A novel identification procedure from ambient vibration data for buildings of the cultural heritage

Ambient modal identification, also known as Operational Modal Analysis (OMA), aims to identify the modal properties of a structure based on vibration data collected when the structure is under its operating conditions, i.e., no initial excitation or known artificial excitation. This procedure for testing and/or monitoring historic buildings, is particularly attractive for civil engineers concerned with the safety of complex historic structures. However, since the external force is not recorded, the identification methods have to be more sophisticated and based on stochastic mechanics. In this context, this contribution will introduce an innovative ambient identification method based on applying the Hilbert Transform, to obtain the analytical representation of the system response in terms of the correlation function. In particular, it is worth stressing that the analytical signal is a complex representation of a time domain signal: the real part is the time domain signal itself, while the imaginary part is its Hilbert transform. A 3DOF numerical example will be presented to show the accuracy of the proposed procedure, and comparisons with data from other methods assess the reliability of the approach

SME Instrument – So Far So Good? Expectations, Reality and Lessons to Learn

The SME Instrument (SMEI) is a new consolidated funding scheme within Horizon 2020. It was introduced in 2014 as a dedicated tool to support high potential innovation, ultimately as a way to consolidate EU policy efforts to foster European competitiveness in advanced technologies in order to match its excellence in science. The expectations were pinned on small firms – the drivers of knowledge economy. There was never previously a tool dedicated exclusively to supporting the technological entrepreneurship of small and medium-sized companies in the European policy landscape. Therefore, the introduction of the SME Instrument was eagerly expected and widely welcomed by both policymakers and European small companies. However, both practitioners and experts have been growing increasingly frustrated with the pace and the rates of implementation of the Instrument. With the extraordinary rate of response from European SMEs that the Instrument received, it has so far been financially constrained in satisfying the demand, which has eventually led to some losses of investment and the neglect of talent. this report, we provide the description and initial analysis of the SME Instrument, as well as first lessons that can be extracted from the ongoing stream of applications. We first note that Europe has long been experiencing a paradoxical disbalance between its strength in scientific research and its low capacity in innovation. We illustrate how the need for a dedicated tool of technological innovation support within the European policy landscape has been growing, becoming increasingly recognised throughout the successive framework programmes. In essence, the design of the SME Instrument mimics that of the U.S. Small Business Innovation Research Program in its 3-phase structure, amounts of the awards and focus on technology commercialisation. We analyse evaluation reports and academic literature of SBIR and provide initial comparison between the two programmes. What we note is that SBIR had multiple unexpected non-financial positive externalities, such as the facilitation of entrepreneurship culture, and we make multiple propositions about the likelihood of these effects occurring as a result of the SME Instrument funding. The report identifies three main policy implications based on first years of implementation of the SMEI: while it is extremely popular, it is way too competitive. The low probability of funding may discourage future applications once the hype for the new tool fades. Second, the variety of firms applying for the SMEI support discloses the variety of strategies and ways of coping with early stage lack of financing that exist in Europe. Many lessons can be extracted from the narratives of applicant firms and their business models. Third, there is still a lot of ambiguity about the 3rd phase of the SMEI and the ways in which SMEI awardees can access further sources of European finance. Finally, the report profiles the proposals in terms of their technological area, country where the proposals submitted from, countries with the highest rates of funded proposals, size and age of applicant and successful SMEs, the amount of funding allocated. Eventually, we open up discontinuities in funding between phase 1 and phase 2 of the SMEI, calling them ‘Wasted Talent’. This data can be a source for ongoing research in innovation management. Among others, the paper provides initial insights into how the SMEI awardee data can be used for the analysis of fast growing firms across sectors, how the applicant and awardee data can be used in the evaluation of the SMEI as a policy tool, a comparative dimension with the US SBIR and how it is possible to study synergies with other entrepreneurship policies on the European and national levels

Asymmetric Expansion with a Modified Quad Helix for Treatment of Isolated Crossbite

Unilateral posterior crossbite often involves only one tooth, especially upper first molar; in these cases it is never easy to obtain an asymmetrical movement of a molar and a proper planning of the orthodontic device with its anchorage is necessary to avoid arch overexpansion. Thanks to its simplicity and efficacy, the modified Quad Helix here described represents a valid therapeutic tool in cases of isolated posterior crossbite

The Role of the Toll-like Receptor 2 and the cGAS-STING Pathways in Breast Cancer: Friends or Foes?

: Breast cancer stands as a primary malignancy among women, ranking second in global cancer-related deaths. Despite treatment advancements, many patients progress to metastatic stages, posing a significant therapeutic challenge. Current therapies primarily target cancer cells, overlooking their intricate interactions with the tumor microenvironment (TME) that fuel progression and treatment resistance. Dysregulated innate immunity in breast cancer triggers chronic inflammation, fostering cancer development and therapy resistance. Innate immune pattern recognition receptors (PRRs) have emerged as crucial regulators of the immune response as well as of several immune-mediated or cancer cell-intrinsic mechanisms that either inhibit or promote tumor progression. In particular, several studies showed that the Toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2) and the cyclic GMP-AMP synthase (cGAS)-stimulator of interferon genes (STING) pathways play a central role in breast cancer progression. In this review, we present a comprehensive overview of the role of TLR2 and STING in breast cancer, and we explore the potential to target these PRRs for drug development. This information will significantly impact the scientific discussion on the use of PRR agonists or inhibitors in cancer therapy, opening up new and promising avenues for breast cancer treatment

Edge-Grafted Molecular Junctions between Graphene Nanoplatelets: Applied Chemistry to Enhance Heat Transfer in Nanomaterials

The edge-functionalization of graphene nanoplatelets (GnP) was carried out exploiting diazonium chemistry, aiming at the synthesis of edge decorated nanoparticles to be used as building blocks in the preparation of engineered nanostructured materials for enhanced heat transfer. Indeed, both phenol functionalized and dianiline-bridged GnP (GnP-OH and E-GnP, respectively) were assembled in nanopapers exploiting the formation of non-covalent and covalent molecular junctions, respectively. Molecular dynamics allowed to estimate the thermal conductance for the two different types of molecular junction, suggesting a factor 6 between conductance of covalent vs. non-covalent junctions. Furthermore, the chemical functionalization was observed to drive the self-organization of the nanoflakes into the nanopapers, leading to a 20% enhancement of the thermal conductivity for GnP-OH and E-GnP while the cross plane thermal conductivity was boosted by 150% in the case of E-GnP. The application of chemical functionalization to the engineering of contact resistance in nanoparticles network was therefore validated as a fascinating route for the enhancement of heat exchange efficiency on nanoparticle networks, with great potential impact in low-temperature heat exchange and recovery application

3-D Fibrin Scaffold Improves Stemness of Human Peripheral Blood Endothelial Progenitor Cells

Aims Fibrin is a natural biopolymer appealing for cell-based regenerative therapies, because it can support growth, migration and differentiation of different cell types. Endothelial progenitor cells (EPC) represent a very interesting alternative cell source for mature endothelial cells; the fact that can easily isolated from the peripheral blood, thereby eliminating donor morbidity, makes them ideal in applications in the field of regenerative medicine. We have demonstrated that fibrin can support EPC viability and growth. Aim of this study was to evaluate if fibrin can affect EPC differentiation and stem cell markers expression. Methods Fibrin was prepared mixing commercially available (Kedrion S.p.A. Lucca, Italy) fibrinogen (9 mg/ml) and thrombin (25 U/ml). Clot ultrastructure was investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and cryogenic SEM (CRYO-SEM) to measure fibre diameter and density. Clot elasticity was evaluated by atomic force microscopy (AFM), measuring the tip-sample force by cantilever displacement. EPC were obtained from peripheral blood and cultured on fibrin at the concentration of 1x106cell/cm2. Fibronectin coating was used as a control. Metabolic activity was assessed after 7 and 14 days by WST1 assay and viability by confocal microscopy (calcein incorporation). The expression of both endothelial (CD31, KDR, vWF, Ve-Cadherin) and stem cell markers (nanog, oct-4) was assessed by flow cytometry, confocal microscopy and Real Time RT-PCR. Results SEM analysis revealed a nanometric fibrous structure, with mean fiber diameter of 165?4 nm and mean density of 95.9?0.2 %. CRYO-SEM suggested a reticulate structure with mesh-size up to 10 ?m. Fibrin clot elasticity was 1.78 MPa, as in literature. WST1 assay showed that fibrin increased EPC metabolic activity as compared to fibronectin (fibrin: 0.606?0.056 a.u. vs. fibronectin: 0.311?0.067). Calcein staining demonstrated that EPC were still viable at 14 days. Flow cytometry showed the expression of endothelial markers (CD31=41.8?8.4%; vWF=32.3?3.0%; KDR=89.3?3.7%; VE-Cadherin=41.2?3.8%), confirmed also by confocal microscopy and Real Time RT-PCR. Interestingly, nanog and oct-4 (embryonic stem cell markers) expression was significantly greater on fibrin (p<0.001) as compared to fibronectin. Conclusions These findings suggest that fibrin it is not only a suitable scaffold for EPC growth and viability but also induces EPC differentiation. The observation that Nanog, known as the most important marker of stemness, is maintained longer than on fibronectin, may offer a surplus value to stem cell-based therapies

Responses of peripheral blood mononucleated cells from non-celiac gluten sensitive patients to various cereal sources

Non-celiac gluten sensitivity (NCGS) is still an undefined syndrome whose triggering mechanisms remain unsettled. This study aimed to clarify how cultured peripheral blood mononucleated cells (PBMC) obtained from NCGS patients responded to contact with wheat proteins. Results demonstrated that wheat protein induced an overactivation of the proinflammatory chemokine CXCL10 in PBMC from NCGS patients, and that the overactivation level depends on the cereal source from which proteins are obtained. CXCL10 is able to decrease the transepithelial resistance of monolayers of normal colonocytes (NCM 460) by diminishing the mRNA expression of cadherin-1 (CDH1) and tight junction protein 2 (TJP2), two primary components of the tight junction strands. Thus, CXCL10 overactivation is one of the mechanisms triggered by wheat proteins in PBMC obtained from NCGS patients. This mechanism is activated to a greater extent by proteins from modern with respect to those extracted from ancient wheat genotypes