Collection of crop genetic resources in Italy, 2004

In September 2004, a collecting mission was carried out in Italy within the framework of an agreement between the Plant Genetics Institute (IGV), Bari, Italy of the National Research Council (CNR) and the Crop Science Institute of Kassel University (Germany). The mission collected 116 accessions belonging to 24 species, mainly cereals, pulses and vegetable landraces. The area receiving most attention were Carnia, Venetian lagoon, Po delta and Salento. Rare landraces were found out, such as "mugnoli" (a botanical form of Brassica oleracea L. var. italica Plenk), whosecultivation in the Salento area pre-dates that of broccoli. For each collecting site, information of past and present agricultural state is given, together with an assessment of the degree of crop genetic erosion. Italian agricultural biodiversity has been lost in great part, but some remote and isolated zones are still an important refuge for crop genetic resources. Material is being deposited in the IGV genebank

The EEE Project

The new experiment ``Extreme Energy Events'' (EEE) to detect extensive air showers through muon detection is starting in Italy. The use of particle detectors based on Multigap Resistive Plate Chambers (MRPC) will allow to determine with a very high accuracy the direction of the axis of cosmic ray showers initiated by primaries of ultra-high energy, together with a high temporal resolution. The installation of many of such 'telescopes' in numerous High Schools scattered all over the Italian territory will also allow to investigate coincidences between multiple primaries producing distant showers. Here we present the experimental apparatus and its tasks.Comment: 4 pages, 29th ICRC 2005, Pune, Indi

Gamma Knife Radiosurgery for Arteriovenous Malformations Using a Four- Dimensional Dynamic Volume Computed Tomography Angiography Planning System as an Alternative to Traditional Catheter Angiogram

Background Gamma knife radiosurgery (GKRS) remains a critical intervention in the long-term management of arteriovenous malformations (AVMs). For planning a treatment, identification of the nidus is essential, and it is dependent on high-resolution blood flow imaging, usually in the form of a traditional angiogram. The development of dynamic 320-slice computed tomography (CT) angiography has offered a noninvasive alternative to intra-arterial fluoroscopic imaging, and it is capable of providing equivalent temporal resolution. In this study, we describe the feasibility of using four-dimensional CT angiography (4D-CTA) in GKRS planning for AVM treatment and a comparative analysis with a traditional angiogram. Methods A retrospective review was performed on AVM patients treated via GKRS with a 4D-CTA prior to the day of treatment, on the day of treatment, or with a day-of-treatment angiogram. Treatment times, along with total times in the Leksell® coordinate frame G, were obtained from the medical records. The frame-on time was calculated by subtracting the treatment time from the total time starting from application to removal, and the statistical analysis was performed across groups using analysis of variance (ANOVA). All treatments were performed on the Perfexion™ model with a dynamic flow imaging procured via a 320-slice CT scanner or traditional angiography platform. Results Some 27 patients underwent a total of 29 GKRS procedures for AVM treatment at our institution between September 2011 and January 2017. Mean age at the time of treatment was 35.5 (6-65) years, and male:female ratio was 5:4. Some 12 patients had 4D-CTA performed prior to the day of treatment, eight patients had the same CTA completed after frame placement on the day of treatment, while seven patients underwent traditional angiography. The mean frame-on times of each group were 190, 336, and 426 minutes, respectively (p \u3c 0.0001). No procedures were aborted based on the image quality. Conclusions 4D-CTA is an effective tool in identifying the AVM nidus for GKRS planning. These studies can be performed prior to the day of treatment, allowing for a significant reduction in frame-on time and eliminating the risk of angiogram complication on the day of GKRS

Efficacy of Stereotactic Radiosurgery in Patients with Multiple Metastases: Importance of Volume Rather Than Number of Lesions

The role of stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) in the treatment of multiple brain metastases is controversial. While whole brain radiation therapy (WBRT) has historically been the mainstay of treatment, its value is increasingly being questioned as emerging data supports that SRS alone can provide comparable therapeutic outcomes for limited (one to three) intracranial metastases with fewer adverse effects, including neurocognitive decline. Multiple recent studies have also demonstrated that patients with multiple (\u3e 3) intracranial metastases with a low overall tumor volume have a favorable therapeutic response to SRS, with no significant difference compared to patients with limited metastases. Herein, we present a patient with previously controlled breast cancer who presented with multiple recurrences of intracranial metastases but low total intracranial tumor volume each time. This patient underwent SRS alone for a total of 40 metastatic lesions over three separate procedures with good local control and without any significant cognitive toxicity. The patient eventually opted for enrollment in the NRG-CC001 clinical trial after multiple cranial recurrences. She received conventional WBRT with six months of memantine and developed significant neurocognitive side effects. This case highlights the growing body of literature supporting the role of SRS alone in the management of multiple brain metastases and the importance of maximizing neurocognition as advances in systemic therapies prolong survival in Stage IV cancer

New Eco-gas mixtures for the Extreme Energy Events MRPCs: results and plans

The Extreme Energy Events observatory is an extended muon telescope array, covering more than 10 degrees both in latitude and longitude. Its 59 muon telescopes are equipped with tracking detectors based on Multigap Resistive Plate Chamber technology with time resolution of the order of a few hundred picoseconds. The recent restrictions on greenhouse gases demand studies for new gas mixtures in compliance with the relative requirements. Tetrafluoropropene is one of the candidates for tetrafluoroethane substitution, since it is characterized by a Global Warming Power around 300 times lower than the gas mixtures used up to now. Several mixtures have been tested, measuring efficiency curves, charge distributions, streamer fractions and time resolutions. Results are presented for the whole set of mixtures and operating conditions, %. A set of tests on a real EEE telescope, with cosmic muons, are being performed at the CERN-01 EEE telescope. The tests are focusing on identifying a mixture with good performance at the low rates typical of an EEE telescope.Comment: 8 pages, 6 figures, proceedings for the "XIV Workshop on Resistive Plate Chambers and Related Detectors" (19-23 February 2018), Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco State, Mexic

A simulation tool for MRPC telescopes of the EEE project

The Extreme Energy Events (EEE) Project is mainly devoted to the study of the secondary cosmic ray radiation by using muon tracker telescopes made of three Multigap Resistive Plate Chambers (MRPC) each. The experiment consists of a telescope network mainly distributed across Italy, hosted in different building structures pertaining to high schools, universities and research centers. Therefore, the possibility to take into account the effects of these structures on collected data is important for the large physics programme of the project. A simulation tool, based on GEANT4 and using GEMC framework, has been implemented to take into account the muon interaction with EEE telescopes and to estimate the effects on data of the structures surrounding the experimental apparata.A dedicated event generator producing realistic muon distributions, detailed geometry and microscopic behavior of MRPCs have been included to produce experimental-like data. The comparison between simulated and experimental data, and the estimation of detector resolutions is here presented and discussed

Multicentric assessment of safety and efficacy of combinatorial adjuvant brain metastasis treatment by intraoperative radiotherapy and immunotherapy

Purpose Following surgical resection of brain metastases (BMs), intraoperative radiation therapy (IORT) provides a promising alternative to adjuvant external beam radiation therapy (EBRT) by enabling superior organ at risk preservation, reduction of in-hospital times and timely admission to subsequent systemic treatments, which increasingly comprise novel targeted immunotherapeutic approaches. We sought to assess safety and efficacy of IORT in combination with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) and other targeted therapies (TTs). Methods In a multicentric approach incorporating individual patient data from six international IORT centers, all patients with BMs undergoing IORT were retrospectively assessed for combinatorial treatment with ICIs/TTs and evaluated for toxicity and cumulative rates, including wound dehiscence, radiation necrosis (RN), leptomeningeal spread (LMS), local control (LC), distant brain progression (DBP) and estimated overall survival (OS). Results A total of 103 lesions with a median diameter of 34 mm receiving IORT combined with immunomodulatory systemic treatment or other TTs were included. The median follow up was 13.2 (1.2-102.4) months and the median IORT dose was 25 (18-30) Gy prescribed to the applicator surface. There was one grade 3 adverse event related to IORT recorded (2.2%). A 4.9% cumulative RN rate was observed. The 1-year LCR was 98.0% and the 1-year DBP-free rate 60.0%. Median time to DBP was 5.5 (1.0-18.5) months in the subgroup of patients experiencing DBP and the cumulative LMS rate was 4.9%. The median estimated OS was 26 (1.2-not reached) months with a 1-year survival rate of 74.0%. Early initiation of IT/TT was associated with a non-significant trend towards improved DBP rate and OS. Conclusion The combination of ICIs/TT with IORT for resected BMs does not seem to increase toxicity, while yielding encouraging local control outcomes in the difficult-to-treat subgroup of larger BMs. Time gaps between surgery and systemic treatment could be shortened or avoided. The definitive role of IORT in local control after BM resection will be defined in a prospective trial

The Extreme Energy Events HECR array: status and perspectives

The Extreme Energy Events Project is a synchronous sparse array of 52 tracking detectors for studying High Energy Cosmic Rays (HECR) and Cosmic Rays-related phenomena. The observatory is also meant to address Long Distance Correlation (LDC) phenomena: the network is deployed over a broad area covering 10 degrees in latitude and 11 in longitude. An overview of a set of preliminary results is given, extending from the study of local muon flux dependance on solar activity to the investigation of the upward-going component of muon flux traversing the EEE stations; from the search for anisotropies at the sub-TeV scale to the hints for observations of km-scale Extensive Air Shower (EAS).Comment: XXV ECRS 2016 Proceedings - eConf C16-09-04.

Jet production in charged current deep inelastic e⁺p scatteringat HERA

The production rates and substructure of jets have been studied in charged current deep inelastic e⁺p scattering for Q² > 200 GeV² with the ZEUS detector at HERA using an integrated luminosity of 110.5 pb⁻¹. Inclusive jet cross sections are presented for jets with transverse energies E_{T}^{jet} > 5 GeV. Measurements of the mean subjet multiplicity, 〈n_{sbj}〉, of the inclusive jet sample are presented. Predictions based on parton-shower Monte Carlo models and next-to-leading-order QCD calculations are compared to the measurements. The value of α_{s} (M_{z}), determined from 〈n_{sbj}〉 at y_{cut} = 10⁻² for jets with 25 < E_{T}^{jet} < 119 GeV, is α_{s} (M_{z}) = 0.1202 ± 0.0052 (stat.)_{-0.0019}^{+0.0060} (syst.)_{-0.0053}^{+0.0065} (th.). The mean subjet multiplicity as a function of Q² is found to be consistent with that measured in NC DIS