Using open source middleware for securing E-Gov applications

Nowadays, a global information infrastructure connects remote parties through the use of large scale networks, and many companies focus on developing e-services based on remote resources and on interaction between remote parties. In such a context, e-Government (e-Gov) systems became of paramount importance for the Public Administration, and many ongoing development projects are targeted on their implementation and release. For open source software to play an important role in this scenario, two main technological requirements must be fulfilled: (i) the identification and optimization of de facto standards for building e-Gov open source software components and (ii) a standard integration strategy of these components into an open source middleware layer, capable of conveying a completely open-source e-Gov solution. In this paper, we argue that e-Gov systems should be constructed on a open source middleware layer, providing full public responsibility in its development

Pectin methyl esterases and rhamnogalacturonan hydrolases: weapons for successful Monilinia laxa infection in stone fruit?

The secretion of cell wall‐degrading enzymes is one of the mechanisms used by necrotrophic fungi to colonize host tissues. However, information about virulence factors of Monilinia spp., the causal agents of brown rot in stone fruit, is scarce. Plant cell walls have three main components that are broken down by fungal enzymes: cellulose, hemicellulose and pectin. In order to identify Monilinia laxa candidate proteins involved in pectin hydrolysis, two in vitro approaches were conducted: (i) phenotypic and ecophysiological characterization of growth of the pathogen at different pHs, in glucose‐ and pectin‐containing solid media for 7 days' incubation; and (ii) expression analysis of genes encoding M. laxa pectin methyl esterases (MlPMEs) and rhamnogalacturonan hydrolases (MlRG‐HYDs) after incubation for 0.5, 2, 6, 24 and 48 h in glucose‐ and pectin‐containing liquid media. Phenotypic tests showed the role of carbon source on M. laxa growth rate and aggressiveness, and indicated that pectinases were greatly affected by pH. Gene expression analyses uncovered differences among members of each family of pectinases and between the two families, defining sets of genes expressed at earlier (0.5–6 h) and later (48 h) phases. Notably, the up‐ or down‐regulation of these target genes was carbon source‐dependent. Finally, an in vivo study confirmed the synergistic and complementary role that these genes play in the M. laxa–stone fruit pathosystem. Based on these results, it is hypothesized that MlPME2, MlRG‐HYD1 and MlRG‐HYD2 may be potential virulence factors of M. laxa in the process from infection to colonization.info:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersio

Thermodiffusion of the tetrahydronaphthalene and dodecane mixture under high pressure and in porous medium

A thermodiffusion cell is used in order to perform Soret experiments on binary mixtures at high pressure and in the presence of a porous medium. The cell is validated at atmospheric pressure with toluene/hexane and the tetrahydronaphthalene/dodecane mixtures. The mass separation follows a diffusive behaviour when the cell is filled with a porous medium. At least three times the relaxation time is needed to have a good estimation of the Soret coefficients. From the transient state of the mass separation and using accepted values of the diffusion coefficient, the tortuosity of the porous medium was evaluated, too. Finally, experiments at high pressure were performed with the tetrahydronaphthalene/dodecane system. In these experiments, decreases of the Soret coefficient and of the tortuosity of the porous medium were measured as a function of the pressure

Anxiety, emotional processing and depression in people with multiple sclerosis.

BACKGROUND: Despite the high comorbidity of anxiety and depression in people with multiple sclerosis (MS), little is known about their inter-relationships. Both involve emotional perturbations and the way in which emotions are processed is likely central to both. The aim of the current study was to explore relationships between the domains of mood, emotional processing and coping and to analyse how anxiety affects coping, emotional processing, emotional balance and depression in people with MS. METHODS: A cross-sectional questionnaire study involving 189 people with MS with a confirmed diagnosis of MS recruited from three French hospitals. Study participants completed a battery of questionnaires encompassing the following domains: i. anxiety and depression (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS)); ii. emotional processing (Emotional Processing Scale (EPS-25)); iii. positive and negative emotions (Positive and Negative Emotionality Scale (EPN-31)); iv. alexithymia (Bermond-Vorst Alexithymia Questionnaire) and v. coping (Coping with Health Injuries and Problems-Neuro (CHIP-Neuro) questionnaire. Relationships between these domains were explored using path analysis. RESULTS: Anxiety was a strong predictor of depression, in both a direct and indirect way, and our model explained 48% of the variance of depression. Gender and functional status (measured by the Expanded Disability Status Scale) played a modest role. Non-depressed people with MS reported high levels of negative emotions and low levels of positive emotions. Anxiety also had an indirect impact on depression via one of the subscales of the Emotional Processing Scale ("Unregulated Emotion") and via negative emotions (EPN-31). CONCLUSIONS: This research confirms that anxiety is a vulnerability factor for depression via both direct and indirect pathways. Anxiety symptoms should therefore be assessed systematically and treated in order to lessen the likelihood of depression symptoms

TangoSIDM: tantalizing models of self-interacting dark matter

Large scale structure and cosmologyGalaxie

Alignment of cellular motility forces with tissue flow as a mechanism for efficient wound healing

Recent experiments have shown that spreading epithelial sheets exhibit a long-range coordination of motility forces that leads to a buildup of tension in the tissue, which may enhance cell division and the speed of wound healing. Furthermore, the edges of these epithelial sheets commonly show finger-like protrusions whereas the bulk often displays spontaneous swirls of motile cells. To explain these experimental observations, we propose a simple flocking-type mechanism, in which cells tend to align their motility forceswith their velocity. Implementing this idea in amechanical tissue simulation, the proposed model gives rise to efficient spreading and can explain the experimentally observed long-range alignment of motility forces in highly disordered patterns, as well as the buildup of tensile stress throughout the tissue. Our model also qualitatively reproduces the dependence of swirl size and swirl velocity on cell density reported in experiments and exhibits an undulation instability at the edge of the spreading tissue commonly observed in vivo. Finally, we study the dependence of colony spreading speed on important physical and biological parameters and derive simple scaling relations that show that coordination of motility forces leads to an improvement of the wound healing process for realistic tissue parameters

IND-Enabling Studies for a Clinical Trial to Genetically Program a Persistent Cancer-Targeted Immune System

PURPOSE: To improve persistence of adoptively transferred T-cell receptor (TCR)-engineered T cells and durable clinical responses, we designed a clinical trial to transplant genetically-modified hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) together with adoptive cell transfer of T cells both engineered to express an NY-ESO-1 TCR. Here, we report the preclinical studies performed to enable an investigational new drug (IND) application. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: HSCs transduced with a lentiviral vector expressing NY-ESO-1 TCR and the PET reporter/suicide gene HSV1-sr39TK and T cells transduced with a retroviral vector expressing NY-ESO-1 TCR were coadministered to myelodepleted HLA-A2/Kb mice within a formal Good Laboratory Practice (GLP)-compliant study to demonstrate safety, persistence, and HSC differentiation into all blood lineages. Non-GLP experiments included assessment of transgene immunogenicity and in vitro viral insertion safety studies. Furthermore, Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP)-compliant cell production qualification runs were performed to establish the manufacturing protocols for clinical use. RESULTS: TCR genetically modified and ex vivo-cultured HSCs differentiated into all blood subsets in vivo after HSC transplantation, and coadministration of TCR-transduced T cells did not result in increased toxicity. The expression of NY-ESO-1 TCR and sr39TK transgenes did not have a detrimental effect on gene-modified HSC's differentiation to all blood cell lineages. There was no evidence of genotoxicity induced by the lentiviral vector. GMP batches of clinical-grade transgenic cells produced during qualification runs had adequate stability and functionality. CONCLUSIONS: Coadministration of HSCs and T cells expressing an NY-ESO-1 TCR is safe in preclinical models. The results presented in this article led to the FDA approval of IND 17471

The contribution of mountain pastures to the link to terroir in dairy and meat products

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