A Mathematical Model of Flavescence Dor\'ee Epidemiology

Flavescence dor\'ee (FD) is a disease of grapevine transmitted by an insect vector, $Scaphoideus$ $titanus$ Ball. At present, no prophylaxis exists, so mandatory control procedures (e.g. removal of infected plants, and insecticidal sprays to avoid transmission) are in place in Italy and other European countries. We propose a model of the epidemiology of FD by taking into account the different aspects involved into the transmission process (acquisition of the disease, latency and expression of symptoms, recovery rate, removal and replacement of infected plants, insecticidal treatments, and the effect of hotbeds). The model was constructed as a system of first order nonlinear ODEs in four compartment variables. We perform a bifurcation analysis of the equilibria of the model using the severity of the hotbeds as the control parameter. Depending on the non-dimensional grapevine density of the vineyard we find either a single family of equilibria in which the health of the vineyard gradually deteriorates for progressively more severe hotbeds, or multiple equilibria that give rise to sudden transitions from a nearly healthy vineyard to a severely deteriorated one when the severity of the hotbeds crosses a critical value. These results suggest some lines of intervention for limiting the spread of the disease

Seasonal and Daily Movement of Scaphoideus titanus Ball (Homoptera: Cicadellidae)

Seasonal and daily flight patterns of Scaphoideus titanus Ball were investigated in northern Italy, throughout a 3-yr period, using yellow sticky traps placed in an experimental vineyard. Capture data were also analyzed in relation to temperature and relative humidity values. The leafhopper was found to be more active from 1800 to 0800 hours, whereas little movement occurred during high light intensity hours. Although the sex ratio was always male biased, no difference in flight periodicity was found between genders. The seasonal flight peak occurred each year in different periods, ranging from the end of June to the beginning of July, depending on mean temperature values. Daily capture increases were correlated with daily minimum and maximum temperatures and were negatively correlated with maximum values of relative humidity. As a result, this species could be crepuscular or nocturnal, and a bimodal flight periodicity is likely

Evaluation of therapy with sub-antimicrobial dose of doxycycline as a modulator of the immune-inflammatory response of the host model of periodontal disease and the effects of this therapy on the susceptibility of Porphyromonas gingivalis

Orientadores: Pedro Luiz Rosalen, Gilson Cesar Nobre FrancoTese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Odontologia de PiracicabaResumo: Periodontite é a doença multifatorial que envolvem interações entre algumas espécies bacterianas, como Porphyromonas gingivalis W83 e células do hospedeiro. Levando a uma resposta imuno-inflamatória que causa a destruição do tecido ósseo e gengival Neste contexto, fármacos com a habilidade de modular este processo imuno-inflamatório podem auxiliar no tratamento da doença periodontal (DP). A doxiciclina em dose subantimicrobiana (DDS), apresenta propriedades anti-inflamatórias pela sua atuação em algumas vias da inflamação. No entanto, ainda é discutido o efeito desta terapia dobre a susceptibilidade bacteriana por longo tempo. Assim, o objetivo deste trabalho foi analisar os efeitos da DDS como um modulador da resposta imuno-inflamatória do hospedeiro na DP induzidas em ratos e avaliar a susceptibilidade da P. gingivalis cultivadas com DDS por longo tempo. A DP foi induzida em ratos Wistar machos (SPF) submetidos à colocação de ligadura em torno dos primeiros molares inferiores foram randomizados e divididos em 3 grupos experimentais (n=10 animais/grupo/experimento): 1) grupo controle: ratos sem ligadura e sem tratamento; 2) grupo ligadura: ratos com ligadura e tratados com solução NaCl 0,9 %) e 3) grupo ligadura + DDS: ratos com ligadura e tratados com a DDS (5 mg/kg/dia). No tecido gengival, extraídos de animais tratados por 3 dias, foram avaliadas as expressões gênicas de TNF-'alfa' IL-1' beta', IL-17 e PAR2 através de RTPCR. As mandíbulas dos ratos tratados por 15 dias foram usadas para mensuração da reabsorção óssea alveolar (coradas com Hematoxilina e Eosina) e da quantidade de fibras colágenas (coradas com Picrosirius- Vermelho). Para a análise microbiológica, a P. gingivalis (ATCC BAA-308) foi cultivada por 3 meses (45 gerações) em meio de cultura contendo 0,4 ug/mL de DDS e avaliada por meio de concentração inibitória mínima (CIM) para Amoxiciclina, Doxiciclina e Metronidazol. A DDS inibiu significativamente os níveis de RNAm do tecido gengival para os IL-1' beta', IL-17, TNF-'alfa' e PAR2 (P0,05). Na análise da susceptibilidade de P. gingivalis a DDS não apresentou resistência multi-antibiótica para esta cepa, entretanto, houve uma alteração nos valores de CIM para todos antibióticos testados com a P. gingivalis crescida ao longo do tempo. Em conjunto, os dados demonstram que a DDS diminuiu a resposta inflamatória, a reabsorção óssea e a degradação de colágeno no modelo utilizado de DP, indicando sua atividade como moduladora da resposta do hospedeiro na DP. A alteração microbiana com o uso contínuo e de longo período de DDS modificou a sensibilidade da P. gingivalis, entretanto não desenvolveu resistência antibiótica a doxiciclinaAbstract: Periodontitis is a multifactorial disease involving interactions between some bacterial species, as Porphyromonas gingivalis W83, and host cells. Leading to an immune-inflammatory response that causes the destruction of bone and gingival. In this context, drugs with the ability to modulate immuno-inflammatory process that may aid in the treatment of periodontal disease (PD). Doxycycline dose subantimicrobiana (DDS) has anti-inflammatory properties because of its role in some pathways of inflammation. However, it is still discussed the effect of this therapy fold the bacterial susceptibility for a long time. The objective of this study was to analyze the effects of DDS as a modulator of the immune-inflammatory response in the host DP induced in rats and to evaluate the susceptibility of P. gingivalis grown with DDS for a long time. The DP was induced in male Wistar rats (SPF) submitted of ligature around the first molars and divided into three experimental groups (n = 10 animals/group/experiment): 1) control group: rats without ligature and without treatment; 2) ligature group: rats with ligature and treated with 0.9% NaCl solution and 3) ligature + SDD group: rats with ligature and treated with SDD (5 mg/kg/day). In gingival tissue, extracted from animals treated for 3 days, we assessed the gene expression of TNF-'alpha', IL-1'beta', IL-17 and PAR2 by RT-PCR. The jaws of rats treated for 15 days were used for measurement of alveolar bone resorption (stained with Hematoxylin and Eosin) and collagen fibers (stained with Picrosirius-Red). For microbiological analysis, P. gingivalis was grown for 3 months (45 generations) in culture medium containing 0.4 ug/mL of SDD and evaluated by minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC). SDD significantly inhibited mRNA levels of the gingival tissue for IL-1'beta', IL-17, TNF-'alpha' and PAR2 (p 0.05). In the analysis of susceptibility to P. gingivalis SDD showed no multi-antibiotic resistance for this strain, however, there was a change in the MIC values for all antibiotics tested with P. gingivalis growth to long-time. Together, these data demonstrate that SDD reduced the inflammatory response, bone resorption and collagen degradation in PD, indicating its activity as a modulator of the host response in PD. Furthermore, SDD affected the sensitivity of P. gingivalis, however not developing antibiotic resistance with 3 months therapyDoutoradoFarmacologia, Anestesiologia e TerapeuticaDoutor em Odontologi

This is Research; ACE Lab: COntextual REality (CORE) - Understanding Environments

Designing high-bandwidth communication paradigms for individuals within smart environments, using immersive interfaces, computer vision, and context-aware information systems

First results of the two square meters multilayer glass composite mirror design proposed for the Cherenkov Telescope Array developed at INFN

The Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA) is a future ground-based gamma-ray astronomy detector that will consist of more than 100 Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescopes of different sizes. The total reflective surface of roughly 10 000 m$^2$ requires unprecedented technological efforts towards a cost-efficient production of light-weight and reliable mirror substrates at high production rate. We report on a new mirror concept proposed for CTA developed by INFN, which is based on the replication from a spherical convex mold under low pressure. The mirror substrate is an open structure design made by thin glass layers at the mirror's front and rear interspaced by steel cylinders. A first series of nominal size mirrors has been produced, for which we discuss the optical properties in terms of radius of curvature and focusing power