Covering of elliptic curves and the kernel of the Prym map

Motivated by a conjecture of Xiao, we study families of coverings of elliptic curves and their corresponding Prym map $\Phi$. More precisely, we describe the codifferential of the period map $P$ associated to $\Phi$ in terms of the residue of meromorphic $1$-forms and then we use it to give a characterization for the coverings for which the dimension of $\ker(dP)$ is the least possibile. This is useful in order to exclude the existence of non isotrivial fibrations with maximal relative irregularity and thus also in order to give counterexamples to the Xiao's conjecture mentioned above. The first counterexample to the original conjecture, due to Pirola, is then analysed in our framework.Comment: 21 pages, no figures. The seminal ideas at the base of this article were born in the framework of the PRAGMATIC project of year 201

The 2013 Lunigiana (Central Italy) earthquake: Seismic source analysis from DInSar and seismological data, and geodynamic implications for the northern Apennines. A discussion

We refine the geological data of the 2013 Lunigiana EQ of Pezzo et al. (2014) We report structural constraints for the seismic source of the 2013 Lunigiana EQ. We underline the role of tectonic inheritance for the seismogenic faul

Transgenic Overexpression of LARGE Induces alpha-Dystroglycan Hyperglycosylation in Skeletal and Cardiac Muscle

Background: LARGE is one of seven putative or demonstrated glycosyltransferase enzymes defective in a common group of muscular dystrophies with reduced glycosylation of alpha-dystroglycan. Overexpression of LARGE induces hyperglycosylation of alpha-dystroglycan in both wild type and in cells from dystroglycanopathy patients, irrespective of their primary gene defect, restoring functional glycosylation. Viral delivery of LARGE to skeletal muscle in animal models of dystroglycanopathy has identical effects in vivo, suggesting that the restoration of functional glycosylation could have therapeutic applications in these disorders. Pharmacological strategies to upregulate Large expression are also being explored.Methodology/Principal Findings: In order to asses the safety and efficacy of long term LARGE over-expression in vivo, we have generated four mouse lines expressing a human LARGE transgene. On observation, LARGE transgenic mice were indistinguishable from the wild type littermates. Tissue analysis from young mice of all four lines showed a variable pattern of transgene expression: highest in skeletal and cardiac muscles, and lower in brain, kidney and liver. Transgene expression in striated muscles correlated with alpha-dystroglycan hyperglycosylation, as determined by immunoreactivity to antibody IIH6 and increased laminin binding on an overlay assay. Other components of the dystroglycan complex and extracellular matrix ligands were normally expressed, and general muscle histology was indistinguishable from wild type controls. Further detailed muscle physiological analysis demonstrated a loss of force in response to eccentric exercise in the older, but not in the younger mice, suggesting this deficit developed over time. However this remained a subclinical feature as no pathology was observed in older mice in any muscles including the diaphragm, which is sensitive to mechanical load-induced damage.Conclusions/Significance: This work shows that potential therapies in the dystroglycanopathies based on LARGE upregulation and alpha-dystroglycan hyperglycosylation in muscle should be safe

Application of artificial dynamics to represent non-isolated single-input multiple-output DC-DC converters with averaged models

This paper presents for the first time the application of a method based on the transformation of the differential algebraic equations of non-isolated Single-Input Multiple Output (SIMO) DC-DC converters into a set of ordinary differential equations, by using artificial dynamics whose asymptotic convergence to the solution is guaranteed by the satisfaction of the relevant Lyapunov conditions. The mathematical formulation is simpler than in other formulations applied in the literature to study non-isolated SIMO DC-DC converters, and encompasses the use of sensitivity functions. The results show that the proposed solution represents in a fully accurate way the dynamics of the averaged models of Zeta Buck-Boost and Cúk Boost Combination converters

Laparoscopic bilateral hand-assisted nephrectomy: end-stage renal disease from tuberculosis, an unusual indication for nephrectomy before transplantation.

The purpose of the study was to sterilize renal tuberculous foci in a pretransplantation patient with a laparoscopic hand-assisted approach and to verify the feasibility of bilateral nephrectomy for this indication. This case report is the first description of hand-assisted laparoscopic bilateral nephrectomy for this pathologic condition. The 33-year-old patient had end-stage renal disease from renal tuberculosis. A commercially available hand-assistance device was used through a midline 8-cm supraumbilical incision and with four ports. The procedure was successfully completed. The total operative time was 3 hours and 40 minutes. Estimated blood loss was 250 mL. The postoperative course was uneventful, and clinical follow-up at 3 weeks revealed a successful outcome. Hand-assisted bilateral laparoscopic nephrectomy in patients with chronic renal failure from tuberculosis represents a viable option because it is feasible and effective. The hand-assisted approach increases the safety of the procedure while retaining all the advantages of minimally invasive surgery

Detection of Listeria monocytogenes in foods with a textile organic electrochemical transistor biosensor

Abstract: Foods contaminated by pathogens are responsible for foodborne diseases which have socioeconomic impacts. Many approaches have been extensively investigated to obtain specific and sensitive methods to detect pathogens in food, but they are often not easy to perform and require trained personnel. This work aims to propose a textile organic electrochemical transistor-based (OECT) biosensor to detect L. monocytogenes in food samples. The analyses were performed with culture-based methods, Listeria Precis™ method, PCR, and our textile OECT biosensor which used poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT):polystyrene sulfonate (PSS) (PEDOT:PSS) for doping the organic channel. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) was used to obtain topographic maps of the gold gate. The electrochemical activity on gate electrodes was measured and related to the concentration of DNA extracted from samples and hybridized to the specific capture probe immobilized onto the gold surface of the gate. This assay reached a limit of detection of 1.05 ng/μL, corresponding to 0.56 pM of L. monocytogenes ATCC 7644, and allowed the specific and rapid detection of L. monocytogenes in the analyzed samples. Keypoints: • Textile organic electrochemical transistors functionalized with a specific DNA probe • AFM topographic and surface potential maps of a functionalized gold gate surface • Comparison between the Listeria monocytogenes Precis™ method and an OECT biosenso

The non-indigenous Paranthura japonica Richardson, 1909 in the Mediterranean Sea: travelling with shellfish?

An anthurid isopod new to the Mediterranean Sea has recently been observed in samples from three localities of the Italian coast: the Lagoon of Venice (North Adriatic Sea), La Spezia (Ligurian Sea) and Olbia (Sardinia, Tyrrhenian Sea). The specimens collected showed strong affinity to a species originally described from the NW Pacific Ocean: Paranthura japonica Richardson, 1909. The comparison with specimens collected from the Bay of Arcachon (Atlantic coast of France), where P. japonica had been recently reported as non-indigenous, confirmed the identity of the species. This paper reports the most relevant morphological details of the Italian specimens, data on the current distribution of the species and a discussion on the pathways responsible for its introduction. The available data suggest that the presence of this Pacific isopod in several regions of coastal Europe might be due to a series of aquaculture-mediated introduction events that occurred during the last decades of the 1900s. Since then, established populations of P. japonica, probably misidentified, remained unnoticed for a long time

A possible role for low-dose cyclosporine in refractory immune thrombocytopenic purpura.

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Optimal discretization of grounding systems applying Maxwell's subareas method

This paper presents a method for evaluating the optimal number n of equivalent sources needed for simulating grounding systems by the Maxwell's subareas method. It is well known that the number of elements in which electrodes are subdivided plays a role on the accuracy and reliability of results (as well as on computational time). Previous studies, accomplished through iterative calculations (performed with different segmentations), led mostly to some recommended practices for the identification of lower and upper bounds for n. The procedure proposed in this paper allows for predicting the optimal n in a single process. The method starts from the identification of a set of appropriate scalar functions, which heuristically express a relation between the number of subareas and the accuracy of the results (earth resistance and earth surface voltages) computed applying the Maxwell's subareas method. Then, a multi-objective optimization process evaluates the number n* that maximizes that accuracy