The way the mistery of the Mattei's case was solved

Enrico Mattei, the President of the Italian oil conglomerate, ENI, was about to land in Milan Linate Airport on October 27, 1962 when his airplane crashed on the ground due to a then unexplained accident. The investigation, reopened more than 30 years later, implied complete re-examining of the theories on macroscopic and lattice deformations under high velocity waves emanating from a small charge explosion.Various macro- and micro-structural changes are induced by an explosion and by the resulting shear stresses in metals exposed to it. At the microstructural level multiple slip bands or mechanical twins, induced from the pressure wave caused by an explosion, can be observed. The occurrence of either ones depend on the type of metal, the pressure and the strain rate. The temperature wave may also cause surface alterations. Different situations regarding stainless steels, aluminium, copper and gold alloys are analysed.Calculations to evaluate which deformation mechanism is eligible for different FCC metals and alloys are reported. Results of field explosion experiments are incorporated into the evaluation of microstructural signs possibly induced on metal targets by an unknown explosive event.Revisited theories were applied to the Mattei forensic case, reaching the conclusion that the aircraft had fallen following an on board small charge explosion

Caudate Gray Matter Volume in Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Is Influenced by Adverse Childhood Experiences and Ongoing Drug Treatment

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Widespread changes of white matter microstructure in obsessive-compulsive disorder: Effect of drug status.

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Ethidium bromide as a marker of mtDNA replication in living cells.

Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) in tumor cells was found to play an important role in maintaining the malignant phenotype. Using laser scanning confocal fluorescence microscopy (LSCFM) in a recent work, we reported a variable fluorescence intensity of ethidium bromide (EB) in mitochondria nucleoids of living carcinoma cells. Since when EB is bound to nucleic acids its fluorescence is intensified; a higher EB fluorescence intensity could reflect a higher DNA accessibility to EB, suggesting a higher mtDNA replication activity. To prove this hypothesis, in the present work we studied, by LSCFM, the EB fluorescence in mitochondria nucleoids of living neuroblastoma cells, a model system in which differentiation affects the level of mtDNA replication. A drastic decrease of fluorescence was observed after differentiation. To correlate EB fluorescence intensity to the mtDNA replication state, we evaluated the mtDNA nascent strands content by ligation-mediated real-time PCR, and we found a halved amount of replicating mtDNA molecules in differentiating cells. A similar result was obtained by BrdU incorporation. These results indicate that the low EB fluorescence of nucleoids in differentiated cells is correlated to a low content of replicating mtDNA, suggesting that EB may be used as a marker of mtDNA replication in living cells. © 2012 Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE)

Fracture behavior in Cu46.5Zr46.5Al7 and Cu46.5Zr41.5Al7Y5 bulk metallic glasses

The interplay between chemical composition, plastic behavior, and fracture modes of Cu46.5Zr46.5Al7 and Cu46.5Zr41.5Al7Y5 bulk metallic glasses (BMGs) was investigated by compression tests and fracture surfaces analyses. The aim was to explore the possibility of coupling physical, chemical, and hardness properties, with adequate macroscopic compressive plasticity. Cylindrical test samples, having a height-to-diameter ratio equal to 2, were machined and ground from as-cast bars and were tested in compression between lubricated plates, the displacement being measured by a clip-gage inserted between the plates. Y free BMG engineering stress-strain curves show a plastic behavior consisting of successive sudden stress drops and linear reloading segments. A detailed analysis of these features was performed to yield a correlation between the plastic deformation steps and the released elastic energy associated with each serratio

Retrospective analysis to evaluate the efficacy and the safety of Bevacizumab in the treatment of recurrent malignant gliomas

Abstract Background There is no consensus therapy recommended for recurrent malignant gliomas (MGs). In 2009, Bevacizumab (BEV) was approved by the FDA as single-agent for recurrent glioblastoma (GBM). The aim of this retrospective study was to evaluate the efficacy and the safety of BEV alone or in combination with Fotemustine (FTM) in recurrent MGs. This represents an interim analysis of a larger study on BEV in MGs patients. Methods We analyzed 17 recurrent MGs patients, 12 GBM (70.6%) and 5 anaplastic gliomas (29.4%), underwent first-line therapy with Stupp regimen. BEV was administered as off-label therapy, at a dose of 10 mg/kg every 14 days, in 13 patients as third-line therapy and in 4 patients as second-line therapy associated with FTM. The assessment of MGMT methylation and IDH1 mutation was conducted. Results One complete response (5.9%), 7 partial responses (41.2%), 3 stable diseases (17.6%) and 6 progression diseases (35.3%) were assessed using RANO criteria. Median PFS (mPFS) and OS (mOS) were 5 and 8.3 months respectively, with a 6 months-PFS of 41.2%. Methylated patients and wild-type IDH1 patients showed longer mPFS and mOS without statistical significance. Six patients (35.3%) experienced long response with high number of cycles (11-40), long PFS (11-40 months) and OS (12-42 months). BEV was well-tolerated with grade 1-2 proteinuria and hypertension in 53% and 47.1% of patients respectively. Only one patient developed grade 3 proteinuria after 30 cycles and another one developed pulmonary embolism. No other grade 3-4 toxicities were observed. Conclusions This retrospective study showed the efficacy and the safety of BEV alone or in association with FTM in the treatment of MGs. The protocol (No: Beva-Glio/Sep 2016)

CT imaging of primary pancreatic lymphoma: experience from three referral centres for pancreatic diseases

To describe CT characteristics of primary pancreatic lymphoma (PPL), a rare disease with features in common with adenocarcinoma