Plant-Growth Promoting Microbes Change the Photosynthetic Response to Light Quality in Spinach

In this study, the combined effect of plant growth under different light quality and the application of plant-growth-promoting microbes (PGPM) was considered on spinach (Spinacia oleracea L.) to assess the influence of these factors on the photosynthetic performance. To pursue this goal, spinach plants were grown in a growth chamber at two different light quality regimes, full- spectrum white light (W) and red-blue light (RB), with (I) or without (NI) PGPM-based inoculants. Photosynthesis-light response curves (LRC) and photosynthesis-CO2 response curves (CRC) were performed for the four growth conditions (W-NI, RB-NI, W-I, and RB-I). At each step of LRC and CRC, net photosynthesis (PN), stomatal conductance (gs), Ci/Ca ratio, water use efficiency (WUEi), and fluorescence indexes were calculated. Moreover, parameters derived from the fitting of LRC, such as light-saturated net photosynthesis (PNmax), apparent light efficiency (Qpp), and dark respiration (Rd), as well as the Rubisco large subunit amount, were also determined. In not-inoculated plants, the growth under RB- regime improved PN compared to W-light because it increased stomatal conductance and favored the Rubisco synthesis. Furthermore, the RB regime also stimulates the processes of light conversion into chemical energy through chloroplasts, as indicated by the higher values of Qpp and PNmax in RB compared to W plants. On the contrary, in inoculated plants, the PN enhancement was significantly higher in W (30%) than in RB plants (17%), which showed the highest Rubisco content among all treatments. Our results indicate that the plant-growth-promoting microbes alter the photosynthetic response to light quality. This issue must be considered when PGPMs are used to improve plant growth performance in a controlled environment using artificial lighting

I principi contabili IAS/IFRS e le fonti del diritto: impatto sistematico e riflessi sulla disciplina del bilancio.

Il sistema delle fonti del diritto italiano. Il sistema delle fonti del diritto comunitario. La contabilità, il bilancio e la posizione dei principi contabili nazionali all'interno del sistema delle fonti. Il sistema IAS/IFRS: origine, struttura e rapporti con il diritto comunitario. Principi contabili nazionali, IAS/IFRS e teoria delle fonti: un primo tentativo di ricostruzione del sistema.Il sistema delle fonti del diritto italiano. Il sistema delle fonti del diritto comunitario. La contabilità, il bilancio e la posizione dei principi contabili nazionali all'interno del sistema delle fonti. Il sistema IAS/IFRS: origine, struttura e rapporti con il diritto comunitario. Principi contabili nazionali, IAS/IFRS e teoria delle fonti: un primo tentativo di ricostruzione del sistema.LUISS PhD Thesi

L’abuso sessuale a danno di anziani: un esame dell’evento criminale

Questo articolo passa in rassegna una ricerca effettuata su un campione di 1.829 casi di aggressioni sessuali extrafamiliari. Lo studio indaga il modus operandi dei violentatori sessuali di vittime anziane. Il raffronto tra i reati sessuali perpetrati a danno di vittime anziane e i reati sessuali perpetrati a danno di vittime adulte si basa sull’approccio dell’evento criminale. Si osservano diverse differenze tra i due modi operandi. I risultati indicano che la fase pre-crimine è la più importante per spiegare queste differenze. Tale fase dell’evento criminale, infatti, influenza le decisioni relative alla fase del crimine e alla fase post crimine. In particolare, i reati sessuali a danno di soggetti anziani sono più violenti e si verificano più spesso nell’abitazione della vittima. Lo studio esaminato indica che gli autori di questa tipologia di reati utilizzano specifiche modalità delittuose. La ricerca, pertanto, può avere implicazioni pratiche in termini di prevenzione e di investigazione. L’article passe en revue la recherche menée sur un échantillon de 1 829 agressions sexuelles extra familiales. Cette étude examine le modus operandi des agresseurs sexuels de personnes âgées. La comparaison entre les crimes sexuels perpétrés sur des personnes âgées et les crimes sexuels perpétrés sur des personnes adultes réside dans l’approche de l’événement criminel. Il est possible d’observer certaines différences entre les deux façons de procéder. Les résultats indiquent que la phase précédant le crime est la plus importante pour expliquer ces différences. En effet, cette phase de l’événement criminel influe sur les décisions relatives à la phase du crime et à la phase postérieure au crime. En particulier, les crimes sexuels contre les personnes âgées sont plus violents et se produisent plus souvent chez la victime. L’étude examinée indique que les auteurs de ce type de crime utilisent des méthodes criminelles spécifiques. Par conséquent, la recherche peut avoir des implications pratiques en matière de prévention et d’investigation. This article reviews a survey of a sample of 1,829 cases of extra-family sexual assaults. The study investigates the modus operandi of sexual abusers of elderly victims. The comparison between sexual offences committed against elderly victims and sexual offences committed against adult victims is based on the criminal event approach. There are several differences between the two modi operandi. The results indicate that the pre-crime phase is the most important to explain these differences. This phase of the criminal event, in fact, influences the decisions related to the crime phase and the post-crime phase. In particular, sexual offences against the elderly are more violent and occur more often in the victim’s home. The examined study indicates that the perpetrators of this type of crime use specific criminal methods. This research, therefore, may have practical implications in terms of prevention and investigation

I principi contabili IAS/IFRS e le fonti del diritto: impatto sistematico e riflessi sulla disciplina del bilancio.

Il sistema delle fonti del diritto italiano. Il sistema delle fonti del diritto comunitario. La contabilit\ue0, il bilancio e la posizione dei principi contabili nazionali all'interno del sistema delle fonti. Il sistema IAS/IFRS: origine, struttura e rapporti con il diritto comunitario. Principi contabili nazionali, IAS/IFRS e teoria delle fonti: un primo tentativo di ricostruzione del sistema

Demonstrating the causal role of the motor and the inhibitory neural networks in the comprehension of action language

In the last few decades, the notion that cognition is embodied, namely that it is grounded on the sensory and motor experiences has become an important approach in cognitive science. In the field of language, the embodied cognition (EC) approach posits that meaning understanding requires sensory and motor simulations of objects, events and situations described by words and sentences. With the term “simulation”, we refer to a reactivation of perceptual, motor and introspective states that are acquired during experience with the world, the body and the mind. At the level of neural mechanisms, this means that language comprehension involves, to some extent, the activation of the same brain regions associated with the real world experiences that words and sentences refer to (Fischer & Zwaan, 2008; Gallese & Lakoff, 2005; García & Ibáñez, 2016; Jirak et al., 2010; Taylor & Zwaan, 2008). The embodied cognition approach to language has received considerable empirical support (see below), particularly from studies showing that understanding action-related language is associated with increased activation of brain motor regions. However, this neural embodiment is considerably reduced when a negation marker is inserted into action sentences, leading to a disembodiment effect. In other words, the negation acts like a gate that reduces the accessibility of the negated concept, expressed at neural level by a decrease of motor activity. Most of the literature on embodiment and disembodiment (in negation) effects reports correlational results, that is, it offers evidence of an association between language comprehension and neural activity of the motor cortex. By contrast, using non-invasive brain stimulation methodologies, the experiments included in the present thesis provide evidence that such activity of the motor cortex is causally involved in the comprehension of action language. Let us briefly summarize the state of the art of research on embodiment and disembodiment of language processes. To date, a large number of behavioral studies using a dual-task paradigm, reported that the processing of sentences referring to a directional action significantly influences the execution of a directionally compatible motor response (action-compatibility effect paradigm, ACE), suggesting that the motor areas activated in the action execution are also implicated in the comprehension of action-language (Borreggine & Kaschak, 2006; Boulenger et al., 2006; Buccino et al., 2005; Dalla Volta et al., 2009; de Vega et al., 2013; Glenberg & Kaschak, 2002; Kaschak & Borreggine, 2008; Sato et al., 2008; Taylor & Zwaan, 2008; Zwaan & Taylor, 2006). Further evidence was provided by several functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) experiments that revealed a somatotopic activation of the motor areas involved in the execution of the same movement expressed by action-related word (Olaf Hauk et al., 2004; Kemmerer et al., 2008; van Dam et al., 2010) and sentences (Aziz-Zadeh et al., 2006; de Vega et al., 2014; Desai et al., 2010; Tettamanti et al., 2005), and that such activation is context dependent rather than automatic (Raposo et al., 2009). Another set of studies using electroencephalography (EEG), provide additional information, indicating that the motor cortices are recruited in action-language processing at an early temporal window after the word presentation (~ 200 ms) (Dalla Volta et al., 2014; Olaf Hauk & Pulvermüller, 2004; Pulvermüller et al., 2001), and that, this involvement is expressed by a suppression of mu and beta rhythms similar to the one observed during action observation or execution (Moreno et al., 2013, 2015; van Elk et al., 2010). Finally, neurophysiological studies suggest that, single-pulse transcranial magnetic stimulation (sp-TMS) applied to the primary motor cortex (M1) selectively influences the behavioural response for action words (Pulvermüller, Hauk, et al., 2005; Tomasino et al., 2008) and the comprehension of action-related language modulates motor cortical excitability (Buccino et al., 2005; Candidi et al., 2010; Innocenti et al., 2014; Papeo et al., 2009). Overall, these evidences mainly point out that understanding language embedded in an action context engages the sensory and motor systems; however, they failed to assess the “necessity question”. This question refers to the debate about whether motor activation is causally necessary in the processing of action-related meaning or is just an epiphenomenon, which occurs as a post-lexical simulation process with no relation to meaning (Leshinskaya & Caramazza, 2016; Mahon, 2015; Mahon & Caramazza, 2008; Papeo et al., 2013). One way to resolve the question is by means of causal techniques like repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS) or transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), with the appropriate experimental designs. For instance, temporarily perturbing M1 activity by offline low-frequency rTMS delayed the processing of action words in a morphological task (Gerfo et al., 2008) and in a semantic task (Repetto et al., 2013), which indicates a functional relation between M1 activation and action language understanding. In the same line, online rTMS on M1 impaired the comprehension of action-related language in a priming semantic task (Kuipers et al., 2013) and in a concreteness judgment task (Vukovic et al., 2017). Compatibly, inhibitory tDCS on M1 reduced the learning of a novel action word (Liuzzi et al., 2010). However, some “paradoxical” effects have been reported; that is, the comprehension of action language improved, rather than getting worse, after the perturbation of the premotor cortex via rTMS (Willems et al., 2011) or tDCS (Gijssels et al., 2018; Niccolai et al., 2017). The above results considerably support the idea that the motor system plays a causal role in the processing of action-related meaning. However, it should be noted that the experiments conducted so far not always give consistent results in the direction of the stimulation effects (facilitatory vs. inhibitory). In addition, they neglected some important issues. First, they focused mainly on evaluating the effect of inhibitory protocols (“virtual lesions”), paying less attention to the impact of the enhancement of motor activation on action language processing, which could be done using facilitatory stimulation protocols. Second, they usually collected online behavioral measures (i.e., reaction times to semantic judgments), while they did not test the involvement of the motor system in long-term cognitive processes such as memory. Third, when they measure behavioral effects of non-invasive stimulation, they do not monitor at the same time the physiological changes induced by the stimulation. These crucial issues are addressed in detail in the current dissertation. Specifically, one objective is to provide further evidence for the functional role of M1 in the action-related language processing, by assessing for the first time its impact on memory performance for action language. To this aim, the first experiment induced the enhancement of motor activity, through a facilitatory tDCS protocol, to test whether it improves the performance in a language memory task consisting of memorizing action-related and attentional sentences. The participants performed two separated sessions; in one they received offline active tDCS (anodal/facilitatory or cathodal/inhibitory) on M1 and in the other they received sham tDCS, before undertaking the memory task. Additionally, since the stimulation, especially cathodal tDCS, is highly variable between subjects (Batsikadze et al., 2013; Jamil et al., 2017; Wiethoff et al., 2014), it was useful to assess the physiological effects of the tDCS on motor excitability, by measuring the motor-evoked potentials induced by sp-TMS. The results showed that applying off-line anodal tDCS, compared to the sham stimulation, led to a better memory for manual-action sentences but no for attentional sentences. No significant effect was observed for cathodal stimulation. Remarkably, the improvements in memory performance were predicted by the physiological changes induced by tDCS. In fact, the increase on motor excitability positively correlates with a better performance in the memory task, selectively for the action-language. Assuming that, as mentioned before, the comprehension of action-related language requires the sensory motor simulation of the referred actions, sentential negation poses an interesting challenge for this embodiment view. How action sentences with a negation marker are represented or simulated? As neuroimaging studies have shown, negation applied to an action context, reduced the activation in motor and premotor cortices, compared to affirmative action sentences (Tettamanti et al., 2008; Tomasino et al., 2010). Consistently with these results, studies using dual task paradigms (Aravena et al., 2012; Bartoli et al., 2013), typing word paradigms (García-Marco et al., 2019) and passive reading (Foroni & Semin, 2013) revealed that negative action sentences reduced the activation of peripheral muscles, relative to their affirmative counterparts. In addition, processing negative action sentences selectively modulates motor cortex excitability compared to affirmative action sentences, while no similar effect of polarity was detected for abstract sentences (Liuzza et al., 2011; Papeo et al., 2016). Altogether, the evidence suggests that the negation inserted in an action context reduces or blocks the access to the motor simulation of the negated concept, inducing a “disembodiment” effect. However, the neural mechanisms that produce this negation effect are still poorly understood. A recent proposal in this regard is the Reusing Inhibition for Negation (RIN) hypothesis, which, as its name suggests, asserts that the processing of negation reuses the mechanism of inhibitory control (Beltrán et al., 2018; de Vega et al., 2016; Liu et al., 2020). Some EEG studies, with dual-task paradigms, indirectly support the RIN hypothesis, showing that the processing of negative action sentences, compared to the affirmative ones, reduced the power of fronto-central theta rhythms (de Vega et al., 2016) and enhanced the amplitude of the ERP N1 component (Beltrán et al., 2018), in an immediately following inhibition-demanding task (NoGo or Stop trials). These facts are important because both theta rhythms and the N1component are indices of inhibitory activity. On the other hand, pre-setting an inhibitory state (NoGo trials) selectively affects the processing of negative action sentences (Liu et al., 2020). Notably, these EEG effects have an estimate source in the right inferior frontal gyrus (rIFG), which plays a crucial role in the response inhibition system (see Aron et al., 2014; Chambers et al., 2009 for reviewes). Further evidence supporting the RIN hypothesis showed that negative action language slowed the typing of manual action verbs (García-Marco et al., 2019), reflecting an inhibitory effect on motor programs, and increased the cortical silent period (Papeo et al., 2016), an index of the GABAergic inhibitory interneurons activity. Although there are robust empirical results indicating a relationship between the inhibitory system and the “disembodied” effect of negation, they only allow to establish correlational conclusions. Indeed, to ensure the functional influence of the response inhibition mechanism in negation processing, a causal methodology is necessary. In order to fulfil this gap, in the second experiment of this dissertation we used an innovative stimulation technique that combined the registration of motor evoked potentials (MEPs) via sp-TMS on M1 and off-line rTMS on the inhibitory system. This protocol allows to test the causal influence of a target area transiently perturbed on M1 excitability. Specifically, to assess whether the inhibitory mechanism is functionally involved during the process of negation, we perturbed the rIFG activity, a key region of the inhibitory network, and then we measure the left M1 excitability during the presentation of action and attentional sentences, both constructed in affirmative or negative polarity format. In a control group, instead of active stimulation, sham rTMS was delivered over the vertex. Moreover, to evaluate whether the negation effect was exclusively associated with the verb presentation or it extended to later stages of sentences processing, we recorded the MEPs at two loci: the verb and the object. The results showed that in the sham group (baseline), the amplitude of MEP, recorded at the verb, was significantly lower for negative action-related sentences than for their affirmative counterparts and, more importantly, the rTMS over rIFG suppressed this inhibitory effect, leading to a comparable motor excitability for both conditions. No similar negation effect was observed on MEP either for the verb of attentional sentences nor for the object locus of any sentence. This pattern of results indicates the critical role of rIFG as regulator of M1 activation during the processing of negated action sentences. In sum, this dissertation deals with the causal role of neural processes in embodied meaning: 1. The first experiment demonstrated, for the first time that the motor system activity is functionally involved in the memory for action language. 2. The second study provides novel evidence of a functional role of the neural mechanism of response inhibition in the “disembodied” effect of negative action language

CAR-modified Cellular Therapies in Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia: Is the Uphill Road Getting Less Steep?

The clinical development of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy has been more challenging for chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) compared to other settings. One of the main reasons is the CLL-associated state of immune dysfunction that specifically involves patient-derived T cells. Here, we provide an overview of the clinical results obtained with CAR T-cell therapy in CLL, describing the identified immunologic reasons for the inferior efficacy. Novel CAR T-cell formulations, such as lisocabtagene maraleucel, administered alone or in combination with the Bruton tyrosine kinase inhibitor ibrutinib, are currently under investigation. These approaches are based on the rationale that improving the quality of the T-cell source and of the CAR T-cell product may deliver a more functional therapeutic weapon. Further strategies to boost the efficacy of CAR T cells should rely not only on the production of CAR T cells with an improved cellular composition but also on additional changes. Such alterations could include (1) the coadministration of immunomodulatory agents capable of counteracting CLL-related immunological alterations, (2) the design of improved CAR constructs (such as third- and fourth-generation CARs), (3) the incorporation into the manufacturing process of immunomodulatory compounds overcoming the T-cell defects, and (4) the use of allogeneic CAR T cells or alternative CAR-modified cellular vectors. These strategies may allow to develop more effective CAR-modified cellular therapies capable of counteracting the more aggressive and still incurable forms of CLL

A 3-week feed restriction after weaning as an alternative to a medicated diet: effects on growth, health, carcass and meat traits of rabbits of two genotypes

Feed restriction after weaning is widely used in meat rabbit farms to promote health and reduce mortality, but this practice impacts negatively on rabbit growth and slaughter performance. This study compared a 3-week post-weaning feed restriction with ad libitum medicated feeding, evaluating effects on feed intake, growth, health, carcass and meat quality of rabbits of two genotypes: Italian White pure breed and Hycole hybrid×Italian White crossbred. A total of 512 rabbits at 36 days of age, of both sexes and two genotypes, were divided into four homogeneous groups assigned, from 36 to 57 days of age, to different feeding programmes (FP): restricted non-medicated (R-N), ad libitum non-medicated (L-N), restricted medicated (R-M) and ad libitum medicated (L-M). The diets were medicated with oxytetracycline (1540 mg/kg) and colistin sulphate (240 mg/kg). The restriction, performed by giving 70, 80 and 90 g/day of feed for the 1st, 2nd and 3rd week, was followed by ad libitum feeding in the successive 5 weeks, up to slaughter at 92 days of age. Restricted feeds were ingested at a level of 64% of the feed intake recorded in the ad libitum fed rabbits; it was significantly associated, regardless of medication and rabbit genotype, with a lower feed intake (−22 to −24 g dry matter/day) during the entire experiment, compensatory growth and a lower feed conversion ratio in the ad libitum period, and a lower final live weight (−150 g) than ad libitum feeding (P<0.001). During restriction, mortality was lower in the restricted rabbits (6.25%, 5.47% v. 12.5%, 14.8% for R-N, R-M, L-N and L-M; P<0.05), whereas in the ad libitum period mortality did not differ among the groups (9.23%, 9.90%, 11.0% and 4.59% for R-N, R-M, L-N and L-M). Dressing out percentage was not affected by FP or genotype; heavier carcasses were produced by rabbits fed ad libitum (+100 g; P<0.001) and crossbred rabbits (+122 g; P<0.001). Restriction did not alter meat quality, except for a tendency towards a higher cooking loss and less fat; crossbred meat was higher in L* (+1.3; P<0.01) and b* (+0.51; P<0.05) colour indexes and tenderness (−0.14 kg/cm2; P<0.05) than pure breed meat. Under the conditions of this study, a 3-week restricted feeding after weaning resulted to be a suitable alternative, also for high growth potential genotypes, to the antibiotics to preserve rabbit health. The production of lighter carcasses could be compensated partly by the lower feed conversion ratio showed by restricted rabbits

Legume grain-based supplements in dairy sheep diet: Effects on milk yield, composition and fatty acid profile

With the aim to find protein sources that are free of genetically modified organisms, the effects of legume grain-based concentrates, used as alternatives of a mixed concentrate feed containing soybean, were evaluated on sheep milk production. Twelve lactating ewes were divided into four groups, fed hay and, according to a 4 × 4 Latin square design, supplied with 800 g/day of a commercial mixed concentrate feed (MCF) containing maize and soybean, or the same amount of isoprotein concentrates consisting of chickpea (CH), faba bean (FB), or pea (PE) mixed with barley. The ewes ingested more of the concentrates with legume grains than the MCF (702, 702, 678 vs 587 g/day DM for CH, FB, PE and MCF; P ≤ 0.001). Compared with CH, FB and PE resulted in greater (P ≤ 0.05) milk yield (710, 718 vs 654 g/day for FB, PE and CH, respectively), and led to a greater (P ≤ 0.05) efficiency of dietary protein utilisation for milk casein synthesis (94, 97 vs 87 g casein/kg crude protein intake for FB, PE and CH, respectively), whereas MCF resulted in intermediate levels of milk yield (677 g/day) and milk casein/crude protein intake (88 g/kg). Chickpea increased the milk content of trans-vaccenic and rumenic acids in comparison with FB and PE and, similarly to MCF, increased the milk content of linoleic acid, as well as total unsaturated fatty acids (24.3, 23.9 vs 17.2, 16.8 g/100 g fatty acid methyl esters for MCF, CH, FB and PE; P ≤ 0.001), thereby improving the potential health-promoting index. Legume grains can replace soybean in diets of dairy ewes, as they do not adversely affect milk yield and composition

The Gelling Ability of Some Diimidazolium Salts: Effect of Isomeric Substitution of the Cation and Anion

The gelling ability of some geminal imidazolium salts was investigated both in organic solvents and in water solution. Organic salts differing either in the cation or anion structure were taken into account. In particular, the effects on the gelphase formation of isomeric substitution on the cation or anion as well as of the use of mono- or dianions were evaluated. As far as the cation structure is concerned, isomeric cations, such as 3,3’-di-n-octyl-1,1’-(1,4-phenylenedimethylene)diimidazolium and 3,3’-di-n-octyl-1,1’-(1,3-phenylenedimethylene) diimidazolium, were used. On the other hand, in addition to the bromide anion, isomeric dianions, such as the 1,5- and 2,6-naphthalenedisulfonate anions, were also examined. After preliminary gelation tests, different factors affecting the obtained gel phases, such as the nature of the solvent, organogelator concentrations, and action of external stimuli, were analyzed. The gel-phase formation was also studied as a function of time, by using resonance light scattering measurements. Gel morphologies were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy. To further support the understanding of the different behavior shown by the isomeric cations, some representative ion pairs were analyzed by DFT-based investigations. The collected data underline the significant role played by isomeric substitution of both cation and anion structures in determining the gelling capability of the investigated salts, as well as the properties of the gel phases. Finally, DFT investigations were helpful in the identification of the structural features affecting the self-assembly

Immunotherapeutic strategies in chronic lymphocytic leukemia: advances and challenges

Immune-based therapeutic strategies have drastically changed the landscape of hematological disorders, as they have introduced the concept of boosting immune responses against tumor cells. Anti-CD20 monoclonal antibodies have been the first form of immunotherapy successfully applied in the treatment of CLL, in the context of chemoimmunotherapy regimens. Since then, several immunotherapeutic approaches have been studied in CLL settings, with the aim of exploiting or eliciting anti-tumor immune responses against leukemia cells. Unfortunately, despite initial promising data, results from pilot clinical studies have not shown optimal results in terms of disease control - especially when immunotherapy was used individually - largely due to CLL-related immune dysfunctions hampering the achievement of effective anti-tumor responses. The growing understanding of the complex interactions between immune cells and the tumor cells has paved the way for the development of new combined approaches that rely on the synergism between novel agents and immunotherapy. In this review, we provide an overview of the most successful and promising immunotherapeutic modalities in CLL, including both antibody-based therapy (i.e. monoclonal antibodies, bispecific antibodies, bi- or tri- specific killer engagers) and adoptive cellular therapy (i.e. CAR T cells and NK cells). We also provide examples of successful new combination strategies and some insights on future perspectives