Oral squamous cell carcinoma often arises from an oral potentially malignant disorder called oral leukoplakia (OL). With this work we aimed to develop a novel data-driven predictive model based on gene expression profiles to distinguish OL patients who underwent malignant transformation from those who did not. We used the Tree Augmented Naïve (TAN) Bayes classifier to predict the posterior probability of having oral cancer given the data. 86 patients were included with a median follow-up of 7.11 years. Fifty-one patients (51/86; 59%) underwent malignant transformation. We found that 16 genes were predictors of oral cancer in patients with OL and these included SLC7A11, SPINK6, SERPINA12, VIT, ATP1B3, CST6, FLRT2, ELMOD1, AZGP1, RNASE13, DIO2, ECM1, CYP4F11, SYTL4, AKR1C1, and AKR1C3. In conclusion, we showed that Bayesian gene networks are a data-driven approach which could be used also in other predictor models in oncology.

Introduction: The emergency of the SARS-CoV-2 virus spread and its subsequent global pan-demic have raised significant concerns regarding its impact on pregnancy outcomes. This review aims to summarize the emerging data on the risk of preterm delivery in pregnant women infected with SARS-CoV-2. Materials and Methods: A systematic search was conducted from March 2020 to December 2023 using PubMed, following PRISMA guidelines. Studies correlating maternal COVID-19 infection with preterm birth were included. Results: Thirteen studies were analyzed, indicating a higher incidence of preterm birth in SARS-CoV-2 positive pregnant women compared to controls. The average incidence rate of pre-term birth in infected patients was 18.5%, with a median of 12.75%, while non infected women showed an average incidence of preterm birth of 10% with a median of 8.2%. Discussion: Studies suggest an association between SARS-CoV-2 infection during pregnancy and increased risk of preterm birth and cesarean section. Severity of symptoms and underlying comorbidities further elevate this risk. Notably, infections during the third trimester pose the highest risk of preterm birth. Conclusion: Preventing SARS-CoV-2 infection during pregnancy is crucial to mitigate adverse obstetric outcomes. Close monitoring and tailored interventions for infected pregnant women, particularly those in later trimesters and with comorbidities, are imperative to reduce the risk of preterm birth and improve maternal-fetal outcomes.

This study investigates the effectiveness of a range of timber-based solutions for seismic and energy retrofitting of existing masonry buildings. These solutions are designed not only to prevent structural collapse during earthquakes but also to create integrated interventions that enhance thermo-physical performance and reduce emissions in existing buildings. Various case scenarios were considered and both mechanical and energetic behavior post-intervention were evaluated. Timber-engineered products serve as foundational components for the retrofit approach, encompassing one-dimensional vertical elements (strong-backs) and various types of panels (cross-laminated timber panels, laminated veneer lumber panels, and oriented strand board panels). The analyzed retrofit techniques share a common principle, involving the attachment of these timber-based elements to the building's wall surfaces through mechanical point-to-point connections. The proposed solutions integrate strong-backs and timber panels with membranes and insulation layers, yielding cohesive and highly effective interventions. Finite element modeling was employed to analyze the mechanical and thermal responses of the retrofitted walls. A comprehensive comparative analysis of various techniques was conducted to determine the most effective solution for each specific scenario.

The present work presents and discusses an analysis of the floor types of Villa of Diomedes (Pompeii archaeological park in the Campania region, Italy) both from architectural, archaeological, and structural point of view. In particular, the geometrical structural parameters of different floor types and the rules used by ancient builders to design them are investigated by means of interdisciplinary research. Link between structural-based assumptions, archival sources, geometric survey, in situ visual inspections and the archaeological information make it possible to define the geometrical structural parameters of eleven-barrel vaults, three wooden floors and three sloped wooden roofs (buried and collapsed during the Vesuvius eruption). A specific study of the barrel vaults is presented to investigate the relationships between the main vaults’ structural parameter. Furthermore, a comparison between the vaults’ dimensions obtained from surveys and those produced by the literature formulations from the 15th to the 20th centuries concerning masonry-vault designs is presented and discussed. These analyses carried out in the framework of Villa of Diomedes interdisciplinary project was very useful to interpret the fabrication of the Villa and to make a reconstruction of 3D model as it probably resulted to be the fateful year of 79 A.D.

The Roman villa of Pisões (Beja, Portugal), was part of the Lusitanian colony of Pax Iulia. This place stands out for the predominance of the water element in several structures of the villa, highlighting the balneum and the large natatio, one of the largest known in Roman Hispania. The records of the initial excavations that took place since 1967 do not allow the establishment of clear functionalities of the villa. The University of Évora, owner of the site, conceived an action plan for the requalification and enhancement of the archaeological site. One of the tasks aims to investigate using Applied Geophysics. This work analyses the landscape directly related to the villa, given that it is in the flooded area of a river, with a Roman containment dam. It is uncertain whether the water supply comes from this structure or other nearby springs. The use of ground-penetrating radar, combined with unnamed aerial vehicles, all integrated in a geographic information system, allows us to know the location of underground water connections and create a topographic model with high resolution. Considering all the information, we propose a model for the water transport inside the villa and estimate the location of the water supply.

We report on a new form of nanoscale carbon nitride in the shape of single layer half dome structures grown on the step edges of boron nitride sheets. The half dome structure grown on the step edges of boron nitride sheets. The half dome structures are formed spontaneously at high temperature using Iron oxide nanoparticles capped with tetremethylammonium hydroxide supported on BN sheets. During the combustion process the support, firstly, acted as a reducing agent, secondly, as a source of nitrogen that permitted the transformation of the organic capping agent in sp1 CN chains linked with sp2 CN domains. During the Ostwald ripening process smaller nanoparticles migrates towards bigger nanoparticles, when the nanoparticles come across the step edges of few layer boron nitride sheets the half dome structure is formed. This new method of synthesis has demonstrated for the first time the formation of half dome structures containing cyanopolyynes sp1 chains and sp2 carbon nitride domains.

This paper presents an alternative constraint handling approach within a specialized genetic algorithm (SGA) for the optimal reactive power dispatch (ORPD) problem. The ORPD is formulated as a nonlinear single-objective optimization problem aiming to minimize power losses while keeping network constraints. The proposed constraint handling approach is based on a product of sub-functions that represents permissible limits on system variables and that includes a specific goal on power loss reduction. The main advantage of this approach is the fact that it allows a straightforward verification of both feasibility and optimality. The SGA is examined and tested with the proposed constraint handling approach and the traditional penalization of deviations from feasible solutions. Several tests are run in the IEEE 30, 57, 118 and 300 bus test power systems. The results obtained with the proposed approach are compared to those offered by other metaheuristic techniques reported in the specialized literature. Simulation results indicate that the proposed genetic algorithm with the alternative constraint handling approach yields superior solutions when compared to other recently reported techniques.

(1) Background: This paper investigates the epidemiological risk related to temperature before and during COVID-19 in Italy; (2) Methods: Deaths in 2015-2019 and temperatures were correlated. Excess and COVID-19 deaths were examined to estimate the relationships with temperatures; (3) Results: Annual deaths were higher during the cold months (+45,000, SD = 4,700, S = 21). The scenario worsened during COVID-19. Mortality was higher during minimum temperature periods, although the curve moderately rose in the warmest months (r = -0.75, 95% CI = [-0.87; -0.56], S = 23). COVID-19 deaths showed a decreasing seasonality. Monthly excess deaths during COVID-19 were high (+4,200, IQR = [2,800; 8,000], S = 28) with a doubt of seasonality. COVID-19 mortality was correlated with regional latitude (r = 0.86, 95% CI = [0.68; 0.94], S = 20). Discrepancies between COVID-19 and excess deaths were found. The exposed population was subject to aging; (4) Conclusions: The epidemiological risk in Italy is seasonal and geographically dependent. Low and very high temperatures can lead to mortality peaks. Therefore, COVID-19 and any other epidemiological risk must be evaluated in light of this evidence. Health systems need to be strengthened during cold and extremely hot periods. Future research should investigate these phenomena at the causal level.

The article delves into the crucial realm of compressing hydrogen in its gaseous state, a pivotal process for enhancing its viability in both civil and industrial sectors. The study initiates by providing a concise overview and comparison of diverse hydrogen storage methodologies, laying the groundwork with an in-depth analysis of hydrogen's thermophysical properties. It scrutinizes plausible configurations for hydrogen compression, aiming to strike a delicate balance between energy consumption, predominantly derived from the fuel itself, and the requisite number of compression stages. Notably, to render hydrogen storage competitive in terms of volume, pressures of at least 350 bar are deemed essential, albeit at an energy cost amounting to approximately 10% of the fuel's calorific value. Multi-stage compression emerges as a crucial strategy, not solely for energy efficiency, but also to curtail temperature rise, with an upper limit set at 200°C. This nuanced approach is underlined by the exploration of compression levels commonly cited in the literature, particularly 350 bar and 700 bar. Ultimately, the study advocates for a three-stage compression system as a pragmatic compromise, capable of achieving high-pressure solutions while keeping compression work below 10 MJ/kg, a threshold indicative of sustainable energy utilization.

The objective of this research is to propose archetypes of accessible design with a neuroarchitec-ture approach for the design of initial level educational centers, in Peru, especially in areas of ur-ban growth, many children do not manage to access initial education, there is even school drop-out. . At this educational level, with an increase of 4.4% in recent years, the process of developing mental abilities such as memory, perception, thinking, reactions, attention, language, among oth-ers, is of the utmost importance. in the first years of life. As a methodology, sensory design strate-gies were applied, likewise through instruments such as interviews, observation, photographic taking and measurement carried out during the field visit for the analysis of the space-child in-teraction and spatial stimuli, supported by digital tools (Autocad, Google Earth, Andrés Marsh). As results, accessible design archetypes were obtained based on neuroarchitecture based on 10 spatial indicators (Lighting; Green area; roofs; shape; size; distribution; accessibility; scale; colors; materiality). In conclusion, the provision of adequate spaces that provide exploratory facilities greatly contributes to cognitive development in early childhood. The environment where these cognitive activities take place needs to be conditioned to allow children to develop, bond and ap-propriate the space.

The UNESCO World Heritage Hadrian’s Villa lies over the Colli Albani volcanic district near Rome. Magnetic, paleomagnetic, radar, and electric resistivity surveys were performed in the Plutonium–Inferi sector to detect buried buildings and outline a segment of the underground system of tunnels that link different zones of the villa. In particular, a paleomagnetic analysis of the bedrock unit allowed to accomplish an accurate geomagnetic field modelling and characterize the archaeological sources of the magnetic field anomalies. We used a computer-assisted forward modelling procedure to generate a structural model of the sources of the observed anomalies. The intrinsic ambiguity of the magnetic field modelling was reduced with the support of ground penetrating radar amplitude slices and an analysis of radar and electric resistivity profiles. The bedrock lithology in this area is an ignimbrite tuff characterized by abundant iron oxides. The high-amplitude magnetic anomalies observed in the Plutonium–Inferi area are due to strong bedrock remnant magnetization and susceptibility contrasts between topsoil infill of cavities and the surrounding tuff. The resulting magnetization model of the Plutonium–Inferi complex shows that the observed anomalies are mostly due to the presence of tunnels, skylights and a system of ditches excavated in the tuff.

Phononic crystals are periodic composite structures with specific resonant features that are gaining strength in the field as liquid sensors. The introduction of a structural defect in an otherwise periodic regular arrangement can generate a resonant mode, also called defect mode, inside the characteristic band gaps of phononic crystals. The morphology, as well as the frequency in which these defect modes appear, can give useful information on the composition and properties of an analyte. Currently, only gain, and frequency measurements are performed using phononic crystal sensors. Other measurements like the transient response have been implemented in resonant sensors such as quartz microbalances showing great results and proving to be a great complimentary measure to the gain and frequency measurements. In the present paper, a study of the feasibility of using the transient response as a measure to acquire additional information about the analyte is presented. Theoretical studies using the transmission line model were realized to show the impact of variations in the concentration of an analyte, in this case, lithium carbonate solutions, in the transient time of the system. Experimental realizations were also performed showing that the proposed measurement scheme presents significant changes in the resulting data, indicating the potential use of this measure in phononic crystal sensors. This proposed measure could be implemented as a stand-alone measure or as a compliment to current sensing modalities.

Ensuring safe and continuous autonomous navigation in long-term mobile robot applications is still challenging. To ensure a reliable representation of the current environment without the need for periodic re-mapping, updating the map is recommended. However, in case of incorrect estimation of robot pose, updating the map can lead to errors that prevent the robot localisation and jeopardize map accuracy. In this paper, we propose a safe LIDAR-based occupancy grid map updating algorithm for dynamic environments taking into account the uncertainties in the estimation of the robot’s pose. The proposed approach allows robust long-term operations as it can recover the robot’s pose, even when it gets lost, to continue the map update process providing a coherent map. Moreover, the approach is robust also to temporary changes in the map due to the presence of dynamic obstacles such as humans and other robots. Results highlighting map quality, localisation performance, and pose recovery, both in simulation and experiments, are reported.

We propose a novel interpretation of consciousness and an enlarged definition of locality, which provide a solution to the problem of the consistency of measurements in quantum mechanics: consciousness is a characteristics of the Universe as a whole. Besides its physical conse- quences, this interpretation has also moral implications: individuality comes out naturally to be just an accident functional to evolution which shaped past and present history through competition, and re- alizing this fact should enforce cooperation.

Large datasets play a crucial role in the progression of surgical robotics, facilitating advancements in the fields of surgical task recognition and automation. Moreover, public datasets enable the comparative analysis of various algorithms and methodologies, thereby assessing their effectiveness and performance. The ROSMA (Robotics Surgical Maneuvers) dataset provides 206 trials of common surgical training tasks performed with the da Vinci Research Kit (dVRK). In this work, we extend ROSMA dataset with two annotated subsets: ROSMAT24, which contains bounding box annotations for instrument detection, and ROSMAG40, which contains high and low level gesture annotations. We propose an annotation method that provides independent labels for the right-handed tool and the left-handed tool. For instrument identification, we validate our proposal with a YOLOv4 model in two experimental scenarios. We demonstrate the generalization capabilities of the network to detect instruments in unseen scenarios. For gesture segmentation, we propose two label categories: high-level annotations that describe gestures at a maneuvers level, and low-level annotations that describe gestures at a fine-grain level. To validate this proposal, we have designed a recurrent neural network based on a bidirectional long-short term memory layer. We present results for four cross-validation experimental setups, reaching up to a 77.35% mAP.

The implementation of residential distributed generation (DG) in South America has shown significant growth in the last decade, driven by increased research on photovoltaics and renewable energy sources. Regulatory policies and business models have been crucial in fostering the adoption of DG in the region, with residential self-supply being the most receptive sector for implementing the concept. This article presents a literature review on DG as applied to residential self-supply in South America by comprehensively analyzing documents published between 2013 and 2023, applying the PRISMA methodology. In total, 37 literature resources have been systematically selected and reviewed to contribute to the identification of trends and developments in the field of DG in the residential sector, as well as highlighting areas that require further research and attention from stakeholders, including policymakers, investors, technology providers and consumers in the South American context.

Cranio-maxillofacial structure is a region of particular interest in the field of regenerative medicine due to both its anatomical complexity and the numerous abnormalities affecting this area. However, this anatomical complexity is what makes possible the coexistence of different microbial ecosystems in the oral cavity and the maxillofacial region, contributing to the increased risk of bacterial infections. In this regard, different materials have been used for their application in this field. These materials can be obtained from natural and renewable feedstocks or by synthetic routes with desired mechanical properties, biocompatibility and antimicrobial activity. Hence, in this review, we have focused on bio-based polymers, which by their own nature, by chemical modifications of their structure, or by their combination with other elements, provide a useful antibacterial activity as well as the suitable conditions for cranio-maxillofacial tissue regeneration. This approach has not been reviewed previously, and we have specifically arranged the content of this article according to the resulting material and its corresponding application, reviewing guided bone regeneration membranes; bone cements; and devices and scaffolds for both soft and hard maxillofacial tissue regeneration, including hybrid scaffolds, dental implants, hydrogels and composites.

Gold clusters protected by 3-MBA ligands (MBA = mercaptobenzoic acid, -SPhCO2H) have attracted recent interest for their unusual structures and advantageous ligand-exchange and bioconjugation properties. Azubel et al. first determined the core structure of an Au68-complex, which was estimated to have 32 ligands (3-MBA groups). To explain the exceptional structure-composition and reaction properties of this complex, and its larger homologs, Tero et al. proposed a “dynamic stabilization” via carboxyl O-H--Au interactions. Herein, we report the first results of an integrated LC/MS analysis of unfractionated samples of gold / 3-MBA clusters, spanning the narrow size range 13.4 to 18.1 kDa. Using high-throughput procedures adapted from bio-macromolecule analyses, we show that integrated capillary HPLC-ESI-MS, based upon aqueous-methanol mobile phases and ion-pairing reverse-phase chromatography, can separate several major components from the nanoclusters mixture that may be difficult to resolve by standard native gel electrophoresis due to their similar size and charge. For each component, one obtains a well-resolved mass spectrum, nearly free of adducts or signs of fragmentation. A consistent set of molecular mass determinations is calculated from detected charge-states tunable from 3- (or lower), to 2+ (or higher). One thus arrives at a series of new compositions (n, p) specific to the Au/3-MBA system. The smallest major component is assigned to the previously unknown (48, 26); the largest one is evidently (67, 30), vs. the anticipated (68, 32). Various explanations for this discrepancy are considered. A prospective is given for the several members of this novel series, along with a summary of the advantages and present limitations of the micro-scale integrated LC/MS approach to characterize such metallic-core macro-molecules, and their derivatives.

The study of notable people as agents for increasing cancer awareness started just in the last decades of the 20th century. This study aimed to identify Pan-American notable people with head and neck cancer (HNC) and to assess HNC’s professional perspective on communicating stories of notable patients with HNC to promote prevention. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted by applying a RedCap questionnaire to oral medicinists, oral pathologists, head and neck surgeons, and clinical oncologists with experience in HNC research, education, or treatment in Pan-American countries. Additionally, a structured search was performed on PubMed, Scopus, EMBASE, Web of Science, LILACS, and gray literature Results: We identified 42 notable people from the United States, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, El Salvador, Chile, Colombia, and Peru who were mainly actors, athletes, and musicians. Participants agreed that stories of notable patients with HNC can positively impact the population and promote prevention if communicated by the internet, social media, and television. Conclusion: In the Pan-American region, notable individuals who have suffered from HNC may be powerful advocates for increasing cancer awareness and promoting prevention strategies. The professionals involved in the study expressed a positive inclination towards using the stories of these notable HNC survivors as an effective prevention strategy.

The conformational state of the activation loop (A-loop) is pivotal for the activation of most protein kinases. Hence, the characterization of the conformational dynamics of the A-loop is important to increase our understanding of the molecular processes related to diseases and to support the discovery of small molecule kinase inhibitors. Here, we carry out a combination of Molecular Dynamics (MD) and Essential Dynamics (ED) analyses to fully map the effects of phosphorylation, ADP, and conformation disrupting (CD) inhibitors (i.e., CD532 and MLN8054) on the dynamics of the A-loop of Aurora-A. MD revealed that the stability of the A-loop in an open conformation is enhanced by single phospho-Thr-288, while paradoxically, the presence of second phosphorylation at Thr-287 decreases such stability and renders the A-loop more fluctuant in time and space. Moreover, we found that such post-translational modification has a significant effect on the direction of A-loop motions. ED analysis suggests that the presence of the phosphate moiety induces the dynamics of Aurora-A to sample two distinct energy minima, instead of a single large minimum, as in unphosphorylated Aurora-A states. This suggests that the conformational distributions of Aurora-A with both single and double phospho-threonine modifications are remarkably different from the unphosphorylated state. In the closed states, binding of CD532 and MLN8054 inhibitors has the effect of increasing the distance of the N- and C-lobes of the kinase domain of Aurora-A, and the angle analysis between those two lobes during MD simulations showed that the N- and C-lobes are kept more open in presence of CD532, compared to MLN8054. As the A-loop is a common feature of Aurora protein kinases, our studies provide a general description of the conformational dynamics of this structure upon phosphorylation and different ligands binding.

Palmitoylethanolamide (PEA) has been prescribed for neuropathic pain for several years. This study is mainly addressed to summarize what has been published on the topic in the last decades, and how appropriate the numerous prescriptions are. Among others, it examines the innovative EquiPEA^® patent, which aims to address obstacles encountered with conventional PEA formulations. EquiPEA^® seems to partially ameliorate the bioavailability and the targeted distribution. It seems to introduce novel advancements that have the potential to enhance the therapeutic effectiveness of PEA in terms of its anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and analgesic properties. The deep literature analysis aims to examine the potential advantages of this innovative formulation, in the context of several pathological conditions that may benefit from this molecule. In particular, it investigates the potential enhanced bioavailability and targeted delivery system of EquiPEA^®. Also, it tries to understand if it can modernize the field of therapy based on PEA, thus offering a better treatment option for individuals with long-term inflammation, oxidative stress, and neuropathic or mixed pain with a neuropathic component. The study examines the possible impact of EquiPEA^® on personalized medicine strategies and its potential for translation into clinical practice. It analyses the possibilities that EquiPEA^® has in enhancing patient outcomes in a range of central nervous system and inflammatory conditions. This narrative review makes a valuable contribution to the ongoing comprehension of PEA therapy. It establishes a foundation for further exploration in research and potential uses in clinical settings.

Harmful algal blooms (HABs) are natural events produced by massive concentration of toxic phytoplankton that can color red, ocher, brown or yellow large extensions of water, its intensity depends on the different species of phytoplankton involved in the proliferation. The spreading of these formations involves an interaction of biological, chemical, meteorological and anthropogenic factors. Several species with potential toxicity have been reported along Mexican coasts, such as Gymnodinium catenatum, Karenia brevis, Pyrodinium bahamense var. compressum. The toxic bloom not only causes an impact during the event, it produces negative effects afterward, such as accumulating deposits of organic matter, alterations of benthic community structure and composition, species presence/absence, and bioaccumulation of toxins in organisms such as bivalve molluscs mainly. Poisoning may occur by consuming contaminated seafood or by direct exposure to aerosols of the toxins, which can provoke diarrhea or even death. Due to the impact of this type of event on the economy, environment and public health, strategies for monitoring, prevention, and systematic mitigation have been implemented for the evaluation of HAB effects. The aim of this review was to determine the state-of-the art of HAB, their reports and effects on the environment and public health in Mexico.

Since the integration of electronic devices and intelligent electronic devices into the power grid, power quality (PQ) has consistently remained a significant concern for system operators and experts. Maintaining high standards of power quality is crucial to prevent malfunctions and faults in electric assets and in connected loads. Recently, PQ studies have shifted their focus to a specific frequency range, previously not considered problematic, the supraharmonic 2kHz–150kHz range. This range is not populated by the harmonic components of the 50-60 Hz mains fundamental, but a combination of intentional emissions, switching and non-linearity by-products and various types of resonances. This paper aims to provide a detailed analysis of the impact of SH on power network operation and assets, focusing on the most relevant documented negative effects, namely power loss and heating of grid elements, aging of dielectric materials, failure of medium voltage (MV) cable terminations, and interference to equipment and to power line communication (PLC) technology in particular. Under some shareable assumptions limits are derived and compared to existing ones for harmonic phenomena, providing a clear identification of the primary issues associated with supraharmonics and suggestions for the standardization process. Strictly related is the problem of grid monitoring and assessment of SH distortion, discussing the suitability of normative requirements for instrument transformers (ITs) with specific focus on their accuracy.

This paper explores the latest developments in electrolysis technology, a key player in the transition to sustainable energy systems. Electrolysis, despite currently contributing a small share to global hydrogen production, holds immense potential for producing green hydrogen. The study delves into the efficiency of electrolysis systems, emphasizing ongoing efforts to enhance energy conversion rates. It investigates the impact of high-temperature electrolysis on reducing electricity consumption, thus making the process more efficient. The paper discusses the various challenges in the research on water electrolysis and underscores the critical role electrolysis plays in integrating renewable energy sources. The study emphasizes the need for continuous advancements in electrolysis technology to bridge existing gaps, making a compelling case for its pivotal role in the green hydrogen revolution.

We herein provide an overview of the most recent multidisciplinary process advances that have occurred in the food industry as a result of changes in consumer lifestyle and expectations. The demand for fresher and more natural foods is driving the development of new technologies that may efficiently operate at room temperature. Moreover, the huge amount of material discarded by the agro-food production chain lays down a significant challenge for emerging technologies that can provide new opportunities by recovering valuable by-products and creating new applications. Aiming to design industrial processes, there is a need of pilot scale plants such as the “green technologies development platform” that was established by the authors. The platform is made up of a series of multifunctional laboratories that are equipped with non-conventional pilot reactors developed in direct collaboration with partner companies in order to bridge the enormous gap between academia and industry via the large-scale exploitation of relevant research achievements. Selected key, enabling technologies for process intensification make this scale-up feasible. We make use of two selected examples, the grape and olive production chains, to show how cavitational reactors, which are based on high-intensity ultrasound and rotational hydrodynamic units, can assist food processing and the sustainable recovery of waste to produce valuable nutraceuticals as well as colouring and food-beverage additives.

The Internet of Things (IoT) is experiencing exponential growth, revolutionizing various industries with its ability to connect devices and enable advanced applications. In the realm of energy production, IoT offers significant potential for optimizing processes and improving efficiency. This study presents a comprehensive monitoring and energy management strategy for the University of Cuenca's microgrid photovoltaic (PV) system, utilizing IoT and ThingSpeak as key technologies. The proposed strategy leverages intelligent environments and utilizes ThingSpeak as a robust platform for data presentation and analysis. By integrating IoT devices and sensors, real-time monitoring of PV system parameters such as solar radiation and temperature is achieved. The collected data is then analyzed using advanced algorithms and visualized through ThingSpeak, enabling effective energy management and decision-making. The developed monitoring system was rigorously tested in a laboratory microgrid setting, where the PV system is interconnected with other generation and storage systems, as well as the electrical grid. Through the seamless integration of these components, the monitoring system provides enhanced visibility and control over the microgrid's energy production. The results demonstrate the successful implementation of the monitoring system, showcasing its ability to improve the supervision, automation, and analysis of daily energy production. By leveraging IoT technologies and ThingSpeak, stakeholders can access real-time data, analyze performance trends, and optimize energy resources.

Recently, in a previous study, we have experimentally shown the existence of an optimal injected steam mass flow rate, per unit length, ϕopt, which produces the maximal recovery of con- densate in a preformed steam chamber with an elliptical cross section of horizontal semi-major axis. Mutatis mutandis, in this work we present experimental studies in preformed steam chambers, one elliptical and the other circular. In both cases, we also have found the existence of unique optimal values. These configurations try to recreate the steam condensation, at a given time lapse, as it would occur during the growth stage of the steam-assisted gravity drainage (SAGD) process, a method used in the recovery of heavy and extra-heavy oil from homogeneous reservoirs. Finding the optimal mass flow rates in actual recovery process could become useful in the design of optimized SAGD processes.

The photoreduction of CO2 is an intriguing process, which allows the synthesis of fuels and chemicals. One of the limitations for CO2 photoreduction in the liquid phase is its low solubility in water. This point has been here addressed by designing a fully innovative concept of pressurized photoreactor, allowing operation up to 20 bar and applied to improve the productivity of this very challenging process. The photoreduction of CO2 in the liquid phase was performed using commercial TiO2 (Evonink P25), TiO2 obtained by flame spray pyrolysis (FSP) and gold doped P25 (0.2 wt% Au-P25) in the presence of Na2SO3 as hole scavenger (HS). The different reaction parameters (catalyst concentration, pH and amount of HS) have been addressed. The products in liquid phase were formic acid and formaldehyde. Moreover, for longer reaction time and with total consumption of HS, gas phase products formed (H2 and CO) after accumulation of significant amount of organic compounds in the liquid phase, due to their consecutive photoreforming. Enhanced CO2 solubility in water was achieved by adding a base (pH= 12-14). In basic environment, CO2 formed carbonates which further reduced to formaldehyde and formic acid and consequently formed CO/CO2+H2 in the gas phase through photoreforming. The deposition of small Au nanoparticles (3-5 nm) (NPs) onto TiO2 was found to quantitatively influence the products distribution and increase the selectivity towards gas phase products.

One source of kaolinite-rich wastes is from mine tailings and the generation of enormous volumes of mine tailings waste is standard practice in this industry. These volumes of waste are, at present, dumped, provoking significant environmental impact and transforming the environment. The impact of storing coal waste requires the study of eco-innovative solutions for the assessment of waste types. The present investigation has the objective of expanding the knowledge on the behavior of new siliceous-aluminum minerals with pozzolanic activity, of added value in the manufacture of similar cements. Four samples were characterized to determine their chemical, morphological and mineralogical composition. The samples were subjected to different thermal activation conditions for the transformation of an inert waste into a material with cementitious properties. XRD analysis have confirmed the total transformation of kaolinite into metakaolinite. The results have shown that after the activation process, the coal refuse presented good pozzolanic activity, meaning that it may be used as a pozzolanic addition in industrial cements, thereby removing high levels of contaminated waste from the environment. In subsequent investigations, research work will continue with the replication of cements with this pozzolanic addition for use in the manufacture of sleepers and slab track railway system.

Targeted cancer therapy has grown exponentially in the last decade, representing the largest frontier in the modern concept of precision medicine. This renaissance is largely due to our rapidly evolving ability to biochemically harness our immune systems to target cancer-specific antigens. Combined with an increasing armamentarium of surgical and non-invasive techniques for cancer mitigation we have upgraded cancer therapy from a non-specific assault on cell-division to a multi-modal, targeted approach. This renaissance has resulted in an increase in the perioperative footprint of patients with advanced cancer. The scope of the perioperative clinician has evolved from one of passive/reactive management of complications to a proactive approach that starts in the preoperative optimization phase and continues into the postoperative period. The perioperative world should not exist in a silo, and thus involvement of the oncology team is paramount. To provide safe oncologic care, it is essential to be up to date in newer cancer therapies, lest we act on erroneous and/or outdated information. Oncologists should weigh in on immune status, recent chemotherapeutic exposures, and potentially evolving toxicities. These might involve critical changes to perioperative infectious prophylaxis, steroid administration, and coagulopathy management. First, patients living beyond the typical life-expectancy for their cancer will carry a high burden of cancer-related downstream effects. General metabolic issues will include malnutrition, cachexia, and gastric outlet obstruction. Severe protein-calorie malnutrition, as well as hepatic and renal dysfunction can impact the metabolism and clearance of drugs. The cardiovascular, endocrinologic, pulmonary, and central nervous system implications of new cancer therapies will be discussed extensively below. Second, we have to enhance our ability to manage a cancer population who may be experiencing increasing novel chemotherapeutic toxicities. Newer agents differ from historical agents, which were blunt-force tools aimed at nonspecific destruction of cell-division. These drugs are efficacious but physiologically costly. Newer immunogenic therapies have a slightly improved acute safety profile, and a more complex chronic toxicity profile that may be overt or insidious. Chronic toxicities can present overtly or as a smoldering undertone to other active medical conditions such as sepsis, pneumonia, failure to thrive, or renal failure. The new therapies discussed in this review occur in the context of an overall increasingly multi-faceted cancer care machine. An example is screening for esophageal cancer in patients with Barrett's esophagus, or periodic chest CTs for patients with a strong history of tobacco use. These interventions are more likely to detect disease while it is still resectable, and resections will commonly accompany neo-adjuvant therapy. These approaches commonly involve new immunotherapies whose efficacy is higher-yield with a lower disease burden. In a recent example, the immune-checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) ipilimumab plus nivolumab have significantly increased survival rate for squamous cell esophageal cancer when combined with standard chemotherapy. Surgical resection has evolved to one that often accompanies neoadjuvant chemo and radiation. The increasing efficacy of this approach may de-necessitate many major resections, and increase the number of sub-anatomic resections and minimally invasive procedures. Improved techniques - notably for hepatectomy, whipple procedure, prostatectomy, nephrectomy - have increased the safety profile and decreased the perioperative physiologic burden. This has enabled a broader subset of patients (due to cancer burden or due to medical comorbidities) to qualify for the operation, and increased the involvement of anesthesia and their perioperative services. With an increase in surgical candidacy comes an increase in post-surgical complications, and post-surgical maintenance such as drains, embolizations, imaging studies, etc. In the non-OR anesthesia realm, there have been considerable advancements in cancer “micro-treatments” such as hepatic metastasis embolization, tumor ablation, and peri-tumor vascular embolization. There are an ever-increasing number of IR-guided embolizations for bleeding tumors, aspiration of malignant effusions, and drainage of abscesses. This review serves to provide insight into new categories of chemotherapy and their perioperative implications.

Chest X-ray (CXR) is the first tool globally employed to detect cardiopulmonary pathologies. These acquisitions are highly affected by scattered photons due to the large field-of-view required. Scatter in CXRs introduces background in the images, which reduces their contrast. We developed three deep learning-based models to estimate and correct the scatter contribution to CXRs. We used a Monte Carlo (MC) ray-tracing model to simulate CXRs from human models obtained from CT scans using different configurations (depending on the availability of dual-energy acquisitions). The simulated CXRs contained the separated contribution of direct and scattered X-rays in the detector. These simulated datasets were then used as the reference for the supervised training of several NN. Three NN models (single and dual energy) were trained with the MultiResUNet architecture. The performance of the NN models was evaluated on CXRs obtained with the MC code from chest CTs of patients affected by COVID-19. The results showed that the NN models were able to estimate and correct the scatter contribution to CXRs with an error <5%, being robust to variations in the simulation setup and improving the contrast in soft tissue. The single-energy model was tested with real CXRs, providing robust estimations of the scatter-corrected CXRs.

The energy transition is a challenge that affects all sectors, from transport to civil structures and industry. In the industrial sector, the greatest need is the decarbonisation of energy-intensive in-dustries, such as producers of iron and steel, aluminum, cement, petrochemicals, paper, and more. The steel industry, in particular, is a hard-to-abate high-emissivity industry that, due to chemical processes and high thermal demands (often above 500 °C), contributed to 7.4% of global CO2 emissions in 2021. This paper explores the potential applications of hydrogen in these hard-to-abate sectors, highlighting its versatility and significance in decarbonization efforts, especially as a me-dium to facilitate the transition to green electric energy uses. It provides an overview of hydrogen production methods, emphasizing the importance of sustainable and green hydrogen production. It reviews hydrogen production methods, storage, and potential in blended combustion. In the final part of the article, some considerations are introduced on the possible role of hydrogen in the steel sector (both as a supplementary fuel and as a reducing agent in innovative processes), showing that while there is potential for its inclusion as an element for decarbonization, it is necessary to carefully evaluate the energy balances of the various processes and the methods of hydrogen production, in order to avoid achieving only marginal effects.

Despite more than hundred years of research since Sir Sherrington’s studies on reflexes, his questions are still somehow unanswered. On what anatomical stage do the play of spinal reflex interaction take place? What are the physiological properties of this anatomical substrate? In this paper, we address these questions in light of the most advanced theory of motor control and the anatomical discoveries on the fascia that are changing how we think about control of action and perception. There are two sides of the problem: the neurological (reflex) connections that are at the base of movement, and the anatomical substrate that regulates and coordinates the movement. We recently advanced a hypothesis on how these two elements are connected and how they interplay. Here we further explain the concept of the somatic equilibrium point – SEP – and its central role in movement control and coordination. It is our belief that the concept of SEP explains how the neuro-mechanical control of movement is organized at peripheral level. At this level, intrafusal and extrafusal muscle fibres are combined in myofascial units, organized in anatomical directions. Myofascial units are closed systems whose behaviour can be affected by neural (voluntary) control or changes in external forces. SEPs represent the intrinsic equilibrium of the myofascial units, and are connected through the continuum of the fascia so that mechanical transfer of tension from segment to segment pre-adjust muscle fibers length and hence their excitation level. This is how coordination between segments is achieved. Finally, we suggest SEPs create the neurological representation of the referent configuration for action, and configurations are linked to the architecture of the fascial system.

The problem of real-time estimation of occupancy of buildings (number of people in various zones at every time instant) is relevant to a number of emerging applications that achieve high energy efficiency through feedback control. The measurement of CO2 concentration can be considered an important indicator that allows to define the occupation of closed and crowded spaces. Interesting cases can be school buildings and other buildings used in civil and residential (shopping centres, hospitals, etc.). This paper, starting from an experimental analysis in different classrooms of a University campus in real operating conditions, in different period of the year, proposes a possible correlation between CO2 concentration and the occupancy profile of the spaces. The acquired data are used to present some graphical correlations and to understand the most important variables or combination of them. Starting from an accurate analysis of the data, attempts are made to define a preliminary estimation method through the development of a mathematical models of occupancy dynamics in a building, which show interesting results.

The energy transition is a challenge that affects all sectors, from transport to civil structures and industry. With reference to the industrial sector, the greatest need is the decarbonisation of industries energy-intensive, such as producers of iron and steel, aluminium, cement, petrochemicals, paper, etc. In particular, the steel industry is a hard to abate high-emissivity industry which due to chemical processes and high thermal demands (often above 500 °C) contributed to 7.4% of global CO₂ in the year 2021. This paper has explored the potential applications of hydrogen in the hard-to-abate sectors, highlighting its versatility and significance in decarbonization efforts. It provides an overview of hydrogen production methods, emphasizing the importance of sustainable and green hydrogen production. It reviews hydrogen production methods, storage, and potential in blended combustion. In the final part of the article, some considerations are introduced on the possible role of hydrogen in the steel sector (both as a supplementary fuel and as a reducing agent in innovative processes), showing how although there is potential for its inclusion as an element for the decarbonization, it is necessary to evaluate the energy balances of the various processes and the methods of hydrogen production very carefully, in order not to risk obtaining a marginal effect.

We investigate the influence of a self-propelling, out-of-equilibrium active particle on generalized elastic systems, including flexible and semiflexible polymers, fluid membranes, and fluctuating interfaces, while accounting for long-ranged hydrodynamic effects. We derive the fractional Langevin equation governing the dynamics of the active particle, as well as that of any other passive particle (or probe) bound to the elastic system. Our study explores the diffusional behavior emerging for both the active particle and a distant probe.

We address the unsolved question of how best to estimate the collision entropy, also called quadratic or second order Rényi entropy. Integer-order Rényi entropies are synthetic indices useful for the characterization of probability distributions. In recent decades, numerous studies have been conducted to arrive at their valid estimates starting from experimental data, so to derive suitable classification methods for the underlying processes, but optimal solutions have not been reached yet. Limited to the estimation of collision entropy, a one-line formula is presented here. The results of some specific Monte Carlo experiments give evidence of the validity of this estimator even for the very low densities of the data spread in high-dimensional sample spaces. The method strengths are unbiased consistency, generality and minimum computational cost.

The performance of ground heat exchangers systems depends on the knowledge of the thermal parameters of the ground like thermal conductivity, thermal capacity and diffusivity. The knowledge of these parameters often requires quite accurate experimental analysis, known under the name of Thermal Response Test (TRT). In this paper, after a general analysis of the various available types of TRT and the study of the theoretical basics of the method, the perspective of the definition of a simplified routine method of analysis based on the combination of a particular version of TRT and the routine geotechnical tests for the characterization of soil stratigraphy and of the ground characteristics, mandatory before the construction of a new buildings, even if limited to quite short drilling depth (lower than 30 m). The idea of developing TRT in connection with geotechnical test activity has the objective of promoting a widespread use of in-situ experimental analysis and of reducing TRT costs and time duration of the experimental analysis. The considerations exposed in the present paper lead to reconsider a particular variety of the TRT in particular the version known as Thermal Response Test while Drilling (TRTWD).

The effects on Raychaudhuri's equation of an intrinsically discrete or particle nature of spacetime are investigated, through consideration of null congruences emerging from, or converging to, a generic point of spacetime, i.e. in geometric circumstances somehow prototypical of singularity issues. This is done from an effective point of view, meaning through a (continuous) description of spacetime modified to embody the existence of an intrinsic discreteness on the small scale, adding to previous results for non-null congruences. Various expressions for the effective rate of change of expansion are derived. They in particular provide finite values for the limiting effective expansion and its rate of variation when approaching the focal point; this on top of resulting non vanishing the limiting cross-sectional area itself of the congruence.

The link between the world of communication and the world of racing is provided by telemetry systems in electric racing cars. These systems send real-time data about the vehicle’s behavior and systems to enable informed decisions during the race. The aim of this research was to integrate telemetry into the battery bank of a racing electric vehicle to find the optimal values of current and voltage that optimize the charging process, thus improving the vehicle’s performance in competition using Response Surface Analysis. Particularly, the telemetry system consisted of an Arduino Mega, a digital wattmeter, and temperature sensors, all installed in the vehicle. Once the telemetry data was obtained, a response surface design was adapted with current, voltage, and temperature as factors, varying from low to high values, with the objective function being to minimize the battery’s charging time. Applying the response surface methodology and the steepest descent algorithm, it was found that all factors significantly affect the charging time, with the minimum charge time being 6961 seconds, obtained with a current of 2.4 amps and voltages of 50.5 volts and 43.6 volts.

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a metabolic disease characterized by chronic hyperglycemia associated with impaired carbohydrate, lipid and protein metabolism, with concomitant absence of insulin secretion or reduced sensitivity to its metabolic effects. Patients with diabetes mellitus have 30% more risk of developing heart failure and cardiovascular disease with respect to healthy people. Heart and cardiovascular problems are the first cause of death worldwide and the main complications which lead to high healthcare costs. Such complications can be delayed or avoided by taking prescribed medications in conjunction with a healthy lifestyle (i.e. diet and physical activity). The American College of Sports Medicine and the American Diabetes Association recommend that diabetic people reduce total sedentary time by incorporating physical activity in their weekly routine. This narrative literature review has the aim to summarize and present the main guidelines, pre-exercise cardiovascular screening recommendations, and considerations for patients with diabetes and comorbidities who are planning to participate in regular exercise regimens.

Link prediction is an unbalanced early retrieval problem, whose goal is to prioritize a small cohort of positive links on top of a list largely populated by unlabelled links. Differently from binary classification, here the evaluation focuses on how the predictor prioritizes the positive class because, in practice, a negative class does not exist. Previous studies explained that AUC-ROC is not apt for unbalanced class problems and is misleading for early retrieval problems, therefore standard AUC-ROC is not appropriate for evaluation of link prediction. However, some scholars argue that an AUC-ROC like evaluation accounting for the relative positioning of the few positive links among the vastness of unlabelled links remains a valid concept to pursue. Here we propose the area under the magnified ROC (AUC-mROC), a new measure that adjusts the standard AUC-ROC to work also for unbalanced early retrieval problems such as link prediction.

Globally, gastric cancer is a major cause of cancer mortality, with a 5-year survival rate of 32% for locally advanced and metastatic gastric cancer. This systematic literature review summarized the clinical, safety, and humanistic outcomes associated with systemic regimens given as first line therapy for locally advanced and metastatic gastric cancer. The search included articles published in English in PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and the American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting library, from inception to April 2022. Phase II and III randomized controlled trials conducted among western populations diagnosed with stage III and IV locally advanced and metastatic gastric cancer were included. Two investigators independently reviewed the studies, conducted data extraction, and assessed risk of bias in accordance with PRISMA guidelines. Twenty-four randomized controlled trials totaling 8,705 patients were included. Median overall survival ranged from 5.0-13.1 months, median progression-free survival ranged from 2.0-7.7 months, and objective response ranged from 13.0-64.1%. Two studies reported higher quality of life outcomes. Grade 3 and 4 adverse events were reported in most studies. Improvement in clinical outcomes can be seen in recently published randomized controlled trials for locally advanced and metastatic gastric cancer.

In emergency situations, every second counts for an ambulance navigating through traffic. Efficient use of traffic light systems can play a crucial role in minimizing response time. This paper introduces a novel automated Real-Time Ambulance in an Emergency Detector (RTAIAED). The proposed system uses special Lookout Stations (LS) suitably positioned at a certain distance from each involved traffic light (TL), to obtain timely and safe transitions to green lights as the Ambulance in an Emergency (AIAE) approaches. The RTAIAED is particularly pertinent on one-way roads, addressing the challenge of regulating the sequence of traffic-lights-signals so as to minimize the time needed to safely grant the green signal to the AIAE. The proposed solution leverages a part-based model made of elementary detectors for video analysis, specifically realized with a customized YOLOv8 model, and for audio analysis, thanks to an additional neural network based on Mel Frequency Cepstral Coefficients (MFCCs). This way, the RTAIAED ensures the accurate and robust identification of an AIAE heading towards a traffic light in time to ensure a green light thanks to the strategic positioning of the LS detectors. Extensive experiments demonstrate the robustness of the approach and its reliable application in real-world scenarios thanks to its predictions in real-time, showcasing the ability to detect AIAEs even in challenging conditions such as noisy environments, nighttime, or adverse weather conditions, provided a suitable-quality camera is appropriately positioned. The proposed system can also find application in traffic flow management.

Free-living amoebae (FLA) are protozoa widely distributed in the environment, found in a great diversity of terrestrial biomes. However, few genera of FLA are linked to human infections. Within these genera, Acanthamoeba spp., classified by genotypes (T1-T23), being T1, T2, T4, T5, T10, T12, and T18 as capable of causing granulomatous amoebic encephalitis (GAE) in immunocompromised patients mostly and Acanthamoeba keratitis related to genotypes T2, T3, T4, T5, T6, T10, T11, T12 and T15 in apparently healthy patients. Meanwhile, Naegleria fowleri is the causative agent of an acute infection called primary amoebic meningoencephalitis (PAM), while Balamuthia mandrillaris, like some Acanthamoeba genotypes, causes GAE, differing from the latter in the description of numerous cases in patients immunocompetent. Finally, other FLA related to the pathologies mentioned above have been reported; Sappinia pedata is responsible for one case of amoebic encephalitis; Vermamoeba vermiformis has been found in cases of ocular damage, and its extraordinary capacity as endo-cytobiont for microorganisms of public health importance such as Legionella pneumophila, Bacillus anthracis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, among others. In this review, issues related to the epidemiology of each one are addressed, updating their geographic distribution and cases reported in recent years for pathogenic FLA.

Polar stratospheric clouds (PSCs) form in polar regions typically between 15 and 25 km, when the local temperature is sufficiently low. PSCs play an important role in the ozone chemistry and the dehydration and denitrification of the stratosphere. Lidars with a depolarization channel may be used to detect and classify different classes of PSCs. The main PSC classes are water ice, nitric acid trihydrate (NAT) and supercooled ternary solutions (STS), the latter being liquid droplets consisting of water, nitric acid and sulphuric acid. PSCs have been observed at the lidar observatory at Concordia Station from 2014 on. The harsh environmental conditions at Concordia during winter render successful lidar operation difficult. In order to facilitate the operation of the observatory several measures have been put in place to achieve an almost complete remote control of the system. PSC occurrence is strongly correlated with local temperatures and is affected by dynamics, as the PSC coverage during the observation season shows.

This paper reports the novel design of a touch mode capacitive pressure sensor (TMCPS) system with a wireless approach for a full-range continuous monitoring of ventricular pressure. The system consists of two modules: an implantable set and an external reading device. The implantable set, restricted to a 2x2 cm² area, consists of a TMCPS array connected with a dual-layer coil, for making a reliable resonant circuit for communication with the external device. The capacitive array is modelled considering the small deflection regime for achieving a dynamic and full 5-300 mmHg pressure range. In this design, the two inductive-coupled modules are calculated considering proper electromagnetic alignment, based on two planar coils and considering the following: 13.56 MHz frequency to avoid tissue damage and three types of biological tissue as core (skin, fat and muscle). The system was validated with the Comsol Multiphysics and CoventorWare softwares; showing a 90% power transmission efficiency at a 3.5 cm distance between coils. The implantable module includes aluminum- and polyimide-based devices, which allows ergonomic, robust, reproducible, and technologically feasible integrated sensors. In addition, the module shows a simplified and low cost design approach based on PolyMEMS INAOE® technology, featured by low-temperature processing.

The review of previous works shows this study is the first attempt to analyse the lockdown effect using Natural Language Processing Techniques, particularly sentiment analysis methods applied at large scale. On the other hand, it is also the first of its kind to analyse the impact of COVID 19 on the university community jointly on staff and students and with a multi-country perspective. The main overall findings of this work show that the most often related words were family, anxiety, house and life. On another front, it has also been shown that staff have a slightly less negative perception of the consequences of COVID in their daily life. We have used artificial intelligence models like swivel embedding and the Multilayer Perceptron, as classification algorithms. The performance reached in terms of accuracy metric are 88.8% and 88.5%, for student and staff respectively. The main conclusion of our study is that higher education institutions and policymakers around the world may benefit from these findings while formulating policy recommendations and strategies to support students during this and any future pandemics.

Background: CoronaVirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) is the main discussed topic world-wide in 2020 and at the beginning of the Italian epidemic, scientists tried to understand the virus diffusion and the epidemic curve of positive cases with controversial findings and numbers. Objectives: In this paper, a data analytics study on the diffusion of COVID-19 in Lombardy Region and Campania Region is developed in order to identify the driver that sparked the second wave in Italy Methods: Starting from all the available official data collected about the diffusion of COVID-19, we analyzed google mobility data, school data and infection data for two big regions in Italy: Lombardy Region and Campania Region, which adopted two different approaches in opening and closing schools. To reinforce our findings, we also extended the analysis to the Emilia Romagna Region. Results: The paper aims at showing how different policies adopted in school opening / closing may have on the impact on the COVID-19 spread. Conclusions: The paper shows that a clear correlation exists between the school contagion and the subsequent temporal overall contagion in a geographical area.

Shared public buildings have become centers of innovation, integrating advanced technologies to meet evolving societal needs. With a heightened emphasis on occupants’ health and well-being, these buildings serve as hubs for technological convergence, facilitating seamless connectivity and intelligent data analysis and management. Within this context, environmental monitoring emerges as a foundational element, pivotal to all aspects of building management. This article provides findings from the nationally funded RE-START project, which focuses on shared public buildings, with special regard to educational and medical facilities. The project explores enhanced indoor air quality monitoring, focusing in particular on CO2 concentration that is directly correlated with occupancy, as a fundamental element for developing health and safety protocols, energy efficiency strategies, integration of smart building technologies, and data-driven energy management. The intersection of environmental monitoring, energy efficiency, security, and IoT technologies in in indoor spaces are relevant. The outcomes of the study reveal the delicate nature of all the involved components, that need to be carefully developed in an integrated manner.

This paper presents an innovative approach for improving the seismic protection of existing structures by introducing an additional dissipative structure (ADS). The seismic energy impacting the building can be dissipated through the contribution provided by the ADS, thereby reducing the need for the existing building to ensure its seismic capacity. This retrofitting technique is well-suited for structures facing architectural restrictions or challenging-to-update elements. It can help address foundation issues by applying loads to new external components. This paper describes the design of the ADS and proposes a displacement-based design procedure. The design process involves a non-linear static analysis and a simple procedure that must be iteratively repeated until the retrofitting target is achieved. This approach is simple and computationally efficient and can also be used for complex and irregular structures. Such structures are frequently encountered, and existing structures often exhibit unusual geometries and materials requiring extensive numerical modeling. The efficacy of the technique was evaluated using the case studiy of a school building located in central Italy. The results of numerical analyses indicated that owing to the ADS’s contribution, the seismic capacity of both buildings was enhanced, addressing the challenges associated with complex foundation interventions.

Background: Ankle fractures, comprising about 10% of musculoskeletal injuries, pose a significant healthcare burden with an increasing incidence, particularly among an aging population. This study focuses on isolated Danis-Weber type B fractures. Recent trends lean towards surgical intervention for anatomical restoration, quicker recovery, albeit with associated complications. This report aims to assess the safety and efficacy of NewClip narrow locking plate system with early weight bearing in treating isolated fibular fractures. Methods: The study includes patients with Danis-Weber type B fractures surgically treated with NewClip narrow locking plate system. Exclusions involved nondisplaced fractures, open fractures, or those requiring additional fixation.Results: Fifteen patients were enrolled in this study. Minor complications, including wound swelling, were observed in two cases. The Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) for pain exhibited a steady decline postoperatively, with almost complete resolution by the third month. At three months, the FAOS demonstrated excellent results, and final follow-up at twelve months revealed complete osseous healing without complications.Conclusions: The use of this type of plates in treating isolated fibular fractures with early weight bearing shows promising results in terms of fracture healing, pain resolution, and functional outcomes warranting further investigation with larger cohorts.

“Non-Locality is most naturally incorporated into a theory in which there is a special frame of reference. One possible candidate for this special frame of reference is the one in which the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) is isotropic. However, other than the fact that a realistic interpretation of quantum mechanics requires a preferred frame and the CMB provides us with one, there is no readily apparent reason why the two should be linked” (L. Hardy). Starting from this remark we first argue that, given the present view of the vacuum, the basic tenets of Quantum Field Theory cannot guarantee that Einstein Special Relativity, with no preferred frame, is the physically realized version of relativity. Then, to try to understand the nature of the hypothetical preferred Σ−frame, we consider the so called ether-drift experiments, those precise optical measurements that try to detect in laboratory a small angular dependence of the two-way velocity of light and then to correlate this angular dependence with the direct CMB observations with satellites in space. By considering all experiments performed so far, from Michelson-Morley to the present experiments with optical resonators, and analyzing the small observed residuals in a modern theoretical framework, the long sought Σ− frame tight to the CMB naturally emerges. Finally, if quantum non-locality reflects some effect propagating at vastly superluminal speed vQI→∞, its ultimate origin could be hidden somewhere in the infinite speed cs→∞ of vacuum density fluctuations.

INT-FFT algorithm presented in this work uses an interpolation methodology to densify 3D-GPR datasets to sharpen images obtained in GPR surveys obtained in an archaeological context. It allows the reconstruction of missing data from the combined use of mathematical transforms (e.g., the Fourier and Curvelet transform) and predictive filters. This technique makes it possible to calculate the missing signal simply by meeting two requirements: the data in the frequency domain must be limited in a range of values and must be able to be represented by a distribution of Fourier coefficients (verified conditions). The INT-FFT algorithm uses an open-access routine (Suinterp, Seismic Unix) to interpolate the GPR profiles based on seismic trace interpolation. This process uses automatic event identification routines by calculating spatial derivatives to identify discontinuities in space by detecting very subtle changes in the signal, thus allowing for more efficient interpolation without artifacts or signal deterioration. We successfully tested the approach using GPR datasets from the Roman Villa of Horta da Torre (Fronteira, Portugal). The results show an increase in the geometric sharpness of the GPR reflectors and have not produced any numerical artifacts. The tests performed to apply the methodology to GPR-3D data allowed for assessing the interpolation efficiency, the level of recovery of missing data, and the level of information lost when one chooses to increase the distance between profiles in the acquisition stage of the data.

Regeneration of peripheral nerves depends on the ability of axons to navigate through an altered extracellular environment. It has been suggested that Schwann cells facilitate this process through their secretion of neuropeptides and proteases. Using the RT4-D6P2T Schwann cell line (RT4), we have previously shown that RT4 cultures endogenously express the neuropeptide PACAP, and respond to exogenous stimulation by inducing the expression of tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) and urokinase plasminogen activator (uPA) through PAC1 receptor activation. In this study, based on recent findings showing that doxycycline and minocycline act as positive allosteric modulators (PAMs) of the PAC1 receptor, we tested if treatment with these tetracyclines could induce the expression and activity of tPA and uPA in RT4 cells. Using ELISA and zymographic analyses, we demonstrate that doxycycline and minocycline reliably induce the secretion and activity of both tPA and uPA, which is paralleled by an increased expression levels, as shown by immunocytochemistry and Western blots. These actions were mediated, at least in part, by the PAC1 receptor, as PACAP6-38 mitigated tetracycline-induced expression and activity of tPA and uPA. We conclude that doxycycline and minocycline can act as PAMs of the PAC1 receptor to promote proteolytic activity in RT4 cells.

This paper presents a new method to model the nonlinear behaviour of masonry double curvature structures, possibly reinforced by composite materials, by means of conventional elasto-plastic analyses. It is meant to be used in professional design, especially for assessment and retrofitting purposes, therefore based on the exploitation of the simplest nonlinear Finite Elements available in a commercial software, namely trusses with elasto-fragile and elasto-ductile behaviour (Cutoff Bars). The numerical static nonlinear analyses are carried out by considering elastic hexahedral elements for bricks and lumping nonlinearities on joints. These have been assumed in turn elastic-brittle and elastic-plastic by using 1D elements, respectively Point Contacts, under No-Tension Material hypothesis, and Cutoff Bars, assigning small tensile resistance to the material. The reinforcement, realised with FRP hooping strips, has been successfully modelled in a similar fashion, i.e. by applying perfectly bonded elastic-plastic Cutoff Bars at the extrados of the dome, where the debonding is accounted for in a conventional way limiting the tensile strength according to Italian Standards indications. The procedure is validated against benchmark models with the same geometry, using experimental data and more refined structural model results for comparison.

The advent of immunotherapy and specifically of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) for the treatment of solid tumors has deeply transformed therapeutic algorithms in medical oncology. Approximately one third of patients treated with ICIs may develop immune-related adverse events, being the gastrointestinal tract often affected with different grades of mucosal inflammation. Checkpoint inhibitors colitis (CIC) presents with watery or bloody diarrhoea and in case of severe activity requires ICIs discontinuation. The pathogenesis of CIC is multifactorial and still partially unknow: anti-tumor activity that collaterally effects the colonic tissue and the upregulation of specific systemic inflammatory pathways (i.e., CD8+ cytotoxic and CD4+ T lymphocytes) are mainly involved. Many open issues remain on treatment timing and options, and biological treatment, above all with anti-TNF alpha, can be offered to these patients aiming to rapidly resume the oncological therapies. This review aims to summarize the pathogenetic mechanisms underlying CIC and to discuss evidenced-based management including the role of biological therapy.

This study investigates the impact of inoculating Torulaspora delbrueckii (Td) strains during the initial phase of Carbonic Maceration (CM) vinification, aiming to enhance the fermentative process and unique characteristics of CM wines. CM is a winemaking technique where whole bunches (without destemming and crushing) are enclosed in tanks filled with carbon dioxide, inducing intracellular fermentation. The study compares the effects of two Td strains on the MLF performance and sensory characteristics of CM wines, using both inoculated and spontaneous MLF strategies. Although general physicochemical parameters remained consistent across conditions, organoleptic attributes showed significant differences due to T. delbrueckii presence. T. delbrueckii introduction during CM resulted in wines with increased anthocyanin content and a particular volatile profile. Isoamyl acetate, a key aroma in CM wines, was notably elevated, especially in the TdP strain. Sensory evaluations also revealed distinctions, with TdV wines displaying more pronounced aromas of red fruit, banana, and grass. Regarding MLF, T. delbrueckii presence notably enhanced performance, particularly in spontaneous MLF cases, accelerating fermentation completion. Inoculating the Oenococcus oeni strain OoVP41 also shortened MLF duration. These findings highlight the potential of Td strains to improve MLF efficiency and sensory attributes in CM wines. Employing T. delbrueckii strains strategically enables winemakers to optimize MLF and improve sensory profiles, offering an opportunity to produce higher-quality CM wines.

Main pathogens affecting carob (Ceratonia siliqua) tree in the Mediterranean basin are described in this overview. The most widespread diseases periodically occurring on carob orchards are powdery mildew (Pseudoidium ceratoniae) and cercospora leaf spot (Pseudocercospora ceratoniae). The causal agents of so-called “black leaf spots” (e.g. Pestaliotiopsis, Phyllosticta and Septoria spp.) are responsible for similar symptoms to above mentioned foliar diseases but are reported on carob orchards with a negligible frequency. Likewise, canker and branch diebacks caused by fungal species belonging to Botryosphaeriaceae are almost never recorded. Among wood diseases that may compromise old or previously damaged carob specimens, “brown cubical heart rot” caused by Laetiporus sulphureus is the most widespread and recurrent issue; this pathogen is also well-known for edible fruit bodies that are also appreciated for pharmaceutical and industrial purposes. On the other hand, “white decays” caused by Fomes and Ganoderma species are less common and reported for the first time in this review. Like-gall protuberances on twigs at uncertain aetiology or tumours on branches associated to Rhyzobium radiobacter are described although these symptoms are seldom detected as it happens also for necrotic leaf spots caused by Pseudomonas syringae pv. ciccaronei. A list of worldwide pathogens not yet recorded but at high-risk potential of introduction in Italian carob producing area is also provided. Finally, some concerns are addressed to new phytopathogenic fungi vectored by invasive Xylosandrus compactus ambrosia beetle. Comprehensively, all described pathogens could potentially in near future become limiting factors for carob production, because they could be favoured by high-density orchards, increasing global network of trade exchanges and high frequency through which extreme events of climate changes globally occur. Thus, symptoms and signs, causal agents, epidemiology and whenever applicable recommendations for disease prevention and management are provided in this review.

Mesothelin is a protein that is expressed in the mesothelial cell lining in the pleura, peritoneum, and pericardium. The gene of mesothelin encodes a precursor protein that is processed to yield mesothelin, which is attached to the cell membrane by a glycophosphatidylinositol linkage and a shred fragment named the megakaryocytic-potentiating factor. The biological functions of this substance in normal cells are still unknown. Experimental studies on knockout mice suggest that this substance does not play an important role in development and reproduction. In contrast, it has been observed that mesothelin is produced in abnormal amounts in several malignant neoplasms, such as mesotheliomas and pancreatic adenocarcinomas. Given that mesothelin is overexpressed in many solid tumours and has antigenic properties, this molecule could be considered a tumour marker or an antigenic target for many malignancies. Many molecular studies also have demonstrated that mesothelin is overexpressed in serous ovarian carcinomas and may bind to ovarian cancer antigen Ca-125, favouring the spread of the tumour in the abdominal cavity. 3 Here, we discuss the current knowledge of mesothelin and focus on its role in clinical and pathological diagnoses as well as its impact on the prognosis in serous ovarian carcinomas. We also briefly discuss the latest progress of mesothelin-targeting therapies for this aggressive and lethal neoplasm.

The surface configurations of the low-index facets of a set of spinel oxides are investigated using DFT+U calculations to derive surface energies and predict equilibrium nanoparticle shapes via the Wulff construction. Two very different conditions are investigated, corresponding to application either in heterogeneous catalysis or in electrocatalysis. First, the bare stoichiometric surfaces of NiFe₂O₄, CoFe₂O₄, NiCo₂O₄, ZnCo₂O₄ spinels are studied to model their use as high-temperature oxidation catalysts. Second, focusing attention on the electrochemical oxygen evolution reaction (OER), and on the CoFe₂O₄ inverse spinel as the most promising OER catalyst, we generate surface configurations by adsorbing OER intermediates, and, in an innovative study, we recalculate surface energies taking into account adsorption and environmental conditions, i.e., applied electrode potential and O₂ pressure. We predict that, under OER operating conditions, (111) facets are dominant in CoFe₂O₄ nanoparticle shapes, in fair agreement with microscopy measurements. Importantly, in the OER case we predict a strong dependence of nanoparticle shape upon O₂ pressure. Increasing O₂ pressure increases the size of the higher-index (111) and (110) facets at the expense of the (001) more catalytically active facet, whereas the opposite occurs at low O₂ pressure. These predictions should be experimentally verifiable and help define the optimal OER operative conditions.

We scrutinize the reliability of multilooked interferograms for deformation analysis. Designing a simple approach in the evaluation of the accuracy of the estimated deformation signals, we reveal a prominent bias in the deformation velocity maps. The bias is the result of propagation of small phase error of multilooked interferograms through the time series and can sum up to 6.5 mm/yr in case of using the error prone short temporal baseline interferograms. We further discuss the role of the phase estimation algorithms in reduction of the bias and put recommend a unified intermediate InSAR product for achieving high-precision deformation monitoring.

One of the hallmarks of the Alternative Lengthening of Telomeres (ALT) is the association with Promyelocytic Leukemia (PML) Nuclear Bodies, known as APBs. In the last years, APBs have been described as the main place where telomeric extension occurs in ALT positive cancer cell lines. A different set of proteins have been associated with APBs function, however, the molecular mechanisms behind their assembly, colocalization, and clustering of telomeres, among others, remain unclear. To improve the understanding of APBs in the ALT pathway, we integrated multi-omics analyses to evaluate genomic, transcriptomic and proteomic alterations, and functional interactions of 71 APBs-related genes/proteins in 32 PanCancer Atlas studies from The Cancer Genome Atlas Consortium (TCGA). As a result, we identified 13 key proteins which showed distinctive mutations, interactions, and functional enrichment patterns across all the cancer types and proposed this set of proteins as candidates for future ex vivo and in vivo analyses that will validate these proteins to improve the understanding of the ALT pathway, fill the current research gap about APBs function and their role in ALT, and be considered as potential therapeutic targets for the diagnosis and treatment of ALT positive cancers in the future.

Flavonoids are polyphenolic phytochemical compounds found in many plants, fruits, vegetables, and leaves. They have a multitude of medicinal applications due to their anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidative, anti-viral, and anti-carcinogenic properties. Furthermore, they also have neuroprotective and cardioprotective effects. Their biological properties depend on the chemical structure of flavonoids, their mechanism of action, and their bioavailability. The flavonoid’s beneficial effects have been proven for a variety of diseases. In the last few years, it is demonstrated that flavonoids’ effects are mediated by inhibiting the NF-κB (Nuclear Factor-κB) pathway. In this review, we have summarized the effects of some flavonoids on the most common diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular, and neurodegenerative human diseases. In particular, here we collected all recent studies describing plant-derived flavonoids’ protective and prevention role, by specifically focusing their action on the NF-κB signaling pathway.

Metabolic-associated fatty liver disease (MASLD) is not only associated with traditional cardiovascular risk factors such as T2DM and obesity, but it is also an independent risk factor for the development of cardiovascular disease. MASLD has been shown to be independently related to endothelial dysfunction and atherosclerosis. MASLD is characterized by a chronic proinflammatory response that, in turn, may induce a prothrombotic state. Several mechanisms such as endothelial and platelet dysfunction, changes in the coagulation cascade, decreased fibrinolytic activity can contribute to induce the prothrombotic state. Platelets are players and addresses of metabolic dysregulation; obesity and insulin resistance are related to platelet hyperactivation. Furthermore, platelets can exert a direct effect on liver cells, particularly through the release of mediators from granules. Growing data in literature support the use of antiplatelet agent as a treatment for MASLD. The use of antiplatelets drugs seems to have potential clinical implication for the prevention of HCC patients with MASLD, since platelets contribute to fibrosis progression and cancer development. This review aims to summarize the main data on the role of platelets in the pathogenesis of MAFLD and its main complications such as cardiovascular events and the development of liver fibrosis. Furthermore, we will examine the role of antiplatelet therapy not only in the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular events but also as a possible anti-fibrotic and anti-tumor agent.

The spread of high-performance personal computers, frequently equipped with powerful Graphic Processing Units (GPU), raised the interest on a set of techniques able to extract models of electromagnetic phenomena (and devices) directly from available examples of the desired behavior. Such approaches are collectively referred to as Machine Learning (ML). A typical representative ML approach is the so called “Neural Network” (NN). Using such data-driven models allows evaluating the output in a much shorter time when a theoretical model is available, or allows predicting the behavior of the systems and devices when no theoretical model is available. With reference to a simple yet representative benchmark electromagnetic problem, some of the possibilities and the pitfalls of the use of NN for the interpretation of measurements (inverse problem) or to obtain the required measurements (optimal design problem) are discussed. The investigated aspects include the choice of the NN model; the generation of the dataset(s); the selection of hyperparameters (hidden layers, training paradigm). Finally, the capabilities in the handling of ill-posed problems are critically revised.

New resources of food, pharmaceuticals or biotechnological products are needed. The huge biodiversity of aero-terrestrial lichen-symbiont microalgae remains unexplored. Viability of these for human consumption demands the demonstration of the absence of toxic effects. In vitro biocompatibility of crude homogenates of axenic microalga Asterochloris erici, symbiotic in the lichen Cladonia cristatella, was analyzed after treatment of cultured L929 fibroblasts with different doses of microalgal homogenates. The results show that crude homogenates of A. erici do not induce fibroblast cytotoxicity but seem to have some cytostatic effect inducing slight cell cycle alterations and intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) increase at the highest dose. Carotenoid analysis demonstrates high content of lutein, a xanthophyll with antioxidant and cytostatic properties in vivo. These findings confirm that Asterochloris erici can be considered suitable for the development of alimentary or pharmaceutical applications. The cytostatic effects should be further investigated for antitumor agents.

Background/Objectives: PEMF therapy has gained significant attention due to its potential benefits in promoting tissue repair and improving overall well-being. Recent publications in the field of exercise physiology, showed that pulsed electromagnetic fields (PEMFs) enhanced the velocity and the quantity of muscle O2 available and the rate of muscle oxygen extraction and utilization, in semi-professional cyclists, during a heavy constant-load exercise. In this paper, we investigate the effect of stimulation on muscular activation, in sedentary young people, during a constant-load exercise, performed at moderate intensity. Methods: Nine male sedentary young people, partic-ipated in this study. The response of the muscle activity, was recorded by surface EMG and assessed measuring the root mean square (RMS) normalized to the peak of the maximum voluntary con-traction. Data were collected in the right vastus Medialis (RVM) and right Biceps Femoris (RBF) at the baseline (standstill sitting), on warm-up (unloaded cycling) and during 30 minutes of con-stant-load exercise, in two experimental conditions (PEMF ON vs PEMF OFF). Results: The mul-tivariate analysis of variance performed on RVM showed a significant effect of PEMF in both warmup and exercise, while on RBF showed a significant effect of PEMF and warmup. Conclusions: PEMF strongly enhanced the amplitude of muscle activity in young sedentary people. The increase in the amplitude of the muscular response may lead to a higher oxygen consumption and release.

This paper offers a set of comprehensive guidelines aimed at facilitating the widespread adoption of hydrogen in the industrial hard-to-abate sectors. The authors begin by conducting a detailed analysis of these sectors, providing an overview of their unique characteristics and challenges. The paper delves into specific elements related to hydrogen technologies, shedding light on their potential applications and discussing feasible implementation strategies. By exploring the strengths and limitations of each technology, the paper offers valuable insights into its suitability for specific applications. Finally, through a particular analysis focused on the steel sector, the authors provide in-depth information on the potential benefits and challenges associated with hydrogen adoption in this particular context. By emphasizing the steel sector as a focal point, the authors contribute to a more nuanced understanding of hydrogen's role in decarbonizing industrial processes and inspire further exploration of its applications in other challenging sectors.

Multi-step evolution characterizes the carcinogenesis of GI malignancies, where the disease progresses through the accrual of genetic mutations, co-option of multiple host cellular factors and the acquisition of increasingly aggressive pathological features. Ensuing cancer complexity and plasticity are challenges for therapeutic approaches. On the other hand, disease inception is often triggered by a defined oncogenic event, which leads to escalating effects on gene expression, cellular metabolism, chromatin organization and ultimately cell identity. Decoding this molecular cascade of events is crucial to design strategies for early diagnosis as well as to tackle tumor onset. To this aim, the in vitro culture of non-transformed epithelial cells represents a major technical challenge. Genetic studies, combined with lineage-tracing experiments demonstrated that pancreatic cancerous lesions originate from acinar cells, a specialized cell type in the pancreatic epithelium, following mutations of the KRAS oncogene. Ex vivo culture of pancreatic acinar cells has allowed the identification of early mutant KRAS-driven alterations. Primary acinar cells survive in vitro in organoid-like 3D spheroids, which can recapitulate histological and molecular features of disease initiation. Here, we will discuss the isolation and culture of primary mouse pancreatic acinar cells, providing and historical and technical perspective. Impact for pancreatic cancer research will also be debated; in particular we will dissect the role of KRAS signaling in driving oncogenic transformation and highlight differences with canonical 2D culture of established cancer cell lines.

The recent growing attention to energy saving and environmental protection issues has brought to attention the possibility of exploiting syngas from gasification of biomass and coal for the firing of industrial plants included the so called Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle ones. In order to improve the knowledge about the employ of syngas in lean premixed turbulent flames, a large scale swirl stabilized gas-turbine burner has been operated with a simplified model of H₂ enriched syngas from coal gasification. The experimental campaign has been performed at atmospheric pressure with operating conditions derived from scaling the real gas turbines ones. The results are here reported and consist of OH-PLIF measurements carried out at decreasing air equivalence ratio conditions and are analysed together with the mean aerodynamic characterisation of the burner flowfield in isothermal condition. The OH concentration distributions have been analysed statistically in order to obtain information about the location of the most reactive zones and an algorithm has been applied to the data in order to identify the flame fronts. In addition, the flame front locations have been successively interpreted statistically in order to obtain information about their main features and about their dependence on the air to fuel ratio behaviour.

The aim of this paper is to expose the main involved physical phenomena underlying the alteration of convective heat transfer in a heat exchanger subjected to imposed vibrations. This technique seems to have interesting features and industrial applications, such as efficiency increase, heat transfer rate control and cleanliness action. However, a clear description and comprehension of how vibrations may alter the convective heat transfer coefficient in a heat exchanger is no still reached due to the complexity of the involved physical mechanisms. For this reason, after a presentation and a schematisation of the analyzed thermodynamic system, the fundamental alterations of the thermo-fluid dynamics fields are described. Then, the main involved physical phenomena are exposed for the three cases of gaseous, monophasic liquid and boiling liquid mediums. Finally, on the basis of the characteristics of these described phenomena, some considerations and indications of general validity are presented.

Abstract: The recent growing attention to energy saving and environmental protection issues has brought to attention the possibility of exploiting syngas from gasification of biomass and coal for the firing of industrial plants included the so called Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle ones. In order to acquire a detailed knowledge about the behaviour of lean turbulent premixed flames, the present work resent the results of an experimental characterisation of a prototypical gas turbine burner operated at atmospheric pressure at condition scaled from real gas turbines ones. The results here presented derive from OH-PLIF measurements carried out at decreasing air equivalence ratio conditions and are analysed together with a mean aerodynamic characterisation of the burner operating in isothermal condition. The OH concentration distributions have been analysed statistically in order to obtain information about the location of the most reactive zones and an algorithm has been applied to the data sets in order to identify the flame fronts. In addition, the flame front locations have been successively interpreted statistically in order to obtain information about their main features and about their dependence on the air to fuel ratio behaviour.

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a significant health concern worldwide with enormous social and economic impact globally. The gradual deterioration of cognitive functions and irreversible neuronal losses are primary features of the disease. Even after decades of research, most therapeutic options are merely symptomatic, and drugs in clinical practice present numerous side effects. Lack of effective diagnostic techniques prevents the early prognosis of disease, resulting in a gradual deterioration in the quality of life. Furthermore, the mechanism of cognitive impairment and AD pathophysiology is poorly understood. Microfluidics exploits different microscale properties of fluids to mimic environments on microfluidic chip-like devices. These miniature multichambered devices can be used to grow cells and 3D tissues in vitro, analyze cell-to-cell communication, decipher the roles of neural cells like microglia, and gain insights into AD pathophysiology. This review focuses on the applications and impact of microfluidics on AD research. We discuss the technical challenges and possible solutions provided by this new cutting-edge technique to understand disease-associated pathways and mechanisms.

Study question: What are the current trends of research in Human Assisted Reproduction around the world? Summary answer: USA is the leading country, followed by the UK, China, France and Italy. The largest research area is “laboratory techniques”, although other areas such as “public health”, “quality, ethics and law” and “female factor” are gaining ground worldwide. What is known already: Scientific research, especially in health and medical sciences, aims at addressing specific needs that society (and, especially, patients) perceives as pressing. One of the main challenges for policymakers and research funders alike is therefore to align research priorities to societal needs. We can thus think of research agendas in terms of a demand side (societal needs) and a supply side (research outputs). Research output in Human Assisted Reproduction has expanded in the past years, as indicated by the increasing number of scientific publications in indexed journals in this area. Nevertheless, no map of research related to assisted reproduction has been produced so far, hindering the identification of potential areas of improvement and need. Study design, size, duration: 26,000+ scientific publications (articles, letters, and reviews) on Human Assisted Reproduction produced worldwide between 2005 and 2016 were analyzed. These publications were indexed in PubMed or obtained from reference list of indexed publications included in the analysis.Participants/materials, setting, methods: The corpus of publications was obtained by combining the MeSH terms: “Reproductive techniques”, “Reproductive medicine”, “Reproductive health”, “Fertility”, “Infertility”, and “Germ cells”. Then it was analyzed by means of text mining algorithms (Topic Modeling (TM) based on Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA)), in order to obtain the main topics of interest. Finally, these categories were analyzed across world regions and time. Main results and the role of chance: We identified 44 main topics, which were further grouped in 11 macro categories, form larger to smaller: “laboratory techniques”, “male factor”, “quality, ethics and law”, “female factor”, “public health and infectious diseases”, “basic research and genetics”, “pregnancy complications and risks”, “general infertility and ART”, “psychosocial aspects”, “cancer”, and “research methodology”. The USA was the leading country in number of publications, followed by the UK, China, France and Italy. Interestingly, research contents in high income countries is fairly homogeneous across macro-categories, and it is dominated by “laboratory techniques” in Western and Southern Europe, and by “quality, ethics and law” in North America, Australia and New Zealand. In middle income countries we observe that research is mainly performed on “male factor”, and noticeably less on “female factor”. Finally, research on “public health and infectious diseases” predominates in low-income countries. Regarding temporal evolution of research, “laboratory techniques” is the most abundant topic on a yearly basis, and relatively constant over time. However, since production in most of the other categories is increasing, the relative contribution of this research category is actually decreasing. Publication is especially increasing in “public health and infectious diseases” (in all world regions, but especially in low income countries), “quality, ethics and law” (high income countries), and “female factor” (middle income countries). Limitations, reasons for caution: Three main factors might limit the robustness of our work: the textual corpus analyzed is based on abstract and titles, the reproducibility of the stochastic algorithms applied, which may produce slightly differing results at each run, and the interpretation of the topics obtained. Wider implications of the findings: This study should prove beneficial in the design of research strategies and policies that foster the alignment between supply (assisted reproduction research) and demand (society). Study funding/competing interest(s): PTQ-14-06718 of the Spanish MINECO Torres Quevedo programme (FAM).

This review explores the integration of Virtual and Mixed Reality in medical training. The advent of immersive technologies has revolutionized traditional methodologies, offering immersive, interactive, and flexible learning environments. This study aims to assess the impact, efficacy, and potential of Extended Reality (XR) in medical education. Methods included a comprehensive analysis of current Metaverse’s applications in various medical fields, including surgery, diagnostics, and patient care. Results indicate a significant enhancement in learning outcomes, practical skills, and student engagement. Conclusions suggest that Virtual Reality is a valuable tool for medical training, providing realistic simulations and improving both theoretical knowledge and practical skills. The intersection of virtual reality and cognitive neuroscience presents an exciting frontier for understanding the human brain's response to immersive environments. This review explores how VR impacts learning, with a particular focus on the activation and engagement of the prefrontal cortex during immersive experiences. It delves into various studies that highlight the transformative potential of VR in educational settings and therapeutic applications, demonstrating how VR can facilitate deeper and more effective learning experiences. The review will present a dedicated section on the current methodologies used to analyze the brain's response while immersed in a virtual environment.

The development of novel coherent and brilliant sources, such as soft X-ray Free Electron Laser (FEL) and High Harmonic Generation (HHG) enables new ultrafast analysis of the electronic and structural dynamics of a wide variety of materials. Soft X-ray FEL delivers high brilliance beams with short pulse duration, high spatial coherence and photon energy tunability. In com-parison with FELs, HHG X-ray sources are characterized by a wide spectral bandwidth and few to sub-femtosecond pulses. The approach will lead to time-resolved reconstruction of molecular dynamics, shedding light on different photochemical pathways. The high peak brilliance of soft X-ray FELs facilitates investigations in nonlinear regime, while the broader spectral bandwidth of the HHG sources may provide the simultaneous probing of multiple components. Significant technical breakthroughs in these novel sources are under way to improve brilliance, pulse dura-tion, and to control spectral bandwidth, spot size, and energy resolution. Therefore, in the next few years, the new generation of soft X-ray sources combined with novel experimental tech-niques, new detectors, and computing capabilities will allow the study of several extremely-fast dynamics, such as vibronic dynamics. In the present review, we shortly discuss recent devel-opments in experiments, performed with soft X-ray FELs and HHG sources, operating near car-bon K-absorption edge, being a key atomic component in biosystems and soft materials. Differ-ent spectroscopy methods such as time-resolved pump-probe techniques, nonlinear spectrosco-pies and photoelectron spectroscopy studies have been addressed in an attempt of a better un-derstanding of fundamental physico-chemical processes

Antibiotics (ABs) are common medications used for treating infections. In cancer patients treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), concomitant exposure to ABs may impair the efficacy of ICIs and lead to a poorer outcome compared to AB non-users. We report here the results of a meta-analysis evaluating the effects of ABs on the outcome of patients with solid tumors treated with ICIs. PubMed, the Cochrane Library, and Embase were searched from inception until September 2019 for observational or prospective studies reporting prognosis of adult patients with cancer treated with ICIs and with or without ABs. Overall survival (OS) was the primary endpoint, and progression-free survival (PFS) was the secondary endpoint. The effect size was reported as hazard ratios (HRs) with a 95% confidence interval (CI), and an HR > 1 associated with a worse outcome in ABs users compared to no-ABs users. Fifteen publications were retrieved for a total of 2363 patients. In the main analysis (n = 15 studies reporting data), OS was reduced in patients exposed to ABs before or during treatment with ICIs (HR = 2.07, 95%CI 1.51–2.84; P<.01). Similarly, PFS was inferior in ABs users in n = 13 studies with data available (HR = 1.53, 95%CI 1.22–1.93; p<.01). In cancer patients treated with ICIs, AB use significantly reduces OS and PFS. Short duration/course of ABs may be considered in clinical situations in which they are strictly needed.

Energy consumption of processors and memories is quickly becoming a limiting factor in the deployment of large computing systems. For this reason it is important to understand the energy performance of these processors and to study strategies allowing to use them in the most efficient way. In this work we focus on computing and energy performance of the Knights Landing Xeon Phi, the latest Intel many-core architecture processor for HPC applications. We consider the 64-core Xeon Phi 7230, and profile its performance and energy efficiency using both its on-chip MCDRAM and the off-chip DDR4 memory as the main storage for application data. As a benchmark application we use a Lattice Boltzmann code heavily optimized for this architecture, and implemented using several different arrangements of the application data in memory (data-layouts, in short). We also assess the dependence of energy consumption on data-layouts, memory configurations (DDR4 or MCDRAM), and number of threads per core. We finally consider possible trade-offs between computing performance and energy efficiency, tuning the clock frequency of the processor using the Dynamic Voltage and Frequency Scaling (DVFS) technique.

Objective A trained T1 class Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) model will be used to examine its ability to successfully identify motor imagery when fed pre-processed electroencephalography (EEG) data. In theory, and if the model has been trained accurately, it should be able to identify a class and label it accordingly. The CNN model will then be restored and used to try and identify the same class of motor imagery data using much smaller sampled data in an attempt to simulate live data. Approach PyCharm, a Python platform, will be used to house and process the CNN. The raw data used for the training of the CNN will be sourced from the PhysioBank website. The EEG signal data will then be pre-processed using Brainstorm software that is a toolbox used in conjunction with MATLAB. The sample data used to validate and test the trained CNN, will be also be extracted from Brainstorm but in a much smaller size compared to the training data which is comprised of thousands of images. The sample size would be comparable to a person wearing a Brain Computer Interface (BCI), offering approximately 20 seconds of motor imagery signal data. Results The raw EEG data was successfully extracted and pre-processed. The deep learning model was trained using the extracted image data along with their corresponding labels. After training, it was able to accurately identify the T1 class label at 100 percent. The python coding was then modified to restore the trained model and feed it test sample data in which it was found to recognise 6 out of 10 lines of T1 signal image data. The result suggested that the initial training of the model required a different, more varying approach, so that it would be able to detect varying sample signal image data. The outcome of which could mean that the model could be used in applications for multiple patients wearing the same BCI hardware to control a device or interface.

A supernova close enough to the Earth is a spectacular event: it can appear as a \new star" as luminous as Venus, or even more, visible for several days. The rate of Galactic supernovae is expected to be of about one in 30 years, with a fraction visible at naked eye; however in all the history of human civilization only seven supernovae in the Milky Way have been reported, the last two (1572 and 1604) during Galilei's life. The supernova of 1604, today called Kepler's Supernova, was observed by Galilei, Kepler and other astronomers in Europe, Korea, and China. Like the supernova SN1572, today called Tycho's supernova, it has been the subject of extensive studies, and inspired observational measurements and philosophical considerations on the nature of the heavens. The remnant of SN1604 has been indicated by recent X- and gamma-ray data to be a likely site of cosmic ray acceleration. The first recorded data of optical observations, together with new data, can still tell us a lot about the early evolution of this supernova.

Link prediction is an iconic problem in complex networks because deals with the ability to predict nonobserved existing or future parts of the network structure. The impact of this prediction on real applications can be disruptive: from prediction of covert links between terrorists in their social networks to repositioning of drugs in molecular diseasome networks. Here we compare: (1) an ensemble meta-learning method (Ghasemian et al.), which uses an artificial intelligence (AI) stacking strategy to create a single meta-model from hundreds of other models; (2) a structural predictability method (SPM, Lü et al.), which relies on a theory derived from quantum mechanics and does not assume any model; (3) a modelling rule named Cannistraci-Hebb (CH, Muscoloni et al.), which relies on one brain-bioinspired model adapting to the intrinsic network structure.We conclude that brute-force stacking of algorithms by AI does not perform better than (and is often significantly outperformed by) SPM and one simple brain-bioinspired rule such as CH. This agrees with the Gödel incompleteness: stacking is optimal but incomplete, you cannot squeeze out more than what is already in your features. Hence, we should also pursue AI that resembles human-like physical ‘understanding’ of simple generalized rules associated to complexity. The future might be populated by AI that ‘steals for us the fire from Gods’, towards machine intelligence that creates new rules rather than stacking the ones already known.

We are currently assisting at the explosion of the epitranscriptomics, which studies the functional role of chemical modifications into RNA molecules. Among more than 100 RNA modifications, the N6-methyladenosine (m6A), in particular, has attracted the interest of researchers all around the world. m6A is the most abundant internal chemical modification in mRNA and it can control any aspect of mRNA post-transcriptional regulation. m6A is installed by “writers”, removed by “erasers”, and recognized by “readers”, thus, it can be compared to the reversible and dynamic epigenetic modifications in histones and DNA. Given its fundamental role in determining the way mRNAs are expressed, it comes as no surprise that alterations to m6A modifications have a deep impact in cell differentiation, normal development and human diseases. Here, we review the proteins involved in m6A modification in mammals, m6A role in gene expression and its contribution to cancer development. In particular, we will focus on AML that, among first, has indicated how alteration in m6A modification can disrupt normal cellular differentiation and lead to cancer.

The direct methane to methanol (MTM) oxidation is a grand challenge in catalysis, with profound economical implications for the modern chemical industry. Bioinspired metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) with active iron and copper sites have been emerging very recently as innovative catalytic platforms to accomplish the MTM conversion under mild conditions. This review discusses the current state of the art regarding the application of MOFs with iron and copper catalytic centers to perform the MTM reaction, with a focus on the diverse spectroscopic techniques used to unveil the electronic and structural properties of the MOF catalysts at a microscopic level. We explore the synthetic strategies employed to incorporate iron and copper sites into different MOF topologies, the efficiency and selectivity of the iron- and copper-bearing MOF catalysts, and the ensuing MTM reaction mechanisms proposed on the basis of spectroscopic characterization supported by theory. In particular, we evidence how the combination of complementary spectroscopic tools probing different regions of the electromagnetic spectrum is particularly useful to reach a satisfactory understanding of the key reaction pathways and intermediates. Finally, we provide a critical perspective on future directions to advance the use of MOFs to accomplish the MTM reaction.

Background: Glioblastomas (GBM) is generally burdened, to date, by a dismal prognosis, although Long Term Survivors have a relatively significant incidence. Our specific aim was to determine the exact impact of many surgery-, patient- and tumor-related variable on Survival parameters. Methods: The surgical, radiological and clinical outcomes of patients have been retrospectively reviewed for the present study. All the patients have been operated on in our Institution and classified according their Overall Survival in LTS (Long Term Survivors) and STS (Short Term Survivors). A thorough Review of our surgical series was conducted to compare the oncologic results of the patients in regards to 1. Surgical , 2. Molecular, and 3.Treatment related features. Results: A total of 177 patients were included in the final cohort. Extensive statistical analysis by means of univariate, multivariate and survival analyses disclosed a survival advantage for patients presenting a younger age, a smaller lesion and a better functional status at presentation. From the Histochemical point of view, Ki67(%) was the strongest predictor of better oncologic outcomes. A stepwise analysis of variance outlines the existence of 8 prognostic subgroups according to the molecular patterns of Ki67 overexpression and EGFR, p53 and IDH mutations. Conclusions: On the ground of our statistical analyses we can affirm that the following factors were significant predictors of survival advantage: KPS, Age, Volume of the lesion, Motor disorder at presentation, a Ki67 overexpression. A fine molecular profiling is feasible to precisely stratify the prognosis of GBM patients.

Despite available global efforts and funding, Tuberculosis (TB) continues to affect a considerable number of patients worldwide. Policy makers and stakeholders set clear goals to reduce TB incidence and mortality, but the emergence of multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB) and extensively drug-resistant TB (XDR-TB) complicate the reach of these goals. Drug-resistance TB needs to be diagnosed rapidly and accurately to effectively treat patients, prevent the transmission of MDR-TB, minimise mortality, reduce treatment costs and avoid unnecessary hospitalisations. In this narrative review, we provide a comprehensive overview of laboratory methods for detecting drug resistance in MTB, focusing on phenotypic, molecular and other drug susceptibility testing (DST) techniques. We found a large variety of methods used, with the BACTEC MGIT 960 being the most common phenotypic DST and the Xpert MTB/RIF being the most common molecular DST. We emphasise the importance of integrating phenotypic and molecular DST to address issues like resistance to new drugs, heteroresistance, mixed infections and low-level resistance mutations. Notably, most of the analysed studies adhered to the outdated definition of XDR-TB and did not consider the pre-XDR definition, thus posing challenges in aligning diagnostic methods with the current landscape of TB resistance.

Nowadays, energy decarbonization due to the integration of renewable energy sources presents important challenges to overcome. The intermittent nature of photovoltaic systems reduces power quality by producing voltage variations and frequency deviations in electrical systems networks, especially, in weak and isolated distribution systems in developing countries. This paper presents a power smoothing method improving the low pass filter and moving average for grid-connected photovoltaic system, the novel method includes state-of-charge monitoring control of the supercapacitors energy storage system to reduce the fluctuations of photovoltaic power at the point of common coupling. A case study for a microgrid in a high-altitude city in Ecuador is presented with exhaustive laboratory tests using real data. The ultimate goal of this research is to improve energy power quality in electrical distribution systems to cope with the growth of renewable penetration.

Critically ill patients treated in the intensive care unit (ICU) can present many abdominal conditions that need a prompt diagnosis and timely treatment because of their general frailty. Clinical evaluation and diagnostic tools like ultrasound or CT scan are not reliable or feasible in these patients. Bedside laparoscopy (BSL) is a minimally invasive procedure that allows surgeons to assess the abdominal cavity directly in the ICU, thus avoiding unnecessary exploratory laparotomy or incidence related to intra-hospital transfer. We conducted a review of the literature to summarize the state-of-the-art of BSL. Medline, The Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), and Scopus databases were utilized to identify all relevant publications. Indications, contraindications, technical aspects, and outcomes are discussed. The procedure is safe, feasible, and effective. When other diagnostic tools fail to diagnose or exclude an intra-abdominal condition in ICU patients, BSL should be preferred over exploratory laparotomy.

Objectives: Few studies in literature evaluate the "mean measure" of root divergence. Most of them are linear measurements, they hardly describe the dental furcation conformation. It is left to the subjectivity of the operator deciding whether a furcation is convergent or divergent. The goal of this study is to create a visual evaluation method to overcome these problems giving a conformation of the entire interradicular space. Material and methods: A user-friendly software (Paint®, Windows10®) was used to measure endo-oral radiographs of upper and lower molars. Three kinds of measurements were taken. Three operators used the software to measure 20 radiographs, then the technique was repeated on 250 radiographic images to identify an average measurement. The ratio of these three measurements allowed to develop a new visual evaluation method of the interradicular space. Results: Intra and inter-operator reproducibility was statistically assessed on a sample of 20 anonymous endo-oral radiographs measured by 3 blind operators. Then, a sample of 250 anonymous endo-oral radiographs were measured by a blind operator and were statistically evaluated to identify an average value to define a main conformation of the interradicular space. Measurements made by the 3 operators on the 20 radiographic images showed that the technique is reproducible, and a mean value of the interradicular space was obtained. Conclusions: A new anatomical evaluation of the interradicular space in its entirety, which could help the clinicians in the therapy of furcated molars, can be obtained.

In the present paper, Co-B/SiC composite coatings were obtained via electrodeposition from colloidal suspensions with different concentrations of SiC particles and subsequent heat treatments at 350 °C. The composition, morphology and structure of the Co-B/SiC composite coatings were analyzed using glow discharge spectrometry (GDS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) coupled with energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Hardness and tribological properties were also studied. The results showed that an increase in the SiC concentration in the colloidal suspensions resulted in both an increase in the SiC content and a decrease in the B content in the obtained Co-B/SiC coatings. The Co-B/SiC coatings were adherent, glossy and soft and exhibited a homogeneous composition in all thicknesses. By contrast, an increase in the SiC particle content of the Co-B/SiC composite coating from 0 to 2.56 at.% SiC reduced the hardness of the film from 680 to 360 HV and decreased the wear volume values from 1180 to 23 mm³ N^-1 m^-1, respectively (that is, the wear resistance increased). Moreover, when the Co-B/SiC coatings with SiC content ranging from 0 to 2.56 at.% SiC were subjected to a heat treatment process, the obtained coating hardness values were in the range of 1200 to 1500 HV and the wear volume values were in the range of 382 to 19 mm³ N^-1 m^-1.

In the construction sector, the integration of biobased materials has emerged as a pivotal aspect of EU policies, aimed at promoting sustainable practices throughout the value chain to mitigate resource consumption and carbon emissions. This paper explores the development and validation activities of a bio-based façade system within the Basajaun H2020 project, focusing on enhancing the utilization of biobased components within building envelopes to replace conventional solutions with eco-friendly alternatives. This paper reports the methodologies employed to detect requirements and outline the testing protocols undertaken to validate the façade system design devised within the project focusing on the original façade components as the bio composite profile. Vision and opaque façade modules are prototyped and tested following curtain wall standards standard for performance and acoustic assessments, to showcase the efficacy of the developed solution. The conducted tests demonstrate the feasibility of integrating bio-based components into building envelopes, aligning with project expectations, and prevailing standards for curtain wall façade solutions. Notably, the designed façade system meets technical conditions and project objectives. Nevertheless, the research underscores the need for further refinements to facilitate solution industrialization and explore broader market applicability. Future efforts will focus on addressing these improvements and assessing the scalability of the solution.

This study presents a methodology to fabricate Ti6Al4V cylindrical compacts with a highly porous core and dense shell with the purpose to mimic the bone microstructure. Compacts with different core diameters were obtained by conventionally press and sintering. Large pores were created with the aid of pore formers. Sintering kinetics was determined by dilatometry, whereas characterization was performed by X-ray computed tomography. Also, permeability was evaluated on the 3D microstructure and the mechanical strength was evaluated by compression tests. Results indicated that sintering is constraint by the different densification rates of the porous and dense layers. Nonetheless, defectless compacts were obtained due to neck bonding between Ti6Al4V particles. Large pores were located in the designed core with similar pore size distribution. Permeability increased following a power law as a function of the pore volume fraction. Stiffness of bilayer components was driven by the porous core, meanwhile, the strength resulted from the combination of both layers. Bilayer materials obtained showed a permeability and mechanical properties, as well as admissible strain (σy /E) similar to those of human bones.

This paper presents a study about the integration of Piezoelectric Energy Harvesting Systems (PE-EHS) in building envelopes for powering Fiber Bragg Grating (FBG) sensors, enabling efficient and low-consumption monitoring with the objective to leverage Structural Health Monitoring (SHM). The research includes preliminary tests conducted in a real environment to validate the PE-EHS when fully integrated into the façade, capturing mechanical vibrations generated mainly by wind loads. Based on these activities, the final configuration of PE-EHS is defined to provide a complete system for façade monitoring. This integrated system includes the Piezoelectric Generator (PEG), Supercapacitor (SC), Power Conditioner Circuit (PCC), Fibre Optic Sensing (FOS) Interrogator, and the IoT Gateway trans-mitting measurement data within an Internet of Things (IoT) monitoring platform. This configuration is tailored to address the challenges related to the structural integrity of building envelopes. Results demonstrate a potential for a stand-alone solution in the façade sector, but, raising issues for certain limitations, requiring further investigation. In particular, the study emphasizes constraints related to the energy production of PE-EHS for façade integration. It highlights the necessity to carefully consider these limitations within the broader context of their applicability, providing insights for the informed deployment of Piezoelectric Energy Harvesting technology in building envelope monitoring.

The recent outbreak of a new Coronavirus has developed into a global pandemic with about 10,5 million reported cases and over 500,000 deaths worldwide. Our prospective paper reports an updated analysis of the impact that this pandemic had on the Italian agri-food sector during the national lockdown and discusses why and how this unprecedented economic crisis could be a turning point to deal with the overall sustainability of food and agricultural systems in the frame of the forthcoming European Green Deal. Its introductory part includes a wide-ranging examination of the first quarter of pandemic emergency, with a specific focus on the primary production, to be understood as agriculture (i.e. crops and livestock, and their food products), fisheries and forestry. The effect on the typical food and wine exports, and the local environment tourism segments is also taken into account in this analysis, because of their old and deep roots into the cultural and historical heritage of the country. The subsequent part of the paper is centered on strategic lines and research networks for an efficient socio-economic and territorial restart, and a faster transition to sustainability in the frame of a circular bio-economy. Particular emphasis is given to the urgent need of investments in research and development concerning agriculture, in terms of not only a fruitful penetration of the agro-tech for a next-generation agri-food era, but also a deeper attention to the natural and environmental resources, including forestry. As for the rest of Europe, Italy demands actions to expand knowledge and strengthen research applied to technology transfer for innovation activities aimed at providing solutions for a climate neutral and resilient society, in reference to primary production to ensure food security and nutrition quality. Our expectation is that science and culture return to play a central role in national society, as their main actors are capable of making a pivotal contribution to renew and restart the whole primary sector and agri-food industry, addressing also social and environmental issues, and so accelerating the transition to sustainability.

This paper details the comprehensive activities conducted in a laboratory setting to assess the Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) of prefabricated building envelopes. Aimed at enhancing the structural evaluation of buildings, the focus of this research lies in employing nondestructive sensors for SHM with the objective to advance in the understanding and assessment of facade conditions. The paper outlines the methodologies employed, starting with a modal analysis to define the structural vibration's modal frequency. Subsequently, tests were defined and executed to validate building envelope compliance in case of stress typical of high-rise building. Throughout these tests, continuous monitoring of the façade was conducted using both conventional (accelerometers, extensimeter washers) and non-conventional sensors (Fiber Optic Sensing) The gathered data underwent thorough processing and analysis to provide an overall perspective on the structure's behavior during the stress test. The investigation aimed to identify whether specific physical phenomena correlate with distinct signals and to evaluate if continuous façade monitoring over the building's lifespan aids in preventing potential structural damage. Moreover, two modal analyses were conducted to compare final data and frequencies with earlier data, enabling the detection of any structural alterations. The results from compliance testing and structural analysis yielded noteworthy insights contributing to the evolving field of structural health monitoring, offering valuable findings that advance our ability to proactively manage and maintain the integrity of building structures.

Cancer cells require substantial amounts of energy and substrates for their metabolic hyperactivity, enabling the synthesis of new cells at the expense of healthy ones. Preliminary in vitro data suggest that a mix of free essential amino acids (EAA-mix) can promote cancer cell apoptosis by enhancing autophagy. This study aimed to confirm, both in vitro and in vivo, whether EAA intake could influence the development of colon cancer in mice. We investigated changes in cancer proliferation in CT26 cells treated with EAA-mix, and in mice fed with EAA rich modified diets (EAARD) as compared to those on a standard laboratory diet (StD). CT26 cells were injected subcutaneously (s.c.) or intraperitoneally (i.p.). After 21 days, tumors were removed and measured. In vitro data corroborated that EAA-mix impairs cancer growth by inducing autophagy and apoptosis. In vivo data revealed that mice on StD developed significantly larger (s.c.) and more numerous (i.p.) cancers than those on EAARD. EAA administration appears to influence cancer cell survival with notable anti-proliferative properties.

Paper recycling has increased in recent years. A principal consequence of this process is the problem of addressing polymeric components known as stickies. A deep characterization of stickies sampled over one year in a recycled paper industry in México was performed. Based on their chemical structure, an enzymatic assay was performed using lipases. Compounds found in stickies by Fourier-Transform Infrared spectrometry were poly (butyl-acrylate), dioctyl phthalate, poly (vinyl-acetate), and poly (vinyl-acrylate). Pulp with 4% consistency and pH=6.2 was sampled directly from the mill once macro stickies were removed. Stickies were quantified by counting the tacky macrostructures in the liquid fraction of the pulp using a Neubauer chamber before the paper was made, and they were analyzed with rhodamine dye and a UV lamp. Of the two enzymes evaluated, the best treatment condition used Lipase 30G at a concentration of 0.44 g/L, which produced a 35.59% decrease in stickies. SebOil DG showed a smaller stickies reduction of 21.5% when used at a concentration of 0.33 g/L. Stickies in kraft paper processes were actively controlled by the action of lipases, and future research should focus on how this enzyme recognizes its substrate and should apply synthetic biology to improve lipase specificity.

This study is aimed to point out the possible application of the Enzyme-Linked ImmunoSorbent Assay (ELISA) test on table olives. Because olives, like many other foods, are not free from mycotoxin contamination, the main focus of this work was assessing the presence or absence of aflatoxins and ochratoxin A. The work was carried out in two phases. In the first phase, tests were carried out on commercial olives to assess the efficacy of the method and the kit (Veratox® 'Neogen' and AgraQuant® 'Romer Labs') by comparing them with the Liquid Chromatography coupled to a mass-mass spectrometer (LC-MS/MS); in order to understand if there were any interferences in antigen-antibody recognition; subsequently, mycotoxins were inoculated on the same samples with a known quantity, in order to assess the concentrations obtained and compare them to the expected ones. The second step involved modifying the method, so to improve the recovery of inoculated mycotoxins in the samples under study. Afterwards we evaluated the presence of mycotoxins in table olives supplied in the project. The results showed the effectiveness of the ELISA test, especially in the mycotoxin recovery phase. Indeed, after the modification of the mycotoxin extraction method, recoveries increased from 55% to over 70% for aflatoxins, and from 40% to over 55% for ochratoxin A. When analysing the samples provided by the above-mentioned company, the results showed some false positives, in particular in relation to ochratoxin A ’s analysis, mainly related to the first sample submission. Taking this into account, the ELISA test can be considered as an initial screening method applicable as a control programme for the evaluation of mycotoxins in olives which helps by saving time and costs. It should always be kept in mind that, if positive values should emerge, the LC-MS/MS analysis should be carried out.

Smart living, a concept that has gained increasing attention in recent years, revolves around integrating advanced technologies in homes and cities to enhance the quality of life for citizens. Sensing and human action recognition are crucial aspects of this concept. Smart living applications span various domains, such as energy consumption, healthcare, transportation, and education, which greatly benefit from effective human action recognition. This field, originating from computer vision, seeks to recognize human actions and activities using not only visual data but also many other sensor modalities. This paper comprehensively reviews the literature on human action recognition in smart living environments, synthesizing the main contributions, challenges, and future research directions. This review selects five key domains: Sensing Technology, Multimodality, Real-time Processing, Interoperability, and Resource-Constrained Processing, as they encompass the critical aspects required for successfully deploying human action recognition in smart living. These domains highlight the essential role that sensing and human action recognition play in successfully developing and implementing smart living solutions. This paper serves as a valuable resource for researchers and practitioners seeking to explore further and advance the field of human action recognition in smart living.

The thyroid-heart relationship has a long and articulated history of its own, a history that en-compasses physiological and pathophysiological knowledge, the latter particularly in the context of cardiac diseases such as heart failure, arrhythmias and ischaemic heart disease. In recent years, molecular biology studies, in an experimental context, have highlighted the extraordinary dialogue that exists among the two systems in the field of cardioprotection, being an extremely important area for the treatment of cardiac diseases in both acute and chronic phases. In addi-tion, in the last few years, several studies have been carried out on the prognostic impact of al-terations in thyroid function, including subclinical ones, in heart disease, in particular in heart failure and acute myocardial infarction, with evidence of a negative prognostic impact of these and therefore with the suggestion to treat these alterations in order to prevent cardiac events, such as death. This review provides a comprehensive summary of the heart-thyroid relation-ship.