Archivio della ricerca della Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna
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Alla ricerca del pilastro mancante: prospettive costituzionali sull'Europa della difesa
No full textThis essay retraces some of the most important knots in the decade-long debate about the establishment of a common defence at the European level. To do so, it focuses on the long-term consequences of the failure to ratify the EDC Treaty in the 1950s. From the vantage point of constitutional law, three points deserve special attention: the form of government of European defence, the role of common defence as a catalyst for achieving political integration, and the tight, ever-complex relation between the European Communities and the European Union, on one side, and the Atlantic Alliance, on the other side. After focusing on the current legal framework as resulting from the Lisbon Treaty, the essay provides an analysis of the constitutional challenges with which the idea of European defence is confronted with in an age of polycrisis, ranging from the withdrawal of the United Kingdom to American disengagement from NATO
Health Claims on Botanical Substances Prohibited Pending Commission Evaluation: Case C–386/23, Novel Nutriology [2025] ECLI:EU:C:2025:304
No full textThe Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ruled that health claims relating to botanical substances cannot be used in commercial advertising without prior authorisation, even during the prolonged suspension of the European Commission’s evaluation process. In Case C-386/23, Novel Nutriology, the Court clarified that Article 10(1) and (3) of Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006 (Nutrition and Health Claims Regulation, NHCR) maintains its prohibition on unauthorised health claims regardless of administrative delays in the assessment process. The judgment provides guidance for food business operators marketing botanical products and highlights ongoing regulatory challenges in balancing consumer protection with commercial interests. This case note examines the Court’s reasoning, situates the decision within broader CJEU case law, and explores potential regulatory reforms to address the persistent impasse surrounding botanical health claims in European Union (EU) food law
Global, Regional, and National Burden of Cardiovascular Diseases and Risk Factors in 204 Countries and Territories, 1990-2023
No full textBackground: Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are the leading cause of mortality and are among the foremost causes of disability globally. CVD burden has continued to increase in most countries since 1990, with trends driven by changing exposures to harmful risk factors, population growth, and population aging. Objectives: We report estimates of global, national, and subnational CVD burden, including 18 subdiseases and 12 associated modifiable risk factors. We analyzed change in CVD burden from 1990 to 2023 and identified drivers of change including population growth, population aging, and risk factor exposure. Methods: The Global Burden of Disease (GBD) 2023 study, a multinational collaborative research study, quantified burden due to 375 diseases including CVD burden and identified drivers of change from 1990 to 2023 using all available data and statistical models. GBD 2023 estimated the population-level burden of diseases in 204 countries and territories from 1990 to 2023. Results: CVDs were the leading cause of disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) and deaths estimated in the GBD. As of 2023, there were 437 million (95% UI: 401 to 465 million) CVD DALYs globally, a 1.4-fold increase from the number in 1990 of 320 million (292 to 344 million). Ischemic heart disease, intracerebral hemorrhage, ischemic stroke, and hypertensive heart disease were the leading cardiovascular causes of DALYs in 2023 globally. As of 2023, age-standardized CVD DALY rates were highest in low and low-middle Socio-demographic Index (SDI) settings and lowest in high SDI settings. The number of CVD deaths increased globally from 13.1 million (95% UI: 12.2 to 14.0 million) in 1990 to 19.2 million (95% UI: 17.4 to 20.4 million) in 2023. The number of prevalent cases of CVD more than doubled since 1990, with 311 million (95% UI: 294 to 333 million) prevalent cases of CVD in 1990 and 626 million (95% UI: 591 to 672 million) prevalent cases in 2023 globally. A total of 79.6% (95% UI: 75.7% to 82.5%) of CVD burden is attributable to modifiable risk factors 347 million [95% UI: 318 to 373 million] DALYs in 2023). Globally, high systolic blood pressure, dietary risks, high low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and air pollution were the modifiable risks responsible for most attributable CVD burden in 2023. Since 1990, changes in exposure to modifiable risk factors have had mixed effects on CVD burden, with increases in high body mass index, high fasting plasma glucose, and low physical activity leading to higher burden, while reductions in tobacco usage have mitigated some of these increases. Population growth and population aging were the main drivers of the increasing burden since 1990, adding 128 million (95% UI: 115 to 139 million) and 139 million (95% UI: 126 to 151 million) CVD DALYs to the increase in CVD burden since 1990. Conclusions: CVD remains the leading cause of disease burden and death worldwide with the greatest burden in low, low-middle, and middle SDI regions. Large variation exists in CVD burden even for countries at similar levels of development, a gap explained substantially by known, modifiable risk factors that are inadequately controlled. The decades-long increase in CVD burden was the result of population growth, population aging, and increased exposure to a subset of risk factors led by metabolic risks. Countries will need to adopt effective health system and public health strategies if they are to progress in achieving global goals to reduce the burden of CVD
Il “borgo” in via di definizione: aspetti materiali e immateriali del patrimonio culturale
No full textIl saggio indaga l’assenza di una definizione normativa del “borgo” attraverso la lente del patrimonio culturale. L’importanza dell’elemento storico-culturale nella definizione del borgo viene esaminata da due prospettive. Da un lato, si analizza la dimensione materiale, considerando il quadro costituzionale e legislativo interno e prestando particolare attenzione a realtà territoriali parzialmente assimilabili, come quella del centro storico. Dall’altro lato, si esamina la dimensione immateriale, con un focus sul concetto di identità culturale, anche in relazione alla nozione di paesaggio culturale e alla tutela del cultural heritage a livello internazionale
Investigating Osseoperception in Distal Regions of the Upper Limb for Augmented Sensory Feedback
No full textThe somatosensory function is crucial for motor control, but is often deemed secondary in the design of assistive technologies for individuals with neuromotor impairments. This study investigates osseoperception-auditory and vibrotactile sensations evoked through bone stimulation-at the wrist pisiform bone (PB) and metacarpal head (MCH) of the index finger in 12 participants. Vibratory stimuli (100–6000 Hz) were applied during four psychophysical experiments: sensation discrimination, perception thresholds, sensory mapping, and loudness evaluation. Tactile sensations occurred below 940 Hz at the PB and 1000 Hz at the MCH, while auditory sensations predominated above these thresholds. Stimulation at 400 Hz expanded tactile zones, with PB sensations extending to the forearm and MCH sensations to carpal and interphalangeal joints. MCH stimulation had lower perception thresholds (0.14 N), while PB stimulation exhibited frequency-dependent loudness variations. These findings suggest the MCH and wrist as promising sites to elicit osseoperception, paving the way for the development of sensory feedback strategies to complement the effect of assistive technologies, especially those interfaced through osseointegration
Gli Orientamenti Della Giurisprudenza di Merito: il Campione di Riferimento
No full textLo studio illustra i risultati della ricerca condotta dall’Osservatorio sul danno alla persona in materia di conseguenze risarcitorie in caso di perdita di chance di sopravvivenza e anticipazione dell’evento morte della vittima primaria alla luce dei principi resi noti dalla recente giurisprudenza di legittimità. The essay focuses on the results of the analyses developed within the permanent Observatory on lower case-law related to the implications on non-pecuniary losses compensation for the loss of chance of surviving in case of anticipation of the victim’s death, considering the recent principles
stated by the Italian High Court
Spiking Patterns in the Globus Pallidus Highlight Convergent Neural Dynamics across Diverse Genetic Dystonia Syndromes
Get PDFObjective: Genetic dystonia is a complex movement disorder with diverse clinical manifestations resulting from pathogenic mutations in associated genes. A recent paradigm shift emphasizes the functional convergence among dystonia genes, hinting at a shared pathomechanism. However, the neural dynamics supporting this convergence remain largely unexplored. Methods: Herein, we analyzed microelectrode recordings acquired during pallidal deep brain stimulation surgery from 31 dystonia patients with pathogenic mutations in the AOPEP, GNAL, KMT2B, PANK2, PLA2G6, SGCE, THAP1, TOR1A, and VPS16 genes. We identified 1,694 single units whose activity was characterized by a broad set of neural features. Results: AOPEP, PANK2, and THAP1 displayed higher firing regularity, whereas GNAL, PLA2G6, KMT2B, and SGCE shared a large fraction of bursting neurons (> 26.6%), significantly exceeding the rate in other genes. TOR1A and VPS16 genes constituted an intermediate group, bridging these 2 groups, due to having the highest degree of spiking irregularity. Hierarchical clustering algorithms based on these dynamics confirmed the results obtained with first-order comparisons. Interpretation: Despite lacking common molecular pathways, dystonia genes share largely overlapping structures of neural patterns, in particular the degree of pallidal spiking regularity and bursting activity. We propose that the degree of desynchronization facilitated by pallidal neural bursts may explain the variability in deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the globus pallidus internus (GPi) surgery outcomes across genetic dystonia syndromes. Lastly, investigating the effects of genetic mutations on low-frequency pallidal activity could optimize personalized adaptive DBS treatments in patients with genetic dystonia. ANN NEUROL 2025
Bilateral hip exoskeleton assistance enables faster walking in individuals with chronic stroke-related gait impairments
Get PDFMillions of individuals surviving a stroke have lifelong gait impairments that reduce their personal independence and quality of life. Reduced walking speed is one of the major problems limiting community mobility and reintegration. Previous studies have shown positive effect of robot-assisted gait training utilizing hip exoskeletons for individuals with gait impairments due to a stroke, leading to increased walking speed in post-treatment compared to pre-treatment assessments. However, no evidence emerged of a significant increasing in walking speed attributable to device usage compared to walking without the device. In this pilot investigation, we observed that hip flexion/extension assistance delivered by a portable bilateral powered hip exoskeleton increased overground self-selected walking speed by 20.2 ± 5.0% on average among six chronic post-stroke survivors. When comparing walking with and without the hip exoskeleton within the same experimental session, the observed speed increment resulted in statistically and clinically meaningful improvement (0.14 ± 0.03 m/s > minimal clinically important difference, p = 0.015). The increased walking speed was the result of a higher self-selected cadence and longer step length both on the paretic and nonparetic limbs. By facilitating gait, a bilateral hip exoskeleton could be a viable technology for extending locomotor mobility and facilitating gait training of individuals affected by post-stroke hemiparesis
Development of an autonomous smart trap for precision monitoring of hematophagous flies on cattle
Get PDFHematophagous flies pose a significant threat to livestock health and productivity. Traditional pest control methods, which heavily rely on chemical insecticides, present risks such as resistance development and environmental harm. This study presents a novel smart trap for real-time monitoring and identification of Tabanidae, Hippoboscidae (i.e., Hippobosca equina L.), and Muscidae (i.e., Stomoxys calcitrans (L.)) on cattle. The system includes a microcontroller for managing various sensors (light, temperature, humidity, and gas) and power management. The control unit is complemented by a microprocessor responsible for managing and processing images from a camera. The system integrates high-resolution imaging, a convolutional neural network (CNN) for species recognition, and environmental sensors to monitor factors affecting insect behavior. On the test set, the CNN achieved an overall precision of 0.96 and recall of 0.98 in detecting instances, with an overall classification accuracy of 0.96. Equipped, also, by lithium-ion battery and by communication module, the trap can operate autonomously and transmit data, becoming suitable for large-scale deployments. Overall, the tool developed here offers a practical and cheap solution for sustainable and accurate pest monitoring of hematophagous flies attacking cattle in pasture and feedlot