Arundo mediterranea Danin (Poaceae) en la Península Ibérica

Arundo mediterranea Danin (Poaceae) in the Iberian Peninsula Palabras clave. Poaceae, Arundo mediterranea, flora vascular, Península Ibérica. Key words. Poaceae, Arundo mediterranea, vascular flora, Iberian Peninsula

Tipificación del nombre Lavatera triloba subsp. pallescens (Moris) Nyman y revaluación de L. minoricensis Cambess. (L. triloba subsp. minoricensis comb. nov.)

The taxonomic identity of two poorly known taxa of the Lavatera triloba aggregate (Malvaceae) is clarified. The name L. triloba subsp. pallescens (Moris) Nyman is reassessed, and a new combination, L. triloba subsp. minoricensis, is proposed. Both taxa were originally described as species, and later either regarded as synonymous or alternatively subsumed as mere formae within subsp. pallescens. The extreme rarity of the plants led to insufficient knowledge and subsequent misinterpretation of the basionyms, L. minoricensis Cambess. from Minorca (Balearic Islands, Spain) and L. pallescens Moris from southwestern Sardinia (Italy). The combination L. triloba subsp. pallescens (Moris) Nyman was used to refer the Minorcan plants despite their clear differences in morphology and ecology. The rediscovery of two Sardinian populations of L. triloba subsp. pallescens in nature, after more than 110 years without reports or collections, has allowed for re-evaluation and typification of the misused names.El presente artículo clarifica la identidad de dos táxones escasamente conocidos pertenecientes al complejo Lavatera triloba (Malvaceae). Se tipifica el nombre Lavatera triloba subsp. pallescens (Moris) Nyman y se propone una combinación nueva, Lavatera triloba subsp. minoricensis. Ambos táxones fueron originalmente descritos como especies, para posteriormente ser considerados sinónimos o ser incluidos como meras formas dentro de la subespecie pallescens. La extrema rareza de estas plantas en la naturaleza y la consiguiente falta de materiales para su estudio ha obstaculizado la correcta interpretación de los basiónimos, L. pallescens Moris de Cerdeña (Italia) y L. minoricensis Cambess. de Menorca (Islas Baleares, España). La combinación L. triloba subsp. pallescens se ha usado habitualmente para referir tanto las plantas sardas como las menorquinas, pese a la existencia de diferencias morfológicas y ecológicas sustanciales entre ellas. El redescubrimiento de dos poblaciones de L. triloba subsp. pallescens Moris en Cerdeña, tras más de 110 años sin referencias ni recolecciones, ha permitido la reevaluación y tipificación de estos dos nombres malinterpretados

Alien Plant Diversity in Mediterranean Wetlands: A Comparative Study within Valencian, Balearic and Sardinian Floras

Although wetlands provide an important range of environmental, social and economic services, they are increasingly subjected to anthropogenic erturbations, amongst which invasion by alien plants is particularly alarming. This paper focuses on the alien flora of wetlands from three territories belonging to the western Mediterranean area: one continental (Valencian Community) and two insular (Balearic Islands and Sardinia), providing a complete checklist for the three territories and a general comparison. In total, 380 alien taxa from 89 families have been reported, being the Valencian Community the area richer in taxa (312), followed by the Balearic Islands (151) and Sardinia (134). The invasive component includes 77 taxa, of which nine are common to the three territories - and have been recognised as the most invasive ones in Mediterranean islands -and six are considered invasive worldwide (Ailanthus altissima, Arundo donax, Cortaderia selloana, Oxalis pes-caprae, Ricinus communis and Eichhornia crassipes). Multiple Correspondence Analysis (MCA) revealed that the three territories do not show statistically relevant differences in relation to the alien species present in wetlands and their characteristics. The information on the characteristics of plants in similar habitats of the same biogeographic region provides a portrait of the current dimensions of the phenomenon in Western Mediterranean wetlands and is especially useful from the management perspective: its predictive value can be applied in establishing a prioritization of control measures of those most invasive species and will help screening new introductions with invasive potential. Keywords: continent; environmental impact; invasions; islands

Increase in 20–50 Hz (gamma frequencies) power spectrum and synchronization after chronic vagal nerve stimulation

Objective: Though vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) is an important option in pharmacoresistant epilepsy, its mechanism of action remains unclear. The observation that VNS desynchronised the EEG activity in animals suggested that this mechanism could be involved in VNS antiepileptic effects in humans. Indeed VNS decreases spiking bursts, whereas its effects on the EEG background remain uncertain. The objective of the present study is to investigate how VNS affects local and inter regional syncronization in different frequencies in pharmacoresistent partial epilepsy. Methods: Digital recordings acquired in 11 epileptic subjects 1 year and 1 week before VNS surgery were compared with that obtained 1 month and 1 year after VNS activation. Power spectrum and synchronization were then analyzed and compared with an epileptic group of 10 patients treated with AEDs only and with 9 non-epileptic patients. Results: VNS decreases the synchronization of theta frequencies (P!0.01), whereas it increases gamma power spectrum and synchronization (!0.001 and 0.01, respectively). Conclusions: The reduction of theta frequencies and the increase in power spectrum and synchronization of gamma bands can be related to VNS anticonvulsant mechanism. In addition, gamma modulation could also play a seizure-independent role in improving attentional performances. Significance: These results suggest that some antiepileptic mechanisms affected by VNS can be modulated by or be the reflection of EEG changes.2026-2036Pubblicat

Dendritic cells in blood and urine samples from bladder cancer patients undergoing BCG immunotherapy

Objectives: Immunotherapy with BCG (Bacille Calmette-Guérin) after transurethral resection of the bladder tumor represents a highly effective primary treatment for intermediate and high-risk superficial bladder cancer. The effectiveness of this therapy has been documented, but its mechanism of action is not clear yet. In the present study, we investigated the changes of dendritic cells (DC) numbers in peripheral blood and urine of patients with superficial bladder cancer undergoing BCG intravescical therapy Material and method: We have enumerated plasmacytoid and myeloid DCs in the peripheral blood and in the urine of patients with bladder cancer in order to clarify the role of these cells in the evolution of the disease and the effect of therapy. DCs in blood and urine samples were assessed using the single-platform TruCOUNT assay with monoclonal antibodies. The study population included 37 healthy donors and 13 patients with diagnosis of primitive superficial bladder cancer. Results: At the time of diagnosis a reduction of blood DCs was found in patients as opposed to healthy donors, while DCs were not found in the urine in the same way as in healthy subjects. Six of these patients were followed before and after weekly and monthly instillations of BCG. In the peripheral blood, we observed an immunological recovery of DCs from the third weekly instillation up to the sixth. In the urine of patients, we didn't find mDCs or pDCs at T0, but we found a statistically significant change from the third instillation up to the sixth. On the contrary, we didn't find mDCs in urine during monthly instillation. Conclusions: DC Count could be used in the monitoring of patients undergoing BCG therapy. Immunological restoration of mDC numbers in peripheral blood and the efflux in urine could be important for confirming the effectiveness of BCG instillation

L'evento

Il concetto di evento \ue8 di grande rilievo per gli studiosi delle scienze storiche, anche se non \ue8 tra i pi\uf9 indagati, essendo stato, per lo pi\uf9 oggetto di interesse per i filosofi e per i metodologi delle scienze sociali. Da vari angoli disciplinari e culturali si propone una nuova tematizzazione del concetto a pi\uf9 voci, accompagnata dalla traduzione italiana di un brevissimo trattato di Plutarco di Cherone

The Checklist of the Sardinian Alien Flora: an Update

[EN] Alien plants colonization, due to the fast spreading of highly invasive taxa, is more and more a serious source of concerns for habitat and species conservation. Apart direct in situ intervention, it is of major importance to acquire the best and up to date knowledge about alien taxa that currently threaten the integrity of wild and valuable environments. In this light, here is presented the update to the checklist of alien vascular flora of the island of Sardinia (Italy) on the basis of the new findings, nomenclatural adjustments, and revision of diffusion status of alien taxa. The checklist at present, consists of 541 taxa (84 doubtful) which represent 17% of the whole flora of the island; 22 taxa are new to the island and 7 of them for Italy. Neophytes represent the majority of the whole alien flora (301, 66% of the total) and, in confront to archaeophytes, gather nearly all invasive taxa (54 vs 4). The new findings are all neophytes. Phanerophytes (42%) are the most representative biological form and Americas represents the region that mostly contributes to the Sardinian alien flora (33%). Further analysis highlights that, in terms of number of taxa, highly anthropically impacted environments such as synanthropic (36%) and agricultural (23%) are the eligible habitats for most of the alien species in Sardinia while coastal areas and wetlands, beyond hosting a lower number of taxa, are characterized by the relative highest number of invasives.This study has received a RAS research grant cofinanced by POR Sardegna FSE 2007-2013 L.R.7/2007 "Promozione della ricerca scientifica e dell'innovazione tecnologica in Sardegna". Authors want to thank Provincia di Cagliari for financing the research activity.Podda, L.; Lazzeri, V.; Mascia, F.; Mayoral García-Berlanga, O.; Bacchetta, G. (2012). The Checklist of the Sardinian Alien Flora: an Update. Notulae Botanicae Horti Agrobotanici Cluj-Napoca. 40(2):14-21. doi:10.15835/nbha4028225S142140