Sulci in età tardo antica e bizantina

Nel contributo le autrici propongono un tentativo di ricostruzione della città di Sulci nella fisionomia assunta nella tarda antichità e nell’alto medioevo, basata sulla rilettura di notizie da vecchi scavi e studi, sui dati dalle recenti indagini e sulle nuove proposte. Si esamina l’assetto topografico dell’area urbana in relazione al presunto percorso del circuito murario e alla dislocazione delle aree suburbane. L’attenzione viene focalizzata sui luoghi simbolo della vita pubblica e sociale dei secoli compresi fra il IV e l’XI, quando nell’antica città giunsero i monaci dell’abbazia di San Vittore di Marsiglia: centri del potere civile e religioso, testimonianze della diffusione del cristianesimo (culti, santuari e monaci). Pur nella frammentarietà dei dati, si può dire che Sulci visse a lungo, come attestano anche i rinvenimenti di cultura materiale sulla terraferma e nei relitti navali affondati lungo le sue coste. Il quadro che emerge presenta aspetti interessanti e meritevoli di futuri approfondimentiIn this paper the authors tried to draw the aspect of the town of Sulci in Late Antiquity and Early Middle Age, basing on some information coming out from old diggings and literature together with data from recent archaeological investigations and new hypothesis. They analyzed the topography of the urban area related to the hypothetical line of the urban walls and the suburban cemeteries. They focused particularly on the sites symbols of the public and social life from the 4th and the 11th Centuries, when the monks of Saint Victor’s Abbey at Marsiglia arrived in the ancient town of Sulci: the main sites of the civil and religious authorities, the evidence of Christian religion (worship, shrines and monks). Even if there are not yet so much archaeological evidence about the post classical period, it is possible to say that Sulci had a long life, as the objects found in archaeological layers and in shipwrecks prove. The results suggest that many interesting aspect should examined in depth in future researches

Romanesque and territory. The construction materials of Sardinian medieval churches: new approaches to the valorization, conservation and restoration

This paper is intended to illustrate a multidisciplinary research project devoted to the study of the constructive materials of the Romanesque churches in Sardinia during the “Giudicati” period (11th -13th centuries). The project focuses on the relationship between a selection of monuments and their territory, both from a historical-architectural perspective and from a more modern perspective addressing future restoration works. The methodologies of the traditional art-historical research (study of bibliographic, epigraphic and archival sources, formal reading of artifacts) are flanked by new technologies: digital surveys executed with a 3D laser-scanner, analyses of the materials (stones, mortars, bricks) with different instrumental methods: X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and inductively coupled mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) for chemical composition, X-ray diffractometer (XRD) to determine the alteration phases (e.g., soluble salts), optical microscopy and electronic (SEM) to study textures, mineral assemblages and microstructures, termogravimetric/differential scanning, calorimetric analysis (TG/DTA) for the composition of the binder mortars. This multidisciplinary approach allows the achieving of important results in an archaeometric context: 1) from a historical point of view, with the possible identification of ancient traffics, trade routes, sources of raw materials, construction phases, wall textures; 2) from a conservative point of view, by studying chemical and physical weathering processes of stone materials compatible for replacement in case of future restoration works. Sardinian Romanesque architectural heritage is particularly remarkable: about 200 churches of different types and sizes, with the almost exclusive use of cut stones. Bi- or poly-chromy, deriving from the use of different building materials, characterizes many of these monuments, becoming also a vehicle for political and cultural meanings. The paper will present some case studies aimed to illustrate the progress of the project and the results achieved

Integrated Design Strategy for Additively Manufactured Scaffolds in Tissue Engineering

Additive manufacturing technologies allow for the direct fabrication of 3D scaffolds with improved properties for tissue regeneration. In this scenario, design strategies and 3D fiber deposition technique are considered to develop advanced scaffolds with different lay-down patterns, tailored mechanical and biological properties. 3D poly(ε-caprolactone) scaffolds are manufactured and surface-modified (i.e., aminolysis). The effect of surface modification on the mechanical and biological performances of the designed 3D scaffolds is assessed

Photo-Curing 3D Printing and Innovative Design of Porous Composite Structures for Biomedical Applications

Light-activated resins and composites are used in conjunction with a light curing unit and allow an on-demand process of polymerization. These kinds of materials usually represent the most popular choice in the restorative dental practice. Some works have already highlighted contemporary tendencies in the use of nondegradable scaffolds and mesenchymal stem cells in regenerative medicine. Accordingly, the aim of the current research is to develop 3D porous and light-activated composite structures with optimized functional properties. Preliminary mechanical and biological tests are carried out

A BARF1-specific mAb as a new immunotherapeutic tool for the management of EBV-related tumors.

The use of monoclonal antibodies (mAb) for the diagnosis and treatment of malignancies is acquiring an increasing clinical importance, thanks to their specificity, efficacy and relative easiness of use. However, in the context of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-related malignancies, only cancers of B-cell origin can benefit from therapeutic mAb targeting specific B-cell lineage antigens. To overcome this limitation, we generated a new mAb specific for BARF1, an EBV-encoded protein with transforming and immune-modulating properties. BARF1 is expressed as a latent protein in nasopharyngeal (NPC) and gastric carcinoma (GC), and also in neoplastic B cells mainly upon lytic cycle induction, thus representing a potential target for all EBV-related malignancies. Considering that BARF1 is largely but not exclusively secreted, the BARF1 mAb was selected on the basis of its ability to bind a domain of the protein retained at the cell surface of tumor cells. In vitro, the newly generated mAb recognized the target molecule in its native conformation, and was highly effective in mediating both ADCC and CDC against BARF1-positive tumor cells. In vivo, biodistribution analysis in mice engrafted with BARF1-positive and -negative tumor cells confirmed its high specificity for the target. More importantly, the mAb disclosed a relevant antitumor potential in preclinical models of NPC and lymphoma, as evaluated in terms of both reduction of tumor masses and long-term survival. Taken together, these data not only confirm BARF1 as a promising target for immunotherapeutic interventions, but also pave the way for a successful translation of this new mAb to the clinical use

Basin-scale interaction between post-LGM faulting and morpho-sedimentary processes in the S. Eufemia Gulf (Southern Tyrrhenian Sea)

The integrated interpretation of high-resolution multibeam bathymetry, seismic profiles and backscatter data in the S. Eufemia Gulf (SEG; Calabro-Tyrrhenian continental margin, south-eastern Tyrrhenian Sea) documents the relationship between postglacial fault activity and morpho-sedimentary processes. Three systems of active normal faults that affect the seafloor or the shallow subsurface, have been identified: 1) the S. Eufemia fault system located on the continental shelf with fault planes mainly oriented N26E-N40E; 2) the offshore fault system that lies on the continental slope off Capo Suvero with fault planes mainly oriented N28E-N60E; 3) the Angitola Canyon fault system located on the seafloor adjacent to the canyon having fault planes oriented N60EN85E. The faults produce a belt of linear escarpments with vertical displacement varying from a few decimeters to about 12 m. One of the most prominent active structures is the fault F1 with the highest fault length (about 9.5 km). Two main segments of this fault are identified: a segment characterised by seafloor deformation with metric slip affecting Holocene deposits; a segment characterised by folding of the seafloor. A combined tectonostratigraphic model of an extensional fault propagation fold is proposed here to explain such different deformation.In addition to the seabed escarpments produced by fault deformation, in the SEG, a strong control of fault activity on recent sedimentary processes is clearly observed. For example, canyons and channels frequently change their course in response to their interaction with main tectonic structures. Moreover, the upper branch of the Angitola Canyon shows straight flanks determined by fault scarps. Tectonics also determined different sediment accumulation rates and types of sedimentation (e.g., the accumulation of hanging wall turbidite deposits and the development of contourite deposits around the Maida Ridge). Furthermore, the distribution of landslides is often connected to main fault scarps and fluids are locally confined in the hanging wall side of faults and can escape at the seabed, generating pockmarks aligned along their footwall

NEGATIVE SYNERGISM BETWENN THE COMBINATION OF STEROID AND LOW MOLECULAR WEIGHT HEPARIN (LMWH) ON BONE METABOLISM, IN PATIENTS TREATED FOR LYMPHOMA

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Morphological identification and DNA barcoding of a new species of Parabrachiella (Siphonostomatoida: Lernaeopodidae) with aspects of their intraspecific variation

We present a detailed morphological description and a DNA barcoding of Parabrachiella platensis n. sp. collected from Mugil liza Valenciennes in Samborombon Bay (Buenos Aires, Argentina). This new species was compared with two Parabrachiella species parasitic on mugilids: Parabrachiella exilis (Shiino, 1956) and Parabrachiella mugilis (Kabata, Raibaut et Ben Hassine, 1971). Parabrachiella platensis n. sp. differs from those species in the shape of posterior processes, the anal slit with two pairs of bipartite papillae, the size of cephalothorax, the trunk, the maxilla, the microhabitat on the host, and the lack of caudal rami. On the host, the new species was in the nostrils (a new site for a species of the genus Parabrachiella) and in the fins base. Some minor morphological differences were observed in relation to the locations on the host. The molecular analysis conducted based on mtDNA-COI between specimens of the new species on the fins and nostrils showed a genetic similarity of 99.8%. This percentage supports that the specimens found in nostrils and fins base could represent a single species. New studies on P. platensis n. sp., including infection of the same fish with the two forms, could bring some new information. Anyway according to the genetic information provided and the minimal morphological differences spotted we conclude that the two forms are a single specie. The differences observed are possibly influenced by the place of the host where the two forms of copepods were found, nostrils and fins. The new species was also molecularly compared to other five species of Parabrachiella including P. exilis (parasitizing mugilid from Chile), Parabrachiella anisotremis, Parabrachiella auriculata, Parabrachiella merluccii, and P. hugu (the last two sequences were taken from the GenBank). The genetic distance of 9% among P. platensis n. sp. and P. exilis, which is the close morphological related species, allow to states that these two copepods on mugilids belong to different species and then validating the morphological differences found between them.Centro de Estudios Parasitológicos y de Vectore

Towards Critical Occidentalism Studies: Re-inventing the 'West' and 'Japan' in Mangaesque Popular Cultures

This paper investigates the reproduction of the imagined geography of the ‘West’ in contemporary Japan by employing a relational, intersectional and positional approach in order to examine Occidentalism and its hegemonic identification and othering process. Particular attention will be paid to emerging Japanese subcultures enacting a parodic and sexualised re-invention of Westernness and Japaneseness within a globalising mangaesque media mix