Made in Italy as a collective belief.A model of investment in stereotypes

This paper interprets for the fist time the phenomenon of the made in Italy as a collective belief. First, a conceptual framework is proposed for analysing the formation and evolution of collective beliefs, by characterizing precisely the way individuals are expected to behave in this respect. Then, we argue that different paths may end up provoking the emergence of a collective belief, and maintain that the made in Italy can be though of as the case of a collective belief about the inventive and creative Italian way of producing a specific set of goods. Afterwards, we point to the investment in public rituals as the way to actively foster this collective belief, and then interpret such process as an economic problem of providing a public good. We highlight the main collective action implications of such analysis, by modelling individuals’ behaviour in different settings. The analysis is focused on those characteristics that make the made in Italy a special public good, such as joint private benefits, asymmetries between agents, accession costs, and transaction costs. Finally, policy and institutional implications are explored, in terms of redistribution, proactive subsidization, and contract design.collective beliefs, public rituals, impure public goods

Alzheimer's Disease Promotion by Obesity: Induced Mechanisms—Molecular Links and Perspectives

The incidence of AD is increasing in parallel with the increase in life expectancy. At the same time the prevalence of metabolic syndrome and obesity is reaching epidemic proportions in western populations. Stress is one of the major inducers of visceral fat and obesity development, underlying accelerated aging processes. Adipose tissue is at present considered as an active endocrine organ, producing important mediators involved in metabolism regulation as well as in inflammatory mechanisms. Insulin and leptin resistance has been related to the dysregulation of energy balance and to the induction of a chronic inflammatory status which have been recognized as important cofactors in cognitive impairment and AD initiation and progression. The aim of this paper is to disclose the correlation between the onset and progression of AD and the stress-induced changes in lifestyle, leading to overnutrition and reduced physical activity, ending with metabolic syndrome and obesity. The involved molecular mechanisms will be briefly discussed, and advisable guide lines for the prevention of AD through lifestyle modifications will be proposed

Leptin, Ghrelin and TNF-α before and after Hypo-caloric Traditional Chinese Diet and Auricular Acupuncture

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Derivati di regioni ed enti locali. Quadro normativo e statistiche aggregate

Nell’ultimo decennio i contratti in strumenti finanziari derivati, detenuti da regioni ed enti locali, hanno subito un cospicuo ridimensionamento sia per numero che per nozionale di riferimento. I dati tratti dal monitoraggio svolto dal Ministero dell’Economia e delle Finanze (MEF) confermano questa tendenza positiva e certificano l’opportunità della scelta, compiuta dal legislatore a fine 2013, di introdurre, a partire dal 1° gennaio 2014, il divieto per le amministrazioni locali di stipulare nuovi contratti e di ammettere la sola possibilità di estinguere anticipatamente quelli già esistenti. La diminuzione dei contratti derivati sottoscritti dalle autonomie locali è avvenuta in concomitanza con un contesto normativo sempre più stringente. Il primo blocco temporaneo della operatività in derivati risale al 2008 per effetto del decreto-legge n. 112 del 2008, convertito dalla legge n. 133 del 2008, il cui articolo 62 vietava a regioni ed enti locali di perfezionare nuovi contratti, in attesa che venisse emanato dal MEF un nuovo regolamento finalizzato a individuare le tipologie di strumenti derivati ammessi, in sostituzione di quelle già contemplate dal regolamento di cui al DM n. 389 del 2003. Il regolamento previsto dall’art. 62 avrebbe dovuto essere emanato dal MEF, sentite la Banca d’Italia e la Consob. Il diverso orientamento circa l’approccio da seguire nella sua stesura tra il Tesoro da un lato (più orientato verso un’analisi di sensitività) e Banca d’Italia e Consob dall’altro (più orientate verso schemi basati su scenari probabilistici) ha generato una situazione di impasse, che tuttavia ha favorito una significativa riduzione dei derivati grazie al naturale scadere di molti contratti e alla estinzione anticipata di quelli precedentemente posti in essere. Il divieto definitivo è stato introdotto con la legge di stabilità per il 2014 (articolo 1, comma 572, della legge n. 147 del 2013), che ha modificato l’art. 62 del decreto-legge 112 del 2008. Nella sua attuale versione, l’articolo 62 del decreto-legge n. 112 del 2008 vieta alle amministrazioni territoriali di stipulare nuovi contratti derivati, di rinegoziare quelli esistenti e di sottoscrivere contratti di finanziamento che includono componenti derivate. L’attività di monitoraggio svolta in questi anni dal MEF sui derivati di regioni ed enti locali mostra da un lato che le politiche pubbliche, per essere efficaci, devono fondarsi sempre più su studi e statistiche aggiornati e dall’altro che solo la conoscenza sistematica e costante dei fenomeni è in grado di produrre nel lungo periodo buona regolamentazione e buona amministrazione

Fifteen Years of Continuous High-Resolution Borehole Strainmeter Measurements in Eastern Taiwan: An Overview and Perspectives

As one of the most sensitive instruments for deformation monitoring in geophysics, borehole strainmeter has the capability to record a large spectrum of tectonic and environmental signals. Sensors are usually deployed near active faults and volcanoes and provide high-resolution continuous recordings of seismic and aseismic signals, hydrological variations (rainfall, groundwater level) and natural hazards (tropical cyclones, landslides, tsunamis). On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the installation of the first Sacks–Evertson borehole strainmeter, in central Japan, we present an overview of the major scientific contributions and advances enabled by borehole strainmeter measurements in Taiwan since their installation in the mid 2000s. We also propose a set of future research directions that address recent challenges in seismology, hydrology and crustal strain modeling

New perspectives in vaccination and immunotherapies for HBV infections

AbstractThe woodchuck hepatitis B virus (WHV), the closest genetically related virus of HBV, and its natural host Marmota monax constitute a well recognized animal model. The application of this model for the evaluation of immunogenicity and protection of new formulations of HBV vaccines for human use, for lamivudine-CHO-PreS/S vaccine therapy and WHV particles coupled with HBV derived woodchuck PreS/S antibodies (IC complex) studies, as shown that the PreS/S-CHO vaccine is the first human vaccine able to elicit non sterilizing protection in the woodchuck model. The very early appearance and selection of the domain B FLLA motif resistant mutant not neutralized by the antibodies produced following vaccination, has confirmed that more potent antivirals and/or multiple targeted options with possible inclusion of immune complexes should be considered

Montelukast therapy and psychological distress in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD): a preliminary report

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is an alteration in which ventilatory function, exercise capacity and health status of patients progressively decline and it is characterized by an increase of inflammatory cytokines such as TNF-a, LTB4, IL-8, etc. In this study we considered twenty patients (15 males and 5 females; mean age: 72.8 6.3) with stable COPD. All patients were performed evaluation of psychological stress at enrollment and were treated with leukotriene receptor antagonists (montelukast tablets) 10 mg/day for 12 months. After 12 months we observed a significant decrease of serum levels of LTB4, IL-8 and also a decrease of the number of outpatient clinic visits, of the number of hospitalizations and of the duration of hospitalizatio

Economic analysis of early intervention for autistic children: findings from four case studies in England, Ireland, Italy and Spain

Background: Many autistic children experience difficulties in their communication and language skills development, with consequences for ’social development into adulthood, often resulting in challenges over the life-course and high economic impacts for individuals, families and society. The PACT (Preschool-Autism-Communication-Trial) intervention is effective in terms of improved social communication and some secondary outcomes. A previously published within-trial economic analysis found that results at 13 months did not support its cost-effectiveness. We modelled cost-effectiveness over 6 years and across four European countries. Methods: Using simulation modelling, we built on economic analyses in the original trial, exploring longer-term cost-effectiveness at 6 years (in England). We adapted our model to undertake an economic analysis of PACT in Ireland, Italy and Spain. Data on resource use were taken from the original trial and a more recent Irish observational study. Results: PACT is cost-saving over time from a societal perspective, even though we confirmed that, at 13 months post-delivery, PACT is more expensive than usual treatment (across all countries) when given to preschool autistic children. After 6 years, we found that PACT has lower costs than usual treatment in terms of unpaid care provided by parents (in all countries). Also, if we consider only out-of-pocket expenses from an Irish study, PACT costs less than usual treatment. Discussion: PACT may be recommended as a cost-saving early intervention for families with an autistic child