Improved noise performance of ion-implanted MESFET devices by optimised pre and post implant wafer annealing.

In this article we illustrate how the noise performance of ion-implanted MESFET devices can be appreciably improved by means of optimised pre and post implant annealing cycle. With this technique the 12 GHz noise figure of 0.5x300 um devices is reduced from 2.7 dB to 1.8 dB

Insight into genetic determinants of resting heart rate

Background: Recent studies suggested that resting heart rate (RHR) might be an independent predictor of cardiovascular mortality and morbidity. Nonetheless, the interrelation between RHR and cardiovascular diseases is not clear. In order to resolve this puzzle, the importance of genetic determinants of RHR has been recently suggested, but it needs to be further investigated. Objective: The aim of this study was to estimate the contribution of common genetic variations on RHR using Genome Wide Association Study. Methods: We performed a Genome Wide Association Study in an isolated population cohort of 1737 individuals, the Italian Network on Genetic Isolates - Friuli Venezia Giulia (INGI-FVG). Moreover, a haplotype analysis was performed. A regression tree analysis was run to highlight the effect of each haplotype combination on the phenotype. Results: A significant level of association (p<5×10-8) was detected for Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNPs) in two genes expressed in the heart: MAML1 and CANX. Founding that the three different variants of the haplotype, which encompass both genes, yielded a phenotypic correlation. Indeed, a haplotype in homozygosity is significantly associated with the lower quartile of RHR (RHR≤58bpm). Moreover no significant association was found between cardiovascular risk factors and the different haplotype combinations. Conclusion: Mastermind-like 1 and Calnexin were found to be associated with RHR. We demonstrated a relation between a haplotype and the lower quartile of RHR in our populations. Our findings highlight that genetic determinants of RHR may be implicated in determining cardiovascular diseases and could allow a better risk stratification. © 2014 Elsevier B.V

Tasks Performed by Different Groups of Foragers and Regulation of Foraging Activity in the Mediterranean Harvest Ant Messor wasmanni (Hymenoptera, Formicidae)

The moment-to-moment tasks performed by an individual can change in response to a shift of internal, e.g. body size or age, and external conditions, e.g. the number of workers currently engaged in another task. For this reason, the term “task allocation” is replacing the earlier concept of “division of labor” for describing an invariable association between worker body size and task. In the present study we hypothesized that, in the absence of changing conditions, different sized workers tend to perform different tasks. We also evaluated, using baits, the ability of colonies to regulate foraging activity through interactions between outgoing and returning foragers and the effect of ground temperature on the relative participation of different-sized workers to the foraging activity. Results suggest the existence in large and well-established colonies inhabiting a typical Mediterranean grassland area, of different-sized workers performing different tasks outside the nests. Moreover, we noticed the ability of colonies to adjust the relative participation of different sized foragers when provided with different-sized resources (baits). Finally, we recorded an effect of temperature on the average size of foragers, although no effect on size distribution was found

A novel autosomal dominant non-syndromic deafness locus (DFNA48) maps to 12q13-q14 in a large Italian family

Non-syndromic hearing loss is the most common sensory disorder in humans; 15%-20% of cases are transmitted as a dominant trait (NSDA) with 40 loci having been mapped and 16 genes having been identified. Here, we report the mapping of a novel NSDA locus, DFNA48, to chromosome 12q13-q14 in a large multigenerational Italian family. A maximum lod score of 3.31 was obtained with marker D12S83, whereas markers D12S347 and D12S1703 defined a region of approximately 18 cM. Positional candidate genes are being screened for deafness-causing mutations

Identification of a Novel Mutation in the Myosin VIIA Motor Domain in a Family with Autosomal Dominant Hearing Loss (DFNA11)

13We ascertained a large Italian family with an autosomal dominant form of non-syndromic sensorineural hearing loss with vestibular involvement. A genome-wide scan found linkage to locus DFNA11. Sequencing of the MYO7A gene in the linked region identified a new missense mutation resulting in an Ala230Val change in the motor domain of the myosin VIIA. Myosin VIIA has already been implicated in several forms of deafness, but this is the third mutation causing a dominant form of deafness, located in the myosin VIIA motor domain in a region never involved in hearing loss until now. A modelled protein structure of myosin VII motor domain provides evidence for a significant functional effect of this missense mutation.nonenoneDI LEVA F; D'ADAMO P; CUBELLIS MV; D'EUSTACCHIO A; ERRICHIELLO M; SAULINO C; AULETTA G; GIANNINI P; DONAUDY F; CICCODICOLA A; GASPARINI P.; FRANZE A; MARCIANO EDI LEVA, F; D'Adamo, ADAMO PIO; Cubellis, Mv; D'Eustacchio, A; Errichiello, M; Saulino, C; Auletta, G; Giannini, P; Donaudy, F; Ciccodicola, A; Gasparini, Paolo; Franze, A; Marciano, E