Sustainable Goals within Corporate Governance: An Italian Model of Reputational Investment

The relation between corporate reputation and ethical behavior is easily understandable. Nevertheless, this simple statement hides a complex underlying problem: the critical connection between ethical rules and the assumption of responsibility. It almost seems a contradictio in terminis, to the extent that acting ethically does not always mean acting according to legally binding norms. This study analyses the important attempt observed in the Italian legal system to connect ethical behaviors to the assumption of responsibility with the introduction of the “legality rating for enterprises”: an instrument that gives an answer to the mentioned problem and other relevant issues obstructing the changing process towards sustainable development. The legality rating acts like a ‘special license’ issued and monitored by the Italian Antitrust Authority on the basis of the ethical behavior of companies; it is capable of integrating sustainability into business choices, creating shared value while improving economic performances. For the innovative approach used to connect ethical behavior and responsibility, as well as the costs of sustainability with secure economic benefits, it is overall believed that this model of reputational investment is an effective instrument of sustainable development and presents relevant profiles of interests for an international audience

Heme oxygenase 1 in the nervous system: Does it favor neuronal cell survival or induce neurodegeneration?

Heme oxygenase 1 (HO-1) up-regulation is recognized as a pivotal mechanism of cell adaptation to stress. Under control of different transcription factors but with a prominent role played by Nrf2, HO-1 induction is crucial also in nervous system response to damage. However, several lines of evidence have highlighted that HO-1 expression is associated to neuronal damage and neurodegeneration especially in Alzheimer\u2019s and Parkinson\u2019s diseases. In this review, we summarize the current literature regarding the role of HO-1 in nervous system pointing out different molecular mechanisms possibly responsible for HO-1 up-regulation in nervous system homeostasis and neurodegeneration

Differentiation impairs Bach1 dependent HO-1 activation and increases sensitivity to oxidative stress in SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cells

Neuronal adaptation to oxidative stress is crucially important in order to prevent degenerative diseases. The role played by the Nrf2/HO-1 system in favoring cell survival of neuroblastoma (NB) cells exposed to hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) has been investigated using undifferentiated or all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) differentiated SH-SY5Y cells. While undifferentiated cells were basically resistant to the oxidative stimulus, ATRA treatment progressively decreased cell viability in response to H2O2. HO-1 silencing decreased undifferentiated cell viability when exposed to H2O2, proving the role of HO-1 in cell survival. Conversely, ATRA differentiated cells exposed to H2O2 showed a significantly lower induction of HO-1, and only the supplementation with low doses of bilirubin (0,5-1 \uce\ubcM) restored viability. Moreover, the nuclear level of Bach1, repressor of HO-1 transcription, strongly decreased in undifferentiated cells exposed to oxidative stress, while did not change in ATRA differentiated cells. Furthermore, Bach1 was displaced from HO-1 promoter in undifferentiated cells exposed to H2O2, enabling the binding of Nrf2. On the contrary, in ATRA differentiated cells treated with H2O2, Bach1 displacement was impaired, preventing Nrf2 binding and limiting HO-1 transcription. In conclusion, our findings highlight the central role of Bach1 in HO-1-dependent neuronal response to oxidative stress

On the use of COSMO/SkyMed data and Weather Models for interferometric DEM generation

AbstractThis work experiments the potentialities of COSMO/SkyMed (CSK) data in providing interferometric Digital Elevation Model (DEM). We processed a stack of CSK data for measuring with meter accuracy the ground elevation on the available coherent targets, and used these values to check the accuracy of DEMs derived from 5 tandem-like CSK pairs. In order to suppress the atmospheric signal we experimented a classical spatial filtering of the differential phase as well as the use of numerical weather prediction (NWP) model RAMS. Tandem-like pairs with normal baselines higher than 300 m allows to derive DEMs fulfilling the HRTI Level 3 specifications on the relative vertical accuracy, while the use of NWP models still seems unfeasible especially for X-band

HO-1 induction in cancer progression: A matter of cell adaptation

The upregulation of heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) is one of the most important mechanisms of cell adaptation to stress. Indeed, the redox sensitive transcription factor Nrf2 is the pivotal regulator of HO-1 induction. Through the antioxidant, antiapoptotic, and antinflammatory properties of its metabolic products, HO-1 plays a key role in healthy cells in maintaining redox homeostasis and in preventing carcinogenesis. Nevertheless, several lines of evidence have highlighted the role of HO-1 in cancer progression and its expression correlates with tumor growth, aggressiveness, metastatic and angiogenetic potential, resistance to therapy, tumor escape, and poor prognosis, even though a tumor-and tissue-specific activity has been observed. In this review, we summarize the current literature regarding the pro-tumorigenic role of HO-1 dependent tumor progression as a promising target in anticancer strategy

Oleı̆nik-type estimates for nonlocal conservation laws and applications to the nonlocal-to-local limit

We consider a class of nonlocal conservation laws with exponential kernel and prove that quantities involving the nonlocal term $W:=\mathbb{1}_{(-\infty,0]}(\cdot)\exp(\cdot) \ast \rho$ satisfy an Oleı̆nik-type entropy condition. More precisely, under different sets of assumptions on the velocity function $V$, we prove that $W$ satisfies a one-sided Lipschitz condition and that $V'(W) W \partial_x W$ satisfies a one-sided bound, respectively. As a byproduct, we deduce that, as the exponential kernel is rescaled to converge to a Dirac delta distribution, the weak solution of the nonlocal problem converges to the unique entropy-admissible solution of the corresponding local conservation law, under the only assumption that the initial datum is essentially bounded and not necessarily of bounded variation

HO-1 up-regulation: a key point in high-risk neuroblastoma resistance to bortezomib.

AbstractHigh-risk neuroblastoma (NB) is characterized by the development of chemoresistance, and bortezomib (BTZ), a selective inhibitor of proteasome, has been proposed in order to overcome drug resistance. Considering the involvement of the nuclear factor-erythroid-derived 2-like 2 (Nrf2) and heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) in the antioxidant and detoxifying ability of cancer cells, in this study we have investigated their role in differently aggressive NB cell lines treated with BTZ, focusing on the modulation of HO-1 to improve sensitivity to therapy. We have shown that MYCN amplified HTLA-230 cells were slightly sensitive to BTZ treatment, due to the activation of Nrf2 that led to an impressive up-regulation of HO-1. BTZ-treated HTLA-230 cells down-regulated p53 and up-regulated p21, favoring cell survival. The inhibition of HO-1 activity obtained by Zinc (II) protoprophyrin IX (ZnPPIX) was able to significantly increase the pro-apoptotic effect of BTZ in a p53- and p21-independent way. However, MYCN non-amplified SH-SY5Y cells showed a greater sensitivity to BTZ in relation to their inability to up-regulate HO-1. Therefore, we have shown that HO-1 inhibition improves the sensitivity of aggressive NB to proteasome inhibition-based therapy, suggesting that HO-1 up-regulation can be used as a marker of chemoresistance in NB. These results open up a new scenario in developing a combined therapy to overcome chemoresistance in high-risk neuroblastoma

Using IoT for Accessible Tourism in Smart Cities

In the past few years, the Smart City concept became one of the main driving forces for the transition towards sustainable economy and improved mobility. Tourism, as one of the fastest growing economies worldwide, is an integrated part of the Smart City paradigm. Taking into consideration recent studies performed by the United Nations, stating that almost one third of the population is directly affected by disability, the concept of Accessible Tourism needs also to be integrated in the future vision for tourism, especially in the context of Smart Cities, environments fully benefiting from the recent technological advances. Within the combined framework of Smart Cities and Accessible Tourism, the Internet-of-Things (IoT) concept is the key technological point for the development of smart urban environments. IoT and big data are both technology-driven developments, leading to scenarios such as the Smart Cities one that has the potential to make citizen live smarter, more sustainable and more accessible. This chapter analyses the key requirements for IoT applications in a Smart City context, the state-of-the-art for the use of IoT for Accessible Tourism applications and proposes an architecture together with its practical implementation, tailored for the use-case of accessible tourism for physically impaired persons

Telomerase reverse transcriptase locus polymorphisms and cancer risk: a field synopsis and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Several recent studies have provided evidence that polymorphisms in the telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) gene sequence are associated with cancer development, but a comprehensive synopsis is not available. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of the available molecular epidemiology data regarding the association between TERT locus polymorphisms and predisposition to cancer. METHODS: A systematic review of the English literature was conducted by searching PubMed, Embase, Cancerlit, Google Scholar, and ISI Web of Knowledge databases for studies on associations between TERT locus polymorphisms and cancer risk. Random-effects meta-analysis was performed to pool per-allele odds ratios for TERT locus polymorphisms and risk of cancer, and between-study heterogeneity and potential bias sources (eg, publication and chasing bias) were assessed. Because the TERT locus includes the cleft lip and palate transmembrane 1-like (CLPTM1L) gene, which is in linkage disequilibrium with TERT, CLPTM1L polymorphisms were also analyzed. Cumulative evidence for polymorphisms with statistically significant associations was graded as "strong," "moderate," and "weak" according to the Venice criteria. The joint population attributable risk was calculated for polymorphisms with strong evidence of association. RESULTS: Eighty-five studies enrolling 490 901 subjects and reporting on 494 allelic contrasts were retrieved. Data were available on 67 TERT locus polymorphisms and 24 tumor types, for a total of 221 unique combinations of polymorphisms and cancer types. Upon meta-analysis, a statistically significant association with the risk of any cancer type was found for 22 polymorphisms. Strong, moderate, and weak cumulative evidence for association with at least one tumor type was demonstrated for 11, 9, and 14 polymorphisms, respectively. For lung cancer, which was the most studied tumor type, the estimated joint population attributable risk for three polymorphisms (TERT rs2736100, intergenic rs4635969, and CLPTM1L rs402710) was 41%. Strong evidence for lack of association was identified for five polymorphisms in three tumor types. CONCLUSIONS: To our knowledge, this is the largest collection of data for associations between TERT locus polymorphisms and cancer risk. Our findings support the hypothesis that genetic variability in this genomic region can modulate cancer susceptibility in humans.This work was in part supported by a grant from the Italian Association for Research on Cancer (AIRC Veneto Regional fund 2008-2011 to SM and DN).This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Oxford University Press via http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/jnci/djs22