The right to the city to contrast the decay of urban spaces : the architectural upgrade of Corso Garibaldi railway station, in Naples

Deep changes in urban frameworks, challenge contemporary cities, where often, common spaces formerly central, risk an indissoluble physical degradation, due to processes of social marginalization. Architects are asked to face the developmental dynamics for spaces of anonymity, every day more numerous, working on previous attitudes as aggregation and relation junctions. Moving from the description of the design criteria that inform the rehabilitation for the ancient area of Corso Garibaldi in Naples, the paper introduces a critical thinking about the links between space’ performances and attitudes towards inclusivity. Urban and architectural solutions are privileged means in order to return to citizenship the right to public space, reaffirming the concept of common space as dwelling, residence of the community, with the creation of new social ties and the growth of local shared identities.Peer Reviewe

An existence theory for superposition operators of mixed order subject to jumping nonlinearities

We consider a superposition operator of the form $$\int_{[0, 1]} (-\Delta)^s u\, d\mu(s),$$ for a signed measure $\mu$ on the interval of fractional exponents $[0,1]$, joined to a nonlinearity whose term of homogeneity equal to one is "jumping", i.e. it may present different coefficients in front of the negative and positive parts. The signed measure is supposed to possess a positive contribution coming from the higher exponents that overcomes its negative contribution (if any). The problem taken into account is also of "critical" type, though in this case the critical exponent needs to be carefully selected in terms of the signed measure $\mu$. Not only the operator and the nonlinearity considered here are very general, but our results are new even in special cases of interest and include known results as particular subcases. The possibility of considering operators "with the wrong sign" is also a complete novelty in this setting

Dal Mediterraneo al Mar Rosso: la cristianizzazione della città-porto di Adulis e la diffusione di modelli e manufatti bizantini

Until late Antiquity the Red Sea represented a commercial artery of extraordinary importance, linking the Mediterranean to the Indian Ocean, the Arabian Peninsula and the Horn of Africa. In connection with the early spread of Christianity, recent studies have emphasized the role played by foreign communities of Christian merchants settled in the city-ports, as a precedent to the official adoption of the Christian faith. In Adulis (Eritrea), the main port city of the kingdom of Aksum, since 2011 an Italian-Eritrean mission is bringing to light two early Christian churches, one of which from the second half of the 4th century. The article aims to present the recent excavation data, evaluating the possible models and areas of influence in the plans; also, liturgical furnishing in proconnesian marble and gold crosses with Greek inscriptions represent significant markers of valuable products from the Byzantine Empire circulating wide-ranging by the sea

Defence heritage in a state of ruin: the archaeometric study of della Fava castle in Sardinia (Italy)

Defence heritage has always had a dominating presence in the landscape. It speaks of the passing of time in various countries, and it is a witness to a complex system of relationships between fortified architecture and documenting local materials and techniques. Innumerable researches have been carried out to study these ruined structures frequently without evaluating their valuable chronological role of ‘benchmark’ in the landscape. In Sardinia these studies, principally related to the dating, history and evolution of this heritage, are complicated by the lack of documented sources and by the small number of castles and ruins still available. The present research contributes to more insight in this field, reflecting on the study of medieval fortified heritage, which is in a state of ruin in north-east of Sardinia (12th–13th centuries), and it proposes an interdisciplinary protocol of research for this architecture. The object is the investigation of the ‘della fava’ castle (Posada), which represents one of the most important defensive architectural systems on the coast. Its structures have been studied in depth through a series of archaeometric analyses, based on surveys, typological, architectural and construction techniques, as well as petro-mineralogical inspection, with the purpose of reconstructing dimensional, material and constructive aspects of the traditional masonry techniques. This article allows to achieve two different aims: (1) to understand how a structure is made and consequently to define the correct conservation and design project; and (2) to identify typological and dimensional constants that referred to a specific geological context and period; these constants can be a useful tool for comparing and dating coeval structures, such as ‘minor architecture’, that are difficult to date

Impact of standardization in tissue processing: the performance of different fixatives

Most tissues in clinical practice are formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded for histological as well as molecular analyses. The reproducibility and uniformity of molecular analyses is strictly dependent on the quality of the biomolecules, which is highly influenced by pre-analytical processes. In this study, the effect of different fixatives was compared, including formalin, Bouin's solution, RCL2® and TAG-1™ fixatives, by stringent application of ISO standards in mouse liver tissue processing, including formalin-free transport of tissues and tissue grossing in a refrigerated environment. The effect of fixatives was studied in terms of nucleic acid quality at the time of tissue processing and after one year of tissue storage at room temperature in the dark. Furthermore, a microcomputed tomography (CT) scan analysis was applied to investigate the paraffin embedding. The results show that the application of ISO standards in tissue processing allows analysis of 400 bases amplicons from RNA and 1000 bases from DNA, even in extracts from formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded tissues. However, after one year storage at room temperature in the dark, a degradation of the nucleic acids was observed. Nevertheless, extracts can still be analyzed, but for metachronous tests it is highly recommended to repeat the quantitation of housekeeping genes in order to standardize the extent of nucleic acid degradation

Lack of germline A339V mutation in thyroid transcription factor-1 (TITF-1/NKX2.1) gene in familial papillary thyroid cancer

Thyroid cancer may have a familial predisposition but a specific germline alteration responsible for the disease has not been discovered yet. We have shown that familial papillary thyroid cancer (FPTC) patients have an imbalance in telomere-telomerase complex with short telomeres and increased telomerase activity. A germline mutation (A339V) in thyroid transcription factor-1 has been described in patients with multinodular goiter and papillary thyroid cancer. In this report, the presence of the A339V mutation and the telomere length has been studied in FPTC patients and unaffected family members. All samples analyzed displayed a pattern typical of the homozygous wild type revealing the absence of the A339V mutation. Shortening of telomeres was confirmed in all patients. We concluded that the A339V mutation in thyroid transcription factor-1 (TITF-1/NKX2.1) is not correlated with the familial form of PTC, even when the tumor was in the context of multinodular goiter

QSAR Model for Cytotoxicity of Silica Nanoparticles on Human Embryonic Kidney Cells1

Abstract A predictive model for cytotoxicity of 20 and 50 nm silica nanoparticles has been built using so-called optimal descriptors as mathematical functions of size, concentration and exposure time. These parameters have been encoded into 31 combinations 'concentration-exposure-size'. The calculation has been carried out by means of the CORAL software ( http://www.insilico.eu/coral/ ) using three random splits of the obtained systems into training and test sets. The statistical quality of the best model for cell viability (%) of cultured human embryonic kidney cells (HEK293) exposed to different concentrations of silica nanoparticles measured by MTT assay is satisfactory

Current and historical genetic variability of native brown trout populations in a southern alpine ecosystem: implications for future management

The highly polymorphic taxon European brown trout (genus Salmo) has high phenotypic plasticity, displaying a complex pattern of morphological and life-history variation, contributing to taxonomic confusion. Three main mitochondrial lineages (Adriatic, Mediterranean, and marmoratus) developed during the Pleistocene climatic events in the southern Alpine ecosystem. Here, the natural distribution of native brown trout S. trutta is controversial, complicated by introductions of the Atlantic strain. By investigating museum vouchers, this study aimed to retrace the historical presence of brown trout in the southern Alpine ecosystem before the beginning of mass introductions, which occurred since the middle of the 19th century. By examining the combination of historical and current genetic variability, this study aims to depict the actual impact of introductions of the introduced strain, increasing knowledge and informing conservation strategies and future management plans. The molecular approaches selected were: (i) sequencing of the mitochondrial control region and (ii) genotyping of the nuclear gene LDH-C1*. Vouchers dated the presence of the native Adriatic strain since 1821, while current genetic variability showed the widespread signature of introgression, a consequence of several decades of introductions. Focused plans to preserve local lineages are urgently needed, including short-term solution to avoid complete pauperization of this ecosystem

El mantenimiento para las "Estaciones del Arte" en Nápoles

Las “Estaciones del Arte” nacen a partir de un proyecto promovido por la Administración Municipal de Nápoles, junto con la Empresa Metronapoli, para realizar un plan estratégico de fomento y localizar en la línea 1 el eje portador de la movilidad con la construcción de nuevas estaciones, que se convierten en ocasión de recualificación urbana para algunos puntos neurálgicos de la ciudad. De las 34 estaciones del Sistema Metronapoli, 13 son aquellas definidas como “Estaciones del Arte”, 9 de la línea uno (Tab. 1) y 4 de la línea seis, diseñadas por: Óscar Tusquets Blanca, Karim Rashid, Atelier Mendini, Gae Aulenti, Domenico Orlacchio, Michele Capobianco y Renato Miano. La propuesta de los proyectistas de acuerdo con el crítico de arte Achille Bonito Oliva, encargado por el Ayuntamiento de Nápoles de la dirección artística, ha transformado los espacios de tránsito de las estaciones en lugares de encuentro con el arte contemporáneo para los ciudadanos que diariamente utilizan las líneas 1 y 6. Se trata de una asignación insólita del arte, en un lugar de paso, definido a menudo como “non luogo” del transporte público, que se vuelve una escenografía de una operación cultural de gran envergadura, en la que se ven implicados los nombres más importantes del arte contemporáneo. Con su patrimonio artístico compuesto por unas 200 obras realizadas por 95 artistas Metronapoli constituye un ejemplo único de museo descentrado y distribuido en el área urbana, que exprime el deseo de querer interactuar e integrarse con el territorio, contribuyendo no solamente a mejorar la movilidad urbana sino también a dar un valor adicional a la ciudad desde el punto de vista ético y estético, e incidiendo en el ámbito socio-cultural. Con este proyecto, el arte contemporáneo encuentra una amplia difusión en la capital de la región Campania desde el año 1995, cuando por entonces la administración promovió un proyecto denominado «gli Annali delle Arti» y otras iniciativas dirigidas a un público a menudo poco atraído por este género de arte.Tópico 2: Patrimonio Arquitectónico, Ingenieril y Arqueológico (urbano, rural, industrial, religioso, funerario). Construcciones en Tierra. Intervenciones en construcciones con patologías estructurales (aplicación de refuerzos). Técnicas de limpieza y conservación. Sostenibilidad (iluminación, ventilación, acústica, climatización, etc.) Biodeterioro del Patrimonio y técnicas de intervención sobre distintos sustratos

Changes in inflammatory biomarkers in HCV-infected patients undergoing direct acting antiviral-containing regimens with or without interferon

Background and aims Increased levels of chemokine interferon-gamma (IFN-γ)-inducible protein-10 (CXCL10), soluble CD163 (sCD163) and soluble CD14 (sCD14) have been reported in HCV infection. The aim of this study was to compare, sCD163 and sCD14 levels in HCV-infected patients undergoing direct acting antiviral (DAA)-containing regimens with or without interferon (IFN). Methods sCD163, sCD14 and CXCL10 were longitudinally measured by ELISA in 159 plasma samples from 25 HCV-infected patients undergoing IFN-based treatment plus telaprevir or boceprevir and 28 HCV infected subjects treated with DAA IFN-free regimens. Twenty-five healthy donors (HD) were included as controls. Results At baseline CXCL10, sCD163 and sCD14 levels were higher in HCV-infected patients than in HD. CXCL10 and sCD163 levels were significantly decreased in responder (R) patients who achieved sustained virological response (SVR), with both IFN-based and IFN-free regimens, while they were persistently elevated in non-responders (NR) patients who stopped IFN-based treatments because of failure or adverse events. Conversely, sCD14 levels were apparently unchanged during therapy, but at the end of treatment the levels reached normal ranges. Comparing the two regimens, the extent of CXCL10 reduction was more pronounced in patients undergoing DAA IFN-free therapies, whereas sCD163 and sCD14 reduction was similar in the two groups. Interestingly, only in IFN-based regimens baseline sCD163 levels were significantly higher in NR than in R patients, while in the IFN-free treatment group also patients with highsCD163 plasma levels obtained SVR. At the end of therapy, even if the biomarkers were largely decreased, their levels remained significantly higher compared to HD. Only in the early fibrosis stages, sCD163 values tended to normalize. Conclusions These results indicate that IFN-free regimens including newer DAA induce an early and marked decrease in circulating inflammatory biomarkers. However, the full normalization of biomarkers was not obtained, especially in patients with advanced fibrosis, thus underlying the need for a treatment in the early stages of HCV infection