Agricultural Production and Externalities Simulator (APES) prototype to be used in Prototype 1 of SEAMLESS-IF

Production Economics,

Library of model components for process simulation relevant to production activities, Prototype 1 versions

Production Economics,

I rapporti di lavoro nel diritto vivente. Casi e materiali

Raccolta di giurisprudenza sui rapporti di lavoro selezionata e sintetizzata in modo da far risaltare la funzione normativa dei giudici nel diritto del lavor

Analytical Method Performance Validation (AMPE): A Software Tool for Analytical Method Validation

A Windows-based software tool (AMPE - Analytical Method Performance Evaluation) was developed to support the validation of analytical methods. The software implements standard statistical approaches commonly adopted in validation studies to estimate analytical method performance (limit of detection and quantification, accuracy, specificity, working range and linearity of responses), according to ISO 5725, 1994. In addition, AMPE proposes the application of innovative and unique approaches for the assessment of analytical methods' performance. Specifically, AMPE proposes: 1) the use of difference-based indices to quantify the agreement between measurements and reference values; 2) the use of pattern indices to quantify methods' bias with respect to specific external variables; and 3) the application of fuzzy logic to aggregate into synthetic indicators the information collected independently via the different performance statistics, traditionally estimated in validation studies. Aggregated measures are particularly useful for methods comparison, when more than one method is available for a specific analysis and it may be of interest to identify the best performing one taking into account, simultaneously, the information available from different performance statistics. Illustrative examples of the type of outputs expected from AMPE-based validation sessions are given. The extensive data handling capabilities and the wide range of statistics supplied in the software package makes AMPE suitable for specific needs that may arise in different validation studies. The installation package, complete of a fully-documented help file, is distributed free of charge to interested users along with input files exemplary of the type of entry data required to run validation data analyses.JRC.I.3-Molecular Biology and Genomic

WARM: a New Model for Rice Simulation

Process-based models for simulation of agroecosystems have been developed during the last decades with the aim of providing tools for analyzing, understanding and manipulating the main processes characterizing those systems. Models for rice growth simulation are available: Oryza1, CERES-Rice, maNage Rice. However, some of them are very demanding in terms of input required and none takes into account processes with high impact on crop yield such as floodwater effect on vertical thermal profile and crop-disease interactions. Moreover, the models currently available are not supplied with utility tools to assist both users and developers in the calibration and testing activities. To overcome such limitations, an open research group is developing WARM. Relevant model features and sample applications are illustrated in this paper.JRC.DG.G.3-Monitoring agricultural resource

WARM a New Model for Paddy Rice Simulations

The WARM model is the result of the activities of an open research group involving researchers and technicians working on different aspects of rice cultivation and modelling. The objectives of this scientific exchange are the development of a simulation model for flooded rice able to manage all the main aspects influencing crop production, and the collection of high quality data to support development and evaluation activities. Interdisciplinarity is considered a key concept for the WARM team as crucial for developing coherent models, that is models which are not characterized by extreme levels of complexity in the representation of some processes and lack of information in other compartments of the system studied. The model currently includes components for the simulation of crop growth and development, water dynamics under flooded conditions, floodwater effect on vertical thermal profile, spikelet sterility, and effect of blast disease on growth. Other modules are under development. In order to increase model robustness through the collection of information about its suitability in a wide range of conditions, specific attention has been dedicated to increase the usability of the model. For this reason, we have integrated in WARM tools (i) for Monte Carlo based sensitivity analysis, (ii) for automatic calibration (based on simple and genetic evolutions of the simplex), and (iii) for evaluation of model performances. Preliminary studies about the evaluation of the relevance and performances of WARM in comparison with models of large use worldwide (i.e. CropSyst and WOFOST) in Northern Italy underlined that the model is able to simulate crop growth with the same level of accuracy but with a low total number of parameters, which are balanced in terms of influence on model outputs. A version of WARM linked to the MARS database is currently used by the European Commission for rice yield forecasts at European level.JRC.I.6-Biotechnology and GMO

Expanding Horizons in the Validation of GMO Analytical Methods: Fuzzy-Based Expert Systems

Validation is the process establishing the suitability of an analytical method for a particular purpose. Various guidelines defining statistical procedures for validation of chemical, bio-chemical, pharmaceutical and genetic methods have been developed and ad hoc validation metrics (indices and test statistics) are available and routinely used, for in-house and across laboratories testing, and decision-making. However, there is no universally accepted practice for assay validation and, often, subjectivity plays an important role in the interpretation of validation studies¿ results. Instead, the key to rational validation studies relies upon the formalisation and harmonisation of procedures for their design and interpretation of results. Fuzzy-based techniques can be helpful in such respect. Fuzzy logic allows summarising the information obtained by classic independent validation statistics into one synthetic index of overall method performance. The possibility of having a comprehensive indicator of method performance has the advantage of permitting direct method comparison, facilitating the evaluation of many individual, possibly contradictory, metrics. Objective of this paper is to illustrate the advantages that a fuzzy-based aggregation method could bring into the validation of analytical methods and to propose its application for the evaluation of methods¿ performance. Validation metrics are compared for practical examples of method performance in collaborative studies. Fuzzy-logic based rules are shown to be applicable to improve insights into model quality and interpretation of results.JRC.I.6-Biotechnology and GMO

Long-term SARS-CoV-2 infection associated with viral dissemination in different body fluids Including bile in two patients with acute cholecystitis

Our study aimed to investigate the kinetics of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in bile and in different body fluids of two SARS-CoV-2 positive patients with acute cholecystitis by innovative droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) assays. For each patient, nasopharyngeal- and rectal swabs, bile, urine, and plasma samples were collected at different time points for SARS-CoV-2 RNA quantification by two ddPCR assays. For both patients, ddPCR revealed persistent and prolonged detection of viral RNA in the nasopharyngeal swab despite triple-negative or single-positive results by qRT-PCR. In Patient 1, SARS-CoV-2 RNA dropped more rapidly in bile and rectal-swab and declined slowly in nasopharyngeal swab and plasma, becoming undetectable in all compartments 97 days after symptoms started. Conversely, in patient 2, SARS-CoV-2 RNA was detected, even if at low copies, in all body samples (with the exception of urine) up to 75 days after the onset of symptoms. This study highlights that SARS-CoV-2 RNA can persist for a prolonged time in respiratory samples and in several biological samples despite negativity to qRT-PCR, supporting SARS-CoV-2's ability to provoke persistent and disseminated infection and therefore to contribute to extra-pulmonary clinical manifestations

Circulating SARS-CoV-2 variants in Italy, October 2020-March 2021

A growing number of emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants is being identified worldwide, potentially impacting the effectiveness of current vaccines. We report the data obtained in several Italian regions involved in the SARS-CoV-2 variant monitoring from the beginning of the epidemic and spanning the period from October 2020 to March 2021