Evaluating the Improvement of Quality of Life in Rural Areas

The research starts from the necessity to create specific tools for evaluating the impacts of rural development policies on fragile areas. The study is motivated by the need for developing an appropriate evaluation method that leads to gather meaningful information for a broader understanding of the quality of life in rural areas, including the subjective well-being’s dimensions and its determinants and feeds the policy designs on this specific domain. The multidimensional nature of quality of life is a main challenge in terms of evaluation. Indeed, within the Rural Development Programmes 2007-2013, the enhancement of the quality of life in rural areas is one of the major strategic objectives to be addressed by a menu of measures. Selections of some current literature on the multidimensional nature of quality of life have been used as conceptual basis for analysing the extent to which the European evaluation framework for rural development programmes (EC 1999, 2006, 2010) - based on the intervention logic model, the use of economic indicators and evaluative questions - is able to capture the relevant dimensions of well-being rural people’s lives. A part of the research is based on the analysis of ex-post evaluations carried out in Italy. The evaluations are expected to assess the improvement of quality of life in rural areas as effect of programmes’ implementation. The paper provides two different experiences of quantification of quality of life in rural area: a synthetic measure of marginality as a proxy of quality of life indicators (in Piedmont) and a synthetic index of quality of life (in Emilia Romagna). The paper proposes a wider integrated evaluation approach to be used in the context of the evaluation of impacts of rural development programmes, that through the combined utilization of quantitative and qualitative indicators and additional evaluative questions, allows a more comprehensive assessment of quality of life in rural areas.evaluation, quality of life, marginality, qualitative indicators, Agricultural and Food Policy, O180,

Farm Advisory Services for the Agro-Food Supply Chain as a Foster of Innovation: The Case of Veneto Region

 The aim of this study is to analyze the potentiality of the extension services in agriculture, to mainstream innovation in terms of sectoral competitiveness, when integrated into the agro-food supply chain. In doing this, the case of Venetian agriculture will give empirical evidence to the assumptions of this study, serving the identification of key factors, related to the use of extension services integrated into the so-called Integrated Supply Chain Projects (ISCPs), which are emerging as influential for the performance of the agro-food chain. In principle, the extension services are integrated within the entire agricultural knowledge system, which encloses several activities such as research and experimentation, vocational training, advisory and information. In the context of the Rural Development Policy, the farm advisory services are implemented through the measures 114 "Using farm advisory services" and 124 "Cooperation for development of new products, process and technologies", included in the Rural Development Programmes (RDPs). The present study focuses on the observed benefits that such measures deliver when integrated into the ISCPs, by adding value to the entire agro-food chain and bettering its performance. In fact, the systemic approach to the implementation of the research and of farm advisory services into the ISCPs seems to enhance their own potentiality to increase the entrepreneurial performance and contribute to create a competitive advantage for the entire agro-food chain. In Italy, within the RDP 2007-2013, the ISCPs are foreseen as an instrument for better achieve the increase of competitiveness of the agricultural and forestry sector, the improvement of the quality and the marketing of the productions; create and consolidate the value chain as a whole, by balancing the profit margins of each single segment. To this end, several Italian RDPs foresee the opportunity for a partnership involving different economic actors playing a role in the agro-food chain to define such project in view of achieving an overall common strategic objective. Each integrated supply chain project is set up through the implementation of several measures, which are supposed to contribute to the achievement of that overall objective. For the purpose of this study, a desk research has been carried out mainly on the fiche of the measures foreseen by the RDPs and by the tender documentation. The information gathered regard basically the type and the matter of the advisory services and of the research implemented by the measures, the number of beneficiaries achieved, the financial resources committed, and some result indicators (i.e: number of enterprises supported starting a new processes or realizing a new product; productive segment covered by the support; quality production; increase of the gross value added for the value chain). These information led mapping the model of an integrated supply chain project and identifying the different factors influencing the performance of the agro-food chain

La valutazione on-going dei Programmi di Sviluppo Rurale 2007-20131

The on-going evaluation is established as part of Rural Development Programmes 2007-13 (RDPs) and includes the ex-ante, mid-term, ex-post evaluations and all the other activities which the Managing Authorities (MAs) consider useful for improving quality, efficiency and effectiveness of the programme. The Common Monitoring and Evaluation Framework (CMEF) provides a comprehensive set of guidance documents on the general principles, tasks and governance of evaluations, measure fiches, common evaluation questions, common indicators and their choice, definition and use. The Italian experience is that, beyond accountability purposes, the on-going evaluation support the continuous learning on the programme implementation and the capacity building of the MAs

The first-in-class alkylating deacetylase inhibitor molecule tinostamustine shows antitumor effects and is synergistic with radiotherapy in preclinical models of glioblastoma

Background: The use of alkylating agents such as temozolomide in association with radiotherapy (RT) is the therapeutic standard of glioblastoma (GBM). This regimen modestly prolongs overall survival, also if, in light of the still dismal prognosis, further improvements are desperately needed, especially in the patients with O6- methylguanine-DNA-methyltransferase (MGMT) unmethylated tumors, in which the benefit of standard treatment is less. Tinostamustine (EDO-S101) is a first-in-class alkylating deacetylase inhibitor (AK-DACi) molecule that fuses the DNA damaging effect of bendamustine with the fully functional pan-histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitor, vorinostat, in a completely new chemical entity. Methods: Tinostamustine has been tested in models of GBM by using 13 GBM cell lines and seven patient-derived GBM proliferating/stem cell lines in vitro. U87MG and U251MG (MGMT negative), as well as T98G (MGMT positive), were subcutaneously injected in nude mice, whereas luciferase positive U251MG cells and patient-derived GBM stem cell line (CSCs-5) were evaluated the orthotopic intra-brain in vivo experiments. Results: We demonstrated that tinostamustine possesses stronger antiproliferative and pro-apoptotic effects than those observed for vorinostat and bendamustine alone and similar to their combination and irrespective of MGMT expression. In addition, we observed a stronger radio-sensitization of single treatment and temozolomide used as control due to reduced expression and increased time of disappearance of γH2AX indicative of reduced signal and DNA repair. This was associated with higher caspase-3 activation and reduction of RT-mediated autophagy. In vivo, tinostamustine increased time-to-progression (TTP) and this was additive/synergistic to RT. Tinostamustine had significant therapeutic activity with suppression of tumor growth and prolongation of DFS (disease-free survival) and OS (overall survival) in orthotopic intra-brain models that was superior to bendamustine, RT and temozolomide and showing stronger radio sensitivity. Conclusions: Our data suggest that tinostamustine deserves further investigation in patients with glioblastoma

Locus coeruleus complex of the family Delphinidae

The locus coeruleus (LC) is the largest catecholaminergic nucleus and extensively projects to widespread areas of the brain and spinal cord. The LC is the largest source of noradrenaline in the brain. To date, the only examined Delphinidae species for the LC has been a bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus). In our experimental series including different Delphinidae species, the LC was composed of five subdivisions: A6d, A6v, A7, A5, and A4. The examined animals had the A4 subdivision, which had not been previously described in the only Delphinidae in which this nucleus was investigated. Moreover, the neurons had a large amount of neuromelanin in the interior of their perikarya, making this nucleus highly similar to that of humans and non-human primates. This report also presents the first description of neuromelanin in the cetaceans' LC complex, as well as in the cetaceans' brain

Systemic Lupus Erythematosus with and without Anti-dsDNA Antibodies: Analysis from a Large Monocentric Cohort

Objectives. The anti-dsDNA antibodies are a marker for Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) and 70–98% of patients test positive. We evaluated the demographic, clinical, laboratory, and therapeutical features of a monocentric SLE cohort according to the antidsDNA status. Methods. We identified three groups: anti-dsDNA + (persistent positivity); anti-dsDNA ± (initial positivity and subsequent negativity during disease course); anti-dsDNA − (persistent negativity). Disease activity was assessed by the European Consensus Lupus Activity Measurement (ECLAM). Results. We evaluated 393 patients (anti-dsDNA +: 62.3%; anti-dsDNA ±: 13.3%; anti-dsDNA −: 24.4%). The renal involvement was signifiantly more frequent in anti-dsDNA + (30.2%), compared with antidsDNA ± and anti-dsDNA − (21.1% and 18.7%, resp.; = 0.001). Serositis resulted signifiantly more frequent in anti-dsDNA − (82.3%) compared to anti-dsDNA + and anti-dsDNA ± (20.8% and 13.4%, resp.; < 0.0001). Th reduction of C4 serum levels was identified significantly more frequently in anti-dsDNA + and anti-dsDNA ± (40.0% and 44.2%, resp.) compared with antidsDNA − (21.8%, = 0.005). We did not identify significant differences in the mean ECLAM values before and after modifiation of anti-dsDNA status ( = 0.7). Conclusion. Anti-dsDNA status influences the clinical and immunological features of SLE patients. Nonetheless, it does not appear to affect disease activity