The Arab - Norman civil architecture in Palermo: enhancement strategies

This contribution aims to deepen the knowledge of a historical and artistic heritage of the city of Palermo, i.e. the Arab-Norman civil architecture, yet not adequately utilized, despite its importance as a World Heritage Site'. Within the three royal parks (the Old, the New and the Genoardo), the Norman kings built the palaces of Maredolce, Zisa, Cuba and Scibene, always accompanied by water, both as a lake or as a fishpond, whose purpose was primarily hedonistic as well as productive. The transmission of the architectural heritage to the future presupposes its promotion through the creation of an appropriate strategy helping to spread its knowledge and enjoyment. For example, Sicily has few cases of interactivity, that is virtual reality applied to the architectural heritage through multimedia resources in order to "modernize" the cultural offer and the communication with all targets of audience. In many cases indeed, a monument is soon forgotten when it is restored but not integrated into the municipal system. A new interpretation is therefore proposed, based on the relief together with the story of the restorations and the understanding of the building within its urban context, which is compromised by an idea of protection limited only to the emergency

Desarrollo de un chip de DNA para la detección de dianas génicas bacterianas de interés en el campo de la acuicultura

La adquisición bacteriana de multiresistencias frente a antimicrobianos es un fenómeno cada vez más preocupante, con gran repercusión para la salud pública, pero también con impacto en sectores de la producción animal, como es el caso particular de la acuicultura. Entre los años 2010-2012, como objetivo de un Proyecto de Investigación Italiano (Progetti d’interesse Nazionale, PRIN), se realizaron diferentes campañas de muestreo a lo largo de la costa del mar Adriático, en centros dedicados a la acuicultura y áreas costeras, estudiando la incidencia de bacterias multiresistentes, así como de los elementos genéticos móviles responsables de su adquisición, desarrollando además una herramienta biotecnológica que agiliza este tipo de estudios permitiendo detectar 164 dianas génicas en un único soporte. Se obtuvo una colección de 1274 aislados bacterianos, a partir de muestras de agua, sedimento y biofilm, resistentes a las distintas combinaciones de antibióticos utilizados según la legislación italiana. Del total, 105 (8,25%) aislados resultaron ser multiresistentes, detectándose en el 13,59% el integrón de clase I, en el 14,56% el plásmido pAb5s9, en el 5,82% el elemento SXT/R391, y en el 15,52% diferentes combinaciones de estos elementos genéticos. Basándonos en estos resultados, se ha desarrollado y validado un chip de DNA que permite detectar en un mismo soporte, genes que codifican para determinantes de resistencia a antimicrobianos, elementos genéticos móviles (MGE), genes para la detección de especies bacterianas patógenas con repercusión en acuicultura y para la salud del hombre, e indicadores de contaminación fecal.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Quaresma, pláticas morales y panegíricos del ex-jesuita Don Gerónimo Trento. Tomo segundo ;

Sign.: [ ]2, A-2X

Exemplum aliarum litterarum Caesaris ad Sum. Pont.

Incipit: "Beatissime etc. Cum proxime praeteritis diebus divina benignitate feliciter confectis gravissimis illis negotiis, quae partim cum Electoribus ac Principibus..." (fol. 174r)Explicit: "... primo quoque tempore benignum et paternum responsum expectavimus, quam Deus misericors Ecclesiae suae quam diutissime salvam, et incolumen conservet. Datum Spruch, III Martii MDLXIII. Ferdinandus primus Imperator" (fol. 177v)30787E-2 T-5 N-

Exemplum litterarum Caesaris ad S. Pontif., dat. VIII Idus Martii 1563

Incipit: "Secundo congressu inter duos nuntios S.V. et nos, super negotio huius sacri Concilii..." (fol. 173r)Explicit: "... Nam multo plura sunt quam litteris his contineri possint, quibus et litterarum copias quas Principum aliquot Oratores in Concilio, et nobis, dedere annecti voluimus. Datum Oeniponti, VII Idus Martii M.D.LXIII. Ferdinandus primus Imperator" (fol. 173v)30787E-2 T-5 N-

Litterae Principis de Condé ad Caesaream Maiestatem

Incipit: "Invictissime Caesar. Si fere semper sic fieri accepimus ut Regum afflicti casus multorum animos facile alliciant ad misericordiam, et maxime eorum qui Reges sunt..." (fol. 179r)Explicit: "... et late dominantem diutius incolumen tueatur spiritu fortitudinis, prudentiae et constantiae confirmet, et clariossimis victoriis semper magis, ac magis exornet. Aureliae, Cal. Octob. 1562. Vostre trs humbl et trs obeissant serviteur. Louis de Bourbon" (fol. 179r)30787E-2 T-5 N-

Litterae Ferdinandi Imperatoris legatis Concilii Tridentini

Incipit: "Ferdinandus etc. Rmis. etc. Etsi hucusque in eo quo benigna Dei Opt. Max. voluntate constituti sumus loco magnopere semper cavendum, nobis consuevimus ne laudem potius humanam... (fol. 158r)Explicit: "... Plura ad excitandum VV. Rmarum. studium et curam amplectendi optatum... quam diutissime salvas et incolumes conservet. Datum Pragae, 12 Augusti 1562. Legatis in Conc." (fol. 163v)30787E-2 T-5 N-

Silver sulfadiazine eradicates antibiotic-tolerant Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilms in patients with infected diabetic foot ulcers

Infections are among the most frequent and challenging events in diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs). Pathogenic bacteria growing in biofilms within host tissue are highly tolerant to environmental and chemical agents, including antibiotics. The present study was aimed at assessing the use of silver sulfadiazine (SSD) for wound healing and infection control in 16 patients with DFUs harboring biofilm-growing Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. All patients received a treatment based on a dressing protocol including disinfection, cleansing, application of SSD, and application of nonadherent gauze, followed by sterile gauze and tibio-breech bandage, in preparation for toilet surgery after 30 days of treatment. Clinical parameters were analyzed by the T.I.M.E. classification system. In addition, the activity of SSD against biofilm-growing S. aureus and P. aeruginosa isolates was assessed in vitro. A total of 16 patients with S. aureus and P. aeruginosa infected DFUs were included in the study. Clinical data showed a statistically significant (p < 0.002) improvement of patients’ DFUs after 30 days of treatment with SSD with significant amelioration of all the parameters analyzed. Notably, after 30 days of treatment, resolution of infection was observed in all DFUs. In vitro analysis showed that both S. aureus and P. aeruginosa isolates developed complex and highly structured biofilms. Antibiotic susceptibility profiles indicated that biofilm cultures were significantly (p ≤ 0.002) more tolerant to all tested antimicrobials than their planktonic counterparts. However, SSD was found to be effective against fully developed biofilms of both S. aureus and P. aeruginosa at concentrations below those normally used in clinical preparations (10 mg/mL). These results strongly suggest that the topical administration of SSD may represent an effective alternative to conventional antibiotics for the successful treatment of DFUs infected by biofilm-growing S. aureus and P. aeruginosa

Whole Genome Sequencing and Evolutionary Analysis of Human Respiratory Syncytial Virus A and B from Milwaukee, WI 1998-2010

BACKGROUND: Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) is the leading cause of lower respiratory-tract infections in infants and young children worldwide. Despite this, only six complete genome sequences of original strains have been previously published, the most recent of which dates back 35 and 26 years for RSV group A and group B respectively. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We present a semi-automated sequencing method allowing for the sequencing of four RSV whole genomes simultaneously. We were able to sequence the complete coding sequences of 13 RSV A and 4 RSV B strains from Milwaukee collected from 1998-2010. Another 12 RSV A and 5 RSV B strains sequenced in this study cover the majority of the genome. All RSV A and RSV B sequences were analyzed by neighbor-joining, maximum parsimony and Bayesian phylogeny methods. Genetic diversity was high among RSV A viruses in Milwaukee including the circulation of multiple genotypes (GA1, GA2, GA5, GA7) with GA2 persisting throughout the 13 years of the study. However, RSV B genomes showed little variation with all belonging to the BA genotype. For RSV A, the same evolutionary patterns and clades were seen consistently across the whole genome including all intergenic, coding, and non-coding regions sequences. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: The sequencing strategy presented in this work allows for RSV A and B genomes to be sequenced simultaneously in two working days and with a low cost. We have significantly increased the amount of genomic data that is available for both RSV A and B, providing the basic molecular characteristics of RSV strains circulating in Milwaukee over the last 13 years. This information can be used for comparative analysis with strains circulating in other communities around the world which should also help with the development of new strategies for control of RSV, specifically vaccine development and improvement of RSV diagnostics