Economic growth and corporate renewal

To address competition from Emerging and Industrialized Countries it is necessary for Italian companies to face structural and financial reforms. Structural reforms will affect and improve processes, products. They will upgrade knowledge transfer. At the same time, financial reforms are necessary to adjust firms’ dimensions with what markets and international competition require. A movement in the right direction is the rise of innovative medium firms. These corporations are spreading through affiliation networks which improve the systemic efficiency and that are responsible for the progressive deep changes in the industry. Italy’s growth strategy will call for appropriate industrial policies and supported by a widespread socioeconomic consensus.internationalization, technological change, international trade, emerging countries.

EVOLUTION AND CONSERVATION OF PLANT SPECIES ENDEMIC TO THE MEDITERRANEAN BASIN

Evolution and conservation are two aspects deeply interconnected: knowing the processes that drive the former, enables better management of the latter. Improve the knowledge about the vulnerability and future perspective for the species is indispensable to preserve the processes that generate biodiversity and thus biodiversity itself. In this thesis, I investigated some Mediterranean endemic plant species, using an integrated study method, to assess their evolution and propose appropriate management strategies. Indeed, the lack of indepth taxonomic knowledge, which does not consider biological and ecological aspects, makes species delimitation difficult and consequently slows down the proper conservation and protection. I aimed at: (a) providing information on Santolina genus that is taxonomically complex, to better understand plant evolution in the Mediterranean Basin and (b) assessing extinction risk of endemism to better manage conservation actions, decreasing risk and increasing cost effectiveness. The investigation of Santolina genus, conducted using mainly phylogenetic analysis and ecological niche models, enriched considerably our knowledge of the relationships among species, shedding light on the processes that led to a current species framework. Additionally, the results demonstrated that in groups with taxonomic complexity an integrated study approach, based on the use of different and independent evidence, may provide important information to solve taxonomic problems. Ecological niche models are a valid tool to assess extinction risk of species, providing information on crucial aspects of species distribution. Indeed, I used them to get information on the factors influencing the distribution of species and on the cost-effectiveness of assisted colonization and other conservation translocations

GRENADES OR LITTLE VESSELS? ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND ARCHAEOMETRIC DATA ABOUT THE ODD ARTEFACTS FROM THE ANCIENT BORN MARKET (BARCELONA, SPAIN)

In this communication, we present the archaeological and archaeometric results on a collection of 188 ceramic receptacles from the archaeological excavations carried out in the old Born market of Barcelona (Spain). The market was converted in a cultural centre and officially opened in September 2013. The centre’s key attraction is its archaeology which has been re- imagined to communicate the horrors following the fall of Barcelona to Bourbon siege during the Spanish War of Succession in 1714. These artefacts had been published in a former study as small vessels to sell products in little quantities. However, due to the scarce information on materials of similar shape and dimensions, their interpretation is not clear and need more investigation. The archaeological comparative study demonstrates that these small ceramic receptacles can be better interpreted as grenades. They had probably been prepared with the aim of using them in an extreme attempt of defence against the Bourbon attack. The complementary archaeometric investigation suggests that the assemblage is formed by a homogeneous production made with a calcareous clay from local marine sediments

Streptococcus suis, an Emerging Drug-Resistant Animal and Human Pathogen

Streptococcus suis, a major porcine pathogen, has been receiving growing attention not only for its role in severe and increasingly reported infections in humans, but also for its involvement in drug resistance. Recent studies and the analysis of sequenced genomes have been providing important insights into the S. suis resistome, and have resulted in the identification of resistance determinants for tetracyclines, macrolides, aminoglycosides, chloramphenicol, antifolate drugs, streptothricin, and cadmium salts. Resistance gene-carrying genetic elements described so far include integrative and conjugative elements, transposons, genomic islands, phages, and chimeric elements. Some of these elements are similar to those reported in major streptococcal pathogens such as Streptococcus pyogenes, Streptococcus pneumoniae, and Streptococcus agalactiae and share the same chromosomal insertion sites. The available information strongly suggests that S. suis is an important antibiotic resistance reservoir that can contribute to the spread of resistance genes to the above-mentioned streptococci. S. suis is thus a paradigmatic example of possible intersections between animal and human resistomes

Primary Adrenal Leiomyosarcoma: a Case Report and Literature Review

The case presented here illustrates a 75 year old female patient who underwent surgical resection of a right adrenal mass of uncertain nature. The final histological diagnosis was consistent with leiomyosarcoma arising from the adrenal anatomic site

Clúster Lechero Regional : una red que promueve el desarrollo inclusivo y sustentable

Surgió en 2008 como un espacio de integración e intercambio de saberes entre productores y, actualmente, reúne 662 tambos de las provincias de Santa Fe, Santiago del Estero y Córdoba. El aporte del INTA y el acceso a herramientas financieras y de innovación potenciaron la actividad.Gerencia de Comunicación Institucional, DG SICyP, INTAFil: Varaldo, Estefanía. Clúster Lechero Regional; Argentin

Solitary fibrous tumor

Solitary fibrous tumor (SFT) is a rare mesenchymal neoplasm which may be found everywhere in the body. It is now distinguished into two forms, pleural and extrapleural, which morphologically resemble each other. Abdominal localizations are quite rare, with 10 cases only reported in bladder; rarely they can be source of paraneoplastic syndromes (i.e., hypoglycemia secondary to insulin-like growth factor). In April 2006 a 74-year-old white male presented with chills, diaphoresis and acute abdominal pain with hematuria. At admission in emergency he underwent an abdominal Xray (no pathological findings) and an ultrasound examination of the kidneys and urinary tract, which revealed a pelvic hyperechogenic neoformation measuring approximately 10×8×7 cm, compressing the bladder. Blood chemistry at admission revealed only a mild neutrophilic leucocytosis (WBC 16600, N 80%, L 11%), elevated fibrinogen and ESR, and hypoglycemia (38 mg/dL). Macro scopic hematuria was evident, while urinocolture was negative. Contrast enhanced CT scan of the abdomen and pelvic region revealed a large round neoformation dislocating the bladder, with an evident contrast-enhanced periphery and a central necrotic area. Continuous infusion of glucose 5% solution was necessary in order to maintain blood glucose levels above 50 mg/dL. The patient underwent complete surgical resection of an ovoidal mass coated by adipose tissue, with well delimited margins; histological findings were consistent with solitary fibrous tumor (SFT). Hypoglycemia resolved completely with removal of the growth. In this case report we describe a SFT growing in the bladder, a quite rare localization, which presented a unique hypoglycemia. In contrast to the majority of cases reported in the literature, the behavior of this SFT was not aggressive, and, since the patient is still alive, surgical resection was considered conclusive

Prophage association of mef(A) elements encoding efflux-mediated erythromycin resistance in Streptococcus pyogenes.

OBJECTIVES: To compare different mef(A) elements of Streptococcus pyogenes for a possible chimeric genetic nature, i.e. a transposon inserted into a prophage. METHODS: Eleven S. pyogenes isolates with efflux-mediated erythromycin resistance were used. The isolates were typed using several genotypic approaches. Gene detection was performed by PCR using specific primer pairs. The mef(A) elements of the test strains were induced with mitomycin C and phage DNA was extracted. Induction was monitored by PCR using primers targeting mef(A). RESULTS: Six tetracycline-susceptible isolates had PCR evidence of all of the eight open reading frames (ORFs) of the Tn1207.1 element; their mef(A) element was consistent with the Tn1207.3 element in four isolates and with the 58.8 kb chimeric element in two. Five tetracycline-resistant isolates had no PCR evidence of orf1 and orf2 and showed variable patterns as to orf3, orf7, and orf8. Three ORFs placed along the conserved region downstream of Tn1207.1 in the 58.8 kb mef(A) chimeric element were detected in the six tetracycline-susceptible, but not in the five tetracycline-resistant isolates. Induction assays with mitomycin C demonstrated that the mef(A) elements of all strains tested were present in culture supernatants in a DNAse-resistant form, such as a phage capsid. CONCLUSIONS: All recognized mef(A) elements of S. pyogenes appear to be prophage-associated. Whereas the two elements detected in tetracycline-susceptible isolates (Tn1207.3 and the 58.8 kb one) were apparently inserted into the same prophage, the tet(O)-mef(A) element was inserted into a different prophage. Phage transfer is likely to play a critical role in the dissemination of erythromycin resistance in S. pyogenes populations