Early identification of root rot disease by using hyperspectral reflectance: the case of pathosystem grapevine/Armillaria

Armillaria genus represents one of the most common causes of chronic root rot disease in woody plants. Prompt recognition of diseased plants is crucial to control the pathogen. However, the current disease detection methods are limited at a field scale. Therefore, an alternative approach is needed. In this study, we investigated the potential of hyperspectral techniques to identify fungi-infected vs. healthy plants of Vitis vinifera. We used the hyperspectral imaging sensor Specim-IQ to acquire leaves’ reflectance data of the Teroldego Rotaliano grapevine cultivar. We analyzed three different groups of plants: healthy, asymptomatic, and diseased. Highly significant differences were found in the near-infrared (NIR) spectral region with a decreasing pattern from healthy to diseased plants attributable to the leaf mesophyll changes. Asymptomatic plants emerged from the other groups due to a lower reflectance in the red edge spectrum (around 705 nm), ascribable to an accumulation of secondary metabolites involved in plant defense strategies. Further significant differences were observed in the wavelengths close to 550 nm in diseased vs. asymptomatic plants. We evaluated several machine learning paradigms to differentiate the plant groups. The Naïve Bayes (NB) algorithm, combined with the most discriminant variables among vegetation indices and spectral narrow bands, provided the best results with an overall accuracy of 90% and 75% in healthy vs. diseased and healthy vs. asymptomatic plants, respectively. To our knowledge, this study represents the first report on the possibility of using hyperspectral data for root rot disease diagnosis in woody plants. Although further validation studies are required, it appears that the spectral reflectance technique, possibly implemented on unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), could be a promising tool for a cost-effective, non-invasive method of Armillaria disease diagnosis and mapping in-field, contributing to a significant step forward in precision viticultur

Application of unmanned aerial vehicle data and discrete fracture network models for improved rockfall simulations

In this research, we present a new approach to define the distribution of block volumes during rockfall simulations. Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are utilized to generate high-accuracy 3D models of the inaccessible SW flank of the Mount Rava (Italy), to provide improved definition of data gathered from conventional geomechanical surveys and to also denote important changes in the fracture intensity. These changes are likely related to the variation of the bedding thickness and to the presence of fracture corridors in fault damage zones in some areas of the slope. The dataset obtained integrating UAV and conventional surveys is then utilized to create and validate two accurate 3D discrete fracture network models, representative of high and low fracture intensity areas, respectively. From these, the ranges of block volumes characterizing the in situ rock mass are extracted, providing important input for rockfall simulations. Initially, rockfall simulations were performed assuming a uniform block volume variation for each release cell. However, subsequent simulations used a more realistic nonuniform distribution of block volumes, based on the relative block volume frequency extracted from discrete fracture network (DFN) models. The results of the simulations were validated against recent rockfall events and show that it is possible to integrate into rockfall simulations a more realistic relative frequency distribution of block volumes using the results of DFN analyse

Assessment of “Carbopeaking” in a hydropeaking-impacted river in the Italian Alpine area

Hydropeaking (i.e., rapid and frequent artificial flow fluctuations caused by reservoir-operated hydropower production) is a much-investigated river stressor, and has been associated, among others, to sudden changes in temperature (“thermopeaking”), underwater soundscape (“soundpeaking”), total dissolved gas saturation (“saturopeaking”). We have recently started investigating the “carbopeaking”, i.e., variations of greenhouse gas (mainly CO2) concentrations and evasion fluxes through the water-air interface associated with hydropeaks. Here we report on the methodology and preliminary results from a field-measurement campaign conducted in a single-thread Alpine river (River Noce, Italy) during multiple hydropeaking events. The analysis of water samples collected in the upstream reservoir showed CO2 oversaturation in the hypolimnion, around the depth of the hydropower intake system. In the Noce reach upstream of the hydropower plant outlet (i.e., in a residual flow stretch), the CO2 concentrations displayed diel fluctuations around the atmospheric equilibrium concentration, likely driven by diurnal primary production. Conversely, water released at the hydropower outlet during hydropeaking were consistently oversaturated in CO2 relative to the atmosphere, in agreement with the concentrations in the reservoir’s hypolimnetic water. As a result, hydropeaking events were associated with an alteration of the sub-daily patterns of CO2 concentration downstream of the hydropower outlet which, combined with higher gas exchange velocities occurring during higher flow rates, can cause periods of enhanced CO2 emissions. The results highlight the potential impact of hydropeaking on greenhouse gas emissions, demonstrating the need to account for sub-daily variations of flow and gas concentration to accurately quantify carbon balances in rivers impacted by hydropower

Towards specific T–H relationships: FRIBAS database for better characterization of RC and URM buildings

FRIBAS database is an open access database composed of the characteristics of 312 buildings (71 masonry, 237 reinforced concrete and 4 mixed types). It collects and harmonizes data from different surveys performed on buildings in the Basilicata and Friuli Venezia Giulia regions (Southern and Northeastern Italy, respectively). Each building is defined by 37 parameters related to the building and foundation soil characteristics. The building and soil fundamental periods were experimentally estimated based on ambient noise measurements. FRIBAS gave us the opportunity to study the influence of the main characteristics of buildings and the soil-building interaction effect to their structural response. In this study, we have used the FRIBAS dataset to investigate how the building period varies as a function of construction materials and soil types. Our results motivate the need of going beyond a 'one-fits-all' numerical period-height (T-H) relationship for generic building typologies provided by seismic codes, towards specific T-H relationships that account for both soil and building typologies

A Multi-Disciplinary Approach to the Study of Large Rock Avalanches Combining Remote Sensing, GIS and Field Surveys: The Case of the Scanno Landslide, Italy

This is the final version. Available from MDPI via the DOI in this record.This research aims to highlight the importance of adopting a multi-disciplinary approach to understanding the factors controlling large rock avalanches using the Scanno landslide, Italy, as a case study. The study area is the Mount Genzana, Abruzzi Central Apennines, characterized by the regional Difesa-Mount Genzana-Vallone delle Masserie fault zone. The Scanno landslide is famous for its role in the formation of the Scanno Lake. The landslide is characterized by a wide exposed scar, which was interpreted in previous studies as the intersection of high-angle joints and an outcropping bedding plane on which the landslide failed sometime between the Upper Pleistocene and the Holocene. In this study, the Scanno landslide was investigated through the integration of geological, geomechanical and geomorphological surveys. Remote sensing techniques were used to enrich the conventionally gathered datasets, while Geographic Information Systems (GIS) were used to integrate, manage and investigate the data. The results of the authors investigation show that the outcropping landslide scar can be interpreted as a low-angle fault, associated with the Difesa-Mount Genzana-Vallone delle Masserie fault zone, which di ers from previous investigations and interpretations of the area. The low-angle fault provides the basal failure surface of the landslide, with two systematic high-angle joint sets acting as lateral release and back scarp surfaces, respectively. In light of these new findings, pre- and post-failure models of the area have been created. The models were generated in GIS by combining LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) and geophysics data acquired on the landslide body and through bathymetric survey data of the Scanno Lake. Using the pre- and post-failure models it was possible to estimate the approximate volume of the landslide. Finally, back-analyses using static and dynamic limit equilibrium methods is also used to show the possible influence of medium-to-high magnitude seismic events in triggering the Scanno landslide

Portable, digital telethermocamera for monitoring total hip and knee replacement surgical site healing and the occurrence of septic complications.

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Exposure to Plasma From Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease Patients Affects Hepatocyte Viability, Generates Mitochondrial Dysfunction, and Modulates Pathways Involved in Fat Accumulation and Inflammation

Changes of lipidic storage, oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction may be involved in the pathogenesis of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Although the knowledge of intracellular pathways has vastly expanded in recent years, the role and mechanisms of circulating triggering factor(s) are debated. Thus, we tested the hypothesis that factors circulating in the blood of NAFLD patients may influence processes underlying the disease. Huh7.5 cells/primary human hepatocytes were exposed to plasma from 12 NAFLD patients and 12 healthy subjects and specific assays were performed to examine viability, H2O2 and mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (ROS) release, mitochondrial membrane potential and triglycerides content. The involvement of NLRP3 inflammasome and of signaling related to peroxisome-proliferator-activating-ligand-receptor-γ (PPARγ), sterol-regulatory-element-binding-protein-1c (SREBP-1c), nuclear-factor-kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells (NF-kB), and NADPH oxidase 2 (NOX2) was evaluated by repeating the experiments in the presence of NLRP3 inflammasome blocker, MCC950, and through Western blot. The results obtained shown that plasma of NAFLD patients was able to reduce cell viability and mitochondrial membrane potential by about 48 and 24% (p < 0.05), and to increase H2O2, mitochondrial ROS, and triglycerides content by about 42, 19, and 16% (p < 0.05), respectively. An increased expression of SREBP-1c, PPARγ, NF-kB and NOX2 of about 51, 121, 63, and 46%, respectively, was observed (p < 0.05), as well. Those effects were reduced by the use of MCC950. Thus, in hepatocytes, exposure to plasma from NAFLD patients induces a NAFLD-like phenotype by interference with NLRP3-inflammasome pathways and the activation of intracellular signaling related to SREBP-1c, PPARγ, NF-kB and NOX2

Finding aquaporins in annelids: An evolutionary analysis and a case study

Aquaporins (AQPs) are a family of membrane channels facilitating diffusion of water and small solutes into and out of cells. Despite their biological relevance in osmoregulation and ubiquitous distribution throughout metazoans, the presence of AQPs in annelids has been poorly investigated. Here, we searched and annotated Aqp sequences in public genomes and transcriptomes of annelids, inferred their evolutionary relationships through phylogenetic analyses and discussed their putative physiological relevance. We identified a total of 401 Aqp sequences in 27 annelid species, including 367 sequences previously unrecognized as Aqps. Similar to vertebrates, phylogenetic tree reconstructions clustered these annelid Aqps in four clades: AQP1-like, AQP3-like, AQP8-like and AQP11-like. We found no clear indication of the existence of paralogs exclusive to annelids; however, several gene duplications seem to have occurred in the ancestors of some Sedentaria annelid families, mainly in the AQP1-like clade. Three of the six Aqps annotated in Alitta succinea, an estuarine annelid showing high salinity tolerance, were validated by RT-PCR sequencing, and their similarity to human AQPs was investigated at the level of “key” conserved residues and predicted three-dimensional structure. Our results suggest a diversification of the structures and functions of AQPs in Annelida comparable to that observed in other taxa

Repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic on child and adolescent mental health: A matter of concern—A joint statement from EAP and ECPCP

COVID-19 pandemic and the consequent rigid social distancing measures implemented, including school closures, have heavily impacted children's and adolescents' psychosocial wellbeing, and their mental health problems significantly increased. However, child and adolescent mental health were already a serious problem before the Pandemic all over the world. COVID-19 is not just a pandemic, it is a syndemic and mentally or socially disadvantaged children and adolescents are the most affected. Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) and previous mental health issues are an additional worsening condition. Even though many countries have responded with decisive efforts to scale-up mental health services, a more integrated and community-based approach to mental health is required. EAP and ECPCP makes recommendations to all the stakeholders to take action to promote, protect and care for the mental health of a generation