Toluene Adsorption by Mesoporous Silicas with Different Textural Properties: A Model Study for VOCs Retention and Water Remediation

In this work, dierent mesoporous silicas were studied as potential sorbents for toluene, selected as a model molecule of aromatic organic fuel-based pollutants. Three siliceous materials with dierent textural and surface properties (i.e., fumed silica and mesoporous Santa Barbara Amorphous (SBA)-15 and Mobil Composition of matter (MCM)-41 materials) were considered and the eect of their physico-chemical properties on the toluene adsorption process was studied. In particular, FT-IR spectroscopy was used to qualitatively study the interactions between the toluene molecule and the surface of silicas, while volumetric adsorption analysis allowed the quantitative determination of the toluene adsorption capacity. The combined use of these techniques revealed that textural properties of the sorbents, primarily porosity, are the driving forces that control the adsorption process. Considering that, under real conditions of usage, the sorbents are soaked in water, their hydrothermal stability was also investigated and toluene adsorption by both the gas and aqueous phase on hydrothermally pre-treated samples was studied. The presence of ordered porosity, together with the dierent pore size distribution and the amount of silanol groups, strongly aected the adsorption process. In toluene adsorption from water, SBA-15 performed better than MCM-41

Brain Plasticity and Disease: A Matter of Inhibition

One major goal in Neuroscience is the development of strategies promoting neural plasticity in the adult central nervous system, when functional recovery from brain disease and injury is limited. New evidence has underscored a pivotal role for cortical inhibitory circuitries in regulating plasticity both during development and in adulthood. This paper summarizes recent findings showing that the inhibition-excitation balance controls adult brain plasticity and is at the core of the pathogenesis of neurodevelopmental disorders like autism, Down syndrome, and Rett syndrome

Intranasal delivery of BDNF rescues memory deficits in AD11 mice and reduces brain microgliosis

A decrease in brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a neurotrophin essential for synaptic function, plasticity and neuronal survival, is evident early in the progression of Alzheimer's disease (AD), being apparent in subjects with mild cognitive impairment or mild AD, and both proBDNF and mature BDNF levels are positively correlated with cognitive measures. BDNF delivery is, therefore, considered of great interest as a potentially useful therapeutic strategy to contrast AD. Invasive BDNF administration has indeed been recently used in animal models of AD with promising results in rescuing memory deficits, synaptic density and cell loss. Here, we tested whether non-invasive intranasal administration of different BDNF concentrations after the onset of cognitive and anatomical deficits (6 months of age) could rescue neuropathological and memory deficits in AD11 mice, a model of NGF deprivation-induced neurodegeneration. In addition to AD hallmarks, we investigated BDNF effects on microglia presence in the brain of AD11 mice, since alterations in microglia activation have been associated with ageing-related cognitive decline and with the progression of neurodegenerative diseases, including AD. We found that intranasal delivery of 42 pmol BDNF (1 mu M), but not PBS, was sufficient to completely rescue performance of AD11 mice both in the object recognition test and in the object context test. No further improvement was obtained with 420 pmol (10 mu M) BDNF dose. The strong improvement in memory performance in BDNF-treated mice was not accompanied by an amelioration of AD-like pathology, A beta burden, tau hyperphosphorylation and cholinergic deficit, but there was a dramatic decrease of CD11b immunoreactive brain microglia. These results reinforce the potential therapeutic uses of BDNF in AD and the non-invasive intranasal route as an effective delivery strategy of BDNF to the brain. They also strengthen the connection between neuroinflammation and neurodegenerative dementia and suggest microglia as a possible mediator of BDNF therapeutic actions in the brain

Long-term beneficial impact of the randomised trial 'Train the Brain', a motor/cognitive intervention in mild cognitive impairment people: effects at the 14-month follow-up

: No treatment options are currently available to counteract cognitive deficits and/or delay progression towards dementia in older people with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). The 'Train the Brain' programme is a combined motor and cognitive intervention previously shown to markedly improve cognitive functions in MCI individuals compared to non-trained MCI controls, as assessed at the end of the 7-month intervention. Here, we extended the previous analyses to include the long-term effects of the intervention and performed a data disaggregation by gender, education and age of the enrolled participants. We report that the beneficial impact on cognitive functions was preserved at the 14-month follow-up, with greater effects in low-educated compared to high-educated individuals, and in women than in men

Understanding the collapse-eruption link at Stromboli, Italy: A microanalytical study on the products of the recent Secche di Lazzaro phreatomagmatic activity

The Secche di Lazzaro (SDL) phreatomagmatic activity, with the associated Neostromboli sector collapse, represents the most powerful activity of the last 6 ky at Stromboli. As revealed by its present-day activity, Stromboli is one of the most eruptive volcanoes in Italy, and flank instability, along its NW flank, is a common process. Volcano instability is often dramatised by explosive eruptions, thus it is of crucial importance to understand the linking between volcano collapse and the plumbing system itself. The possible role of pre-eruptive magmatic processes as triggers of explosive eruptions can be mainly preserved by minerals and revealed by petrochemical studies. We studied the juvenile components (scoria and pumice) of the pyroclastic deposits from the SDL phreatomagmatic activity with the aim to understand the eruption-collapse link. The SDL pyroclastic sequence has been investigated in three different outcrops: at Secche di Lazzaro (SDL-SW sequence), at Vallone del Monaco (SDL-S) and along the old path from Stromboli village to the active craters (SDL-N). Juvenile components are KS-shoshonites similar to the most evolved lavas erupted at the end of the Neostromboli potassic period. Our study indicates that the SDL system is strongly heterogeneous and made up by at least two different sequences (SDL-N and SDL-SW/SDL-S) with different textural characteristics of the deposits and composition of the juvenile components. Mineral chemistry data show a variable presence of recycled crystals (antecrysts), possibly deriving from the previous Neostromboli activity (up to 13 ky ago). Whole rocks are characterised by small but significant differences between the SDL-N and the southern samples, pointing out the presence of compositionally different potassic magmas and the crystallization and recycling of slightly different mineral assemblages. A clear isotope heterogeneity has been also found and explained by the presence of 10% minimum of less radiogenic antecrysts, whereas crustal contamination would have only affected the higher Sr-radiogenic residual melt. These data suggest that the SDL phreatomagmatic eruptions were fed by compositionally distinct potassic magmas, which rested and evolved in two shallow magma conduits when the magma-supply ceased in the waning phase of the Neostromboli activity. Our results also rule out the occurrence of new arrivals of refreshing magmas in the SDL feeding system, as well as other internal magma-related causes, as triggers for the SDL explosive eruptions. Accordingly, external collapse-related causes seem effectively more suitable for triggering the SDL phreatomagmatic eruptions by decompression of the magmatic systems. We also suggest the SDL-N and SDL-SW/SDL-S sequences are generated by two respective explosive events, separated in time and/or space. They can be respectively related to multiple failures of Sciara del Fuoco which successively depressurised the SDL-N and the SDL-SW/SDL-S magma conduits

The cost of success: Reproductive effort in male southern elephant seals (Mirounga leonina)

Reproductive effort is a key parameter of life history because it measures the resources allocated to reproduction at the expense of growth and maintenance. Male reproductive effort always had a minor role with respect to female effort both in the development of theories and in field research. Elephant seals are an ideal subject for reproductive effort studies because they fast during the breeding season, splitting the phase of energy acquisition from the phase of energy use for breeding. In this paper, we present results on male reproductive effort (weight loss estimated by photogrammetry) in southern elephant seals (Mirounga leonina), the most dimorphic and polygynous of all mammal species. We show that total reproductive effort increases with age, with no sign of late decrease or senescence. Male reproductive effort in this species depends mostly on behavioral factors, i.e., the success in competition with other males, and the intensity of interaction with females. A large effort results in large gains in both mating success and fertilizations. The large reproductive success that a few males are able to achieve come at a big cost in terms of energy expenditure, but this cost does not seem to affect the likelihood of survival to the following breeding season. © 2007 Springer-Verlag

Silica Monolith for the Removal of Pollutants from Gas and Aqueous Phases

This study focused on the application of mesoporous silica monoliths for the removal of organic pollutants. The physico\u2010chemical textural and surface properties of the monoliths were investigated. The homogeneity of the textural properties along the entire length of the monoliths was assessed, as well as the reproducibility of the synthesis method. The adsorption properties of the monoliths for gaseous toluene, as a model of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), were evaluated and compared to those of a reference meso\u2010structured silica powder (MCM\u201041) of commercial origin. Silica monoliths adsorbed comparable amounts of toluene with respect to MCM\u2010 41, with better performances at low pressure. Finally, considering their potential application in water phase, the adsorption properties of monoliths toward Rhodamine B, selected as a model molecule of water soluble pollutants, were studied together with their stability in water. After 24 h of contact, the silica monoliths were able to adsorb up to the 70% of 1.5 7 10 122 mM Rhodamine B in water solution

Ex post and insurance-based compensation fail to increase tolerance for wolves in semi-agricultural landscapes of central Italy

Range expansion by large carnivores in semiagricultural landscapes represents a serious challenge for managing human-carnivore conflicts. By focusing on an area of recent re-colonization by wolves in central Italy, where livestock owners lost traditional husbandry practices to cope with wolves, we assessed an ex post and a subsequent insurancebased compensation program implemented from 1999 to 2013. We cross checked official depredation statistics and compensation records from various registries, complementing them with a questionnaire survey of sheep owners. Compared to ex post compensation (1999–2005), under the insurance program (2006–2013) compensation paid annually dropped on average by 81.1 %, mostly reflecting that only 4.6 (±0.7 SD)% of sheep owners stipulated the insurance annually. Officially, only 5.5 % of active sheep owners were annually afflicted by wolf depredation during the insurance scheme, but we estimated this proportion to be as high as 34.3 % accounting for the proportion of affected sheep owners who did not officially claim depredations. Coupled with substantial retaliatory killing (minimum of five wolves killed/year), this large amount of cryptic conflict is a symptom of distrust by livestock owners of past and current conflict mitigation policies, despite more than two decades of compensation. We conclude that compensation may fail to improve tolerance toward carnivores unless it is integrated into participatory processes and that lack of reliable data on depredations and damage mitigation strategies exacerbates the conflict. Being advocates of the evidence-based paradigm in management, scientists share a key responsibility in providing objective data concerning progress of conflict management