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Age related macular degeneration (AMD) and diabetic retinopathy (DR) are multifactorial, neurodegenerative and inflammatory diseases of the eye primarily involving cellular and molecular components of the outer and inner blood-retina barriers (BRB), respectively. Largely contributed by genetic factors, particularly polymorphisms in complement genes, AMD is a paradigm of retinal immune dysregulation. DR, a major complication of diabetes mellitus, typically presents with increased vascular permeability and occlusion of the retinal vasculature that leads, in the proliferative form of the disease, to neovascularization, a pathogenic trait shared with advanced AMD. In spite of distinct etiology and clinical manifestations, both pathologies share common drivers, such as chronic inflammation, either of immune (in AMD) or metabolic (in DR) origin, which initiates and propagates degeneration of the neural retina, yet the underlying mechanisms are still unclear. As a soluble pattern recognition molecule with complement regulatory functions and a marker of vascular damage, long pentraxin 3 (PTX3) is emerging as a novel player in ocular homeostasis and a potential pharmacological target in neurodegenerative disorders of the retina. Physiologically present in the human eye and induced in inflammatory conditions, this protein is strategically positioned at the BRB interface, where it acts as a “molecular trap” for complement, and modulates inflammation both in homeostatic and pathological conditions. Here, we discuss current viewpoints on PTX3 and retinal diseases, with a focus on AMD and DR, the roles therein proposed for this pentraxin, and their implications for the development of new therapeutic strategies.

Dysregulation of the complement system is central to age-related macular degeneration (AMD), the leading cause of blindness in the developed world. Most of the genetic variation associated with AMD resides in complement genes, with the greatest risk associated with polymorphisms in the complement factor H (CFH) gene; factor H (FH) is the major inhibitor of the alternative pathway (AP) of complement that specifically targets C3b and the AP C3 convertase. Long pentraxin 3 (PTX3) is a soluble pattern recognition molecule that has been proposed to inhibit AP activation via recruitment of FH. Although present in the human retina, if and how PTX3 plays a role in AMD is still unclear. In this work we demonstrated the presence of PTX3 in the human vitreous and studied the PTX3-FH-C3b crosstalk and its effects on complement activation in a model of retinal pigment epithelium (RPE). RPE cells cultured in inflammatory AMD-like conditions overexpressed the PTX3 protein, and up-regulated AP activating genes. PTX3 bound RPE cells in a physiological setting, however this interaction was reduced in inflammatory conditions, whereby PTX3 had no complement-inhibiting activity on inflamed RPE. However, on non-cellular surfaces, PTX3 formed a stable ternary complex with FH and C3b that acted as a “hot spot” for complement inhibition. Our findings suggest a protective role for PTX3 in response to complement dysregulation in AMD and point to a novel mechanism of complement regulation by this pentraxin with potential implications in pathology and pharmacology of AMD.

Abstract Severe febrile illnesses in children encompass life-threatening organ dysfunction caused by diverse pathogens and other severe inflammatory syndromes. A comparative approach to these illnesses may identify shared and distinct features of host immune dysfunction amenable to immunomodulation. Here, using immunophenotyping with mass cytometry and cell stimulation experiments, we illustrate trajectories of immune dysfunction in 74 children with multi-system inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) associated with SARS-CoV-2, 30 with bacterial infection, 16 with viral infection, 8 with Kawasaki disease, and 42 controls. We explore these findings in a secondary cohort of 500 children with these illnesses and 134 controls. We show that neutrophil activation and apoptosis are prominent in multi-system inflammatory syndrome, and that this is partially shared with bacterial infection. We show that memory T cells from patients with multi-system inflammatory syndrome and bacterial infection are exhausted. In contrast, we show viral infection to be characterized by a distinct signature of decreased interferon signaling and lower interferon receptor gene expression. Improved understanding of immune dysfunction may improve approaches to immunomodulator therapy in severe febrile illnesses in children.

The article aims to bring to light a recent discovery with respect to the history of Italian pedagogical museums: 12 years before the official opening of what is recognized as the first. Since 1862 in Turin a section of the Royal Industrial Museum was dedicated to the collection of books and teaching materials dedicated to primary and secondary school. This collection was a direct expression of the London Universal Exhibition of 1861 from which the Royal Commissioners returned with the idea of copying the South Kensington Museum. The article reconstructs the history of the collection and its exposure, following its evolution until its disappearance. The aim of this article is to offer a significant piece of the history of the historical-educational heritage in Italy and its musealization.

The article aims to bring to light a recent discovery with respect to the history of Italian pedagogical museums: 12 years before the official opening of what is recognized as the first. Since 1862, in Turin, a section of the Royal Industrial Museum has been dedicated to the collection of books and teaching materials to the primary and secondary schools. This collection was a direct expression of the London Universal Exhibition of 1861, from which the Royal Commissioners returned with the idea of copying the South Kensington Museum. The article reconstructs the history of the collection and its exposure, following its evolution until its disappearance. The aim of this article is to offer a significant piece of the history of the historical-educational heritage in Italy and its musealization.

Este artículo es una continuación del anterior ensayo aparecido en el número 27 de la revista Cabás titulado Entre la protección del patrimonio y la educación: "construir" el museo escolar con el alumnado y pretende mostrar las implicaciones, en términos de impacto, de un uso activo del patrimonio en la escuela y, en particular, del museo escolar en el aprendizaje. En concreto, queremos hacer hincapié en la relación directa que existe entre un uso activo y en taller de éste y las teorías del aprendizaje, con el objetivo de poner de manifiesto cómo el museo escolar no sólo es una herramienta plenamente actual, sino también un aliado del profesorado, capaz de facilitar la enseñanza diaria y el éxito educativo. Las consideraciones sobre el impacto del uso activo del museo escolar en la práctica profesional del profesorado y la comunidad escolar concluirán la reflexión, mostrando cómo el trabajo activo con el alumnado con el patrimonio escolar puede actuar como motor de la innovación.

L’article fa referència a l’experiència assolida els darrers 10 anys a Torí (Itàlia) a través del projecte «Voleu construir el vostre museu escolar?» i la xarxa relacionada d’escoles que s’ha creat al seu voltant, té com a objectiu avaluar el paper del museu escolar en la formació contínua dels professors. En particular, il·lustra el camí de formació inicial i continuada sobre el tema del patrimoni historicoeducatiu proposat als docents adherits al projecte i intenta traçar un possible model d’ús del museu escolar com a motor d’innovació pedagògica i educativa mitjançant la formació del professorat.

The early twentieth century initiatives promoted by Clara Cavalieri Archivolti in Ferrara (later transferred to Bologna) and by the Consortium of Popular Libraries in Milan are well known as part of the birth of the first libraries intended for young audiences. Indeed about ten years earlier, a systematic project was promoted by the City of Turin that experiments the opening of five "circulating municipal school libraries". They differed from the multiple realities of popular libraries and were routed towards a concept of collection designed specifically for children and young people, open to home loan. Also different from school libraries, the Turin experiments were started in 1898 and continued with mixed success until 1906 when they intersect with the reality of the Provincial Consortium for Free Libraries in Elementary Schools. The article traces this early Turin experience, illustrating its specificities and placing it in the contemporary context.

Children and adolescents generally experience mild COVID-19. However, those with underlying physical health conditions are at a significantly increased risk of severe disease. Here, we present a comprehensive analysis of antibody and cellular responses in adolescents with severe neuro-disabilities who received COVID-19 vaccination with either ChAdOx1 (n=6) or an mRNA vaccine (mRNA-1273, n=8, BNT162b2, n=1). Strong immune responses were observed after vaccination and antibody levels and neutralisation titres were both higher after two doses. Both measures were also higher after mRNA vaccination and were further enhanced by prior natural infection where one vaccine dose was sufficient to generate peak antibody response. Robust T-cell responses were generated after dual vaccination and were also higher following mRNA vaccination. Early T-cells were characterised by a dominant effector-memory CD4+ T-cell population with a type-1 cytokine signature with additional production of IL-10. Antibody levels were well-maintained for at least 3 months after vaccination and 3 of 4 donors showed measurable neutralisation titres against the Omicron variant. T-cell responses also remained robust, with generation of a central/stem cell memory pool and showed strong reactivity against Omicron spike. These data demonstrate that COVID-19 vaccines display strong immunogenicity in adolescents and that dual vaccination, or single vaccination following prior infection, generate higher immune responses than seen after natural infection and develop activity against Omicron. Initial evidence suggests that mRNA vaccination elicits stronger immune responses than adenoviral delivery, although the latter is also higher than seen in adult populations. COVID-19 vaccines are therefore highly immunogenic in high-risk adolescents and dual vaccination might be able to provide relative protection against the Omicron variant that is currently globally dominant.

Desde hace más de diez años, la ciudad de Turín (Italia) está llevando a cabo un proyecto de apoyo a escuelas de todos los niveles para la creación de su propio museo escolar. La participación directa de alumnado y profesorado en cada etapa permite combinar el redescubrimiento de un patrimonio olvidado con una acción didáctica capaz de dotar a la escuela de un nuevo laboratorio y un entorno de aprendizaje multidisciplinar. El museo escolar retoma, así, sus funciones decimonónicas de apoyo a la enseñanza. Este artículo presenta el método de trabajo y los resultados obtenidos hasta el momento.

It is well known that consumption of a balanced diet throughout adulthood is key toward maintenance of optimal body weight and cardiovascular health. Research using animal models can provide insights into the programming of short and long-term health by parental diet and potential mechanisms by which, for example, protein intake may influence fetal development, adolescent health, and adult morbidity/ mortality. Malnutrition, whether consumption of too many or too few individual nutrients or energy, is detrimental to health. For example, in Westernised societies, one of the principal factors contributing towards the global epidemic of obesity is over-consumption of calories, relative to the expenditure of calories through physical activity. A large body of evidence now suggests that many chronic diseases of adulthood, such as obesity and diabetes, are linked to the nutritional environment experienced by the fetus in utero. Maternal consumption of a poor-quality, nutritionally unbalanced diet can programme offspring to become obese, develop high blood pressure and diabetes, and to experience premature morbidity and mortality. More recently, paternal diet has also been shown to influence offspring health through effects carried via the sperm that affect post-fertilisation development. Mechanisms underpinning such developmental programming effects remain elusive, although early development of the microvasculature in the heart and pancreas, particularly after exposure of the mother (or father) to a protein restricted diet, has been proposed as one mechanism linking early diet to perturbed adult function. In this brief review, we explore the longer-term consequences of maternal and paternal protein intakes on the progeny. Using evidence from relevant animal models, we illustrate how protein malnutrition may ‘programme’ lifelong health and disease outcomes, especially in relation to pancreatic function and insulin resistance, and cardiac abnormalities.

Prendendo spunto dal recente ritrovamento di un armadio-museo in una scuola elementare pluriclasse, l’articolo ripercorre la storia di questo particolare sussidio didattico, per arrivare ad analizzarne le sue possibilità di utilizzo attuale in una scuola pluriclasse. Nato come supporto alla didattica attiva in tutte le classi elementari, tale oggetto didattico risponde alle disposizioni di legge che da fine Ottocento alla seconda metà del Novecento accompagnano la storia della scuola italiana e può considerarsi per antonomasia sussidio a sostegno delle esigenze di gruppi-classe di età differente. Le sue peculiarità lo rendono oggi curioso e versatile supporto didattico capace di facilitare una didattica laboratoriale e personalizzata, in grado di esprimere tutte le sue potenzialità proprio all’interno di una pluriclasse.

The experience intends to show an example of reflection on a way of innovating the university lessons of laboratories that often support institutional courses. This is the case of the laboratory of History of education and children’s literature of the Master’s degree Course in Primary Education Sciences of the University of Turin: the teaching approach adopted for the lab was experienced for two years, with over 200 students. It made use of oral sources of other teachers who had worked in the scholastic world in the historical period that was intended to study. The essay illustrates the proposed experience, reflects on the methodology and summarizes the results achieved. Thanks to the work of students the results have enriched the world of historiographic research with new sources (video interviews) on school in Turin between the Sixties and the Eighties of the 20th century, born precisely from the meeting between university students and teachers of the past. Innovare la didattica universitaria: l’esperienza del laboratorio di Storia dell’educazione e della letteratura per l’infanzia dell’Università di Torino L’esperienza intende mostrare un esempio di riflessione rispetto a una possibile modalità di innovare le lezioni dei laboratori universitari che spesso affiancano i corsi istituzionali. Si tratta del caso del laboratorio di Storia dell’educazione e della letteratura per l’infanzia del Corso di laurea magistrale in Scienze della formazione primaria dell’Università degli Studi di Torino: il metodo promosso è stato sperimentato per due anni, con oltre 200 studenti e ha utilizzato le fonti orali di altri docenti che avevano operato nel mondo scolastico proprio nel periodo storico che si intendeva studiare. L’articolo illustra l’esperienza proposta, riflette sulla metodologia e riassume i risultati ottenuti. Questi ultimi in particolare, grazie al lavoro degli studenti, hanno visto arricchire il mondo della ricerca storiografica di nuovi fonti (videointerviste) sul tema della scuola a Torino tra gli anni Sessanta e Ottanta del XX secolo, nate proprio dall’incontro tra studenti universitari e docenti del passato.

Epidemiological data suggest a sexual dimorphism in Parkinson disease (PD), with women showing lower risk of developing PD. Vulnerability of the nigrostriatal pathway may be influenced by exposure to estrogenic stimulation throughout fertile life. To further address this issue, we analyzed the progression of nigrostriatal damage, microglia and astrocyte activation and microglia polarization triggered by intrastriatal injection of dopaminergic neurotoxin 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) in male, female and ovariectomized (OVX) mice, as well as in OVX mice supplemented with 17βestradiol (OVX+E). Animals were sacrificed at different time points following 6-OHDA injection and brain sections containing striatum and substantia nigra pars compacta (SNc) underwent immunohistochemistry for tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) (dopaminergic marker), immunofluorescence for IBA1 and GFAP (markers of microglia and astrocyte activation, respectively) and triple immunoflorescent to identify polarization of microglia toward the cytotoxic M1 (DAPI/IBA1/TNFα) or cytoprotective M2 (DAPI/IBA1/CD206) phenotype. SNc damage induced by 6-OHDA was significantly higher in OVX mice, as compared to all other experimental groups, at 7 and 14 days after surgery. Astrocyte activation was higher in OVX mice with respect the other experimental groups, at all time points. Microglial activation in the SNc was detected at earlier time points in male, female and OVX+E, while in OVX mice was detected at all time-points. Microglia polarization toward the M2, but not the M1, phenotype was detected in female and OVX+E mice, while the M1 phenotype was observed only in male and OVX mice. Our results support the protective effects of estrogens against nigrostriatal degeneration, suggesting that such effects may be mediated by an interaction with microglia, which tend to polarize preferentially toward an M2, cytoprotective phenotype in the presence of intense estrogenic stimulation.

“Things of Science” is a project promoted in 2014 by the Polytechnic of Turin in partnership with several other scientific territorial institutions that intended to survey and study the educational scientific historical heritage of schools in Turin. It aims to derive from material traces some testimonies of teaching science in different historical periods. Through the project, over 47.000 historical teaching aids have been made available representing a significant basis for numerous studies and insights as well as a safeguard action towards this important source for scientific research in terms of the materiality of the school and in particular of science in school. Ricostruire la storia della didattica scientifica attraverso la sua materialità “Cose di Scienza” è un progetto promosso nel 2014 dal Politecnico di Torino in partenariato con diverse altre realtà scientifiche territoriali che ha inteso censire e studiare il patrimonio didattico scientifico storico presente nelle scuole torinesi, al fine di ricavare dalle tracce materiali alcune testimonianze di didattica della scienza nei diversi periodi storici. Attraverso il progetto sono stati reperiti oltre 47.000 supporti didattici storici che costituiscono da un lato una significativa base per numerosi studi e approfondimenti, e dall’altro una azione di salvaguardia verso questa importante fonte per la ricerca scientifica costituita dalla materialità della scuola e in particolare della scienza a scuola.

L’articolo mira ad approfondire una specifica pratica didattica, assai diffusa in Italia e all’estero tra la seconda metà dell’Ottocento e la prima metà del Novecento: il museo scolastico. Frutto del positivismo e del pensiero pedagogico legato all’attivismo, esso era una collezione presente in particolare presso le scuole primarie e si presentava come insieme di oggetti (naturali e artificiali) che circondavano la vita quotidiana dell’alunno e che venivano utilizzati di volta in volta a seconda della lezione trattata, al fine di creare legami solidi tra apprendimento e ambiente e tra apprendimento e contesto sociale. Dopo aver affrontato la storia di tale pratica didattica, l’articolo intende mostrare aspetti di attualità del museo scolastico e valutare l’opportunità di consideralo oggi come strumento capace di agevolare l’alunno nell’imparare a imparare.

A wide photographic documentation, consisting in 12 listed albums, is collected in the historical archive of the primary school Padre Gemelli in Turin. The most surprising element is represented by the fact that it is a collection of photos of “School for abnormal psychic” of the City of Turin, furthermore it is grouped in thematic albums that are characterized even for their temporal wholeness starting from 1930 to 1960. This intervention aims to study the pictures itselves within a special school, finding out the possible narrative lines that intend to suggest. The purpose in this case is not to reconstruct through the images the teaching history in a special school but the purpose is about questioning the images in all perspectives, in order to to make the historical object itself be able to speak. This paper will focus on some of the narrative phenomena identified: the Padre Gemelli school images compared to the “Great History”, to the micro-history, to the school history (labs, educational supports, …).