101 research outputs found
Multitemporal dendrogeomorphological analysis of slope instability in Upper Orcia Valley (Southern Tuscany, Italy)
The Upper Orcia Valley (Southern Tuscany, Italy) is a key site for the
comprehension of denudation processes typically acting in Mediterranean
badlands (calanchi) areas, thanks to the availability of long-lasting
erosion monitoring datasets and the rapidity of erosion processes development.
These features make the area suitable as an open air laboratory
for the study of badlands dynamic and changes in geoheritage due to
erosion (i.e. active geomorphosites).
Decadal multitemporal investigations on the erosion rates and the
geomorphological dynamics of the study area allowed to highlight a decrease
in the average water erosion rates during the last 60 years. More in
detail, a reduction of bare land and, consequently, of erosion processes
effectiveness and a contemporary increasing frequency of mass wasting
events were recorded. These trends can be partly related to the land cover
changes occurred in the study area from the 1950s onwards, which
consist of the significant increase of reforestation practices and important
other forms of human impacts on slopes, mainly land levelling for
agricultural exploitation.
In order to better identify the most significant phases of geomorphological
instability occurred in this area during the last decades, an
integrated approach based on multitemporal geomorphological mapping
and dendrogeomorphology analysis on specimen of Pinus nigra Arn.
was used. In detail, trees colonizing a denudation slope located in the
surrounding of the Radicofani town (Tuscany, Italy) and characterized
by calanchi and shallow mass movements deposits, were analyzed for
the 1985-2012 time period. The analysis of the growth anomaly indexes
and of compression wood allowed to determine a spatio-temporal differentiation
along the slope and respect to an undisturbed reference site.
The negative anomaly index results to be more pronounced in the trees
located on the investigated slope with respect to the ones sampled in
a non-disturbed area. Compression wood characterizes trees on slope
sectors mainly affected by runoff and/or mass movements with a different
persistence. Erosion rates were finally calculated through dendrogeomorphological
analysis on tree roots exposure (0.31-3 cm/y runoff
prevailing; 5.86-27.5 cm/y, mass movements prevailing). Dendrogeomorphological
results are in accordance with those obtained in the investigated
areas with multitemporal photogrammetric and geomorphologic
analyses
Contribution for an urban geomorphoheritage assessment method. Proposal from three geomorphosites in Rome (Italy)
Urban geomorphology has important implications in spatial planning of human activities, and it also has a
geotouristic potential due to the relationship between cultural and geomorphological heritage. Despite the introduction
of the term Anthropocene to describe the deep influence that human activities have had in recent times on Earth
evolution, urban geomorphological heritage studies are relatively rare and limited and urban geotourism development
is recent. The analysis of the complex urban landscape often need the integration of multidisciplinary data. This study
aims to propose the first urban geomorphoheritage assessment method, which originates after long-lasting previous
geomorphological and geotouristic studies on Rome city centre, it depict rare examples of the geomorphological
mapping of a metropolis and, at the same time, of an inventory of urban geomorphosites. The proposal is applied to
geomorphosites in the Esquilino neighbourhood of Rome, whose analysis confirm the need for an ad hoc method for
assessing urban geomorphosites, as already highlighted in the most recent literature on the topic. The urban geomorphoheritage
assessment method is based on: (i) the urban geomorphological analysis by means of multitemporal and
multidisciplinary data; (ii) the geomorphosite inventory; and (iii) the geomorphoheritage assessment and enhancement.
One challenge is to assess invisible geomorphosites that are widespread in urban context. To this aim, we reworked
the attributes describing the Value of a site for Geotourism in order to build up a specific methodology for the
analysis of the urban geomorphological heritage
Geomorphological classification of urban landscapes. The case study of Rome (Italy)
The results of a long-lasting geomorphological survey carried out in Rome are summarized. A
method aimed at integrating survey data, historical maps, aerial photographs and
archaeological and geomorphological literature produced a geomorphological map of the
present-day historical centre. The geomorphology of Rome is related to the
paleogeographical conditions prior to the founding of the City; they allow us to recognize
the stages of landscape evolution of the ancient Caput Mundi (Capital of the World). The
study area has been affected by continuous man-made changes to the drainage network
and to the topographic surface over the last 3000 years. It has forced the authors to develop
innovative solutions to undertake effective analysis of the urban environment and the
legend of the geomorphological map in this peculiar context. The resulting map is useful for
urban planning and archaeological research
Geomorphology of the historic centre of the Urbs (Rome, Italy)
Based on long-lasting multidisciplinary and multitemporal investigations, in 2016 the first geomorphological map of the central area of Rome was presented. It introduced innovative solutions for cartographic restitution of urban landforms. Under this work, the urban geomorphological analysis delved deeper, because the study focused on the smaller area of the Urbs, the ancient city centre that has been modified by human activities over millennia. The main goal of the new study was to verify if the 1:5000 scale survey could allow to improve the legend symbols, in order to better represent landforms from natural and anthropogenic processes in urban environment. Since the map scale was doubled compared with the previous and consequently the map area available was four times bigger, we were able to provide much more details. Moreover, results better highlighted the applicative significance of urban geomorphological maps as complementary tool for the assessment of natural hazards and risks
Multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1
Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia type 1 (MEN1) is a rare autosomal dominant hereditary cancer syndrome presented mostly by tumours of the parathyroids, endocrine pancreas and anterior pituitary, and characterised by a very high penetrance and an equal sex distribution. It occurs in approximately one in 30,000 individuals. Two different forms, sporadic and familial, have been described. The sporadic form presents with two of the three principal MEN1-related endocrine tumours (parathyroid adenomas, entero-pancreatic tumours and pituitary tumours) within a single patient, while the familial form consists of a MEN1 case with at least one first degree relative showing one of the endocrine characterising tumours. Other endocrine and non-endocrine lesions, such as adrenal cortical tumours, carcinoids of the bronchi, gastrointestinal tract and thymus, lipomas, angiofibromas, collagenomas have been described. The responsible gene, MEN1, maps on chromosome 11q13 and encodes a 610 aminoacid nuclear protein, menin, with no sequence homology to other known human proteins. MEN1 syndrome is caused by inactivating mutations of the MEN1 tumour suppressor gene. This gene is probably involved in the regulation of several cell functions such as DNA replication and repair and transcriptional machinery. The combination of clinical and genetic investigations, together with the improving of molecular genetics knowledge of the syndrome, helps in the clinical management of patients. Treatment consists of surgery and/or drug therapy, often in association with radiotherapy or chemotherapy. Currently, DNA testing allows the early identification of germline mutations in asymptomatic gene carriers, to whom routine surveillance (regular biochemical and/or radiological screenings to detect the development of MEN1-associated tumours and lesions) is recommended
Landslide susceptibility assessment in the Upper Orcia Valley (Southern Tuscany, Italy) through conditional analysis: a contribution to the unbiased selection of causal factors
Abstract. In this work the conditional multivariate analysis was applied to evaluate landslide susceptibility in the Upper Orcia River Basin (Tuscany, Italy), where widespread denudation processes and agricultural practices have a mutual impact. We introduced an unbiased procedure for causal factor selection based on some intuitive statistical indices. This procedure is aimed at detecting among different potential factors the most discriminant ones in a given study area. Moreover, this step avoids generating too small and statistically insignificant spatial units by intersecting the factor maps. Finally, a validation procedure was applied based on the partition of the landslide inventory from multi-temporal aerial photo interpretation. Although encompassing some sources of uncertainties, the applied susceptibility assessment method provided a satisfactory and unbiased prediction for the Upper Orcia Valley. The results confirmed the efficiency of the selection procedure, as an unbiased step of the landslide susceptibility evaluation. Furthermore, we achieved the purpose of presenting a conceptually simple but, at the same time, effective statistical procedure for susceptibility analysis to be used as well by decision makers in land management
Segregation of a M404V mutation of the p62/sequestosome 1 (p62/SQSTM1) gene with polyostotic Paget's disease of bone in an Italian family
Mutations of the p62/Sequestosome 1 gene (p62/SQSTM1) account for both sporadic and familial forms of Paget's disease of bone (PDB). We originally described a methionine→valine substitution at codon 404 (M404V) of exon 8, in the ubiquitin protein-binding domain of p62/SQSTM1 gene in an Italian PDB patient. The collection of data from the patient's pedigree provided evidence for a familial form of PDB. Extension of the genetic analysis to other relatives in this family demonstrated segregation of the M404V mutation with the polyostotic PDB phenotype and provided the identification of six asymptomatic gene carriers. DNA for mutational analysis of the exon 8 coding sequence was obtained from 22 subjects, 4 PDB patients and 18 clinically unaffected members. Of the five clinically ascertained affected members of the family, four possessed the M404V mutation and exhibited the polyostotic form of PDB, except one patient with a single X-ray-assessed skeletal localization and one with a polyostotic disease who had died several years before the DNA analysis. By both reconstitution and mutational analysis of the pedigree, six unaffected subjects were shown to bear the M404V mutation, representing potential asymptomatic gene carriers whose circulating levels of alkaline phosphatase were recently assessed as still within the normal range. Taken together, these results support a genotype–phenotype correlation between the M404V mutation in the p62/SQSTM1 gene and a polyostotic form of PDB in this family. The high penetrance of the PDB trait in this family together with the study of the asymptomatic gene carriers will allow us to confirm the proposed genotype–phenotype correlation and to evaluate the potential use of mutational analysis of the p62/SQSTM1 gene in the early detection of relatives at risk for PDB
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