Latest news with #SapienzaUniversity
Libya Review
16-07-2025
- Science
- Libya Review
Archaeologists Find 2,400-Year-Old Family Tomb in Eastern Libya
On Wednesday, an Italian archaeological team announced the discovery of an exceptional ancient tomb in the historic city of Cyrene in eastern Libya. The discovery, made in Shahat, adds remarkable depth to our understanding of funerary traditions in North Africa during the 5th and 4th centuries BC. The site lies within one of Libya's most culturally rich locations, designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Led by archaeologists Olivia Menozzi, Oscar Mei, and Serenella Ensoli, the team has excavated five tombs so far. However, the latest find is by far the most significant. The tomb features rock-cut burial chambers with refined architectural façades and intricate carvings, including niches for offerings and sarcophagi sculpted directly into the stone. Inside the chambers, the researchers discovered the remains of multiple individuals, including three adults and several children. The presence of finely crafted pottery from both local and Attic traditions, small vials of scented oil, and ritual offerings indicates that these were elite family burials. Gold-decorated crowns made of clay beads and bronze fittings were also found, signaling high social status. One tomb held six individuals, likely a family unit. Another contained three, believed to be a smaller family group. Archaeologists believe the tomb complex was used for at least three generations. A genetic analysis is underway to determine the familial relationships of those buried. This effort includes collaboration with researchers from Sapienza University and Harvard Medical School, as part of a broader genetic mapping project for the region. One of the most striking aspects of the site is the religious symbolism. Marble statues of funerary deities were recovered, especially depictions of Persephone and Demeter—figures strongly associated with the afterlife in ancient Greek religion. The marble used in these statues likely came from Greek islands such as Paros or Naxos, suggesting strong cultural and trade ties between Cyrene and the Greek world. Tags: DiscoveryEastern LibyaGreek Tomblibya
Medscape
11-07-2025
- Health
- Medscape
Witness to a Revolution: A Blood Cancer Expert's Long View
Hematologist Robin Foà, MD, has done more than simply watch his specialty transform over the past 50 years. He's helped to lead the revolution in blood cancer care, especially for the treatment of Philadelphia chromosome-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia (Ph+ ALL). Foà is now a professor emeritus of hematology at Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy, and he says he's 'officially retired' and should be taking it easy. But he's still working. This year alone, Foà has co-authored at least nine published studies, plus a guide for treating adult Ph+ ALL for the journal Blood , a commentary in the Cell Press journal Med , and a review article for The New England Journal of Medicine about 25 years of progress in treating the disease. In an interview, Foà spoke about his professional journey, the past and future of hematology, and his love of chronicling the world through photography. Can you tell us about your early life and how you came to hematology? It's a complicated family story. I was born in England because my father had to leave Italy in late 1938 or 1939 due to the racial laws because he was Jewish. From Torino, Italy, he went first to Paris, France, then to England. When World War II started in 1940, being Italian, he was considered an enemy and interned. In the Lake District he met my mother, who was a teacher from Wallsend in Northumberland. They married in September 1945, after the war finished. Following the war, my family had a choice between reuniting in New York, where my grandparents and my aunt had spent the years of the war, or returning to Italy. They chose Italy. I was borne in Wallsend and grew up in Torino, where I graduated from medical school and initially worked in the pediatric clinic. How did you end up at Hammersmith Hospital in London? That's a strange twist of fate. When I was a medical student in Torino, the professor of pediatrics organized a meeting and invited someone from London — Professor Gordon Hamilton-Fairley, who became Sir Gordon. I was asked to help with translation at the airport. When I took him back, he said if I ever needed help in the future, to get in touch. Years later, when I wanted to work in London, I had two options. Tragically, Professor Hamilton-Fairley was killed by an IRA bomb in London in 1974 — he was taking his dog for a walk when it touched something under a car. The other contact person in London was Daniel Catovsky, MD, at the MRC Leukemia Unit, Hammersmith Hospital, London. What was Hammersmith like in those days? Hammersmith in the mid-1970s was one of the centers of hematology in the world. I spent 3 years there, and it completely changed my life. I went from pediatrics to working on chronic lymphocytic leukemia [CLL], which doesn't exist in children. It's a disease of the elderly. You've witnessed dramatic changes in leukemia treatment. How do today's outcomes compare to what you saw early in your career? It's been a revolution. Take CLL — the most frequent leukemia in the Western world. In the old days, the only option was chemotherapy. Nowadays, chemotherapy is almost not used anymore, at least in developed countries. We have targeted drugs that provide better survival, better disease control, and fewer long-term side effects. Even more striking is acute promyelocytic leukemia. Through research, we understood that it's a matter of blocked differentiation of leukemic cells. Now, acute promyelocytic leukemia is cured in the large majority of cases without chemotherapy, using all-trans retinoic acid and arsenic trioxide. What has your work with Ph+ ALL produced? This has been one of my major focuses. Based on the results obtained in chronic myeloid leukemia [CML], at the end of the last century we designed the first protocol to treat older patients with Ph+ ALL using only the TKI imatinib plus steroids in induction — and no chemotherapy. It was revolutionary because this was considered the most lethal hematological malignancy. We found that all patients went into remission. Since then, in all national protocols conducted by the Gruppo Italiano Malattie Ematologiche dell'Adulto[Italian Group for Hematological Diseases of Adults], adult patients — with no upper age limit — received a second- or third-generation TKI, dasatinib or ponatinib, plus steroids. More recently, we added immunotherapy with blinatumomab, a bispecific monoclonal antibody in consolidation. We published the results of the dasatinib-blinatumomab trial in The New England Journal of Medicine in October 2020. It showed virtually all patients achieved remission with 88% disease-free survival at a median follow-up of 18 months. The follow-up, published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology in December 2023, showed that you have survival rates between 75% and 80% at four and a half years, the best data ever reported. Half of the patients never received chemotherapy or transplant. What's the significance of avoiding chemotherapy and transplants? I can give you a real example. Many years ago, a young woman from Eastern Europe came to see me. She must have been in her 20s. She was diagnosed with CML and told she needed imatinib for life. When she asked about the cost — possibly over 50 years of treatment — her family said it was literally impossible to afford. The alternative offered was transplant. The pill would obviously be the best option. So I told her to come back as an undocumented immigrant, present to our emergency room, and we would treat her because in Italy, we're obligated to treat all patients regardless of status. She did that. She came, and we could give her the drugs. This shows the tragedy — offering a transplant with high mortality risk instead of a simple oral medication because of cost. You were the president of the European Hematology Association (EHA). What did you focus on during your tenure? I stayed for 6 years in leadership roles — 2 years as president-elect, 2 years as president, and 2 years as past president. In other years, I was the chairman of the Education Committee and the Outreach Unit. It's been a great part for my life, no doubt about it. EHA has grown to become a very important society. I promoted outreach activities to more or less everywhere in the world. Big societies like EHA and American Society of Hematology have a duty to do this. They can help, and have indeed helped, other people. For all the work done, I was awarded the EHA Education and Mentoring Award in 2018 and the EHA José Carreras Award in 2023. What challenges do you see on the horizon for hematology? The main challenge today is accessibility and sustainability. We have precision medicine that changes prognosis, but costs are high. It's unacceptable that only the very wealthy can afford these treatments. We need to make them feasible for as many people as possible. Also, we need continued funding for research. The world is cutting funds everywhere, and all the advances I've discussed stem from research investment. We have the technologies now — single-cell analysis that's potentially phenomenal but extremely expensive. We need funds to utilize them. What advice would you give young hematologists? Hematology is a beautiful discipline that needs to combine clinical work with laboratory research. You need to work in the lab, understand the technology, and appreciate what can be derived from laboratory techniques. I could tell you stories of patients who write to me 20 years later who should have been dead but are still alive. I'm writing up the story of four older patients with Ph+ ALL who lived many years on a TKI alone, even into their 90s! In the old days, they would have been dead in a couple of months. You're also an accomplished photographer with over 10 published books. How did that passion develop? I always loved traveling, and I started taking shots during my trip to Kenya in 1974 with a colleague who was an excellent photographer. I had a tiny Minox camera — the kind spies were using to take photographs of documents. You can imagine that trying to take a picture of an elephant in the savannah with a Minox was pathetic. When I saw my results compared to his, I got my first proper Nikon camera. I love traveling. Nature has always been a key point for me, but also people. I have so far published 12 photography books. What's next for your career? I'm officially retired, and I should relax. I no longer have any clinical or administrative responsibilities, which is a relief. I do continue to coordinate a large research group in Italy that I've had for 14-15 years, and that'll take me until the end of next year. This certainly keeps me very active. Do you have any final thoughts for our readers? We're living in an extraordinary time in hematology. We've moved from the worst outcomes to treating many leukemias without chemotherapy in a matter of 30 years, which isn't long in medicine. Every year we see advancements and improvements. The relationship with patients is completely different now because you're not telling them they're going to die. You're offering hope and often a cure. The key is combining rigorous science with compassion for patients and never lose sight of the global responsibility we have to make these advances available to all patients, regardless of where they live or their economic circumstances.
Yahoo
25-06-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Why Rome's dolphins are fighting each other
Rome, the Eternal City, is revered for its history, art, culture, and food. Yet, few people know that less than an hour away, where the Tiber River flows into the Tyrrhenian Sea, there's something that makes the area even more unique: a population of around 500 bottlenose dolphins. Now, a recent study shows that the dolphins are not only sick, but they're fighting over food—and it's due to human activity. The 'Capitoline dolphins,' as researchers have named them, have inhabited the coast outside Rome for thousands of years, as shown by mosaics from the archaeological site of Ostia Antica that depict the dolphins stealing fish from fishermen's nets 2,000 years ago. Yet they've only recently been closely studied, beginning in 2016. Around 500 dolphins spend some of the year in the area, while about 100 are permanent residents—mostly females and their offspring who live near the mouth of the Tiber River, where food is most abundant. This makes the area an important breeding site, where males are attracted each year to mate. Daniela Silvia Pace, a researcher at the Sapienza University of Rome, has studied these dolphins for a decade. She and her colleagues recently analyzed more than 400 photographs taken between 2016 and 2023, depicting 39 individuals of the resident population. "What emerges is a decidedly worrying picture,' as these animals are subject to so many pressures, she says. Pace and her team measured and counted marks on the dolphins' bodies. Analyzing marks on cetaceans is a common technique used by scientists, as it can tell them a lot about their life, their health, and the dangers they're exposed to. The result of the new research, published in Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems in April, does not necessarily paint a hopeful picture. 'Unfortunately, the situation for bottlenose dolphins in the Mediterranean, including the Tiber River Estuary, appears to be particularly concerning,' says Bruno Díaz López, a biologist and director at Bottlenose Dolphin Research Institute, who was not involved with the study but found it 'very interesting and relevant.' The analysis revealed that 70 percent of the residents studied showed signs of malnutrition, such as visible ribs. 'This is strange, because we are in an area rich in food,' says Alice Turchi, a PhD student in environmental and evolutionary biology at the Sapienza University of Rome and author of the study. Turchi and her colleagues believe that the lack of food might be due to overfishing. 'The fact that most of the population is undernourished is a strong alarm bell,' adds Pace. In the study, the lines and ropes used by fishermen had left marks on half of the dolphins' bodies, and amputations were present as well. Nearly all, or 97 percent, of the dolphins had a skin disease, which didn't come as a shock to the researchers. 'It is not surprising,' says Turchi, because the water is tainted, mostly due to pollutants carried by the Tiber River into the sea, as well as wastewater from boats passing through. 'Pollution can promote immunodepression and cause animals to get sick,' Turchi says. In another distressing development, researchers also found evidence of fighting. They analyzed teeth marks caused by interactions with other dolphins, which were universal across the population. While these marks are sometimes normal for dolphins, as they can bite to communicate dominance during mating competitions or to establish social hierarchies, this population showed an unusually high number. The researchers believe that this may be due to competition for dwindling food resources. López, from the Bottlenose Dolphin Research Institute, says the findings on the Capitoline dolphins' health 'are consistent with what we observe in many coastal bottlenose dolphin populations worldwide.' 'These populations are exposed to continuous and intense pressure from human activities, ranging from fisheries and maritime traffic to pollution and habitat degradation,' he notes. For example, he says, 'in Galicia, on the Atlantic coast of Spain, we see similar patterns of skin marks related to both natural and anthropogenic factors.' Similarly, he says, 'studies from other regions—such as Sarasota Bay in the United States or various sites in Australia—also report high frequencies of marks linked to social interactions, fishing gear, boat strikes, and skin diseases.' While bottlenose dolphins are an adaptable species and can show great resilience, the researchers are worried about the future of this population. The area is currently 'unmanaged,' says Turchi, meaning that almost no conservation actions are carried out to protect this slice of coast. 'There is a need to carry out interventions to safeguard this population, which is unique.' The team says that it would be necessary to establish a Site of Community Importance, which would help the conservation of this population and the whole rich ecosystem found off this coast. But the process to establish such a site is 'very complex,' says Pace, and would need to run up the political chain. The researchers hope that making this population known to the general public could be a step in the right direction to ensure that politicians will be more motivated to implement conservation actions aimed at protecting the area. 'It is important to take into account that this area is important for this species, and it is also important for our species,' says Turchi. 'We should try as much as possible to reconcile human exploitation with the conservation of biodiversity.'
Muscat Daily
31-05-2025
- Muscat Daily
Ancient tombs unearthed along Oman-UAE railway route
Suhar – An Omani-Italian archaeological team found 28 ancient tombs during an excavation in Suhar along the route of the planned Oman-UAE railway line. The excavation carried out in Sohar Free Zone was jointly conducted by Ministry of Heritage and Tourism and Sapienza University of Rome as part of a salvage operation aimed at protecting heritage sites potentially affected by the railway connecting Suhar to Abu Dhabi. 'We identified around 28 graves in the route of the railway,' said Francesco Caputo, an archaeologist from Sapienza University. 'One of the tombs contained a substantial collection of human bones. We also recovered a variety of grave goods, including stone and shell beads, bronze rings and bangles, and fragments of ancient glass vessels.' The artefacts provide insight into burial practices and social structures of ancient communities that once inhabited the region, adding to growing evidence of continuous settlement in Oman since prehistoric times. Ismail Salim al Mutrafi, Head of Archaeological Survey Department at the ministry, noted the collaborative nature of the project. 'A large number of ministry staff are actively involved in this excavation, working alongside our Italian counterparts,' he said. 'This effort is not just about discovery – it's about skills transfer and building national capacity in the field of archaeology.' According to the ministry, it is currently working with archaeological teams at 68 sites across the sultanate. Findings contribute to efforts to protect Oman's cultural heritage and support its tourism sector. 'The ministry is committed to protecting archaeological sites and maximising the value of these resources as key elements of our tourism product,' said Mutrafi. 'Findings from excavations like this one help enrich the collections of National Museum and other regional museums under the ministry's umbrella.' He also emphasised the role of such artefacts in promoting international cultural exchange, citing their inclusion in exhibitions abroad. 'This is a reminder that beneath our modern infrastructure lies an ancient world waiting to be rediscovered,' Mutrafi added. 'Each find is a story, a memory and a connection to people who walked this land long before us.'
Euronews
08-05-2025
- Politics
- Euronews
How local groups of bishops could revolutionise the conclave
One of the late Pope Francis' central goals was to try and bring together the different strains of Catholicism. To do this, he used a particular device of ecclesiastical and institutional action: the synod, a council of bishops institutionalised in 1965 by the modernising Second Vatican Council to moderate and modernise the absolute power of the popes and the Roman curia in matters of faith. Synods are not popular assemblies, but councils of the bishops of a country or a fairly large geographical area. Their members already occupy prominent positions in the church hierarchy. "Pope Francis' objective was to enhance the synodal element, but not as a new power structure," says Francesco Clementi, professor of Comparative Public Law at Sapienza University, Rome. "The pope is always the pope. And as Pope Francis said, he remains a central figure in the vertical of ecclesiastical and spiritual power. The assemblies of bishops would simply have facilitated decisions (in Rome) by widening the audience in the hierarchies." The proposals made by synods during Pope Francis' pontificate have been crucial for the future of the church and the faithful, such as the celibacy dispensations for Catholic priests or the potential priestly role of women in the church. The late pontiff's unprecedented use of the synod thus represents a decisive innovation that could change the course of both the conclave and the future pontificate. Synods are consultative institutions whose decisions are not binding on the pontiff, but in the age of mass media, they oblige him to be more sensitive to the needs of external and remote realities, even without bringing the Vatican's centrality into question. The decisions synods produce, even if not formally adopted, may therefore influence the conclave, which this year is composed of newly appointed cardinals who in many cases come from the church's peripheries. Moreover, papal elections often throw up surprises, as Father Gianni Criveller, director of the digital periodical Asia News, a sinologist and longtime missionary in China, explains. "The unexpected happens in conclaves: they (the cardinals) start voting and then unexpected candidates emerge who do not necessarily correspond to the initial objectives," he tells Euronews. "However,* it will be difficult for someone to be elected who goes beyond what Pope Francis has already done. There would be two or three such candidates among the cardinals, but I don't see how they can gather consensus until the end of the conclave." The innovative use of synods both under Pope Francis and also in the short period after his death before the papacy is filled may prove to have changed the spiritual and political agenda of the cardinal electors by introducing elements and views that are relatively heterodox, if not directly opposed to previous convictions. However, synods do not necessarily advance progressive ideas. Their orientation depends on the geographical area and culture from which they are drawn. The blessing of people in same-sex relationships was one of Pope Francis' major decisions, and it still causes great divisions in the church. "The entire African Church, including the bishops and cardinals, were strongly opposed to this initiative," recalls Father Criveller. "They have clearly said that in Africa, they will never apply the letter on the blessing of homosexuals inspired and approved by Pope Francis." Pope Francis himself was a man capable of great leaps both forward and backward, such as on the women's issue. He was the first pope to appoint seven women to the top administrative posts in the Vatican, among them prefect, director of the Vatican museums and secretary general of the governorate, a position usually occupied by a bishop. However, he did not open up the priesthood to women, a move demanded by Catholic groups from Germany to the Amazon. On this front, the Catholic Church has fallen behind Protestant and Anglican churches that have welcomed women into the clergy. Among the cardinals taking a stance against women in the priesthood is Bishop of Stockholm Anders Arborelius, an ex-Lutheran convert to Catholicism who was appointed Cardinal of the Nordic countries by Pope Francis in 2017. He is opposed to the priesthood of women even though in Sweden's majority Protestant denomination, there are now more female priests than male ones. Despite the expanded role of the synods, some proposals of the bishops' assemblies from other parts of the world were rejected by Pope Francis, among them, the notion of allowing the appointment of married priests. "The Amazon synod had called for the admission to the priesthood of married men," says Father Criveller. "Not priests who can marry, but married men who want to become priests. Yet Pope Francis rejected the proposal." Pope Benedict XVI himself had gone further on this issue, opening the doors of Roman Catholicism to Anglican priests who were at odds with their original denomination. Moreover, dispensations have existed for centuries within the Catholic Church for married priests, among them Ukrainian Greek Catholics, Chaldeans, Maronites, Copts and other Eastern Catholics. For many sectors of the Catholic Church, therefore, synods are not a problem because of some inherent progressivism. Instead, their disruptive role could come from the diversity of their orientations and decisions. Hong Kong Cardinal Joseph Zen said that the electors of the future pope must be aware that he will have the responsibility to either allow the synod process to continue or decisively cut it short. "It is a matter of the life or death of the Church founded by Jesus," he said, concluding that if synods are disconnected from tradition and the heritage of faith, they might turn into an instrument of disunity instead of communion. Zen is known for his harsh criticism of the agreement reached by the Vatican in 2018 with the Chinese communist government for the appointment of bishops in mainland China. The architect of the agreement with Beijing was one of the current papal appointees, the outgoing secretary of state Pietro Parolin, who would also be disliked by the US for his role in the deal.
