LED lighting for indoor cultivation of basil

Indoor cultivation systems are gaining importance worldwide, thanks to their greater efficiency in the use of resources (water, land and nutrients). The limiting factor for these systems is the illumination costs that are still high. In this context, LEDs (light emitting diodes) are gaining attention because of their ability to provide the required light spectra, and high electricity use efficiency. The goal of this study is to identify the role played by red:blue (R:B) ratio on the resource use efficiency of indoor basil cultivation, linking the light physiological response to changes in yield and nutritional properties. Basil plants were cultivated in growth chamber under 5 different R:B ratio LED lighting regimens (respectively, RB0.5, RB1, RB2, RB3, and RB4), using fluorescent lamps as control (CK1). For the six light treatments, a PPFD of 215 mol m-2 s-1 and a photoperiod of 16/8 light/dark per day were provided. Greater biomass production was associated with LEDs lighting as compared with fluorescent lamp, with best performances observed using RB≥2. Adoption of RB2 and RB3 improved also the plant’s capacity to transform resources, resulting in greatest water, land and energy use efficiency. Nutrient use efficiency was increased by using LED lights with a greater portion of blue light in the spectrum. Decreasing R:B ratio also increased leaf stomatal conductance. Plant grown under RB3 showed the best antioxidant properties in terms of flavonoid content and FRAP as compared to the other light treatments. From this study it can be concluded that a R:B ratio of 3 (RB3) provides optimal growing conditions for indoor cultivation of basil

SMAUG v1.0 – a user-friendly muon simulator for the imaging of geological objects in 3-D

Knowledge about muon tomography has spread in recent years in the geoscientific community and several collaborations between geologists and physicists have been founded. As the data analysis is still mostly done by particle physicists, much of the know-how is concentrated in particle physics and specialised geophysics institutes. SMAUG (Sim- ulation for Muons and their Applications UnderGround), a toolbox consisting of several modules that cover the various aspects of data analysis in a muon tomographic experiment, aims at providing access to a structured data analysis frame- work. The goal of this contribution is to make muon tomog- raphy more accessible to a broader geoscientific audience. In this study, we show how a comprehensive geophysical model can be built from basic physics equations. The emerging un- certainties are dealt with by a probabilistic formulation of the inverse problem, which is finally solved by a Monte Carlo Markov chain algorithm. Finally, we benchmark the SMAUG results against those of a recent study, which, however, have been established with an approach that is not easily accessi- ble to the geoscientific community. We show that they reach identical results with the same level of accuracy and preci- sion

Erratum to: Analysis of in vitro ADCC and clinical response to trastuzumab: possible relevance of Fc\u3b3RIIIA/Fc\u3b3RIIA gene polymorphisms and HER-2 expression levels on breast cancer cell lines

BACKGROUND: Trastuzumab is a humanized monoclonal antibody (mAb) currently used for the treatment of breast cancer (BC) patients with HER-2 overexpressing tumor subtype. Previous data reported the involvement of FcγRIIIA/IIA gene polymorphisms and/or antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) in the therapeutic efficacy of trastuzumab, although results on these issues are still controversial. This study was aimed to evaluate in vitro the functional relationships among FcγRIIIA/IIA polymorphisms, ADCC intensity and HER-2 expression on tumor target cells and to correlate them with response to trastuzumab. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Twenty-five patients with HER-2 overexpressing BC, receiving trastuzumab in a neoadjuvant (NEO) or metastatic (MTS) setting, were genotyped for the FcγRIIIA 158V>F and FcγRIIA 131H>R polymorphisms by a newly developed pyrosequencing assay and by multiplex Tetra-primer-ARMS PCR, respectively. Trastuzumab-mediated ADCC of patients’ peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) was evaluated prior to therapy and measured by (51)Chromium release using as targets three human BC cell lines showing different levels of reactivity with trastuzumab. RESULTS: We found that the FcγRIIIA 158F and/or the FcγRIIA 131R variants, commonly reported as unfavorable in BC, may actually behave as ADCC favorable genotypes, in both the NEO (P ranging from 0.009 to 0.039 and from 0.007 to 0.047, respectively) and MTS (P ranging from 0.009 to 0.032 and P = 0.034, respectively) patients. The ADCC intensity was affected by different levels of trastuzumab reactivity with BC target cells. In this context, the MCF-7 cell line, showing the lowest reactivity with trastuzumab, resulted the most suitable cell line for evaluating ADCC and response to trastuzumab. Indeed, we found a statistically significant correlation between an increased frequency of patients showing ADCC of MCF-7 and complete response to trastuzumab in the NEO setting (P = 0.006). CONCLUSIONS: Although this study was performed in a limited number of patients, it would indicate a correlation of FcγR gene polymorphisms to the ADCC extent in combination with the HER-2 expression levels on tumor target cells in BC patients. However, to confirm our findings further experimental evidences obtained from a larger cohort of BC patients are mandatory. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12967-015-0680-0) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users

Two-particle correlations in azimuthal angle and pseudorapidity in inelastic p + p interactions at the CERN Super Proton Synchrotron

Results on two-particle ΔηΔϕ correlations in inelastic p + p interactions at 20, 31, 40, 80, and 158 GeV/c are presented. The measurements were performed using the large acceptance NA61/SHINE hadron spectrometer at the CERN Super Proton Synchrotron. The data show structures which can be attributed mainly to effects of resonance decays, momentum conservation, and quantum statistics. The results are compared with the Epos and UrQMD models.ISSN:1434-6044ISSN:1434-605

Muon tomography in geoscientific research – A guide to best practice

The use of muon tomography in geoscience projects has been continuously increasing over the past few years. This led to a variety of applications that often use custom-tailored solutions for data acquisition and processing. The respective know-how is splintered and mainly available in a semi-published state in various physics de- partments that developed these methods. This complicates the design of new studies and the decision whether muon tomography is a suitable tool and feasible for a speci c geoscienti c question. In this study we review the current state of how muon tomography has been applied in the eld of geosciences with the goal of equipping interested geoscientists with the basic knowledge on the physical basics that constitute muon tomography. After an explanation of how muons are produced, how they traverse matter and how they are recorded, a showcase is made of recent applications. These studies show the variety of how muon tomography can be applied in ex- periments, such that interested readers may implement this technology for their own research. Finally, we provide a guide to best practice to help interested geoscientists decide if and how muon tomography could be implemented in their own research. We believe that through a better mutual understanding, new interdisci- plinary collaborations can be initiated that advance the whole eld of muon tomography

FoodE Project. Optimal photoperiod for the indoor cultivation

This data set contains the underlying data of the scientific publication: Pennisi, G., Orsini, F., Landolfo, M., Pistillo, A., Crepaldi, A., Nicola, S., Fernandez J.A., Marcelis L.F.M., Gianquinto, G. (2020). Optimal photoperiod for indoor cultivation of leafy vegatables and herbs. European Journal of Horticultural Science , 85 (5), 329-338. https://doi.org/10.17660/eJHS.2020/85.5.

Synergistic interaction between trazodone and gabapentin in rodent models of neuropathic pain.

Neuropathic pain is a chronic debilitating condition caused by injury or disease of the nerves of the somatosensory system. Although several therapeutic approaches are recommended, none has emerged as an optimal treatment leaving a need for developing more effective therapies. Given the small number of approved drugs and their limited clinical efficacy, combining drugs with different mechanisms of action is frequently used to yield greater efficacy. We demonstrate that the combination of trazodone, a multifunctional drug for the treatment of major depressive disorders, and gabapentin, a GABA analogue approved for neuropathic pain relief, results in a synergistic antinociceptive effect in the mice writhing test. To explore the potential relevance of this finding in chronic neuropathic pain, pharmacodynamic interactions between low doses of trazodone (0.3 mg/kg) and gabapentin (3 mg/kg) were evaluated in the chronic constriction injury (CCI) rat model, measuring the effects of the two drugs both on evoked and spontaneous nociception and on general well being components. Two innate behaviors, burrowing and nest building, were used to assess these aspects. Besides exerting a significant antinociceptive effect on hyperalgesia and on spontaneous pain, combined inactive doses of trazodone and gabapentin restored in CCI rats innate behaviors that are strongly reduced or even abolished during persistent nociception, suggesting that the combination may have an impact also on pain components different from somatosensory perception. Our results support the development of a trazodone and gabapentin low doses combination product for optimal multimodal analgesia treatment

Exploration of Hidden Topography Beneath Alpine Glaciers with Muography

Over the last ten years, radiography by means of absorption of cosmic-ray muons (muography) has been estab- lished as a tool for volcano internal structure investigation. Meanwhile, muography has spread out to many other applications. The Eiger-mu project (2015–2019, University of Bern) represents one such development in the field of glaciology, where the high penetration power of muons can be exploited to precisely estimate the topography of the mountains hidden by overlying glaciers. Technological progress and prospects of muography in glaciology are reviewed in this chapter through the pilot experiments performed at the Aletsch and Eiger glaciers in Switzerland

AN EARTH OBSERVATION COGNITIVE SYSTEM IN RESPONSE TO SARS-COVID-19 EMERGENCY

The pandemic emergency caused by the spread of COVID-19 has stressed the importance of promptly identifying new epidemic clusters and patterns, to ensure the implementation of local risk containment measures and provide the needed healthcare to the population. In this framework, artificial intelligence, GIS, geospatial analysis and space assets can play a crucial role. Social media analytics can be used to trigger Earth Observation (EO) satellite acquisitions over potential new areas of human aggregation. Similarly, EO satellites can be used jointly with social media analytics to systematically monitor wellknown areas of aggregation (green urban areas, public markets, etc.). The information that can be obtained from the Earth Cognitive System 4 COVID-19 (ECO4CO) are both predictive, aiming to identify possible new clusters of outbreaks, and at the same time supervisorial, by monitoring infrastructures (i.e. traffic jams, parking lots) or specific categories (i.e. teenagers, doctors, teachers, etc.). In this perspective, the technologies described in this paper will allow us to reach individuals involved in risky aggregation clusters and to investigate their health status. The ECO4CO data lake will be integrated with ad hoc data obtained by sanitary structures to understand trends and dynamics, to assess criticalities with respect to medical response and supplies, and to test possibilities useful to tackle potential future emergencies. The System will also provide geographical information on the spread of the infection which will allow an appropriate context-specific public health response to the epidemic. In the present study that is co-funded by ESA Space Solutions, the ECO4CO space asset-based system aims to reply to the emergency of the actual pandemic through the following pillars: • Cluster Area Identification: a predictive data analytics service using social media and news to automatically identify possible new outbreaks; • Epidemiological study and public health intervention: an applied and interdisciplinary approach which combines sanitary-epidemiological-clinical, geo-technological and geographical components and competences; • Intelligent Satellite Tasking: an autonomous system able to task EO data acquisitions; • Object Detection: a deep learning service able to identify objects and people gathering or movements from images and videos; • Tracking: an intelligent service able to track devices detected in a specific location, identifying suspect patterns or anomalies; • Logistic Planning: a predictive data analytics service to identify stock of medical centers and match them against future needs of medical supplies

A Nuclear Emulsion Detector for the Muon Radiography of a Glacier Structure

Cosmic ray muons can be used to image the interior of geological sites provided that one employs detectors able to operate in the specific harsh conditions of the mountain environment. We designed and developed a detector exploiting the nuclear emulsion technique to assess the bedrock profile underneath an alpine glacier. Nuclear emulsions do not need any electric power supply or maintenance and allow for the measurement of the muon flux and direction behind a large target volume. The 3D density distribution of the material traversed by muons can then be assessed, bringing relevant information on the shape of the boundary between the glacial ice and the underlying bedrock. This new methodology in the geological field was recently tested in a campaign of measurements in the Jungfrau region of the central Swiss Alps. It was shown that the bedrock surface position can be measured with a resolution of about 5 % when the traversed target is about 100 m thick. Characteristics and performance of the method are reported here and demonstrate that muon radiography based on emulsion detectors represents a powerful tool for the geological study of glaciers