Augmentation and enrichment of cultural exhibits via digital interactive sound reconstruction of ancient Greek musical instruments

A significant number of Ancient Musical Instruments (AMIs) are exhibited in archaeological museums all over the world. Organized sound (music and songs) was the prominent factor in the process of both formulating and addressing intellectual activity and artistic creation. Thus, the way AMIs sound is a key element of study for many scientific fields such as anthropology, archaeology, and archaeomusicology. Most of the time, the excavated instruments are not in good condition and rather fragile to move around (in order to perform studio recordings or exhibit them). Building replicas was the only way to study their performance. Unfortunately, replicas are not trivial to build and, once built, not modifiable. On the other hand, digitally simulated instruments are easier to build and modify (e.g., in terms of geometry, material, etc.), which is a rather important feature in order to study them. Moreover, the audio stimulus and the digital interaction with an AMI through a Graphical User Interface would give more engagement and knowledge to the museum's visitor. In this work, we show the simulation methods of wind (classes: Aulos, Plagiaulos, Syrinx, and Salpinx) and string (classes: Phorminx, Chelys, Barbitos, Kithara, and Trigonon) Greek AMIs and the relevant built-applications useful to scientists and broader audience. We here propose a user-friendly, adaptable, and expandable digital tool which reproduces the sound of the above classes of AMIs and will: a) allow the museum scientists to create specific Auditory Virtual Musical Instruments and b) enrich the experience of a museum visitor (either in situ or on line) through a digital sound reconstruction and a 3D visual representation of AMIs, allowing real-time interaction and even music creation. © 2021 Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche. All rights reserved

Platelet-derived chemokines in inflammation and atherosclerosis

Platelets are inflammatory anuclear cells with a well-established role in the development and manifestation of atherosclerosis. Activated platelets secrete a plethora of chemokines including CXCL4 or platelet factor 4 (PF4), CCL5, CXCL12 or stromal cell derived factor-1α (SDF-1α), CXCL16 and others, which initiate or promote local inflammatory processes at sites of vascular injury. These processes are mainly mediated by the recruitment of circulating haematopoietic stem cells, neutrophils, monocytes or lymphocytes on vascular wall. Under acute ischemic conditions platelet-derived chemokines may promote the mobilization of bone marrow-derived progenitor cells and their homing at lesion sites. This review focuses on the role of platelet-derived chemokines in inflammation and atherosclerosis. Further, we discuss the clinical value of plasma levels of chemokines in the prognosis of atherosclerotic heart disease. © 201

Audio enhancement of physical models of musical instruments using optimal correction factors: The recorder case

A simulation of a musical instrument is considered to be a successful one when there is a good resemblance between the model’s synthesized sound and the real instrument’s sound. In this work, we propose the integration of physical modeling (PM) methods with an optimization process to regulate a generated digital signal. Its goal is to find a new set of values of the PM’s parameters’ that would lead to a synthesized signal matching as much as possible to reference signals corresponding to the physical musical instrument. The reference signals can be: (a) described by their acoustic characteristics (e.g., fundamental frequencies, inharmonicity, etc.) and/or (b) the signals themselves (e.g., impedances, recordings, etc.). We put this method into practice for a commercial recorder, simulated using the digital waveguides’ PM technique. The reference signals, in our case, are the recorded signals of the physical instrument. The degree of similarity between the synthesized (PM) and the recorded signal (musical instrument) is calculated by the signals’ linear cross-correlation. Our results show that the adoption of the optimization process resulted in more realistic synthesized signals by (a) enhancing the degree of similarity between the synthesized and the recorded signal (the average absolute Pearson Correlation Coefficient increased from 0.13 to 0.67), (b) resolving mistuning issues (the average absolute deviation of the synthesized from the recorded signals’ pitches reduced from 40 cents to the non-noticeable level of 2 cents) and (c) similar sound color characteristics and matched overtones (the average absolute deviation of the synthesized from the recorded signals’ first five partials reduced from 41 cents to 2 cents). © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland

Pharmacological management of diabetic nephropathy

Introduction: Diabetes mellitus (DM) is one of the most common diseases worldwide. Its adverse effects on several body organs, have made treatment of DM a priority. One of the most serious complications of DM is diabetic nephropathy (DN). Objective: The aim of this review is to critically discuss available data on the pharmacological management of DN. Methods: A comprehensive review of the literature was performed to identify studies assessing the impact of several drug classes on DN. Results: Several studies have been conducted in order to find a novel and effective treatment of DN. So far, the cornerstone therapy of DN consists of renin-angiotensin system (RAS) inhibitors, agents that decrease the synthesis of intrarenal angiotensin II or block its receptors. Their antiproteinuric and anti-hypertensive effects can not only decelerate the progress of DN but prevent its onset as well. Novel antidiabetic drugs, such as sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitors (SGLT-2i) and glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RA), are promising agents in the therapy of DN, due to their positive effect on renal and cardiovascular adverse events. From lipid-lowering agents, atorvastatin improves DN up to stage 3 and substantially reduces CVD. Conclusion: RAS inhibitors, SGLT-2i and GLP-1 agonists were found to be beneficial for the treatment of DN. Larger renal trials are needed in order to incorporate these drugs into the first line treatment of DN. © 2020 Bentham Science Publishers

ENTROTUNER: A Computational Method Adopting the Musician's Interaction with the Instrument to Estimate its Tuning

Archeomusicologists commonly use methods based on the physical properties and the relative tuning system of a musical instrument in order to estimate its tones. However, because the musician often alters the tones' frequency, for example, while playing in wind instruments by means of embouchure or by stressing the string in string instruments, the current methods that neglect the musician's interaction with the instrument cannot provide solid results. In this work, we introduce ENTROTUNER, a computational method, based on mathematical optimization, to more accurately estimate the generated tones by considering: the instrument as a sound production mechanism, the relevant musical scale(s), and the musician's interaction with the instrument. We simulate this interaction as a system that, by following tuning rules, aims to maximize the partials' overlap (harmonicity), coded as entropy's minimization of the aggregated tones' spectrum. Last, we put ENTROTUNER into practice for the ancient Greek wind instrument Aulos. The results reveal that, compared with the traditional methods, ENTROTUNER highlights increased harmonicity (entropy decreased by 0.341bits), eleven additional consonant intervals, as well as 47.8% more tuning quality for the musical instrument. © 2013 IEEE

The effect of in vitro homocystinuria on the suckling rat hippocampal acetylcholinesterase

Homocystinuria is due to enzymatic deficiencies resulting in elevated blood levels of homocysteine (Hcy), homocystine (Hci), and/or methionine (Met) and the clinical presentation of mental retardation, seizures, and cardiovascular disease. Since these symptoms may be closely implicated with acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity, we aimed to investigate whether this metabolic disorder affects the hippocampal AChE activity in 21 days suckling Wistar rat hippocampus. Various concentrations of Hcy, Hci (0.05-0.5 mM), or Met (0.05-2 mM) as well as Mixture A (Mix A) (0.3 mM (Hcy)+0.2 mM (Hci)+1.0 mM (Met) = in vitro cystathionine β-synthase deficiency homocystinuria), Mix B1 (Hcy 0.3 mM + Hci 0.2 mM=in vitro severe methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase deficiency homocystinuria) or Mix B2 (Hcy 0.1 mM+Hci 0.05 mM=in vitro mild methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase deficiency homocystinuria) were preincubated with homogenized hippocampii or with eel Electrophorus electricus pure AChE. AChE was evaluated spectrophotometrically. Hcy or Met stimulated hippocampal AChE by 50% (p < 0.001) at low concentrations of the amino acids (up to 0.3-0.5 mM), whereas Hci inhibited the enzyme by 40% (p < 0.001). Mix A, Mix B1, or Mix B2 activated hippocampal AChE by 40, 30, (p < 0.001), and 12% (p < 0.01), respectively. In contrast, the S-containing amino acids, Mix A, Mix B1, Mix B2 failed to affect the pure AChE activity. Conclusions: a) The presence of -SH group in Hcy and Met may result in hippocampal AChE stimulation and the redox isomer Hci in the inhibition of the enzyme, probably by producing free radicals, and b) The SH-amino acids seem to affect the hippocampal enzyme indirectly, possibly by lipid(s)-protein modifications(s) and Hci by inducing oxidative stress, since no effect was observed on pure AChE activity. © Springer Science+Business Media, Inc. 2006

Platelet activation in atherogenesis associated with low-grade inflammation.

Further to the established role of platelets in thrombosis and hemostasis, increasing evidence suggests that they also play a crucial role in atherogenesis. Platelets produce a number of agents contributing to the systemic low-grade inflammation implicated in atherogenesis. Platelet activation following inflammatory stimulus leads to the expression of surface receptors such as GPIb/IX/V, P-selectin, CD40, and to the release of several pro-inflammatory agents. Platelet receptors and released molecules play a critical role during the initiation and the progression of atherosclerosis by mediating leukocytes recruitment and adhesion to the vascular wall. Endothelial dysfunction, an early feature in atherosclerosis, is associated with low-grade inflammation within the vascular wall, and it leads to the reduced bioavailability of nitric oxide. Dysfunctional endothelium itself releases inflammatory molecules leading toward platelets activation and adhesion to the vascular wall. Platelets are no longer considered simply as cells participating in thrombosis. They are regulators of multiple processes in the human body, including inflammation, regulation of endothelial physiology and atherogenesis. The design of new therapeutic strategies targeting platelets and their impact in atherosclerosis-related low-grade inflammation are in the center of current cardiovascular research

Postprandial lower limb pain: An unusual presentation of visceral arteries occlusion

This case report describes an atypical and unique presentation of mesenteric arteries occlusive disease. The patient presented with typical symptoms of chronic mesenteric ischemia, as well as with an atypical new symptom; postprandial buttock and lower limbs pain. Pain followed the time curve of the postprandial abdominal discomfort, starting 30 min after meals and gradually resolving within 2 h. The patient had been tolerating the signs of chronic mesenteric ischemia quite well by adjusting the quantity of food per meal to relieve symptoms. Angiography showed that the celiac artery, the superior mesenteric artery, and distal aorta were occluded, leaving the inferior mesenteric artery as the only feeding vessel of all abdominal viscera and both the lower limbs. Since an English medical literature search returned only one marginally similar case, we consider this case of iliac arteries’ “steal syndrome” from the inferior mesenteric artery unique. © The Author(s) 2014 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.na

Involvement of cardiovascular system as the critical point in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) prognosis and recovery

The novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has already caused more than 300,000 deaths worldwide. Several studies have elucidated the central role of cardiovascular complications in the disease course. Herein, we provide a concise review of current knowledge regarding the involvement of cardiovascular system in the pathogenesis and prognosis of COVID-19. We summarize data from 21 studies involving in total more than 21,000 patients from Asia, Europe, and the USA indicating that severe disease is associated with the presence of myocardial injury, heart failure, and arrhythmias. Additionally, we present the clinical and laboratory differences between recovered and deceased patients highlighting the importance of cardiac manifestations. For the infected patients, underlying cardiovascular comorbidities and particularly existing cardiovascular disease seem to predispose to the development of cardiovascular complications, which are in turn associated with higher mortality rates. We provide mechanistic insights into the underlying mechanisms including direct myocardial damage by the virus and the consequences of the hyperinflammatory syndrome developed later in the disease course. Finally, we summarize current knowledge on therapeutic modalities and recommendations by scientific societies and experts regarding the cardiovascular management of patients with COVID-19. © 2020 Hellenic Society of Cardiolog