Arithmetic of rational points and zero-cycles on products of Kummer varieties and K3 surfaces

Let $k$ be a number field. In the spirit of a result by Yongqi Liang, we relate the arithmetic of rational points over finite extensions of $k$ to that of zero-cycles over $k$ for Kummer varieties over $k$. For example, for any Kummer variety $X$ over $k$, we show that if the Brauer-Manin obstruction is the only obstruction to the Hasse principle for rational points on $X$ over all finite extensions of $k$, then the ($2$-primary) Brauer-Manin obstruction is the only obstruction to the Hasse principle for zero-cycles of any given odd degree on $X$ over $k$. We also obtain similar results for products of Kummer varieties, K3 surfaces and rationally connected varieties

A hair-tube survey of small mammals from Serra di Ivrea (NW Italy)

Natura 2000 is the largest coordinated network of protected areas in the world and the main tool for biodiversity conservation within the European Union. Monitoring the protected habitats and species in all network sites by efficient survey methods is essential to plan effective conservation strategies. Small mammals, although including species of conservation interest and being major components of the food web, are often understudied. Through an intensive survey, we investigated the small mammal community of the Special Area of Conservation IT1110057 Serra di Ivrea (Piedmont, NW Italy). We overimposed a 1×1 km grid to the study area and selected a random linear transect in each cell. From mid-May to midJune 2016 we collected small mammal presence data along 55 transects, where we set 955 hair-tubes of 60 mm (n=369) and 30 mm (n=586) in diameter, in a number proportional to each transect length. The largest hair-tubes were positioned on trunks or horizontal branches of trees (ca. 160 cm above ground level) about 100 m from each other, whereas the smallest tubes were tied to shrubs (ca. 80 cm a.g.l.) with 30 m spacing. A bait (hazelnut cream) was used to attract animals and an adhesive strip was attached at each end of the tube to collect the hairs. We checked the hair-tubes twice, with an interval of 15 days. We examined the hairs using a microscope (20× and 40× magnifications) and species were identified by comparing the characteristics of the cuticle scale pattern, medulla and cross-section of the hairs. To collect information on ground-dwelling species, in September 2019 we carried out a four-nights capture session using Sherman traps (7.5×9×23 cm). We placed 10 traps at a distance of 10 m from each other along each of three selected transects. Hazelnut cream was spread at the entrance of each trap, while seeds, a slice of apple and cotton were put at the bottom. Traps were checked daily and trapped individuals were sexed and weighted before being released at the site of capture. In 28650 trap-days we found 185 positive hair-tubes. We detected a total of five to six species: Sciurus vulgaris, Eliomys quercinus, Moscardinus avellanarius, Glis glis and Apodemus sylvaticus/flavicollis, mice’s hairs being indistinguishable by hair morphology. Most occurrences were in the second check (n=156) when we found 126 Apodemus sp., 15 Sciurus vulgaris, 7 Eliomys quercinus, 6 Moscardinus avellanarius and 2 Glis glis. In the first check (n=29) only 19 Apodemus sp., 3 Sciurus vulgaris, 4 Eliomys quercinus and 3 Moscardinus avellanarius were detected. Overall, 168 presence data were collected: 132 Apodemus sp. (13.82%), 17 Sciurus vulgaris (1.78%), 10 Eliomys quercinus (1.05%), 7 Moscardinus avellanarius (0.73%) and 2 Glis glis (0.21%). Sherman trapping allowed detection of 41 small rodents belonging to two species: Apodemus sylvaticus (92.7%) and Myodes glareolus (7.3%). Hair-trapping allowed to record a species not included in the SAC Standard Data Form, namely Moscardinus avellanarius, included in Annex 4 of the Habitats Directive, and also an elusive and understudied species such as Eliomys quercinus. Hair-tubes are a non-invasive and cost-effective method to get information on small mammal distribution. Anyway, considering the number of hair-tubes deployed, capture success was low, also for a potentially common species such as Glis glis, suggesting that a large trapping effort is needed for assessing spatial niche overlap between ecologically similar species and their habitat preferences. The simultaneous use of multiple survey methods may provide a more complete assessment of the small mammal community and allow to collect more reliable data about the genus Apodemus and others ground-dwelling species such as Myodes glareolus

Distribution of HLA-DPB1, -DQB1 -DQA1 alleles among Sardinian celiac patients.

The Sardinian population in many aspects differs from other Caucasoid populations, particularly for its degree of homogeneity. For this reason we have studied 50 adult Sardinian patients with celiac disease (CD) and 50 control healthy Sardinian individuals by RFLP analysis and by extensive oligotyping for 17 HLA-DPB 1, 8-DQB I and 9-DQA 1 alleles, and established their -DPB I alleles and -DQB I -DQA I genotypes. The heterodimer HLA-DQB 1 *0201/-DQA 1 *0501, present in 96% of our patients, is strongly associated with CD susceptibility, confirming published reports. On the other hand we found in 11 of 50 probands (22%) the presence of the allele -DQB 1 *05021 DQA1*0102. This genotype is extremely rare in other Caucasian populations and appears to confer limited protection in CD Sardinian patients

Stochastic finite element analysis of portuguese adobe masonry

Earth is a construction material which has been used since ancient times in many parts of the world according to its local availability, low manufacturing cost, and its need for simple construction techniques. Even though earthen constructions have good thermo-acoustic properties, they typically show a very poor performance under earthquake ground motion. Rammed earth and adobe masonry are the main types of earthen construction. Nowadays, it is estimated that approximately 30% of the world population lives in earthen buildings and this percentage increases up to around 50% in developing countries. Such an information highlights the need for a seismic assessment and strengthening of existing earthen structures. The present study is focused on the mechanical behavior of the traditional adobe masonry (AM) of the Aveiro district, Portugal, where approximately 40% of existing buildings are made of adobe and many of them have a socio-cultural value. Extensive surveys have shown a poor state of conservation of AM buildings, the strengthening of which should be based on a comprehensive knowledge of mechanical properties and behavior. To that aim, a nonlinear finite element (FE) modelling approach is used to simulate the experimental behavior of AM in different boundary and loading conditions associated with axial and diagonal compression tests. The latter are amongst the most common experimental tests used for mechanical characterization of masonry assemblages, particularly to define their macroscopic response to uniaxial compression and shear. Based on statistics for mechanical properties of adobe bricks and mud mortar provided by past experimental tests, a macromechanical model of AM was developed within LS-DYNA software and validated against experimental data. The FE models of two types of specimens subjected to axial compression and diagonal compression, separately, were generated. A comparative analysis between numerical and experimental results, both in terms of force–displacement curves and crack patterns, showed that the FE model was able to reproduce the real behavior of AM in different boundary and loading conditions. Afterwards, a single-parameter sensitivity analysis was performed on each AM model to assess whether and how the AM behavior changes under varying material properties. That analysis was the basis for a probabilistic assessment in which a stochastic FE analysis was carried out. Each material property was assumed to be a spatially-distributed random variable in order to reproduce the high level of inhomogeneity provided by material tests on AM constituents, that is adobe bricks and mortar. A small number of model realizations subjected to axial compression was randomly generated through Monte Carlo simulation technique. Two alternative types of stochastic representation were adopted. The former was a simplified stochastic FE modeling (SFEM) in which the spatial variability of material properties was lumped into single brick units, each of them fictitiously extended to the middle of mortar joints. In the second case, an advanced stochastic FE modeling (ASFEM) strategy was used and consisted in a random generation of material properties for all finite elements. It was found that even a limited number of ASFEM simulations allowed the experimental force–displacement response to be captured

Insight from imaging on plaque vulnerability: similarities and differences between coronary and carotid arteries—implications for systemic therapies

Nowadays it is widely accepted that the rupture of the atherosclerotic plaque in coronary and carotid arteries plays a fundamental role in the development of acute myocardial infarctions or cerebrovascular events. In recent years, imaging techniques have explored, with a new level of detail, the atherosclerotic disease generating new evidences that some plaque characteristics are significantly associated to the risk of rupture and subsequent thrombosis or embolization. Moreover, the recent evidence of the anti-atherosclerotic effects determined by lipid-lowering and anti-inflammatory therapies poses a challenge for the choice of therapeutic approaches (best/optimal medical therapy vs. revascularization), maximized by the evidence that coronary and carotid atherosclerosis share common patterns but also differ regarding some important features. In this Review, we discuss the similarities and differences between coronary and carotid artery vulnerable plaque from the imaging point of view and the potential implications for systemic therapies according to the emerging evidence

Cardiac computed tomography radiomics: an emerging tool for the non-invasive assessment of coronary atherosclerosis

In the last decades, significant advances have been made in the preventive approaches to cardiovascular disease. Even so, coronary artery disease remains one of the main causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Invasive imaging modalities, such as intravascular ultrasound or optical coherence tomography, have played a key role in the comprehension of the pathological processes underlying myocardial infarction and cerebrovascular disease. These imaging techniques have contributed greatly to the identification and phenotyping of the culprit lesion, the so-called vulnerable plaque. Coronary computed tomographic angiography (CCTA) has emerged in more recent years as the non-invasive modality of choice in the study of coronary atherosclerosis, showing in many studies a diagnostic yield comparable to invasive approaches. Moreover, being able to describe extra-luminal characteristics of the affected vessel, CCTA has greatly contributed towards shifting the attention of researchers from the mere quantification of luminal stenosis to the identification of adverse plaque features, which appear to have a stronger prognostic value. However, the identification of some of the hallmarks of vulnerable plaques is qualitative in nature and, therefore, subject to some degree of inter-reader variability. Moreover, CCTA is still unable to identify some fine markers of plaque vulnerability which can be detected by invasive techniques, such as neovascularization and plaque erosion, among others. Nonetheless, radiological images can be viewed as vast 3-D datasets which, via the use of recent technology, allow for the extraction of numerous quantitative features that may be used to accurately phenotype a given lesion. Radiomics is the process of extrapolating innumerable parameters from a given region of interest, with the goal of establishing correlations between quantitative variables and clinical data. These datasets can then be manipulated to create predictive models via the use of automated algorithms in a process called machine learning. As a result of these approaches, radiological images may offer information regarding the characterization of a plaque which can go much beyond the boundaries of what can be qualitatively asserted by the human eye, contributing to expanding the knowledge of the disease and ultimately assist clinical decisions. Thus far, radiomics has found its more consistent area of application in the field of oncology; to present date, the amount of clinical data regarding coronary artery disease is still relatively small, partly due to the technical difficulties associated with the implementation of such techniques to the study of a small and geometrically complex lesion such as the coronary plaque. The present review, after a summary of the imaging modalities most commonly used nowadays in the study of coronary plaques, will provide a perspective on the application of radiomic analysis to coronary artery disease

Inhibition of NF-κB activation sensitizes U937 cells to 3′-azido-3′-deoxythymidine induced apoptosis

In this study, we investigated molecular mechanisms underlying low susceptibility to apoptosis induced by the nucleoside analog azidothymidine (AZT) and the role of nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) activation in these phenomena. A preliminary screening in different cell lines indicated U937 monocytic cell line as suitable to this purpose. Treatment of U937 cells even with suprapharmacological concentrations of AZT induced only moderate levels of apoptosis. Surprisingly, SuperArray analysis showed that AZT induced the transcriptional activity of both pro- and anti-apoptotic genes. Interestingly, moreover, several genes upregulated by AZT were NF-κB related. In fact, AZT, after an initial inhibition of NF-κB activation with respect to control, induced a transient, but consistent, increase in NF-κB-binding activity. Inhibition of NF-κB activation in U937 cells, stably transfected with a dominant-negative IκBα or by pharmacological treatment, sensitized them to apoptosis induced by AZT and impaired the upregulation of anti-apoptotic genes in response to AZT treatment, with respect to control cells. These results indicate that NF-κB activation by AZT has a role in protecting target cells from apoptotic cell death, improving our understanding of the toxicology and the therapeutic usage of this drug