Saccharomyces boulardii CNCM I-745 supplementation reduces gastrointestinal dysfunction in an animal model of IBS

We evaluated the effect of Saccharomyces boulardii CNCM I-745 on intestinal neuromuscular anomalies in an IBS-type mouse model of gastrointestinal motor dysfunctions elicited by Herpes Simplex Virus type 1 (HSV-1) exposure.Mice were inoculated intranasally with HSV-1 (102 PFU) or vehicle at time 0 and 4 weeks later by the intragastric (IG) route (108 PFU). Six weeks after IG inoculum, mice were randomly allocated to receive oral gavage with either S. boulardii (107 CFU/day) or vehicle. After 4 weeks the following were determined: a) intestinal motility using fluorescein-isothiocyanate dextran distribution in the gut, fecal pellet expulsion, stool water content, and distal colonic transit of glass beads; b) integrity of the enteric nervous system (ENS) by immunohistochemistry on ileal whole-mount preparations and western blot of protein lysates from ileal longitudinal muscle and myenteric plexus; c) isometric muscle tension with electric field and pharmacological (carbachol) stimulation of ileal segments; and d) intestinal inflammation by levels of tumor necrosis factor α, interleukin(IL)-1β, IL-10 and IL-4.S. boulardii CNCM I-745 improved HSV-1 induced intestinal dysmotility and alteration of intestinal transit observed ten weeks after IG inoculum of the virus. Also, the probiotic yeast ameliorated the structural alterations of the ENS induced by HSV-1 (i.e., reduced peripherin immunoreactivity and expression, increased glial S100β protein immunoreactivity and neuronal nitric oxide synthase level, reduced substance P-positive fibers). Moreover, S. boulardii CNCM I-745 diminished the production of HSV-1 associated pro-inflammatory cytokines in the myenteric plexus and increased levels of anti-inflammatory interleukins.S. boulardii CNCM I-745 ameliorated gastrointestinal neuromuscular anomalies in a mouse model of gut dysfunctions typically observed with irritable bowel syndrome

Sustainability of using vineyard pruning residues as an energy source: Combustion performances and environmental impact

Open burning of agricultural waste is still a common practice as it is a rapid method for waste disposal, although natural biomass, including agriculture residues, can be exploited as a renewable energy source. We assessed the viability and sustainability of using vineyard pruning residues, as wood chips, for energy conversion. Wood chips, obtained from vineyards in the Prosecco DOCG region (Italy), were characterized in terms of chemical composition, calorific value, ash content and humidity. Combustion tests were performed in a medium-size biomass boiler (maximum power 500 kW) to assess the viability of the approach in terms of sustainable steady-state combustion. Primary emissions of both macro- and micro-pollutants were measured to assess the environmental impact. An analytical method was purposely developed for the determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs) and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs) and in three matrices: fly ashes, condensate and gas. The results showed that vineyard pruning residues can be used for energy conversion in medium- and large-scale biomass boilers. Primary emissions of measured pollutants were all below limit values set by current European legislation except for particulate matter, for which current available abatement technologies are required to contain emissions, abatement technologies are required to contain emissions, thus making the use of vineyard pruning residues unsuitable for combustion in domestic appliances where such technologies are not installed. Bottom ashes produced during combustion were also characterized to assess whether they can be recycled in the vineyard as soil amendments/fertilizer. Copper content in combustion ashes exceeded limit values for ashes to be used as fertilizers in agricultural fields for some European countries but not for others, indicating that ashes may need to be disposed as waste

LORON-LORUN, PARENZO-POREČ, ISTRA MARITIMNA VILA U POREČKOM AGERU: ISTRAŽIVAČKA KAMPANJA 2009.

L a campagna di scavo 2009 presso il grande opificio nordparentino di Loron ha permesso di ampliare ulteriormente le conoscenze sull’apparato di grandi fornaci, dedicate alla produzione della ceramica da trasporto, già individuato negli anni precedenti (ambiente 45): la messa in luce di un’ ulteriore fornace in perfetta adiacenza con le due già note (orientamento N-S con prefurnio a S), e connotata dalla medesima tipologia e dalle stesse dimensioni di quelle, sembra confermare l’ipotesi dell’organizzazione di questo spazio con la dislocazione di quattro fornaci in batteria ordinate in coppie simmetriche; la definitiva conferma di tale disegno progettuale arriverà probabilmente con la prossima campagna di scavo. E’ stato poi completato lo scavo del grande bacino (spazio 47) già riconosciuto presso l’angolo N-W della corte centrale, con uno studio più accurato delle tecniche di costruzione e una lettura più completa delle sue diverse fasi evolutive, già intuibili per la constatata sovrapposizione di due differenti piani pavimentali; interessante, inoltre, la messa in luce di piccole strutture in appoggio al suo lato E e, soprattutto, di un ulteriore apparato idraulico in adiacenza al suo lato meridionale, sicuramente messo in collegamento col bacino attraverso un canale d’adduzione idrica. Sono stati inoltre operati sondaggi sia negli ambienti dell’ala orientale (in particolare ambiente 44), sia all’interno dello spazio, forse destinato ad essiccatoio, collocato appena ad oriente delle fornaci (49). Il dato materiale recuperato nel contesto sembra ulteriormente confermare la durata dell’arco di vita del complesso, collocabile tra lo scorcio iniziale del I e l’inizio del V sec. d.C. La campagna 2009, infine, ha coinciso con l’avvio di una serie programmata di attività volte ad attuare una strategia di conservazione e di valorizzazione del sito di Loron.Nakon što je tlocrtno određena veličina velikog obalnog sklopa Loruna (170 m x 90 m), kao i njegov raspored (dva različita dijela odvojena dugačkom rampom/unutrašnjom cestom, s time da je onaj zapadni bio korišten u različite svrhe, dok je onaj istočni u potpunosti bio korišten u svrhu proizvodnje, poglavito keramike, ali je bio mjesto i drugih obrta), istraživanja su u suštini usmjerena prema dvama ciljevima. Prvi je cilj bio u potpunosti iznijeti na svjetlo dana elemente sustava za spremanje i obradu vode, koji su smješteni u sjeverozapadnom kvadrantu velikog središnjeg dvorišta (prostor 37, istočni dio sklopa), a drugi je cilj bio istražiti veliki prostor koji se nalazi tik južno od dvorišta, a gdje su bile smještene velike peći za amfore (prostor 45, istočni dio sklopa). Što se tiče velikog bazena smještenog u dvorištu, točno smo odredili njegov perimetar (14,40 m x 10,30 m što iznosi 1/6 površine dvorišta), iščitali smo tehnička rješenja izgradnje njegovih okomitih struktura (stijenke od vapnenačkih blokova debelih 0,70 m, iznutra obloženih vodonepropusnim slojem hidrauličke žbuke debljine 0,40 m) i prema dvjema vrstama podova odredili da su postojale najmanje dvije faze zahvata. U prvoj fazi zahvata izrađeno je dno bazena u opusu spicatumu, a u drugoj je taj pod prekriven malim, vodoravno postavljenim pravokutnim opekama (opus figlinum). U blizini južne strane bazena, gdje se nalazi odvod u koji su otjecale vode iz bazena, na koncu je uočena struktura za opskrbu/ čuvanje vode, otprilike četvrtastog oblika, sa stranama profiliranima velikim pločama od vapnenca učvršćenima metalnim sponama, s naznakama da se tu možda nalazio stupić za ulijevanje vode povezan s izljevom koji je dolazio iz bazena te je postojao i veliki spremnik za vodu, zidova prekrivenih uobičajenom hidrauličkom žbukom i podom u opusu spicatumu. Taj sustav upotpunjuje prisutnost niza manjih zidanih struktura prislonjenih uz istočnu stranu bazena, koji tvore barem dva manja prostora nepoznate namjene. Daljnje iskapanje prostora u kojem se nalaze velike peći potvrdilo je hipotezu prema kojoj središnji pojas tog prostora zauzimaju četiri velike peći, od kojih su nam do sada bile poznate samo dvije istočne. Otkriće treće peći, koja je smještena u savršenom skladu s dvjema ranije otkrivenim pećima i istoga je tipa, ustvari potvrđuje da su u taj prostor bila smještena dva para istovjetnih peći u baterijama, poduprtih perimetralnim zidovima prostora. Parovi peći međusobno su bili odvojeni graničnim zidom postavljenim točno uz središnju os, dok je svaka peć bila odvojena od svog para međuprostorom. Iskop dijela prostora praefurnija (usmjerenih prema jugu), sve do sterilnog arheološkog sloja, dopustio je da započnemo slijediti prednje stijenke peći sagrađenih od opeke (s tegulama koje nose žig IMPGER), da uočimo dodatne manje peći koje su nastale kao dio većih peći ili kao njihova zamjena, da dođemo do proizvodnog otpada kućanske keramike ukrašene kotačićem izvana i s unutarnjom glazurom, što potvrđuje da je proizvodnja na nalazištu trajala barem do IV. stoljeća po. Kr

Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1 Engages Toll Like Receptor 2 to Recruit Macrophages During Infection of Enteric Neurons

Herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) is a widespread neurotropic pathogen responsible for a range of clinical manifestations. Inflammatory cell infiltrate is a common feature of HSV-1 infections and has been implicated in neurodegeneration. Therefore, viral recognition by innate immune receptors (i.e., TLR2) and the subsequent inflammatory response are now deemed key players in HSV-1 pathogenesis. In this study we infected with HSV-1 the enteric nervous system (ENS) of wild-type (WT) and TLR2 knock-out (TLR2ko) mice to investigate whether and how TLR2 participates in HSV-1 induced neuromuscular dysfunction. Our findings demonstrated viral specific transcripts suggestive of abortive replication in the ENS of both WT and TLR2ko mice. Moreover, HSV-1 triggered TLR2-MyD88 depend signaling in myenteric neurons and induced structural and functional alterations of the ENS. Gastrointestinal dysmotility was, however, less pronounced in TLR2ko as compared with WT mice. Interesting, HSV-1 caused up-regulation of monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (CCL2) and recruitment of CD11b+ macrophages in the myenteric ganglia of WT but not TLR2ko mice. At the opposite, the myenteric plexuses of TLR2ko mice were surrounded by a dense infiltration of HSV-1 reactive CD3+CD8+INFγ+ lymphocytes. Indeed, depletion CD3+CD8+ cells by means of administration of anti-CD8 monoclonal antibody reduced neuromuscular dysfunction in TLR2ko mice infected with HSV-1. During HSV-1 infection, the engagement of TLR2 mediates production of CCL2 in infected neurons and coordinates macrophage recruitment. Bearing in mind these observations, blockage of TLR2 signaling could provide novel therapeutic strategies to support protective and specific T-cell responses and to improve neuromuscular dysfunction in pathogen-mediated alterations of the ENS

Search for dark matter produced in association with bottom or top quarks in √s = 13 TeV pp collisions with the ATLAS detector

A search for weakly interacting massive particle dark matter produced in association with bottom or top quarks is presented. Final states containing third-generation quarks and miss- ing transverse momentum are considered. The analysis uses 36.1 fb−1 of proton–proton collision data recorded by the ATLAS experiment at √s = 13 TeV in 2015 and 2016. No significant excess of events above the estimated backgrounds is observed. The results are in- terpreted in the framework of simplified models of spin-0 dark-matter mediators. For colour- neutral spin-0 mediators produced in association with top quarks and decaying into a pair of dark-matter particles, mediator masses below 50 GeV are excluded assuming a dark-matter candidate mass of 1 GeV and unitary couplings. For scalar and pseudoscalar mediators produced in association with bottom quarks, the search sets limits on the production cross- section of 300 times the predicted rate for mediators with masses between 10 and 50 GeV and assuming a dark-matter mass of 1 GeV and unitary coupling. Constraints on colour- charged scalar simplified models are also presented. Assuming a dark-matter particle mass of 35 GeV, mediator particles with mass below 1.1 TeV are excluded for couplings yielding a dark-matter relic density consistent with measurements

Muon reconstruction performance of the ATLAS detector in proton–proton collision data at √s = 13 TeV

This article documents the performance of the ATLAS muon identification and reconstruction using the LHC dataset recorded at √s = 13 TeV in 2015. Using a large sample of J/ψ→μμ and Z→μμ decays from 3.2 fb−1 of pp collision data, measurements of the reconstruction efficiency, as well as of the momentum scale and resolution, are presented and compared to Monte Carlo simulations. The reconstruction efficiency is measured to be close to 99% over most of the covered phase space (|η| 2.2, the pT resolution for muons from Z→μμ decays is 2.9 % while the precision of the momentum scale for low-pT muons from J/ψ→μμ decays is about 0.2%

Constraints on new phenomena via Higgs boson couplings and invisible decays with the ATLAS detector

Abstract: The ATLAS experiment at the LHC has measured the Higgs boson couplings and mass, and searched for invisible Higgs boson decays, using multiple production and decay channels with up to 4.7 fb−1 of pp collision data at−1at TeV. In the current study, the measured production and decay rates of the observed Higgs boson in the γγ, ZZ, W W , Zγ, bb, τ τ , and μμ decay channels, along with results from the associated production of a Higgs boson with a top-quark pair, are used to probe the scaling of the couplings with mass. Limits are set on parameters in extensions of the Standard Model including a composite Higgs boson, an additional electroweak singlet, and two-Higgs-doublet models. Together with the measured mass of the scalar Higgs boson in the γγ and ZZ decay modes, a lower limit is set on the pseudoscalar Higgs boson mass of mA> 370 GeV in the “hMSSM” simplified Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model. Results from direct searches for heavy Higgs bosons are also interpreted in the hMSSM. Direct searches for invisible Higgs boson decays in the vector-boson fusion and associated production of a Higgs boson with W/Z (Z → ℓℓ, W/Z → jj) modes are statistically combined to set an upper limit on the Higgs boson invisible branching ratio of 0.25. The use of the measured visible decay rates in a more general coupling fit improves the upper limit to 0.23, constraining a Higgs portal model of dark matter.[Figure not available: see fulltext.

Search for pair and single production of new heavy quarks that decay to a Z boson and a third-generation quark in pp collisions at √s = 8TeV with the ATLAS detector

A search is presented for the production of new heavy quarks that decay to a Z boson and a third-generation Standard Model quark. In the case of a new charge +2/3 quark (T), the decay targeted is T -> Zt, while the decay targeted for a new charge -1/3 quark (B) is B -> Zb. The search is performed with a dataset corresponding to 20.3 fb(-1) of p p collisions at root s = 8TeV recorded in 2012 with the ATLAS detector at the CERN Large Hadron Collider. Selected events contain a high transverse momentum Z boson candidate reconstructed from a pair of oppositely charged same-flavor leptons (electrons or muons), and are analyzed in two channels defined by the absence or presence of a third lepton. Hadronic jets, in particular those with properties consistent with the decay of a b-hadron, are also required to be present in selected events. Different requirements are made on the jet activity in the event in order to enhance the sensitivity to either heavy quark pair production mediated by the strong interaction, or single production mediated by the electroweak interaction. No significant excess of events above the Standard Model expectation is observed, and lower limits are derived on the mass of vector-like T and B quarks under various branching ratio hypotheses, as well as upper limits on the magnitude of electroweak coupling parameters