Measuring the Temperature of a Mesoscopic Quantum Electron System by means of Single Electron Statistics

We measure the temperature of a mesoscopic system consisting of an ultra-dilute two dimensional electron gas at the $Si/SiO_2$ interface in a metal-oxide-semiconductor field effect transistor (MOSFET) quantum dot by means of the capture and emission of an electron in a point defect close to the interface. Contrarily to previous reports, we show that the capture and emission by point defects in Si n-MOSFETs can be temperature dependent down to 800 mK. As the finite quantum grand canonical ensemble model applies, the time domain charge fluctuation in the defect is used to determine the temperature of the few electron gas in the channel.Comment: 4 Figures (color

Switching quantum transport in a three donors silicon fin-field effect transistor

n/

WWOX expression in different histologic types and subtypes of non-small cell lung cancer.

Abstract Purpose: Non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) has heterogeneous histopathologic classification and clinical behavior and very low survival rate. WWOX (WW domain-containing oxidoreductase) is a tumor suppressor gene, and its expression is altered in several cancers. The purpose of this study is to better define the role of WWOX in NSCLC tumorigenesis and progression by determining its pathogenetic and prognostic significance. Experimental Design: WWOX protein expression was evaluated by immunohistochemistry in 170 patients with NSCLC (101 squamous cell carcinomas, 66 adenocarcinomas, 3 large cell carcinomas) and was correlated with histopathologic (histotype, subtype, grade, tumor-node-metastasis, stage, index of cell proliferation Ki67/MIB1) and clinical (age, gender, local recurrences, distant metastases, overall survival, and disease-free survival) characteristics. Results: WWOX expression was absent/reduced in 84.9% of NSCLCs, whereas it was normal in 80.5% of adjacent normal lung tissues. WWOX expression was strongly associated with tumor histology (P = 1.1 × 10−5) and histologic grade (P = 0.0081): the percentage of cases with absent/strongly reduced WWOX expression was higher in squamous cell carcinomas and in poorly differentiated tumors. Regarding adenocarcinoma, bronchioloalveolar pattern showed normal WWOX expression in 62.5% of the cases, whereas in solid and acinar patterns, a prevalence of cases with absent/very low WWOX expression was observed (79.2% and 50%, respectively). Finally, weak WWOX staining intensity was related to the high index of cell proliferation (P = 0.0012). Conclusions: Our results suggest that the loss of WWOX expression plays different roles in tumorigenesis of distinct histotypes and subtypes of NSCLC and is related to high aggressiveness (G3; high proliferating activity) of tumors

Monitoraggio di endoparasiti in un gregge di pecore Garfagnine

n

The prognostic role of nephrectomy in patients (pts) with metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC) treated with immunotherapy according to the novel prognostic Meet-URO score: Subanalysis of the Meet-URO 15 study

Background: Most of mRCC pts with favorable and intermediate prognosis, according to the IMDC classification, are offered a nephrectomy. However, in the immunotherapy era, the role of nephrectomy is still unclear. In the Meet-URO 15 study we reported the higher prognostic accuracy of the Meet-URO score compared to the IMDC score, by the addition of the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and the presence of bone metastases to the IMDC score, identifying five categories with progressively worse prognosis. For this reason, we aimed to explore the prognostic impact of the previous nephrectomy (PN) on mRCC pts receiving immunotherapy and according to the Meet-URO score groups. Methods: The Meet-URO 15 study was a multicentric retrospective analysis on 571 pretreated mRCC pts receiving nivolumab. Univariable analysis of the correlation between PN and overall survival (OS) and multivariate analysis adjusted for IMDC score, therapy line, NLR and metastatic sites were performed. The interaction of PN with the Meet-URO prognostic groups was then evaluated. Results: 503/571 pts (88%) underwent PN. A reduced risk of death (HR = 0.44; 95% CI: 0.32-0.60; p< 0.001) and higher mOS and OS rate were observed in pts with PN than without (mOS: 36 vs 13 monhts; 1-year-OS 72% vs 52% and 2-year-OS 57% vs 24%, respectively). The reduced risk of death for pts who underwent PN was confirmed at the multivariate analysis (HR = 0.69; 95% CI: 0.49-0.97; p= 0.032). The percentage of pts receiving PN progressively reduced through the five Meet-URO prognostic groups (PN: group 1: 98%, group 2: 95%, group 3: 84%, group 4: 79%, group 5: 59%). No significant interaction was observed between the PN and Meet-URO score when all the five groups were considered (p= 0.17). A significant interaction was observed when the Meet-URO groups 1,2 and 3 were taken together (HR = 0.40; 95% CI: 0.25-0.63; p< 0.001), highlighting the significant protective role of the PN on OS for these three groups. For the Meet-URO groups 4 and 5, the interaction was indeed not significant (HR = 0.81; 95% CI: 0.51-1.30; p= 0.39). Conclusions: PN has a favourable prognostic impact on pretreated mRCC pts receiving immunotherapy. This benefit may be limited to mRCC pts with more favorable diseases as belonging to Meet-URO prognostic groups 1, 2 and 3. Further analysis of the type of PN (i.e., radical vs cytoreductive) is ongoing and confirmatory prospective evaluations are warranted

Surface probing by spectroscopy on titania-supported gold nanoparticles for a photoreductive application

The continuous increase in scientific reports concerning photocatalysis and in particular CO2 photoreduction in recent years reveals the high degree of interest around the topic. However, the adsorption and activation mechanisms of CO2 on TiO2, the most used photocatalyst, are poorly understood and investigated. Gold nanoparticles were prepared by a modified deposition-precipitation method using urea and a chemical reductant. Bare P25 was used as reference. Combined spectroscopic investigations of fresh and spent samples with photoactivity studies reported in this article provide new insights to the role of CO2 adsorption and carbonate formation on Au/TiO2 during CO2 photocatalytic reduction. The key intermediates’ and products’ adsorption (CO, methanol, ethanol) was studied, coupled with X-ray photoelectron microscopy (XPS) and UV-Visible spectroscopy. The adsorption of CO2 on fresh and spent catalysts changes radically considering the carbonate formation and the gold surface presence. Methanol and ethanol revealed new adsorbed species on Au with respect to bare titania. The characterisation of the spent catalysts revealed the good stability of these sample

A population-based cohort approach to assess excess mortality due to the spread of COVID-19 in Italy, January-May 2020

Aims: To assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on all-cause mortality in Italy during the first wave of the epidemic, taking into consideration the geographical heterogeneity of the spread of COVID-19. Methods: This study is a retrospective, population-based cohort study using national statistics throughout Italy. Survival analysis was applied to data aggregated by day of death, age groups, sex, and Italian administrative units (107 provinces). We applied Cox models to estimate the relative hazards (RH) of excess mortality, comparing all-cause deaths in 2020 with the expected deaths from all causes in the same time period. The RH of excess deaths was estimated in areas with a high, moderate, and low spread of COVID-19. We reported the estimate also restricting the analysis to the period of March-April 2020 (first peak of the epidemic). Results: The study population consisted of 57,204,501 individuals living in Italy as of January 1, 2020. The number of excess deaths was 36,445, which accounts for 13.4% of excess mortalities from all causes during January-May 2020 (i.e., RH = 1.134; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.129-1.140). In the macro-area with a relatively higher spread of COVID-19 (i.e., incidence rate, IR): 450-1,610 cases per 100,000 residents), the RH of excess deaths was 1.375 (95% CI: 1.364-1.386). In the area with a relatively moderate spread of COVID-19 (i.e., IR: 150-449 cases) it was 1.049 (95% CI: 1.038-1.060). In the area with a relatively lower spread of COVID-19 (i.e., IR: 30-149 cases), it was 0.967 (95% CI: 0.959-0.976). Between March and April (peak months of the first wave of the epidemic in Italy), we estimated an excess mortality from all causes of 43.5%. The RH of all-cause mortality for increments of 500 cases per 100,000 residents was 1.352 (95% CI: 1.346-1.359), corresponding to an increase of about 35%. Conclusions: Our analysis, making use of a population-based cohort model, estimated all-cause excess mortality in Italy taking account of both time period and of COVID-19 geographical spread. The study highlights the importance of a temporal/geographic framework in analyzing the risk of COVID-19-epidemy related mortality