Towards the Assessment of the Predictive Capacity of the β-σ Two-Fluid Model for Pseudo-Homogeneous Slurry Flow in Pipes

This paper focuses on the numerical simulation of turbulent, pseudo-homogeneous slurry flows in pipes through the β-σ two-fluid model, developed by the authors and collaborators in previous research. The two-fluid model gives its name to the presence of two main calibration coefficients, namely, σ, associated with the turbulent dispersion of the particles, and β, related to the inter-phase friction and to the wall shear stress produced by the solid phase. In a recently published article, the role played by β and σ on different features of the CFD solution has been established for different flow conditions, and a procedure for the calibration of the two coefficients has been proposed. The present contribution investigates the extrapolability of previously calibrated coefficients to different conditions in terms of pipe diameter, particle type, and in-situ concentration. The experimental data used to support the conclusions and recommendations from the numerical study were obtained from previously published literature. The findings of this study not only contribute to a deeper comprehension of the β-σ two-fluid model, but they also provide a methodological background for the development of computational tools for industrial practitioners and academic researchers

Caveolin-1, breast cancer and ionizing radiation

Breast cancer (BC) recovery has increased in recent years thanks to efforts of Omics-based research in this field. However, despite the important results obtained, BC remains a complex multifactorial pathology that is difficult to treat appropriately. Caveolin-1 (CAV1), the basic constituent protein of specialized plasma membrane invaginations called caveolae, is emerging as a potential therapeutic biomarker in BC. This factor may modulate BC response to chemotherapy and radiation therapy. In addition, recent reports describe the key role of CAV1 during cell response to oxidative stress. The aim of the present review was to describe the biological roles of CAV1 in BC considering its contrasting dual functions as an oncogene and as a tumor suppressor. In addition, we report on how CAV1 may contribute to tumor cell response to ionizing radiation treatment. Finally, new roles of CAV1 in BC both on epithelium and stroma may be useful as prognostic indicators for patient treatment and help clinicians in the selection of the best personalized therapy

Subcutaneous Adipose Tissue Transcriptome Highlights Specific Expression Profiles in Severe Pediatric Obesity: A Pilot Study

The prevalence of pediatric obesity is rising rapidly worldwide, and "omic" approaches are helpful in investigating the molecular pathophysiology of obesity. This work aims to identify transcriptional differences in the subcutaneous adipose tissue (scAT) of children with overweight (OW), obesity (OB), or severe obesity (SV) compared with those of normal weight (NW). Periumbilical scAT biopsies were collected from 20 male children aged 1-12 years. The children were stratified into the following four groups according to their BMI z-scores: SV, OB, OW, and NW. scAT RNA-Seq analyses were performed, and a differential expression analysis was conducted using the DESeq2 R package. A pathways analysis was performed to gain biological insights into gene expression. Our data highlight the significant deregulation in both coding and non-coding transcripts in the SV group when compared with the NW, OW, and OB groups. A KEGG pathway analysis showed that coding transcripts were mainly involved in lipid metabolism. A GSEA analysis revealed the upregulation of lipid degradation and metabolism in SV vs. OB and SV vs. OW. Bioenergetic processes and the catabolism of branched-chain amino acids were upregulated in SV compared with OB, OW, and NW. In conclusion, we report for the first time that a significant transcriptional deregulation occurs in the periumbilical scAT of children with severe obesity compared with those of normal weight or those with overweight or mild obesity

Bone Marrow Mesenchymal Stem Cells Expanded Inside the Nichoid Micro-Scaffold: a Focus on Anti-Inflammatory Response

Purpose Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) represent a promising source for stem cell therapies in numerous diseases, including pediatric respiratory system diseases. Characterized by low immunogenicity, high anti-inflammatory, and immunoregulatory features, MSCs demonstrated an excellent therapeutic profile in numerous in vitro and preclinical models. MSCs reside in a specialized physiologic microenvironment, characterized by a unique combination of biophysical, biochemical, and cellular properties. The exploitation of the 3D micro-scaffold Nichoid, which simulates the native niche, enhanced the anti-inflammatory potential of stem cells through mechanical stimulation only, overcoming the limitation of biochemical and xenogenic growth factors application.Materials and Methods In this work, we expanded pediatric bone marrow MSCs (BM-MSCs) inside the Nichoid and performed a complete cellular characterization with different approaches including viability assays, immunofluorescence analyses, RNA sequencing, and gene expression analysis.Results We demonstrated that BM-MSCs inside the scaffold remain in a stem cell quiescent state mimicking the condition of the in vivo environment. Moreover, the gene expression profile of these cells shows a significant up-regulation of genes involved in immune response when compared with the flat control.Conclusion The significant changes in the expression profile of anti-inflammatory genes could potentiate the therapeutic effect of BM-MSCs, encouraging the possible clinical translation for the treatment of pediatric congenital and acquired pulmonary disorders, including post-COVID lung manifestations

Imatinib mesylate in the treatment of newly diagnosed or refractory/resistant c-KIT positive acute myeloid leukemia. Results of an Italian Multicentric Phase II Study

We evaluated safety and efficacy of imatinib (600 mg) in 36 c-KIT+ acute myeloid leukemia patients not amenable to receive conventional chemotherapy. No patient achieved complete remission. One patient obtained a hematologic improvement (platelet increase with transfusion independence). Median overall survival was 3 months (0.5-44+). Non-hematologic toxicity was overall mild

Imatinib mesylate in the treatment of newly diagnosed or refractory/resistant c-KIT positive acute myeloid leukemia. Results of an Italian Multicentric Phase II Study

We evaluated safety and efficacy of imatinib (600 mg) in 36 c-KIT+ acute myeloid leukemia patients not amenable to receive conventional chemotherapy. No patient achieved complete remission. One patient obtained a hematologic improvement (platelet increase with transfusion independence). Median overall survival was 3 months (0.5-44+). Non-hematologic toxicity was overall mild

Amyloidβ Peptides in interaction with raft-mime model membranes : a neutron reflectivity insight

The role of first-stage \u3b2-amyloid aggregation in the development of the Alzheimer disease, is widely accepted but still unclear. Intimate interaction with the cell membrane is invoked. We designed Neutron Reflectometry experiments to reveal the existence and extent of the interaction between \u3b2-amyloid (A\u3b2) peptides and a lone customized biomimetic membrane, and their dependence on the aggregation state of the peptide. The membrane, asymmetrically containing phospholipids, GM1 and cholesterol in biosimilar proportion, is a model for a raft, a putative site for amyloid-cell membrane interaction. We found that the structured-oligomer of A\u3b2(1-42), its most acknowledged membrane-active state, is embedded as such into the external leaflet of the membrane. Conversely, the A\u3b2(1-42) unstructured early-oligomers deeply penetrate the membrane, likely mimicking the interaction at neuronal cell surfaces, when the A\u3b2(1-42) is cleaved from APP protein and the membrane constitutes a template for its further structural evolution. Moreover, the smaller A\u3b2(1-6) fragment, the N-terminal portion of A\u3b2, was also used. A\u3b2 N-terminal is usually considered as involved in oligomer stabilization but not in the peptide-membrane interaction. Instead, it was seen to remove lipids from the bilayer, thus suggesting its role, once in the whole peptide, in membrane leakage, favouring peptide recruitment

Star cluster formation in the most extreme environments: Insights from the HiPEEC survey

We present the Hubble imaging Probe of Extreme Environments and Clusters (HiPEEC) survey. We fit HST NUV to NIR broadband and H$\alpha$ fluxes, to derive star cluster ages, masses, extinctions and determine the star formation rate (SFR) of 6 merging galaxies. These systems are excellent laboratories to trace cluster formation under extreme gas physical conditions, rare in the local universe, but typical for star-forming galaxies at cosmic noon. We detect clusters with ages of 1-500 Myr and masses that exceed $10^7$ M$_\odot$. The recent cluster formation history and their distribution within the host galaxies suggest that systems like NGC34, NGC1614, NGC4194 are close to their final coalescing phase, while NGC3256, NGC3690, NGC6052 are at an earlier/intermediate stage. A Bayesian analysis of the cluster mass function in the age interval 1-100 Myr provides strong evidence in 4 of the 6 galaxies that an exponentially truncated power law better describes the observed mass distributions. For two galaxies, the fits are inconclusive due to low number statistics. We determine power-law slopes $\beta \sim-1.5$ to $-2.0$, and truncation masses, M$_c$, between $10^6$ and a few times $10^7$ M$_\odot$, among the highest values reported in the literature. Advanced mergers have higher M$_c$ than early/intermediate merger stage galaxies, suggesting rapid changes in the dense gas conditions during the merger. We compare the total stellar mass in clusters to the SFR of the galaxy, finding that these systems are among the most efficient environments to form star clusters in the local universe.Comment: Accepted for publication in MNRAS; data and catalogues will be released at this URL http://dx.doi.org/10.17909/t9-cn0b-ht8

Star Formation Histories of the LEGUS Dwarf Galaxies (I): recent History of NGC1705, NGC4449 and Holmberg II

We use HST observations from the Legacy Extragalactic UV Survey to reconstruct the recent star formation histories (SFHs) of three actively star-forming dwarf galaxies, NGC4449, Holmberg II and NGC1705, from their UV color-magnitude diagrams (CMDs). We apply a CMD fitting technique using two independent sets of stellar isochrones, PARSEC-COLIBRI and MIST, to assess the uncertainties related to stellar evolution modelling. Irrespective of the adopted stellar models, all the three dwarfs are found to have had almost constant star formation rates (SFRs) in the last 100-200 Myr, with modest enhancements (a factor of $\sim$2) above the 100 Myr-averaged-SFR. Significant differences among the three dwarfs are found in the overall SFR, the timing of the most recent peak and the SFR$/$area. The Initial Mass Function (IMF) of NGC1705 and Holmberg II is consistent with a Salpeter slope down to $\approx$ 5 M$_{\odot}$, whereas it is slightly flatter, s$=-2.0$, in NGC4449. The SFHs derived with the two different sets of stellar models are consistent with each other, except for some quantitative details, attributable to their input assumptions. They also share the drawback that all synthetic diagrams predict a clear separation in color between upper main sequence and helium burning stars, which is not apparent in the data. Since differential reddening, significant in NGC4449, or unresolved binaries don't appear to be sufficient to fill the gap, we suggest this calls for a revision of both sets of stellar evolutionary tracks.Comment: 22 pages, 17 figures, accepted for publication on Ap

Notulae to the Italian native vascular flora: 8

In this contribution, new data concerning the distribution of native vascular flora in Italy are presented. It includes new records, confirmations, exclusions, and status changes to the Italian administrative regions for taxa in the genera Ajuga, Chamaemelum, Clematis, Convolvulus, Cytisus, Deschampsia, Eleocharis, Epi- pactis, Euphorbia, Groenlandia, Hedera, Hieracium, Hydrocharis, Jacobaea, Juncus, Klasea, Lagurus, Leersia, Linum, Nerium, Onopordum, Persicaria, Phlomis, Polypogon, Potamogeton, Securigera, Sedum, Soleirolia, Stachys, Umbilicus, Valerianella, and Vinca. Nomenclatural and distribution updates, published elsewhere, and corrigenda are provided as Suppl. material