Ergosterol reduction impairs mitochondrial DNA maintenance in S. cerevisiae

Sterols are essential lipids, involved in many biological processes. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the enzymes of the ergosterol biosynthetic pathway (Erg proteins) are localized in different cellular compartments. With the aim of studying organelle interactions, we discovered that Erg27p resides mainly in Lipid Droplets (LDs) in respiratory competent cells, while in absence of respiration, is found mostly in the ER. The results presented in this paper demonstrate an interplay between the mitochondrial respiration and ergosterol production: on the one hand, rho° cells show lower ergosterol content when compared with wild type respiratory competent cells, on the other hand, the ergosterol biosynthetic pathway influences the mitochondrial status, since treatment with ketoconazole, which blocks the ergosterol pathway, or the absence of the ERG27 gene, induced rho° production in S. cerevisiae. The loss of mitochondrial DNA in the ∆erg27 strain is fully suppressed by exogenous addition of ergosterol. These data suggest the notion that ergosterol is essential for maintaining the mitochondrial DNA attached to the inner mitochondrial membrane

Pay-as-they-get-in: attitudes towards migrants and pension systems

We study whether a better knowledge of the functioning of pay-as-you-go pension systems and recent demographic trends in the hosting country affects natives' attitudes towards immigration. In two online experiments in Italy and Spain, we randomly treated participants with a video explaining how, in pay-as-you-go pension systems, the payment of current pensions depends on the contributions paid by current workers. The video also explains that the ratio between the number of pensioners and the number of workers in their countries will grow substantially in the future. We find that the treatment improves participants' knowledge about how a pay-as-you-go system works and the future demographic trends in their country. However, we find that only treated participants who support non-populist parties display more positive attitudes towards migrants, even though the treatment increases knowledge of pension systems and demographic trends for all participants

Microstructural Study of the Intermetallic Bonding Between Al Foam and Low Carbon Steel

Bonding between a metal foam core and a metallic skin is a pre requisite for the technological application of aluminum foam as filling reinforcement material to improve energy absorption and vibration damping of hollow components. This work is a preliminary study for the microstructural characterization of the interface layer formed between a commercial powder metallurgy (PM) precursor and a steel mould during foaming. The microstructure of the intermetallic layer was characterized by scanning electron microscopy, electron probe microanalysis and nanohardness measurements on the cross section. X-ray diffraction measurements, performed on the foam/substrate surface after stepwise material removal, allow the identification of the intermetallic phases. Two intermetallic layers, identified as Fe2Al5 and FeAl3, characterize the low Si foam/substrate while the AlSi10 foam/substrate interface evidences the presence of three Fe(Si, Al) intermetallic layers with different composition. Two and three different phases of increasing hardness could be distinguished going from the foam to the steel substrate for AlMg1Si0.6 and AlSi10 precursors respectively. The results suggest the importance of elemental diffusion from steel substrate in the molten aluminum matrix (foam). The possibility to control and tailor the microstructural properties of the interface between foam and steel skin is of fundamental importance in the technological process of foam filled structures manufacturing

On the Foamability of AlSi12 Precursors Prepared by High Velocity Compaction

High Velocity Compaction (HVC) has been proposed as a cost-effective method to prepare foamable precursors and the feasibility of the process has been demonstrated. The impact energy results a key parameter to control the final precursor density. Increasing values of impact energy leads to a continuous enhancement of performances in terms of maximum expansion and stability of the foam up to values comparable to those of commercial Alulight® precursors

Internal radiation dose assessment of radiopharmaceuticals prepared with cyclotron-produced 99m Tc

Technetium-99m (99m Tc) is the radioisotope most widely used in diagnostic nuclear medicine. It is readily available from 99 Mo/99m Tc generators as the \u3b2- decay product of the 99 Mo (T\ubd =66 h) parent nuclide. This latter is obtained as a fission product in nuclear reactors by neutron-induced reactions on highly enriched uranium. Alternative production routes, such as direct reactions using proton beams on specific target materials [100 Mo(p,2n)99m Tc], have the potential to be both reliable and relatively cost-effective. However, results showed that the 99m Tc extracted from proton-bombarded 100 Mo-enriched targets contains small quantities of several Tc radioisotopes (93m Tc, 93 Tc, 94 Tc, 94m Tc, 95 Tc, 95m Tc 96 Tc and 97m Tc). The aim of this work was to estimate the dose increase (DI) due to the contribution of Tc radioisotopes generated as impurities, after the intravenous injection of four radiopharmaceuticals prepared with cyclotron-produced 99m Tc (CP-99m Tc) using 99.05% 100 Mo-enriched metallic targets

Ignition investigations of a novel hypergolic ionic liquid with hydrogen peroxide in drop tests

Conventional hypergolic propellants are highly toxic. Therefore, research is conducted in order to find suitable candidates as a replacement for these kinds of propellants. At DLR a promising propellant combination comprised of highly concentrated hydrogen peroxide and an ionic liquid was identified. The used propellant combination showed an ignition delay time in drop tests of around 30 ms. These drop tests were conducted in a drop test setup keeping the test parameters constant. In the present study different external factors, which could have an impact on the ignition delay time were investigated: drop height, propellant amount and fuel or oxidizer as pool component. For fuel as pool component no impact on the ignition delay time was observed when varying the drop heights or propellant amounts. A significant difference was observed between fuel or oxidizer pools. Here, the ignition delay time for oxidizer pools is twice as long as tests with in the fuel poo

Case Report: Lymphocytosis Associated With Fatal Hepatitis in a Thymoma Patient Treated With Anti-PD1: New Insight Into the Immune-Related Storm

Recent advances in tumor immunotherapy have made it possible to efficiently unleash immune effectors, reacting against neoplastic cells. Although these approaches primarily aim to eradicate malignancy, immune-related adverse events (irAEs) often influence patients’ prognosis, constituting a new spectrum of side effects. Taking into account the typical microenvironment and the intricate equilibrium between the anti-tumor response and the immune cells, the thymoma constitutes a unicum in the immune-oncology field. We report a fatal immune-mediated adverse events’ storm in a thymoma patient treated with Pembrolizumab, leading to hepatotoxicity accompanied by lymphocytosis, thrombocytopenia, and thyroid dysfunction, unveiling a novel potential pathophysiological effect of immunotherapy. The clinical proficiency of the immune checkpoint inhibitors in thymoma patients warrants timely prevention and management of off-target consequences in order to optimize this promising therapeutic option. This case report describes a unique consequence of irAEs, emerging as a red flag warranting a multidisciplinary approach

Comparison of Green and Conventional Rocket Propellants: System Analysis Tool for in-space Propulsion

A system analysis tool is presented, which offers a quick and easy way to compare different green propellants for future propulsion applications. As the analysis shows, for specific delta v ranges and spacecraft masses, green propellants offer significant advantages compared to conventional propellants. The reduced handling, transportation and test costs of green propulsion systems additionally underline the applicability of green propulsion technologies in the future