Adaptability and Sustainable Management of High-Erucic Brassicaceae in Mediterranean Environment

none4The use of high-erucic acid oils is currently receiving increasing attention, due to the great interest in chemical compounds derived from “green feedstock”. At world level, the production of these raw materials is constantly growing, and a real niche market has progressively been created. This scenario will allow greater substitution of chemicals with “green” compounds, and the introduction of industrial oilcrops. may lead to further expansion of the green market. Alternative uses of crops for nonfood purposes may be an interesting source of profit for farmers, as is happening for higherucic acid oils. Erucic acid is an unsaturated fatty acid (C22:1) with a large number of applications in the chemical industry because it confers desirable technological characteristics, such as high lubricity, cold stability and fire resistance, on oils and derived compounds.mixedFederica Zanetti; Giuliano Mosca; Enrico Rampin; Teofilo VameraliZanetti, Federica; Mosca, Giuliano; Enrico, Rampin; Vamerali, Teofil

Sliding mode control algorithms for wheel slip control of road vehicles

Sliding mode control approaches are presented in this paper for the wheel slip control of road vehicles. The major design requirement for the controllers is to make the wheel slip ratio follow a desired value, while guaranteeing that the sliding mode control is stabilizing. Its robustness in front of matched and unmatched uncertainties and data transmission delays is assessed in simulation. In the present paper different algorithms of first and second order type and integral or non integral nature are discussed. Simulation results are reported and analyzed, putting into evidence the superior performance, in the considered automotive context, of the integral sliding mode control

Long-term, low-dose tigecycline to treat relapsing bloodstream infection due to KPC-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae after major hepatic surgery

Summary A 68-year-old male underwent a right hepatectomy, resection of the biliary convergence, and a left hepatic jejunostomy for a Klatskin tumour. The postoperative course was complicated by biliary abscesses with relapsing bloodstream infections due to Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase (KPC)-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae (KPC-Kp). A 2-week course of combination antibiotic therapy failed to provide source control and the bacteraemia relapsed. Success was obtained with a regimen of tigecycline 100mg daily for 2 months, followed by tigecycline 50mg daily for 6 months, then 50mg every 48h for 3 months. No side effects were reported

Neural damage biomarkers during open carotid surgery versus endovascular approach

BACKGROUND: Carotid endarterectomy (CEA) is the gold standard for treating severe carotid artery stenosis, whereas carotid artery stenting (CAS) represents an endovascular alternative. The objective of this study was to assess the potential neural damage following open or endovascular carotid surgery measured by peripheral blood concentration of 3 biomarkers: S100β, matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9), and d-dimer. METHODS: Data for this prospective investigation were obtained from the Carotid Markers study (January 2010-2011), which sought to measure the levels of specific biomarkers of neuronal damage and thrombosis on candidates to CEA or CAS presenting at the Department of Vascular Surgery of the Nuovo Ospedale S. Agostino Estense of Modena (Italy) at baseline and at 24 hr after surgery. Relevant medical comorbidities were noted. RESULTS: A total of 113 consecutive patients were enrolled in the study, 41 in the endarterectomy group and 72 in the endovascular group. The baseline levels of the studied biomarkers did not show any statistically significant difference between the groups with the exception of MMP-9, which showed higher concentrations in the endovascular group (median 731 vs. 401, P = 0.0007), while 24 hr after surgery the endarterectomy group featured significantly higher peripheral blood concentrations of MMP-9, S100β, and d-dimer. Conversely, no significant difference was detected in the endovascular group except the d-dimer level. CONCLUSIONS: Neural damage biomarkers demonstrated a substantial difference between open and endovascular carotid surgery, which, if performed in selected patients, may become a less invasive alternative to CEA

D2.1 Evaluation Criteria and Methods

The main purposes of the current deliverable D2.1 is to provide the foundations of an Evaluation Framework that can be applied to compare Open Web Data applications and rank them according to their achievements. D2.1 contains the information gained from Task 2.1 - Evaluation criteria and method review and Task 2.2 - Validation of the evaluation criteria and methods of WP2 (DoW. p. 8). According to those tasks, we conducted an expert survey with the Group Concept Mapping method to identify relevant indicators and criteria for the Evaluation Framework. In a second step, we conducted a focused literature review to extend the outcomes of the expert survey with latest indicators reported in the literature. We finally, present the initial concept of the Evaluation Framework and its criteria and indicators. This deliverable provides the theoretical foundations for the Evaluation Framework that is further developed into a scoring sheet for the judges of LinkedUp challenge in deliverable D2.2.1. The Evaluation Framework will be further developed and amended according to the experiences collected in the three LinkedUp data competitions during the LinkedUp challeng

Hepatic abscess caused by trans-gastric migration of a fishbone

Background Stomach or duodenal perforation due to foreign body are usually associated with the development of a walled-off abdominal mass or abscess, and are less prone to cause systemic signs of infection. Methods and Case presentation A 65-year-old man with no comorbidities was admitted for rapid onset of abdominal discomfort, fever, and chills. An abdominal computed tomography (CT) showed an 8 cm abscess in the left lobe of the liver. The lesion was aspirated under ultrasound guidance; cultures from the abscess grew Streptococcus constellatus. Chest CT scan, colonoscopy, esophagogastroduodenoscopy, and blood cultures were negative. The patient’s clinical status rapidly improved with antibiotic therapy, but a follow-up CT scan revealed the presence of a thin, 3 cm-long radiopaque object at the site of the previous abscess. A few months later, due to symptomatic cholelithiasis, the patient underwent elective laparoscopic cholecystectomy and concurrent removal of a 3 cm-long fishbone, which was embedded into the wall of the gastric antrum and the third segment of the liver, the latter which was partially resected. Results The small gastrotomy was reapproximated with a single resorbable stitch. The post-operative course was uneventful and at 6 month follow up, the patient was asymptomatic without evidence of residual abdominal pathology. Conclusions Asymptomatic perforation of the gastric wall by an ingested foreign body can occur and be subsequently complicated by a liver abscess. A contained perforation can be successfully managed conservatively