Kalevala and Finnic Mythology in Italy : Translations, Scholarship and Literature

Conference: Kaleva - epica, magia, arte e musica. Cividale del Friuli, Italia, 28.5.2011-29.5.2011.Non peer reviewe

Bear Hunt Rituals in Finland and Karelia : Beliefs, Songs, Incantations and Magic Rites

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The ritual art and paraphernalia of the Nepalese jhankris and Tamang bombo

Publishers: Akadémia Kiadó ; Warsaw : Polish Institute of World Art Studies ; Torun : Tako Publishing House, 2014Peer reviewe

Bear Hunt Rituals in Finland and Karelia : Beliefs, Songs, Incantations and Magic Rites

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Associazione tra i polimorfismi dei geni NOD2/CARD15, TLR-4, IL23R e GVHD, infezioni e mortalità precoce nel trapianto allogenico di cellule staminali ematopoietiche nella popolazione pediatrica sarda talassemica, ampliamento del progetto con lo studio molecolare di altri geni candidati

Recently single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of the genes NOD2-CARD15, IL23-R and TLR-4 have been showed to influence the risk for acute GvHD in patients who underwent to allogeneic hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) transplantation. To investigate whether these genes play a role in the pathogenesis of GvHD also in the Sardinian population, 8 SNPs four for NOD2, two for TLR4 and two for IL23R in 86 recipients, their coupled donors and in 150 healthy Sardinians individualswere genotyped and the SNPs frequencies compared. The SNP rs2066842 of NOD2 gene was significantly increased in the group of patients who did not develop acute GvHD(p = 0.002). Our data, if confirmed in GvHD patients from other population, could suggest the inclusion of the non-HLA NOD2/CARD15 genes genotyping in the attribution of the immunological donor/recipient pre-transplant score

Symbolic Dances from Folklore ao Avant-Garde : Le Sacre du Printemps and Petroushka from Stravinsky to Tero Saarinen

The present article is focused on the detailed analysis of how Stravinsky, Nijinsky and other artists of the Ballets Russes’ company reinterpreted Russian folklore elements in order to create two famous ballets: Le Sacre du Printemps and Petroushka. Puppet theatre, folk and popular tunes, rituals and myths of a fantastic Russian paganism were used by the company not to revitalize a nostalgic idea of the past, but to forge an innovative avant–garde art and to shatter the most oppressive classic ballets’ stereotypes and clichés. Their project had an impressive outcome, in spite of the initial scandals and the painful conflicts among the egocentric company’s members. Stravinsky’s and Fokine’s ideas were fundamental for the formation of modern and contemporary dance’s aesthetics. Choreographers of different nationalities and backgrounds had build up more than five hundred Sacre’s versions, and most of them are quite different from the original. Nowadays being faithful to Stravinsky means to follow the iconoclastic spirit of this cosmopolitan composer. In the first years of the new millennium the Finnish choreographer and dancer Tero Saarinen created innovative and quite surprising versions of the two Stravinski’s ballets: using video–art and presenting introspective performances, the dancing bodies expressed existential problems and a touching protest against our voluntary self–sacrifice to technocracy and sadistic competition. Some reflections of well known musicologists and experts of dance history, and in particular some relevant concepts of semiotics of culture — as Juri Lotman’s ideas about the dynamic adaptation of archaic symbols to the cultural context’s changes — can help us to analyze challenging phases in the creation of substantial philosophical fundaments of modern and contemporary dance.Peer reviewe

Il Kalevala e la mitologia finnica in Italia : traduzioni, ricerche e letteratura

New version (2021) of the Italian chapter previously published in 2014 (bilingual edition of the book - Italian and English) and in 2015 (Italian edition): the original Italian text has been reviewed and corrected, the bibliography improved and standardized, and there are new footnotes for Italian readers written by the reviewers of the mythological series "Bifröst" (VociFuiriScena): Dario Giansanti and Elisa Zanchetta. The chapters are based on the papers of the scientific symposium: "Kalevala: Epica, Magia, Arte e Musica / Kalevala: Epic, Magic, Art and Music" organized in Bottenicco di Moimacco / Cividale del Friuli (Udine, Italy) for the centenary of Kalevalaseura (2011).Non peer reviewe

Characterization of the Roman lines/strains of rats as a genetic model of psychiatric disorders: a behavioral and brain dialysis study

State of the art Depressive disorders are fairly prevalent in the general population, with a higher rate in women compared to men, are disabling, since they can significantly impair psychosocial functioning, and are typically associated with high mortality due mainly to the high rate of suicides but also to the negative impact that depression has on the course of co-occurring illnesses. In addition, pharmacological and psychological antidepressant therapies in use have a limited efficacy and/or are associated with side effects that reduce the compliance in many patients. Although the etiology and pathogenesis of depression are poorly understood, it is most likely that the combination of genetics, early life adverse events, and ongoing stress may ultimately determine the individual vulnerability to stress-related disorders, such as depression. Therefore, the development and characterization of animal models of vulnerability and resistance to the effects of stress, including early life stress, is a major challenge for depression research. One such model is represented by the Roman high- (RHA) and low-avoidance (RLA) lines/strains of rats, which are psychogenetically selected for, respectively, rapid versus extremely poor acquisition of active avoidance in a shuttle box. A large body of evidence indicates that a major reason for their divergent performance in this test is their different reactivity to stressful stimuli, that is, their coping style. Thus, when exposed to aversive stimuli, RLA rats display a reactive coping strategy, associated with a strong activation of the HPA axis; moreover, they display robust depressive-like behaviors in the forced swim test (FST) that are normalized by the subacute administration of antidepressants. In contrast, compared with their RLA counterparts, RHA rats display a proactive coping strategy in the face of aversive conditions, associated with higher baseline levels of impulsivity, a more robust sensation/novelty seeking profile, a marked preference for, and intake of, natural and drug rewards along with a greater responsiveness of the mesolimbic dopaminergic system.Aims The behavioral and neurochemical traits that distinguish the two lines/strains suggest that RLA rats may represent a model of vulnerability to stress-induced depression, whereas RHA rats may model resistance to stress-induced depression-like behaviour. To test this hypothesis, in the first study we evaluated the performance of RLA and RHA rats in the FST in response to chronic antidepressant treatments, since clinical evidence indicates that several weeks of treatment with antidepressant drugs are required to achieve an adequate therapeutic response. Furthermore, one of the cardinal symptoms of depression observed in many patients is anhedonia, which is defined as the loss of interest in once enjoyable activities, including sexual activity. Accordingly, depressive episodes are frequently associated with sexual dysfunctions. In consideration of this clinical evidence, and given the well-established role of dopamine in sexual behavior, the second study was aimed at characterizing the sexual behavior of RHA and RLA rats and its correlation with the functional state of their mesolimbic dopaminergic system. In keeping with the long-term consequences on mental health elicited by early-life adverse events, it has been observed that post weaning social isolation in rodents may lead to a later increment in the prevalence of anxiety/fear related behaviors. Thus, in the third study we evaluated the impact of post weaning isolation on the anxiety-related behaviors of inbred RHA and RLA rats in the Elevated Zero Maze, and in motility cages used to asssess locomotor activity in a new environment. Results In study I we demonstrated that chronic treatments with low doses of antidepressants, that were ineffective when given subacutely, were able to decrease immobility and also to increase climbing (desipramine) or swimming (fluoxetine) in RLA rats. Conversely, neither subacute nor chronic antidepressant treatments affected the behavior of RHA rats in the FST. iii In addition, the results of study II showed that, compared with their RLA counterparts, RHA rats displayed higher levels of sexual motivation and a better copulatory performance, associated with a greater release of DA in the AcbSh. These line-related differences were attenuated but not abolished by sexual experience. Moreover, RLA rats were more responsive than their RHA counterparts to both, the facilitatory effect of apomorphine and the inhibitory effect of haloperidol on sexual behavior. Finally, in study III we found that the isolation-rearing procedure significantly increased the level of anxiety of RHA-I rats in the EZM, as reflected by a smaller number of entries and a shorter time spent in the open space, associated with decreased head dipping, increased latency to enter in the open space, and reduced novelty-induced locomotor activation, whereas it failed to produce significant changes in the behavior of RLA-I rats. Conclusions The results of these studies show that the Roman lines/strains of rats may represent a valid experimental approach to investigate the neural substrates and molecular mechanisms involved in the individual vulnerability and resistance to stress-induced depression, with the aim of identifying both, potential biomarkers for an early diagnosis of depression and potential molecular targets for novel antidepressant treatments. Moreover, the Roman lines/strains may be used to study the neurophysiology of the appetitive and consummatory aspects of sexual behaviour, in order to better understand the mechanisms underlying the psychological and pathological causes of sexual dysfunctions. Finally, the Roman rats may provide a useful model to identify the mechanisms whereby early-life adverse events interact with the genetic make up to induce psychiatric disorders in adulthood

Babbo natale giustiziato : le riflessioni di Lévi-Strauss sulla storia culturale di uno dei più complessi ibridi culturali

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Kullervo: Victim of a Failed Education or a Warrior comparable with Herkules? : Artistic Interpretations of the Myth of Kullervo, part I: Elias Lönnrot, Zachris Topelius, Fredrick Cygnaeus, Robert Wilhelm Ekman and Carl Eneas Sjöstrand.

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