Protein accumulation in the endoplasmic reticulum as a non-equilibrium phase transition

Several neurological disorders are associated with the aggregation of aberrant proteins, often localized in intracellular organelles such as the endoplasmic reticulum. Here we study protein aggregation kinetics by mean-field reactions and three dimensional Monte carlo simulations of diffusion-limited aggregation of linear polymers in a confined space, representing the endoplasmic reticulum. By tuning the rates of protein production and degradation, we show that the system undergoes a non-equilibrium phase transition from a physiological phase with little or no polymer accumulation to a pathological phase characterized by persistent polymerization. A combination of external factors accumulating during the lifetime of a patient can thus slightly modify the phase transition control parameters, tipping the balance from a long symptomless lag phase to an accelerated pathological development. The model can be successfully used to interpret experimental data on amyloid-\b{eta} clearance from the central nervous system

EAPC task force on education for psychologists in palliative care

It is argued that psychological aspects of care and psychosocial problems are essential components of palliative care. However, the provision of appropriate services remains somewhat arbitrary. Unlike medical and nursing care, which are clearly delivered by doctors and nurses respectively, psychological and psychosocial support in palliative care are not assigned exclusively to psychologists. It is generally expected that all professionals working in palliative care should have some knowledge of the psychological dynamics in terminal illness, as well as skills in communication and psychological risk assessment. On the one hand, palliative care education programmes for nurses and doctors comprise a considerable amount of psychological and psychosocial content. On the other hand, only a few palliative care associations provide explicit information on the role and tasks of psychologists in palliative care. Psychologists’ associations do not deal much with this issue either. If they refer to it at all, it is in the context of the care of the aged, end-of-life care or how to deal with grief

Epistemic Logic Programs: an Approach to Semantic Comparison

Epistemic Logic Programs (ELPs) extend Answer Set Programming (ASP) with epistemic operators. The semantics of such programs is provided in terms of world views, which are sets of belief sets. Several semantic approaches have been proposed over time to characterize world views. Recent work has introduced semantic properties that should be met by any semantics for ELPs. We propose a new method, easy but, we believe, effective, to compare the different semantic approaches

Epistemic Logic Programs: a Novel Perspective and Some Extensions

Epistemic Logic Programs (ELPs), which propose an extension to Answer Set Programming (ASP) with epistemic operators, have their semantic defined, in various ways, in terms of world views, which are sets of belief sets. Several semantic approaches have in fact been proposed over time to characterize world views, and, recently, to also characterize semantic properties that should be met by any semantics for ELPs. We propose a new semantics, easy also from the computational point of view, but effective, also in order to compare the different semantic approaches. We also propose a significant extension to the ELP approach, by allowing epistemic atoms in rule heads

P-spaces and the Whyburn Property

We investigate the Whyburn and weakly Whyburn property in the class of P-spaces, that is spaces where every countable intersection of open sets is open. We construct examples of non-weakly Whyburn P-spaces of size continuum, thus giving a negative answer under CH to a question of Pelant, Tkachenko, Tkachuk and Wilson. In addition, we show that the weak Kurepa Hypothesis (a set-theoretic assumption weaker than CH) implies the existence of a non-weakly Whyburn P-space of size ℵ2. Finally, we consider the behavior of the above-mentioned properties under products; we show in particular that the product of a Lindelöf weakly Whyburn P-space and a Lindelöf Whyburn P-space is weakly Whyburn, and we give a consistent example of a non-Whyburn product of two Lindelöf Whyburn P-spaces

Antimicrobial activity of some plant essential oils against Listeria monocytogenes

The antimicrobial activity of 32 plant essential oils commonly used in food industry was examined against four strains of Listeria monocytogenes and one strain of Listeria innocua . Two different procedures were carried out to test the essential oils, a paper disc diffusion method and an inhibition curve. In the former procedure an absolute ethanolic solution (1:5 v/v) of each oil was tested on the plates inoculated with a bacterial concentration of 106 CFU/ml. Five of the 32 essential oils (cinnamon, clove, origanum, pimento, and thyme) showed antibacterial activity. Some of the five oils were also tested at lower concentration (1:50 v/v). The inhibition curve to study antilisteric efficacies of the five oils in a saline solution system was examined. Pimento oil showed marked and rapid activity (generally within 1 h of exposure), whereas clove, origanum, and thyme oils showed a more slow activity. The antilisteric activity of the tested oils seems to be strain dependent. A L. monocytogenes strain was also tested in a food matrix (minced pork meat) against thyme essential oil. Minced pork meat with thyme oil reduced the L. monocytogenes population by ca. 100-fold over the first week of storage

Temporalizing Epistemic Logic L-DINF

Agents and Multi-Agent Systems (MAS) are a technology that has many fields of application, which extend also to human sciences and where Computational Logic has been widely applied. In this paper, we join together two of our long-lasting lines of work in this field. In particular, we introduce time and time intervals into the epistemic logic L-DINF, that copes with group dynamics in MAS

Behind the dust curtain: the spectacular case of GRB 160623A

We report on the X-ray dust-scattering features observed around the afterglow of the gamma ray burst GRB 160623A. With an XMM-Newton observation carried out ~2 days after the burst, we found evidence of at least six rings, with angular size expanding between ~2 and 9 arcmin, as expected for X-ray scattering of the prompt GRB emission by dust clouds in our Galaxy. From the expansion rate of the rings, we measured the distances of the dust layers with extraordinary precision: 528.1 +\- 1.2 pc, 679.2 +\- 1.9 pc, 789.0 +\- 2.8 pc, 952 +\- 5 pc, 1539 +\- 20 pc and 5079 +\- 64 pc. A spectral analysis of the ring spectra, based on an appropriate dust-scattering model (BARE-GR-B from Zubko et al. 2004}) and the estimated burst fluence, allowed us to derive the column density of the individual dust layers, which are in the range 7x10^20-1.5x10^22 cm^-2. The farthest dust-layer (i.e. the one responsible for the smallest ring) is also the one with the lowest column density and it is possibly very extended, indicating a diffuse dust region. The properties derived for the six dust-layers (distance, thickness, and optical depth) are generally in good agreement with independent information on the reddening along this line of sight and on the distribution of molecular and atomic gas.Comment: 9 pages, 10 figures, 1 table; accepted for publication in MNRA

Protocol for soil functionality assessment in vineyards

Protocols used by Resolve partners during the project, to assess soil functionality on degraded aeras and evaluate soil restoration after applying recovering practices