Circulation of canine viruses in free-ranging Italian wolves (Canis lupus italicus) from three Italian regions

In this study, the duodenum, spleen, tongue, and lungs were sampled from 56 Italian wolves who died between 2017 and 2020. The aim of the study was to evaluate the presence and spread of DNA and RNA viruses in the wolf population examined, relating the virological results to: year of sampling, region of origin, sex, age, season, genetic determination of the species, nutritional conditions, causes of death, matrices examined. In addition, the presence or absence of co-infections was evaluated. Through molecular methods, the presence of genomic DNA of three important DNA viruses was investigated, i.e.: Canine Parvovirus type 2 (CPV-2), Canine Adenovirus type 1 (CAdV-1), Canine Adenovirus type 2 (CAdV-2). Furthermore, the presence of genomic RNA of the important RNA viruses, Canine Enteric Coronavirus (CCoV) and Canine Distemper Virus (CDV), was also investigated. The results showed that the virus with the highest prevalence in the wolf population studied was CPV-2, found in 78.6% of subjects (44/56). The prevalence of CAdV was 17.9% (10/56), in particular CAdV-1 (12.5% - 7/56) and CAdV-2 (5.4% - 3/56). The results of the molecular investigations in RT-PCR of the two RNA viruses (CCoV and CDV) did not give positive results in the study population. In this study it was observed that the majority of wolves that resulted positive were in good nutritional conditions, thus excluding a direct cause of death from CPV-2, CAdV-1, and CAdV- 2 infections. Moreover, the prevalence obtained in this study suggests that, during the years here studied, the circulation of CAdV-1 and CAdV-2 in Italian wolves of the three sampled regions was sporadic, proving consistent with sporadic and short-lived introductions of the virus in these populations. However, the situation for CPV-2 is different as there was a circulation that suggests a pattern of continuous and lasting endemic exposure over time.

Analysis of COVID-related symptoms from a database of Italian tweets

Twitter is a highly popular social media which on one hand allows information transmission in real time and on the other hand represents a source of open access homogeneous text data. We propose an analysis of the most common self-reported COVID symptoms from a dataset of Italian tweets to investigate the evolution of the pandemic in Italy from the end of September 2020 to the end of January 2021. After manually filtering tweets actually describing COVID symptoms from the database - which contains words related to fever, cough and sore throat - we discuss usefulness of such filtering. We then compare our time series with the daily data of new hospitalisations in Italy, with the aim of building a simple linear regression model that accounts for the delay which is observed from the tweets mentioning individual symptoms to new hospitalisations. We discuss both the results and limitations of linear regression given that our data suggests that the relationship between time series of symptoms tweets and of new hospitalisations changes towards the end of the acquisition.

Effetto sul microbiota intestinale della sostituzione dei nitriti con antiossidanti naturali in salami sperimentali

Recentemente il consumo di carne ha attirato l'attenzione per motivi salutistici, ambientali ed etici; pertanto è sempre più urgente considerare formulazioni di prodotti a base di carne più salutari e sostenibili inclusi in una dieta sana e nutriente. In questa tesi sono stati valutati gli effetti in vitro sul microbiota intestinale umano di salami riformulati sostituendo i nitriti con acido ascorbico e antiossidanti vegetali. A questo scopo è stato utilizzato il modello intestinale in vitro MICODE, nella versione che include la digestione gastro-duodenale seguita dalla fermentazione colonica. Gli effetti sul microbiota intestinale sono stati valutati attraverso tecniche di analisi quantitativa Real Time qPCR in base agli shift di alcune popolazioni microbiche, sia quelle benefiche (come Lactobacillales, Bifidobacteriaceae, Clostridium gruppo IV), sia quelle opportuniste (come Enterobacteriaceae, Clostridium gruppo I) e infine il rapporto Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes (importante indice di eubiosi del microbiota intestinale dell’ospite). Inoltre, sono state analizzate, tramite SPME-GC-MS, le molecole volatili prodotte in seguito alla fermentazione colonica, sia positive, come gli SCFA, sia negative, come fenolo e cresolo. I risultati ottenuti hanno mostrato che le formulazioni innovative promuovono una generale eubiosi del microbiota intestinale e una riduzione di popolazioni microbiche negative, in confronto ai controlli. Inoltre, l’analisi del volatiloma evidenzia una maggiore produzione di molecole benefiche e una maggiore riduzione delle molecole negative per l’ospite. Sebbene le formulazioni innovative non abbiano dato benefici nettamente superiori a quelli dei controlli, i risultati ottenuti sono promettenti, in quanto gli antiossidanti utilizzati in sostituzione hanno dato risultati comparabili a quelli ottenuti con il formulato tradizionale.

Evaluation of a 2D multileader training system for improving sustainability and precision orchard management applications in italian apple orchards

The presented study aimed to evaluate the productive and physiological behavior of a 2D multileader apple training systems in the Italian environment both investigating the possibility to increase yield and precision crop load management resolution. Another objective was to find valuable thinning thresholds guaranteeing high yields and matching fruit market requirements. The thesis consists in three studies carried out in a Pink Lady®- Rosy Glow apple orchard trained as a planar multileader training system (double guyot). Fruiting leaders (uprights) dimension, crop load, fruit quality, flower and physiological (leaf gas exchanges and fruit growth rate) data were collected and analysed. The obtained results found that uprights present dependence among each other and as well as a mutual support during fruit development. However, individual upright fruit load and upright’s fruit load distribution on the tree (~ plant crop load) seems to define both upright independence from the other, and single upright crop load effects on the final fruit quality production. Correlations between fruit load and harvest fruit size were found and thanks to that valuable thinning thresholds, based on different vegetative parameters, were obtained. Moreover, it comes out that an upright’s fruit load random distribution presents a widening of those thinning thresholds, keeping un-altered fruit quality. For this reason, uprights resulted a partially physiologically-dependent plant unit. Therefore, if considered and managed as independent, then no major problems on final fruit quality and production occurred. This partly confirmed the possibility to shift crop load management to single upright. The finding of the presented studies together with the benefits coming from multileader planar training systems suggest a high potentiality of the 2D multileader training systems to increase apple production sustainability and profitability for Italian apple orchard, while easing the advent of automation in fruit production.

Smart Farming in Italian agriculture: essays on adoption and diffusion dynamics shaping the agricultural digital transition

Smart Farming Technologies (SFT) is a term used to define the set of digital technologies able not only to control and manage the farm system, but also to connect it to the many disruptive digital applications posed at multiple links along the value chain. The adoption of SFT has been so far limited, with significant differences at country-levels and among different types of farms and farmers. The objective of this thesis is to analyze what factors contributes to shape the agricultural digital transition and to assess its potential impacts in the Italian agri-food system. Specifically, this overall research objective is approached under three different perspectives. Firstly, we carry out a review of the literature that focuses on the determinants of adoption of farm-level Management Information Systems (MIS), namely the most adopted smart farming solutions in Italy. Secondly, we run an empirical analysis on what factors are currently shaping the adoption of SFT in Italy. In doing so, we focus on the multi-process and multi-faceted aspects of the adoption, by overcoming the one-off binary approach often used to study adoption decisions. Finally, we adopt a forward-looking perspective to investigate what the socio-ethical implications of a diffused use of SFT might be. On the one hand, our results indicate that bigger, more structured farms with higher levels of commercial integration along the agri-food supply chain are those more likely to be early adopters. On the other hand, they highlight the need for the institutional and organizational environment around farms to more effectively support farmers in the digital transition. Moreover, the role of several other actors and actions are discussed and analyzed, by highlighting the key role of specific agri-food stakeholders and ad-hoc policies, with the aim to propose a clearer path towards an efficient, fair and inclusive digitalization of the agrifood sector.

Developing a large scale FrameNet for Italian - The IFrameNet experience

In this thesis we present the development and the current status of the IFrameNet project, aimed at the construction of a large-scale lexical semantic resource for the Italian language based on Frame Semantics theories. We will begin by contextualizing our work in the wider context of Frame Semantics and of the FrameNet project, which, since 1997, has attempted to apply these theories to lexicography. We will then analyse and discuss the applicability of the structure of the American resource to Italian and more specifically we will focus on the domain of fear, worry, and anxiety. We will finally propose some modifications aimed at improving this domain of the resource in relation to its coherence, its ability to accurately represent the linguistic reality and in particular in order to make it possible to apply it to Italian.

Early-stage deformation localisation in thrust systems: new perspectives from carbonates in the Italian Southern Alps and Oman Mountains

This thesis investigates mechanisms and boundary conditions that steer the early localisation of deformation and strain in carbonate multilayers involved in thrust systems, under shallow and mid-crustal conditions. Much is already understood about deformation localisation, but some key points remain loosely constrained. They encompass i) the understanding of which structural domains can preserve evidence of early stages of tectonic shortening, ii) the recognition of which mechanisms assist deformation during these stages and iii) the identification of parameters that actually steer the beginning of localisation. To clarify these points, the thesis presents the results of an integrated, multiscale and multi-technique structural study that relied on field and laboratory data to analyse the structural, architectural, mineralogical and geochemical features that govern deformation during compressional tectonics. By focusing on two case studies, the Eastern Southern Alps (northern Italy), where deformation is mainly brittle, and the Oman Mountains (northeastern Oman), where ductile deformation dominates, the thesis shows that the deformation localisation is steered by several mechanisms that mutually interact at different stages during compression. At shallow crustal conditions, derived conceptual and numerical models show that both inherited (e.g., stratigraphic) and acquired (e.g., structural) features play a key role in steering deformation and differentiating the seismic behaviour of the multilayer succession. At the same time, at deeper crustal conditions, strain localises in narrow domains in which fluids, temperature, shear strain and pressure act together during the development of the internal fabric and the chemical composition of mylonitic shear zones, in which localisation took place under high-pressure (HP) and low-temperature (LT) conditions. In particular, results indicate that those shear zones acted as “sheltering structural capsules” in which peculiar processes can happen and where the results of these processes can be successively preserved even over hundreds of millions of years.

Access to climate justice: the main procedural hurdles, and possible solutions, within the italian legal framework and the IBA Model Statute

The thesis deals with standing and justiciability in climate litigation against governments and the private sector. The first part addresses the impacts of climate change on human rights, the major developments in international climate law, and the historical reasons for climate litigation. The second part analyses several cases, divided into categories. It then draws to a comparative conclusion with regard to each category. The third part deals with the Italian legal tradition on standing and justiciability – starting from the historical roots of such rules. The fourth part introduces the ‘Model Statute’ drafted by the International Bar Association, arguing that the 'ratio legis' of this proposal could be implemented in Italy or the EU. The thesis develops arguments, based on the existing legal framework, to help plaintiffs establish standing and justiciability in proceedings pending before Italian courts. It further proposes the idea that 'citizen suits' are consistent with the Italian and EU legal tradition and that the EU could rely on citizen suits to privately enforce its climate law and policies under the ‘European Green Deal.’

Stayability in Italian Simmental dual-purpose cows: phenotypic and genetic associations

In recent years, dairy farmers have observed a substantial decrease in cows’ survival, with a direct negative consequence on the profitability. Shorter lifespan raises questions about animal welfare and farming conditions at which cows are exposed to. However, the length of productive life depends also on voluntary culling due to low productivity and, in dual-purpose breed, to low price of carcasses (meat). The general aim of the thesis was to investigate the genetic and phenotypic relationship of functional longevity with morphological features like muscularity and body condition score (BCS) and productive traits within Italian Simmental dual-purpose dairy cattle raised in Emilia-Romagna herds.

Sustainability and environmental impact of the Italian ceramic tile industry

The increasing consumption rates among citizens and the uncontrolled exploitation of natural resources have made environmental pollution and management of waste the main problems facing humanity in its upcoming future. Together with generation of energy and transport, industrial production certainly plays a key role in the genesis of these problems. It is for this reason that the concepts of environmental, social and economic sustainability have emerged over the years as the cornerstones for future development. In light of this, the most forward-looking industries have begun to study their impact on environment and society in order to improve their performances and, at the same time, to anticipate the increasingly rigorous environmental regulations. In this work, various performance indicators related to the Italian ceramic tile sector will be presented and discussed. In particular, the emission factor of characteristic pollutants will be reported on a period of up to fifteen years while data regarding waste management, concentration of pollutants and emission legal limits for the last decade will be here disclosed as a result of a vast analysis on recorded data. The collected information describes the present level of performance of the ceramic tile manufacturing industries in Italy and shows how recycling is now a consolidated reality and how some pollutants, such as particulate matter, fluorine and lead are actually disappearing from production processes and how others, such as volatile organic compounds, are increasing instead. Moreover, the adoption of alternative raw materials for the production of ceramic tiles is discussed and the implementation of the recycling of various waste is addressed at experimental or industrial scale. Finally, the development of a new ceramic engobe with high content of waste glass (20%) is presented as an experimental example of reutilization of resources in the ceramic tile industry.

SPHERA, a new Italian convection-permitting regional reanalysis: improving heavy-rainfall representation and describing hail-prone environments

Extreme weather events related to deep convection are high-impact critical phenomena whose reliable numerical simulation is still challenging. High-resolution (convection-permitting) modeling setups allow to switch off physical parameterizations accountable for substantial errors in convection representation. A new convection-permitting reanalysis over Italy (SPHERA) has been produced at ARPAE to enhance the representation and understanding of extreme weather situations. SPHERA is obtained through a dynamical downscaling of the global reanalysis ERA5 using the non-hydrostatic model COSMO at 2.2 km grid spacing over 1995-2020. This thesis aims to verify the expectations placed on SPHERA by analyzing two weather phenomena that are particularly challenging to simulate: heavy rainfall and hail. A quantitative statistical analysis over Italy during 2003-2017 for daily and hourly precipitation is presented to compare the performance of SPHERA with its driver ERA5 considering the national network of rain gauges as reference. Furthermore, two extreme precipitation events are deeply investigated. SPHERA shows a quantitative added skill over ERA5 for moderate to severe and rapid accumulations in terms of adherence to the observations, higher detailing of the spatial fields, and more precise temporal matching. These results prompted the use of SPHERA for the investigation of hailstorms, for which the combination of multiple information is crucial to reduce the substantial uncertainties permeating their understanding. A proxy for hail is developed by combining hail-favoring environmental numerical predictors with observations of ESWD hail reports and satellite overshooting top detections. The procedure is applied to the extended summer season (April-October) of 2016-2018 over the whole SPHERA spatial domain. The results indicate maximum hail likelihood over pre-Alpine regions and the northern Adriatic sea around 15 UTC in June-July, in agreement with recent European hail climatologies. The method demonstrates enhanced performance in case of severe hail occurrences and the ability to separate between ambient signatures depending on hail severity.

Innovation in aquaculture. Modeling the adoption and implementation processes of innovations in the Italian aquaculture sector

Since the turn of the century, fisheries have maintained a steady growth rate, while aquaculture has experienced a more rapid expansion. Aquaculture can offer EU consumers more diverse, healthy, and sustainable food options, some of which are more popular elsewhere. To develop the sector, the EU is investing heavily. The EU supports innovative projects that promote the sustainable development of seafood sectors and food security. Priority 3 promotes sector development through innovation dissemination. This doctoral dissertation examined innovation transfer in the Italian aquaculture sector, specifically the adoption of innovative tools, using a theoretical model to better understand the complexity of these processes. The work focused on innovation adoption, emphasising that it is the end of a well-defined process. The Awareness Knowledge Adoption Implementation Effectiveness (AKAIE) model was created to better analyse post-adoption phases and evaluate technology adoption implementation and impact. To identify AKAIE drivers and barriers, aquaculture actors were consulted. "Perceived complexity"—barriers to adoption that are strongly influenced by contextual factors—has been used to examine their perspectives (i.e. socio-economic, institutional, cultural ones). The new model will contextualise the sequence based on technologies, entrepreneur traits, corporate and institutional contexts, and complexity perception, the sequence's central node. Technology adoption can also be studied by examining complexity perceptions along the AKAIE sequence. This study proposes a new model to evaluate the diffusion of a given technology, offering the policy maker the possibility to be able to act promptly across the process. The development of responsible policies for evaluating the effectiveness of innovation is more necessary than ever, especially to orient strategies and interventions in the face of major scenarios of change.

Italian higher education students’ perspectives on internationalization at home and their identity as English as lingua franca users

This study aims to explore the Italian students’ perspectives on using English in English-medium instruction (EMI) programs in light of the practices of internationalization at home (IaH) at the University of Bologna (UNIBO) in Italy and further investigates whether these attitudes affect their language identity as English as lingua franca (ELF) users. To serve this aim, a mixed-method approach was adopted to collect quantitative and in-depth qualitative data in two phases through an online survey and a semi-structured interview. A total number of 78 Italian students participated in the survey, out of which 14 participants were interviewed. The findings of the online survey indicated that most participants (92%) held a positive perspective toward the use of English in EMI programs and the findings from the interviews were in line with the results of the survey. However, the purpose of the interviews was to explore the participants’ views on their language identity as ELF users. Thematic analysis of the interviews revealed that students experience emotional, cognitive, and social transitions in EMI programs in response to their shift from a non-EMI to an EMI academic setting. Overall, all the above-mentioned transitions were positive and could lead to personal development. However, it can be concluded that the EMI context provides few opportunities for the emergence of significant new subject positions mediated by English in this study. The focus on students’ perspectives on the use of English in EMI programs can contribute to the improvement in language policy planning and internationalized curriculum design by policymakers and alleviate tensions over the controversial issue of the Englishization of higher education by considering how EMI students perceive their use of English as ELF users not superior standard English users.

Italian GenZ Celebrity. Le celebrita teen nella produzione audiovisiva italiana contemporanea: riconfigurazioni, modelli comunicativi, classificazioni.

La ricerca si pone l’obiettivo di comprendere in che modo sia strutturato lo stardom italiano della Generazione Z e quale ruolo svolgano i media nei processi di celebrification delle figure attoriali in esame, nonché l'impatto che queste hanno sulla società stessa. Si intende fornire una maggiore comprensione dei meccanismi alla base del funzionamento dello star system in un contesto storico, culturale e generazionale specifico. Inoltre, il confronto tra il panorama italiano e il landscape internazionale contribuisce a una maggiore comprensione dell’evoluzione e della trasformazione del concetto di celebrità nel contesto globale, oltre che delle modalità attraverso le quali la dimensione italiana si inserisce in questa evoluzione.

Colic surgery in the equine patient: novel biomarkers, postoperative management, microbiotal influence and epidemiological analysis on the italian territory

The aim of this work was to investigate novel diagnostic and prognostic tools, postoperative treatments and epidemiologic factors impacting the outcome of surgical cases of colic. To make a more accurate diagnosis and establish a prognosis, several biomarkers have been investigated in colic patients. In this study we evaluated peritoneal PCT and blood ADMA and SDMA in SIRS positive and negative colic patients to be used as prognostic biomarkers. Our results highlighted the limits of these biomarkers in detection and the lack of specificity. In fact PCT was not detectable and even if ADMA and SDMA significantly increased in colic horses, they are not diagnostic nor prognostic markers for SIRS. Fluid therapy has been described to be crucial for the outcome of colic patients, nevertheless no guidelines have been established. Overhydration was the common practice in post surgical management. We compared cases with an extended fluid therapy protocol and cases with a restricted protocol. Results showed that survival rate and postoperative complications were similar between the groups, despite costs being significantly lower in the restricted group. The possible correlation between intestinal microbiota and colics has gained interest. In this study, cecal and colonic content from horses undergoing laparotomy were collected, and the microbiota analized. Results showed some differences in microbiota between discharged and non discharged patients, and between strangulating and non strangulating types of colic, that might suggest some influence of hind gut microbiota on the disease. A multicentric study involving three veterinary teaching hospitals on the italian territory was conducted investigating factors affecting postoperative survival and complications in colics. Results showed that the influence of age, PCV, TPP, blood lactate, reflux, type of disease, type of lesion, presence of anastomosis, duration of surgery and surgeons, were in line with literature. Amount of crystalloids used could affected the outcome.