nuovi dati sulla distribuzione in italia di alcuni ortotteri orthoptera ensifera caelifera

Orthoptera,Vengono riportati nuovi dati sulla distribuzione in Italia di 10 specie di Ortotteri (5 Tettigoniidae, 2 Gryllidae e 3 acrididae), non segnalate in precedenza per alcune regioni o poco note

From a Medicinal Mushroom Blend a Direct Anticancer Effect on Triple-Negative Breast Cancer: A Preclinical Study on Lung Metastases

Bioactive metabolites isolated from medicinal mushrooms (MM) used as supportive treatment in conventional oncology have recently gained interest. Acting as anticancer agents, they interfere with tumor cells and microenvironment (TME), disturbing cancer development/progression. Nonetheless, their action mechanisms still need to be elucidated. Recently, using a 4T1 triple-negative mouse BC model, we demonstrated that supplementation with Micotherapy U-Care, a MM blend, produced a striking reduction of lung metastases density/number, paralleled by decreased inflammation and oxidative stress both in TME and metastases, together with QoL amelioration. We hypothesized that these effects could be due to either a direct anticancer effect and/or to a secondary/indirect impact of Micotherapy U-Care on systemic inflammation/immunomodulation. To address this question, we presently focused on apoptosis/proliferation, investigating specific molecules, i.e., PARP1, p53, BAX, Bcl2, and PCNA, whose critical role in BC is well recognized. We revealed that Micotherapy U-Care is effective to influence balance between cell death and proliferation, which appeared strictly interconnected and inversely related (p53/Bax vs. Bcl2/PARP1/PCNA expression trends). MM blend displayed a direct effect, with different efficacy extent on cancer cells and TME, forcing tumor cells to apoptosis. Yet again, this study supports the potential of MM extracts, as adjuvant supplement in the TNBC management

Novel Medicinal Mushroom Blend as a Promising Supplement in Integrative Oncology: A Multi-Tiered Study using 4T1 Triple-Negative Mouse Breast Cancer Model

Abstract: Although medicinal mushroomextracts have been proposed as promising anti-cancer agents, their precise impacts on metastatic breast cancer are still to be clarified. For this purpose, the present study exploited the eect of a novel medicinal mushroom blend, namely Micotherapy U-care, in a 4T1 triple-negative mouse breast cancer model. Mice were orally administered with Micotherapy U-care, consisting of a mixture of Agaricus blazei, Ophiocordyceps sinensis, Ganoderma lucidum, Grifola frondosa, and Lentinula edodes. The syngeneic tumor-bearing mice were generated by injecting 4T1 cells in both supplemented and non-supplemented mice. After sacrifice 35 days later, specific endpoints and pathological outcomes of the murine pulmonary tissue were evaluated. (i) Histopathological and ultrastructural analysis and (ii) immunohistochemical assessment of TGF-ß1, IL-6 and NOS2, COX2, SOD1 as markers of inflammation and oxidative stress were performed. The QoL was comparatively evaluated. Micotherapy U-care supplementation, starting before 4T1 injection and lasting until the end of the experiment, dramatically reduced the pulmonary metastases density, also triggering a decrease of fibrotic response, and reducing IL-6, NOS, and COX2 expression. SOD1 and TGF-ß1 results were also discussed. These findings support the valuable potential of Micotherapy U-care as adjuvant therapy in the critical management of triple-negative breast cancer

Analisi di alcuni fattori influenti sul comportamento di paratie di sostegno

Il presente lavoro ha l'obiettivo di approfondire alcuni aspetti del complesso meccanismo di interazione tra terreno e opera di sostegno tenendo conto sia del processo di realizzazione di quest'ultima sia della natura tridimensionale del problema, in relazione all'eventuale effetto della forma dei singoli elementi che compongono l'opera di sostegno. In particolare si analizza il semplice caso di uno scavo sostenuto da una paratia libera

Le nuove competenze digitali dopo l’esperienza Covid-19

The great availability of big and open data and the increasingly massive use of evidence-based theses in journalism leads us to wonder how numbers have been used and interpreted to construct information. Topics such as data literacy and ethics of communication are the basis for understanding how data has been transformed and possibly manipulated. As early as 1954, Darell Huff warned his readers about distortions and manipulations of information through the use of statistical data. This contribution intends to argue – through a discussion about the ethics of communication, during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic – why awareness of data should be considered among the transversal skills of citizenship with increasingly urgent attention

Quantum interference effects in Bi2Se3 topological insulator nanowires with variable cross-section lengths

Stimulated by the recent realization of three dimensional topological insulator nanowire interferometers, a theoretical analysis of quantum interference effects on the low energy spectrum of Bi2Se3 nanowires is presented. The electronic properties are analyzed in nanowires with circular, square and rectangular cross-sections starting from a continuum three dimensional model with particular emphasis on magnetic and geometrical effects. The theoretical study is based on numerically exact diagonalizations of the discretized model for all the geometries. In the case of the cylindrical wire, an approximate analytical solution of the continuum model is also discussed. Although a magnetic field corresponding to half quantum flux is expected to close the band gap induced by Berry phase, in all the studied geometries with finite area cross-sections, the gap closes for magnetic fields typically larger than those expected. Furthermore, unexpectedly, due to geometrical quantum interference effects, for a rectangular wire with a sufficiently large aspect ratio and smaller side ranging from 50 ˚A and 100 ˚A, the gap closes for a specific finite area cross-section without the application of a magnetic field

Electron-lattice and strain effects in manganite heterostructures: the case of a single interface

A correlated inhomogeneous mean-field approach is proposed to study a tight-binding model of the manganite heterostructures (LaMnO3)2n/(SrMnO3)n with average hole doping x = 1/3. Phase diagrams and spectral and optical properties of large heterostructures (up to 48 sites along the growth direction) with a single interface are discussed, and the effects of electron-lattice antiadiabatic fluctuations and strain are analyzed. The formation of a metallic ferromagnetic interface is quite robust upon varying the strength of electron-lattice coupling and strain, though the size of the interface region is strongly dependent on these interactions. The density of states never vanishes at the chemical potential due to the formation of the interface, but it shows a rapid suppression with increasing the electron-lattice coupling. The in-plane and out-of-plane optical conductivities show sharp differences since the in-plane response has metallic features, while the out-of-plane one is characterized by a transfer of spectral weight to high frequency. The in-plane response mainly comes from the region between the two insulating blocks, so that it provides a clear signature of the formation of the metallic ferromagnetic interface. Results are discussed in connection with available experimental data

Smart composite booms for solar sails

Composite booms for solar sails have been prototyped by using innovative smart materials. Shape memory polymer composites (SMPCs) have been manufactured by interposing SMP layers between carbon-fiber-reinforced (CFR) plies. A polyimide membrane has been embedded into the CFR-SMPC frame of the sail during lamination. The sail's size has been limited to 250 x 250 mm2 to allow its testing on Earth. The feasibility of large sail deployments has been shown by prototyping small CFR-SMPC elements to insert only in the folding zones. Numerical simulation by finite element modeling allowed for predicting the presence of wrinkles close to the frame's vertexes in the cases of large sails under solar radiation pressures. Nevertheless, the frame's configuration, with SMPC booms at all the edges of the sail membrane, seems to be suitable for drag sails instead of propulsion. On-Earth recovery tests have been performed on 180 degrees folded sails by using flexible heaters. After an initial induction time, the maximum rate was reached with a following drop. In the case of two heaters per folding zone, the angular recovery rate reached the maximum value of about 30 deg/s at the power of 34 W, and full recovery was made in 20 s