Characterization of the Hamamatsu R11265-103-M64 multi-anode photomultiplier tube

The aim of this paper is to fully characterize the new multi-anode photomultiplier tube R11265-103-M64, produced by Hamamatsu. Its high effective active area (77%), its pixel size, the low dark signal rate and the capability to detect single photon signals make this tube suitable for an application in high energy physics, such as for RICH detectors. Four tubes and two different bias voltage dividers have been tested. The results of a standard characterization of the gain and the anode uniformity, the dark signal rate, the cross-talk and the device behaviour as a function of temperature have been studied. The behaviour of the tube is studied in a longitudinal magnetic field up to 100 Gauss. Shields made of a high permeability material are also investigated. The deterioration of the device performance due to long time operation at intense light exposure is studied. A quantitative analysis of the variation of the gain and the dark signals rate due to the aging is described.Comment: 22 page

An operator expansion for integrable quantum field theories

A large class of quantum field theories on 1+1 dimensional Minkowski space, namely, certain integrable models, has recently been constructed rigorously by Lechner. However, the construction is very abstract and the concrete form of local observables in these models remains largely unknown. Aiming for more insight into their structure, we establish a series expansion for observables, similar but not identical to the well-known form factor expansion. This expansion will be the basis for a characterization and explicit construction of local observables, to be discussed elsewhere. Here, we establish the expansion independent of the localization aspect, and analyze its behavior under space-time symmetries. We also clarify relations with deformation methods in quantum field theory, specifically, with the warped convolution in the sense of Buchholz and Summers.Comment: minor corrections and clarifications, as published in J. Phys A; 24 page

InfoFaunaFVG: a novel progressive web application for wildlife surveillance

The Department of Agricultural, Food, Environmental and Animal Sciences (DI4A) at the University of Udine, in collaboration with Friuli Venezia Giulia regional authorities, within northeastern Italy, set up a wildlife monitoring and surveillance regional network, named InfoFaunaFVG. Here we describe the development and application of this data repository system based on a novel progressive web application, and report the data gathered in the first two and a half years of its use. InfoFaunaFVG is made of a Web Database and an integrated WebGIS system. In particular, the following open source softwares are used: Apache HTTP Server, Oracle MySQL, Symfony, Apache Tomcat, GeoServer, OpenLayers. The web app can be accessed from any web browser or by installing the progressive web application in the desktop or mobile devices. In short, operating from November 2019, InfoFaunaFVG currently (April 2022) contains a total of 40,175 records, from 300 different users, from 16 institutions. Among all species recorded, mammals were 40% (16,018) of the total, whereas avian species represented 59% (23,741), and others (reptiles and amphibians) 1% (416), respectively. Two hundred twenty-six different species (175 avian and 51 mammals) were recorded. Details about causes of death and live animal rescue were reported. To date, InfoFaunaFVG has proven to be a successful wildlife data repository system providing high quality consistent, accurate and traceable data. These had a considerable impact on regional wildlife governance. In the authors’ knowledge, InfoFaunaFVG is the first example described in literature of such a progressive web application, coordinated on an institutional level, and not based on voluntary-citizen observations. InfoFaunaFVG has the potential to become the largest wildlife monitoring and surveillance data repository system on a national level

Necroptosis in Cholangiocarcinoma

Necroptosis is a type of regulated cell death that is increasingly being recognized as a relevant pathway in different pathological conditions. Necroptosis can occur in response to multiple stimuli, is triggered by the activation of death receptors, and is regulated by receptor-interacting protein kinases 1 and 3 and mixed-lineage kinase domain-like, which form a regulatory complex called the necrosome. Accumulating evidence suggests that necroptosis plays a complex role in cancer, which is likely context-dependent and can vary among different types of neoplasms. Necroptosis serves as an alternative mode of programmed cell death overcoming apoptosis and, as a pro-inflammatory death type, it may inhibit tumor progression by releasing damage-associated molecular patterns to elicit robust cross-priming of anti-tumor CD8+ T cells. The development of therapeutic strategies triggering necroptosis shows great potential for anti-cancer therapy. In this review, we summarize the current knowledge on necroptosis and its role in liver biliary neoplasms, underlying the potential of targeting necroptosis components for cancer treatment

Sport identification, moral perceptions and collective action: A study with young football players

We conducted a cross-sectional study investigating whether sport identification predicts different forms of collective action intentions aimed to redress the unfavourable condition faced by disadvantaged individuals. In doing so, moral perceptions (moral convictions, moral violation and moral obligation) were tested as mediators. Participants were young football players from the grassroots of a professional Italian club (N = 111). Results revealed that sport identification was indirectly associated with greater willingness to engage in both normative and non-normative solidarity-based collective action via stronger moral obligation perceptions; moral convictions mediated the relationship between sport identification and normative collective action, while no mediation effects emerged for moral violation. We discuss findings in relation to collective action and sport research

Asymmetric Dark Matter and Dark Radiation

Asymmetric Dark Matter (ADM) models invoke a particle-antiparticle asymmetry, similar to the one observed in the Baryon sector, to account for the Dark Matter (DM) abundance. Both asymmetries are usually generated by the same mechanism and generally related, thus predicting DM masses around 5 GeV in order to obtain the correct density. The main challenge for successful models is to ensure efficient annihilation of the thermally produced symmetric component of such a light DM candidate without violating constraints from collider or direct searches. A common way to overcome this involves a light mediator, into which DM can efficiently annihilate and which subsequently decays into Standard Model particles. Here we explore the scenario where the light mediator decays instead into lighter degrees of freedom in the dark sector that act as radiation in the early Universe. While this assumption makes indirect DM searches challenging, it leads to signals of extra radiation at BBN and CMB. Under certain conditions, precise measurements of the number of relativistic species, such as those expected from the Planck satellite, can provide information on the structure of the dark sector. We also discuss the constraints of the interactions between DM and Dark Radiation from their imprint in the matter power spectrum.Comment: 22 pages, 5 figures, to be published in JCAP, minor changes to match version to be publishe

Disruption of laboratory activities during the COVID-19 pandemic: results of an EFLM Task Force Preparation of Labs for Emergencies (TF-PLE) survey

Background: The EFLM Task Force Preparation of Labs for Emergencies (TF-PLE) created a survey that has been distributed to its members for gathering information on the key hazards experienced by European medical laboratories during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: The survey was distributed to over 12,000 potential contacts (laboratory workers) via an EFLM newsletter, with responses collected between May 8 and June 8, 2023. Results: Two hundred replies were collected and examined from European laboratories. 69.7% and 78.1% of all responders said they were short on non-COVID and COVID reagents, respectively. Exactly half of respondents (50.0%) said that they could not complete all laboratory tests required for a specific period, but this figure climbed to 61.2% for COVID tests. Finally, 72.3% of respondents expressed exhaustion during the pandemic, and 61.2% reported increasing patient hostility. Conclusions: The COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on laboratory medicine in Europe. Cultural change, proactive planning, and even re-engineering in some parts of the laboratory industry may thus be necessary to prepare for future challenges

Results of the first survey of the EFLM Task Force Preparation of Labs for Emergencies (TF-PLE)

This survey includes a series of questions about the nature, organization, and preparedness for emergencies, was created using Google forms, officially mailed to over 12,000 potential EFLM contacts with an official newsletter to collect responses between May 8 and June 8, 2023. Although obviously not representative of all European countries, the collected data provides an overview of the current situation with respect to laboratory readiness for emergencies

Run 2 Upgrades to the CMS Level-1 Calorimeter Trigger

The CMS Level-1 calorimeter trigger is being upgraded in two stages to maintain performance as the LHC increases pile-up and instantaneous luminosity in its second run. In the first stage, improved algorithms including event-by-event pile-up corrections are used. New algorithms for heavy ion running have also been developed. In the second stage, higher granularity inputs and a time-multiplexed approach allow for improved position and energy resolution. Data processing in both stages of the upgrade is performed with new, Xilinx Virtex-7 based AMC cards.Comment: 10 pages, 7 figure

Olfactory neuroepithelium alterations and cognitive correlates in schizophrenia

BACKGROUND: Few studies have investigated alterations of olfactory neuroepithelium (ONE) as a biomarker of schizophrenia, and none its association with cognitive functioning. METHOD: Fresh ONE cells from twelve patients with schizophrenia and thirteen healthy controls were collected by nasal brushing, cultured in proper media and passed twelve times. Markers of cell proliferation (BrdU incorporation, Cyclin-D1 and p21 protein level) were quantified.Cognitive function was measured using Brief Neuropsychological Examination-2. PRIMARY OUTCOME: proliferation of ONE cells from schizophrenic patients at passage 3. Secondary outcome: association between alteration of cell proliferation and cognitive function. RESULTS: Fresh ONE cells from patients showed a faster cell proliferation than those from healthy controls at passage 3. An opposite trend was observed at passage 9, ONE cells of patients with schizophrenia showing slower cell proliferation as compared to healthy controls. In schizophrenia, overall cognitive function (Spearman's rho -0.657, p\u202f<\u202f0.01), verbal memory - immediate recall, with interference at 10\u202fs and 30\u202fs (Spearman's rho from -0.676 to 0.697, all p\u202f<\u202f0.01) were inversely associated with cell proliferation at passage 3. CONCLUSION: Fresh ONE cells collected by nasal brushing might eventually represent a tool for diagnosing schizophrenia based upon markers of cell proliferation, which can be easily implemented as single-layer culture. Cell proliferation at passage 3 can be regarded as a promising proxy of cognitive functioning in schizophrenia. Future studies should replicate these findings, and may assess whether ONE alterations are there before onset of psychosis, serving as an early sign in patients with at risk mental state