Charmed Baryonium

We re-analyze the published data on the Y(4630) --> Lambda_c Lambdabar_c and the Y(4660) --> psi(2S) pi pi with a consistent Ansatz and we find that the two observations are likely to be due to the same state Y_B with M_{Y_B} = 4660.7 +- 8.7 MeV and Gamma_{Y_B} = 61 +- 23 MeV. Under this hypothesis and reanalizing also the e+e- --> J/psi pi pi gamma_ISR spectrum we extract B(Y_B --> Lambda_c Lambdabar_c) / B(Y_B --> psi(2S) pi pi) = 25 +- 7, B(Y_B --> J/psi pi pi) / B(Y_B --> psi(2S) pi pi) J/psi pi pi) / B(Y(4350) --> psi(2S) pi pi) psi(2S) sigma) / B (Y_B --> psi(2S) f_0)=2.0 +- 0.3. These conclusions strongly support the hypothesis of Y_B being the first observation of a charmed baryonium constituted by four quarks. From the analysis of the mass spectrum and the decay properties we show that Y(4350) and Y_B are respectively consistent with the ground state and first radial excitation of the L=1 state.Comment: Corrected phase space normalization in the fit

Palpation force modulation strategies to identify hard regions in soft tissue organs

This work was supported by EPSRC MOTION grant (grant number EP/N03211X/1), National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Biomedical Research Centre based at Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust and King’s College London and Vattikuti Foundation

Crack growth behavior of SBR, NR and BR rubber compounds: comparison of Pure-Shear versus Strip Tensile test

Fatigue crack growth experiments on different carbon black–filled rubber compounds have been carried out to evaluate the influence of pure-shear and strip tensile testing mode by using sine and pulse as waveforms. In a previous set of experimental investigations regarding the influence of both waveform and tested material, it was found that the mode I of crack opening sometimes propagates too quickly to be properly monitored in tests involving strip-tensile specimens. An alternative test methodology based on pure-shear test mode has been investigated, optimizing both the shape of the specimen and the test equipment. Data obtained from the different compound formulations were consistent with the theoretical background and resulted in similar ranking of compound crack growth resistance for the two testing modes; in addition, pure-shear mode showed a higher sensitivity to formula variations

Autonomous Robotic Palpation of Soft Tissue using the Modulation of Applied Force

Palpation or perception of tactile information from soft tissue organs during minimally invasive surgery is required to improve clinical outcomes. One of the methods of palpation includes examination using the modulation of applied force on the localized area. This paper presents a method of soft tissue autonomous palpation based on the mathematical model obtained from human tactile examination data using modulations of palpation force. Using a second order reactive auto-regressive model of applied force, a robotic probe with spherical indenter was controlled to examine silicone tissue phantoms containing artificial nodules. The results show that the autonomous palpation using the model abstracted from human demonstration can be used not only to detect embedded nodules, but also to enhance the stiffness perception compared to the static indentation of the probe

Impact of Sleeve Gastrectomy on Weight Loss, Glucose Homeostasis, and Comorbidities in Severely Obese Type 2 Diabetic Subjects

This study was undertaken to assess medium-term effects of laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) on body weight and glucose homeostasis in severely obese type 2 diabetic (T2DM) subjects. Twenty-five obese T2DM subjects (10 M/15 F, age 45 ± 9 years, BMI 48 ± 8 kg/m2, M ± SD) underwent evaluation of anthropometric/clinical parameters and glucose homeostasis before, 3 and 9–15 months after LSG. Mean BMI decreased from 48 ± 8 kg/m2 to 40 ± 9 kg/m2 (P < .001) at 3 months and 34 ± 6 kg/m2 (P < .001) at 9–15 months after surgery. Remission of T2DM (fasting plasma glucose < 126 mg/dL and HbA1c < 6.5% in the absence of hypoglycemic treatment) occurred in all patients but one. There was a remarkable reduction in the percentage of patients requiring antihypertensive and hypolipidemic drugs. Our study shows that LSG is effective in producing a significant and sustained weight loss and improving glucose homeostasis in severely obese T2DM patients

Attitude toward prescription and clinical monitoring of lithium salts in a sample of Italian psychiatrists: preliminary data

Results of international prescribing patterns show that lithium prescription and biochemical drug monitoring seem to differ from a country to another. In spite of clear-cut supporting scientific evidence lithium monitoring is often disregarded, incorrectly used or underused. In Italy the trend of lithium prescriptions and biochemical monitoring is far from what suggested in guidelines; even if there's an impressive paucity of data about lithium monitoring and related iatrogenic risks in our country. In order to assess the current attitude in Italy toward lithium treatment in bipolar disorder we asked to a number of senior psychiatrists, working within the national territory, to fill a 34 items interview. Items were grouped in 8 domains, ranging from prescription pattern to therapeutic drug monitoring and other safety measures to prevent iatrogenic harm during lithium therapy. A preliminary analysis of the very first data, collected mainly in Tuscany, suggested that overall knowledge about lithium prescription and biochemical monitoring were good and the few critical topics found in this preliminary study may be addressed with an improvement in information about lithium therapy

Concerning synthesis of new biobased polycarbonates with curcumin in replacement of bisphenol a and recycled diphenyl carbonate as example of circular economy

Curcumin (CM) is a natural polyphenol well-known for its antioxidant and pharmaceutical properties, that can represent a renewable alternative to bisphenol A (BPA) for the synthesis of biobased polycarbonates (PC). In the presented strategy, preparation of the CM-based PC was coupled with chemical recycling of the fossil-based BPA polycarbonate (BPA-PC) conducting a two-steps trans-polymerization that replaces BPA monomer with CM or its tetrahydrogenated colorless product (THCM). In the first step of synthetic strategy, depolymerization of commercial BPA-PC was carried out with phenol as nucleophile, according to our previous procedure based on zinc derivatives and ionic liquids as catalysts, thus producing quantitatively diphenyl carbonate (DPC) e BPA. In the second step, DPC underwent a melt transesterification with CM or THCM monomers affording the corresponding bio-based polycarbonates, CM-PC and THCM-PC, respectively. THCM was prepared by reducing natural bis-phenol with cyclohexene as a hydrogen donor and characterized by 1H-NMR and MS techniques. Polymerization reactions were monitored by infrared spectroscopy and average molecular weights and dispersity of the two biobased polymers THCM-PC and CM-PC were determined by means of gel permeation chromatography (GPC). Optical properties of the prepared polymers were also measured

Modelling the structure of object-independent human affordances of approaching to grasp for robotic hands

Grasp affordances in robotics represent different ways to grasp an object involving a variety of factors from vision to hand control. A model of grasp affordances that is able to scale across different objects, features and domains is needed to provide robots with advanced manipulation skills. The existing frameworks, however, can be difficult to extend towards a more general and domain independent approach. This work is the first step towards a modular implementation of grasp affordances that can be separated into two stages: approach to grasp and grasp execution. In this study, human experiments of approaching to grasp are analysed, and object-independent patterns of motion are defined and modelled analytically from the data. Human subjects performed a specific action (hammering) using objects of different geometry, size and weight. Motion capture data relating the hand-object approach distance was used for the analysis. The results showed that approach to grasp can be structured in four distinct phases that are best represented by non-linear models, independent from the objects being handled. This suggests that approaching to grasp patterns are following an intentionally planned control strategy, rather than implementing a reactive execution

Supercritical CO2 Extraction of Phytocompounds from Olive Pomace Subjected to Different Drying Methods

Olive pomace is a semisolid by-product of olive oil production and represents a valuable source of functional phytocompounds. The valorization of agro-food chain by-products represents a key factor in reducing production costs, providing benefits related to their reuse. On this ground, we herein investigate extraction methods with supercritical carbon dioxide (SC-CO2) of functional phytocompounds from olive pomace samples subjected to two different drying methods, i.e., freeze drying and hot-air drying. Olive pomace was produced using the two most common industrial olive oil production processes, one based on the two-phase (2P) decanter and one based on the three-phase (3P) decanter. Our results show that freeze drying more efficiently preserves phytocompounds such as α-tocopherol, carotenoids, chlorophylls, and polyphenols, whereas hot-air drying does not compromise the β-sitosterol content and the extraction of squalene is not dependent on the drying method used. Moreover, higher amounts of α-tocopherol and polyphenols were extracted from 2P olive pomace, while β-sitosterol, chlorophylls, and carotenoids were more concentrated in 3P olive pomace. Finally, tocopherol and pigment/polyphenol fractions exerted antioxidant activity in vitro and in accelerated oxidative conditions. These results highlight the potential of olive pomace to be upcycled by extracting from it, with green methods, functional phytocompounds for reuse in food and pharmaceutical industries