Search

Appendices forPhD thesis This repository contains all the supplementary information cited in the manuscript. Title:Phytoliths as proxies for plant water availability.An experimental approach on selected C4species and its archaeological application in drylands Author: Francesca D'Agostini Year: submitted on 21 October 2022 University Pompeu Fabra and Université de Montpellier Supervisors: Dr. Carla Lancelotti, Dr Vincent Vadez and Dr Marco Madella Contents: Chapter 5 File A5.1: the complete dataset of the experimental cultivation, including the experimental design for both seasons. File A5.2: the complete dataset of the phytolith analysis including morphometry and isotopes data. File A5.3: R scripts. File A5.3.1: the csv UTF8 (comma-delimited) files to run the code in R regarding phytoliths. File A5.3.2: the csv UTF8 (comma-delimited) files to run the code in R regarding bulliforms morphometry. File A5.3.3: the csv UTF8 (comma-delimited) files to run the code in R regarding elongates morphometry. File A5.3.4: the csv UTF8 (comma-delimited) files to run the code in R regarding stomata morphometry. File A5.3.5: the csv UTF8 (comma-delimited) files to run the code in R regarding Si isotopic analysis. File A5.3.6: the csv UTF8 (comma-delimited) files to run the code in R for the archaeological samples tested (chapter 7). File A5.3.7: the csv UTF8 (comma-delimited) files to run the code in R for modern samples used to built the model applied on archaeological samples (chapter 7). File A5.4: metadata. Chapter 6 Since it is a published article, the supplementary material is accessible open access in the article repository, referenced as in the text:https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5497871 Chapter 7 Since it is an accepted article, the supplementary material is accessible open access in the article repository, referenced as in the text:https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7120448 Chapter 8 Figure A8.1.1: boxplots for phytolith concentration for sorghum cultivated in 2020. Figure A8.1.2: linear regression plots for phytolith concentration (dependent variables) and total water transpired (independent variable) for sorghum cultivated in 2020. Figure A8.1.3: boxplots for ratio of sensitive to fixed morphotypes for sorghum cultivated in 2020. Figure A8.1.4: linear regression plots for ratio sensitive to fixed morphotypes (dependent variables) and total water transpired (independent variable) for sorghum cultivated in 2020. Figure A8.1.5: boxplots for phytolith concentration for finger millet cultivated in 2020 Figure A8.1.6: linear regression plots for phytolith concentration (dependent variables) and total water transpired (independent variable) for finger millet cultivated in 2020. Figure A8.1.7: boxplots for ratio of sensitive to fixed morphotypes for finger millet cultivated in 2020. Figure A8.1.8: linear regression plots for ratio sensitive to fixed morphotypes (dependent variables) and total water transpired (independent variable) for finger millet cultivated in 2020. Figure A8.1.9: boxplots for phytolith concentration for pearl millet cultivated in 2020. Figure A8.1.10: linear regression plots for phytolith concentration (dependent variables) and total water transpired (independent variable) for pearl millet cultivated in 2020. Figure A8.1.11: boxplots for ratio of sensitive to fixed morphotypes for pearl millet cultivated in 2020. Figure A8.1.12: linear regression plots for ratio sensitive to fixed morphotypes (dependent variables) and total water transpired (independent variable) for pearl millet cultivated in 2020. Figure A8.2.1: logistic regression plots for acute bulbosus arranged for the three species considered separate. Figure A8.2.2: logistic regression plots for bulliforms (general category sum of blockies and bulliforms flabellate) arranged for the three species considered separate. Figure A8.2.3: logistic regression plots for elongates clavate arranged for the three species considered separate. Figure A8.2.4: logistic regression plots for elongates dentate arranged for the three species considered separate. Figure A8.2.5: logistic regression plots for elongates entire arranged for the three species considered separate. Figure A8.2.6: logistic regression plots for elongate sinuate arranged for the three species considered separate. . Figure A8.2.7: logistic regression plots for crosses arranged for the three species considered separate. Figure A8.2.8: logistic regression plots for polylobates arranged for the three species considered separate. Figure A8.2.9: logistic regression plots for rondels arranged for the three species considered separate. Figure A8.2.10: logistic regression plots for saddles arranged for the three species considered separate. File A8.1: the complete dataset of the experimental cultivation, including the experimental design for both seasons. File A8.2: the complete dataset of the phytolith both row data, concentration and ratio of sensitive to fixed morphotypes used for the analysis of chapter 8. File A8.3: R scripts. File A8.3.1: csv UTF8 (comma-delimited) file to run the code in R. File A8.4: metadata. File A8.5: table of means and standard deviations of morphotypes concentration from plant samples grown in the experimental cultivation 2020. Chapter 9 Figure A9.1.1: linear regression plots of height (“He”) in relation with leaves biomass (“Leaves”) (independent variable) for bulliforms. Figure A9.1.2: linear regression plots of height (“He”) (dependent variable) in relation with transpiration efficiency (“TE”) (independent variable) for bulliforms. Figure A9.1.3:linear regression plots of height (“He”) dependent variable) in relation with total water added (“TWA”) (independent variable) for bulliforms. Figure A9.1.4: linear regression plots of height (“He”) (dependent variable) in relation with total water transpired (“TWU”) (independent variable) for bulliforms. Figure A9.1.5:linear regression plots of length of the beak (“LB”) (dependent variable) in relation with leaves biomass (“Leaves”) (independent variable) for bulliforms. Figure A9.1.6: linear regression plots of length of the beak (“LB”) (dependent variable) in relation with transpiration efficiency (“TE”) (independent variable) for bulliforms. Figure A9.1.7: linear regression plots of length of the beak (“LB”)(dependent variable) in relation with total water added (“TWA”) (independent variable) for bulliforms. Figure A9.1.8: linear regression plots of length of the beak (“LB”) (dependent variable) in relation with total water transpired (“TWU”) (independent variable) for bulliforms. Figure A9.1.9:linear regression plots of width (“Wi”) (dependent variable) in relation with leaves biomass (“Leaves”) (independent variable) for bulliforms. Figure A9.1.10: linear regression plots of width (“Wi”) (dependent variable) in relation with transpiration efficiency (“TE”) (independent variable) for bulliforms. Figure A9.1.11: linear regression plots of width (“Wi”) (dependent variable) in relation with total water added (“TWA”) (independent variable) for bulliforms. Figure A9.1.12: linear regression plots of width (“Wi”) (dependent variable) in relation with total water transpired (“TWU”) (independent variable) for bulliforms. Figure A9.2.1: density plot for subsidiary cells 1 size. Figure A9.2.2: density plot for subsidiary cells 2 size. Figure A9.3.1: density plot for bulliform height of the beak. Figure A9.3.2: density plot for bulliform length of the beak. Figure A9.3.3: density plot for bulliform number of peaks. Figure A9.3.4: density plot for bulliform length peak to peak. Figure A9.4.1: linear regression plot ofδ29Si (dependent variable) in relation to total water transpired (independent variable) for all the morphotypes considered together. Figure A9.4.2: linear regression plots ofδ29Si (dependent variable) in relation to total water transpired (independent variable) for all the morphotypes considered together. File A9.1: the complete dataset of the phytolith morphometry and isotopic data used for the analysis of chapter 9. File A9.2: R scripts. File A9.2.1: csv UTF8 (comma-delimited) files to run the code in R regarding bulliforms morphometry. File A9.2.2: csv UTF8 (comma-delimited) files to run the code in R regarding elongates morphometry. File A9.2.3: csv UTF8 (comma-delimited) files to run the code in R regarding stomata morphometry. File A9.2.4: csv UTF8 (comma-delimited) files to run the code in R regarding Si isotopic analysis. File A9.3: metadata. Abstract: This work investigated the relationship between phytoliths from finger millet, pearl millet and sorghum and the water conditions under which these species grow. The archaeological debate on the use of millets remains open and finding a proxy to help recognise their growing conditions is crucial for the reconstruction of their dispersal. In this research phytolith concentration, ratio of sensitive to fixed morphotypes, phytolith assemblage composition, morphometry, and Si isotopic composition of sensitive morphotypes were analysed as potential indicators of plant water availability. The results showed changes in both the assemblage composition, the bulliform dimensions and isotopic content, depending on the species. Intra- and inter-specific differences were highlighted. In view of the results a predictive model based on morphotype concentration was elaborated and applied to four case-studies of the Indus Valley Civilization, proving that phytoliths can be efficient proxies to assess the water condition of plant growth in the archaeological record. &nbsp

Modern plant tissues are often processed for phytolith analysis. They represent a fundamental source of comparison for archeological and palaeoenvironmental phytolith assemblages; they efficiently serve for morphological studies of phytolith shapes and dimensions and, in the last two decades, they have been increasingly involved in physiological studies, which aim to understand the functioning of Si absorption in plants. Here we present a relatively fast, safe, and inexpensive phytolith extraction, combining a dry ashing technique followed by wet oxidation, and a counting methodology. This protocol offers an optimized strategy that achieves very pure samples, preservation of a high number of silica skeletons (phytoliths in anatomical connection), and a counting method which assures the richness and the evenness of the phytolith assemblage distribution. The methodology described in this paper is optimal for recognition and identification of morphotypes, isotope studies and concentration evaluations. This protocol has been developed to allow researchers to extract phytoliths from modern tissues of leaves, stem and chaff, and it is combined with a new strategy to count phytoliths in slides where several big silica skeletons (>50/100 cells each) are present. References -Andriopoulou, Nafsika C., and Georgios E. Christidis. 2020. ‘Multi-Analytical Characterisation of Wheat Biominerals: Impact of Methods of Extraction on the Mineralogy and Chemistry of Phytoliths’.Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences12 (186).https://doi.org/10.1007/s12520-020-01091-5 -Ball, Terry B. 2016. ‘Morphometric Analysis of Phytoliths: Recommendations towards Standardization from the International Committee for Phytolith Morphometrics’.Journal of Archaeological Science63: 106–11.http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jas.2015.03.023 -Ball, Terry, John S. Gardner, and Jack D. Brotherson. 1996. ‘Identifying Phytoliths Produced by the Inflorescence Bracts of Three Species of Wheat (Triticum MonococcumL.,T. DicocconSchrank., AndT. AestivumL.) Using Computer-Assisted Image and Statistical Analyses’.Journal of Archaeological Science23 (July): 619–32.https://doi.org/10.1006/jasc.1996.0058 -Barboni, Doris, and Laurent Bremond. 2009. ‘Phytoliths of East African Grasses: An Assessment of Their Environmental and Taxonomic Significance Based on Floristic Data’.Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology158: 29–41.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.revpalbo.2009.07.002 -Braune, Caroline, Reinhard Lieberei, Douglas Steinmacher, and Thomas M. Kaiser. 2012. ‘A Simple Microwave Extraction Method for the Isolation and Identification of Plant Opal Phytoliths’.Biologia67 (5): 927–30.https://doi.org/10.2478/s11756-012-0074-1 -Bremond, Laurent, Anne Alexandre, Odile Peyron, and Joël Guiot. 2005. ‘Grass Water Stress Estimated from Phytoliths in West Africa: Grass Water Stress Estimated from Phytoliths’.Journal of Biogeography32: 311–27.https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2699.2004.01162.x -Brochier, Jacques Élie. 2002. ‘Les sédiments anthropiques’.Géologie de la Préhistoire: méthodes, techniques, applications, 453–73. -Cabanes, Dan, Yuval Gadot, Maite Cabanes, Israel Finkelstein, Steve Weiner, and Ruth Shahack-Gross. 2012. ‘Human Impact around Settlement Sites: A Phytolith and Mineralogical Study for Assessing Site Boundaries, Phytolith Preservation, and Implications for Spatial Reconstructions Using Plant Remains’.Journal of Archaeological Science39 (August): 2697–2705.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jas.2012.04.008 -Cabanes, Dan, Steve Weiner, and Ruth Shahack-Gross. 2011. ‘Stability of Phytoliths in the Archaeological Record: A Dissolution Study of Modern and Fossil Phytoliths’.Journal of Archaeological Science38 (9): 2480–90.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jas.2011.05.020 -Camargo, Mônica Sartori, Mariana Fernández Honaine, Margarita Osterrieth, Natália Ganzaroli Bozza, Vicente da Mota Silva, Maria Laura Benvenuto, and Marcelo de Almeida Silva.2021. ‘Silicon Fertilization Increases Gas-Exchange and Biomass by Silicophytolith Deposition in the Leaves of Contrasting Drought-Tolerant Sugarcane Cultivars under Well-Watered Conditions’.Plant and Soil.https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-021-05063-z -Carter, John A. 2009. ‘Atmospheric Carbon Isotope Signatures in Phytolith-Occluded Carbon’.Quaternary International193 (January): 20–29.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2007.11.013 -Chen, Iju, Kuang-ti Li, and Cheng-hwa Tsang. 2020. ‘Silicified Bulliform Cells of Poaceae: Morphological Characteristics That Distinguish Subfamilies’.Botanical Studies61 (5).https://doi.org/10.1186/s40529-020-0282-x -Cooke, Julia, and Michelle R. Leishman. 2016. ‘Consistent Alleviation of Abiotic Stress with Silicon Addition: A Meta‐analysis’. Edited by Sue Hartley.Functional Ecology30 (8): 1340–57.https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2435.12713 -Corbineau, Rémi, Paul E. Reyerson, Anne Alexandre, and Guaciara M. Santos. 2013. ‘Towards Producing Pure Phytolith Concentrates from Plants That Are Suitable for Carbon Isotopic Analysis’.Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology197 (October): 179–85.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.revpalbo.2013.06.001 -Cornelis, Jean‐Thomas, and Bruno Delvaux. 2016. ‘Soil Processes Drive the Biological Silicon Feedback Loop’. Edited by Julia Cooke.Functional Ecology30 (8): 1298–1310.https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2435.12704 -Coskun, Devrim, Rupesh Deshmukh, Humira Sonah, James G. Menzies, Olivia Reynolds, Jian Feng Ma, Herbert J. Kronzucker, and Richard R. Bélanger. 2019. ‘The Controversies of Silicon’s Role in Plant Biology’.New Phytologist.https://doi.org/10.1111/nph.15343 -Elbaum, Rivka, Cathy Melamed-Bessudo, Noreen Tuross, Avraham A. Levy, and Steve Weiner. 2009. ‘New Methods to Isolate Organic Materials from Silicified Phytoliths Reveal Fragmented Glycoproteins but No DNA’.Quaternary International193 (January): 11–19.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2007.07.006 -Elbaum, Rivka, Steve Weiner, Rosa M. Albert, and Michael Elbaum. 2003. ‘Detection of Burning of Plant Materials in the Archaeological Record by Changes in the Refractive Indices of Siliceous Phytoliths’.Journal of Archaeological Science30 (February): 217–26.https://doi.org/10.1006/jasc.2002.0828 -Ermish, Brendan J., and Shannon A. Boomgarden. 2022. ‘Identifying Water Availability with Maize Phytoliths in Range Creek Canyon, Utah’.Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports41.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jasrep.2021.103267 -Fernández Honaine, Mariana, M. Laura Benvenuto, Lía Montti, Marcela Natal, Natalia L. Borrelli, M. Fernanda Alvarez, Stella Maris Altamirano, Mara De Rito, and Margarita L. Osterrieth.2021. ‘How Are Systematics and Biological and Ecological Features Related to Silica Content in Plants? A Study of Species from Southern South America’.International Journal of Plant Sciences.https://doi.org/10.1086/712357 -Fraysse, Fabrice, Oleg S. Pokrovsky, Jacques Schott, and Jean-Dominique Meunier. 2009. ‘Surface Chemistry and Reactivity of Plant Phytoliths in Aqueous Solutions’.Chemical Geology258: 197–206.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemgeo.2008.10.003 -Frick, Daniel A., Rainer Remus, Michael Sommer, Jürgen Augustin, and Friedhelm von Blanckenburg. 2020. ‘Silicon Isotope Fractionation and Uptake Dynamics of Three Crop Plants: Laboratory Studies with Transient Silicon Concentrations’.Biogeosciences.https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2020-66 -Frick, Daniel A., Jan A. Schuessler, Michael Sommer, and Friedhelm Blanckenburg. 2019. ‘Laser AblationIn SituSilicon Stable Isotope Analysis of Phytoliths’.Geostandards and Geoanalytical Research.https://doi.org/10.1111/ggr.12243 -Gallaher, Timothy J., Sultan Z. Akbar, Phillip C. Klahs, Claire R. Marvet, Ashly M. Senske, Lynn G. Clark, and Caroline A.E. Strömberg. 2020. ‘3D Shape Analysis of Grass Silica Short Cell Phytoliths (GSSCP): A New Method for Fossil Classification and Analysis of Shape Evolution’.New Phytologist.https://doi.org/10.1111/nph.16677 -Ge, Yong, Houyuan Lu, Jianping Zhang, Can Wang, and Xing Gao. 2020. ‘Phytoliths in Inflorescence Bracts: Preliminary Results of an Investigation on Common Panicoideae Plants in China’.Frontiers in Plant Science10.https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2019.01736 -Gu, Yansheng, Hongye Liu, Hanlin Wang, Rencheng Li, and Jianxin Yu. 2016. ‘Phytoliths as a Method of Identification for Three Genera of Woody Bamboos (Bambusoideae) in Tropical Southwest China’.Journal of Archaeological Science68: 46–53.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jas.2015.08.003 -Guerriero, Gea, Ian Stokes, Nathalie Valle, Jean-Francois Hausman, and Christopher Exley. 2020. ‘Visualising Silicon in Plants: Histochemistry, Silica Sculptures and Elemental Imaging’.Cells9.https://doi.org/10.3390/cells9041066 -Hartley, Sue E., Rob N. Fitt, Emma L. McLarnon, and Ruth N. Wade. 2015. ‘Defending the Leaf Surface: Intra- and Inter-Specific Differences in Silicon Deposition in Grasses in Response to Damage and Silicon Supply’.Frontiers in Plant Science6.https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2015.00035 -Harvey, Emma L., and Dorian Q Fuller. 2005. ‘Investigating Crop Processing Using Phytolith Analysis: The Example of Rice and Millets’.Journal of Archaeological Science32: 739–52.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jas.2004.12.010 -Hodson, Martin J. 2019. ‘The Relative Importance of Cell Wall and Lumen Phytoliths in Carbon Sequestration in Soil: A Hypothesis’.Frontiers in Earth Science7 (July): 167.https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2019.00167 -Hodson, Martin J., Adrian G. Parker, Melanie J. Leng, and Hilary J. Sloane. 2008a. ‘Silicon, Oxygen and Carbon Isotope Composition of Wheat (Triticum Aestivum L.) Phytoliths: Implications for Palaeoecology and Archaeology’.Journal of Quaternary Science23 (4): 331–39.https://doi.org/10.1002/jqs.1176 -Hodson, Martin J.. 2008b. ‘Silicon, Oxygen and Carbon Isotope Composition of Wheat (Triticum Aestivum L.) Phytoliths: Implications for Palaeoecology and Archaeology’.Journal of Quaternary Science23 (4): 331–39.https://doi.org/10.1002/jqs.1176 -Hurtado, Alexander Calero, Denise Aparecida Chiconato, Renato de Mello Prado, Gilmar da Silveira Sousa Junior, Dilier Olivera Viciedo, Yanery Pérez Díaz, Kolima Peña Calzada, and Priscila Lupino Gratão.2020. ‘Silicon Alleviates Sodium Toxicity in Sorghum and Sunflower Plants by Enhancing Ionic Homeostasis in Roots and Shoots and Increasing Dry Matter Accumulation’.Silicon.https://doi.org/10.1007/s12633-020-00449-7 -Jadhao, Kundansing Rajpalsing, and Gyana Ranjan Rout. 2020. ‘Silicon (Si) Enhances the Resistance in Finger Millet Genotypes against Blast Disease’.Journal of Plant Pathology.https://doi.org/10.1007/s42161-020-00622-2 -Jenkins, Emma. 2009. ‘Phytolith Taphonomy: A Comparison of Dry Ashing and Acid Extraction on the Breakdown of Conjoined Phytoliths Formed in Triticum Durum’.Journal of Archaeological Science36 (October): 2402–7.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jas.2009.06.028 -Jenkins, Emma, Khalil Jamjoum, Sameeh Nuimat, Richard Stafford, Stephen Nortcliff, and Steven Mithen. 2016. ‘Identifying Ancient Water Availability through Phytolith Analysis: An Experimental Approach’.Journal of Archaeological Science73: 82–93.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jas.2016.07.006 -Jenkins, Emma, Lea Predanich, Sameeh Nuimat, Khalil Jamjoum, and Richard Stafford. 2020. ‘Assessing Past Water Availability Using Phytoliths Fro the C4 Plant Sorghum Bicolor: An Experimental Approah’.Journal of Archaeological Science33.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jasrep.2020.102460. -Jones, L.H.P., Milne, A.A. Studies of silica in the oat plant.Plant Soil18,207–220 (1963).https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01347875 -Karoune, E., 2020. Pre-print of Assessing Open Science Practices in Phytolith Research (preprint). Open Science Framework.https://doi.org/10.31219/osf.io/fa7q3 -Kameník, J., J. Mizera, and Z. Řanda. 2013. ‘Chemical Composition of Plant Silica Phytoliths’.Environmental Chemistry Letters11 (June): 189–95.https://doi.org/10.1007/s10311-012-0396-9 -Katz, Ofir, Dan Cabanes, Stephen Weiner, Aren M. Maeir, Elisabetta Boaretto, and Ruth Shahack-Gross. 2010. ‘Rapid Phytolith Extraction for Analysis of Phytolith Concentrations and Assemblages during an Excavation: An Application at Tell Es-Safi/Gath, Israel’.Journal of Archaeological Science37 (July): 1557–63.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jas.2010.01.016 -Ksiaa, Mariem, Nèjia Farhat, Mokded Rabhi, Amine Elkhouni, Abderrazak Smaoui, Ahmed Debez, Cécile Cabassa-Hourton, Arnould Savouré, Chedly Abdelly, and Walid Zorrig. 2021. ‘Silicon (Si) Alleviates Iron Deficiency Effects in Sea Barley (Hordeum Marinum) by Enhancing Iron Accumulation and Photosystem Activities’.Silicon, October.https://doi.org/10.1007/s12633-021-01376-x -Kumar, Santosh, Yonat Milstein, Yaniv Brami, Michael Elbaum, and Rivka Elbaum. 2017. ‘Mechanism of Silica Deposition in Sorghum Silica Cells’.New Phytologist213: 791–98. https://doi.org/10.1111/nph.14173 -Kumar, Santosh, Milan Soukup, and Rivka Elbaum. 2017. ‘Silicification in Grasses: Variation between Different Cell Types’.Frontiers in Plant Science8 (March).https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2017.00438 -Leng, Melanie J., George E. A. Swann, Martin J. Hodson, Jonathan J. Tyler, Siddharth V. Patwardhan, and Hilary J. Sloane. 2009. ‘The Potential Use of Silicon Isotope Composition of Biogenic Silica as a Proxy for Environmental Change’.Silicon, 65–77.https://doi.org/10.1007/s12633-009-9014-2 -Lombardo, U., Ruiz-Pérez, J., Rodrigues, L., Mestrot, A., Mayle, F., Madella, M., Szidat, S., Veit, H., 2019.Holocene land cover change in south-western Amazonia inferred from paleoflood archives. Global and Planetary Change 174, 105–114.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloplacha.2019.01.008 -Lux, Alexander, Miroslava Luxova, Taiichiro Hattori, Shinobu Inanaga, and Yukihiro Sugimoto. 2002. ‘Silicification in Sorghum (Sorghum Bicolor) Cultivars with Different Drought Tolerance’.Physiologia Plantarum115 (May): 87–92.https://doi.org/10.1034/j.1399-3054.2002.1150110.x -Lv, Wanjie, Guomo Zhou, Guangsheng Chen, Yufeng Zhou, Zhipeng Ge, Zhengwen Niu, Lin Xu, and Yongjun Shi. 2020. ‘Effects of Different Management Practices on the Increase in Phytolith-Occluded Carbon in Moso Bamboo Forests’.Frontiers in Plant Science11.https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2020.591852 -Ma, Jian Feng, Kazunori Tamai, Naoki Yamaji, Namiki Mitani, Saeko Konishi, Maki Katsuhara, Masaji Ishiguro, Yoshiko Murata, and Masahiro Yano. 2006. ‘A Silicon Transporter in Rice’.Nature440 (March): 688–91.https://doi.org/10.1038/nature04590 -Ma, Jian Feng, and Naoki Yamaji. 2006. ‘Silicon Uptake and Accumulation in Higher Plants’.Trends in Plant Science11 (8): 392–97.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tplants.2006.06.007 -Ma. 2015. ‘A Cooperative System of Silicon Transport in Plants’.Trends in Plant Science20 (7): 435–42.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tplants.2015.04.007 -Madella, M., M.K. Jones, P. Echlin, A. Powers-Jones, and M. Moore. 2009. ‘Plant Water Availability and Analytical Microscopy of Phytoliths: Implications for Ancient Irrigation in Arid Zones’.Quaternary International193 (1–2): 32–40.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2007.06.012 -Madella, M., A.H. Powers-Jones, and M.K. Jones. 1998. ‘A Simple Method of Extraction of Opal Phytoliths from Sediments Using a Non-Toxic Heavy Liquid’.Journal of Archaeological Science25 (8): 801–3.https://doi.org/10.1006/jasc.1997.0226 -Madella, Marco, and Carla Lancelotti. 2012. ‘Taphonomy and Phytoliths: A User Manual’.Quaternary International275 (October): 76–83.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2011.09.008 -Madella, Marco, Carla Lancelotti, and Juan José García-Granero. 2016. ‘Millet Microremains—an Alternative Approach to Understand Cultivation and Use of Critical Crops in Prehistory’.Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences8: 17–28.https://doi.org/10.1007/s12520-013-0130-y -Markovich, Oshry, Santosh Kumar, Dikla Cohen, Sefi Addadi, Eyal Fridman, and Rivka Elbaum. 2019. ‘Silicification in Leaves of Sorghum Mutant with Low Silicon Accumulation’.Silicon11: 2385–91.https://doi.org/10.1007/s12633-015-9348-x Markovich, Oshry, Nerya Zexer, Boaz Negin, Yotam Zait, Shula Blum, Alon Ben-Gal, and Rivka RivkaElbaum. 2022. ‘Low Si Combined with Drought Causes Reduced Transpiration in Sorghum Lsi1 Mutant’.Plant and Soil, February.https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-022-05298-4 -Mateos-Naranjo, Enrique, Luis Andrades-Moreno, and Anthony J. Davy. 2013. ‘Silicon Alleviates Deleterious Effects of High Salinity on the Halophytic Grass Spartina Densiflora’.Plant Physiology and Biochemistry63 (February): 115–21.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.plaphy.2012.11.015 -Miller Rosen, Arlene. 1994. ‘Identifying Ancient Irrigation: A New Method Using Opaline Phytoliths from Emmer Wheat’.Journal of Archaeological Science21: 125–32. -Mitani, N. 2005. ‘Uptake System of Silicon in Different Plant Species’.Journal of Experimental Botany56 (414): 1255–61.https://doi.org/10.1093/jxb/eri121 -Ngoc Nguyen, Minh, Stefan Dultz, and Georg Guggenberger. 2014. ‘Effects of Pretreatment and Solution Chemistry on Solubility of Rice‐straw Phytoliths’.Journal of Plant Nutrition and Soil Science177 (June): 349–59.https://doi.org/10.1002/jpln.201300056 -Parr, Jeff F. 2006. ‘Effect of Fire on Phytolith Coloration’.Geoarchaeology21 (2): 171–85.https://doi.org/10.1002/gea.20102 -Parr, Jeffrey F., and Leigh A. Sullivan. 2014. ‘Comparison of Two Methods for the Isolation of Phytolith Occluded Carbon from Plant Material’.Plant and Soil374: 45–53.https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-013-1847-1 -Parr, J.F., V. Dolic, G. Lancaster, and W.E. Boyd. 2001. ‘A Microwave Digestion Method for the Extraction of Phytoliths from Herbarium Specimens’.Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology116: 203–12.https://doi.org/10.1016/S0034-6667(01)00089-6 -Pearsall, Deborah M. 2016.Paleoethnobotany- A Handbook of Procedures. 3rd ed. Oxford: Routledge Taylor & Francis Group. -Piperno, Dolores R. 2006.Phytoliths. Oxford: Altamira press. -Prentice, Andrea J., and Elizabeth A. Webb. 2016. ‘The Effect of Progressive Dissolution on the Oxygen and Silicon Isotope Composition of Opal-A Phytoliths: Implications for Palaeoenvironmental Reconstruction’.Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology453: 42–51.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.palaeo.2016.03.031 -Roy, Biswajit, Sutapa Patra, and Prasanta Sanyal. 2020. ‘The Carbon Isotopic Composition of Occluded Carbon in Phytoliths: A Comparative Study of Phytolith Extraction Methods’.Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.revpalbo.2020.104280 -Rudall, Paula J., Christina J. Prychid, and Thomas Gregory. 2014. ‘Epidermal Patterning and Silica Phytoliths in Grasses: An Evolutionary History’.The Botanical Review80 (March): 59–71.https://doi.org/10.1007/s12229-014-9133-3 -Santos, Guaciara M, Anne Alexandre, Heloisa H G Coe, Paul E Reyerson, John R Southon, and Cacilda N De Carvalho. 2010. ‘The Phytolith14C Puzzle: A Tale of Background Determinations and Accuracy Tests’.Radiocarbon52 (1): 113–28.https://doi.org/10.1017/S0033822200045070 -Schulz-Kornas, Ellen, Caroline Braune, Daniela E. Winkler, and Thomas M. Kaiser. 2017. ‘Does Silica Concentration and Phytolith Ultrastructure Relate to Phytolith Hardness?’Biosurface and Biotribology3: 135–43.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bsbt.2017.12.004 -Shahack-Gross, Ruth, Aldo Shemesh, Dan Yakir, and Steve Weiner. 1996. ‘Oxygen Isotopic Composition of Opaline Phytoliths: Potential for Terrestrial Climatic Reconstruction’.Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta60 (20): 3949–53.https://doi.org/10.1016/0016-7037(96)00237-2 -Stamm, Franziska M., Merlin Méheut, Thomas Zambardi, Jérôme Chmeleff, Jacques Schott, and Eric H. Oelkers. 2020. ‘Extreme Silicon Isotope Fractionation Due to Si Organic Complexation: Implications for Silica Biomineralization’.Earth and Planetary Science Letters541.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2020.116287 -Strömberg, Caroline A. E., Verónica S. Di Stilio, and Zhaoliang Song. 2016.‘Functions of Phytoliths in Vascular Plants: An Evolutionary Perspective’. Edited by Jane De Gabriel.Functional Ecology30: 1286–97.https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2435.12692 -Strömberg, Caroline A.E. 2009. ‘Methodological Concerns for Analysis of Phytolith Assemblages: Does Count Size Matter?’Quaternary International193: 124–40.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2007.11.008 Twiss, P. C., Erwin Suess, and R. M. Smith. 1969. ‘Morphological Classification of Grass Phytoliths’.Soil Science Society of America Journal33: 109–15.https://doi.org/10.2136/sssaj1969.03615995003300010030x -Tyler, Jonathan J., Melanie J. Leng, and Hilary J. Sloane. 2007. ‘The Effects of Organic Removal Treatment on the Integrity of Δ18O Measurements from Biogenic Silica’.Journal of Paleolimnology37 (May): 491–97.https://doi.org/10.1007/s10933-006-9030-9 -Vatansever, Recep, Ibrahim Ilker Ozyigit, Ertugrul Filiz, and Nermin Gozukara. 2017. ‘Genome-Wide Exploration of Silicon (Si) Transporter Genes, Lsi1 and Lsi2 in Plants; Insights into Si-Accumulation Status/Capacity of Plants’.BioMetals30: 185–200.https://doi.org/10.1007/s10534-017-9992-2 -Watling, Kym M., Jeff F. Parr, Llew Rintoul, Christopher L. Brown, and Leigh A. Sullivan. 2011. ‘Raman, Infrared and XPS Study of Bamboo Phytoliths after Chemical Digestion’.Spectrochimica Acta Part A: Molecular and Biomolecular Spectroscopy80 (October): 106–11.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.saa.2011.03.002 -Webb, Elizabeth A., and Fred J. Longstaffe. 2002. ‘Climatic Influences on the Oxygen Isotopic Composition of Biogenic Silica in Prairie Grass’.Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta66 (11): 1891–1904.https://doi.org/10.1016/S0016-7037(02)00822-0 Webb, Elizabeth A. 2010. ‘Limitations on the Climatic and Ecological Signals Provided by the Δ13C Values of Phytoliths from a C4 North American Prairie Grass’.Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta74 (June): 3041–50.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gca.2010.03.006 -Yang, Shilei, Qian Hao, Hailong Wang, Lukas Van Zwieten, Changxun Yu, Taoze Liu, Xiaomin Yang, Xiaodong Zhang, and Zhaoliang Song. 2020.‘A Review of Carbon Isotopes of Phytoliths: Implications for Phytolith-Occluded Carbon Sources’.Journal of Soils and Sediments.https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-019-02548-4 -Zancajo, Victor M. R., Sabrina Diehn, Nurit Filiba, Gil Goobes, Janina Kneipp, and Rivka Elbaum. 2019. ‘Spectroscopic Discrimination of Sorghum Silica Phytoliths’.Frontiers in Plant Science10.https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2019.01571 -Zurro, Debora. 2018. ‘One, Two, Three Phytoliths: Assessing the Minimum Phytolith Sum for Archaeological Studies’.Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences10 (October): 1673–91.https://doi.org/10.1007/s12520-017-0479-4 -Zurro, Débora, Juan José García-Granero, Carla Lancelotti, and Marco Madella. 2016. ‘Directions in Current and Future Phytolith Research’.Journal of Archaeological Science68 (April): 112–17.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jas.2015.11.014

Pictorial humanization is a useful intervention for the improvement of hospitalized patients’ affective states. Despite benefits in many hospital wards having been well documented, so far, no attention was paid to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). The aim of the present study was to evaluate the levels of distress and the affective perception of the environment experienced by parents of infants hospitalized in a NICU after the implementation of an intervention of pictorial humanization. A sample of 48 parents was recruited, 25 before the intervention was performed (Control Group), and 23 after its implementation (Pictorial Humanization Group). All parents completed the “Rapid Stress Assessment Scale” and “Scales of the Affective Quality Attributed to Place” questionnaires. Despite results showing no significant differences on parental distress, after implementation of pictorial intervention parents reported a perception of the NICU as significantly more pleasant, exciting, and arousing, and less distressing, unpleasant, gloomy, and sleepy. A higher level of distress and a perception of the environment as less relaxing was predicted for the Control Group condition. The present study suggests that the pictorial intervention represents a useful technique to create more welcoming hospital environments and to reduce the negative effects associated with infant hospitalization.

Biosilica accumulation in plant tissues is related to the transpiration stream, which in turn depends on water availability. Nevertheless, the debate on whether genetically and environmentally controlled mechanisms of biosilica deposition are directly connected to water availability is still open. We aim at clarifying the system which leads to the deposition of biosilica in

Congenital hypothyroidism is a condition in which the thyroid gland does not produce enough thyroid hormones. It occurs in 1:2000-4000 newborns. Common clinical features include decreased activity and increased sleep, feeding difficulty, constipation, prolonged jaundice, myxedematous facies, large fontanels (especially posterior), macroglossia, distended abdomen with umbilical hernia, and hypotonia. Slow linear growth and developmental delay are usually apparent by 4-6 months of age. Without treatment, congenital hypothyroidism leads to severe intellectual deficit and short stature. Congenital hyperthyroidism occurs when the thyroid gland produces too much of the hormone thyroxine, which can accelerate body metabolism, causing unintentional weight loss and a rapid or irregular heartbeat. Hyperthyroidism is very rare and its prevalence is unknown. Common clinical features include unintentional weight loss, tachycardia, arrhythmia, palpitations, anxiety, tremor and sweating. Here we summarize the genes involved in congenital hypo- and hyperthyroidism and the tests we use for genetic analysis. (www.actabiomedica.it)

The pandemic period which has characterized the last two years has been associated with increasingly worsening psychological conditions, and previous studies have reported severe levels of anxiety, mood disorder, and psychopathological alteration in the general population. In particular, worldwide populations have appeared to present post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS). Surprisingly, no studies have evaluated the effect of COVID-related PTSS on cognitive functioning. This study focused on the association between high levels of PTSS related to COVID-19 and alterations in executive functioning by considering executive inhibitions in populations not infected by the virus. Ninety respondents from the Italian population participated in the study. A higher percentage of PTSS was reported. Moreover, respondents with high post-traumatic symptomatology presented deficits in the inhibition of preponderant responses, demonstrating an executive deficit which could be expressed by a difficulty in controlling goal-directed actions. This was underlined by worse performances in elaborating incongruent stimuli in the Stroop task and no-go stimuli in the Go/No-Go task. This report presents preliminary findings underlining the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on cognitive functions. The results confirmed a persistently higher post-traumatic symptomatology related to the COVID-19 pandemic in the Italian population and highlighted an association with cognitive inhibition impairment.

The COVID-19 pandemic that has hit the world in the year 2020 has put a strain on our ability to cope with events and revolutionized our daily habits. On 9 March, Italy was forced to lockdown to prevent the spread of the infection, with measures including the mandatory closure of schools and nonessential activities, travel restrictions, and the obligation to spend entire weeks in the same physical space. The aim of this study was to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown measures on quality of life (QoL) in a large Italian sample, in order to investigate possible differences in QoL levels related to both demographic and pandemic-specific variables. A total of 2251 Italian adults (1665 women, mainly young and middle adults) were recruited via a snowball sampling strategy. Participants were requested to answer to an online survey, which included demographic and COVID-related information items, and the World Health Organization Quality of Life BREF questionnaire (WHOQOL-BREF). The results showed statistically significant differences in QoL depending on a number of variables, including sex, area of residence in Italy, and being diagnosed with a medical/psychiatric condition. To our knowledge, this is the first study to assess QoL during COVID-19 pandemic in Italy, therefore the present findings can offer guidelines regarding which social groups are more vulnerable of a decline in QoL and would benefit of psychological interventions.

Background: After preterm birth, infants are at high risk for delays in language development. A promising intervention to reduce this risk is represented by the exposure to parental voices through book-reading in Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICU). This study investigated the possible advantages of book-reading to preterm neonates during their NICU stay on their subsequent language development. Methods: 100 families of preterm infants were recruited. The parents of 55 preterm infants (Reading Group) received a colored picture-book on NICU admission and were supported to read to their neonate as often as possible and to continue after hospital discharge. 45 infants (Control Group) were recruited before the beginning of the intervention. Infant language development was assessed with the Hearing and Language quotients of the Griffith Mental Development Scale at the corrected age of 3, 6, 9, 12, 18 and 24 months. Results: Regardless of group membership, Hearing and Language mean quotients decreased between 9 and 18 months; nevertheless, this decrease was considerably reduced in the Reading group, compared to the Control Group. Conclusions: Reading in NICUs represents a suitable intervention that could positively influence language development and parent-infant relationships in preterm children. Study findings support its implementation, as preventive measure.

This study contributes to the knowledge on the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic by examining a moderated mediation model in which the impact of job loss over quality of life (QoL) is mediated by hopelessness and moderated by trait emotional intelligence (trait EI). Data were collected from a large nationally representative Italian sample of adult workers (N = 1610), who completed a series of anonymous online questionnaires. Total, direct and indirect effects were estimated through bootstrapped mediated moderation analyses providing 95% bias corrected bootstrap confidence intervals. After controlling for the effects of gender and age range, job loss was found to be negatively associated with QoL, and hopelessness partially mediated such relationship. These relationships were in turn moderated by trait EI. Our study suggests that trait EI levels act as protective factor for a good QoL, mitigating the impact of both job loss and hopelessness over QoL levels during the COVID-19 pandemic. Identifying psychological protective and/or risk factors for a better QoL is crucial for the development of interventions aimed at reducing the emotional impact of the pandemic and of its negative real-life consequences.

The onset of Takotsubo syndrome (TTS), also known as stress cardiomyopathy, is thought to be associated with some life events. This study focuses on clarifying life event characteristics and the role of triggers in the onset of TTS. Participants with TTS (n = 54) were compared to those with acute myocardial infarction (AMI, n = 52) and healthy individuals (n = 54). Using a modified version of the Interview for Recent Life Events, information about general life events perceived as stressful and triggers preceding the onset of a cardiac syndrome was collected. The assessment included the impact of these events as indicated by the participants and estimated by the interviewer, finally, the objective impact was considered. Although the number of events and the objective impact did not differ among the groups, patients with TTS reported a more negative perceived impact. Moreover, 61% of these patients objectively and subjectively reported a more stressful trigger before the onset of the disease (in the 24 h preceding the cardiac event) than those reported by patients with AMI. The dynamic between life events and individual responses could help differentiate TTS from other cardiovascular events, such as AMI. This study suggests that patients’ perception of some life events (whether triggers or general life events) could represent a possible marker of TTS.

Open access funding provided by Universita degli Studi di Roma La Sapienza within the CRUI-CARE Agreement., We want to thank all children, parents, teachers, and headmasters who made this study possible. In particular, we thank the following schools: the Istituto Comprensivo M.T. Cicerone in Arpino (Scuola Infanzia Arpino Cap. (Panaccio), Scuola Infanzia San Sosio, Scuola Infanzia Pagnanelli, Scuola Infanzia Fontana Liri, Scuola Infanzia Santopadre) and the Istituto Comprensivo Vito Fabiano in Latina. We also thank Valentina Valli and Alfredo Spagna for the test drawings., Attention involves three functionally and neuroanatomically distinct neural networks: alerting, orienting, and executive control. This study aimed to analyze the development of attentional networks in children aged between 3 and 6 years using a child-friendly version of the Attentional Network Test for Interaction (ANTI), the ANTI-Birds. The sample included 88 children divided into four age groups: 3-year-old, 4-year-old, 5-year-old, 6-year-old children. The results of this study would seem to indicate that between 4 and 6 years, there are no significant changes in attentional networks. Instead, between 3 and 4 years of age, children significantly improve all their attentional skills., Universita degli Studi di Roma La Sapienza within the CRUI-CARE Agreement

Background: After preterm birth, infants are at high risk for delays in language development. A promising intervention to reduce this risk is represented by the exposure to parental voices through book-reading in Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICU). This study investigated the possible advantages of book-reading to preterm neonates during their NICU stay on their subsequent language development. Methods: 100 families of preterm infants were recruited. The parents of 55 preterm infants (Reading Group) received a colored picture-book on NICU admission and were supported to read to their neonate as often as possible and to continue after hospital discharge. Forty-five infants (Control Group) were recruited before the beginning of the intervention. Infant language development was assessed with the Hearing and Language quotients of the Griffith Mental Development Scale at the corrected ages of 3, 6, 9, 12, 18 and 24 months. Results: Regardless of group membership, Hearing and Language mean quotients decreased between 9 and 18 months, nevertheless, this decrease was considerably reduced in the Reading group, compared to the Control Group. Conclusions: Reading in NICUs represents a suitable intervention that could positively influence language development and parent-infant relationships in preterm children. The study findings support its implementation as a preventive measure.

The collaboration between Bufalini Hospital’s NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit), Cesena, and the Developmental Psychodynamics Laboratory of Bologna’s Psychology Department, Cesena branch, has led to a shared reflection regarding both the Care of preterm births under 1500 grams, from 3 to 24 months of corrected age, and of a multidisciplinary neuro and psychodevelopmental follow up procedure . The studies, published in international journals, have led to the formulation of new research hypotheses and clinical reflection.

Although preterm birth constitutes a risk factor for postpartum depressive symptomatology, perinatal depression (PND) has not been investigated extensively in fathers of very low (VLBW) and extremely low birth weight (ELBW) infants. This study explored paternal depression levels at 3, 9, and 12 months of infant corrected age, investigating also the predictive role played by the severity of prematurity, maternal and paternal PND levels, and parenting stress. We recruited 153 fathers of 33 ELBW, 42 VLBW, and 78 full-term (FT) infants, respectively. Depression was investigated by the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) and distress by the Parenting Stress Index-Short Form-PSI-SF (Total and subscales: Parental Distress, Parent–Child Dysfunctional Interaction, and Difficult Child). ELBW fathers showed a significant decrease (improvement) in EPDS, total PSI-SF, and Parental Distress mean scores after 3 months. Paternal EPDS scores at 12 months were significantly predicted by VLBW and FT infants’ birth weight categories, fathers’ EPDS scores at 3 and 9 months, Parent–Child Dysfunctional Interaction subscale at 3 months, and Difficult Child subscale at 9 months. This study strengthens the relevance of including early routine screening and parenting support for fathers in perinatal health services, with particular attention to fathers who might be more vulnerable to mental health difficulties due to severely preterm birth.

Behavioral Inhibition (BI) is a temperamental trait characterized by fear and wariness in reaction to new and unfamiliar stimuli, both social and non-social. BI has been recognized as possible forerunner of anxiety disorders, especially social anxiety and phobia, therefore, its assessment is clinically relevant. The present study aimed to examine the psychometric properties of the Italian adaptation of the Behavioral Inhibition Questionnaire (BIQ), which measures BI in preschool children. The BIQ was completed by 417 Italian parents (230 mothers, 187 fathers) of 270 preschoolers aged 3–5. Confirmatory factor analysis showed a good internal validity: the factorial structure was corresponding to the original six-factor version. Results showed excellent internal consistency, significant item-total correlations, good inter-rater reliability, convergent validity (by correlating the BIQ with the Italian Questionnaires of Temperament-QUIT, the Anxiety-Shy Conner’s Scale and the Laboratory Temperament Assessment Battery) and discriminant validity (i.e., no correlation with Conners’ ADHD scale). Significant correlations emerged between BI indexes and total BIQ scores of parents and maternal (but not paternal) versions of the questionnaire. Altogether, the results are promising and consistent with previous validation studies, suggesting the BIQ as a reliable and valid measure for evaluating parents’ perception of BI in Italian preschoolers.

Monogenic hyperlipidemias are a group of inherited disorders characterized by elevated plasma concentrations of lipids and lipoproteins. High plasma concentrations of lipids are the most frequent risk factor for cardiovascular disease. Monogenic hyperlipidemias are a minor cause with respect to multifactorial hyperlipidemias. Diagnosis is based on clinical findings and lipid panel measurements. Genetic testing is useful for confirming diagnosis and for differential diagnosis, recurrence risk calculation and prenatal diagnosis in families with a known mutation. Monogenic hyperlipidemias can have either autosomal dominant or recessive inheritance. (www.actabiomedica.it)

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on global healthcare workers’ (HCWs) mental health has been well documented in the last two years; however, little is known regarding HCWs working in specific healthcare fields. During two subsequent periods of national lockdown in Italy (June–July 2020, T1, and November–December 2020, T2), a total sample of 47 HCWs working in a reproductive medicine hospital unit completed an ad hoc questionnaire for assessing emotional reactions to the pandemic, stress symptoms, and ways of coping. Moderate–high levels of anger and sadness were experienced by 65.9% and 68.1% of the HCWs, respectively, while moderate–high levels of anxiety and fear were experienced by 51.1% and 56.8%, respectively. Higher stress symptoms experienced by HCWs were hypervigilance, avoidance of thoughts and memories, and tiredness/low energy. At T2, levels of hypervigilance, irritability, intrusive thoughts, and detachment were higher than at T1, while avoidance of external triggers decreased. Moderate–high levels of anxiety resulted significantly associated with several symptoms of stress: irritability/fearfulness, depression/hopelessness, tiredness/low energy, problems with concentration, and intrusive thoughts. Regarding coping strategies, HCWs tended to adopt more problem-focused coping (e.g., contributing to improving a situation) and this tendency was higher at T2. Overall findings suggest a risk for the persistence of stress symptoms and, therefore, a risk for a chronic course, which might interfere with the global quality of mental health at work and the care provided to patients. Clinical implications highlight the relevance of implementing support programs for this category of HCWs focused on the elaboration of negative emotions and on fostering adaptive coping strategies.

Aim of this study was to investigate whether parental mental representations during pregnancy and after delivery differed between parents who conceived after Assisted Reproductive Treatments (ART) and spontaneous conceiving (SC) parents. Effects of specific ART variables (previous ART attempts, treatment type and cause of infertility) were also taken into account. Seventeen ART couples and 25 SC couples were recruited at Santa Maria Nuova Hospital (Reggio Emilia, Italy). At both 32 weeks of gestation (T1) and 3 months postpartum (T2) participants completed the Semantic Differential of the IRMAG, a self-report tool which measures specific domains of mental representations pertaining either individual (Child, Self-as-woman/man, and Partner) or parental (Self-as-parent, Own parent) characteristics. Results showed that ART parents had significantly more positive representations of the child compared to SC parents, while the scores at Partner dimension improved from T1 to T2 for SC parents only. With regards to ART history, scores at the Self-as-woman/man dimension were significantly less positive for ICSI than IVF parents and improved substantially from T1 to T2 only in case of mothers with previous ART attempts and of fathers at the first ART cycle. The representation of own parents increased from T1 to T2 in case of infertility diagnosis due to male factors, while a decrease emerged when infertility was due to female factors. Findings suggest the need to investigate parental mental representations after ART, in order to improve the understanding on the transition to parenthood of infertile couples and to target more specific intervention for parenting support.

Background: Perinatal depression (PND) in mothers and fathers of very low and extremely low birth weight (VLBW and ELBW) infants has not been studied extensively. In particular, no studies investigated the reciprocal influence of depressive symptoms during the first 12 months postpartum. This study aimed at exploring the impact of the severity of prematurity on maternal and paternal PND during the first postpartum year; specifically, we used an Actor–Partner Interdependence Model (APIM) to test the interdependence of both partners on depressive symptoms.Methods: A total of 177 mothers and 177 fathers were recruited, divided into 38 couples with ELBW infants, 56 with VLBW, and 83 of full-term (FT) infants. PND was evaluated by the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) at 3, 9, and 12 months postpartum (corrected age for preterm infants).Results: Maternal depressive symptoms at 3 months were positively related to those at 9 and 12 months in the 3 groups. Conversely, paternal depressive symptoms assessed at 3 months were positively related to those measured at 9 months for the ELBW group, 12 months for the VLBW group, 9 and 12 months for FT condition. Furthermore, a significantly positive partner effect was observed regarding the influence of 3 month maternal depressive symptoms on paternal depressive symptoms at 9 months, but only in the case of the VLBW group.Conclusion: Prematurity represents a very specific scenario in the transition to parenthood, leading to specific reactions in mothers and fathers, especially in high-risk conditions. Results should be deepened given the relevance of their clinical implications.

Mathematical performance implies a series of numerical and mathematical skills (both innate and derived from formal training) as well as certain general cognitive abilities that, if inadequate, can have a cascading effect on mathematics learning. These latter skills were the focus of the present systematic review. Method: The reviewing process was conducted according to the PRISMA statement. We included 46 studies comparing school-aged children’s performance with and without math difficulties in the following cognitive domains: processing speed, phonological awareness, short- and long-term memory, executive functions, and attention. Results: The results showed that some general cognitive domains were compromised in children with mathematical difficulties (i.e., executive functions, attention, and processing speed). Conclusions: These cognitive functions should be evaluated during the diagnostic process in order to better understand the child’s profile and propose individually tailored interventions. However, further studies should investigate the role of skills that have been poorly investigated to date (e.g., long-term memory and phonological awareness).

Several inherited disorders involve chronic fatigue, muscle weakness and pain. These conditions can depend on muscle, nerve, brain, metabolic and mitochondrial defects. A major trigger of muscle weakness and fatigue is exercise. The amount of exercise that triggers symptoms and the frequency of symptoms are highly variable. In this review, the genetic causes and molecular pathways involved in these disorders are discussed along with the diagnostic and treatment options available, with the aim of fostering understanding of the disease and exploring therapeutic options. (www.actabiomedica.it)

Background The literature has recognized premature birth as a risk factor for infant development and maternal anxiety. This study investigated the impact of the severity of birth weight, as well as of maternal anxiety at 3 months of infants' corrected age, on infants' outcomes during the 1st year postpartum. Moreover, it described the longitudinal trajectories of developmental outcomes, additionally exploring the impact of anxiety. Methods The study compared 147 mothers and their 147 newborns, differentiated in 25 Extremely Low Birth Weight (ELBW), 41 Very Low Birth Weight (VLBW), and 81 Full-Term (FT) infants. At 3, 9, and 12 months (corrected age in the case of preterm infants) the level of infants' development was investigated according to the 5 quotients (Locomotor, Personal and Social, Hearing and Language, Eye-hand Co-ordination and Performance) of the Griffiths Mental Development Scales (GMDS-R). During the assessment of 3 months, mothers fulfilled Penn State Worry Questionnaire (PSWQ) to evaluate the presence of generalized anxiety. Results Among the 5 GMDS-R quotients, significant effect of severity of birth weight emerged only for Performance quotient: preterm infants (ELBW at 3 months; VLBW at 12 months) showed lower scores than FT ones. Moreover, this quotient decreased from 3 to 9 and to 12 months for VLBW and FT infants, while it was stable for ELBW ones. A significant interaction between severity of birth weight and maternal anxiety emerged for Hearing and Language and Locomotor quotients. In the first case, scores for ELBW infants, independently from maternal anxiety, decreased from 9 to 12 months. The same results emerged for VLBW infants, in the case of non-anxious mothers. Regarding Locomotor quotient, mean scores decreased from 3 to 9 and to 12 months for all groups in the case of non-anxious mothers. Conversely, when mothers were anxious, this decrease emerged only for VLBW infants. Lastly, ELBW, VLBW and FT showed difference in the growth and slope of the trajectories of different quotients. Conclusion The severity of birth weight for preterm infants, also in interaction with maternal anxiety, had significant and specific impact on different dimensions of infants' development. Clinical implications of these results underline the need for individualized interventions.

This study aims to describe parents&rsquo, and infant&rsquo, s interactive styles after assisted reproduction treatments (ART), to compare them with parent&ndash, infant interactions after spontaneous conception (SC), and to assess the effect of specific ART variables (cause of infertility, treatment type, and previous ART attempts) on interaction quality. The sample included 25 ART conceiving couples and 31 SC couples with their 3-months-old babies. Free parent&ndash, infant interactions (3&ndash, 5 min) were coded using the CARE-Index, a video-based assessment scale that gives both dimensional (e.g., sensitivity, control, passivity) and categorical scores (sensitive, inept, at-risk) for parents and infants. Results showed a global similarity between groups in CARE-Index dimensions. Nevertheless, differences emerged in categorical scores, as the interactive patterns of ART parents were more frequently classified as &ldquo, inept&rdquo, and &ldquo, at-risk&rdquo, compared to SC parents. With regards to ART dyads only, infants conceived through intracytoplasmic sperm injection scored significantly lower to the dimension compulsivity and higher to passivity, compared to infants conceived through in vitro fertilization. Yet, infants conceived at the first ART cycle had significantly lower levels of difficulty than infants conceived after one ART attempt. These results speak about the existence of important parent&ndash, infant interactive differences related to conception modality and ART technique and suggest the need to implement support programs to promote more sensitive parenting styles.

Many cognitive functions face a decline in the healthy elderly. Within the cognitive domains, both attentional processes and executive functions are impaired with aging. Attention includes three attentional networks, i.e., alerting, orienting, and executive control, showing a hemispheric lateralized pattern in adults. This lateralized pattern could play a role in modulating the efficiency of attentional networks. For these reasons, it could be relevant to analyze the age-related change of the hemispheric specialization of attentional networks. This study aims to clarify this aspect with a lateralized version of the Attentional Network Test for Interaction (ANTI)-Fruit. One hundred seventy-one participants took part in this study. They were divided in three age groups: youth (N = 57, range: 20–30), adults (N = 57, range 31–64), and elderly/older people (N = 57, range: 65–87). The results confirmed the previous outcomes on the efficiency and interactions among attentional networks. Moreover, an age-related generalized slowness was evidenced. These findings also support the hypothesis of a hemispheric asymmetry reduction in elderly/older adults.

Purpose: Quality of life (QoL) may represent a comprehensive indicator for the assessment of the psychological impact of complex clinical conditions, such as infertility. Infertile women have a worse QoL compared to both infertile men and non-infertile controls. However, the initial phases of infertility treatments have been frequently investigated using cross-sectional study designs. This prospective longitudinal study aimed at assessing the health-related QoL change across different phases of assisted reproductive technology (ART) treatments in subfertile women and men. Methods: Eighty-five subfertile women and men undergoing ART cycles were assessed at the beginning of the ovarian stimulation, during oocyte retrieval before discharging, and around 14 days after the embryo transfer. QoL was assessed through the Short Form 36. Results: Irrespective of the cause of infertility, work status, and age, QoL levels decreased from the first to the third assessment, and women scored significantly lower than men to each QoL indicator. Additionally, a higher number of previous ART failures had a negative impact on QoL, irrespective of gender and the phase of treatment. ART outcome marginally affected women’s QoL across time. Conclusion: Infertile women have a worse QoL throughout all phases of ARTs compared to men, and this difference increases in infertile patients with more than one previous ART failure.

Objective: In the 1st year of the post-partum period, parenting stress, mental health, and dyadic adjustment are important for the wellbeing of both parents and the child. However, there are few studies that analyze the relationship among these three dimensions. The aim of this study is to investigate the relationships between parenting stress, mental health (depressive and anxiety symptoms), and dyadic adjustment among first-time parents. Method: We studied 268 parents (134 couples) of healthy babies. At 12 months post-partum, both parents filled out, in a counterbalanced order, the Parenting Stress Index-Short Form, the Edinburgh Post-natal Depression Scale, the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, and the Dyadic Adjustment Scale. Structural equation modeling was used to analyze the potential mediating effects of mental health on the relationship between parenting stress and dyadic adjustment. Results: Results showed the full mediation effect of mental health between parenting stress and dyadic adjustment. A multi-group analysis further found that the paths did not differ across mothers and fathers. Discussion: The results suggest that mental health is an important dimension that mediates the relationship between parenting stress and dyadic adjustment in the transition to parenthood.

Alzheimer's disease is a severe irreversible syndrome, characterized by a slow and progressive cognitive decline that interferes with the standard instrumental and essential functions of daily life. Promptly identifying the impairment of particular cognitive functions could be a fundamental condition to limit, through preventive or therapeutic interventions, the functional damages found in this degenerative dementia. This study aims to analyse, through a systematic review of the studies, the sensitivity of four experimental paradigms (Wisconsin Card Sorting Test, Stroop Task, Go/No-Go Task, and Flanker Task) considered as golden standard instruments for executive functions assessment in elderly subjects affected by Alzheimer dementia. This review was carried out according to the PRISMA method. Forty-five studies comparing the executive performance of patients with Alzheimer's dementia (diagnosed according to different classification criteria for dementia) and healthy elderly patients both over the age of sixty, were selected. For the research, PubMed, PsycINFO, PsycArticles databases were used. The study highlighted the importance of using standard protocols to evaluate executive dysfunction in Alzheimer's disease. The Stroop task allows discriminating better between healthy and pathological aging.