Progettazione e sviluppo di un framework in ambiente Android per la realizzazione di interfacce utente see-through e hands-free

La tesi tratta l'esplorazione dell'idea per una nuova tipologia di interfacce utente, progettate specificatamente per dispositivi wearable hands free (più nel dettaglio per un'accoppiata smart glass Android based e gesture recognizer). Per facilitare lo sviluppo di applicazioni basate su questi dispositivi è stato realizzato un framework che permetta di costruire, in maniera relativamente semplice, interfacce utente innovative, che consentano all'utente di interagire con i contenuti digitali senza interrompere il suo contatto con la realtà e senza costringerlo a utilizzare le mani

Nuclear Factors Bind to a Conserved DNA Element That Modulates Transcription of Anopheles gambiae Trypsin Genes

The Anopheles gambiae trypsin family consists of seven genes that are transcribed in the gut of female mosquitoes in a temporal coordinated and mutually exclusive manner, suggesting the involvement of a complex transcription regulatory mechanism. We identified a highly conserved 12-nucleotide motif present in all A. gambiae and Anopheles stephensi trypsin promoters. We investigated the role of this putative trypsin regulatory element (PTRE) in controlling the transcription of the trypsin genes. Gel shift experiments demonstrated that nuclear proteins of A. gambiae cell lines formed two distinct complexes with probes encompassing the PTRE sequence. Mapping of the binding sites revealed that one of the complex has the specificity of a GATA transcription factor. Promoter constructs containing mutations in the PTRE sequence that selectively abolished the binding of either one or both complexes exerted opposite effects on the transcriptional activity of trypsin promoters in A. gambiae and Aedes aegypti cell lines. In addition, the expression of a novel GATA gene was highly enriched in A. gambiae guts. Taken together our data prove that factors binding to the PTRE region are key regulatory elements possibly involved in the blood meal-induced repression and activation of transcription in early and late trypsin genes

The Ag85B protein of Mycobacterium tuberculosis may turn a protective immune response induced by Ag85B-DNA vaccine into a potent but non-protective Th1 immune response in mice

Clarifying how an initial protective immune response to tuberculosis may later loose its efficacy is essential to understand tuberculosis pathology and to develop novel vaccines. In mice, a primary vaccination with Ag85B-encoding plasmid DNA (DNA-85B) was protective against Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) infection and associated with Ag85B-specific CD4+ T cells producing IFN-gamma and controlling intramacrophagic MTB growth. Surprisingly, this protection was eliminated by Ag85B protein boosting. Loss of protection was associated with a overwhelming CD4+ T cell proliferation and IFN-gamma production in response to Ag85B protein, despite restraint of Th1 response by CD8+ T cell-dependent mechanisms and activation of CD4+ T cell-dependent IL-10 secretion. Importantly, these Ag85B-responding CD4+ T cells lost the ability to produce IFN-gamma and control MTB intramacrophagic growth in coculture with MTB-infected macrophages, suggesting that the protein-dependent expansion of non-protective CD4+ T cells determined dilution or loss of the protective Ag85B-specific CD4+ induced by DNA-85B vaccination. These data emphasize the need of exerting some caution in adopting aggressive DNA-priming, protein-booster schedules for MTB vaccines. They also suggest that Ag85B protein secreted during MTB infection could be involved in the instability of protective anti-tuberculosis immune response, and actually concur to disease progression

Mycobacterium tuberculosis may escape helper T cell recognition by infecting human fibroblasts

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Infection of human THP-1 cells with dormant Mycobacterium tuberculosis

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Cerebrospinal Fluid Leak During Stapes Surgery: The Importance of Temporal Bone CT Reconstructions in Oblique Anatomically Oriented Planes.

Stapes gusher is a massive flow of perilymph and cerebrospinal fluid leak that fills the middle ear immediately after surgical opening of the labyrinth, such as during stapedectomy. Stapes gusher usually occurs as the result of a congenital malformation that causes an abnormal communication between the perilymphatic space and the subarachnoid space involving the internal auditory canal or the cochlear duct. To date, the potential risk of stapes gusher cannot be assessed preoperatively, as there are not pathognomonic signs suggestive of this complication. However, high-resolution computed tomography scan (HRCT) of the temporal bone can provide information that may help recognizing patients at risk. Recently, an anatomic evaluation of the inner ear with oblique reformation at HRCT has been described. This reformation offers a new and more detailed topographic vision of temporal bone structures compared to the classic axial and coronal planes and may help identifying anatomical alterations otherwise not visible. In this article, we present a case of stapes gusher and the role of preoperative HRCT with oblique reformation in its prevention

Optimisation, harmonisation and standardisation of the direct mycobacterial growth inhibition assay using cryopreserved human peripheral blood mononuclear cells.

A major challenge to tuberculosis (TB) vaccine development is the lack of a validated immune correlate of protection. Mycobacterial growth inhibition assays (MGIAs) represent an unbiased measure of the ability to control mycobacterial growth in vitro. A successful MGIA could be applied to preclinical and clinical post-vaccination samples to aid in the selection of novel vaccine candidates at an early stage and provide a relevant measure of immunogenicity and protection. However, assay harmonisation is critical to ensure that comparable information can be extracted from different vaccine studies. As part of the FP7 European Research Infrastructures for Poverty Related Diseases (EURIPRED) consortium, we aimed to optimise the direct MGIA, assess repeatability and reproducibility, and harmonise the assay across different laboratories. We observed an improvement in repeatability with increased cell number and increased mycobacterial input. Furthermore, we determined that co-culturing in static 48-well plates compared with rotating 2 ml tubes resulted in a 23% increase in cell viability and a 500-fold increase in interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) production on average, as well as improved reproducibility between replicates, assay runs and sites. Applying the optimised conditions, we report repeatability to be <5% coefficient of variation (CV), intermediate precision to be <20% CV, and inter-site reproducibility to be <30% CV; levels within acceptable limits for a functional cell-based assay. Using relevant clinical samples, we demonstrated comparable results across two shared sample sets at three sites. Based on these findings, we have established a standardised operating procedure (SOP) for the use of the direct PBMC MGIA in TB vaccine development

Prevalence of chronic diseases by immigrant status and disparities in chronic disease management in immigrants: a population-based cohort study, Valore Project

BACKGROUND: For chronic conditions, disparities can take effect cumulatively at various times as the disease progresses, even when care is provided. The aim of this study was to quantify the prevalence of diabetes, congestive heart failure (CHF) and coronary heart disease (CHD) in adults by citizenship, and to compare the performance of primary care services in managing these chronic conditions, again by citizenship. METHODS: This is a population-based retrospective cohort study on 1,948,622 people aged 16 years or more residing in Italy. A multilevel regression model was applied to analyze adherence to care processes using explanatory variables at both patient and district level. RESULTS: The age-adjusted prevalence of diabetes was found higher among immigrants from high migratory pressure countries (HMPC) than among Italians, while the age-adjusted prevalence of cardiovascular disease was higher for Italians than for HMPC immigrants or those from highly-developed countries (HDC). Our results indicate lower levels in all quality management indicators for citizens from HMPC than for Italians, for all the chronic conditions considered. Patients from HDC did not differ from Italian in their adherence to disease management schemes. CONCLUSION: This study revealed a different prevalence of chronic diseases by citizenship, implying a different burden of primary care by citizenship. Our findings show that more effort is needed to guarantee migrant-sensitive primary health care

Sub Programa Cedrella

El Subprograma Cedrela del PROMEF se inició en el año 2010, con el fin de consolidar y dar continuidad al proyecto nacional de Domesticación de especies nativas de alto valor de las Selvas Subtropicales que conducía el INTA desde el año 2006, dirigido a llevar a cultivo especies forestales de alto valor socioeconómico de las Selvas, para incrementar la producción de maderas nobles y recuperar áreas degradadas a fin de mantener la función productiva del bosque y de sus servicios ambientales. El objetivo general del Subprograma Cedrela fue el de proveer a las regiones NOA y NEA de materiales de propagación mejorados de especies nativas emblemáticas ,adaptados a diferentes condiciones ecológicas y finalidades. Las especies más estudiadas hasta el presente son Cedrela angustifolia, C. balansa e y C. fissilis. Sin embargo, la existencia de más de 40 especies maderables/ha promovió la realización de encuestas de opinión para que el sector foresto-industrial definiera las que ingresarían al proceso de domesticación, ya que se requiere de un lapso extendido de tiempo y de un presupuesto considerable para desarrollar los estudios necesarios. En consecuencia, se generaron alianzas estratégicas con Universidades, la Administración de Parques Nacionales (APN), organismos provinciales y empresas. Posteriormente, se fueron incluyendo actividades para Cordia trichotoma y Araucaria angustifolia. El punto de partida fue la caracterización del material genético desde un enfoque poblacional para definir las estrategias de mejora genética y de conservación, dado que se trata mayormente de especies amenazadas. A partir de esta información y con la asistencia de herramientas moleculares se conformaron las poblaciones de mejora, incluyendo materiales con potencial productivo, plasticidad ante el estrés hídrico y térmico y diversidad genética suficiente. Esto permitió la instalación de huertos semilleros clonales y la ubicación de rodales semilleros para afrontar la demanda actual de semillas para los planes de producción sustentable y conservación (ley nacional 26.432 y ley nacional 26.331), así como el establecimiento de ensayos de orígenes y progenies para dar continuidad al programa de mejora, realizar observaciones fenológicas y asegurar la conservación ex situ-in vivo de numerosos genotipos que ya no existen en la naturaleza. Por otro lado, se evaluaron diferentes alternativas de conducción de plantaciones y manejo de vivero para mejorar la sobrevivencia a campo, incluyendo el control de la plaga Hypsipyla grandella. Por último, se realizaron actividades de transferencia de los resultados por diferentes vías de comunicación, poniendo énfasis en el sector productivo ya que reúne a los beneficiarios directos de esta propuesta. Asimismo, se capacitaron recursos humanos para fortalecer los grupos relacionados al uso y conservación de especies forestales nativas.Fil: Fornes, Luis Fernando. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria. Centro Regional Tucuman-Santiago del Estero. Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Famaillá; ArgentinaFil: Zelener, Noga. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria. Centro de Investigación de Recursos Naturales. Instituto de Recursos Biológicos; ArgentinaFil: Gauchat, M. Elena. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria. Centro Regional Misiones. Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Montecarlo; ArgentinaFil: Inza, M. Virginia. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria. Centro de Investigación de Recursos Naturales. Instituto de Recursos Biológicos; ArgentinaFil: Soldati, María Cristina. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria. Centro de Investigación de Recursos Naturales. Instituto de Recursos Biológicos; ArgentinaFil: Ruíz, Veronica. No especifíca;Fil: Meloni, Diego Ariel. Universidad Nacional de Santiago del Estero. Facultad de Ciencias Forestales; ArgentinaFil: Grignola, Josefina. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria. Centro Regional Tucuman-Santiago del Estero. Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Famaillá; ArgentinaFil: Barth, Sara Regina. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria. Centro Regional Misiones. Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Montecarlo; ArgentinaFil: Ledesma, Tilda. Instituto Nacional de Tecnologia Agropecuaria. Centro Regional Salta-jujuy. Estacion Experimental Agropecuaria Yuto.; ArgentinaFil: Tapia, Silvia. Instituto Nacional de Tecnologia Agropecuaria. Centro Regional Salta-jujuy. Estacion Experimental Agropecuaria Yuto.; ArgentinaFil: Tarnowski, Christian. Instituto Nacional de Tecnologia Agropecuaria. Centro Regional Salta-jujuy. Estacion Experimental Agropecuaria Yuto.; ArgentinaFil: Eskiviski, Edgar Rafael. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria. Centro Regional Misiones. Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Montecarlo; ArgentinaFil: Figueredo, Iris. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria. Centro Regional Misiones. Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Montecarlo; ArgentinaFil: González, Paola. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria. Centro Regional Misiones. Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Montecarlo; ArgentinaFil: Leiva, Nidia. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria. Centro Regional Tucuman-Santiago del Estero. Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Famaillá; ArgentinaFil: Rodríguez, Gustavo. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria. Centro Regional Misiones. Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Montecarlo; ArgentinaFil: Alarcon, Pamela. No especifíca;Fil: Cuello, Roberto. No especifíca;Fil: Gatto, Miguel. No especifíca;Fil: Rotundo, Cristian Andrés. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria. Centro Regional Misiones. Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Montecarlo; ArgentinaFil: Giannoni, Florencia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Alonso, Fernando M.. No especifíca;Fil: Saravia, Pablo Federico. No especifíca;Fil: Trápani, Adrián Ignacio. No especifíca