636 research outputs found
An analysis of the relationships between articulation and auditory discrimination in kindergarten children
Thesis (Ed.M.)--Boston Universit
Gravitomagnetic corrections to the lensing deflection angle for spiral galaxy models
We investigate the effects of the gravitomagnetic corrections to the usual
gravitational lens quantities for a specific lensing mass distribution modelled
after spiral galaxies. An exponential disk is embedded into two different
spherical halo models where disk and haloes parameters are fixed according to
the observed mass to light ratios, galaxy magnitudes and rotation curves. The
general expressions for the lensing deflection angle are given also taking into
account the orientation of the galaxy disk plane with respect to the lens
plane. It is found that the gravitomagnetic term changes the deflection angle
by a typical amount of the order of ten microarcseconds.Comment: 7 pages, 2 figures, accepted for publication on MNRA
Innate immune modulation by GM-CSF and IL-3 in health and disease
Granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) and inteleukin-3 (IL-3) have long been known as mediators of emergency myelopoiesis, but recent evidence has highlighted their critical role in modulating innate immune effector functions in mice and humans. This new wealth of knowledge has uncovered novel aspects of the pathogenesis of a range of disorders, including infectious, neoplastic, autoimmune, allergic and cardiovascular diseases. Consequently, GM-CSF and IL-3 are now being investigated as therapeutic targets for some of these disorders, and some phase I/II clinical trials are already showing promising results. There is also pre-clinical and clinical evidence that GM-CSF can be an effective immunostimulatory agent when being combined with anti-cytotoxic T lymphocyte-associated protein 4 (anti-CTLA-4) in patients with metastatic melanoma as well as in novel cancer immunotherapy approaches. Finally, GM-CSF and to a lesser extent IL-3 play a critical role in experimental models of trained immunity by acting not only on bone marrow precursors but also directly on mature myeloid cells. Altogether, characterizing GM-CSF and IL-3 as central mediators of innate immune activation is poised to open new therapeutic avenues for several immune-mediated disorders and define their potential in the context of immunotherapies
Superantigenic Activation of Human Cardiac Mast Cells.
B cell superantigens, also called immunoglobulin superantigens, bind to the variable regions of either the heavy or light chain of immunoglobulins mirroring the lymphocyte-activating properties of classical T cell superantigens. Protein A of Staphylococcus aureus, protein L of Peptostreptococcus magnus, and gp120 of HIV are typical immunoglobulin superantigens. Mast cells are immune cells expressing the high-affinity receptor for IgE (FcΔRI) and are strategically located in the human heart, where they play a role in several cardiometabolic diseases. Here, we investigated whether immunoglobulin superantigens induced the activation of human heart mast cells (HHMCs). Protein A induced the de novo synthesis of cysteinyl leukotriene C4 (LTC4) from HHMCs through the interaction with IgE VH3+ bound to FcΔRI. Protein L stimulated the production of prostaglandin D2 (PGD2) from HHMCs through the interaction with Îș light chains of IgE. HIV glycoprotein gp120 induced the release of preformed (histamine) and de novo synthesized mediators, such as cysteinyl leukotriene C4 (LTC4), angiogenic (VEGF-A), and lymphangiogenic (VEGF-C) factors by interacting with the VH3 region of IgE. Collectively, our data indicate that bacterial and viral immunoglobulin superantigens can interact with different regions of IgE bound to FcΔRI to induce the release of proinflammatory, angiogenic, and lymphangiogenic factors from human cardiac mast cells.This work was supported in part by grants from Regione Campania CISI-Lab Project, CRĂšME Project, and TIMING Project
A BeckwithâWiedemann-associated CDKN1C mutation allows the identification of a novel nuclear localization signal in human p57Kip2
p57Kip2 protein is a member of the CIP/Kip family, mainly localized in the nucleus where it exerts its Cyclin/CDKs inhibitory function. In addition, the protein plays key roles in embryogenesis, differentiation, and carcinogenesis depending on its cellular localization and interactors. Mutations of CDKN1C, the gene encoding human p57Kip2, result in the development of different genetic diseases, including BeckwithâWiedemann, IMAGe and SilverâRussell syndromes. We investigated a specific BeckwithâWiedemann associated CDKN1C change (c.946 C>T) that results in the substitution of the C-terminal amino acid (arginine 316) with a tryptophan (R316W-p57Kip2). We found a clear redistribution of R316W-p57Kip2, in that while the wild-type p57Kip2 mostly occurs in the nucleus, the mutant form is also distributed in the cytoplasm. Transfection of two expression constructs encoding the p57Kip2 N-and C-terminal domain, respectively, allows the mapping of the nuclear localization signal(s) (NLSs) between residues 220â316. Moreover, by removing the basic RKRLR sequence at the protein C-terminus (from 312 to 316 residue), p57Kip2 was confined in the cytosol, implying that this sequence is absolutely required for nuclear entry. In conclusion, we identified an unreported p57Kip2 NLS and suggest that its absence or mutation might be of relevance in CDKN1C-associated human diseases determining significant changes of p57Kip2 localization/regulatory roles
Il Sito Web accessibile dellâOsservatorio Vesuviano
Il sito web dellâOsservatorio Vesuviano (OV) nasce nel 1997. Lo scopo era quello di fornire
informazioni sullo stato di attivitĂ dei vulcani della Campania, per i quali lâOsservatorio Vesuviano
gestisce le reti strumentali di monitoraggio, nonché di far conoscere le attività scientifiche e i dati
prodotti dallâente.
Nel 2002 il sito ha subito una sostanziale riorganizzazione, a seguito di una ristrutturazione
dellâOsservatorio Vesuviano, che insieme ad altri istituzioni scientifiche affini era confluito, allâinizio
del 2001, nellâIstituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (INGV) diventandone la Sezione di
Napoli. La nuova versione ha tenuto conto della piĂč complessa articolazione delle attivitĂ
dellâOsservatorio Vesuviano, che negli anni aveva visto aumentare il numero dei propri ricercatori e
tecnici e aveva ulteriormente differenziato e specializzato le proprie attivitĂ . Inoltre la nuova
strutturazione come sezione dellâINGV consentiva unâorganizzazione in UnitĂ Funzionali e Servizi.
In occasione della realizzazione della seconda versione del sito Ăš stata effettuata unâanalisi
sistematica dellâutenza basata prevalentemente sulla posta elettronica ricevuta allâindirizzo
dedicato alle richieste di informazioni da parte del pubblico. Questo ha consentito di individuare
diverse tipologie di utenza. In funzione delle crescenti richieste di informazioni Ăš stato inoltre
organizzato un gruppo per curare il servizio âinfoâ, basato su richieste di informazione via mail, che
ha dato modo di meglio delineare gli argomenti di maggior interesse da parte dei visitatori
(Giudicepietro et al., 2006). Questa attivitĂ ha fatto nascere anche una sezione dedicata alle
domande frequenti che, soprattutto nei periodi di maggior attenzione per le tematiche del rischio
vulcanico, Ăš risultata un utile supporto alla richiesta di informazioni da parte del pubblico.
Negli ultimi anni in Italia, come in molti altri paesi del mondo, si Ăš sviluppata una normativa in
materia di web che ha dettato le linee guida per lo sviluppo dei siti delle Pubbliche Amministrazioni
(Circolare Funzione Pubblica 13 marzo 2001, n. 3/2001 âLinee guida per l'organizzazione,
l'usabilitĂ e l'accessibilitĂ dei siti web delle pubbliche amministrazioniâ) nonchĂ© ha richiamato
lâattenzione sullâaccessibilitĂ . La normativa italiana relativa allâaccessibilitĂ ha lo scopo principale di
garantire la fruizione delle informazioni diffuse sul web e dei relativi servizi informatici anche alle
persone disabili in ottemperanza al principio di uguaglianza ai sensi dell'articolo 3 della
Costituzione. In particolare la Legge del 9 gennaio 2004 n. 4 (pubblicata in G.U. 13 del
17.01.2004) definisce lâaccessibilitĂ delle fonti di informazione e servizi informatici come âla
capacitĂ dei sistemi informatici, nelle forme e nei limiti consentiti dalle conoscenze tecnologiche, di
erogare servizi e fornire informazioni fruibili, senza discriminazioni, anche da parte di coloro che a
causa di disabilitĂ necessitano di tecnologie assistive o configurazioni particolariâ. Le tecnologie
assistive sono definite nella stessa legge come âgli strumenti e le soluzioni tecniche, hardware e
software, che permettono alla persona disabile, superando o riducendo le condizioni di svantaggio,
di accedere alle informazioni e ai servizi erogati dai sistemi informaticiâ. Un esempio di tecnologia
4
assistiva puĂČ essere uno screen reader, ovvero un lettore di schermo, strumento utilizzato dai non
vedenti per usare il computer.
In attuazione della legge del 9 gennaio 2004 n. 4, il Decreto Ministeriale dell'8 luglio 2005
"Requisiti tecnici e i diversi livelli per l'accessibilitĂ agli strumenti informatici", definisce 22 requisiti
per lâaccessibilitĂ che i siti delle Pubbliche Amministrazioni devono soddisfare. La seconda
versione del sito dellâOsservatorio Vesuviano non era conforme ai requisiti richiesti da questo
decreto, pertanto si Ăš resa necessaria una nuova ristrutturazione del sito che consentisse
lâadeguamento alla normativa vigente (www.w3.org, www.governo.it, www.pubbliaccesso.it,
www.cnipa.gov.it)
Sub-horizon Perturbation Behavior in Extended Quintessence
In the general context of scalar-tensor theories, we consider a model in
which a scalar field coupled to the Ricci scalar in the gravitational sector of
the Lagrangian, is also playing the role of an ``Extended Quintessence'' field,
dominating the energy content of the Universe at the present time. In this
framework, we study the linear evolution of the perturbations in the
Quintessence energy density, showing that a new phenomenon, named here
``gravitational dragging'', can enhance the scalar field density perturbations
as much as they reach the non-linear regime. The possibility of dark energy
clumps formation is thus discussed.Comment: Proceedings of the 5th International UCLA Symposium on Sources and
Detection of Dark Matter and Dark Energy in the Universe (Dark Matter 2002),
Marina del Rey, California, USA, 20-22 February 200
Environmental Monitoring of Legionella in Hospitals in the Campania Region: A 5-Year Study
: Legionella is a pathogen that colonizes soils, freshwater, and building water systems. People who are most affected are those with immunodeficiencies, so it is necessary to monitor its presence in hospitals. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the presence of Legionella in water samples collected from hospitals in the Campania region, Southern Italy. A total of 3365 water samples were collected from January 2018 to December 2022 twice a year in hospital wards from taps and showers, tank bottoms, and air-treatment units. Microbiological analysis was conducted in accordance with the UNI EN ISO 11731:2017, and the correlations between the presence of Legionella and water temperature and residual chlorine were investigated. In total, 708 samples (21.0%) tested positive. The most represented species was L. pneumophila 2-14 (70.9%). The serogroups isolated were 1 (27.7%), 6 (24.5%), 8 (23.3%), 3 (18.9%), 5 (3.1%), and 10 (1.1%). Non-pneumophila Legionella spp. represented 1.4% of the total. Regarding temperature, the majority of Legionella positive samples were found in the temperature range of 26.0-40.9 °C. An influence of residual chlorine on the presence of the bacterium was observed, confirming that chlorine disinfection is effective for controlling contamination. The positivity for serogroups other than serogroup 1 suggested the need to continue environmental monitoring of Legionella and to focus on the clinical diagnosis of other serogroups
The Milky Way rotation curve in Horava - Lifshitz theory
The Horava - Lifshitz (HL) theory has recently attracted a lot of interest as
a viable solution to some quantum gravity related problems and the presence of
an effective cosmological constant able to drive the cosmic speed up. We show
here that, in the weak field limit, the HL proposal leads to a modification of
the gravitational potential because of two additive terms (scaling respectively
as and ) to the Newtonian potential. We then derive a
general expression to compute the rotation curve of an extended system under
the assumption that the mass density only depends on the cylindrical
coordinates showing that the HL modification induces a dependence of
the circular velocity on the mass function which is a new feature of the
theory. As a first exploratory analysis, we then try fitting the Milky Way
rotation curve using its visible components only in order to see whether the HL
modified potential can be an alternative to the dark matter framework. This
turns out not to be the case so that we argue that dark matter is still needed,
but the amount of dark matter and the dark halo density profile have to be
revised according to the new HL potential.Comment: 10 pages, 1 figure, accepted for publication on MNRA
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