Alessandro Porro’s research while affiliated with University of Milan and other places

... The CAL is a large osteological collection constituted of over 7,000 skeletons, including about 5,000 from archaeological sites in Lombardy and in particular the urban center of Milan, and 2,127 unclaimed contemporary skeletal remains from the CAL Milano Cemetery Skeletal Collection available for research and didactic purposes in accordance with Italian law (Cattaneo et al., 2018;Viero et al., 2021). The study sample is part of an ongoing research project aiming to reconstruct the lifestyle of the inhabitants of Milan over the last 2,000 years (Biehler-Gomez et al., 2024, 2023b, 2023aGiordano et al., 2023;Mattia et al., 2021) and were selected from the collection based on several criteria: fusion of the coxal bones for a reliable estimation of sex, equal distribution among the five historical periods established for the study (50 skeletons per period) and same number of male and female individuals (125 females and 125 males). As a result, the sample is composed of 50 skeletons per historical period (25 females and 25 males), defined as follows: Roman era (2nd-5th century CE) from the necropolis below the Università Cattolica (dated 3rd-5th century CE), Early Middle Ages (6th-10th century CE) and Late Middle Ages (11th-15th century CE) from the emergency excavations of Sant'Ambrogio and Via Necchi (with stratigraphic units spanning from the 1st century CE to the 15th century CE), Modern era (16th-19th century CE) from the mass grave burials in Via Sabotino (dated to the half of the 17th century) and Contemporary era from unclaimed cemetery individuals who died in the second half of the 20th century ( Table 1). ...

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Physical activity over 2,000 years in Milan: Using entheseal robusticity as indicator of occupational stress

... This study is part of an ongoing project on the reconstruction of the life of the Milanese throughout history , 2022a, 2022b, 2023a, 2023cGiordano et al., 2023;Mattia et al., 2021). The skeletal remains in the present paper are part of the CAL (Collezione Antropologica LABANOF -Anthropological Collection of the LABANOF), currently under study at the Laboratory of Forensic Anthropology and Odontology (LABANOF) and housed at the University of Milan (Cattaneo et al., 2018). ...

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Vitamin D deficiency, pregnancy, and childbirth in early medieval Milan

... Synesthesia is a neurological disorder in which the actions of one sensory or cognitive system cause automatic experiences of another sensory or cognitive system (Lorusso et al., 2022). This neurological quirk ushers in a singular communication between senses, thwarting one's concept of how the brain receives stimuli. ...

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The Synesthetic Language of Picasso: Exploring Emotions and Sensations in His Art

... Furthermore, complications like pneumonia or congestive heart failure, as well as long-term hospital admissions that could lead to hospital-acquired infection, can exacerbate morbidity and raise costs [14,15]. These significant, clinical and economic repercussions, combined with widespread access to vaccines, establish vaccination as the most effective preventive measure [13,[16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25]. In Italy, influenza vaccination is recommended for healthcare professionals, the hospitalized elderly, those over 60, and young children aged between 6 months and 6 years old [26]. ...

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Vaccination Open Day: A Cross-Sectional Study on the 2023 Experience in Lombardy Region, Italy

... First, a drastic change in respiratory syncytial virus epidemiology, the main cause of bronchiolitis [10,11]. Second, a decrease in breastfeeding practice, a protective factor against severe bronchiolitis [12][13][14]. Finally, older siblings, who had not been exposed to respiratory viruses during the initial pandemic phase, might have facilitated an increased viral transmission after the relaxation of preventive measures in the following years [15,16]. ...

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Long-lasting effects of COVID-19 pandemic on hospitalizations and severity of bronchiolitis

... The Spaniards, after the invasion of the New World, reported that the Inca Empire took control of all the coca plant crops of the Andes territory thanks to the expansion of the Empire and that all coca leaves collected were delivered to the Inca Royals and used for the religious practices of the entire population. Indeed, the Inca population considered it a miraculous and magical plant that had the power to take away hunger and thirst, produced exhilarating effects, could be used as medicine (as antiseptic and analgesic, to help in digestion, to cure asthma, stomach ache, chest pain and sores, reduce nose bleeding and vomit), and induced a sense of well-being (Bernabè Cobo, 1890;Grinspoon and Bakalar, 1979;Karch, 2017). The Incas knew that chewing coca led to a loss of sensitivity on the tongue; therefore, they hypothesized that this could slow down the decomposition of a body and used a coca tincture for mummification procedures (Karch, 2017). ...

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Forensic toxicology backdates the use of coca plant (Erythroxylum spp.) in Europe to the early 1600s

... This clear, colorless liquid is characterized by a gasoline like smell. 1 It was first isolated in 1825 by the British scientist, Michael Faraday (1791-1867), who extracted it from a complex mixture obtained as a by product of illuminating gas production. 1 It was used as an ink component in printing, a solvent for organic materials, and substance in the chemical and pharmaceutical industries to produce rubbers, lubricants, dyes, detergents, and pesticides. 1 Nowadays, benzene is used primarily in the manufacture of organic chemicals such as styrene, ethylbenzene, cumene, cyclohexane, and phenol to produce polymers. 1 Benzene is classified as a Group 1 human carcinogen by The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). ...

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Uncovering Scientific Misconduct: The Impact of Intellectual Dishonesty on Occupational Health Studies of Leukemia and Benzene Exposure at The Workplace

... Die Situation während der Coronapandemie ist nicht mit der Spanischen Grippe oder anderen Pandemien in jüngerer Zeit vergleichbar, da Migranten in der Geschichte der menschlichen Zivilisation noch nie so mobil waren und ein Impfstoff noch nie so schnell verfügbar war (Franchini et al. 2020). Folglich können Wissen und Erfahrungen, die während der Coronapandemie gesammelt wurden, nicht auf Wissen zurückgeführt werden, das während vergangener Pandemien erworben wurde, insbesondere in Bezug auf diese beiden Aspekte. ...

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Geschichten indischer Einwanderergemeinschaften in Deutschland Warum umziehen?

... While research into depression and musicians is a relatively recent phenomenon, descriptions of mental health problems within the field have been frequent across the centuries (Cordingly, 2001;Kluge, 1818;Lorusso & Porro, 2020;Rahm, 1994) , as exemplified by Mozart's heroine from "The Abduction from the Seraglio", who is quoted in the title of this article. In fact, descriptions of mental health are so realistic within music, that medical papers have often discussed them as if they were case studies (Chest, 2018). ...

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“Unhappiness is my lot”. Or is it? Depression in students who perform or study music as compared to students who do not.

... To test the accuracy of facial reproductions, in the present paper the Authors use the Tenchini collection, which contains wax reproductions of prisoners' faces and their skulls [3]. Tenchini's anatomical collection, today preserved at the Museum and Historical Library of Biomedicine (BIOMED) of the University of Parma, includes: Criminal Anthropology (CA) cards, dried brains, masks, skulls and organs. ...

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Applications of forensic anthropology methodology: accuracy of virtual face reproductions performed on the Tenchini collection