculoplasty modulates in trabecular meshwork the expression of genes involved in cell motility, intercellular connections, extracellular matrix production, protein repair, DNA repair, membrane repair, reactive oxygen species production, glutamate toxicity, antioxidant activities, and inflammation. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: SLT did not induce any phenotypic alteration in TM samples. TM is a complex tissue possessing a great variety of function pivotal for the active regulation of aqueous humour outflow from the anterior chamber. SLT is able to modulate these functions at the postgenomic molecular level without inducing damage either at molecular or phenotypic levels

A holistic evaluation of patients with chronic Hepatitis D virus (HDV) infection enrolled in the Italian PITER-B and delta cohort

Background and Aims: We aimed to characterize the epidemiologic and comorbidities profiles of patients with chronic Hepatitis D (CHD) followed in clinical practice in Italy and explored their interferon (IFN) eligibility. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study of the PITER cohort consisting of consecutive HBsAg-positive patients from 59 centers over the period 2019-2023. Multivariable analysis was performed by logistic regression model. Results: Of 5492 HBsAg-positive enrolled patients, 4152 (75.6%) were screened for HDV, 422 (10.2%) were anti-HDV positive. Compared with HBsAg mono-infected, anti-HDV positive patients were more often younger, non-Italians, with a history of drug use, had elevated alanine transaminase (ALT), cirrhosis, or hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Compared with Italians, anti-HDV positive non-Italians were younger (42.2% age ≤ 40 years vs. 2.1%; P < 0.001), more often females (males 43.0% vs. 68.6%; P < 0.001) with less frequent cirrhosis and HCC. HDV-RNA was detected in 63.2% of anti-HDV-positive patients, who were more likely to have elevated ALT, cirrhosis, and HCC. Extrahepatic comorbidities were present in 47.4% of anti-HDV positive patients and could affect the eligibility of IFN-containing therapies in at least 53.0% of patients in care. Conclusions: CHD affects young, foreign-born patients and older Italians, of whom two-thirds had cirrhosis or HCC. Comorbidities were frequent in both Italians and non-Italians and impacted eligibility for IFN

Tech stories – Mini serie web dedicata a scienza, tecnologia e innovazione

La stampa 3D di modelli anatomici che aiutano a ridurre tempi ed errori in sala operatoria, i nano-satelliti per la trasmissione di grandi quantità di dati, i prodotti alimentari che migliorano la vita delle persone con specifiche esigenze nutrizionali, le reti di sensori da aggrappare alla piante per migliorare resa e qualità dei raccolti, le sofisticate tecnologie utilizzate dagli acceleratori in tutto il mondo per lo studio della materia. Questi i temi delle cinque storie raccontate in una mini serie web, in visione in anteprima nel corso di questo incontro. Al centro le motivazioni e le passioni che hanno mosso alcuni imprenditori e ricercatori di Area Science Park nei loro progetti di ricerca e sviluppo tecnologico di grande impatto sociale, economico e scientifico. Incontro a cura di Area Science Park. Intervengono: Pablo Apiolazza, regista e art director APZmedia, Virna Cerne, direttore R&D Dr. Schär, Giuseppe Di Gemma, amministratore delegato Aid4Med, Raffaella Geometrante, direttore generale Kyma, Anna Gregorio, amministratore delegato e co-fondatore di Picosats, Federico Longobardi, cofondatore Primo Principi

Anterior mitral valve aneurysm perforation in a patient with preexisting aortic regurgitation

We report the case of a 71-year-old man hospitalized for acute heart failure. Transthoracic and transesophageal echocardiography showed mitral valve aneurysm (MVA) rupture and severe mitral regurgitation. No vegetations but significant aortic regurgitation were also observed. MVA perforation is a rare life-threatening condition that typically occurs as a complication of endocarditis but may also be associated with other diseases, in particular connective tissue disorders. In the present case, the absence of such etiology suggests a possible role for of aortic regurgitation in MVA rupture secondary to a "jet lesion" mechanism