Investigation on the Actual Robustness of GNSS-based Timing Distribution Under Meaconing and Spoofing Interferences

Long-term stability and accurate time synchronization are at the core of timing network facilities in several critical infrastructures, such as in telecommunication networks. In these applications, timing signals disciplined by Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) receivers, i.e., One Pulse-per-Second (1-PPS), complement Primary Reference Time Clocks (PRTCs) by compensating for long-term drifts of their embedded atomic clocks. However, GNSS receivers may expose timing distribution networks to Radio Frequency (RF) vulnerabilities being the cause of possible degraded or disrupted synchronization among the nodes. This paper presents a test methodology assessing the resilience of new GNSS timing receivers to different classes of intentional RF interferences. The analysis of the results compares the effects of practicable spoofing and meaconing attacks on the 1-PPS generated by three Commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) GNSS timing receivers, currently employed in timing applications. On one hand, the results emphasised the robustness of State-of-the-Art (SoA) mitigation technologies compared to previous generations’ devices. On the other hand, the vulnerability of SoA receivers to meaconing attacks highlights the limits of such mitigation solutions that may turn to severe effects on telecommunication networks’ performance

In situ remediation of contaminated marinesediment: an overview

Sediment tends to accumulate inorganic and persistent hydrophobic organic contaminants representing one of the main sinks and sources of pollution. Generally, contaminated sediment poses medium- and long-term risks to humans and ecosystem health; dredging activities or natural resuspension phenomena (i.e., strongly adverse weather conditions) can remobilize pollution releasing it into the water column. Thus, ex situ traditional remediation activities (i.e., dredging) can be hazardous compared to in situ techniques that try to keep to a minimum sediment mobilization, unless dredging is compulsory to reach a desired bathymetric level. We reviewed in situ physico-chemical (i.e., active mixing and thin capping, solidification/stabilization, chemical oxidation, dechlorination, electrokinetic separation, and sediment flushing) and bio-assisted treatments, including hybrid solutions (i.e., nanocomposite reactive capping, bioreactive capping, microbial electrochemical technologies). We found that significant gaps still remain into the knowledge about the application of in situ contaminated sediment remediation techniques from the technical and the practical viewpoint. Only activated carbon-based technologies are well developed and currently applied with several available case studies. The environmental implication of in situ remediation technologies was only shortly investigated on a long-term basis after its application, so it is not clear how they can really perform

Examination and evaluation of a coastal environment contamination at a formed shooting area.

In the recent past a very beautiful area along the interior coastal environment of Venice lagoon was used as a Clay Pigeon Shooting for a wide period. The sport of Clay Pigeon Shooting involves using a shotgun to shoot at and break a circular flying target made from a fragile material. It is released from a trap positioned in front of, or at the back of, a shooter; then, a typical target flight area characterizes each shooting site, where, in time, pellets (leadshot), shot cartridge, clay pigeon fragments and generic ammunition residues are found. So, in a brackish water contest soil/sediment treatment, waste removal and potential re-use are extremely delicate processes. The first step of our work was investigate if heavy metal (Pb, As and Sb) release and following leaching event occurred. Therefore, soil/sediment profiles in three hot sites of the target flight area has been performed and metal’s total and bioavailable fraction has been investigated. As well, grassy layer coating the sites and organisms living into has been picked, in order to verify a potential uptake and bioaccumulation

Effects of Vitamin D on insulin resistance and myosteatosis in diet-induced obese mice

Epidemiological studies pointed out to a strong association between vitamin D deficiency and type 2 diabetes prevalence. However, the role of vitamin D supplementation in the skeletal muscle, a tissue that play a crucial role in the maintenance of glucose homeostasis, has been scarcely investigated so far. On this basis, this study aimed to evaluate the effect of vitamin D supplementation in a murine model of diet-induced insulin resistance with particular attention to the effects evoked on the skeletal muscle. Male C57BL/6J mice (n = 40) were fed with a control or a High Fat-High Sugar (HFHS) diet for 4 months. Subsets of animals were treated for 2 months with vitamin D (7 \u3bcg\ub7kg-1, i.p. three times/week). HFHS diet induced body weight increase, hyperglycemia and impaired glucose tolerance. HFHS animals showed an impaired insulin signaling and a marked fat accumulation in the skeletal muscle. Vitamin D reduced body weight and improved systemic glucose tolerance. In addition, vitamin D restored the impaired muscle insulin signaling and reverted myosteatosis evoked by the diet. These effects were associated to decreased activation of NF-\u3baB and lower levels of TNF-alpha. Consistently, a significantly decreased activation of the SCAP/SREBP lipogenic pathway and lower levels of CML protein adducts and RAGE expression were observed in skeletal muscle of animals treated with vitamin D. Collectively, these data indicate that vitamin D-induced selective inhibition of signaling pathways (including NF-\u3baB, SCAP/SREBP and CML/RAGE cascades) within the skeletal muscle significantly contributed to the beneficial effects of vitamin D supplementation against diet-induced metabolic derangements

Antenna Deployment for a Pathfinder Lunar Radio Observatory

A first step in the development of a large radio observatory on the moon for cosmological or other astrophysical and planetary goals is to deploy a few antennas as a pathfinder mission. In this presentation, we describe a mechanism being developed to deploy such antennas from a small craft, such as a Google Lunar X-prize lander. The antenna concept is to deposit antennas and leads on a polyimide film, such as Kapton, and to unroll the film on the lunar surface. The deployment technique utilized is to launch an anchor which pulls a double line from a reel at the spacecraft. Subsequently, the anchor is set by catching on the surface or collecting sufficient regolith. A motor then pulls in one end of the line, pulling the film off of its roller onto the lunar surface. Detection of a low frequency cutoff of the galactic radio background or of solar radio bursts by such a system would determine the maximum lunar ionospheric density at the time of measurement. The current design and testing, including videos of the deployment, will be presented. These activities are funded in part by the NASA Lunar Science Institute as an activity of the Lunar University Network for Astrophysical Research (LUNAR) consortium. Part of this research was carried out at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, under a contract with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Cancer Immunotherapy by Blocking Immune Checkpoints on Innate Lymphocytes.

Immune checkpoints refer to a plethora of inhibitory pathways of the immune system that play a crucial role in maintaining self-tolerance and in tuning the duration and amplitude of physiological immune responses to minimize collateral tissue damages. The breakdown of this delicate balance leads to pathological conditions, including cancer. Indeed, tumor cells can develop multiple mechanisms to escape from immune system defense, including the activation of immune checkpoint pathways. The development of monoclonal antibodies, targeting inhibitory immune checkpoints, has provided an immense breakthrough in cancer therapy. Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI), initially developed to reverse functional exhaustion in T cells, recently emerged as important actors in natural killer (NK)-cell-based immunotherapy. Moreover, the discovery that also helper innate lymphoid cells (ILCs) express inhibitory immune checkpoints, suggests that these molecules might be targeted on ILCs, to modulate their functions in the tumor microenvironment. Recently, other strategies to achieve immune checkpoint blockade have been developed, including miRNA exploiting systems. Herein, we provide an overview of the current knowledge on inhibitory immune checkpoints on NK cells and ILCs and we discuss how to target these innate lymphocytes by ICI in both solid tumors and hematological malignancies

Influence of a montmorency cherry juice blend on indices of exercise-induced stress and upper respiratory tract symptoms following marathon running—a pilot investigation

Background: Prolonged exercise, such as marathon running, has been associated with an increase in respiratory mucosal inflammation. The aim of this pilot study was to examine the effects of Montmorency cherry juice on markers of stress, immunity and inflammation following a Marathon. Methods: Twenty recreational Marathon runners consumed either cherry juice (CJ) or placebo (PL) before and after a Marathon race. Markers of mucosal immunity secretory immunoglobulin A (sIgA), immunoglobulin G (IgG), salivary cortisol, inflammation (CRP) and self-reported incidence and severity of upper respiratory tract symptoms (URTS) were measured before and following the race. Results: All variables except secretory IgA and IgG concentrations in saliva showed a significant time effect (P < 0.01). Serum CRP showed a significant interaction and treatment effect (P < 0.01). The CRP increase at 24 and 48 h post-Marathon was lower (P < 0.01) in the CJ group compared to PL group. Mucosal immunity and salivary cortisol showed no interaction effect or treatment effect. The incidence and severity of URTS was significantly greater than baseline at 24 h and 48 h following the race in the PL group and was also greater than the CJ group (P < 0.05). No URTS were reported in the CJ group whereas 50 % of runners in the PL group reported URTS at 24 h and 48 h post-Marathon. Conclusions: This is the first study that provides encouraging evidence of the potential role of Montmorency cherries in reducing the development of URTS post-Marathon possibly caused by exercise-induced hyperventilation trauma, and/or other infectious and non-infectious factors