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In this contribution, new data concerning bryophytes, fungi, and lichens of the Italian flora are presented. It includes new records and confirmations for the bryophyte genera Diplophyllum and Ptychostomum, the fungal genera Arrhenia, Gymnosporangium, and Sporidesmium and the lichen genera Arthonia, Coenogonium, Flavoplaca, Gyalolechia, Parmotrema, Peltigera, Pterygiopsis, Squamarina, Tornabea, and Waynea.

Similarly to other Mediterranean regions, Italy is expected to experience dramatic climatic changes in the coming decades. Do to their poikilohydric nature, lichens are among the most sensitive organisms to climate change and species requiring temperate-humid conditions may rapidly decline in Italy, such in the case of the epiphytic Lobaria species that are confined to humid forests. Our study, based on ecological niche modelling of occurrence data of three Lobaria species, revealed that in the next decades climate change will impact their distribution range across Italy, predicting a steep gradient of increasing range loss across time slices. Lobaria species are therefore facing a high extinction risk associated with reduction of their range. The current patterns indicate that only L. pulmonaria still has a continuous distribution across Italy, with potential contact between Apennine and Alpine populations. This situation is consistent with the wider climatic niche of this species, still offering a major opportunity for its successful long-term conservation. Results (a) support the inclusion of the three Lobaria species in European conservation policies, such as the Habitat Directive, and (b) warn against an over-estimation of the indicator power of single flagship species to establish conservation priorities for lichens, indicating that even lichens with peculiar and similar climatic envelopes may fail to co-occur within a given forest stand. A multiple indicator approach could provide more useful tools for a community-based conservation strategy for epiphytes.

The increased thyroid cancer incidence in volcanic areas suggests an environmental effect of volcanic-originated carcinogens. To address this problem, we evaluated environmental pollution and biocontamination in a volcanic area of Sicily with increased thyroid cancer incidence. Thyroid cancer epidemiology was obtained from the Sicilian Regional Registry for Thyroid Cancer. Twenty-seven trace elements were measured by quadrupole mass spectrometry in the drinking water and lichens (to characterize environmental pollution) and in the urine of residents (to identify biocontamination) in the Mt. Etna volcanic area and in adjacent control areas. Thyroid cancer incidence was 18.5 and 9.6/10(5) inhabitants in the volcanic and the control areas, respectively. The increase was exclusively due to the papillary histotype. Compared with control areas, in the volcanic area many trace elements were increased in both drinking water and lichens, indicating both water and atmospheric pollution. Differences were greater for water. Additionally, in the urine of the residents of the volcanic area, the average levels of many trace elements were significantly increased, with values higher two-fold or more than in residents of the control area: cadmium (×2.1), mercury (×2.6), manganese (×3.0), palladium (×9.0), thallium (×2.0), uranium (×2.0), vanadium (×8.0), and tungsten (×2.4). Urine concentrations were significantly correlated with values in water but not in lichens. Our findings reveal a complex non-anthropogenic biocontamination with many trace elements in residents of an active volcanic area where thyroid cancer incidence is increased. The possible carcinogenic effect of these chemicals on the thyroid and other tissues cannot be excluded and should be investigated.

Over the past twenty years, in Italy there has been an intense debate that has focused on the function, and overcoming the limits of the institution Judicial Psychiatric Hospital (ospedale psichiatrico giudiziario - OPG). Although the contribution of legislative proposals, conferences and workshops on the OPG subject has received significant, the interest focused on the development and elaboration of criminological and epidemiological research on a national scale has been proportionately less impetum. In this study a survey aimed to explore the socio-demographic, clinical and criminological features of patients discharged from the OPG and admitted to neuropsychiatric clinic, under the restriction of freedom, has been performed.The information was gathered at the time of entry in the clinical management, by means of the first clinical interview and during subsequent interviews. During hospitalization, patients were administered the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and K Axis (Axis V of Kennedy) questionaires.23 patients from forensic hospitals of Aversa, Secondigliano and Castiglione delle Stiviere were included in the study. The main characteristics investigated delineate a profile of an individual with an average age of about 49 years, unmarried, from a low socio-economic context, unemployed at the time of internment. About the diagnosis, schizophrenic spectrum disorders prevail, there is history of substance abuse in 35% of cases, history of previous admission to psychiatric facilities in 87% of these subjects. The type of committed crimes regards crimes against the person. About 40% of individuals have exhausted the danger to society correlate at the time of admission.Despite the small sample size, the data from this study are consistent with those reported in few studies in the literature. The specificity of clinical care needs of mentally ill offenders requires greater definition that could be achieved through the development of this research area.