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The new alliance Cerastio tomentosi-Globularion meridionalis and the new association Helianthemo alpestris-Globularietum meridionalis are here proposed as a contribute to the prodrome of Italian vegetation. The new syntaxa are related to the chamaephytic high-mountain vegetation and they are characterized by a wide presence of endemics, southern European orophytes, mountain-Mediterranean, and amphi-Adriatic species. The proposal aims to differentiate, on a structural basis, the high-mountain vegetation of the Apennines at higher syntaxonomical levels.

In this paper we describe VIOLA (VegetatIOn of centraL Apennines), a database of high mountain vegetation relevés in the Central Apennines (Italy). We explore the general features of the data collected, specifically the variation in plot size, time range of the relevés and geographical position accuracy. VIOLA gathers a representative number of relevés from 7 Annex I habitats sensu Habitat Directive (92/43/EEC) (4060, 4070∗, 6170, 6210, 6230∗, 8120 and 8210). We characterize the dataset in terms of the total number of relevés, the total number of species, the most abundant species, the total number of endemics, the total number of phytosociological alliances and the most abundant alliance. For each habitat, life form and chorotype spectra were also calculated using the species frequency. In total, we collected 1,687 relevés including both published and unpublished phytosociological information collected above an altitude of 1,600 m a.s.l. in the Central Apennines (Gran Sasso, Majella, Monti del Matese, Monti della Meta and Velino massifs). The oldest relevés back to 1955, whereas the newest ones to 2014. A total of 45% of the relevés were recorded with the exact GPS coordinates, and 55% were referred to general description of the localities (toponyms); most of the relevés (77.8%) are between 10 and 100 m2 wide. The Alpine and subalpine calcareous grasslands (6170) and the Calcareous and calcshist screes (8120), with over 50% and almost 20% of the relevés, respectively, are the most represented Annex I EU habitats in the database. Our results highlight that the stalked hemicryptophytes and Southern Europe Orophilous dominate in all EU habitats. Endemics are present in all habitats but higher percentages occur in Calcareous and calcshist screes, followed by Calcareous rocky slopes and Alpine and subalpine calcareous grasslands. Based on our results, we can confirm the value and usefulness of large vegetation databases for supporting theoretical and applied vegetation and ecological studies at different scales.

Detailed monitoring studies on permanent sites are a promising tool for an accurate evaluation of short, medium or long term vegetation dynamics. This work aims to evaluate short-term changes in coastal dune herbaceous plant species and EU Habitats through a multi-temporal analysis using permanent vegetation transects. In particular, (I) we analyze changes in species richness of coastal habitats; (II) we identify changes in plant cover of selected focal plants; and (III) we relate the changes to selected climatic variables and erosion/accretion processes. We selected one of the Italian's peninsula best preserved coastal dune areas (ca. 50 km along the Adriatic sea) with a relatively homogeneous coastal zonation and low anthropic pressure but with different erosion/accretion processes. We explored changes in richness over time using generalized linear models (GLMs). We identified different ecological guilds: focal, ruderal and alien plant species and investigated temporal trends in these guilds' species richness. We also applied GLMs to determine how plant cover of the most important focal species have changed over time. Overall, in this study we observed that the influence of climatic variables was relatively small. However, we found remarkable different trends in response to erosion/accretion processes both at community and at species level. Thus, our results highlight the importance of coastal dynamics in preserving not only coastal vegetation zonation, but also species richness and focal species cover. Moreover, we identified the dune grasslands as the most sensitive habitat for detecting the influence of climatic variables throughout a short term monitoring survey. Information from this study provides useful insights for detecting changes in vegetation, for establishing habitat protection priorities and for improving conservation efforts for these fragile ecosystems.

The database of high mountain vegetation of central Apennines, hereafter called VIOLA (GIVD ID EU-IT-019), includes published and unpublished phytosociological relevés of high elevation habitats occurring in central Italy (Gran Sasso, Majella, Matese, Meta, Velino Mountains). VIOLA, digitised into TURBOVEG, is the first standardised and exchangeable database on Mediterranean high-elevation vegetation of Italy. It includes 1687 relevés collected during the period 1955-2014, containing 670 taxa, and such numbers will increase as new vegetation data becomes available. The relevés are distributed above the treeline (between 1600 to 2900 m a.s.l.) and refer to the dwarf shrublands, the oro-mediterranean grasslands and high elevation scree and cliff vegetation. Most of the relevés are georeferenced to different levels of accuracy using information from toponyms, altitude, slope, aspect and, if available, GPS coordinates. We followed Conti et al. (2005, 2007) for the taxonomic attribution and nomenclatural updates of vascular plant taxa and, for solving synonymy problems, we also consulted other national and international vascular plants checklists. For each taxon, the cover/ abundance value recorded in the relevés is reported. In addition, the Ellenberg indicator values, life form and chorotype are described. Where appropriate, the corresponding EC habitat (92/43/EEC Habitats Directive) is assigned to each vegetation relevé. Currently, VIOLA includes vegetation relevés belonging to 7 EC habitats (4060, 4070*, 6170, 6210, 6230*, 8120, 8210). VIOLA offers a sound baseline for carrying out a multitude of ecological studies, and is an efficient tool for analyzing EC habitat distribution over time. Moreover, it provides useful information on shifts in altitudinal distribution of plant taxa resulting from global warming (thermophilization process) and land use changes. The VIOLA database is included in the European Vegetation Archive (EVA, www.euroveg.org) and in the Italian national vegetation database (VegItaly, www.vegitaly.it, EU-IT-001).

We introduce RanVegDunes (GIVD ID EU-IT-020), the first Italian database gathering standardized, randomly- sampled vegetation data in coastal dune environments. RanVegDunes currently consists of 979 original georeferenced relevés randomly collected over about 160 km of Holocenic dune systems of central Italy between 2002 and 2015. Plots were located in five Italian administrative regions (Lazio, Campania, Abruzzo, Molise and Puglia), where sandy vegetation was randomly recorded in standardized 4-m2plots across the whole coastal zonation, thus including upper beach, embryo dunes, shifting dunes, dune grasslands, wooded dunes and Mediterranean forests. Each plot was georeferenced with a high level of accuracy using a GPS unit. For each plot, a list of vascular plant species based on updated nomenclature was compiled, and an estimate of abundance was calculated for each species using a percentage cover scale ranging from 1 to 10 (1 = 1-10%; 2 = 10-20%; ...; 10 = 90-100%). Two habitat classification systems were used for the description of collected plots: specifically, each vegetation plot was classified according to the Interpretation Manual of the 92/43/EEC Habitats Directive and also to the hierarchical structure of the EUNIS habitat classification. Currently, RanVegDunes includes vegetation plots belonging to nine EU Habitats (1210, 2110, 2120, 2210, 2230, 2250, 2260, 2270, 9340), which in turn correspond to five EUNIS Habitats (B1.1, B1.3, B1.4, B1.6, B1.7). RanVegDunes is a powerful tool for a variety of studies addressing topics such as temporal trends in coastal vegetation, ecological modeling, re-visitation studies, spatio-temporal patterns of invasion and will therefore greatly benefit from further collection of data.

This study aimed to better document the diversity and distribution patterns of vascular cryophilous species across major habitat types in a high-elevation Mediterranean system in central Italy. The research addressed the following questions: (a) whether different habitats support similar levels of biodiversity in terms of total vascular plants richness and cryophilous species richness, and (b) how each habitat contributes to the total cryophilous species diversity. A random stratified sampling approach based on a habitat map was applied to construct rarefaction curves for overall cryophilous species richness and habitat type-specific cryophilous richness. Rarefaction curves were also constructed for all-species and exclusive species. To determine whether the targeted species represented a constant proportion of all species, the ratio between the rarefaction curves of the cryophilous species and all species was also calculated. The results highlight the importance of the different habitat types in overall and cryophilous species conservation because these different habitat types had progressively higher richness values. At the regional scale, steep slopes had the highest species diversity, the greatest exclusive species richness and a steep rarefaction curve. The diversity pattern of cryophilous taxa was not related to the general pattern of total species richness, with these species being more common in three habitat types with extreme environmental conditions: ridges, cliffs, and screes. For the establishment of successful biodiversity conservation programs, it is imperative to include species-poor habitats containing a high proportion of cryophilous species, which are considered to be threatened by climate warming.

Mountain ecosystems are vulnerable because of land-use and climate change. In this study, we performed a re-visitation study using historical and newly collected vegetation plots to explore the primary trends in the floristic, ecological, and structural features of Mediterranean Pinus mugo krummholz over past decades. The plant community composition over time (1992 vs. 2016&ndash, 17) was analyzed by a detrended correspondence analysis followed by a statistical comparison of time steps and an analysis of the contribution of each species to temporal differences. Ecological and structural changes were analyzed by a permutational multivariate analysis of variance followed by a post hoc comparison. We observed relevant changes in the floristic composition, structure, and ecological characteristics of Pinus mugo scrub. Some subalpine and treeline species that characterize the early stages of Pinus mugo succession declined as several warm-adapted species increased. Furthermore, these changes were most likely due to the natural evolution of high-mountain krummholz combined with a thermophilization process occurring in alpine habitats. In contrast, a small group of cold-adapted species also increased, probably because the patchy spatial pattern of Pinus mugo scrubs gives rise to &ldquo, mesic patches&rdquo, in a matrix of arid grasslands. The re-visitation approach adopted for long-term analysis in this study can potentially be applied to other mountainous regions to better understand long-term ecological changes in high alpine vegetation.

This paper presents a smart system based on Low Power Wide Area networks for a remote monitoring of technological room in unstaffed railway stations. The paper aim is the design of an efficient network scheme characterized by improved performance compared with the standard solution. Adopting an innovative smart System Control Strategy and a custom network topology, good results are reached in terms of reliability without increasing the amount of devices with respect the standard scheme.

The landscape has always been a fundamental factor in defining tourist flow attraction for local development. In this paper, landscape related to tourism have been analysed using three different measurements through appropriate performance indicators and rationalised with the aim of identifying a scheme of mutual relations. Applying advanced statistical methods of ranking and data synthesis, the area investigated (Molise, Italy) has been divided into different zones. Each area described has a specific relation between tourism and landscape useful in the implementation of optimal promotion strategies and valorisation of the area. In marginal areas, tourism can have an excellent growth potential, since they are characterized by the high quality of the landscape. However, the analysis highlights some gap areas, which means the existence of areas with high quality of the natural and agricultural landscape is not associated with an appropriate tourism development, or areas where the high tourism development is not associated with an appreciable quality of the landscape.

Riassunto Gli effetti dell'antropizzazione diretta delle spiagge e delle dune costiere hanno portato non solo alla diminuzione ed estinzione locale di specie, ma anche alla diffusione di elementi esotici. Il presente lavoro espone i risultati preliminari sulla presenza di specie vegetali esotiche nei sistemi dunali olocenici dell'Italia centrale (Lazio, Abruzzo e Molise). Il censimento della flora vascolare esotica e stato effettuato seguendo il protocollo della cartografia floristica europea. E' emersa la presenza di una notevole diversita di entita esotiche distribuita nei diversi habitat della zonazione costiera psammofila. La maggior parte delle esotiche e di origine americana, anche se alcune differenze emergono dal confronto fra i due litorali considerati: su quello tirrenico si rinvengono con maggior frequenza le specie di origine tropicale mentre su quello adriatico le specie aliene sono prevalentemente di origine extra-tropicale. Delle numerose specie rinvenute ed esaminate la maggior parte sono ...

Sandy beaches surrounding the Molise coast, facing to the Adriatic sea, are relatively well preserved if compared with other Italian littorals. In this study we present the results from a short term monitoring analyses of coastal habitats (six/eight-years) using permanent transects as part of the LTER network (Long Term Ecological Research-Italy). Vegetation monitoring was carried out along 4 belt transects along the beach-inland ecological gradient, following the coastal zonation and ranging from pioneer annual communities on the beach to Mediterranean scrubs on fixed dunes. Plant communities were sampled in contiguous 1 m x 1 m plots using a 1-10 ordinal transform scale to estimates the species' cover-abundance. All transects were conducted in sites subjected to a similar touristic pressure. Through cluster analysis we identified 5 Habitats of community interest: Annual vegetation of drift lines (Habitat 1210), Embryonic shifting dunes (Habitat 2110), Shifting dunes along the shoreline with Ammophila arenaria (Habitat 2120), Malcolmietalia dune grasslands (Habitat 2230) and Coastal dunes with Juniperus spp. (Habitat 2250). Main temporal changes were probably related to different erosion/accretion processes acting in each transect: two transects were relatively stable (without evident coastal erosion nor accretion processes), one suffered a strong retreat while the last transect showed a slight accretion process. Moreover, our study evidences that, as coastal plant communities are highly dynamic systems, even relatively short time periods could offer useful insights of annual vegetation trends.

Coastal sandy ecosystems are increasingly being threatened by human pressure, causing loss of biodiversity and habitat degradation. Using phytosociological relevés we conducted a re-visitation study in order to analyse changes in floristic composition during the last twenty years along the central Adriatic coast. We observed a significant increase in cover of fore dune and thermophilic species. Even though human activities are major driving forces of change in coastal dune vegetation, the species' cover increase may also be due to a moderate increment in average yearly temperature over the last two decades., Coastal sandy ecosystems are increasingly being threatened by human pressure, causing loss of biodiversity, habitat degradation and landscape modifications. However, there are still very few detailed studies focussing on compositional changes in coastal dune plant communities over time. In this work, we investigated how coastal dune European Union (EU) habitats (from pioneer annual beach communities to Mediterranean scrubs on the landward fixed dunes) have changed during the last 20 years. Using phytosociological relevés conducted in 1989–90 and in 2010–12, we investigated changes in floristic composition over time. We then compared plant cover and the proportion of ruderal, alien and habitat diagnostic species (‘focal species’) in the two periods. Finally, we used Ellenberg indicator values to define the ‘preferences’ of the plant species for temperature and moisture. We found that only fore dune habitats showed significant differences in species cover between the two time periods, with higher plant cover in the more recent relevés and a significant increase in thermophilic species. Although previous studies have demonstrated consistent habitat loss in this area, we observed that all coastal dune plant communities remain well represented, after a 20-year period. However, fore dunes have been experiencing significant compositional changes. Although we cannot confirm whether the observed changes are strictly related to climatic changes, to human pressure or to both, we hypothesize that a moderate increment in average yearly temperature may have promoted the increase in plant cover and the spread of thermophilic species. Thus, even though human activities are major driving forces of change in coastal dune vegetation, at the community scale climatic factors may also play important roles. Our study draws on re-visitation studies which appear to constitute a powerful tool for the assessment of the conservation status of EU habitats.

International audience; GNU Taler is a new electronic online payment system which providesprivacy for customers and accountability for merchants. It uses anexchange service to issue digital coins using blind signatures,and is thus not subject to the performance issues that plagueByzantine fault-tolerant consensus-based solutions.The focus of this paper is addressing the challenges payment systemsface in the context of the Web. We discuss how to addressWeb-specific challenges, such as handling bookmarks and sharing oflinks, as well as supporting users that have disabled JavaScript. Webpayment systems must also navigate various constraints imposed bymodern Web browser security architecture, such as same-origin policiesand the separation between browser extensions and Web pages. Whileour analysis focuses on how Taler operates within the securityinfrastructure provided by the modern Web, the results partiallygeneralize to other payment systems.We also include the perspective of merchants, as existing systems haveoften struggled with securing payment information at the merchant'sside. Here, challenges include avoiding database transactions forcustomers that do not actually go through with the purchase, as wellas cleanly separating security-critical functions of the paymentsystem from the rest of the Web service.

International audience; Aim In the alpine life zone, plant diversity is strongly determined by local topography and microclimate. We assessed the extent to which aspect and its relatedness to temperature affect plant species diversity, and the colonization and disappearance of species on alpine summits on a pan-European scale. Location Mountain summits in Europe's alpine life zone. Methods Vascular plant species and their percentage cover were recorded in permanent plots in each cardinal direction on 123 summits in 32 regions across Europe. For a subset from 17 regions, resurvey data and 6-year soil temperature series were available. Differences in temperature sum and Shannon index as well as species richness, colonization and disappearance of species among cardinal directions were analysed using linear mixed-effects and generalised mixed-effects models, respectively. Results Temperature sums were higher in east- and south-facing aspects than in the north-facing ones, while the west-facing ones were intermediate; differences were smallest in northern Europe. The patterns of temperature sums among aspects were consistent among years. In temperate regions, thermal differences were reflected by plant diversity, whereas this relationship was weaker or absent on Mediterranean and boreal mountains. Colonization of species was positively related to temperature on Mediterranean and temperate mountains, whereas disappearance of species was not related to temperature. Main conclusions Thermal differences caused by solar radiation determine plant species diversity on temperate mountains. Advantages for plants on eastern slopes may result from the combined effects of a longer diurnal period of radiation due to convection cloud effects in the afternoon and the sheltered position against the prevailing westerly winds. In northern Europe, long summer days and low sun angles can even out differences among aspects. On Mediterranean summits, summer drought may limit species numbers on the warmer slopes. Warmer aspects support a higher number of colonization events. Hence, aspect can be a principal determinant of the pace of climate-induced migration processes.

Mediterranean high-mountain ecosystems are increasingly threatened by climate change, causing biodiversity loss, habitat degradation and landscape modifications. In this work, we used phytosociological relevés to conduct a re-visitation study in order to analyze changes in floristic composition over the last 42 years in the central Apennines (Majella National Park). We observed changes in floristic composition, along with a significant increase in thermophilic and nutrient-demanding species. Such changes are likely attributable to the combined effect of higher temperatures and the increase in soil nutrients triggered by global change., High-mountain ecosystems are increasingly threatened by climate change, causing biodiversity loss, habitat degradation and landscape modifications. However, very few detailed studies have focussed on plant biodiversity in the high mountains of the Mediterranean. In this study, we investigated the long-term changes that have occurred in the composition, structure and ecology of high-mountain vegetation in the central Apennines (Majella) over the last 42 years. We performed a re-visitation study, using historical and newly collected vegetation data to explore which ecological and structural features have been the most successful in coping with climatic changes. Vegetation changes were analysed by comparing geo-referenced phytosociological relevés collected in high-mountain habitats (dolines, gentle slopes and ridges) on the Majella massif in 1972 and in 2014. Composition analysis was performed by detrended correspondence analysis, followed by an analysis of similarities for statistical significance assessment and by similarity percentage procedure (SIMPER) for identifying which species indicate temporal changes. Changes in ecological and structural indicators were analysed by a permutational multivariate analysis of variance, followed by a post hoc comparison. Over the last 42 years, clear floristic changes and significant ecological and structural variations occurred. We observed a significant increase in the thermophilic and mesonitrophilic plant species and an increment in the frequencies of hemicryptophytes. This re-visitation study in the Apennines agrees with observations in other alpine ecosystems, providing new insights for a better understanding of the effects of global change on Mediterranean high-mountain biodiversity. The observed changes in floristic composition, the thermophilization process and the shift towards a more nutrient-demanding vegetation are likely attributable to the combined effect of higher temperatures and the increase in soil nutrients triggered by global change. The re-visitation approach adopted herein represents a powerful tool for studying climate-related changes in sensitive high-mountain habitats.

GNU Taler is a new electronic online payment system which provides privacy for customers and accountability for merchants. It uses an exchange service to issue digital coins using blind signatures, and is thus not subject to the performance issues that plague Byzantine fault-tolerant consensus-based solutions.

Short-term changes occurring in high mountain vegetation were analysed using the data from two Italian sites already part of the GLORIA (GLobal Observation Research Initiative in Alpine environments network - central Apennines and southwestern Alps). The study focused on a set of ?oristic (endemics), structural (life forms), and ecological (thermic vegetation indicator) variables. Vegetation data was collected according to the GLORIA multi-summit standardised method during the last decade. The re-visitation revealed a moderate decrease of regional endemic flora and significant variations of structural and ecological parameters. The increase of caespitose hemicryptophytes in both sites, the increase of suffruticose chamaephytes in the central Apennines and of rosette-forming hemicryptophytes in the southwestern Alps emerged, highlighting the rapid responses of the alpine vegetation to climate warming. The increase of perennial life forms is related with the expansion of graminoids and small woody plants. These life forms seem to be the most suitable to face climate warming in Italian summits. The increase of the thermic vegetation indicator exceeds the mean European summits increment and is due to the expansion of thermophilic species. Short-term analyses with fine spatial and temporal resolutions are still necessary to improve our understanding concerning species behaviour in high-elevation ecosystems.

Coastal dunes support biodiverse habitats of conservation interest and provide other essential but often overlooked benefits to society, such as carbon sequestration, thanks to their high soil carbon accumulation rates. The recently established coastal dune Natura 2000 network in the Italian Adriatic coast aims at protecting dune habitats diversity, yet its capacity to provide other ecosystem services, and the potential trade-offs with biodiversity provision have so far not been evaluated. In this paper we conduct this analysis for a key ecosystem service: carbon storage and sequestration. We i) quantify soil carbon stocks and sequestration within four coastal dune EU habitat types along the Adriatic Natura 2000 network; ii) upscale these data to create an inventory of carbon stocks for all dune Natura 2000 sites in the study area; iii) collate biodiversity data of the selected EU habitat types using plant diversity measures as surrogates of coastal dune biodiversity and iv) explore the trade-offs between carbon storage and biodiversity value for the selected habitats. Italian Adriatic coastal dune Natura 2000 sites sequester 4998 t of CO2e per year, with the majority in wooded dunes. Wooded dunes showed significantly higher soil carbon density than the other dune habitats, and had a much greater area, but they were characterized by lower species richness. By contrast, the endangered fixed dunes, which survive in few residual patches along the study area, showed the highest plant diversity for both total species richness and dune focal species, but had a much lower carbon density and extent. Although further analyses of additional services would be desirable for a more comprehensive assessment, these findings suggest that conservation actions should favor restoration of the natural dune zonation, since it guarantees both dune species diversity and carbon storage. The carbon stocks and EU habitat type extents produced in this study constitute the first systematic inventory for dune systems in the Mediterranean.

Structure and diversity trends (β-diversity and species richness) across the Fagus sylvatica timberline in the central Apennines were investigated. Twenty-three belt transects were laid out across the upper forest line in the Simbruini Mountains. Number of species, plant cover, and height of different layers were recorded in each quadrat. The moving split-window method was used to detect ecological discontinuities across beech timberlines. We show how β-diversity changes along timberlines and we put forward some hypotheses about the possible dynamics of these transitions. Fourmodels resulted from the analysis of β-diversity trends: two β-diversity peaks indicated a transition where shrubs, mainly Juniperus communis ssp. alpina, (two high peaks) or beech scrub (two small peaks) formed a mantle that could allow forest expansion. One high β-diversity peak referred to an anthropo-zoogenic boundary maintained by disturbance, without the presence of a mantle. A little peak indicated a gradual transition at the upper potential timberline limit where beech forest had lost its typical floristical composition and structural characteristics.

FUNDAMENTO: O Transplante Cardíaco (TC) é uma alternativa para os indivíduos com doença cardíaca terminal. Na evolução pós-transplante, a ocorrência de episódios de Rejeição Cardíaca (RC) é evento frequente que aumenta a morbimortalidade, sendo necessário o emprego de exame não invasivo com boa acurácia para seu diagnóstico, pois a Biópsia Endomiocárdica (BEM) não é um procedimento isento de complicações. OBJETIVO: Comparar parâmetros obtidos com o princípio Doppler, entre os pacientes transplantados com RC (TX1) e os pacientes transplantados sem rejeição (TX0); utilizando como referência o Grupo Controle (GC) e observando o comportamento da função sistodiastólica ventricular esquerda expressa por meio do Índice de Performance Miocárdica (IPM). MÉTODOS: Foram realizados ecocardiogramas transtorácicos no período de janeiro de 2006 a janeiro de 2008, para a avaliação prospectiva de 47 pacientes, subdivididos em GC (36,2%), TX0 (38,3%) e TX1 (25,5%), comparando-se o IPM entre eles. Para a análise dos dados foram realizados os testes exato de Fisher e o não paramétrico de Kruskal-Wallis, ambos com nível de significância de 5%. RESULTADOS: Os grupos não diferiram em relação a idade, peso, altura e superfície corpórea. Quando comparado ao GC, TX0 e TX1 apresentaram alteração da função sistodiastólica ventricular esquerda, expressa como aumento do IPM, que foi mais intenso no TX1 [0,38 (0,29 - 0,44) X 0,47 (0,43 - 0,56) X 0,58 (0,52 - 0,74) p < 0,001]. CONCLUSÃO: O ecocardiograma mostrou-se como exame de boa acurácia na detecção das alterações da função sistodiastólica do coração transplantado; entretanto, não foi confiável como método substituto da BEM para o diagnóstico seguro de RC.BACKGROUND: Heart transplantation is an alternative for individuals with end-stage heart disease. However, episodes of heart rejection (HR) are frequent and increase morbidity and mortality, requiring the use of an accurate non-invasive exam for their diagnosis, since endomyocardial biopsy (EMB) is not a complication-free procedure. OBJECTIVE: To compare the parameters obtained by use of Doppler echocardiography in a group of transplanted patients with HR (TX1) and another group of transplanted patients without rejection (TX0), having as reference a control group (CG) and observing the behavior of the left ventricular systo-diastolic function expressed as the myocardial performance index (MPI) METHODS: Transthoracic echocardiographies were performed from January 2006 to January 2008 to prospectively assess 47 patients divided into three groups: CG (36.2%); TX0 (38.3%); and TX1 (25.5%). The MPI was compared between the groups, and data were analyzed by use of Fisher exact test and nonparametric Kruskal-Wallis test, both with significance level of 5%. RESULTS: The groups did not differ regarding age, weight, height, and body surface. When compared to GC, TX0 and TX1 showed a change in the left ventricular systo-diastolic function, expressed as an increase in MPI, which was greater in TX1 [0.38 (0.29 - 0.44); 0.47 (0.43 - 0.56); 0.58 (0.52 - 0.74), respectively; p < 0.001]. CONCLUSION: Echocardiography was a very accurate test to detect changes in the systo-diastolic function of the transplanted heart; however, it did not prove to be reliable to replace BEM in the safe diagnosis of HR.

FUNDAMENTO: O Transplante Cardíaco (TC) é uma alternativa para os indivíduos com doença cardíaca terminal. Na evolução pós-transplante, a ocorrência de episódios de Rejeição Cardíaca (RC) é evento frequente que aumenta a morbimortalidade, sendo necessário o emprego de exame não invasivo com boa acurácia para seu diagnóstico, pois a Biópsia Endomiocárdica (BEM) não é um procedimento isento de complicações. OBJETIVO: Comparar parâmetros obtidos com o princípio Doppler, entre os pacientes transplantados com RC (TX1) e os pacientes transplantados sem rejeição (TX0); utilizando como referência o Grupo Controle (GC) e observando o comportamento da função sistodiastólica ventricular esquerda expressa por meio do Índice de Performance Miocárdica (IPM). MÉTODOS: Foram realizados ecocardiogramas transtorácicos no período de janeiro de 2006 a janeiro de 2008, para a avaliação prospectiva de 47 pacientes, subdivididos em GC (36,2%), TX0 (38,3%) e TX1 (25,5%), comparando-se o IPM entre eles. Para a análise dos dados foram realizados os testes exato de Fisher e o não paramétrico de Kruskal-Wallis, ambos com nível de significância de 5%. RESULTADOS: Os grupos não diferiram em relação a idade, peso, altura e superfície corpórea. Quando comparado ao GC, TX0 e TX1 apresentaram alteração da função sistodiastólica ventricular esquerda, expressa como aumento do IPM, que foi mais intenso no TX1 [0,38 (0,29 - 0,44) X 0,47 (0,43 - 0,56) X 0,58 (0,52 - 0,74) p < 0,001]. CONCLUSÃO: O ecocardiograma mostrou-se como exame de boa acurácia na detecção das alterações da função sistodiastólica do coração transplantado; entretanto, não foi confiável como método substituto da BEM para o diagnóstico seguro de RC.

Continental-scale assessments of 21st century global impacts of climate change on biodiversity have forecasted range contractions for many species. These coarse resolution studies are, however, of limited relevance for projecting risks to biodiversity in mountain systems, where pronounced microclimatic variation could allow species to persist locally, and are ill-suited for assessment of species-specific threat in particular regions. Here, we assess the impacts of climate change on 2632 plant species across all major European mountain ranges, using high-resolution (ca. 100 m) species samples and data expressing four future climate scenarios. Projected habitat loss is greater for species distributed at higher elevations; depending on the climate scenario, we find 36-55% of alpine species, 31-51% of subalpine species and 19-46% of montane species lose more than 80% of their suitable habitat by 2070-2100. While our high-resolution analyses consistently indicate marked levels of threat to cold-adapted mountain florae across Europe, they also reveal unequal distribution of this threat across the various mountain ranges. Impacts on florae from regions projected to undergo increased warming accompanied by decreased precipitation, such as the Pyrenees and the Eastern Austrian Alps, will likely be greater than on florae in regions where the increase in temperature is less pronounced and rainfall increases concomitantly, such as in the Norwegian Scandes and the Scottish Highlands. This suggests that change in precipitation, not only warming, plays an important role in determining the potential impacts of climate change on vegetation.

High-mountain ecosystems are spots of plant diversity in which species composition and traits depict a long evolutionary history of species adaptation to steep environmental gradients. We investigated the main trends in plant species composition and reproductive and dispersal traits (pollen vector, diaspore appendages, dispersal of diaspores and fruit type) in central Mediterranean summits in relation to environmental factors (altitude, aspect, debris cover and slope). Based on 114 plots, with floristic and environmental data collected in the year 2016 on alpine calcareous grasslands in the central Apennines, we explored how species composition varies in relation to environmental factors using CCA (canonical correspondence analysis). Then, we analyzed the relationships among species presence, the occurrence of reproductive and dispersal traits and environmental variables. We used for this analysis the fourth-corner model approach. Our results highlight a consistent response of floristic composition and of structural and ecological characteristics to environmental gradients, with elevation and debris cover being the most important ones. The environmental characteristics of the analyzed ecosystems (e.g., steep slopes and harsh environments) combined with the persistence of perennial plant species already present in each stand, the high precision of pollination and the prevalence of short-distance dissemination strategies should allow the calcareous endemic plant communities of the analyzed Mediterranean summits to be conserved at least for a mid-term period slowing down the expansion of the warm-adapted species, less adapted to the local environmental constrains.

Avaliar fatores de risco arritmogenicos associados a maior incidencia de fibrilacao atrial (FA) no pos-operatorio (PO) de cirurgia cardiaca (revascularizacao miocardica e/ou cirurgia valvar), com o intuito de selecionar os mais propensos ao desenvolvimento dessa arritmia para possivel quimioprofilaxia. Avaliarem-se 66 pacientes submetidos a cirurgia cardiaca eletiva. Correlacionaram-se os principais fatores de risco (idade avancada, doenca valvar (DV), aumento atrial esquerdo (AE), disfuncao ventricular (DVE), disturbio eletrolitico (DHE), cirurgia cardiaca previa (CCP), uso previo e suspensao de betabloqueador (B-Bloq) e/ou digital 24 horas antes da cirurgia) para o desenvolvimento de FA no PO. A incidencia de FA foi elevada (47%) em nossa casuistica e mais frequente no primeiro dia de PO. Dos pacientes pesquisados, 64% eram do sexo masculino com idade media de 62 anos. Entre os pacientes com dois ou menos fatores de risco para FA, apenas 24% desenvolveram a arritmia, enquanto a presenca de tres ou mais desses fatores esteve associada a sua maior incidencia no PO (69%), (p = 0,04). Em ordem de maior frequencia, idade > 65 anos (em 58% dos pacientes) foi o fator de risco mais prevalente, seguido de aumento do AE em 45% (p = 0,001) e DV em 38% (p = 0,02). A presenca de tres ou mais fatores de risco aumenta consideravelmente a incidencia dessa arritmia no PO de cirurgia cardiaca. Entre os principais fatores, destacaram-se idade avancada, aumento do AE e doenca valvar.