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Il contributo propone una riflessione sulle postille di Petrarca alle opere geografiche di Pomponio Mela e Vibio Sequestre. Il manoscritto originale è andato perduto, ma ne esiste una copia fedele, Milano, Bibl. Ambrosiana H 14 inf. Le note petrarchesche rivelano l'attenzione riservata ai problemi geografici (con particolare riferimento alla geografia antica) e manifestano la grande competenza acquisita da Petrarca in quest'ambito grazie alla lettura di molti testi classici in prosa e in poesia.

Congenital disorders of glycosylation (CDG) comprise a family of human multisystemic diseases caused by recessive mutations in genes required for protein N-glycosylation. More than 100 distinct forms of CDGs have been identified and most of them cause severe neurological impairment. The Conserved Oligomeric Golgi (COG) complexmediates tethering of vesicles carrying glycosylation enzymes across the Golgi cisternae. Mutations affecting human COG1, COG2 and COG4-COG8 cause monogenic forms of inherited, autosomal recessive CDGs.We have generated a Drosophila COG7-CDG model that closely parallels the pathological characteristics of COG7-CDG patients, including pronounced neuromotor defects associated with altered N-glycome profiles. Consistent with these alterations, larval neuromuscular junctions of Cog7 mutants exhibit a significant reduction in bouton numbers. We demonstrate that the COG complex cooperates with Rab1 and Golgi phosphoprotein 3 to regulate Golgi trafficking and that overexpression of Rab1 can rescue the cytokinesis and locomotor defects associated with loss of Cog7. Our results suggest that the Drosophila COG7-CDG model can be used to test novel potential therapeutic strategies by modulating trafficking pathways.

Cytokinesis requires a tight coordination between actomyosin ring constriction and new membrane addition along the ingressing cleavage furrow. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying vesicle trafficking to the equatorial site and how this process is coupled with the dynamics of the contractile apparatus are poorly defined. Here we provide evidence for the requirement of Rab1 during cleavage furrow ingression in cytokinesis. We demonstrate that the gene omelette (omt) encodes the Drosophila orthologue of human Rab1 and is required for successful cytokinesis in both mitotic and meiotic dividing cells of Drosophila melanogaster We show that Rab1 protein colocalizes with the conserved oligomeric Golgi (COG) complex Cog7 subunit and the phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate effector GOLPH3 at the Golgi stacks. Analysis by transmission electron microscopy and 3D-SIM super-resolution microscopy reveals loss of normal Golgi architecture in omt mutant spermatocytes indicating a role for Rab1 in Golgi formation. In dividing cells, Rab1 enables stabilization and contraction of actomyosin rings. We further demonstrate that GTP-bound Rab1 directly interacts with GOLPH3 and controls its localization at the Golgi and at the cleavage site. We propose that Rab1, by associating with GOLPH3, controls membrane trafficking and contractile ring constriction during cytokinesis.

Congenital disorders of glycosylation (CDG) comprise a family of human multisystemic diseases caused by recessive mutations in genes required for protein N-glycosylation. More than 100 distinct forms of CDGs have been identified and most of them cause severe neurological impairment. The Conserved Oligomeric Golgi (COG) complexmediates tethering of vesicles carrying glycosylation enzymes across the Golgi cisternae. Mutations affecting human COG1, COG2 and COG4-COG8 cause monogenic forms of inherited, autosomal recessive CDGs.We have generated a Drosophila COG7-CDG model that closely parallels the pathological characteristics of COG7-CDG patients, including pronounced neuromotor defects associated with altered N-glycome profiles. Consistent with these alterations, larval neuromuscular junctions of Cog7 mutants exhibit a significant reduction in bouton numbers. We demonstrate that the COG complex cooperates with Rab1 and Golgi phosphoprotein 3 to regulate Golgi trafficking and that overexpression of Rab1 can rescue the cytokinesis and locomotor defects associated with loss of Cog7. Our results suggest that the Drosophila COG7-CDG model can be used to test novel potential therapeutic strategies by modulating trafficking pathways.

Cytokinesis requires a tight coordination between actomyosin ring constriction and new membrane addition along the ingressing cleavage furrow. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying vesicle trafficking to the equatorial site and how this process is coupled with the dynamics of the contractile apparatus are poorly defined. Here we provide evidence for the requirement of Rab1 during cleavage furrow ingression in cytokinesis. We demonstrate that the gene omelette (omt) encodes the Drosophila orthologue of human Rab1 and is required for successful cytokinesis in both mitotic and meiotic dividing cells of Drosophila melanogaster We show that Rab1 protein colocalizes with the conserved oligomeric Golgi (COG) complex Cog7 subunit and the phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate effector GOLPH3 at the Golgi stacks. Analysis by transmission electron microscopy and 3D-SIM super-resolution microscopy reveals loss of normal Golgi architecture in omt mutant spermatocytes indicating a role for Rab1 in Golgi formation. In dividing cells, Rab1 enables stabilization and contraction of actomyosin rings. We further demonstrate that GTP-bound Rab1 directly interacts with GOLPH3 and controls its localization at the Golgi and at the cleavage site. We propose that Rab1, by associating with GOLPH3, controls membrane trafficking and contractile ring constriction during cytokinesis.

Scopo del presente studio è valutare l'efficacia di un intervento psicoterapeutico di gruppo, la Terapia Cognitiva con Strategie di Decentramento (CTDS) di Bizzini et al. (1999),con soggetti anziani affetti da deterioramento cognitivo lieve. Lo studio ha inizialmente reclutato 32 soggetti di età superiore ai 60 anni affetti da Sindrome ansioso-depressiva. 25 di questi affetti da Mild Cognitive Impairment, 7 con funzionamento cognitivo nella norma. Hanno accettato di sottoporsi al trattamento 19 soggetti. Tutti i soggetti reclutati sono stati sottoposti ad una rivalutazione psicologica e neuropsicologica dopo 4 mesi. La valutazione della sintomatologia depressiva prima e dopo il trattamento, mostra che i partecipanti alla terapia di gruppo, hanno ottenuto un significativo miglioramento del tono dell’umore e del livello di benessere psicologico; miglioramento non riscontrato in coloro che non hanno preso parte al trattamento. È stata condotta, inoltre, un’analisi del funzionamento cognitivo prima e dopo il trattamento in tutti i pazienti che presentavano deterioramento cognitivo lieve; il livello di funzionamento è rimasto pressoché stabile nel tempo, sia per chi ha ricevuto il trattamento che per coloro che non vi hanno aderito. Lo studio pilota indica un’utilità della Terapia Cognitiva con Strategie di Decentramento anche in soggetti con deterioramento cognitivo lieve., Group Psychotherapy in depressed and cognitively impaired elderly individuals: a pilot study. This research project aimed at investigating the effectiveness of a psychotherapeutic group intervention, the Cognitive Therapy with Decentering Strategies (CTDS), designed by Bizzini et al. (1999), for the treatment of depressive symptoms in elderly people with mild cognitive impairment. The study involved 32 participants aged 60 years and over, suffering from anxiety-depressive syndrome. Twenty-five of them received a diagnosis of Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) at the first neuropsychological assessment, 7 were cognitively intact. Participation in the group psychotherapy was proposed to all experimental participants. Nineteen depressed, MCI and non-MCI individuals, have adhered to treatment, 13 MCI depressed subjects did not assent to participate. All 32 research participants were administered further psychological and neuropsychological evaluation after 4 months. Comparing the psychodiagnostic scores before and after treatment, participants to the group therapy obtained significant improvement in mood and better level of psychological well-being, regardless of cognitive ability. This improvement did not occur in the group (13 subject) without treatment. A cognitive functioning evaluation was also conducted with all subjects that were diagnosed with MCI. For all subjects the cognitive functioning level didn’t change over time. This pilot study suggests a benefit of CTDS also for depressed elderly with MCI.

Background: The anatomy of carotid stenosis may influence the outcome of endovascular treatment or carotid endarterectomy. Whether anatomy favors one treatment over the other in terms of safety or efficacy has not been investigated in randomized trials. Methods: In 414 patients with mostly symptomatic carotid stenosis randomized to endovascular treatment (angioplasty or stenting; n=213) or carotid endarterectomy (n=211) in the Carotid and Vertebral Artery Transluminal Angioplasty Study (CAVATAS), the degree and length of stenosis and plaque surface irregularity were assessed on baseline intraarterial angiography. Outcome measures were stroke or death occurring between randomization and 30 days after treatment, and ipsilateral stroke and restenosis =50% during follow-up. Results: Carotid stenosis longer than 0·65 times the common carotid artery diameter was associated with increased risk of peri-procedural stroke or death after both endovascular treatment [odds ratio 2·79 (1·17-6·65), P=0·02] and carotid endarterectomy [2·43 (1·03-5·73), P=0·04], and with increased long-term risk of restenosis in endovascular treatment [hazard ratio 1·68 (1·12-2·53), P=0·01]. The excess in restenosis after endovascular treatment compared with carotid endarterectomy was significantly greater in patients with long stenosis than with short stenosis at baseline (interaction P=0·003). Results remained significant after multivariate adjustment. No associations were found for degree of stenosis and plaque surface. Conclusions: Increasing stenosis length is an independent risk factor for peri-procedural stroke or death in endovascular treatment and carotid endarterectomy, without favoring one treatment over the other. However, the excess restenosis rate after endovascular treatment compared with carotid endarterectomy increases with longer stenosis at baseline. Stenosis length merits further investigation in carotid revascularisation trials. © 2013 The Authors. International Journal of Strok

Questo articolo illustra il contributo fornito da Marco Praloran allo studio della temporalità romanzesca. In particolare, ne mette in luce tre aspetti: la stretta connessione istituita tra le rappresentazioni narrative del tempo e dello spazio (in un racconto il divenire è sempre discontinuo e circoscritto), l’importanza della trattazione propriamente linguistica (la temporalità narrativa prende sempre forma attraverso un particolare uso dei tempi verbali) e il coinvolgimento entro l’analisi della temporalità narrativa dell’ordine cognitivo della comprensione, che si realizza nell’atto della lettura.

BACKGROUND: Factors Influencing Depression Endpoints Research (FINDER) is a 6-month, prospective, observational study carried out in 12 European countries aimed at investigating health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in outpatients receiving pharmacological treatment for a first or new depressive episode. Baseline characteristics of patients enrolled in Italy are presented. METHODS: All treatment decisions were at the discretion of the investigator. Data were collected at baseline and after 3 and 6 months of treatment. Baseline evaluations included demographics, medical and psychiatric history, and medications used in the last 24 months and prescribed at enrollment. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), was adopted to evaluate depressive symptoms, while somatic and painful physical symptoms were assessed by using the Somatic Symptom Inventory (SSI) and a 0 to 100 mm visual analogue scale (VAS), HRQoL via 36-item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36), and the European Quality of Life 5-Dimensions (EQ-5D) instrument. RESULTS: A total of 513 patients were recruited across 38 sites. The mean +/- standard deviation (SD) age at first depressive episode was 38.7 +/- 15.9 years, the mean duration of depression 10.6 +/- 12.3 years. The most common psychiatric comorbidities in the previous 24 months were anxiety/panic (72.6%) and obsessive/compulsive disorders (13.4%), while 35.9% had functional somatic syndromes. Most patients (65.1%) reported pain from any cause. Monotherapy with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs) was prescribed at enrollment in 64.5% and 6.4% of the cases, respectively. The most commonly prescribed agents were sertraline (17.3%), escitalopram (16.2%), venlaflaxine (15.6%) and paroxetine (14.8%). The mean HADS subscores for depression and anxiety were 13.3 +/- 4.2 and 12.2 +/- 3.9, respectively; 76.4% of patients could be defined as being 'probable cases' for depression and 66.2% for anxiety. The mean