Keypics: free–hand drawn iconic keywords

We propose an iconic indexing of images to be exposed on the Web. This should be accomplished by “Keypics”, i.e. auxiliary, simplified pictures referring to the geometrical and/or the semantic content of the indexed image. Keypics should not be rigidly standardized; they should be left free to evolve, to express nuances and to stress details. A mathematical tool for dealing with such freedom, in the retrieval task, already exists: Size Functions. An experiment on 494 Keypics with Size Functions based on three measuring functions (distances, projections and jumps) and their combination is presented

Probing the role of nuclear-envelope invaginations in the nuclear-entry route of lipofected DNA by multi-channel 3D confocal microscopy.

Nuclear breakdown was found to be the dominant route for DNA entry into the nucleus in actively dividing cells. The possibility that alternative routes contribute to DNA entry into the nucleus, however, cannot be ruled out. Here we address the process of lipofection by monitoring the localization of fluorescently-labelled DNA plasmids at the single-cell level by confocal imaging in living interphase cells. As test formulation we choose the cationic 3β-[N-(N,N-dimethylaminoethane)-carbamoyl] cholesterol (DC-Chol) and the zwitterionic helper lipid dioleoylphosphatidylethanolamine (DOPE) with plasmidic DNA pre-condensed by means of protamine. By exploiting the spectral shift of the fluorescent dye FM4-64 (N-(3-triethylammoniumpropyl)-4-(p-diethylaminophenylhexatrienyl)-pyridinium 2Br) we monitor the position of the nuclear envelope (NE), while concomitantly imaging the whole nucleus (by Hoechst) and the DNA (by Cy3 fluorophore) in a multi-channel 3D confocal imaging experiment. Reported results show that DNA clusters are typically associated with the NE membrane in the form of tubular invaginations spanning the nuclear environment, but not completely trapped within the NE invaginations, i.e. the DNA may use these NE regions as entry-points towards the nucleus. These observations pave the way to investigating the molecular details of the postulated processes for a better exploitation of gene-delivery vectors, particularly for applications in non-dividing cells

Caspase-8 and Tyrosine Kinases: A Dangerous Liaison in Cancer

: Caspase-8 is a cysteine-aspartic acid protease that has been identified as an initiator caspase that plays an essential role in the extrinsic apoptotic pathway. Evasion of apoptosis is a hallmark of cancer and Caspase-8 expression is silenced in some tumors, consistent with its central role in apoptosis. However, in the past years, several studies reported an increased expression of Caspase-8 levels in many tumors and consistently identified novel "non-canonical" non-apoptotic functions of Caspase-8 that overall promote cancer progression and sustain therapy resistance. These reports point to the ability of cancer cells to rewire Caspase-8 function in cancer and raise the question of which are the signaling pathways aberrantly activated in cancer that may contribute to the hijack of Caspase-8 activity. In this regard, tyrosine kinases are among the first oncogenes ever identified and genomic, transcriptomic and proteomic studies indeed show that they represent a class of signaling molecules constitutively activated in most of the tumors. Here, we aim to review and discuss the role of Caspase-8 in cancer and its interplay with Src and other tyrosine kinases

Methods of Control of the Leishmania infantum Dog Reservoir: State of the Art

Leishmania infantum is a protozoan parasite causing severe vector-borne visceral diseases both in humans and dogs. The latter are the most important natural reservoir and therefore should be the main target of control measures. The real efficacy of seropositive dogs culling as a direct control method is still debated, and the new sensitivity of large part of population considers ethically unacceptable this kind of approach. Treatment of infectious dogs with one of the available therapeutic protocols is recommendable as it allows to reduce parasite burdens and therefore the possibility of transmission of Leishmania infantum to vectors. Vaccination has been proven to be a very effective control tool, but the absence of a commonly recognized diagnostic method able to distinguish vaccinate from seropositive individuals is still an important limit. Concerning indirect control methods, a number of studies have demonstrated the efficacy of topical insecticides treatment (collars, spot-on, and sprays) in reducing incidence and prevalence of L. infantum. Also, the reduction of the odds of seroconversion in humans in endemic areas has been reported after the application of indirect control measures on dogs. The contemporary use of direct and indirect methods is even more effective in reducing seroprevalence in dogs

The impact of shift work on the psychological and physical health of nurses in a general hospital: a comparison between rotating night shifts and day shifts

Background: Shift work is considered necessary to ensure continuity of care in hospitals and residential facilities. In particular, the night shift is one of the most frequent reasons for the disruption of circadian rhythms, causing significant alterations of sleep and biological functions that can affect physical and psychological well-being and negatively impact work performance. Objectives: The aim of this study was to highlight if shift work with nights, as compared with day work only, is associated with risk factors predisposing nurses to poorer health conditions and lower job satisfaction. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted from June 1, 2015 to July 31, 2015 in 17 wards of a general hospital and a residential facility of a northern Italian city. This study involved 213 nurses working in rotating night shifts and 65 in day shifts. The instrument used for data collection was the “Standard Shift Work Index,” validated in Italian. Data were statistically analyzed. Results: The response rate was 86%. The nurses engaged in rotating night shifts were statistically significantly younger, more frequently single, and had Bachelors and Masters degrees in nursing. They reported the lowest mean score in the items of job satisfaction, quality and quantity of sleep, with more frequent chronic fatigue, psychological, and cardiovascular symptoms in comparison with the day shift workers, in a statistically significant way. Conclusion: Our results suggest that nurses with rotating night schedule need special attention due to the higher risk for both job dissatisfaction and undesirable health effects

The undergraduate nursing student evaluation of clinical learning environment: an Italian survey [La valutazione dell'ambiente di apprendimento clinico da parte degli studenti del Corso di Laurea in Infermieristica: una indagine italiana]

BACKGROUND: Nursing students have to deal with many different clinical and practical aspects of knowledge to become skilled professionals. Student perception may be considered an indicator of teaching quality, since positive perception of students is strictly related to their effective professional learning. The Clinical Learning Environment and Supervision plus Nurse Teacher (CLES+T) scale is considered the gold standard psychometric instrument to evaluate both the quality and the climate of clinical learning environment. AIMS: To evaluate the quality of nurse teaching by means of CLES+T scale and to highlight significant correlations between CLES+T scale and selected characteristics of both students and clinical environments. METHODS: On 4 March 2013, a cross-sectional survey was conducted at University of Modena: CLES+T scale was administered during a plenary convocation to 242 nursing students who attended the second and third years of Nursing Degree. All 34 items of the scale were statistically analysed using the median test. RESULTS: The median values were uniformly represented by "4" level (on the Likert scale). The final marks of clinical learning experience were the only variable statistically significantly related to the scale scores. The paediatrics and emergency areas obtained the highest scale scores. CONCLUSIONS: The nursing student evaluations were uniformly positive and related to their positive final marks. A positive ward atmosphere was identified as especially important in this study. These data indicate that a non-hostile and hospitable environment can favour the best clinical learning. We conclude that CLES+T scale can be a useful instrument to explore the clinical climate in all hospital areas and to highlight critical clinical situations

Computer-Aided Rehabilitation Supported by Zygomatic Implants: A Cohort Study Comparing Atrophic with Oncologic Patients after Five Years of Follow-Up

The aim of this study was to evaluate the survival and clinical success rate, complications, and patients’ quality of life after computer-aided rehabilitation supported by zygomatic implants in cases of severe maxillary atrophy (ten patients) and in bone defects in oncologic patients (ten patients). All patients underwent computer-aided planning and surgery. Seventy-three zygomatic implants were placed. The mean follow-up period was 39.9 months. Implant survival and clinical success rate, the effectiveness of planning the implant length, biological and prosthetic complications, and the quality of life were evaluated. The five-year implant survival rate for patients with maxillary atrophy and oncologic patients was 97.4% and 96.7%, respectively. The prosthetic survival rate was 100%. Two implant failures occurred in the first year. One implant failure was observed in each group. Minor biological and prosthetic complications occurred in both groups without significant differences. All complications were managed without affecting the treatment. The quality of life increased by 71.3% in the atrophic group and by 82.9% in the oncologic group. Zygomatic implant rehabilitation seems to be a reliable technique for patients with maxillary atrophy and for oncologic patients. The three-dimensional computer-aided approach allows the surgeon to plan the surgery and increase its predictability. Early prosthesis loading certainly allows for better functional outcomes

The Effect of Simple Melodic Lines on Aesthetic Experience: Brain Response to Structural Manipulations

This fMRI study investigates the effect of melody on aesthetic experience in listeners na \u308\u131ve to formal musical knowledge. Using simple melodic lines, whose syntactic structure was manipulated, we created systematic acoustic dissonance. Two stimulus categories were created: canonical (syntactically \u201ccorrect,\u201d in the Western culture) and modified (made of an altered version of the canonical melodies). The stimuli were presented under two tasks: listening and aesthetic judgment. Data were analyzed as a function of stimulus structure (canonical and modified) and stimulus aesthetics, as appraised by each participant during scanning. The critical contrast modified versus canonical stimuli produced enhanced activation of deep temporal regions, including the parahippocampus, suggesting that melody manipulation induced feelings of unpleasantness in the listeners. This was supported by our behavioral data indicating decreased aesthetic preference for the modified melodies. Medial temporal activation could also have been evoked by stimulus structural novelty determining increased memory load for the modified stimuli. The analysis of melodies judged as beautiful revealed that aesthetic judgment of simple melodies relied on a fine-structural analysis of the stimuli subserved by a left frontal activation and, possibly, on meaning attribution at the charge of right superior temporal sulcus for increasingly pleasurable stimul

Cytogenetic and molecular characterization of durum wheat chromosome transfers with 1D-associated gluten protein genes and their pyramiding

Gluten quality of bread wheat is known to be mainly associated with high- (HMW-GS) and low-(LMW-GS) molecular weight glutenin subunits encoded by Glu-1 (L arm of group-1 chromosomes) and Glu-3 (S arm of group-1 chromosomes) genes, respectively, with the 1D alleles of such genes having the major impact on bread making properties. Transfer of chromosomal segments containing the Glu-D1 and Gli-D1/Glu-D3 loci was successfully achieved in a number of instances resorting to chromosome engineering. Using this strategy, we isolated two 1A-1D recombinant lines, in which the Gli-D1/Glu-D3 genes and the Glu-D1d allele (HMW-GS "5+10") were separately transferred into the 1AS and 1AL arm, respectively, of recipient durum wheat lines (named PS and PL, respectively). Also, a detailed genetic map of both recombinant chromosome arms was developed. Stable PS + PL double-recombinant lines have been obtained as a result of homologous recombination in the 1A portions shared by the two recombinant chromosomes present in PS x PL hybrids. Preliminary quality tests suggest that the Glu-D3 + Glu-D1d combined presence could determine a slight increase of gluten quality parameters over those associated with Glu-D1d alone