Carrier transport mechanism in the SnO2:F/p-type a-Si:H heterojunction

We characterize SnO2:F/p-type a-Si:H/Mo structures by current-voltage (I-V) and capacitance-voltage (C-V) measurements at different temperatures to determine the transport mechanism in the SnO2:F/p-type a-Si:H heterojunction. The experimental I-V curves of these structures, almost symmetric around the origin, are ohmic for |V| 0.1 V. The structure can be modeled as two diodes back to back connected so that the main current transport mechanisms are due to the reverse current of the diodes. To explain the measured C-V curves, the capacitance of the heterostructure is modeled as the series connection of the depletion capacitances of the two back to back connected SnO2:F/p-type a-Si:H and Mo/p-type a-Si:H junctions. We simulated the reverse I-V curves of the SnO2:F/p-type a-Si:H heterojunction at different temperatures by using the simulation software SCAPS 2.9.03. In the model the main transport mechanism is generation of holes enhanced by tunneling by acceptor-type interface defects with a trap energy of 0.4 eV above the valence bandedge of the p-type a-Si:H layer and with a density of 4.0 10^13 cm^-2. By using I-V simulations and the proposed C-V model the built-in potential (Vbi) of the SnO2:F/p-type a-Si:H (0.16 V) and p-type a-Si:H/Mo (0.14 V) heterojunctions are extracted and a band diagram of the characterized structure is proposed

FGF-2b and h-PL transform duct and non-endocrine human pancreatic cells into endocrine insulin secreting cells by modulating differentiating genes

Background: Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a multifactorial disease orphan of a cure. Regenerative medicine has been proposed as novel strategy for DM therapy. Human fibroblast growth factor (FGF)-2b controls β-cell clusters via autocrine action, and human placental lactogen (hPL)-A increases functional β-cells. We hypothesized whether FGF-2b/hPL-A treatment induces β-cell differentiation from ductal/non-endocrine precursor(s) by modulating specific genes expression. Methods: Human pancreatic ductal-cells (PANC-1) and non-endocrine pancreatic cells were treated with FGF-2b plus hPL-A at 500 ng/mL. Cytofluorimetry and Immunofluorescence have been performed to detect expression of endocrine, ductal and acinar markers. Bromodeoxyuridine incorporation and annexin-V quantified cells proliferation and apoptosis. Insulin secretion was assessed by RIA kit, and electron microscopy analyzed islet-like clusters. Results: Increase in PANC-1 duct cells de-differentiation into islet-like aggregates was observed after FGF-2b/hPL-A treatment showing ultrastructure typical of islets-aggregates. These clusters, after stimulation with FGF-2b/hPL-A, had significant (p < 0.05) increase in insulin, C-peptide, pancreatic and duodenal homeobox 1 (PDX-1), Nkx2.2, Nkx6.1, somatostatin, glucagon, and glucose transporter 2 (Glut-2), compared with control cells. Markers of PANC-1 (Cytokeratin-19, MUC-1, CA19-9) were decreased (p < 0.05). These aggregates after treatment with FGF-2b/hPL-A significantly reduced levels of apoptosis. Conclusions: FGF-2b and hPL-A are promising candidates for regenerative therapy in DM by inducing de-differentiation of stem cells modulating pivotal endocrine genes

A literature review of hypertensive retinopathy: systemic correlations and new technologies

OBJECTIVE: Hypertensive retinopathy (HR) is the most common ocular manifestation of systemic arterial hypertension. This paper aims to summarize the current knowledge of HR, reviewing its classical features, such as epidemiology, pathophysiology, clinical manifestations, classifications, management and the most significant systemic correlations. We also provide an update on the latest advances in new technologies focusing on novel instrumental classifications. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A literature search was performed to identify articles regarding HR listed in Embase, PubMed, Medline (Ovid) and Scopus database up to 1 December 2021. The reference lists of the analyzed articles were also considered a source of literature information. The following keywords were used in various combinations: hypertensive retinopathy, hypertension and eye, hypertensive retinopathy and systemic correlations, optical coherence tomography (OCT) and hypertensive retinopathy, optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) and hypertensive retinopathy, adaptive optics (AO) and hypertensive retinopathy. The authors analyzed all English articles found using the aforementioned Keywords. All the publications were thoroughly reviewed to create a detailed overview of this issue. RESULTS: HR signs have a significative association with cardiovascular, cerebrovascular and other systemic diseases. Patients with arteriosclerotic changes and, at the same time, severe HR, are at increased risk for coronary disease, peripheral vascular disease, stroke and dementia. HR is even now diagnosed and classified by its clinical appearance on a fundoscopic exam that is limited by interobserver variability. New technologies, like OCT, OCTA, AO and artificial intelligence may be used to develop a new instrumental classification that could become an objective and quantitative method for the evaluation of this disease. They could be useful to evaluate the subclinical retinal microvascular changes due to hypertension that may reflect the involvement of other vital organs. CONCLUSIONS: The eye is the only organ in the human body where changes in the blood vessels due to systemic hypertension can be studied in vivo. All doctors should be familiar with this disease because it has been largely demonstrated that signs of HR are correlated to patient’s health and mortality. Researchers should develop a new common, standardized, and objective method to assess hypertensive retinal changes; new technologies may have a significant role in this field. This review takes most of the literature published so far, including the OCTA studies in order to stimulate new points of reference to standardize parameters and new diagnostic markers of this disease

Impaired Communication Between the Motor and Somatosensory Homunculus Is Associated With Poor Manual Dexterity in Autism Spectrum Disorder

ABSTRACTBackgroundFine motor skill impairments are common in autism spectrum disorder (ASD), significantly affecting quality of life. Sensory inputs reaching the primary motor cortex (M1) from the somatosensory cortex (S1) are likely involved in fine motor skill and specifically motor learning. However, the role of these connections has not been directly investigated in humans. This study aimed to investigate, for the first time, the role of the S1-M1 connections in healthy subjects in vivo and whether microstructural alterations are associated with motor impairment in ASD.MethodsSixty right-handed neurotypical adult men aged 18 to 45 years, and 60 right-handed age- and sex-matched subjects diagnosed with ASD underwent fine motor skill assessment and scanning with diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). The streamlines of the hand region connecting S1-M1 of the motor-sensory homunculus were virtually dissected using TrackVis, and diffusion properties were extracted. The face/tongue region connections were used as control tracts.ResultsThe ASD group displayed lower motor performances and altered DTI measurements of the hand-region connection. Behavioral performance correlated with hand-region DTI measures in both groups, but not with the face/tongue connections, indicating anatomical specificity. There was a left-hemisphere association of motor ability in the control group and an atypical rightward shift in the ASD group.ConclusionsThese findings suggest that direct interaction between S1 and M1 may contribute to the human ability to precisely interact with and manipulate the environment. Because electrophysiological evidence indicates that these connections may underpin long-term potentiation in M1, our findings may lead to novel therapeutic treatments for motor skill disorders

Viscous-Inviscid Interactions in a Boundary-Layer Flow Induced by a Vortex Array

In this paper we investigate the asymptotic validity of boundary layer theory. For a flow induced by a periodic row of point-vortices, we compare Prandtl's solution to Navier-Stokes solutions at different $Re$ numbers. We show how Prandtl's solution develops a finite time separation singularity. On the other hand Navier-Stokes solution is characterized by the presence of two kinds of viscous-inviscid interactions between the boundary layer and the outer flow. These interactions can be detected by the analysis of the enstrophy and of the pressure gradient on the wall. Moreover we apply the complex singularity tracking method to Prandtl and Navier-Stokes solutions and analyze the previous interactions from a different perspective

INFN What Next: Ultra-relativistic Heavy-Ion Collisions

This document was prepared by the community that is active in Italy, within INFN (Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare), in the field of ultra-relativistic heavy-ion collisions. The experimental study of the phase diagram of strongly-interacting matter and of the Quark-Gluon Plasma (QGP) deconfined state will proceed, in the next 10-15 years, along two directions: the high-energy regime at RHIC and at the LHC, and the low-energy regime at FAIR, NICA, SPS and RHIC. The Italian community is strongly involved in the present and future programme of the ALICE experiment, the upgrade of which will open, in the 2020s, a new phase of high-precision characterisation of the QGP properties at the LHC. As a complement of this main activity, there is a growing interest in a possible future experiment at the SPS, which would target the search for the onset of deconfinement using dimuon measurements. On a longer timescale, the community looks with interest at the ongoing studies and discussions on a possible fixed-target programme using the LHC ion beams and on the Future Circular Collider.Comment: 99 pages, 56 figure

Measurement of the quasi-elastic axial vector mass in neutrino-oxygen interactions

The weak nucleon axial-vector form factor for quasi-elastic interactions is determined using neutrino interaction data from the K2K Scintillating Fiber detector in the neutrino beam at KEK. More than 12,000 events are analyzed, of which half are charged-current quasi-elastic interactions nu-mu n to mu- p occurring primarily in oxygen nuclei. We use a relativistic Fermi gas model for oxygen and assume the form factor is approximately a dipole with one parameter, the axial vector mass M_A, and fit to the shape of the distribution of the square of the momentum transfer from the nucleon to the nucleus. Our best fit result for M_A = 1.20 \pm 0.12 GeV. Furthermore, this analysis includes updated vector form factors from recent electron scattering experiments and a discussion of the effects of the nucleon momentum on the shape of the fitted distributions.Comment: 14 pages, 10 figures, 6 table

Search for the W-exchange decays B0 --> Ds(*)- Ds(*)+

We report a search for the decays $B^{0} \to D_{s}^{-} D_{s}^{+}$, $B^{0} \to D_{s}^{*-} D_{s}^{+}$, $B^{0} \to D_{s}^{*-} D_{s}^{*+}$ in a sample of 232 million $\Upsilon(4S)$ decays to \BBb ~pairs collected with the \babar detector at the PEP-II asymmetric-energy $e^+ e^-$ storage ring. We find no significant signal and set upper bounds for the branching fractions: ${\cal B}(B^{0} \to D_{s}^{-} D_{s}^{+}) < 1.0 \times 10^{-4}, {\cal B}(B^{0} \to D_{s}^{*-} D_{s}^{+}) < 1.3 \times 10^{-4}$ and ${\cal B}(B^{0} \to D_{s}^{*-} D_{s}^{*+}) < 2.4 \times 10^{-4}$ at 90% confidence level.Comment: 8 pages, 2 figures, submitted to PRD-R

Measurement of the B+ --> p pbar K+ Branching Fraction and Study of the Decay Dynamics

With a sample of 232x10^6 Upsilon(4S) --> BBbar events collected with the BaBar detector, we study the decay B+ --> p pbar K+ excluding charmonium decays to ppbar. We measure a branching fraction Br(B+ --> p pbar K+)=(6.7+/-0.5+/-0.4)x10^{-6}. An enhancement at low ppbar mass is observed and the Dalitz plot asymmetry suggests dominance of the penguin amplitude in this B decay. We search for a pentaquark candidate Theta*++ decaying into pK+ in the mass range 1.43 to 2.00 GeV/c2 and set limits on Br(B+ --> Theta*++pbar)xBr(Theta*++ --> pK+) at the 10^{-7} level.Comment: 8 pages, 7 postscript figures, submitted to Phys. Rev. D (Rapid Communications

Search for rare quark-annihilation decays, B --> Ds(*) Phi

We report on searches for B- --> Ds- Phi and B- --> Ds*- Phi. In the context of the Standard Model, these decays are expected to be highly suppressed since they proceed through annihilation of the b and u-bar quarks in the B- meson. Our results are based on 234 million Upsilon(4S) --> B Bbar decays collected with the BABAR detector at SLAC. We find no evidence for these decays, and we set Bayesian 90% confidence level upper limits on the branching fractions BF(B- --> Ds- Phi) Ds*- Phi)<1.2x10^(-5). These results are consistent with Standard Model expectations.Comment: 8 pages, 3 postscript figues, submitted to Phys. Rev. D (Rapid Communications