Il mare che e... Un intervento psicosociale sui giovani autori di reato di Palermo

I progetti di intervento sui minori autori di reato possono creare un utile servizio ad un adeguato percorso rieducativo dei beneficiari, mirato ad una crescita personale e ad un incremento di responsabilit\ue0. Infatti le azioni proposte dai progetti non solo possono creare una rete tra istituzioni e privato-sociale atta a supportare l'intervento della giustizia minorile, ma hanno anche la capacit\ue0 di contribuire alla riduzione del rischio di recidiva e alla promozione del reinserimento sociale dei giovani coinvolti. Questi i presupposti per i quali due associazioni di volontariato e sportive del palermitano, con la supervisione dell'Universit\ue0 degli studi della citt\ue0, per l'estate 2015 hanno proposto all\u2019Istituto Penale per i Minorenni "Malaspina" un progetto avente come strumento lo snorkeling, escursione subacquea che si pratica in acque di bassa profondit\ue0, e come obiettivo quello di favorire l'integrazione sociale dei beneficiari (5 giovani) contrapponendosi alla discriminazione e, ancora, di incrementare nuove capacit\ue0 d'analisi dei processi di sfida e di confronto. Il mare, scenario del progetto, ha ulteriormente stimolato lo sviluppo e la consapevolezza sia delle potenzialit\ue0 del singolo sia delle opportunit\ue0 offerte dal territorio. L'esito positivo del progetto ha esortato alla sua conferma per gli anni successivi e al coinvolgimento di altre associazioni e di altri minori e giovani adulti dell'istituto. L'evento pubblico conclusivo, finalizzato alla conoscenza e alla diffusione dell'iniziativa, ha inoltre contribuito a sensibilizzare i presenti all' esperienza detentiva dei minori e dei giovani adulti ed esortato alla riflessione sul possibile cambiamento degli autori di reato

Observation of the rare decay B+ -> K+π0π0 and measurement of the quasi-two-body contributions B+ -> K*(892)+π0, B+ -> f0(980)K+, and B+ -> χc0K+

We report an analysis of charmless hadronic decays of charged B mesons to the final state K(+) pi(0)pi(0), using a data sample of (470.9 +/- 2.8) x 10(6) B (B) over bar events collected with the BABAR detector at the Y(4S) resonance. We observe an excess of signal events, with a significance above 10 standard deviations including systematic uncertainties, and measure the branching fraction and CP asymmetry to be B(B(+) -> K(+) pi(0)pi(0)) = (16.2 +/- 1.2 +/- 1.5) x 10(-6) and A(CP)(B(+) -> K(+) pi(0)pi(0)) = -0.06 +/- 0.06 +/- 0.04, where the uncertainties are statistical and systematic, respectively. Additionally, we study the contributions of the B(+) -> K*(892)(+) pi(0), B(+) -> f(0)(980)K(+), and B(+) -> chi(c0)K(+) quasi-two-body decays. We report the world's best measurements of the branching fraction and CP asymmetry of the B(+) -> K(+) pi(0)pi(0) and B(+) -> K(+)(892)(+) pi(0) channels

POTENZIALI EVOCATI VISIVI DA FLASH IN GEMELLI IN EPOCA NEONATALE. CORRELAZIONI CON LA ADEGUATEZZA DEL PESO CON LA ETA' GESTAZIONALE (AGA VS SGA)

Neonati AGA, SGA, PE

Development of a biosensor for copper detection in aqueous solutions using an Anemonia sulcata recombinant GFP

Fluorescent proteins from marine organisms represent potential candidates for biosensor development. In this paper, we described the isolation of a native green fluorescent protein from Anemonia sulcata and the cloning and purification of its equivalent as a recombinant protein in Escherichia coli. Furthermore, the spectroscopic behaviours of the native and recombinant GFPs were investigated as a function of Cu2+, Cd2+, Pb 2+ and Ni2+ concentration. Our results suggest the high selectivity of both proteins at copper than the other metals and, for the recombinant protein, a great sensitivity at a very low concentration (0.1-1 μM). Moreover, starting from these data, using the combination of molecular biology techniques and optical setup, we developed a device for the detection of Cu2+ in water solutions. The quenching effect detected with the device showed that the relative attenuation of the signal (0.46±0.02 AU) was slightly larger than the data measured by fluorescence spectra (0.65±0.03 AU). The good sensitivity in the span of two orders of the magnitude of Cu2+ concentration, the fact that the instrument is made up of low-cost and sturdy parts and the selective quenching of rAsGFP to copper ions make this setup suited as a low cost, on-the-field, copper ion-specific biosensor. © 2013 Springer Science+Business Media

Epidemiology of Toxoplasma and CMV serology and of GBS colonization in pregnancy and neonatal outcome in a Sicilian population

Background: Aim of our study is to analyze the immunological status in pregnancy for two main TORCH agents, Toxoplasma and Cytomegalovirus (CMV), and the results of group B streptococcus (GBS) screening, assessing the risk for congenital infection in a population from Palermo, Italy. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed the medical records of all inborn live newborns who were born in our division during 2012, gathering information about the mother, the pregnancy and neonatal hospitalization at birth. Whenever data were available, we categorized the serologic status of the mothers for Toxoplasma and CMV. We also considered the results of rectal and vaginal swabs for GBS. We compared the results in Italian and immigrant mothers. The neonatal outcome was evaluated in all cases at risk. Results: Prevalence of anti-Toxo IgG antibodies was 17.97%, and was significantly higher in immigrant women (30% vs 16.4% in Italian women; p = 0.0008). Prevalence of anti-CMV IgG antibodies was 65.87%. Again, it was significantly higher in immigrant women (91.4% vs 62.5%, p = 3.31e-08). We compared those data with a previous study performed in our hospital in 2005-2006, and found that the prevalence of anti-Toxoplasma and anti-CMV antibodies in our population has remained stable, both in the immigrant and in the local population. Seroconversion rates and neonatal infections were rare: no seroconversions were observed for Toxoplasma, 4 seroconversions for CMV. One neonatal Toxoplasma infection and two neonatal CMV infections were documented. In some cases with dubious patterns or probable persistence of IgM, we performed additional tests and follow-up. Vaginal and rectal swabs were positive for GBS in 7.98% of cases, with no significant difference between the Italian and the immigrant population. No GBS neonatal sepsis was documented. Conclusions: The prevalence of Toxoplasma IgG antibodies in pregnant women was low in our population, if compared with European countries and with other parts of Italy, and is significantly higher in immigrant women. The prevalence of CMV IgG antibodies was intermediate if compared to other countries, and it was higher in immigrant women. GBS positivity was low, and comparable in Italian and immigrant mothers. Neonatal infection was rare for all these agents

Cellular, molecular and functional characterisation of YAC transgenic mouse models of Friedreich Ataxia

Copyright © 2014 Anjomani Virmouni et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.This article has been made available through the Brunel Open Access Publishing Fund.Background - Friedreich ataxia (FRDA) is an autosomal recessive neurodegenerative disorder, caused by a GAA repeat expansion mutation within intron 1 of the FXN gene. We have previously established and performed preliminary characterisation of several human FXN yeast artificial chromosome (YAC) transgenic FRDA mouse models containing GAA repeat expansions, Y47R (9 GAA repeats), YG8R (90 and 190 GAA repeats) and YG22R (190 GAA repeats). Methodology/Principal Findings - We now report extended cellular, molecular and functional characterisation of these FXN YAC transgenic mouse models. FXN transgene copy number analysis of the FRDA mice demonstrated that the YG22R and Y47R lines each have a single copy of the FXN transgene while the YG8R line has two copies. Single integration sites of all transgenes were confirmed by fluorescence in situ hybridisation (FISH) analysis of metaphase and interphase chromosomes. We identified significant functional deficits, together with a degree of glucose intolerance and insulin hypersensitivity, in YG8R and YG22R FRDA mice compared to Y47R and wild-type control mice. We also confirmed increased somatic GAA repeat instability in the cerebellum and brain of YG22R and YG8R mice, together with significantly reduced levels of FXN mRNA and protein in the brain and liver of YG8R and YG22R compared to Y47R. Conclusions/Significance - Together these studies provide a detailed characterisation of our GAA repeat expansion-based YAC transgenic FRDA mouse models that will help investigations of FRDA disease mechanisms and therapy.European Union, Ataxia UK and FARA

Surface activated chemical ionization - Electrospray mass spectrometry in the analysis of urinary thiodiglycolic acid

RATIONALE Thiodiglycolic acid (TDGA) is a urinary metabolite of the oxazaphosphorine class of chemotherapeutics, in particular of ifosfamide. Ifosfamide metabolism generates chloroacetaldehyde (CAA), a toxic compound associated with neurotoxicity, nephrotoxicity, urotoxicity and cardiotoxicity. CAA, in turn, interacts with cellular thiol groups leading to GSH depletion, cell death and generation of thiodiglycolic acid (TDGA), as a final product. TDGA is mainly excreted in the urine. The ability to accurately measure TDGA in urine, therefore, will be a useful way of monitoring the ifosfamide exposure during chemotherapy. METHODS TDGA in urine samples was measured with liquid chromatograpy coupled to mass spectrometry (LC-MS) by means of a novel Surface Activated Chemical Ionization - Electrospray (SACI-ESI) or a classical ESI ion source alone. RESULTS The SACI - ESI and ESI alone based methods for analysis of urinary TDGA were optimized and compared. A strong reduction in matrix effect together with enhanced quantification performances was obtained with the SACI \u2013 ESI when compared with the ESI. In particular, an increase in quantification precision (from 85 to 95%) and accuracy (from 59 to 90%) were observed, which allowed for optimal detection of TDGA. CONCLUSIONS The LC-SACI-ESI-MS approach provides a very sensitive and quantitative method for the analysis of TDGA. Thanks to sensitivity enhancement and matrix effect reduction, the SACI \u2013 ESI enables the use of a relatively low cost ion-trap mass spectrometer in the analysis of this toxicity biomarker in urine. Due to these characteristics, this approach would constitutes an invaluable tool in the clinical laboratory, for measuring TDGA and other toxicity related biomarkers of chemotherapy with proper sensitivity and accuracy

INFN What Next: Ultra-relativistic Heavy-Ion Collisions

This document was prepared by the community that is active in Italy, within INFN (Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare), in the field of ultra-relativistic heavy-ion collisions. The experimental study of the phase diagram of strongly-interacting matter and of the Quark-Gluon Plasma (QGP) deconfined state will proceed, in the next 10-15 years, along two directions: the high-energy regime at RHIC and at the LHC, and the low-energy regime at FAIR, NICA, SPS and RHIC. The Italian community is strongly involved in the present and future programme of the ALICE experiment, the upgrade of which will open, in the 2020s, a new phase of high-precision characterisation of the QGP properties at the LHC. As a complement of this main activity, there is a growing interest in a possible future experiment at the SPS, which would target the search for the onset of deconfinement using dimuon measurements. On a longer timescale, the community looks with interest at the ongoing studies and discussions on a possible fixed-target programme using the LHC ion beams and on the Future Circular Collider.Comment: 99 pages, 56 figure

The Role of Manganese in \u3cem\u3eStreptococcus sanguinis\u3c/em\u3e

Streptococcus sanguinis is primarily associated with oral health as a commensal bacterium. As an opportunistic pathogen, S. sanguinis is capable of colonizing heart valve vegetations, leading to the disease infective endocarditis. Previous studies from our lab have identified the high-affinity manganese transporter SsaACB as important for endocarditis virulence. The impact that manganese depletion has on S. sanguinis had never been evaluated and a secondary manganese transporter has not been identified. Thus, we employed the use of a fermentor to control large-scale growth over time and depleted manganese in an ΔssaACB mutant using a metal chelator, EDTA. The changes in the transcriptome and metabolome of these cells were measured and it was demonstrated that multiple systems were affected. Many of these systems were linked to carbon catabolite repression through CcpA. We found that levels of the glycolytic metabolite fructose-1,6-bisphosphate, a mediator of CcpA-dependent repression, were increased in manganese-depleted cells despite no change in glucose levels. We also evaluated the impact of low pH on the ΔssaACB mutant and found that growth was reduced at pH 6.2. The same pH did not affect the growth of the wild-type SK36 strain. Analysis of both strains in fermentor-grown cultures revealed that reducing the pH affected the manganese levels of cells and again influenced the transcription of multiple systems. Finally, we identified and characterized the secondary manganese transporter, here named TmpA. Here we report that TmpA transports manganese and contributes to endocarditis virulence in several strains of S. sanguinis. We confirmed that manganese is critical for growth and virulence of S. sanguinis and is intricately tied to many systems through its impact on glycolysis. These findings lay the groundwork for future drug development studies targeting either one or both manganese transporters to prevent endocarditis caused by S. sanguinis and related species