"Identità", incontri fra culture e prospettive plurilinguistiche nel Mediterraneo antico. Il progetto Transformation and Crisis in the Mediterranean

Developed in 2013 from the confluence of two different lines of research, the tcm project (Transformations and Crisis in the Mediterranean) has the main aim to investigate the forms and modalities in which a given community or social group creates its self-definition, the instruments it uses in its search for cohesion and stability, as well as the encounter and/or conflict with the “other”, during particular moments of crisis and transformation in the historical and cultural conditions. At the same time, the research wishes to offer some reflections on the methodology and analytical tools that can be utilized when engaging with such a topic, with specific reference to the concept and term “identity”, to its connotations and to its applicability to historical investigations. At the centre of the study are placed the peoples of the Levant during the late 2nd and the 1st millennium bce, including those – such as the socalled Phoinikes – who soon became protagonists in western Mediterranean history as well. The following notes, then, are addressed to discuss two of the main concepts and terms around which the research revolves: “identity” and “interculturality”

BNa–BLi solid-solution in A-site-vacant amphiboles: synthesis and cation ordering along the ferri-clinoferroholmquistite–riebeckite join.

Amphiboles were hydrothermally synthesized at 500 ∞C and 4 kbar in the system Li2O-Na2OFeO- Fe2O3-SiO2-H2O, with nominal compositions along the riebeckite [■Na2Fe3 2+ Fe2 3+Si8O22(OH)2]-ferri-clinoferroholmquistite [■Li2Fe3 2+Fe2 3+Si8O22(OH)2] join, where the exchange vector is NaLi–1 at the B-site. Experimental products were characterized by powder XRD and SEM-EDAX, confirming very high amphibole yield along the join (>95%, plus minor quartz). The XRD patterns can be indexed in C2/m, and the refined cell parameters show linear variation as a function of composition. For the BLi end-member, the IR spectrum shows a single sharp main band centered at 3614 cm–1, which is assigned to the FeFeFe-OH-A■ configuration. With increasing BNa in the mineral, this band broadens and shifts 4 cm–1 to higher frequencies. This effect can be attributed to the change in M4 site occupancy. Minor ANa (partial solid-solution toward arfvedsonite) is also observed with increasing sodium in the system. Mössbauer spectroscopy confirms the cation distribution provided by IR data, and shows that a small, but significant amount of Fe2+ occurs at M4 along the join. Infrared spectroscopy shows that the Li end-member has a very ordered structure, whereas intermediate compositions show local heterogeneities associated with the presence of two different B sites occupied by Na or Li

Dose-Dependent Prevention of Fibrosis in Aorta of Salt-Loaded Stroke-Prone Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats by Combined Delapril and Indapamide treatment.

Combined treatment with the angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor delapril and the diuretic indapamide prevented vascular damage in vital organs of salt-loaded stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRsp). Whether the changes occurring after long-term hypertension could also be modulated in large arteries was investigated. Two-month-old SHRsp were salt loaded and treated with the drug regimen until they reached 50 +/- 10 mortality or around midlife. In a first experiment, delapril (12 mg/kg) and indapamide (1 mg/kg) were administered daily separately or in combination. In the second dose-finding experiment, delapril (6, 3, 1.5 mg/kg) and indapamide (0.5, 0.25, 0.125 mg/kg) in decreasing dose combinations were analyzed. Ultrastructural, histomorphometric, and biochemical studies were performed on the thoracic aorta. When compared with delapril (12 mg/kg) or indapamide (1 mg/kg) administered individually for 5 months, the combination 12 + 1 mg/kg was able to prevent the increase in extracellular matrix deposition observed in other treatment groups, as assessed by histomorphometry or 4-OH-proline biochemical determination. In the second experiment, a half-dose (delapril 6 mg/kg + indapamide 0.5 mg/kg) combination was similarly effective in counteracting fibrosis, but the other doses progressively failed. In the first experiment, the combination had a stabilizing effect on hypertension and stimulated diuresis. In the second experiment, arterial blood pressure values and sodium balance were not consistently affected by the treatments that antagonized fibrosis (i.e., delapril 6 mg/kg + indapamide 0.5 mg/kg and, less efficiently, delapril 3 mg/kg + indapamide 0.25 mg/kg). These results suggest that indapamide interacts with ACE inhibitors to limit aortic fibrosis independent of any well-established mechanism

Are the Reasons Why Patients Are Referred for an Orthodontic Visit Correct?

Abstract: Who does refer patients for an orthodontic consultation? Which are the main reasons for the referral? Does the visit of the orthodontic specialist confirm these reasons or reveal undiagnosed problems? Is there the risk that only evident dental problems are addressed, while craniofacial malformations remain underdiagnosed? This cross-sectional epidemiologic study aims to answer these questions, analysing the clinical data collected during the orthodontic visits of 500 Caucasian young patients referred to a public health structure of northern Italy. All patients were visited by the same expert specialist in orthodontics. Clinical data were collected, analysing both dental and skeletal features. The reasons for the referral of the visit were analysed and compared with the specialistic diagnoses. In our sample, dentists, relatives/friends and paediatricians were the major source of the referrals, followed by family doctors and other facial specialists. In most cases, the reasons for the referral were dental irregularities, but approximately 80% of dental irregularities were associated with undiagnosed facial dysmorphism. Skeletal facial anomalies need an early diagnosis to prevent the development of severe facial malformations that would require invasive and expensive treatments. These findings reveal poor diagnostic skills regarding skeletal anomalies in dentists and paediatricians and the need for better specific training

Does Head Orientation Influence 3D Facial Imaging? A Study on Accuracy and Precision of Stereophotogrammetric Acquisition

This study investigates the reliability and precision of anthropometric measurements collected from 3D images and acquired under different conditions of head rotation. Various sources of error were examined, and the equivalence between craniofacial data generated from alternative head positions was assessed. 3D captures of a mannequin head were obtained with a stereophotogrammetric system (Face Shape 3D MaxiLine). Image acquisition was performed with no rotations and with various pitch, roll, and yaw angulations. On 3D images, 14 linear distances were measured. Various indices were used to quantify error magnitude, among them the acquisition error, the mean and the maximum intra- and inter-operator measurement error, repeatability and reproducibility error, the standard deviation, and the standard error of errors. Two one-sided tests (TOST) were performed to assess the equivalence between measurements recorded in different head angulations. The maximum intra-operator error was very low (0.336 mm), closely followed by the acquisition error (0.496 mm). The maximum inter-operator error was 0.532 mm, and the highest degree of error was found in reproducibility (0.890 mm). Anthropometric measurements from alternative acquisition conditions resulted in significantly equivalent TOST, with the exception of Zygion (l)–Tragion (l) and Cheek (l)–Tragion (l) distances measured with pitch angulation compared to no rotation position. Face Shape 3D Maxiline has sufficient accuracy for orthodontic and surgical use. Precision was not altered by head orientation, making the acquisition simpler and not constrained to a critical precision as in 2D photographs

Clinical characteristics of a large cohort of patients with narcolepsy candidate for pitolisant: a cross-sectional study from the Italian PASS Wakix® Cohort

Introduction Narcolepsy is a chronic and rare hypersomnia of central origin characterized by excessive daytime sleepiness and a complex array of symptoms as well as by several medical comorbidities. With growing pharmacological options, polytherapy may increase the possibility of a patient-centered management of narcolepsy symptoms. The aims of our study are to describe a large cohort of Italian patients with narcolepsy who were candidates for pitolisant treatment and to compare patients' subgroups based on current drug prescription (drug-naive patients in whom pitolisant was the first-choice treatment, switching to pitolisant from other monotherapy treatments, and adding on in polytherapy). Methods We conducted a cross-sectional survey based on Italian data from the inclusion visits of the Post Authorization Safety Study of pitolisant, a 5-year observational, multicenter, international study. Results One hundred ninety-one patients were enrolled (76.4% with narcolepsy type 1 and 23.6% with narcolepsy type 2). Most patients (63.4%) presented at least one comorbidity, mainly cardiovascular and psychiatric. Pitolisant was prescribed as an add-on treatment in 120/191 patients (62.8%), as switch from other therapies in 42/191 (22.0%), and as a first-line treatment in 29/191 (15.2%). Drug-naive patients presented more severe sleepiness, lower functional status, and a higher incidence of depressive symptoms. Conclusion Our study presents the picture of a large cohort of Italian patients with narcolepsy who were prescribed with pitolisant, suggesting that polytherapy is highly frequent to tailor a patient-centered approach

L’insediamento fenicio e punico di Pani Loriga. Risultati preliminari degli scavi 2016-2017 alle “Casematte” (Area C)

This paper illustrates the results of the first two excavation campaigns (2016, 2017) in a sector of the Phoenician and Punic settlement of Pani Loriga (Santadi, Sardinia): the area of the s.c. "Casematte" (Area C), located along a terrace flanking the "acropolis". Activity focused on "ambiente 1", the first of a series of eleven rectangular structures. These were identified and partially explored in the late 1960s by Ferruccio Barreca and Giovanni Tore, who also assigned them a defensive function. On the basis of the stratigraphic sequence recognized so far - it should be emphasized that the excavation is still in progress - it is now possible to date the use of the "ambiente 1" between early 5th and 4th centuries BC. The finding of particular objects, such as a kernos, associated with rooster and deer bones and river pebbles, and of many domestic artifacts, concentrated in a small structure near the NW corner, led us to propose that ritual activities took place in this area. However, only further investigations will explain the function of the structure, as well as of the entire complex