Recent results and future perspectives with solid targets at LUNA

The stellar evolution and chemical make-up of the Universe are determined by nuclear reactions occurring in a wide variety of stellar sites. Precise determinations of the cross sections of these reactions are crucial for the calculation of reaction rates and for the development of stellar evolution models. The Laboratory for Underground Nuclear Astrophysics (LUNA) collaboration has been at the forefront of the direct measurement of nuclear reactions at the low energies of astrophysical interest for the last 35 years. The many signi cant results achieved at LUNA have been made possible due to the low background conditions uniquely available thanks to its location deep underground at the Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso. Another key aspect of these successes is due to the experience of the LUNA collaboration in the production and characterization of a variety of solid targets used in reaction measurements. In this review, the main production techniques of solid targets are described, as well as the common methods adopted for target degradation monitoring. We also present the results of recent measurements using these targets and the future plans of the LUNA collaboration for measurements using solid targets at the LUNA400 kV and the new Ion Beam Facility (IBF) 3.5 MV are also presented

Making sense of music: Insights from neurophysiology and connectivity analyses in naturalistic listening conditions

: According to the latest frameworks, auditory perception and memory involve the constant prediction of future sound events by the brain, based on the continuous extraction of feature regularities from the environment. The neural hierarchical mechanisms for predictive processes in perception and memory for sounds are typically studied in relation to simple acoustic features in isolated sounds or sound patterns inserted in highly certain contexts. Such studies have identified reliable prediction formation and error signals, e.g., the N100 or the mismatch negativity (MMN) evoked responses. In real life, though, individuals often face situations in which uncertainty prevails and where making sense of sounds becomes a hard challenge. In music, not only deviations from predictions are masterly set up by composers to induce emotions but sometimes the sheer uncertainty of sound scenes is exploited for aesthetic purposes, especially in compositional styles such as Western atonal classical music. In very recent magnetoencephalography (MEG) and electroencephalography (EEG) studies, experimental and technical advances in stimulation paradigms and analysis approaches have permitted the identification of prediction-error responses from highly uncertain, atonal contexts and the extraction of prediction-related responses from real, continuous music. Moreover, functional connectivity analyses revealed the emergence of cortico-hippocampal interactions during the formation of auditory memories for more predictable vs. less predictable patterns. These findings contribute to understanding the general brain mechanisms that enable us to predict even highly uncertain sound environments and to possibly make sense of and appreciate even atonal music

Impact of HLA-B51 on Uveitis and Retinal Vasculitis: Data from the AIDA International Network Registries on Ocular Inflammatory Disorders

PurposeThe clinical relevance of human leukocyte antigen (HLA) subtypes such as HLA-B51 on Beh & ccedil;et's disease (BD)-related uveitis and non-infectious uveitis (NIU) unrelated to BD remains largely unknown.MethodsData were prospectively collected from the International AIDA Network Registry for BD and for NIU. We assessed differences between groups (NIU unrelated to BD and positive for HLA-B51, BD-related uveitis positive for HLA-B51 and BD-related uveitis negative for HLA-B51) in terms of long-term ocular complications, visual acuity (VA) measured by best corrected visual acuity (BCVA), anatomical pattern, occurrence of retinal vasculitis (RV) and macular edema over time.ResultsRecords of 213 patients (341 eyes) were analyzed. No differences in complications were observed (p = 0.465). With regard to VA, a significant difference was detected in median BCVA (p = 0.046), which was not maintained after Bonferroni correction (p = 0.060). RV was significantly more prevalent in NIU-affected patients who tested positive for HLA-B51, irrespective of the systemic diagnosis of BD (p = 0.025). No differences emerged in the occurrence of macular edema (p = 0.99).ConclusionsPatients with NIU testing positive for HLA-B51 exhibit an increased likelihood of RV throughout disease course, irrespective of a systemic diagnosis of BD. The rate of complications as well as VA are comparable between NIU cases unrelated to BD testing positive for HLA-B51 and uveitis associated with BD. Therefore, it is advisable to perform the HLA-B typing in patients with NIU or retinal vasculitis, even in the absence of typical BD features

Discrete Event Simulation for the Analysis and Re-Engineering of Production and Logistics Cycles: The Case of Master Italy Company

Today, demand is shifting to more customized products, which will lead to small batches, short lead times, and unique specifications. To remain competitive in this changing environment, manufacturers must improve their layout, productivity, responsiveness, flexibility, and quality. Each layout problem has its own unique characteristics. Among the tools currently available to researchers and companies to optimize production cycles, it is worth highlighting software for the processes’ visualization and modeling. Simulation tools are used to connect all processes of the flexible manufacturing system into one intelligent system and analyze the production. Layouts are analyzed through computer simulations to verify the true potential of the facility and to find the most efficient long-term operating plan and the optimal structure to meet the increasing demands for customization, quick response, and overall quality, while reducing lead times. The production systems are complex systems that consists of many parts. Modeling a virtual copy of a physical system is quite a complex task and requires the availability of a large amount of information and a set of accurate models that adequately reflect the modeled reality. After a brief presentation of discrete event simulation, a methodology for analyzing and optimizing the production process and its application case is presented in this work within the Master Italy company process

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Environmental Taxation and the Circular Economy: What Are the Prospects in the European Context?

The transition from a linear economy model to a circular economy system heralds great opportunities: on the one hand, because by smoothing out diseconomies and reducing waste, it can favour the ecological transition and steer production in the direction of sustainability and respect for the environment; on the other, because by offering economic operators the opportunity to become more competitive and to achieve considerable advantages, it can create jobs and facilitate integration and innovation at a social and an industrial level. To this end, a dimension of environmentally targeted taxation can only assume importance, characterized by the metamorphosis from a linear taxation system to a circular taxation paradigm: the former, dominated by the principle of fiscal neutrality, loses sight of non-tax purposes to attach importance only to those of revenue, too often ending up financing expenditure for expenditure and therefore even waste; the latter, through the taxation of waste and the use of tax eco-incentives, favours reuse and recycling, fully implementing the paradigm of the circular economy. In this perspective, through the preparation of a virtuous model and the elaboration of an agenda for future European growth centred on radical changes in production and consumption processes, the circular economy system can be fully implemented, promoting sustainable development and the efficient allocation of resources

Thyroid disease and cervical dystonia

To determine the incidence of phosphorylated a-synuclein (p-syn) in skin nerves in very old subjects who are prone to developing incidental Lewy bodies, we prospectively performed skin biopsies on 33 elderly subjects, including 13 (>85 years old) and 20 patients (>70 years) suspected of having an acquired small fiber neuropathy. All subjects underwent neurological examination prior to the biopsy. Two screened female subjects (ages 102 and 98 years) were excluded from the study because they showed evidence of a slight bradykinetic-rigid extrapyramidal disorder on neurological examination and were not considered healthy; both showed p-syn in skin nerves. We did not identify p-syn in skin nerves in the remaining 31 subjects. A PubMed analysis of publications from 2013 to 2023 disclosed 490 healthy subjects tested for skin p-syn; one study reported p-syn in 4 healthy subjects, but the remaining subjects tested negative. Our data underscore the virtual absence of p-syn in skin nerves of healthy controls, including those who are very elderly. These data support skin biopsy as a highly specific tool for identifying an underlying synucleinopathy in patients in vivo

The importance of sport and its values in the educational and teaching program

The inclusion of differences is the theme of school life that, even today, moves the world of teachers the most. The conformation of the classes reflects today’s social complexity and, compared to the past, is certainly more articulated and pluralistic. In the classrooms, the presence of pupils with disabilities is a varied reality. In this difficult scenario, inclusion seems to be the only catalyst for efforts at change, for attempts to make teaching, schoolwork, and the emotion of relationships and learning more meaningful. Diversity is the fulcrum of a quality evolutionary movement, certainly difficult, problematic, suffered, but real. The continuous and incessant search for quality inclusion is the search for a quality of daily schooling for all pupils

RSV Disease Burden in Primary Care in Italy: A Multi‐Region Pediatric Study, Winter Season 2022–2023

Introduction: Human respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is one of the most frequent causes of respiratory infections in children under 5 years of age, but its socioeconomic impact and burden in primary care settings is still little studied. Methods: During the 2022/2023 winter season, 55 pediatricians from five Italian regions participated in our community-based study. They collected a nasal swab for RSV molecular test from 650 patients under the age of 5 with acute respiratory infections (ARIs) and performed a baseline questionnaire. The clinical and socioeconomic burden of RSV disease in primary care was evaluated by two follow-up questionnaires completed by the parents of positive children on Days 14 and 30. Results: RSV laboratory-confirmed cases were 37.8% of the total recruited ARI cases, with RSV subtype B accounting for the majority (65.4%) of RSV-positive swabs. RSV-positive children were younger than RSV-negative ones (median 12.5 vs. 16.5 months). The mean duration of symptoms for all children infected by RSV was 11.47 ± 6.27 days. We did not observe substantial differences in clinical severity between the two RSV subtypes, but RSV-A positive patients required more additional pediatric examinations than RSV-B cases. The socioeconomic impact of RSV infection was considerable, causing 53% of children to be absent from school, 46% of parents to lose working days, and 25% of families to incur extra costs. Conclusions: Our findings describe a baseline of the RSV disease burden in primary care in Italy before the introduction of upcoming immunization strategies

Disease-modifying therapies in managing disability worsening in paediatric-onset multiple sclerosis: a longitudinal analysis of global and national registries

Background: High-efficacy disease-modifying therapies have been proven to slow disability accrual in adults with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis. However, their impact on disability worsening in paediatric-onset multiple sclerosis, particularly during the early phases, is not well understood. We evaluated how high-efficacy therapies influence transitions across five disability states, ranging from minimal disability to gait impairment and secondary progressive multiple sclerosis, in people with paediatric-onset multiple sclerosis. Methods: Longitudinal data were obtained from the international MSBase registry, containing data from people with multiple sclerosis from 151 centres across 41 countries, and the Italian Multiple Sclerosis and Related Disorders Register, containing data from people with multiple sclerosis from 178 Italian multiple sclerosis centres. People younger than 18 years at the onset of multiple sclerosis symptoms were included, provided they had a confirmed diagnosis of relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis and at least four Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) scores recorded within 12-month intervals. The primary outcome was the time to change in disability state: minimal disability (EDSS scores 0, 1·0, and 1·5), mild disability (EDSS scores 2·0 and 2·5), moderate disability (EDSS scores 3·0 and 3·5), gait impairment (EDSS scores ≥4·0), and clinician diagnosed secondary progressive multiple sclerosis. A multi-state model was constructed to simulate the natural course of multiple sclerosis, modelling the probabilities of both disability worsening and improvement simultaneously. The impact of high-efficacy disease-modifying therapies (alemtuzumab, cladribine, daclizumab, fingolimod, mitoxantrone, natalizumab, ocrelizumab, rituximab, or autologous haematopoietic stem cell transplantation) and low-efficacy disease-modifying therapies (dimethyl fumarate, glatiramer acetate, interferon beta, or teriflunomide), compared with no treatment, on the course of disability was assessed. Apart from recruitment, individuals with lived experience of multiple sclerosis were not involved in the design and conduct of this study. Findings: A total of 5224 people (3686 [70·6%] female and 1538 [29·4%] male) with mean age at onset of multiple sclerosis 15·24 years (SD 2·52) were included. High-efficacy therapies reduced the hazard of disability worsening across the disability states. The largest reduction (hazard ratio 0·41 [95% CI 0·31-0·53]) was observed in participants who were treated with high-efficacy therapies while in the minimal disability state, compared with those remained untreated. The benefit of high-efficacy therapies declined with increasing disability. Young people with minimal disability who received low-efficacy therapy also experienced a reduced hazard (hazard ratio 0·65 [95% CI 0·54-0·77]) of transitioning to mild disability, in contrast to those who remained untreated. Interpretation: Treatment of paediatric-onset relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis with high-efficacy therapy substantially reduces the risk of reaching key disability milestones. This reduction in risk is most pronounced among young people with minimal or mild disability when treatment began. Children with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis should be treated early with high-efficacy therapy, before developing significant neurological impairments, to better preserve their neurological capacity. Funding: National Health and Medical Research Council, Australia; MSBase Foundation Fellowship; MS Australia Postdoctoral Fellowship