INTEGRAL high energy behaviour of 4U 1812-12

The low mass X-ray binary system 4U 1812-12 was monitored with the INTEGRAL observatory in the period 2003-2004 and with BeppoSAX on April 20, 2000. We report here on the spectral and temporal analysis of both persistent and burst emission. The full data set confirms the persistent nature of this burster, and reveals the presence of emission up to 200 keV. The persistent spectrum is well described by a comptonization (CompTT) model plus a soft blackbody component. The source was observed in a hard spectral state with a 1-200 keV luminosity of 2*10^(36) ergs/s and L/LEdd~1% and no meaningful flux variation has been revealed, as also confirmed by a 2004 RXTE observation. We have also detected 4 bursts showing double peaked profiles and blackbody spectra with temperatures ranging from 1.9 to 3.1 keV.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures. Accepted for publication by A&

On Charge-3 Cyclic Monopoles

We determine the spectral curve of charge 3 BPS su(2) monopoles with C_3 cyclic symmetry. The symmetry means that the genus 4 spectral curve covers a (Toda) spectral curve of genus 2. A well adapted homology basis is presented enabling the theta functions and monopole data of the genus 4 curve to be given in terms of genus 2 data. The Richelot correspondence, a generalization of the arithmetic mean, is used to solve for this genus 2 curve. Results of other approaches are compared.Comment: 34 pages, 16 figures. Revision: Abstract added and a few small change

Spiritual friendship in the works of Alfonso X of Castile: images of interaction between the sacred and spiritual worlds of thirteenth-century Iberia

During the Middle Ages the predominant Christian mentality played a fundamental role in establishing the rules according to which both personal and emotional connections between individuals, and the links between humans and the supernatural, were forged. Considering this, the present study will focus on a topic largely unexplored, the medieval Iberian interpretation of friendship, which will be examined through the analysis of the thirteenth‐century production ascribed to Alfonso X of Castile’s scriptorium. In particular, special emphasis will be devoted to the Marian collection of the Cantigas de Santa María together with several references to the legal corpus of the Siete Partidas

Rapid on-site evaluation (ROSE) in pancreatic cancer diagnosis. doing more with less

Rapid on-site evaluation (ROSE) in pancreatic cancer diagnosis: Doing more with les

Antiviral and antioxidant activity of a hydroalcoholic extract from Humulus lupulus L.

A hydroalcoholic extract from female inflorescences of Humulus lupulus L. (HOP extract) was evaluated for its anti-influenza activity. The ability of the extract to interfere with different phases of viral replication was assessed, as well as its effect on the intracellular redox state, being unbalanced versus the oxidative state in infected cells. The radical scavenging power, inhibition of lipoperoxidation, and ferric reducing activity were assayed as antioxidant mechanisms. A phytochemical characterization of the extract was also performed. We found that HOP extract significantly inhibited replication of various viral strains, at different time from infection. Viral replication was partly inhibited when virus was incubated with extract before infection, suggesting a direct effect on the virions. Since HOP extract was able to restore the reducing conditions of infected cells, by increasing glutathione content, its antiviral activity might be also due to an interference with redox-sensitive pathways required for viral replication. Accordingly, the extract exerted radical scavenging and reducing effects and inhibited lipoperoxidation and the tBOOH-induced cytotoxicity. At phytochemical analysis, different phenolics were identified, which altogether might contribute to HOP antiviral effect. In conclusion, our results highlighted anti-influenza and antioxidant properties of HOP extract, which encourage further in vivo studies to evaluate its possible application

Does the somatosensory temporal discrimination threshold change over time in focal dystonia?

BACKGROUND: The somatosensory temporal discrimination threshold (STDT) is defined as the shortest interval at which an individual recognizes two stimuli as asynchronous. Some evidence suggests that STDT depends on cortical inhibitory interneurons in the basal ganglia and in primary somatosensory cortex. Several studies have reported that the STDT in patients with dystonia is abnormal. No longitudinal studies have yet investigated whether STDT values in different forms of focal dystonia change during the course of the disease. METHODS: We designed a follow-up study on 25 patients with dystonia (15 with blepharospasm and 10 with cervical dystonia) who were tested twice: upon enrolment and 8 years later. STDT values from dystonic patients at the baseline were also compared with those from a group of 30 age-matched healthy subjects. RESULTS: Our findings show that the abnormally high STDT values observed in patients with focal dystonia remained unchanged at the 8-year follow-up assessment whereas disease severity worsened. CONCLUSIONS: Our observation that STDT abnormalities in dystonia remain unmodified during the course of the disease suggests that the altered activity of inhibitory interneurons-either at cortical or at subcortical level-responsible for the increased STDT does not deteriorate as the disease progresses

Association of a homozygous GCK missense mutation with mild diabetes

Background: Homozygous inactivating GCK mutations have been repeatedly reported to cause severe hyperglycemia, presenting as permanent neonatal diabetes mellitus (PNDM). Conversely, only two cases of GCK homozygous mutations causing mild hyperglycemia have been so far described. We here report a novel GCK mutation (c.1116G>C, p.E372D), in a family with one homozygous member showing mild hyperglycemia. Methods: GCK mutational screening was carried out by Sanger sequencing. Computational analyses to investigate pathogenicity and molecular dynamics (MD) were performed for GCK-E372D and for previously described homozygous mutations associated with mild (n = 2) or severe (n = 1) hyperglycemia, used as references. Results: Of four mildly hyperglycemic family-members, three were heterozygous and one, diagnosed in the adulthood, was homozygous for GCK-E372D. Two nondiabetic family members carried no mutations. Fasting glucose (p = 0.016) and HbA1c (p = 0.035) correlated with the number of mutated alleles (0–2). In-silico predicted pathogenicity was not correlated with the four mutations’ severity. At MD, GCK-E372D conferred protein structure flexibility intermediate between mild and severe GCK mutations. Conclusions: We present the third case of homozygous GCK mutations associated with mild hyperglycemia, rather than PNDM. Our in-silico analyses support previous evidences suggesting that protein stability plays a role in determining clinical severity of GCK mutations