Subjective as well as objective factors should be included in the assessment of disease severity and follow-up of patients with vitiligo. A simple perceived severity scale is useful in clinical practice.

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Short-day treatment has been used for some conifer species to improve planting stock quality. The aim of this paper was to study the effect of short-day treatment on performance and quality of young seedlings of Italian cypress (Cupressus sempervirens L.), a conifer species abundant in the Mediterranean area. Seeds of Italian cypress were sown in mini-plug cavities. After 5 weeks of growth, seedlings were subjected to four different photoperiods: (a) 14 h (control), (b) 8 h, (c) 6 h, and (d) 4 h for a period of 1-3 weeks, before they were transplanted to bigger size containers. Reducing photoperiod did not result in bud formation or shoot inhibition although it increased the number of lateral shoots. Seedlings subjected to 6-h photoperiod for 2 weeks during pre-cultivation in mini-plugs had improved root characteristics, giving them a higher potential for outplanting success, especially in Mediterranean areas.

Carbon dioxide concentration and light conditions may greatly vary between mountainous and lowland areas determining the photosynthetic performance of plants species. This paper aimed to evaluate the photosynthetic responses of Lotus corniculatus, growing in a mountain and a lowland grassland, under low and high radiation and CO 2 concentration. Net photosynthetic rate, stomatal conductance, transpiration rate, and intercellular CO 2 concentration were measured while the water-use efficiency and the ratio of variable to maximal fluorescence were calculated. Photosynthetic response curves to different levels of radiation and intercellular CO 2 partial pressure were estimated. Our results showed that high radiation and CO 2 concentration enhanced water-use efficiency of plants at both sites, enabling them to use more efficiently the available water reserves under drought conditions. The increase of radiation and CO 2 concentration would enhance the photosynthetic performance of the mountainous population of L. corniculatus, which overall seems to express higher phenotypic plasticity.