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This report describes a male skeleton recovered from the Samnite necropolis of Barrea (Abruzzo, 8th–5th century BCE), showing one malformed foot consistent with the diagnosis of unilateral congenital clubfoot associated with tarsal and tarsometatarsal coalitions in the same foot. This finding is particularly noteworthy because tarsal coalitions in congenital equinovarus foot have rarely been reported in medical literature, and to our knowledge, never in the paleopathological record. The recovery of this individual with impaired locomotion from a grave containing a complete array of weapons and armor sheds new light on the occupant's identity and social attitudes toward disabled people in Samnite society. In mortuary archaeology, the correlation between warrior burials and social identity in life of the dead in ancient times is a widely debated issue. Some scholars assert that the weapons in these graves suggest the existence of a warrior class; others propose that the military items of the burial assemblage indicate a high social status or significant power. This study suggests that in Samnite society, physical impairment did not prevent someone from being honored as a warrior or high‐status community member. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper offers an acoustemological exploration of a set of taped interviews on the subject of witchcraft made in the 1960s and 1970s by historian and ethnomusicologist Cesare Bermani in the village of Villa Zaccheo (Abruzzo, Italy). Bermani’s extraordinary research has resulted in a celebrated monograph as well as more than 90 hours of taped interviews and songs made available through the Archivio Cesare Bermani in Orta San Giulio (Novara, Italy). Beginning with a few examples from Bermani’s taped interviews (which we transcribe and thickly describe so as to render their overall aural effect), we investigate the role of feeling and listening in the interviewees’ perception of witches. In particular, we observe the way interviewees recount the role of hearing in their encounters with witches (and the particular declination of “acousmatic” listening that results from it), as well as the interviewees’ complex relationship to the recording apparatus and microphone. We then excavate the importance of the legal and conceptual category of “hearsay” in the long political history of European witchcraft, and point out some of the long-standing political implications of this category for recent oral histories. Finally, we offer some preliminary conclusions on the ways in which voice, listening, recording technology and language (Italian as well as dialect), as well as shifting constructions of gender, combine to render the figure of the witch in oral history, in the hope of laying the groundwork for future re-evaluations of the relationship of sound, media, and the construction of the witch.

Abstract What Protected Areas in Globalisation? Reflections from the Agro-Pastoral Landscapes of the Maiella National Park This paper aims to reflect on a possible interpretation of the role that protected areas could play in the globalization. Starting from the example of the Maiella National Park (Italy), the paper aims to highlight the role of anthropic action as a key factor that throughout history has contributed to the generation of the current forms of ecosystems, characterized in this context by high levels of biodiversity, especially from the botanical point of view. All this provides an opportunity to reflect on the constructive role played by humankind in ecological dynamics, and so to develop a critical discussion of the significance of protected areas as peculiar places of globalization, capable of conveying crucial ethical values.

The MS Saraval 6 of David Qimḥi’s Sefer ha-shorashim entails in its external margins a lot of annotations (glosses and superglosses) written in an Italo-Romance dialect spelled by means of Hebrew letters vocalized with a high degree of precision. On the base of phonetic evidence it is possible to identify on the geolinguistic map of Italy in which dialect those marginalia have been redacted: it appears to be a Sabine dialect of Abruzzo (region of L’Aquila). This article ends with a tentative reconstruction of the history of the manuscript from a city in the region of L’Aquila (maybe Civitaretenga) to Ancona where the presence of the manuscript is attested thanks to a note doodled on the second last page. The fact that the manuscript was handled from one owner to another no less than three times within two years could be ascribed to the overall instability generated by the advancing French troops during the First Italian War (1494-1497).

Disgregation of Cicolano from Abruzzo and its mandatory inclusion to Lazio - wanted by Mussolini in 1927 - caused anger among people. That is why «Upset population because of different origins and language» can be considered as the epilogue of this poetry of oral memory. This poem summarizes reasons for dissent such as feeling foreigners in the new region («paying tariffs») and not identifying themselves because of historical origins and culture. Overall, these stanzas deal with the regret of detachment from Abruzzo and the widespread desire to go back. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In past centuries, Abruzzo was the northernmost part of the Adriatic side of the Kingdom of Naples (1282-1816) and then of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies (1816-1861). The history of theatre and performing arts in Abruzzo is still largely unexplored. During the Modern Age, there were few theaters opened to the public. For a long time, they were forbidden to professional theatre companies. The Catholic Church controlled not only the spiritual life of citizens, but also the arts, including music and performances. The situation began to change in the second half of the 18th century, thanks to the political reforms initiated by Minister Bernardo Tanucci under the Bourbon government. During the Napoleonic occupation of the Kingdom of Naples, prejudices against the stage and its protagonists diminished significantly, but only in the last 19th century Abruzzo became part of the most important theater circuits of the Italian peninsula. This essay presents the first results of a research dedicated to the study of theatrical spaces, main types of impresarios and theatrical forms that developed in Abruzzo from Ancient Regime until the Unification of Italy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The new subspecies Pedicularis rostratospicata subsp. marsica is here described based on morphological and molecular analyses. The new taxon is endemic to few localities of the Central Apennines within the Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise National Park (Central Italy). Pedicularis rostratospicata subsp. marsica can be distinguished from the other two currently accepted subspecies (subsp. rostratospicata and subsp. helvetica) by their taller stems, shorter petioles of basal and middle leaves, narrower blades of basal leaves, longer inflorescences with longer internodes and more flowers, and longer calyx lobes. Molecular analysis confirmed the autonomy of the new taxon. Furthermore, the conservation status assessment of the new subspecies according to IUCN categories and criteria is proposed and discussed, and an analytical key to the three subspecies of P. rostratospicata is presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nella primavera del 1907 la scrittrice britannica Anne MacDonell e la pittrice inglese Amy Atkinson realizzarono un viaggio attraverso gli Abruzzi, il cui resoconto, intercalato da acquerelli, fu pubblicato nel libro In the Abruzzi a Londra nel 1908. Le descrizioni dei paesaggi, degni di assurgere a scenari di opere letterarie concepite in età romantica, e le digressioni sui monumenti e sugli oggetti d’interesse storico-artistico della regione, filtrate tramite il paradigma dannunziano, rappresentano un osservatorio privilegiato per comprendere le caratteristiche di un racconto che fu recensito dai contemporanei come un “romance of a romantic country”.

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Taranta Peligna is a village that is located in the mountainous region of Abruzzo (Italy). The current population, decimated by emigration, it has about 343 inhabitants. The author studies the religious traditions of the community, in particular those related to the feast (1-3 february) and cult of San Biagio. Currently, the feast has lost some characteristics of the past, has been re-functionalized, has acquired new values, meanings and helps to preserve the cultural identity of Taranta Peligna. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The species of Buprestidae, Vesperidae and Cerambycidae in Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise National Park in Italy were studied based on literature data and original material. As a result, a list of 128 taxa was assembled: 49 buprestids, one vesperid and 78 cerambycids. These taxa belong to 21 areographical categories combined in seven complexes. The European complex occupies a dominant position (39.1%), followed by the Palaearctic (24.2%), Mediterranean (14.1%), Eurosiberian (10.2%), European- Iranoturanian (6.3%), Endemic (3.9%), and Cosmopolitan and Holarctic (2.3%) complexes. The Park has four endemic and one subendemic taxa.

Abstract Background Faced with the ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease, the ‘National Reference Centre for Whole Genome Sequencing of microbial pathogens: database and bioinformatic analysis’ (GENPAT) formally established at the ‘Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell’Abruzzo e del Molise’ (IZSAM) in Teramo (Italy) is in charge of the SARS-CoV-2 surveillance at the genomic scale. In a context of SARS-CoV-2 surveillance requiring correct and fast assessment of epidemiological clusters from substantial amount of samples, the present study proposes an analytical workflow for identifying accurately the PANGO lineages of SARS-CoV-2 samples and building of discriminant minimum spanning trees (MST) bypassing the usual time consuming phylogenomic inferences based on multiple sequence alignment (MSA) and substitution model. Results GENPAT constituted two collections of SARS-CoV-2 samples. The first collection consisted of SARS-CoV-2 positive swabs collected by IZSAM from the Abruzzo region (Italy), then sequenced by next generation sequencing (NGS) and analyzed in GENPAT (n = 1592), while the second collection included samples from several Italian provinces and retrieved from the reference Global Initiative on Sharing All Influenza Data (GISAID) (n = 17,201). The main results of the present work showed that (i) GENPAT and GISAID detected the same PANGO lineages, (ii) the PANGO lineages B.1.177 (i.e. historical in Italy) and B.1.1.7 (i.e. ‘UK variant’) are major concerns today in several Italian provinces, and the new MST-based method (iii) clusters most of the PANGO lineages together, (iv) with a higher dicriminatory power than PANGO lineages, (v) and faster that the usual phylogenomic methods based on MSA and substitution model. Conclusions The genome sequencing efforts of Italian provinces, combined with a structured national system of NGS data management, provided support for surveillance SARS-CoV-2 in Italy. We propose to build phylogenomic trees of SARS-CoV-2 variants through an accurate, discriminant and fast MST-based method avoiding the typical time consuming steps related to MSA and substitution model-based phylogenomic inference.

This project proposal is for the application of IT tools in order to consider a “cross-media” translation of data obtained, so that they can be used as an alternative to simple textual consultation, with respect to the reconstruction of the geography and history of Venetian works of art in the Adriatic regions of the Kingdom of Naples between the Middle Ages and the early modern age. The overall aim of the work is namely to carry out an analysis of Venetian presences and influences in the artistic production of Abruzzo, Molise and Apulia, also considering the transversal relations of this area with the Balkan regions under Venetian rule.

The new subspecies Pedicularis rostratospicata subsp. marsica is here described based on morphological and molecular analyses. The new taxon is endemic to few localities of the Central Apennines within the Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise National Park (Central Italy). Pedicularis rostratospicata subsp. marsica can be distinguished from the other two currently accepted subspecies (subsp. rostratospicata and subsp. helvetica) by their taller stems, shorter petioles of basal and middle leaves, narrower blades of basal leaves, longer inflorescences with longer internodes and more flowers, and longer calyx lobes. Molecular analysis confirmed the autonomy of the new taxon. Furthermore, the conservation status assessment of the new subspecies according to IUCN categories and criteria is proposed and discussed, and an analytical key to the three subspecies of P. rostratospicata is presented.

Several lineages of SARS-CoV-2 are currently circulating worldwide. During SARS-CoV-2 diagnostic activities performed in Abruzzo region (central Italy) several strains belonging to the B.1.177.75 lineage tested negative for the N gene but positive for the ORF1ab and S genes (+/+/- pattern) by the TaqPath COVID-19 CE-IVD RT-PCR Kit manufactured by Thermofisher. By sequencing, a unique mutation, synonymous 28948C > T, was found in the N-negative B.1.177.75 strains. Although we do not have any knowledge upon the nucleotide sequences of the primers and probe adopted by this kit, it is likely that N gene dropout only occurs when 28948C > T is coupled with 28932C > T, this latter present, in turn, in all B.1.177.75 sequences available on public databases. Furthermore, epidemiological analysis was also performed. The majority of the N-negative B.1.177.75 cases belonged to two clusters apparently unrelated to each other and both clusters involved young people. However, the phylogeny for sequences containing the +/+/- pattern strongly supports a genetic connection and one common source for both clusters. Though, genetic comparison suggests a connection rather than indicating the independent emergence of the same mutation in two apparently unrelated clusters. This study highlights once more the importance of sharing genomic data to link apparently unrelated epidemiological clusters and to, remarkably, update molecular tests.

According to the data of CREA (Council for Agricultural Research and analysis of the Agrarian Economy) more than one third of the Italian territory is covered in woods, with an acceleration of 5.8% in the last decade. Of the 66,000 hectares that are generated on average per year, only a marginal quota is due to reforestation. Spontaneous reforestation has been seen mostly on plateaus and hills. In Abruzzo, INFC inspections (Inventario nazionale delle foreste e dei serbatoi forestali di carbonio - National Inventory of forests and forest carbon reserves) conducted in 2005 ascertained a forest surface (42%) superior to the national average. The source of this increase phenomenon of natural heritage is the progressive abandonment of traditional activities with a progressive reduction of inhabitants and cultivated fields. Along the hill slopes, processes of selective consolidation, intensification and crop specialization are taking place. The steepest hill sides are marked by uncultivated areas or are the sign of generational passages with little fields but extensive division of the farmland or the progressive coastal-valley extension of the city. ISTAT (National Institute of Statistics) points out that in twenty years (1990-2010) the cultivated soil in the region for productive purposes diminished by more than half (-57%). This contribution intends to agree with the thesis that the complex geography transforming the open spaces today shows variable geometries in the use of the soil and the resources used. Territori dell’abbandono. L’Appennino centrale e la campagna incolta Secondo i dati del CREA (Consiglio per la ricerca in agricoltura e l’analisi dell’economia agraria) nel 2015 i boschi coprono più di un terzo del territorio italiano, con un’accelerazione del 5,8% nell’ultimo decennio. Dei 66.000 ettari che si generano in media in un anno, solo una quota marginale è relativa a opere di rimboschimento. La forestazione spontanea ha interessato soprattutto gli altipiani e le colline. In Abruzzo, la rilevazione INFC (Inventario nazionale delle foreste e dei serbatoi forestali di carbonio) nel 2005 accerta una superficie forestale (42%) superiore alla media nazionale. A fronte di questo fenomeno di accrescimento del patrimonio naturale, l’Appennino centrale è stato progressivamente interessato dall’abbandono delle attività tradizionali con la progressiva riduzione di abitanti e campi coltivati. Lungo i versanti collinari sono in atto processi selettivi di accorpamento, intensificazione e specializzazione colturale. Le aree incolte marcano i versanti più acclivi o segnalano i passaggi generazionali dei campi del piccolo ma esteso appoderamento oppure l’attesa della progressiva estensione della città costiero-valliva. I rilevamenti Istat evidenziano che in venti anni (1990-2010) il suolo utilizzato nella regione a fini produttivi si riduce di più della metà (-57%). Questo contributo intende dare ragione della complessa geografia delle trasformazioni dello spazio aperto che mostra, all’oggi, geometrie discontinue negli usi del suolo così come nelle sue risorse insediative.

The abandonment phenomenon in Italy over the past fifty years has been greatest in minor centres, directly proportional to their concentration in the various regional territories. Abruzzo and Molise are significant from this point of view. In these regions, the proportion of minor centres exceeds 90%; it includes mainly mountain villages where abandonment is the distinctive feature and reflects a widespread and fragmented phenomenon. Although barely detectable in municipal statistics, because of the agricultural and pastoral tradition, which until relatively recently had withstood economic and social ups and downs, it is seen in numerous districts and rural villages scattered throughout the territory, escaping detection in broad surveys. Both regions also continue to suffer from the aftermath of recent earthquakes: in 2002 in Molise, where reconstruction has not yet been fully completed after almost twenty years, and in 2009 and again in 2015-2016 in L'Aquila, when the Abruzzi provinces were battered again after being already severely tried and where reconstruction is still uncertain. This contribution uses statistical data and the vast literature on the subject produced over decades of research and studies on the regions, to provide a foretaste of a soon-to-be-published volume, and an update on the local situation of abandonment, analysing the causes and effects in order to consider a possible future. The occasion is valuable not only for a constructive and beneficial comparison with other Italian and foreign situations, but also to construct a dynamic, multi-scalar approach capable of emancipating itself from highly evocative one-off situations, and open to a broader scale of recovery for the entire territory and to network individual local regions. Luoghi dell’abbandono. I centri minori dell’Abruzzo e del Molise L’abbandono insediativo che è in corso in Italia da circa cinquant’anni ha trovato, come è noto, il suo luogo di elezione nei centri minori, con un’entità direttamente proporzionale alla concentrazione di questi nei vari territori regionali. L’Abruzzo e il Molise costituiscono una realtà significativa da questo punto di vista. Il numero dei centri minori, prevalentemente montani, supera qui il 90%: l’abbandono ne è la cifra distintiva ed è solo la spia di un fenomeno diffuso e frammentario, difficilmente rintracciabile attraverso le statistiche comunali, poiché la tradizione agricola e pastorale, che fino a tempi relativamente recenti ne ha retto le sorti economiche e sociali, si è espressa attraverso numerose contrade e frazioni rurali sparse sul territorio, che sfuggono alle rilevazioni statistiche a maglia larga. Su entrambe le regioni pesano inoltre i postumi degli ultimi terremoti, quello del 2002 in Molise, la cui ricostruzione dopo quasi vent’anni non è stata ancora del tutto completata, e quelli del 2009 dell’Aquila, e poi ancora del 2015-2016, che hanno infierito su province abruzzesi già fortemente provate e la cui vicenda ricostruttiva è ancora incerta. Sulla scorta dei dati statistici e della vasta letteratura sull’argomento, prodotta in decenni di ricerche e studi sul territorio delle due regioni, il presente contributo intende fornire l’anticipazione di un volume specifico di prossima pubblicazione, per fare il punto della situazione locale relativa all’abbandono, analizzandone le cause e gli effetti come base per prefigurarne un futuro possibile. L’occasione è preziosa non solo per un confronto costruttivo e salutare con altre situazioni italiane e straniere ma anche per la costruzione di un percorso dinamico e multiscalare capace di emanciparsi da situazioni puntuali, per quanto suggestive, e aprirsi alla scala più ampia del recupero del territorio e della messa in rete delle singole realtà locali.

The interior areas of Abruzzi and Molise are littered with abandoned centres, primarily small towns and villages. We see total abandonment, mainly in mountainous areas. Partial abandonment impacts almost all of the rest of the territory, including places that had previously undergone rapid industrialization like Val Vibrata, Val di Sangro and Valle del Trigno. As in the rest of the country, here innumerable experiences are underway to limit abandonment and revive ancient settlements. However, the results have not always lived up to expectations. Tourism and cultural promotion was behind well-known interventions in S. Stefano di Sessanio, in L’Aquila, where a talented entrepreneur from the north bought the village, aiming to transform its old houses into rooms for tourists, and the similar case of Castel del Giudice in Campobasso. The same can be said for the experiments underway, especially during the summer season, in Castelbasso and Ripattoni di Bellante in Teramo, where cultural initiatives and artistic promotion are testing forms of territorial marketing. Based on ongoing research and the soon-to-be-published volume, this contribution reports on attempts to revitalise abandoned centres in Abruzzo and Molise, discussing their limits and objectives. The objectives include pairing the recovery of housing with the design of abandonment and selection of large-scale museum criteria in the territory, to draw the areas back into the network with their landscape and promotion of their residual identity. Pratiche di recupero dei centri abbandonati. Esperienze dall’Abruzzo e dal Molise Soprattutto nei piccoli comuni e nelle frazioni, le aree interne dell’Abruzzo e del Molise sono disseminate di centri abbandonati. L’abbandono totale riguarda soprattutto le zone montane; quello parziale quasi tutto il resto del territorio, e anche i luoghi che hanno conosciuto fenomeni di rapida industrializzazione come la val Vibrata, la val di Sangro e la valle del Trigno. Come nel resto del Paese, anche qui sono numerose le esperienze in atto per arginare il fenomeno dell’abbandono e rivitalizzare antichi insediamenti con esiti però non sempre all’altezza delle aspettative. Il turismo e la promozione culturale hanno veicolato i noti interventi realizzati a S. Stefano di Sessanio, in provincia dell’Aquila, comprato da un abile imprenditore del nord per trasformare le sue vecchie case in stanze per turisti, e quello, simile, di Castel del Giudice in provincia di Campobasso. Lo stesso si può dire per le esperienze in corso, a Castelbasso e Ripattoni di Bellante in provincia di Teramo, dove iniziative culturali e di promozione artistica tentano forme di marketing territoriale. Sulla scorta delle ricerche in corso e del volume in fase di pubblicazione, il contributo intende fare il punto sui tentativi di rivitalizzazione dei centri abbandonati dell’Abruzzo e del Molise per discuterne limiti e obiettivi. Tra gli obiettivi c’è anche la possibilità di affiancare, al recupero abitativo, la progettazione dell’abbandono e la scelta di criteri di musealizzazione su larga scala del territorio, rimesso in rete col paesaggio e valorizzato nelle sue identità residue.

From 24 December 2020 to 8 February 2021, 163 cases of SARS-CoV-2 Alpha variant of concern (VOC) were identified in Chieti province, Abruzzo region. Epidemiological data allowed the identification of 14 epi-clusters. With one exception, all the epi-clusters were linked to the town of Guardiagrele: 149 contacts formed the network, two-thirds of which were referred to the family/friends context. Real data were then used to estimate transmission parameters. According to our method, the calculated Re(t) was higher than 2 before the 12 December 2020. Similar values were obtained from other studies considering Alpha VOC. Italian sequence data were combined with a random subset of sequences obtained from the GISAID database. Genomic analysis showed close identity between the sequences from Guardiagrele, forming one distinct clade. This would suggest one or limited unspecified viral introductions from outside to Abruzzo region in early December 2020, which led to the diffusion of Alpha VOC in Guardiagrele and in neighbouring municipalities, with very limited inter-regional mixing.

Three new breeding sites of the Pallid swift Apus pallidus between 700 and 1300 m a.s.l. in Abruzzo (Italy), the first known for the central Apennines, are described.

Recent findings showed the role of late-night eating in metabolic disorders, highlighting the importance of meal timing for health. No evidence is available on the role of meal timing for longevity. The aim of this study was to survey, in a cross-sectional study, meal timing and dietary habits of 68 nonagenarians and centenarians of the Abruzzo region, Italy. Results showed an early dinner (7:13 p.m.) and a calorie restriction lapse of 17.5 h between dinner and the following lunch. The frequency of consumption was high for cereals, vegetables, fruits, and legumes; low for meat, processed meat, and eggs; and negligible for sweets. Subjects were physically active throughout life. Our results support the importance of a daily caloric restriction lapse, hampering nocturnal postprandial stress and optimizing metabolic response, associated with high consumption of plant-based foods and physical activity for the longevity of centenarians from Abruzzo.

The contribution examines the investigation reports written by Paul Schuermeier and Gerhard Rohlfs during their dialect surveys for the AIS in Abruzzo, a region that, together with Lazio, was investigated by both scholars (Scheuermeier in the north, Rohlfs in the south). A careful re-reading reveals not only the acuity of their observations about several phonetic and linguistic phenomena, but also their ability to overcome the limits of a questionnaire survey thanks to constant attention to the spontaneous speech of several subjects, and, above all, their special relationship with the informants, which they both set up in a particularly effective manner, thanks also to their unusual communication and human qualities. Indeed, Rohlfs' survey methodology proves to be more similar to Scheuermeier's than has been admitted so far, allowing us to recognize in him an uncommon sociolinguistic sensitivity, which has long been doubted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Following the announcement on December 2020 about the emergence of a new variant (VOC 202012/01, B.1.1.7 lineage) in the United Kingdom, a targeted surveillance was put in place in the Abruzzo region (Italy), which allowed detection of 313 persons affected by lineage B.1.1.7, up to the 20th of February 2021. We investigated the results of RT-PCR on nasopharyngeal swabs tested from December 2020 to February 2021 to verify any difference on the viral load and persistence between people infected by lineage B.1.1.7 and others. Statistically significant lower values of CT associated with the detection of the N protein encoding gene (CT N) were observed in persons with lineage B.1.1.7 infection (median CT N = 15.8) in comparison to those infected by other lineages (median CT N = 16.9). A significantly longer duration of the persistence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in nasopharyngeal swabs was observed in persons with lineage B.1.1.7 infection (16 days) in comparison to those infected by other lineages (14 days).

Since the tenth century BC, the Abruzzo region has hosted different Italic populations. According to historical sources, they originated from an ancestor population following the ritual “ver sacrum” migration. Contact among the populations within the region was always difficult, as Abruzzo is crossed longitudinally by the highest peaks of the Apennines chain. It was only after the Roman conquest from the fourth century BC that the construction of a new road system allowed quick and safe connections among some of the populations. This study was designed to use non-metric skeletal traits and mean measure of divergence analysis to determine the effective biodistance between five nuclei populations (Scurcola Marsicana, Tortoreto, Opi, Sulmona, Teramo) and whether this was influenced by the construction of the Roman road network. The statistical analysis thus defined the effective common origin of these populations. It can be seen that the populations that lived alongside the main Roman communication routes (Tortoreto, Teramo, Sulmona) had a greater degree of hybridisation than those that were further from the road system (Opi), who were instead biologically isolated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Faced with the ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease, the 'National Reference Centre for Whole Genome Sequencing of microbial pathogens: database and bioinformatic analysis' (GENPAT) formally established at the 'Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell'Abruzzo e del Molise' (IZSAM) in Teramo (Italy) is in charge of the SARS-CoV-2 surveillance at the genomic scale. In a context of SARS-CoV-2 surveillance requiring correct and fast assessment of epidemiological clusters from substantial amount of samples, the present study proposes an analytical workflow for identifying accurately the PANGO lineages of SARS-CoV-2 samples and building of discriminant minimum spanning trees (MST) bypassing the usual time consuming phylogenomic inferences based on multiple sequence alignment (MSA) and substitution model. Results: GENPAT constituted two collections of SARS-CoV-2 samples. The first collection consisted of SARS-CoV-2 positive swabs collected by IZSAM from the Abruzzo region (Italy), then sequenced by next generation sequencing (NGS) and analyzed in GENPAT (n = 1592), while the second collection included samples from several Italian provinces and retrieved from the reference Global Initiative on Sharing All Influenza Data (GISAID) (n = 17,201). The main results of the present work showed that (i) GENPAT and GISAID detected the same PANGO lineages, (ii) the PANGO lineages B.1.177 (i.e. historical in Italy) and B.1.1.7 (i.e. 'UK variant') are major concerns today in several Italian provinces, and the new MST-based method (iii) clusters most of the PANGO lineages together, (iv) with a higher dicriminatory power than PANGO lineages, (v) and faster that the usual phylogenomic methods based on MSA and substitution model. Conclusions: The genome sequencing efforts of Italian provinces, combined with a structured national system of NGS data management, provided support for surveillance SARS-CoV-2 in Italy. We propose to build phylogenomic trees of SARS-CoV-2 variants through an accurate, discriminant and fast MST-based method avoiding the typical time consuming steps related to MSA and substitution model-based phylogenomic inference. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Geological tourist map of the Mount Serrone fault Geosite (Gioia dei Marsi, Italy) has been realized for describing, in an educational perspective, the surface expression of one of the main active faults of the Central Apennines, connected with the 1915 Fucino earthquake (magnitude 7, historically, one of the strongest in Italy). The Central Apennines are a mountain range whose landscape is deeply connected to active tectonics and seismicity, as documented by recent earthquakes. In this framework, the map is a useful tool for the dissemination of the geological knowledge of the Fucino area and faults in general and for the promotion of a geological landscape through a modern, sustainable and environmentally aware tourism. The map is double-sided with simple texts and cartoons on the front outlining general info about the geosite, faults and earthquakes, how to behave in seismic areas and historical notes. The back shows the Main Map with its visual legend featuring the main geological and tectonic elements of the Mount Serrone fault Geosite and the long term history of the landscape. Through simple keywords and concepts, tectonics, faults and earthquakes are shown to be natural features that have contributed to shape the landscape of the Apennines over geological time, as well as something to be afraid and worried of, as they are connected to natural hazard and disasters. This approach is aimed at increasing people's awareness of geological processes and hazards (i.e. seismic), which with adequate knowledge and proper land management, can be lived with.

Le colonie marine, montane ed elioterapiche sono architetture a metà strada tra le strutture sanitarie e quelle educative, volute dal Partito Nazionale Fascista per la cura e la formazione dei giovani italiani. La differenza di committenza e condizioni insediative non consente d’individuare un modello edilizio con tratti unitari per questa nuova tipologia, che supera quella cupa dei centri ospedalieri per la cura della tubercolosi. Le colonie si caratterizzano formalmente per l’aspetto allegorico e ludico, che evoca l’immagine di aeroplani, navi, lettere dell’alfabeto e altro ancora. Gli impianti, però, sono anche complesse “macchine sanitarie” in cui sono messe a punto soluzioni distributive per la salubrità degli edifici, con l’ausilio di materiali moderni e tecniche edilizie innovative. Il contributo ripercorre l’evoluzione architettonica e tipologica degli edifici per la cura dalla tubercolosi da cui originano le colonie, focalizzando l’attenzione su due significativi esempi realizzati in Abruzzo nel Ventennio, uno marino e l’altro montano, al fine di restituire i caratteri originali della loro architettura, le vicende costruttive e i materiali utilizzati per renderli "salubri e belli". Healthy and beautiful. Italian Colonies during the Fascist Period: two Architectures between Abruzzi’s Mountain and Sea Seaside, mountain and heliotherapeutic colonies form a combined health and educational building typology encouraged by the National Fascist Party for the care and training of young Italians. Different commissioning authorities and environmental conditions prevent the adoption of any single model for a new architectural typology that going way beyond the gloomy nineteenth-century medical centres for tuberculosis. Characteristics are allegorical and recreational aspects evoking the images of aeroplanes, ships, letters of the alphabet. These structures, however, are also complex “health-care machines”, developing buildings arrangement to provide health-enhancing ways, including the use of innovatory materials and building techniques. The paper retraces the architectural and typological evolution of the buildings for the treatment of tuberculosis from which the colonies originate, focusing the attention on two of the marine and mountain colonies built in Abruzzo in the fascist period, in order to study its architecture, the construction events and the materials used to make them "healthy and beautiful".

The article aims to examine how following a natural disaster, in this case the 2009 earthquake in Abruzzo (Central Italy), the reconstruction can be directed towards different projects that may have as a result the reconstitution of the affected communities, or their dispersion.In the first case we will examine the importance of tradition in the reconstruction project implemented by the Goriano community in the province of L’Aquila to give meaning to the affected areas, also through witness’ interviews. In the case of L’Aquila, on the other hand, we opted for the construction of a polycentric new town, which in fact dispersed people and disrupted the social structure.

Lama dei Peligni is a village in Abruzzo (province of Chieti) that has undergone various economic and socio-cultural transformations. In this work, after brief general considerations concerning the geography, general mythology and traditions of the moon, we proceed to the listing of all the traditions, anecdotes, proverbs and beliefs concerning the moon in the context for the purpose to preserve their memory and then to analyze and interpret their functions and symbolic meanings. The set of facts collected document that the moon had a great importance in the traditions of the context of investigation since it touches many spheres of human action. In the current situation it feeds: the beliefs according to which besides the tides it would influence other earthly events; the magical thought that has not completely dissolved; the romance of poets, singers and simple lovers who entrust their dreams and love messages to her; various traditions and beliefs recovered and inserted into the mechanisms that ensure the show and collective escape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous research has found supernatural beliefs about sleep paralysis (SP) to be very prevalent in Italy, with over one third of SP sufferers believing that their SP might have been caused by a supernatural creature known locally as the Pandafeche. The current study further examined features of SP in Italy. All participants had experienced SP at least once in their lifetime. Participants were recruited from the general population (N = 67) in the region of Abruzzo. The Sleep Paralysis Experiences and Phenomenology Questionnaire (SP-EPQ) was orally administered to participants. As hypothesized, we found that Italians from the general population reported high lifetime rates of SP, prolonged duration of immobility during the event, and great fear of the experience (with as many as 42% of SP sufferers fearing that they could die from the experience), all of which were particularly elevated as compared to cultures where there are no such elaborate traditions of SP (e.g., Denmark). In addition, 78% of participants experienced some type of hallucination during their SP. The results we present here suggest that cultural beliefs about SP in Italy (e.g., as being caused by the Pandafeche, as reported elsewhere) potentially can profoundly shape certain aspects of the experience – a type of mind-body interaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study focusses on some diseases that occurred in the human remains from the Samnitic necropolis of Opi Val Fondillo (AQ) by the river Sangro in the middle of the National Park of Abruzzo (Central Italy). Up to now, 89 people have undergone general anthropological investigations. Further inquiries were necessary. The most common pathological disorders were cervical, lumbar and sternoclavicular arthrosis. There were some skeletal evidences of identifiable traumas; particularly the fractures of ribs and upper limbs. The incidence of developmental defects in the skeletal population is moderate. Moreover, there is a case of cancer to report: a cranial osteoma, that is a benign tumor localized on the right side of the frontal bone, with a diameter of about 1 cm, formed by a dense, symptomatic lamellar bone with no consequences during life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new species of Anthyllis endemic to central Apennine growing in dry pastures on limestone in the montane belt, within Abruzzo and Lazio administrative regions (central Italy), is here described and illustrated and the IUCN assessment is proposed. This new species belongs to the morphologically very variable Anthyllis vulneraria species complex and it is close to A. pulchella (south-eastern Europe and Caucasus), but it can be clearly distinguished by its smaller flowers, mainly light yellow-coloured, bracts longer than flowers, calyx pink-coloured (usually only at apex) and size of cauline leaves and leaflets. Furthermore, the name A. pulchella is here lectotypified, by a second-step typification, on a specimen preserved at PAD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Pulpit and the Floor of San Liberatore alla Maiella This paper has been inspired by the study of the Abruzzi liturgical furnishings and, in particular, by a fundamental work of Otto Lehmann-Brockhaus presented in 1944: Die Kanzeln der Abruzzen im 12. und 13. Jahrhundert. Our aim is to focus on the abbey church of San Liberatore alla Maiella, the once powerful and widely known Benedictine order, pivot of political control of Montecassino in Abruzzo. Its founding is unknown, but dates back to a time before the year 990, when the abbey was destroyed by an earthquake. We will pay particular attention to the reconstruction of the architectural development of the church – transformed into a cemetery from the municipality of Serramonacesca in the 19th century – and its medieval pulpit and floor, in particular on their conservation history and their decoration. Our focus, here, is to argue – on the basis of a full analysis of the available sources on the history and restorations of the abbey – that the pulpit is the result of an assemblage carried out between the years 1970 and 1971, and that the floor was made in two distinct interventions, carried out between the 11th and 13th centuries.

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In this paper, Allium ducissae (the LSID for the name Allium ducissae is: 77254606-1) is described as a new species based on morphological and molecular analyses, and its taxonomic relationships are discussed. It grows in crevices on calcareous rocks, rocky slopes and grassy ledges in the subalpine belt, within two regional protected areas in the Lazio and Abruzzo administrative regions (Central Apennines, Italy). Previously, these populations were attributed to A. strictum, a species described from Siberia, belonging to A. sect. Reticulatobulbosa. The new species is distinct from A. strictum in the morphology of vegetative and reproductive structures. Indeed, it is close to A. palentinum, an endemic species to Cantabrian Mountains (NW Spain). Both molecular and morphological data support the recognition of the Allium populations coming from the Central Apennines as a new species. Allium ducissae can be clearly distinguished from A. palentinum by longer and wider tepals, longer filaments, tooth of inner filament, flower pedicels, spathe appendage, and smaller seeds. Moreover, seed testa micro-sculptures revealed slight differences between A. ducissae and A. palentinum. Chromosome counts showed that A. ducissae is diploid with 2n = 16 chromosomes, as already known for A. palentinum. Molecular analyses support the affiliation of A. ducissae and A. palentinum to A. sect. Falcatifolia, contrary to what is known for the latter species, usually included in A. sect. Daghestanica. Finally, the IUCN assessment for the newly described species is proposed and briefly discussed.

Cat scratch disease (CSD) is a zoonotic disease, caused predominantly by Bartonella henselae and transmitted to humans through a scratch or bite of the cat. Cat represents the principal reservoir and healthy carrier of Bartonella, which is mainly transmitted, among cats, by the flea Ctenocephalides felis. During 2014, fifty‑two samples of whole blood and sera were collected randomly from cats in Abruzzo region and were examined by real-time PCR and IFAT tests, respectively. Seven samples out of fifty‑two (13.5%) resulted positive for Bartonella spp. in both tests, while six specimens (11.5%) resulted real-time PCR negative but IgG positive; thirty‑nine were instead both real-time PCR and IFAT negative (75%). Sequence analysis of a fragment of DNA identified B. henselae and B. clarridgeiae in four and in two real‑time PCR positive samples, respectively.