Industrial 3D printing in Italy

This paper aims at providing a comprehensive outlook on the economic and organisational rationale of 3D printing technologies and their implications for innovation in the Italian manufacturing industry. Despite its limited impact on the industrial world, the idea of printing actual 3D objects has clearly capturing the popular imagination; 3D printing is often linked to \u2018big changes\u2019 or to sometimes indefinite industrial revolutions in progress because it is considered that 3D printing will eventually enable \u2018mass customisation\u2019. None of the most significant actual applications of AM in Italian manufacturing, however, suggests that any real \u2018manufacturing revolution\u2019 has started or can be foreseen in the near future for consumer goods. For these AM is neither competitive today, nor can it be made so in the future, unless some sort of technological quantum leap occurs

Let Me Whisper

Man and woman dancing next to palm tree; Palm trees and moon in backgroundhttps://scholarsjunction.msstate.edu/cht-sheet-music/7986/thumbnail.jp

The role of detraining in tendon mechanobiology

INTRODUCTION: Several conditions such as training, aging, estrogen deficiency and drugs could affect the biological and anatomo-physiological characteristics of the tendon. Additionally, recent preclinical and clinical studies examined the effect of detraining on tendon, showing alterations in its structure and morphology and in tenocyte mechanobiology. However, few data evaluated the importance that cessation of training might have on tendon. Basically, we do not fully understand how tendons react to a phase of training followed by sudden detraining. Therefore, within this review, we summarize the studies where tendon detraining was examined. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A descriptive systematic literature review was carried out by searching three databases (PubMed, Scopus and Web of Knowledge) on tendon detraining. Original articles in English from 2000 to 2015 were included. In addition, the search was extended to the reference lists of the selected articles. A public reference manager (www.mendeley.com) was adopted to remove duplicate articles. RESULTS: An initial literature search yielded 134 references (www.pubmed.org: 53; www.scopus.com: 11; www.webofknowledge.com: 70). Fifteen publications were extracted based on the title for further analysis by two independent reviewers. Abstracts and complete articles were after that reviewed to evaluate if they met inclusion criteria. CONCLUSIONS: The revised literature comprised four clinical studies and an in vitro and three in vivo reports. Overall, the results showed that tendon structure and properties after detraining are compromised, with an alteration in the tissue structural organization and mechanical properties. Clinical studies usually showed a lesser extent of tendon alterations, probably because preclinical studies permit an in-depth evaluation of tendon modifications, which is hard to perform in human subjects. In conclusion, after a period of sudden detraining (e.g., after an injury), physical activity should be taken with caution, following a targeted rehabilitation program. However, further research should be performed to fully understand the effect of sudden detraining on tendons

Tiger nut powder as ingredient for obtaining gluten free foods based on noodle processing and extrusion technology

Tiger nut (Cyperus esculentus L.) is a sweet tuber mostly cultivated in Eastern Spain (Valencia) and in west Africa. Its nutritional profile stands out for the high fiber and unsaturated fat content; moreover, the moderate protein amount might make it suitable for the nutritional enrichment of gluten free foods. The objective of this thesis was to extend the applications of tiger nut as gluten free (GF) ingredient in noodles making and snacks. The study of marketed GF pasta revealed the nutritional inadequacy and lower cooking performances compared with their gluten containing homologous. The quantification of furosine content was handy for a better understanding of the heat damage caused during the production process. At this point, tiger nut flour was utilized for the design of gluten free noodles. The effect on noodles physicochemical characteristics leaded by different hydrocolloids (guar gum, xanthan gum, inulin and carboxymethyl cellulose) and by differing hydration levels revealed the importance in the selection of the most appropriate strengthening agent. Specifically, samples with 0.5% xanthan gum and adjusted hydration level exhibited the best cooking behavior and high final firmness. Owing to the growing extruded snacks success, tiger nut flour was blended with rice and soluble fiber to evaluate its technological adequacy for the extrusion-cooking process. Apparent viscosity, structural and surface characteristics of the gluten free snacks were deeply influenced by tiger nut addition. An improving of the nutritional profile, total soluble phenolics content and the total antioxidant capacity were found in the samples with tiger nut. Overall, it was possible to obtain GF foods containing tiger nut powder by applying different processing alternatives.Tiger nut (Cyperus esculentus L.) is a sweet tuber mostly cultivated in Eastern Spain (Valencia) and in west Africa. Its nutritional profile stands out for the high fiber and unsaturated fat content; moreover, the moderate protein amount might make it suitable for the nutritional enrichment of gluten free foods. The objective of this thesis was to extend the applications of tiger nut as gluten free (GF) ingredient in noodles making and snacks. The study of marketed GF pasta revealed the nutritional inadequacy and lower cooking performances compared with their gluten containing homologous. The quantification of furosine content was handy for a better understanding of the heat damage caused during the production process. At this point, tiger nut flour was utilized for the design of gluten free noodles. The effect on noodles physicochemical characteristics leaded by different hydrocolloids (guar gum, xanthan gum, inulin and carboxymethyl cellulose) and by differing hydration levels revealed the importance in the selection of the most appropriate strengthening agent. Specifically, samples with 0.5% xanthan gum and adjusted hydration level exhibited the best cooking behavior and high final firmness. Owing to the growing extruded snacks success, tiger nut flour was blended with rice and soluble fiber to evaluate its technological adequacy for the extrusion-cooking process. Apparent viscosity, structural and surface characteristics of the gluten free snacks were deeply influenced by tiger nut addition. An improving of the nutritional profile, total soluble phenolics content and the total antioxidant capacity were found in the samples with tiger nut. Overall, it was possible to obtain GF foods containing tiger nut powder by applying different processing alternatives

Mitochondrial metabolism and energy sensing in tumor progression

Energy homeostasis is pivotal for cell fate since metabolic regulation, cell proliferation and death are strongly dependent on the balance between catabolic and anabolic pathways. In particular, metabolic and energetic changes have been observed in cancer cells even before the discovery of oncogenes and tumor suppressors, but has been neglected for a long time. Instead, during the past 20 years a renaissance of the study of tumor metabolism has led to a revised and more accurate sight of the metabolic landscape of cancer cells. In this scenario, genetic, biochemical and clinical evidences place mitochondria as key actors in cancer metabolic restructuring, not only because there are energy and biosynthetic intermediates manufacturers, but also because occurrence of mutations in metabolic enzymes encoded by both nuclear and mitochondrial DNA has been associated to different types of cancer. Here we provide an overview of the possible mechanisms modulating mitochondrial energy production and homeostasis in the intriguing scenario of neoplastic cells, focusing on the double-edged role of 5′-AMP activated protein kinase in cancer metabolism

The RHNumtS compilation: Features and bioinformatics approaches to locate and quantify Human NumtS

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>To a greater or lesser extent, eukaryotic nuclear genomes contain fragments of their mitochondrial genome counterpart, deriving from the random insertion of damaged mtDNA fragments. NumtS (Nuclear mt Sequences) are not equally abundant in all species, and are redundant and polymorphic in terms of copy number. In population and clinical genetics, it is important to have a complete overview of NumtS quantity and location. Searching PubMed for NumtS or Mitochondrial pseudo-genes yields hundreds of papers reporting Human NumtS compilations produced by <it>in silico </it>or wet-lab approaches. A comparison of published compilations clearly shows significant discrepancies among data, due both to unwise application of Bioinformatics methods and to a not yet correctly assembled nuclear genome. To optimize quantification and location of NumtS, we produced a consensus compilation of Human NumtS by applying various bioinformatics approaches.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Location and quantification of NumtS may be achieved by applying database similarity searching methods: we have applied various methods such as Blastn, MegaBlast and BLAT, changing both parameters and database; the results were compared, further analysed and checked against the already published compilations, thus producing the Reference Human Numt Sequences (RHNumtS) compilation. The resulting NumtS total 190.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The RHNumtS compilation represents a highly reliable reference basis, which may allow designing a lab protocol to test the actual existence of each NumtS. Here we report preliminary results based on PCR amplification and sequencing on 41 NumtS selected from RHNumtS among those with lower score. In parallel, we are currently designing the RHNumtS database structure for implementation in the HmtDB resource. In the future, the same database will host NumtS compilations from other organisms, but these will be generated only when the nuclear genome of a specific organism has reached a high-quality level of assembly.</p

The neglected liaison: Targeting cancer cell metabolic reprogramming modifies the composition of non‐malignant populations of the tumor microenvironment

Metabolic reprogramming is a well‐known hallmark of cancer, whereby the development of drugs that target cancer cell metabolism is gaining momentum. However, when establishing preclinical studies and clinical trials, it is often neglected that a tumor mass is a complex system in which cancer cells coexist and interact with several types of microenvironment populations, including endothelial cells, fibroblasts and immune cells. We are just starting to understand how such populations are affected by the metabolic changes occurring in a transformed cell and little is known about the impact of metabolism‐targeting drugs on the non‐malignant tumor components. Here we provide a general overview of the links between cancer cell metabolism and tumor microenvironment (TME), particularly focusing on the emerging literature reporting TME‐specific effects of metabolic therapies

Extracorporeal shockwaves therapy versus hyaluronic acid injection for the treatment of painful non-calcific rotator cuff tendinopathies: preliminary results

Rotator cuff tendinopathy is the most common cause of painful shoulder. The treatment is mainly conservative and several therapeutic approaches have been proposed, including NSAIDs, physiotherapy, injections and physical therapies. The aim of the current study is to compare the clinical effectiveness of low molecular weight hyaluronic acid (LMW-HA) injection versus low-energy Extracorporeal Shock-Wave Therapy (ESWT) until 3 months of follow-up for the management of painful non-calcific rotator cuff tendinopathies, evaluating also the trend over time between the groups