Transport certifications of cattle moved from France to Southern Italy and Greece: do they comply with Reg. EC 1/2005?

Movements of livestock across the Member States is monitored using the Trade Control and Expert System (TRACES), a web-based veterinarian certification tool. This study aimed to evaluate the criticalities of this tracing system and the most frequent non-conformities in their compilation. TRACES of cattle (n = 320) departed from France and arriving or transiting across Puglia (Italy) in 2019 (n = 199) and 2020 (n = 121) were analysed. The distribution arriving in Italy and Greece did not vary between the 2 years. The majority of the bovine (53.4%) were medium-sized cattle transported for fattening with a median body weight of 410 kg. However, almost half of the TRACES did not report correctly the total expected loaded weight or the available space, so for them, it was impossible to calculate and double-check whether the minimal space allowance was respected. Long journeys must include a resting stop after the first 14 h, however, 20.9% of the examined and declared stops did not comply with it. Finally, comparing the expected declared journey duration with a calculated one (dividing travel distance by an average speed of 70 km/h, adding 1 h for loading and unloading, and 1 h or 24 h for resting stops), we found that only 30.6% of the journey durations were congruent. The irregularities resulted associated with consignors and transporters (p < .05). Overall, the proportion of mistakes and non-compliance suggest that there is a need to improve the current practice to enhance animal welfare during transportation

La gestione della malattia online: il supporto degli “amici rarissimi”

Le malattie rare sono accomunate dall’essere destabilizzanti, costringono chi ne è affetto a mettere in discussione progetti di costruzione dell’identità personale e sociale. Per fronteggiare la solitudine, il ricorso a gruppi di sostegno online è una valida strategia di coping, perché induce le persone a condividere le problematiche e a dare/ricevere sostegno emotivo (Wallace, 2017). Per il malato raro tali interazioni virtuali comportano una crescita della resilienza, riconducibile alle risorse di senso offerte dai racconti, che consentono di (ri)pensare e (ri)costruire eventi (Valsiner, 2017). Questo lavoro vuole indagare come i gruppi di Facebook sorreggono le persone nel superare la condizione di solitudine. Nel dettaglio sono stati esaminati 300 “post” e i loro rispettivi 1350 “commenti” di Facebook provenienti da 15 gruppi chiusi sulla malattia rara. I testi sono stati analizzati con procedure quanti/qualitative, con strumenti interpretativi quali Sentiment Analysis attraverso il software Semantria, Analisi del contenuto attraverso il T-Lab sofware e Analisi del Discorso attraverso il Modello SAM (Mininni, 2017). Dalla triangolazione delle metodologie è emerso come i post a focalità emotiva prevalgano su quelli a focalità informative. Le persone sperimentano empowerment presentandosi più resilienti e più positivi nel fronteggiare la malattia. I gruppi online, quindi, integrano i bisogni di self-disclosure con le dinamiche di mutuo supporto. I malati rari accrescono il senso di fiducia in sé e le capacità di controllo: mettere in rete la narrazione della propria malattia rara consente non solo di percepirsi meno soli, ma di esperire la certezza di essere utili ai propri “simili”

“I DON’T ACTUALLY KNOW WHO I AM AND WHERE I AM FROM”: CULTURAL TEXTURE OF Q&A WEBSITE AS DIALOGICAL COMMUNITY

Abstract: New media connect people with the world, allow them to transcend temporal and spatial distances in communication and provide a sphere for self-presentation. The users of Computer-Mediated Communication (CMC) may feel enjoyment presenting their social image and building up social interaction with other online fellows. In the last years, the large use of social ‘question and answer’ websites (Q&A) has changed the sphere of inter-cultural exchanges, promoting enjoyment. Specifically, we conjecture that online self-disclosure may increase opportunities to present social identity and redefine intercultural exchange boundaries. Focused on Quora.com website, the main objectives of the present study are: a) to investigate how the use of self-presentation and self-disclosure strategies on Q&A website facilitate cross-cultural communication; b) to detect the role of modulation expressions in the intercultural mediated interactions and in the acculturation processes. These goals can be achieved through Critical Discourse Analysis and Dia-textual analysis to analyse websites’ texts, phrases, strengths, idioms, and lexical forms. The results of present study show that Q&A websites promote sense-making processes and weave intercultural communication based on the respect

‘I don’t actually know who I am and where I am from’: Cultural texture of Q&A website as dialogical community

New media connect people with the world, allow them to transcend temporal and spatial distances in communication and provide a sphere for self-presentation. The users of Computer-Mediated Communication (CMC) may feel enjoyment presenting their social image and building up social interaction with other online fellows. In the last years, the large use of social ‘question and answer’ websites (Q&A) has changed the sphere of inter-cultural exchanges, promoting enjoyment. Specifically, we conjecture that online self-disclosure may increase opportunities to present social identity and redefine intercultural exchange boundaries. Focused on Quora.com website, the main objectives of the present study are: a) to investigate how the use of self-presentation and self-disclosure strategies on Q&A website facilitate cross-cultural communication; b) to detect the role of modulation expressions in the intercultural mediated interactions and in the acculturation processes. These goals can be achieved through Critical Discourse Analysis and Dia-textual analysis to analyse websites’ texts, phrases, strengths, idioms, and lexical forms. The results of present study show that Q&A websites promote sense-making processes and weave intercultural communication based on the respect

Description of an Equine Hepacivirus Cluster in a Horse Stable in Italy

Equine hepacivirus (EqHV), also known as Hepacivirus A, represents the most closely related genetic homologue of human hepatitis C virus (HCV). Although detected worldwide, limited information on the clinical features of this infection is available and on the mechanisms by which EqHV is transmitted. In this study, we describe a spread of infection of EqHV that occurred in a small stable of horses in southern Italy. The RNA of EqHV was detected in 6/13 (46.2%) sera of the horses introduced into the herd, at different times, over a period of approximately one year. Based on the sequencing analyses of genomic portions located in the NS5B, 5 ' UTR, and NS3 genes, the viruses detected in the animals were genetically highly related (100% nt identity) to each other. The nearly full-length genome of the virus identified from two horses was generated. For one animal with a profile of chronic infection, the genome sequence was determined with a 7-month interval, revealing 26nt changes resulting in 11 nonsynonymous intrahost nucleotide variations. Overall, based on the epidemiological information, we support the hypothesis that horizontal transmission occurred in the herd

Combining L-Arginine with vitamin C improves long-COVID symptoms: The LINCOLN Survey

Recent evidence suggests that oxidative stress and endothelial dysfunction play critical roles in the pathophysiology of COVID-19 and Long-COVID. We hypothesized that a supplementation combining L-Arginine (to improve endothelial function) and Vitamin C (to reduce oxidation) could have favorable effects on Long-COVID symptoms