Variación morfológica y un nuevo y remarcable tipo de dimorfismo sexual en la población de Pseudocyclops xiphophorus del Lago Faro en el noreste de Sicilia

The population of P. xiphophorus in Lake Faro exhibits variation in the form of caudal seta V. In some specimens of both sexes, this seta is spatulate but in others it is slender and unmodified. Occasional specimens are asymmetrical. In addition to this variation in caudal seta form, the Lake Faro population displays variation in male body length and in the extent of the sexually dimorphic specialisation of the right swimming leg 2. The scale of these differences between the morphotypes might suggest their taxonomic treatment as distinct species. The modification of the distal two segments of the exopod of right leg 2 in the male is a unique sexual dimorphism. We infer, from the presence of this hook on the right exopod in adult males only, that it is involved in mating behaviour. Laboratory-based breeding experiments between females and males showing different combinations of these characters were also performed. Experiments comparing egg production rates in females that have mated with modified or unmodified males revealed no significant differences. It appears therefore that gene flow is not interrupted between the morphotypes and that reproductive segregation does not occur. Observations of male leg 5 morphology and musculature revealed no significant differences between the two P. xiphophorus morphotypes.La población de P. xiphophorus del Lago Faro muestra variación en la forma de la seda caudal V. En algunos especímenes de ambos sexos presenta una morfología espatulada, pero en otros es esbelta y sin modificaciones. Ocasionalmente, es asimétrica en un mismo individuo. La población del Lago Faro muestra también variabilidad en la longitud corporal del macho y en el grado de dimorfismo sexual de la segunda pata natatoria derecha. La escala de estas diferencias entre morfotipos podría sugerir un tratamiento específico diferente para ellos. La modificación en el macho de los dos segmentos distales del exópodo de la segunda pata natatoria derecha es un carácter desconocido en otras especies del género. La presencia de un gancho en el exópodo derecho de los machos sugiere que esta modificación está relacionada con el comportamiento de apareamiento. Se han realizado cruzamientos en laboratorio entre hembras y machos que mostraban diferentes combinaciones de estos caracteres. La comparación de las tasas de producción de huevos en hembras que se han cruzado con machos con o sin modificaciones no muestra diferencias significativas. Parece por tanto que el flujo génico entre morfotipos no está interrumpido y que no tiene lugar segregación reproductiva. La observación de la morfología y del patrón muscular de la pata quinta del macho no ha revelado tampoco diferencias significativas entre los dos morfotipos de P. xiphophorus

RF Systems Design for Simultaneous Wireless Information and Power Transfer (SWIPT) in Automation and Transportation

This work presents some recent solutions that exploit the wireless power transfer (WPT) technology for energizing moving vehicles and machinery tools. Such technology is currently experiencing unprecedented interests in non-traditional RF/microwave sectors fields, such the industrial automation and the railway transportation safety. Near-field electromagnetic coupling solutions are presented showing that, in order to obtain efficient performances for broad ranges of operating conditions, the nonlinear electromagnetic co-design of the entire WPT system, from the energy source to the receiver load, needs to be carried out. This technology can be combined with wireless data transfer, thus realizing integrated systems able to simultaneously control the energy transfer and the transmission of data. The adopted operating frequencies are in the MHz range, which is only recently considered for this kind of applications. In particular this work focuses on three different systems: the first one demonstrates the constant powering of “on the move” industrial charts at 6.78 MHz, regardless of the relative position of the transmitter and the receiver sub-systems; the second one presents a novel design of a balise transportation system adopting a high efficiency GaN-based transmitter designed to keep its performance over a wide range of loading conditions; the last one consists of the simultaneous wireless power and data transfer, to a rotating machinery tool, automatically controlled by the powering system based on the coexistence of frequency-diverse inductive and capacitive couplings

Yellow laser performance of Dy3+^{3+} in co-doped Dy,Tb:LiLuF4_4

We present laser results obtained from a Dy$^{3+}$-Tb$^{3+}$ co-doped LiLuF$_{4}$ crystal, pumped by a blue emitting InGaN laser diode, aiming for the generation of a compact 578 nm source. We exploit the yellow Dy$^{3+}$ transition $^{4}$F$_{9/2}$ $\Longrightarrow$ $^{6}$H$_{13/2}$ to generate yellow laser emission. The lifetime of the lower laser level is quenched via energy transfer to co-doped Tb$^{3+}$ ions in the fluoride crystal. We report the growth technique, spectroscopic study and room temperature continuous wave (cw) laser results in a hemispherical cavity at 574 nm and with a highly reflective output coupler at 578 nm. A yellow laser at 578 nm is very relevant for metrological applications, in particular for pumping of the forbidden $^{1}$S$_{0} \Longrightarrow ^{3}$P$_{0}$ Ytterbium clock transition, which is recommended as a secondary representation of the second in the international system (SI) of units. This paper was published in Optics Letters and is made available as an electronic reprint with the permission of OSA. The paper can be found at the following URL on the OSA website: http://dx.doi.org/10.1364/OL.39.006628. Systematic or multiple reproduction or distribution to multiple locations via electronic or other means is prohibited and is subject to penalties under law.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figure

A web of things approach for indoor position monitoring of elderly and impaired people

Helping, assisting and taking care of the elderly and of impaired people is one of the greatest challenges in our society. Within this paper, we propose a new approach for indoor position monitoring of people, aiming to identify in real time dangerous situations. In order to boost interoperability and continuous adaptation of the devices used, a Web Of Things based solution will be proposed and evaluated. Our contribution, in particular, consists of a portable and user friendly Radio Frequency IDentification (RFID) reader exploiting monopulse radar and beam-steering capabilities. Such hardware, exploiting a set of software modules, will be located in an environment easily accessible and extensible to a growing number of devices. The application will be the result of the cooperation between software and hardware, eventually outlining a real and completely flexible Web Of Things environment

CT-guided radiofrequency ablation of osteoid osteoma using a multi-tined expandable electrode system

Radiofrequency ablation (RFA) is the gold standard for the treatment of symptomatic osteoid osteoma (OO) as RFA yields both a high success and low complication rate. It has been widely utilized over the years, but recurrences of OO after this treatment have been documented. These recurrences may be the result of various factors, including incomplete tumor ablation, and are significantly higher in lesions greater than 10 mm. Thus, the need to induce thermal ablation in a wider area led us to use a Multi-Tined Expandable Electrode System (MTEES). In this study we examined the efficacy and safety of RFA using a MTEES in symptomatic OO

Effectiveness of clinical scores in predicting coronary artery disease in familial hypercholesterolemia: a coronary computed tomography angiography study

PurposeOne of the major challenges in the management of familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) is the stratification of cardiovascular risk in asymptomatic subjects. Our purpose is to investigate the performance of clinical scoring systems, Montreal-FH-score (MFHS), SAFEHEART risk (SAFEHEART-RE) and FH risk score (FHRS) equations and Dutch Lipid Clinic Network (DLCN) diagnostic score, in predicting extent and severity of CAD at coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) in asymptomatic FH.Material and methodsOne-hundred and thirty-nine asymptomatic FH subjects were prospectively enrolled to perform CCTA. MFHS, FHRS, SAFEHEART-RE and DLCN were assessed for each patient. Atherosclerotic burden scores at CCTA (Agatston score [AS], segment stenosis score [SSS]) and CAD-RADS score were calculated and compared to clinical indices.ResultsNon-obstructive CAD was found in 109 patients, while 30 patients had a CAD-RADS >= 3. Classifying the two groups according to AS, values varied significantly for MFHS (p < 0.001), FHRS (p < 0.001) and SAFEHEART-RE (p = 0.047), while according to SSS only MFHS and FHRS showed significant differences (p < 0.001). MFHS, FHRS and SAFEHEART-RE, but not DLCN, showed significant differences between the two CAD-RADS groups (p < .001).MFHS proved to have the best discriminatory power (AUC = 0.819; 0.703-0.937, p < 0.001) at ROC analysis, followed by FHRS (AUC = 0.795; 0.715-0.875, p < .0001) and SAFEHEART-RE (AUC = .725; .61-.843, p < .001).ConclusionsGreater values of MFHS, FHRS and SAFEHEART-RE are associated to higher risk of obstructive CAD and might help to select asymptomatic patients that should be referred to CCTA for secondary prevention

Supersymmetric particle mass measurement with the boost-corrected contransverse mass

A modification to the contransverse mass (MCT) technique for measuring the masses of pair-produced semi-invisibly decaying heavy particles is proposed in which MCT is corrected for non-zero boosts of the centre-of-momentum (CoM) frame of the heavy states in the laboratory transverse plane. Lack of knowledge of the mass of the CoM frame prevents exact correction for this boost, however it is shown that a conservative correction can nevertheless be derived which always generates an MCT value which is less than or equal to the true value of MCT in the CoM frame. The new technique is demonstrated with case studies of mass measurement with fully leptonic ttbar events and with SUSY events possessing a similar final state.Comment: 33 pages, 33 .eps figures, JHEP3 styl

Mitochondrial ROS drive resistance to chemotherapy and immune-killing in hypoxic non-small cell lung cancer

BACKGROUND: Solid tumors subjected to intermittent hypoxia are characterized by resistance to chemotherapy and immune-killing by effector T-lymphocytes, particularly tumor-infiltrating Vγ9Vδ2 T-lymphocytes. The molecular circuitries determining this double resistance are not known. METHODS: We analyzed a panel of 28 human non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) lines, using an in vitro system simulating continuous and intermittent hypoxia. Chemosensitivity to cisplatin and docetaxel was evaluated by chemiluminescence, ex vivo Vγ9Vδ2 T-lymphocyte expansion and immune-killing by flow cytometry. Targeted transcriptomics identified efflux transporters and nuclear factors involved in this chemo-immuno-resistance. The molecular mechanism linking Hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α), CCAAT/Enhancer Binding Protein-β (C/EBP-β) isoforms LAP and LIP, ABCB1, ABCC1 and ABCA1 transporters were evaluated by immunoblotting, RT-PCR, RNA-IP, ChIP. Oxidative phosphorylation, mitochondrial ATP, ROS, depolarization, O(2) consumption were monitored by spectrophotometer and electronic sensors. The role of ROS/HIF-1α/LAP axis was validated in knocked-out or overexpressing cells, and in humanized (Hu-CD34(+)NSG) mice bearing LAP-overexpressing tumors. The clinical meaning of LAP was assessed in 60 NSCLC patients prospectively enrolled, treated with chemotherapy. RESULTS: By up-regulating ABCB1 and ABCC1, and down-regulating ABCA1, intermittent hypoxia induced a stronger chemo-immuno-resistance than continuous hypoxia in NSCLC cells. Intermittent hypoxia impaired the electron transport chain and reduced O(2) consumption, increasing mitochondrial ROS that favor the stabilization of C/EBP-β mRNA mediated by HIF-1α. HIF-1α/C/EBP-β mRNA binding increases the splicing of C/EBP-β toward the production of LAP isoform that transcriptionally induces ABCB1 and ABCC1, promoting the efflux of cisplatin and docetaxel. LAP also decreases ABCA1, limiting the efflux of isopentenyl pyrophosphate, i.e. the endogenous activator of Vγ9Vδ2 T-cells, and reducing the immune-killing. In NSCLC patients subjected to cisplatin-based chemotherapy, C/EBP-β LAP was abundant in hypoxic tumors and was associated with lower response to treatment and survival. LAP-overexpressing tumors in Hu-CD34(+)NSG mice recapitulated the patients’ chemo-immuno-resistant phenotype. Interestingly, the ROS scavenger mitoquinol chemo-immuno-sensitized immuno-xenografts, by disrupting the ROS/HIF-1α/LAP cascade. CONCLUSIONS: The impairment of mitochondrial metabolism induced by intermittent hypoxia increases the ROS-dependent stabilization of HIF-1α/LAP complex in NSCLC, producing chemo-immuno-resistance. Clinically used mitochondrial ROS scavengers may counteract such double resistance. Moreover, we suggest C/EBP-β LAP as a new predictive and prognostic factor in NSCLC patients. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s13046-022-02447-6

Measuring absolute frequencies beyond the GPS limit via long-haul optical frequency dissemination

Global Positioning System (GPS) dissemination of frequency standards is ubiquitous at present, providing the most widespread time and frequency reference for the majority of industrial and research applications worldwide. On the other hand, the ultimate limits of the GPS presently curb further advances in high-precision, scientific and industrial applications relying on this dissemination scheme. Here, we demonstrate that these limits can be reliably overcome even in laboratories without a local atomic clock by replacing the GPS with a 642-km-long optical fiber link to a remote primary caesium frequency standard. Through this configuration we stably address the 1S0—3P0 clock transition in an ultracold gas of 173Yb, with a precision that exceeds the possibilities of a GPS-based measurement, dismissing the need for a local clock infrastructure to perform beyond-GPS high-precision tasks. We also report an improvement of two orders of magnitude in the accuracy on the transition frequency reported in literature

HABITAT: An IoT Solution for Independent Elderly

In this work, a flexible and extensive digital platform for Smart Homes is presented, exploiting the most advanced technologies of the Internet of Things, such as Radio Frequency Identification, wearable electronics, Wireless Sensor Networks, and Artificial Intelligence. Thus, the main novelty of the paper is the system-level description of the platform flexibility allowing the interoperability of different smart devices. This research was developed within the framework of the operative project HABITAT (Home Assistance Based on the Internet of Things for the Autonomy of Everybody), aiming at developing smart devices to support elderly people both in their own houses and in retirement homes, and embedding them in everyday life objects, thus reducing the expenses for healthcare due to the lower need for personal assistance, and providing a better life quality to the elderly users