Numerical analysis of shells. Volume 2 - User's manual for ''STARS-2'' - Shell Theory Automated for Rotational Structures-2, digital computer program

Imput information for application of Shell Theory Automated for Rotational Structures, /STARS 2/ digital computer program - Vol.

Numerical analysis of shells. Volume 3 - Engineer's program manual for ''STARS-2'' - Shell Theory Automated for Rotational Structures-2, digital computer program

Manual of engineering programming information for Shell Theory Automated for Rotational Structures /STARS 2/ - Vol.

Performance assessment of GPS/GLONASS single point positioning in an urban environment

In signal-degraded environments such as urban canyons and mountainous area, many GNSS signals are either blocked or strongly degraded by natural and artificial obstacles. In such scenarios standalone GPS is often unable to guarantee a continuous and accurate positioning due to lack (or the poor quality) of signals. The combination of different GNSSs could be a suitable approach to fill this gap, because the multi-constellation system guarantees an improved satellite availability compared to standalone GPS, thus providing enhanced accuracy, continuity and integrity of the positioning. The present GNSSs are GPS, GLONASS, Galileo and Beidou, but the latter two are still in the development phase. In this work GPS/GLONASS systems are combined for single point positioning and their performance are assessed for different configurations. Using GPS/GLONASS multi-constellation implies the addition of an additional unknown, i.e. the intersystem time scale offset, which requires a sacrifice of one measurement. Since the intersystem offset is quasi-constant over a short period, a pseudo-measurement can be introduced to compensate the sacrifice. The benefit after adding a pseudo-measurement has been demonstrated in a vehicular test

A Galileo IOV Assessment: Measurement and Position Domain

The European GNSS, Galileo, is currently in its In-Orbit Validation (IOV) phase where four satellites are finally available for computing the user position. In this phase, the analysis of the measurements and Position Velocity and Time (PVT) obtained from the IOV satellites can provide insight on the potentialities of the Galileo system. A methodology is suggested for the analysis of the Galileo IOV pseudorange and pseudorange rates collected from the E1 and E5 frequencies. Several days of data were collected and processed to determine figures of merits such as RMS and maximum errors of the Galileo observables. From the analysis, it emerges that Galileo is able to achieve better accuracy with respect to GPS. A thorough analysis of the PVT performance is also achieved using broadcast ephemerides. Galileo and GPS PVTs are compared under similar geometry conditions showing the potential of the Galileo system.JRC.G.5-Security technology assessmen

Toxoplasma gondii F-actin forms an extensive filamentous network required for material exchange and parasite maturation

Apicomplexan actin is important during the parasite's life cycle. Its polymerization kinetics are unusual, permitting only short, unstable F-actin filaments. It has not been possible to study actin in vivo and so its physiological roles have remained obscure, leading to models distinct from conventional actin behaviour. Here a modified version of the commercially available actin-chromobody was tested as a novel tool for visualising F-actin dynamics in Toxoplasma gondii. Cb labels filamentous actin structures within the parasite cytosol and labels an extensive F-actin network that connects parasites within the parasitophorous vacuole and allows vesicles to be exchanged between parasites. In the absence of actin, parasites lack a residual body and inter-parasite connections and grow in an asynchronous and disorganized manner. Collectively, these data identify new roles for actin in the intracellular phase of the parasites lytic cycle and provide a robust new tool for imaging parasitic F-actin dynamics

Functional Characterization of the RNA Chaperone Hfq in the Opportunistic Human Pathogen Stenotrophomonas maltophilia. [*Roscetto M, *Angrisano T, co-first authors].

Hfq is an RNA-binding protein known to regulate a variety of cellular processes by interacting with small RNAs (sRNAs) and mRNAs in prokaryotes. Stenotrophomonas maltophilia is an important opportunistic pathogen affecting primarily hospitalized and immunocompromised hosts. We constructed an hfq deletion mutant (Δhfq) of S. maltophilia and compared the behaviors of wild-type and Δhfq S. maltophilia cells in a variety of assays. This revealed that S. maltophilia Hfq plays a role in biofilm formation and cell motility, as well as susceptibility to antimicrobial agents. Moreover, Hfq is crucial for adhesion to bronchial epithelial cells and is required for the replication of S. maltophilia in macrophages. Differential RNA sequencing analysis (dRNA-seq) of RNA isolated from S. maltophilia wild-type and Δhfq strains showed that Hfq regulates the expression of genes encoding flagellar and fimbrial components, transmembrane proteins, and enzymes involved in different metabolic pathways. Moreover, we analyzed the expression of several sRNAs identified by dRNA-seq in wild-type and Δhfq S. maltophilia cells grown in different conditions on Northern blots. The accumulation of two sRNAs was strongly reduced in the absence of Hfq. Furthermore, based on our dRNA-seq analysis we provide a genome-wide map of transcriptional start sites in S. maltophilia

Quantitative phospho-proteomics reveals the Plasmodium merozoite triggers pre-invasion host kinase modification of the red cell cytoskeleton

The invasive blood-stage malaria parasite - the merozoite - induces rapid morphological changes to the target erythrocyte during entry. However, evidence for active molecular changes in the host cell that accompany merozoite invasion is lacking. Here, we use invasion inhibition assays, erythrocyte resealing and high-definition imaging to explore red cell responses during invasion. We show that although merozoite entry does not involve erythrocyte actin reorganisation, it does require ATP to complete the process. Towards dissecting the ATP requirement, we present an in depth quantitative phospho-proteomic analysis of the erythrocyte during each stage of invasion. Specifically, we demonstrate extensive increased phosphorylation of erythrocyte proteins on merozoite attachment, including modification of the cytoskeletal proteins beta-spectrin and PIEZO1. The association with merozoite contact but not active entry demonstrates that parasite-dependent phosphorylation is mediated by host-cell kinase activity. This provides the first evidence that the erythrocyte is stimulated to respond to early invasion events through molecular changes in its membrane architecture.</p

Performance Analysis of Constrained Loosely Coupled GPS/INS Integration Solutions

The paper investigates approaches for loosely coupled GPS/INS integration. Error performance is calculated using a reference trajectory. A performance improvement can be obtained by exploiting additional map information (for example, a road boundary). A constrained solution has been developed and its performance compared with an unconstrained one. The case of GPS outages is also investigated showing how a Kalman filter that operates on the last received GPS position and velocity measurements provides a performance benefit. Results are obtained by means of simulation studies and real dat