The academic network in the sector of psychology as a strategy of innovation for non profit enterprises

Aim: The present study aims to explore the issue of innovation and public-private partnership by presenting an analysis of the economic and non-economic effects produced by the collaboration between an Italian Social Cooperative and the academic sector. The main questions addressed by the study are: does the collaboration with the university sector boost the economic growth of social enterprises, both in their start up phase and afterwards? Does the collaboration with the university sector promote social innovation?Methods: The authors analyzed: (1) number of agreements (cumulative data) and number of interns, PhD students, and master students operating at the target Social Cooperative per year; (2) number of agreements (cumulative data) and number of internships per year for the target Social Cooperative and 4 other organizations replicating its model; (3) annual income from privates (in euros) per year for each organization; (4) awards and recognitions gained by the target Social Cooperative throughout the years. Results: Besides the existing differences among the observed organizations, data seem to confirm that the relationship with the university sector does not promote, at least in the initial phase, any important outcome in terms of income growth. Moreover, despite the description and amount of grants might not represent an "objective" measure of social innovation, it is undeniable that the target Cooperative shows a propensity to social innovation which is recognized by third parties too. Discussion: Although the data seem to disincentive, at least in the start up phase, the assumption that the university represents an economic or marketing boost, future studies might investigate other strategies to measure the qualitative and quantitative relationship between private companies and universities, in order to find different correlations with the social innovation issue and other economic and financial variables

A microbially produced AhR ligand promotes a Tph1-driven tolerogenic program in multiple sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis is a debilitating autoimmune disease, characterized by chronic inflammation of the central nervous system. While the significance of the gut microbiome on multiple sclerosis pathogenesis is established, the underlining mechanisms are unknown. We found that serum levels of the microbial postbiotic tryptophan metabolite indole-3-carboxaldehyde (3-IAld) inversely correlated with disease duration in multiple sclerosis patients. Much like the host-derived tryptophan derivative l-Kynurenine, 3-IAld would bind and activate the Aryl hydrocarbon Receptor (AhR), which, in turn, controls endogenous tryptophan catabolic pathways. As a result, in peripheral lymph nodes, microbial 3-IAld, affected mast-cell tryptophan metabolism, forcing mast cells to produce serotonin via Tph1. We thus propose a protective role for AhR–mast-cell activation driven by the microbiome, whereby natural metabolites or postbiotics will have a physiological role in immune homeostasis and may act as therapeutic targets in autoimmune diseases

Effetti dell’uso delle videochiamate sul benessere della persona anziana: una revisione sistematica

Isolamento sociale e solitudine risultano essere fattori di rischio rilevanti per la qualità di vita della persona anziana. Nuove modalità di interazione sociale, quali le videochiamate, aprono un panorama di opportunità utili al fine di preservare salute mentale e legami sociali. L’uso di internet tra gli anziani è in aumento in tutto il mondo e l’emergenza legata alla pandemia da COVID-19 ne ha amplificato l’utilizzo. La rassegna sistematica ha l’intento di delineare una valutazione critica dei possibili benefici delle videochiamate per la persona anziana. Le evidenze indicano come le videochiamate risultino utili nel migliorare lo stato emotivo della persona anziana e nel mitigare l’isolamento sociale. I risultati vengono analizzati anche in termini di diversità e vulnerabilità individuali, impatto della pandemia, familiarità con la tecnologia e contesti di vita

A microbially produced AhR ligand promotes a Tph1-driven tolerogenic program in multiple sclerosis

Abstract Multiple sclerosis is a debilitating autoimmune disease, characterized by chronic inflammation of the central nervous system. While the significance of the gut microbiome on multiple sclerosis pathogenesis is established, the underlining mechanisms are unknown. We found that serum levels of the microbial postbiotic tryptophan metabolite indole-3-carboxaldehyde (3-IAld) inversely correlated with disease duration in multiple sclerosis patients. Much like the host-derived tryptophan derivative l-Kynurenine, 3-IAld would bind and activate the Aryl hydrocarbon Receptor (AhR), which, in turn, controls endogenous tryptophan catabolic pathways. As a result, in peripheral lymph nodes, microbial 3-IAld, affected mast-cell tryptophan metabolism, forcing mast cells to produce serotonin via Tph1. We thus propose a protective role for AhR–mast-cell activation driven by the microbiome, whereby natural metabolites or postbiotics will have a physiological role in immune homeostasis and may act as therapeutic targets in autoimmune diseases