Master programme in management engineering and integrated logistics at the University of Trieste and Hochshule OstWestfalen-Lippe

The program of the Double Degree Master in "Production Engineering and Management" between the University of Trieste and that of Lemgo-Lippe was described, planned and implemented. The strengths of the Italian-German program and the peculiarities that distinguish it are also identified (mainly theoretical basis in Italy and application in Germany). In particular, we highlight the presence of a "Smart Factory OWL" laboratory for teaching activities in the field of Enabling technologies of Industry 4.0

Conditioned Media From Glial Cells Promote a Neural-Like Connexin Expression in Human Adipose-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells

The expression of neuronal and glial connexins (Cxs) has been evaluated in adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (ASCs) whose neural differentiation was promoted by a conditioned medium (CM) obtained from cultures of olfactory ensheathing cells (OECs) or Schwann cells (SCs). By immunocytochemistry and flow cytometer analysis it was found that Cx43 was already considerably expressed in naïve ASCs and further increased after 24 h and 7 days from CM exposition. Cx32 and Cx36 were significantly improved in conditioned cultures compared to control ASCs, whereas a decreased expression was noticed in the absence of CM treatments. Cx47 was virtually absent in any conditions. Altogether, high basal levels and induced increases of Cx43 expression suggest a potential attitude of ASCs toward an astrocyte differentiation, whereas the lack of Cx47 would indicate a poor propensity of ASCs to become oligodendrocytes. CM-evoked Cx32 and Cx36 increases showed that a neuronal- or a SC-like differentiation can be promoted by using this strategy. Results further confirm that environmental cues can favor an ASC neural differentiation, either as neuronal or glial elements. Of note, the use of glial products present in CM rather than the addition of chemical agents to achieve such differentiation would resemble “more physiological” conditions of differentiation. As a conclusion, the overexpression of typical neural Cxs would indicate the potential capability of neural-like ASCs to interact with neighboring neural cells and microenvironment

Migrationsliteratur di autori migranti italiani in Germania per comprendere l\u2019impatto del fenomeno migratorio sull\u2019identit\ue0 personale

Partendo dall\u2019idea che \u201cmigrazione\u201d pu\uf2 voler dire non solo spostamento, ovvero passaggio da un luogo all\u2019altro, ma soprattutto attraversamento di frontiere e confini fisici, culturali, linguistici e mentali, questo contributo vuole essere il tentativo di descrizione della migrazione non tanto quale spostamento geografico, bens\uec come spostamento temporale fra passato, presente e futuro dei migranti, i quali si ritrovano ad attraversare confini attraverso lingue, religioni e culture. Il racconto di questo viaggio temporale, dell\u2019impatto con la Fremde, che causa conflitti di identit\ue0 \ue8 reso qui grazie ad un breve excursus nella Migrationsliteratur di autori/migranti italiani in Germania a partire dagli anni \u201950 del secolo scorso

Job readiness, adaptability, hope, optimism, and resilience in adults who are experiencing underemployment and unemployment

reservedIl presente lavoro di tesi analizza alcuni costrutti come prontezza professionale, adaptability, speranza, ottimismo e resilienza tra i giovani adulti che stanno sperimentando disoccupazione e sotto-occupazione. Oggi i giovani costituiscono la categoria sociale più̀ penalizzata sul mercato del lavoro, infatti, quando si apprestano ad entrare nel mercato del lavoro, spesso sperimentano condizioni lavorative caratterizzate da scarsa retribuzione, assenza di garanzie di continuità e di ogni forma di tutela. In questo scenario, caratterizzato da precarietà e incertezza, i giovani si impegnano per trovare un lavoro soddisfacente e dignitoso, tuttavia gli sforzi e le risorse da loro impiegate per la ricerca di un’occupazione si scontrano con gli ostacoli del presente. In questa tesi ho analizzato e approfondito la disoccupazione giovanile, definendo in primo luogo il concetto di disoccupazione in tutte le sue componenti e l’impatto che il fenomeno ha sulla società̀ e sugli individui, nonché́ i costi sociali, economici e psicologici, che i paesi sono chiamati a sostenere. Nel primo capitolo è stato analizzato il fenomeno della disoccupazione e l’evoluzione del mercato del lavoro dal passato al presente, nel secondo capitolo vengono esposte le risorse che possono aiutare gli individui nella ricerca di lavoro, infine nel terzo capitolo vengono presentati gli obiettivi, la metodologia e i risultati della ricerca condotta su un gruppo di giovani adulti disoccupati. Lo scopo della ricerca era analizzare, attraverso strumenti quantitativi, i pensieri e le percezioni dei partecipanti rispetto al loro futuro professionale e al mondo del lavoro attuale, indagando le loro visioni politico-economiche, le percezioni riguardo la soddisfazione per la qualità della vita, la speranza individuale e sociale, il lavoro dignitoso e quanto questo possa costituire una parte significativa nella vita di ciascuno. L’elaborato si conclude con una riflessione sulla pratica e sul futuro.This thesis work analyzes some constructs such as occupational readiness, adaptability, hope, optimism and resilience among young adults who are experiencing unemployment and underemployment. Today, young people constitute the most̀ penalized social category in the labor market, in fact, when they are about to enter the labor market, they often experience working conditions characterized by low pay, absence of guarantees of continuity and any form of protection. In this scenario, characterized by precariousness and uncertainty, young people strive to find a satisfying and decent job, however, the efforts and resources they put into the search for employment come up against the obstacles of the present. In this thesis, I have analyzed and explored youth unemployment in depth, first defining the concept of unemployment in all its components and the impact the phenomenon has on societỳ and individuals, as well aś the social, economic and psychological costs, which countries are called upon to bear. The first chapter analyzed the phenomenon of unemployment and the evolution of the labor market from the past to the present, the second chapter set out the resources that can help individuals in their job search, and finally the third chapter presented the objectives, methodology and results of the research conducted on a group of unemployed young adults. The purpose of the research was to analyze, through quantitative instruments, the participants' thoughts and perceptions regarding their professional future and the current world of work, investigating their political-economic views, perceptions regarding satisfaction with quality of life, individual and social hope, decent work, and how much of a significant part of each person's life this can be. The paper concludes with a reflection on practice and the future

Abbraccia la Natura: Alberi in bicicletta.

Iniziazione ai corsi del dipartimento TESAF. per studenti delle Scuole superior

Functional Roles of Connexins and Gap Junctions in Osteo-Chondral Cellular Components

Gap junctions (GJs) formed by connexins (Cxs) play an important role in the intercellular communication within most body tissues. In this paper, we focus on GJs and Cxs present in skeletal tissues. Cx43 is the most expressed connexin, participating in the formation of both GJs for intercellular communication and hemichannels (HCs) for communication with the external environment. Through GJs in long dendritic-like cytoplasmic processes, osteocytes embedded in deep lacunae are able to form a functional syncytium not only with neighboring osteocytes but also with bone cells located at the bone surface, despite the surrounding mineralized matrix. The functional syncytium allows a coordinated cell activity through the wide propagation of calcium waves, nutrients and anabolic and/or catabolic factors. Acting as mechanosensors, osteocytes are able to transduce mechanical stimuli into biological signals that spread through the syncytium to orchestrate bone remodeling. The fundamental role of Cxs and GJs is confirmed by a plethora of investigations that have highlighted how up- and downregulation of Cxs and GJs critically influence skeletal development and cartilage functions. A better knowledge of GJ and Cx mechanisms in physiological and pathological conditions might help in developing therapeutic approaches aimed at the treatment of human skeletal system disorders

GJA1/CX43 High Expression Levels in the Cervical Spinal Cord of ALS Patients Correlate to Microglia-Mediated Neuroinflammatory Profile

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder affecting motoneurons (MNs) with a fatal outcome. The typical degeneration of cortico-spinal, spinal, and bulbar MNs, observed in post-mortem biopsies, is associated with the activation of neuroimmune cells. GJA1, a member of the connexins (Cxs) gene family, encodes for connexin 43 (Cx43), a core gap junctions (GJs)- and hemichannels (HCs)-forming protein, involved in cell death, proliferation, and differentiation. Recently, Cx43 expression was found to play a role in ALS pathogenesis. Here, we used microarray and RNA-seq datasets from the NCBI of the spinal cord of control (NDC) and ALS patients, which were stratified according to the GJA1 gene expression. Genes that positively or negatively correlated to GJA1 expression were used to perform a genomic deconvolution analysis (GDA) using neuroimmune signatures. Expression analysis revealed a significantly higher GJA1 expression in the MNs of ALS patients as compared to NDC. Gene deconvolution analysis revealed that positively correlated genes were associated with microglia activation, whereas negatively correlated genes were associated with neuronal activation profiles. Moreover, gene ontology analysis, performed on genes characterizing either microglia or neuronal signature, indicated immune activation or neurogenesis as main biological processes. Finally, using a synthetic analysis of drugs able to revert the GJA1 transcriptomic signatures, we found a specific drug profile for ALS patients with high GJA1 expression levels, composed of amlodipine, sertraline, and prednisolone. In conclusion, our exploratory study suggests GJA1 as a new neuro-immunological gene correlated to microglial cellular profile in the spinal cord of ALS patients. Further studies are warranted to confirm these results and to evaluate the therapeutic potential of drugs able to revert typical GJA1/CX43 signature in ALS patient

The Role of Epigenetics in Neuroinflammatory-Driven Diseases

Neurodegenerative disorders are characterized by the progressive loss of central and/or peripheral nervous system neurons. Within this context, neuroinflammation comes up as one of the main factors linked to neurodegeneration progression. In fact, neuroinflammation has been recognized as an outstanding factor for Alzheimer’s disease (AD), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Parkinson’s disease (PD), and multiple sclerosis (MS). Interestingly, neuroinflammatory diseases are characterized by dramatic changes in the epigenetic profile, which might provide novel prognostic and therapeutic factors towards neuroinflammatory treatment. Deep changes in DNA and histone methylation, along with histone acetylation and altered non-coding RNA expression, have been reported at the onset of inflammatory diseases. The aim of this work is to review the current knowledge on this field

Association of Apelin Levels in Overweight-obese Children with Pubertal Development, but Not with Insulin Sensitivity: 6.5 Years Follow up Evaluation

Background: Obesity in youth is associated with increased risk of metabolic disorders. Adipose tissue hormones are involved in body-weight regulation. Among these, apelin is recognized as an insulin-sensitizer adipokine. Data on apelin levels in obese children and its relation to insulinsensitivity are limited. Objective: We aimed to evaluate apelin levels in relation to obesity and insulin sensitivity in a large cohort of overweight/obese children and adolescents. Furthermore, these youths were reevaluated after a median 6.5 years of follow-up, thus allowing assessing changes in apelin levels in relation to increasing age and weight changes. Methods: Clinical data in 909 children and adolescents were collected between 2007 and 2010. Two hundred and one were reexamined at a median 6.5 years of follow-up. All subjects at baseline and at follow-up underwent an OGTT. Apelin levels were measured on sera by ELISA method. Results: At baseline, lower apelin levels were associated with increasing age and puberty (Tanner ≥II 0.67 ± 0.96 ng/mL vs. Tanner I 0.89 ± 1.13 ng/mL, p < .002), but not with body-weight. At followup, apelin levels in the 201 subjects reexamined were significantly lower than at baseline (0.45 ± 0.77 ng/mL at follow-up, 0.68 ± 0.95 ng/mL baseline, p < .001), confirming the effects of age and puberty. Body-weight did not affect apelin levels. Multiple regression analysis confirmed that sex and puberty were associated with lower apelin levels, independently from age and insulinsensitivity. Conclusions: Apelin levels decrease significantly with pubertal development, whilst body-weight in children and adolescents did not determine changes in apelin. Reduced levels of apelin in children and adolescents may therefore represent a necessary response to maintain the “physiological” insulin resistance of puberty