Extended Thermodynamics for Dense Gases up to Whatever Order and with Only Some Symmetries

Extended Thermodynamics of dense gases is characterized by two hierarchies of field equations, which allow one to overcome some restrictions on the generality of the previous models. This idea has been introduced by Arima, Taniguchi, Ruggeri and Sugiyama. In~the case of a 14-moment model, they have found the closure of the balance equations up to second order with respect to equilibrium. Here, the closure is obtained up to whatever order and imposing only the necessary symmetry conditions. It comes out that the first non-symmetric parts of the higher order fluxes appear only at third order with respect to equilibrium, even if Arima, Taniguchi, Ruggeri and Sugiyama found a non-symmetric part proportional to an arbitrary constant also at first order with respect to equilibrium. Consequently, this constant must be zero, as Arima, Taniguchi, Ruggeri and Sugiyama assumed in the applications and on an intuitive ground

Teaching mathematics at distance: A challenge for universities

The focus of this research is how Sicilian state university mathematics professors faced the challenge of teaching via distance education during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Since the pandemic entered our lives suddenly, the professors found themselves having to lecture using an e-learning platform that they had never used before, and for which they could not receive training due to the health emergency. In addition to the emotional aspects related to the particular situation of the pandemic, there are two aspects to consider when teaching mathematics at a distance. The first is related to the fact that at university level, lecturers generally teach mathematics in a formal way, using many symbols and formulas that they are used to writing. The second aspect is that the way mathematics is taught is also related to the students to whom the teaching is addressed. In fact, not only online, but also in face-to-face modality, the teaching of mathematics to students on the mathematics degree course involves a different approach to lessons (as well as to the choice of topics to explain) than teaching mathematics in another degree course. In order to investigate how the Sicilian State university mathematics professors taught mathematics at distance, a questionnaire was prepared and administered one month after the beginning of the lockdown in Italy. Both quantitative and qualitative analyses were made, which allowed us to observe the way that university professors have adapted to the new teaching modality: they started to appropriate new artifacts (writing tablets, mathematical software, e-learning platform) to replicate their face-to-face teaching modality, mostly maintaining their blackboard teacher status. Their answers also reveal their beliefs related to teaching mathematics at university level, noting what has been an advantageous or disadvantageous for them in distance teaching

Delay discounting in Parkinson's disease: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Delay discounting refers to the depreciation of the value of a reward as a function of the time it takes to obtain it. Growing evidence shows altered delay discounting in several pathological conditions, including neurological disorders. Here, we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of the published literature on delay dis-counting (DD) in Parkinson's Disease (PD). We found steeper DD in patients with PD, compared to healthy controls, both in "on" and "off" dopaminergic medication. These results confirm altered DD in PD and suggest an independent influence of the dopaminergic medication and the clinical condition itself on it. Also the effect of impulse control disorder and of pharmacological treatments are analysed

Computational core and fixed-point organisation in Boolean networks

In this paper, we analyse large random Boolean networks in terms of a constraint satisfaction problem. We first develop an algorithmic scheme which allows to prune simple logical cascades and under-determined variables, returning thereby the computational core of the network. Second we apply the cavity method to analyse number and organisation of fixed points. We find in particular a phase transition between an easy and a complex regulatory phase, the latter one being characterised by the existence of an exponential number of macroscopically separated fixed-point clusters. The different techniques developed are reinterpreted as algorithms for the analysis of single Boolean networks, and they are applied to analysis and in silico experiments on the gene-regulatory networks of baker's yeast (saccaromices cerevisiae) and the segment-polarity genes of the fruit-fly drosophila melanogaster.Comment: 29 pages, 18 figures, version accepted for publication in JSTA

Post-operative computed tomography imaging evaluation of ascending aorta surgery

Ascending thoracic aorta disease is often a life-threatening condition. Aortic aneurysm and aortic dissection are the most frequent ascending aorta diseases requiring surgical intervention. Surgical repair techniques of the ascending aorta are various; they include reconstruction of the ascending aorta by using a graft with or without a prosthetic valve, reconstruction with a composite artificial graft or using a biological graft, and reconstruction of the ascending aorta with a composite graft preserving the native valve and arch repair. The radiologist plays a key role in the identification of post-operative complications; differentiation from normal postoperative findings is fundamental. Our aim is to discuss the main diseases affecting the ascending aorta requiring surgery and the different techniques used to treat them. We also discuss the normal computed tomography (CT) imaging findings and after-surgery complications

An Integrated In Silico and In Vitro Approach for the Identification of Natural Products Active against SARS-CoV-2

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has provoked a global health crisis due to the absence of a specific therapeutic agent. 3CLpro (also known as the main protease or Mpro) and PLpro are chymotrypsin-like proteases encoded by the SARS-CoV-2 genome, and play essential roles during the virus lifecycle. Therefore, they are recognized as a prospective therapeutic target in drug discovery against SARS-CoV-2 infection. Thus, this work aims to collectively present potential natural 3CLpro and PLpro inhibitors by in silico simulations and in vitro entry pseudotype-entry models. We screened luteolin-7-O-glucuronide (L7OG), cynarin (CY), folic acid (FA), and rosmarinic acid (RA) molecules against PLpro and 3CLpro through a luminogenic substrate assay. We only reported moderate inhibitory activity on the recombinant 3CLpro and PLpro by L7OG and FA. Afterward, the entry inhibitory activity of L7OG and FA was tested in cell lines transduced with the two different SARS-CoV-2 pseudotypes harboring alpha (α) and omicron (o) spike (S) protein. The results showed that both compounds have a consistent inhibitory activity on the entry for both variants. However, L7OG showed a greater degree of entry inhibition against α-SARS-CoV-2. Molecular modeling studies were used to determine the inhibitory mechanism of the candidate molecules by focusing on their interactions with residues recognized by the protease active site and receptor-binding domain (RBD) of spike SARS-CoV-2. This work allowed us to identify the binding sites of FA and L7OG within the RBD domain in the alpha and omicron variants, demonstrating how FA is active in both variants. We have confidence that future in vivo studies testing the safety and effectiveness of these natural compounds are warranted, given that they are effective against a variant of concerns

Wikipedia as an encyclopaedia of life

In his 2003 essay E O Wilson outlined his vision for an “encyclopaedia of life” comprising “an electronic page for each species of organism on Earth”, each page containing “the scientific name of the species, a pictorial or genomic presentation of the primary type specimen on which its name is based, and a summary of its diagnostic traits.” Although the “quiet revolution” in biodiversity informatics has generated numerous online resources, including some directly inspired by Wilson's essay (e.g., "http://ispecies.org":http://ispecies.org, "http://www.eol.org":http://www.eol.org), we are still some way from the goal of having available online all relevant information about a species, such as its taxonomy, evolutionary history, genomics, morphology, ecology, and behaviour. While the biodiversity community has been developing a plethora of databases, some with overlapping goals and duplicated content, Wikipedia has been slowly growing to the point where it now has over 100,000 pages on biological taxa. My goal in this essay is to explore the idea that, largely independent of the efforts of biodiversity informatics and well-funded international efforts, Wikipedia ("http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page":http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page) has emerged as potentially the best platform for fulfilling E O Wilson’s vision

BCR-ABL1 doubling-times and halving-times may predict CML response to tyrosine kinase inhibitors

In Chronic Myeloid Leukemia (CML), successful treatment requires accurate molecular monitoring to evaluate disease response and provide timely interventions for patients failing to achieve the desired outcomes. We wanted to determine whether measuring BCR-ABL1 mRNA doubling-times (DTs) could distinguish inconsequential rises in the oncogene’s expression from resistance to tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs). Thus, we retrospectively examined BCR-ABL1 evolution in 305 chronic-phase CML patients receiving imatinib mesylate (IM) as a first line treatment. Patients were subdivided in two groups: those with a confirmed rise in BCR-ABL1 transcripts without MR3.0 loss and those failing IM. We found that the DTs of the former patients were significantly longer than those of patients developing IM resistance (57.80 vs. 41.45 days, p = 0.0114). Interestingly, the DT values of individuals failing second-generation (2G) TKIs after developing IM resistance were considerably shorter than those observed at the time of IM failure (27.20 vs. 41.45 days; p = 0.0035). We next wanted to establish if decreases in BCR-ABL1 transcripts would identify subjects likely to obtain deep molecular responses. We therefore analyzed the BCR-ABL1 halving-times (HTs) of a different cohort comprising 174 individuals receiving IM in first line and observed that, regardless of the time point selected for our analyses (6, 12, or 18 months), HTs were significantly shorter in subjects achieving superior molecular responses (p = 0.002 at 6 months; p < 0.001 at 12 months; p = 0.0099 at 18 months). Moreover, 50 patients receiving 2G TKIs as first line therapy and obtaining an MR3.0 (after 6 months; p = 0.003) or an MR4.0 (after 12 months; p = 0.019) displayed significantly shorter HTs than individuals lacking these molecular responses. Our findings suggest that BCR-ABL1 DTs and HTs are reliable tools to, respectively, identify subjects in MR3.0 that are failing their assigned TKI or to recognize patients likely to achieve deep molecular responses that should be considered for treatment discontinuation

Naturally occurring antibodies in cats against dog erythrocyte antigens and vice versa

Objectives The aim of this study was to investigate the presence of naturally occurring antibodies against canine erythrocyte antigens in cats and vice versa. The influence of canine and feline blood type on cross-match results was also studied. Methods Blood samples from 34 cats and 42 dogs were used to perform test-tube major and minor cross-match tests and blood typing. Blood from each cat was cross-matched with blood from 2-6 dogs, for a total of 111 cross-match tests. Haemolysis, macro- and/or micro-agglutination were considered markers of a positive cross-match. Results Eighty-three overall major cross-match tests were positive at 37\ub0C, 86 at room temperature and 90 at 4\ub0C. The minor cross-match tests were positive in all but two cross-matches performed at 37\ub0C, all tests performed at room temperature and all but one test performed at 4\ub0C. No cats tested totally negative at both major and minor cross-matches performed with samples from any single dog. Prevalence of warm natural antibodies against canine erythrocyte antigens was lower in type B cats than in type A cats, regardless of the blood type of donor dogs. Conclusions and relevance This study reveals a high prevalence of naturally occurring antibodies in cats against dog erythrocyte antigens and vice versa, and suggests that transfusion of cats with canine blood is not recommended as a routine procedure owing to the potential high risk of either acute severe or milder transfusion reactions