Nanoporous Au Behavior in Methyl Orange Solutions

Nanoporous (NP) gold, the most extensively studied and efficient NP metal, possesses exceptional properties that make it highly attractive for advanced technological applications. Notably, its remarkable catalytic properties in various significant reactions hold enormous potential. However, the exploration of its catalytic activity in the degradation of water pollutants remains limited. Nevertheless, previous research has reported the catalytic activity of NP Au in the degradation of methyl orange (MO), a toxic azo dye commonly found in water. This study aims to investigate the behavior of nanoporous gold in MO solutions using UV-Vis absorption spectroscopy and high-performance liquid chromatography. The NP Au was prepared by chemical removal of silver atoms of an AuAg precursor alloy prepared by ball milling. Immersion tests were conducted on both pellets and powders of NP Au, followed by examination of the residual solutions. Additionally, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and electrochemical impedance measurements were employed to analyze NP Au after the tests. The findings reveal that the predominant and faster process involves the partially reversible adsorption of MO onto NP Au, while the catalytic degradation of the dye plays a secondary and slower role in this system

Coronaviridae and SARS-associated Coronavirus Strain HSR1

During the recent severe acute respiratory (SARS) outbreak, the etiologic agent was identified as a new coronavirus (CoV). We have isolated a SARS-associated CoV (SARS-CoV) strain by injecting Vero cells with a sputum specimen from an Italian patient affected by a severe pneumonia; the patient traveled from Vietnam to Italy in March 2003. Ultrastructural analysis of infected Vero cells showed the virions within cell vesicles and around the cell membrane. The full-length viral genome sequence was similar to those derived from the Hong-Kong Hotel M isolate. By using both real-time reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction TaqMan assay and an infectivity plaque assay, we determined that approximately 360 viral genomes were required to generate a PFU. In addition, heparin (100 μg/mL) inhibited infection of Vero cells by 50%. Overall, the molecular and biologic characteristics of the strain HSR1 provide evidence that SARS-CoV forms a fourth genetic coronavirus group with distinct genomic and biologic features

Analysing product development process and plm features in the food and fashion industries

The food and fashion industries are well-known as areas of excellence representing Italy globally. Their products include innovative features, have short lifecycles and a high level of customisation. Both the pipelines have to respond quickly to unpredictable demand in order to minimize stock-outs, forced markdowns, obsolete inventory and they focus their Supply Chain (SC) strategies on quality and time-to-market. Although they are characterized by many different aspects, both leverage on the same point of strength: their internal Product Development (PD) process. The opposite occurs in the automotive industry, with its standard and functional products and its efficient pipeline centred on cost reduction. Starting from previous works presented during the last PLM conference (PLM16), the research aims at investigating similarities and differences between these sectors, focusing on their PD process and their main critical success factors. Moreover, the authors analyse how Food and Fashion companies are managing the entire set of information throughout PD and the strategic role of Product Lifecycle Management (PLM). In order to reach these goals, a multiple case study analysis has been performed, involving companies belonging to the Food and Fashion industries. The results will be relevant both for academics and practitioners. Indeed, there is a literature gap about this topic, because of the lack of researches concerning Food and Fashion PD. From the practitioners point of view, the results of this work will help Food and Fashion companies to support their business analysing the PD process and to better understand how the use of the PLM system could improve it

Product development kpis: A case study analysis in food and fashion companies

Two of the main industries that are currently paying huge attention to Product Development (PD) are Food & Fashion (F&F). Even if the remaining supply chain processes (production, distribution, sales) are managed in different ways and dissimilar outsourcing policies are adopted, PD is the most valuable process that both the industries are emphasizing. In the Italian context, F&F also represent two of the three excellences of the Made in Italy (Furniture is the third element), also known as "3F". Therefore, this research constitutes a progress of a previous work, which has examined critical success factors, PD features and PLM functionalities in the two sectors. The aim of this study is to analyse how to control, to monitor and to enhance PD through Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) in F&F companies. From the methodological point of view, case study is adopted as a research strategy, designing two questionnaires with a common structure in order to obtain the required information. Indeed, different companies, belonging to the sectors of interest, have been selected and interviewed. As a result, KPIs are identified and classified. Moreover, a comparison between the previously listed metrics is performed and the drivers affecting similarities and differences are highlighted. This research helps to fill the literature gap, given the few contributions related to product development in the F&F supply chains. It also represents a valuable insight for practitioners who are trying to improve business processes and to increase the control over product development

Occurrence of Mycotoxins in Extruded Commercial Cat Food

The occurrence of the most important mycotoxins (deoxynivalenol, fumonisin B1 and B2, aflatoxins B1, B2, G1, and G2, ochratoxin A, zearalenone, T-2, and HT-2 toxins) was determined in 64 extruded cat foods purchased in Italy through ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry. Deoxynivalenol and fumonisins were the most common contaminants (quantified in 80 and 95% of the samples, respectively). Conversely, aflatoxins B2, G1, and G2 were not identified in any sample. Some cat foods exceeded the regulatory limit for aflatoxin B1 (n = 3) or the guidance values for zearalenone (n = 3), fumonisins (n = 2), ochratoxin A (n = 1), and T-2 (n = 1) recently established for pets in the European Union. A widespread co-occurrence of mycotoxins was observed (28, 42, and 8% of the samples contained quantifiable amounts of two, three, and four mycotoxins, respectively). This study describes criticisms regarding the mycotoxin issue in pet food and suggests an improvement of the monitoring of the pet food chain

Deciphering Molecular Mechanisms of Interface Buildup and Stability in Porous Si/Eumelanin Hybrids

Porous Si/eumelanin hybrids are a novel class of organic–inorganic hybrid materials that hold considerable promise for photovoltaic applications. Current progress toward device setup is, however, hindered by photocurrent stability issues, which require a detailed understanding of the mechanisms underlying the buildup and consolidation of the eumelanin–silicon interface. Herein we report an integrated experimental and computational study aimed at probing interface stability via surface modification and eumelanin manipulation, and at modeling the organic–inorganic interface via formation of a 5,6-dihydroxyindole (DHI) tetramer and its adhesion to silicon. The results indicated that mild silicon oxidation increases photocurrent stability via enhancement of the DHI–surface interaction, and that higher oxidation states in DHI oligomers create more favorable conditions for the efficient adhesion of growing eumelanin

CONSERVATION AT THE INDIVIDUAL LEVEL: SUCCESSFUL REHABILITATION AND POST-RELEASE MONITORING OF AN ITALIAN WOLF (Canis lupus italicus) INJURED IN A CAR ACCIDENT.

This case report describes the rescue of an eight-month-old male Italian wolf (Canis lupus italicus), the victim of a car accident that caused it a pulmonary contusion, a fracture of the shaft of right femur, and a metaphyseal fracture of the left stifle. A lateral surgical approach was performed to treat the animal\u2019s multiple contusions and fractures. Afterwards the wolf was transferred to a wild animal recovery center for its rehabilitation, where it fully recovered. After 35 days in captivity the wolf was thus released into the supposed home-range of its original pack, and its movements were monitored by a GPS satellite collar. The collar worked correctly for 479 days. During that period the collar acquired a total of 1202 locations, indicating that the wolf had traveled at least 1590 km, with an average monthly distance (\ub1 SD) of 102 \ub1 40 km, exploring an overall area of about 270 km2. During the first 10 days after its release, the wolf remained in the area of its supposed native pack, whereas at about the age of 10 months the wolf began to make wide extraterritorial movements. The wolf\u2019s last localization was acquired on 13th May 2018, about 17 months after its release, at a linear distance of about 65 km from the release site. This preliminary data showed that the wolf was alive and travelled long distances after its release, and demonstrates how a multidisciplinary management approach can support the recovery and successful release into nature of a rescued wild animal belonging to a flagship species with a notable ecological role, such as the Italian wolf

Očuvanje na individualnoj razini: uspješna rehabilitacija i praćenje talijanskog vuka (Canis lupus italicus) nastradalog na prometnici nakon puštanja na slobodu

This case report describes the rescue of an eight-month-old male Italian wolf (Canis lupus italicus), the victim of a car accident that caused it a pulmonary contusion, a fracture of the shaft of right femur, and a metaphyseal fracture of the left stifle. A lateral surgical approach was performed to treat the animal’s multiple contusions and fractures. Afterwards the wolf was transferred to a wild animal recovery center for its rehabilitation, where it fully recovered. After 35 days in captivity the wolf was thus released into the supposed home-range of its original pack, and its movements were monitored by a GPS satellite collar. The collar worked correctly for 479 days. During that period the collar acquired a total of 1202 locations, indicating that the wolf had traveled at least 1590 km, with an average monthly distance (± SD) of 102 ± 40 km, exploring an overall area of about 270 km2. During the first 10 days after its release, the wolf remained in the area of its supposed native pack, whereas at about the age of 10 months the wolf began to make wide extraterritorial movements. The wolf’s last localization was acquired on 13th May 2018, about 17 months after its release, at a linear distance of about 65 km from the release site. These preliminary data showed that the wolf was alive and travelled long distances after its release, and demonstrates how a multidisciplinary management approach can support the recovery and successful release into nature of a rescued wild animal belonging to a flagship species with a notable ecological role, such as the Italian wolf.Ovaj prikaz slučaja opisuje spašavanje osmomjesečnog mužjaka talijanskog vuka (Canis lupus italicus) koji je bio žrtva naleta vozila s posljedičnim nagnječenjem pluća, prijelomom vrata desne bedrene kosti prijelomom u području metafize lijevoga koljena. Primijenjen je lateralni kirurški pristup kako bi se sanirala višestruka nagnječenja i prijelomi u životinje. Nakon toga je vuk prevezen u centar za oporavak divljih životinja gdje se potpuno oporavio. Nakon 35 dana u zatočeništvu vuk je pušten u okoliš nalik na njegov prirodni te je praćen preko GPS ogrlice. Ogrlica je ispravno radila 479 dana. Za to je vrijeme pokazala 1202 lokacije, upućujući na to da je vuk prešao 1590 km, u prosjeku mjesečno 102 ± 40 km (± SD), istražujući područje od 270 km2. Prvih 10 dana nakon oslobađanja vuk je ostao u području nalik na njegov prirodni okoliš, no u dobi od 10 mjeseci počeo je odlaziti na šire područje. Posljednja je njegova lokacija zabilježena 13. svibnja 2018., oko 17 mjeseci nakon puštanja, na zračnoj udaljenosti od oko 65 km od mjesta ispuštanja. Ovaj preliminarni podatak pokazuje da je vuk bio živ i prelazio velike udaljenosti nakon oslobađanja. Također pokazuje da multidisciplinarni pristup spašavanju može pospješiti oporavak i uspješno vraćanje u prirodu divljih životinja koje pripadaju vodećim vrstama s velikom ekološkom važnošću, kao što je talijanski vuk

BRUTE, PSF Reconstruction for the SOUL pyramid-based Single Conjugate Adaptive Optics facility of the LBT

The astronomical applications greatly benefit from the knowledge of the instrument PSF. We describe the PSF Reconstruction algorithm developed for the LBT LUCI instrument assisted by the SOUL SCAO module. The reconstruction procedure considers only synchronous wavefront sensor telemetry data and a few asynchronous calibrations. We do not compute the Optical Transfer Function and corresponding filters. We compute instead a temporal series of wavefront maps and for each of these the corresponding instantaneous PSF. We tested the algorithm both in laboratory arrangement and in the nighttime for different SOUL configurations, adapting it to the guide star magnitudes and seeing conditions. We nick-named it "BRUTE", Blind Reconstruction Using TElemetry, also recalling the one-to-one approach, one slope-to one instantaneous PSF the algorithm applies.Comment: 11 pages, 7 figures, Proceeding of the SPIE Conference 12185, Adaptive Optics Systems VIII, 1218540 (29 August 2022