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CSR ecological strategies explain plant species dominance in the Gandoman wetland, Iran
No full textWetlands are highly productive ecosystems in which vegetation plays a crucial role in primary productivity and biodiversity. Between July 2016 and October 2017, plant species were sampled in plots within the Gandoman wetland, Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari Province, Iran. The geographical distribution and life forms of species were recorded using R aunkiaer’s system, and leaf traits—including leaf area (LA), leaf fresh weight (LFW), and leaf dry weight (LDW)—were measured. The CSR (Competitor, Stress-tolerator, Ruderal) ecological strategies of 39 species were assessed using the StrateFy method. Floristic analysis indicated that Iran–Turanian (36.8%) and multi-regional species (23.7%) were the most abundant. A total of 14 CSR strategies were identified, with the competitive–stress-tolerator (CS) strategy being dominant. Cladium mariscus, with a competitive score of 60%, was the most representative species. Environmental gradients, particularly moisture variation and end-of-season livestock grazing, induced partial stress-tolerant adaptations. Vegetation dynamics revealed a gradual shift from competitive toward stress-tolerant strategies. Two ruderal species, Polygonum paronychioides and Setaria viridis, were confined to wetland margins, reflecting invasion from surrounding rangelands. These findings highlight the importance of understanding plant functional responses at the plot level for conservation, restoration, and sustainable wetland management. Effective grazing management is essential to prevent degradation and maintain the ecological integrity of Gandoman wetland
Oxygen-Enriched Olive-Oil Dressing in Moderate-Degree Pediatric Burns: Impact on Care and Budget over a 4-Year Period in a Tertiary Children’s Hospital
No full textBackground: Pediatric burns cause considerable morbidity and hospital resource use. Advanced dressings on moderate-degree pediatric burns that accelerate healing may offset acquisition costs by shortening length of stay (LOS). Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the budget impact of introducing an oxygen-enriched olive-oil dressing for pediatric burns (grade I-IIG; total body surface area < 20%) at a tertiary children's hospital. Methods: A hospital-perspective budget impact analysis was conducted according to ISPOR guidance over a 4-year horizon (2022-2025). The study population included 32 inpatients (<18 years) with non-extensive, moderate-degree burns treated between 2022 and 2023. Two scenarios were modeled: (i) standard of care (SoC) and (ii) SoC plus the oxygen-enriched olive-oil dressing (OEoD), with annual caseload projections to 2025. Costs combined treatment (dressings, drugs, and devices) and hospitalization data provided by the hospital's Control & Management Unit. The average daily hospitalization cost was €1438.99. Results: Compared with SoC, the OEoD scenario increased per-patient dressing costs (mean €271.4 vs. €121.9) but reduced LOS (mean 7.3 vs. 16.6 days), leading to lower overall hospitalization expenditure. Total annual costs decreased by 7%, 13%, 16%, and 18% across 2022-2025, respectively (for example, 2025: €612,516 vs. €751,445; Δ -€138,929). Cumulative 4-year savings reached €337,399. Deterministic sensitivity analysis confirmed the robustness of these findings, with savings persisting under variable assumptions. Conclusions: Despite higher acquisition costs, oxygen-enriched olive-oil dressings were associated with shorter LOS and meaningful budget savings in pediatric burn care. These results support their integration into multidisciplinary burn management pathways and call for further prospective multicenter validation
GENDER DISCOURSE BEYOND THE BINARY: THE REPRESENTATION OF NON-BINARY IDENTITY, EMBODIMENT AND COMMUNITY ON INSTAGRAM AND YOUTUBE
No full textNegli ultimi anni le identità non binarie hanno acquisito una visibilità crescente online, ma gli studi sulla loro rappresentazione in rete restano ancora limitati. Se la ricerca sulle identità trans* in contesti digitali si è progressivamente ampliata, manca tuttora un’attenzione sistematica alle forme specifiche della rappresentazione non binaria, soprattutto in prospettiva comparativa tra piattaforme e rispetto all’impiego di risorse multimodali legate alle affordance di ciascun contesto, ovvero le possibilità che una specifica piattaforma offre. Questa tesi propone un’analisi comparativa e multimodale di come influencer che si identificano come non-binary esprimano, definiscano e rendano intelligibile la propria identità online, collocandosi in un’area di indagine ancora poco esplorata nella sociolinguistica e nei media studies. L’originalità del progetto risiede in un duplice contributo: sul piano concettuale, offre una descrizione comparativa della performance identitaria non binaria come pratica al tempo stesso interpersonale e intersoggettiva; sul piano metodologico, sviluppa un quadro analitico riproducibile che integra approcci discorsivi multimodali e strumenti di corpus-assisted. Questa tesi va intesa come un punto di partenza: definisce un lessico analitico e una base empirica utili ad ampliare in futuro questa linea di ricerca su scala più ampia.
Lo studio è guidato da tre obiettivi: (1) descrivere come le identità non binarie vengano rese visibili e comprensibili attraverso testi e contenuti audiovisivi su due piattaforme con caratteristiche differenti; (2) confrontare come Instagram e YouTube organizzino condizioni di visibilità in relazione alla cultura di piattaforma (Leaver et al., 2020; Burgess and Green, 2009); (3) analizzare la visibilità non binaria sia nelle dimensioni intime sia nei contesti sociali più ampi, includendo community-building, alleanza, esclusione e discorsi d’odio.
L’analisi si basa su due corpora originali: BEYOND_IG (didascalie, immagini e trascrizioni di reel su Instagram) e BEYOND_YT (trascrizioni, titoli e descrizioni di video YouTube). Nel complesso, i corpora raccolgono oltre 2,9 milioni di token prodotti tra il 2016 e il 2023. Metodologicamente, la ricerca combina Corpus-assisted Discourse Analysis (Baker, 2006; Gillings et al., 2023) e Multimodal Critical Discourse Analysis
(Ledin & Machin, 2018; Machin, 2013); sul piano teorico, impiega la teoria del framing (Entman, 1993) e dello stance triangle di Du Bois (2007) per interpretare i risultati.
I risultati mostrano la ricorrenza di tre ambiti su entrambe le piattaforme: (i) espressione di genere, con la rielaborazione di termini e pronomi binari e la definizione di identità non conformi al binarismo; (ii) esperienza corporea, soprattutto su YouTube, dove emergono resoconti dettagliati di disforia, euforia di genere e scelte medico- chirurgiche legate all’affermazione di genere; (iii) costruzione di ingroup e outgroup, in cui l’appartenenza comunitaria è spesso posta in tensione con narrazioni di ostilità ed esclusione.
Nel complesso, la tesi mostra che, per gli influencer analizzati, il termine non-binary non funziona come etichetta ‘autosufficiente’, né come semplice categoria descrittiva: l’identità non binaria prende forma attraverso una negoziazione continua di termini e pratiche, e si intreccia con esperienze individuali e relazioni collettive che, insieme, contribuiscono a definirne la visibilità e i significati online.The past few years have witnessed a growing visibility of non-binary identities online, yet research on their representation online remains scarce. Moreover, whereas research on trans* identities online has grown, systematic attention to non-binary representation, particularly across platforms and through multimodal resources, remains limited. This work provides one of the first comparative, multimodal analyses of how non-binary influencers represent their identities on social media, addressing a gap in sociolinguistics and media studies. The originality of this project lies in its dual contribution: conceptually, it advances a comparative account of how non-binary identity performance online can be understood as both interpersonal and intersubjective; methodologically, it develops a reproducible framework drawing on multiple corpus-assisted and multimodal discourse approaches. Importantly, this thesis represents a foundational step rather than a goal, as it lays the groundwork for future research to expand this line of inquiry on a larger scale.
The study is guided by three objectives. First, it describes how non-binary identities are made visible and intelligible through text and audiovisual content across two platforms with significantly distinct affordances. Second, it compares how Instagram and YouTube organise conditions of visibility according to each of their platform cultures (Leaver et al., 2020; Burgess and Green, 2009). Third, it examines non-binary online visibility across both its intimate dimensions and its broader social contexts, including community-building, allyship, exclusion, and hate.
The analysis is conducted on two purpose-built corpora: BEYOND_IG, consisting of captions, images, and reel transcriptions from non-binary influencers on Instagram, and BEYOND_YT, comprising video transcripts, titles, and descriptions from YouTube. Together, the corpora include over 2.9 million tokens of influencer-generated discourse produced between 2016 and 2023. Methodologically, the research integrates Corpus- Assisted Discourse Studies (CADS) (Baker, 2006; Gillings et al., 2023) with Multimodal Critical Discourse Analysis (Ledin & Machin, 2018; Machin, 2013). Theoretically, the analysis further draws on Framing Theory (Entman, 1993) and Du Bois’ stance triangle (2007) to interpret the findings.
The results show that three themes recur across both platforms: (i) gender expression, where influencers rework binary-coded terms and pronouns and define non-conforming gender identities; (ii) embodied experience, with influencers – especially YouTubers – providing detailed accounts of dysphoria, euphoria, and surgical gender-affirming choices; and (iii) framing of ingroup/outgroup dynamics, where community belonging is stressed alongside narratives of hostility and exclusion.
This thesis shows that the label non-binary, for these influencers, is not a stand-alone descriptor and cannot be reduced to one. Instead, it is situated in a constant negotiation of terms and practices, and embedded within wider networks of individual and collective experiences that, together, shape the construction of non-binary identities online
Differential Object Marking in Abruzzian Romani, between Indo-Aryan Heritage and Italo-Romance Patterns
No full textThis study examines Differential Object Marking (DOM) in Abruzzian Romani, a Romani variety spoken in Abruzzo and Molise, and shaped by prolonged contact with southern Italo-Romance dialects. Even though DOM is a Proto-Romani feature still preserved in many dialects, Abruzzian Romani displays innovative strategies to mark the DOM. Marked objects are thus realized through two strategies: the preposition kə with nouns, and locative case marking with personal pronouns. The analysis reveals a pattern replication of Italo-Romance DOM, extended to common nouns and pronominal forms, with significant variation between the two analysed subcorpora. The findings suggest an ongoing grammaticalization process, with DOM marking spreading to new categories, including interrogatives, indefinites and demonstratives
Consensus on recommended evaluation tools in multiple sclerosis (CORE-MS): A Delphi study protocol on balance and gait assessment
No full textBackground and objectives Gait and balance impairments are common and disabling in People with Multiple Sclerosis (PwMS), significantly affecting mobility and quality of life. Although several clinical and instrumental tools exist to assess these functions, there is no consensus on the most appropriate measures for detecting changes at the clinical, movement quality, and neural levels. This study aims to establish expert consensus on the most appropriate tools for assessing gait and balance in PwMS to support an individualized approach to rehabilitation. Methods The process will begin with a focus group to gather initial feedback from a few experts, followed by a Delphi study consisting of iterative rounds of anonymous surveys with international experts to reach consensus on the most appropriate tools. The Delphi process will be conducted using an electronic platform to ensure anonymity and international participation. Experts will evaluate the proposed tools over several rounds until consensus is reached. The consensus threshold will be predefined, and statistical measures of agreement will guide the analysis. Discussion and conclusion By identifying a core set of outcome measures covering clinical, movement quality, and neural aspects, this study aims to address the current fragmentation in clinical practice and research in PwMS. This comprehensive approach will improve the assessment of gait and balance and facilitate the design of tailored rehabilitation interventions that meet the specific needs and recovery potential of each patient. In addition, the study will establish a consensus-based framework for gait and balance assessment in MS rehabilitation, promoting consistency across clinical and research settings. The results are expected to inform future studies on patient stratification, treatment effectiveness, and precision rehabilitation strategies, ultimately leading to improved functional outcomes and quality of care
When a single ratio illuminates the grey zone: the prognostic value of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio across the cardiovascular spectrum
No full textDal “diritto all’oblio oncologico” al “diritto all’oblio sanitario”: prospettive di promozione della persona umana rispetto alle discriminazioni legate a malattie socialmente “stigmatizzanti”
No full textIl contributo ricostruisce e analizza i contenuti salienti della legge n. 193 del 2023 che ha introdotto in Italia il “diritto all’oblio oncologico” in modo da mettere in luce le principali analogie e differenze fra tale figura giuridica di nuovo conio e il tradizionale “diritto all’oblio” in precedenza elaborato. Inoltre, muovendo dalla finalità, espressamente perseguita dalla legge, di assicurare, attraverso il riconoscimento e la tutela del diritto all’oblio oncologico, la parità di trattamento dei guariti dal cancro rispetto agli altri consociati, il contributo si interroga sull’eventuale possibilità di introdurre, in un prossimo futuro, nell’ordinamento nazionale, un più ampio “diritto all’oblio sanitario” al fine di prevenire forme di discriminazione nei confronti delle persone colpite da altre patologie socialmente “stigmatizzanti”.The essay reconstructs the main elements of the Act No. 193 of 2023 on the “right to cancer oblivion” in Italy, highlighting the principal similarities and differences between this new legal concept and the common “right to be forgotten.” Considering the explicit aim of the aforementioned Act of ensuring the equal treatment of cancer survivors with respect to other citizens through the recognition of a specific “right to cancer oblivion,” the essay further explores the possible future development of a broader “right to healthcare oblivion” to prevent discrimination also against individuals who have suffered from other socially “stigmatizing” diseases
Lyme in the prosthetic joint: two cases and a review of the literature
No full textLyme periprosthetic joint infection (PJI) is rare, with only 8 cases reported in the literature. In this paper, we describe 2 cases and review the prior 8 cases to better characterize its diagnosis and management. All 10 cases presented with culture-negative PJI in Lyme-endemic regions and were confirmed to have Lyme PJI via a positive Borrelia-targeted polymerase chain reaction (PCR) run on joint specimens. Treatment strategies varied: 5 underwent debridement, antibiotics, and implant retention (DAIR); 1 had exchange arthroplasty; and 4 were managed non-operatively. Antimicrobial treatment also varied considerably. All patients achieved clinical cure. Lyme disease should be considered a potential cause of culture-negative PJI occurring in endemic regions. Because Borrelia-targeted PCR is not routinely included in standard PJI diagnostic workup, diagnosis may be delayed; therefore, clinicians should consider ordering this test when Lyme PJI is part of the differential
