LabVIEW interface with Tango control system for a multi-technique X-ray spectrometry IAEA beamline end-station at Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste

A new synchrotron beamline end-station for multipurpose X-ray spectrometry applications has been recently commissioned and it is currently accessible by end-users at the XRF beamline of Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste. The end-station consists of an ultra-high vacuum chamber that includes as main instrument a seven-axis motorized manipulator for sample and detectors positioning, different kinds of X-ray detectors and optical cameras. The beamline end-station allows performing measurements in different X-ray spectrometry techniques such as Microscopic X-Ray Fluorescence analysis (µXRF), Total Reflection X-Ray Fluorescence analysis (TXRF), Grazing Incidence/Exit X-Ray Fluorescence analysis (GI-XRF/GE-XRF), X-Ray Reflectometry (XRR), and X-Ray Absorption Spectroscopy (XAS). A LabVIEW Graphical User Interface (GUI) bound with Tango control system consisted of many custom made software modules is utilized as a user-friendly tool for control of the entire end-station hardware components. The present work describes this advanced Tango and LabVIEW software platform that utilizes in an optimal synergistic manner the merits and functionality of these well-established programming and equipment control tools

Quantitative Multi-Parametric Evaluation of Centrosome Declustering Drugs: Centrosome Amplification, Mitotic Phenotype, Cell Cycle and Death

Unlike normal cells, cancer cells contain amplified centrosomes and rely on centrosome clustering mechanisms to form a pseudobipolar spindle that circumvents potentially fatal spindle multipolarity (MP). Centrosome clustering also promotes lowgrade chromosome missegregation, which can drive malignant transformation and tumor progression. Putative ‘centrosome declustering drugs’ represent a cancer cell-specific class of chemotherapeutics that produces a common phenotype of centrosome declustering and spindle MP. However, differences between individual agents in terms of efficacy and phenotypic nuances remain unexplored. Herein, we have developed a conceptual framework for the quantitative evaluation of centrosome declustering drugs by investigating their impact on centrosomes, clustering, spindle polarity, cell cycle arrest, and death in various cancer cell lines at multiple drug concentrations over time. Surprisingly, all centrosome declustering drugs evaluated in our study were also centrosome-amplifying drugs to varying extents. Notably, all declustering drugs induced spindle MP, and the peak extent of MP positively correlated with the induction of hypodiploid DNA-containing cells. Our data suggest acentriolar spindle pole amplification as a hitherto undescribed activity of some declustering drugs, resulting in spindle MP in cells that may not have amplified centrosomes. In general, declustering drugs were more toxic to cancer cell lines than non-transformed ones, with some exceptions. Through a comprehensive description and quantitative analysis of numerous phenotypes induced by declustering drugs, we propose a novel framework for the assessm

Synchronous bursts on scale-free neuronal networks with attractive and repulsive coupling

This paper investigates the dependence of synchronization transitions of bursting oscillations on the information transmission delay over scale-free neuronal networks with attractive and repulsive coupling. It is shown that for both types of coupling, the delay always plays a subtle role in either promoting or impairing synchronization. In particular, depending on the inherent oscillation period of individual neurons, regions of irregular and regular propagating excitatory fronts appear intermittently as the delay increases. These delay-induced synchronization transitions are manifested as well-expressed minima in the measure for spatiotemporal synchrony. For attractive coupling, the minima appear at every integer multiple of the average oscillation period, while for the repulsive coupling, they appear at every odd multiple of the half of the average oscillation period. The obtained results are robust to the variations of the dynamics of individual neurons, the system size, and the neuronal firing type. Hence, they can be used to characterize attractively or repulsively coupled scale-free neuronal networks with delays.Comment: 15 pages, 9 figures; accepted for publication in PLoS ONE [related work available at http://arxiv.org/abs/0907.4961 and http://www.matjazperc.com/

Assessment of groundwater quality for irrigation purpose using irrigation water quality index (IWQI)

Groundwater represents an important natural resource for sustaining life. This study was conducted to evaluate groundwater in the Doukkala region in Morocco, using the Irrigation Water Quality Index (IWQI) and uses Inverse Distance Weighting (IDW) in GIS was to show the spatial distribution of water quality parameters. It collected 97 of samples from groundwater and were estimated the sodium concentration (Na%), and sodium absorption rate (SAR), Also, Residual sodium carbonate (RSC), Kelly index (KI), magnesium content (MR), salinity potential (PS), and permeability index (PI). According to the distribution map of the Irrigation Water Quality Index (IWQI) for the study area, about 22.7% of samples fall into the severe restriction (SR) category, which can be used to irrigate plants with high salinity tolerance, 34.02 of samples fall under the high restriction (HR) category, 23.7% of samples fall into the moderate restrictions (MR) category, 17.52% of samples fall under the low restriction (LR) category, and 2.06% of samples fall under the no restriction (NR) category. The results of (IWQI) indicated that the groundwater quality in the study area is mostly suitable for irrigation purposes

Socioeconomic inequalities in mortality, morbidity and diabetes management for adults with type 1 diabetes: A systematic review.

AIMS: To systematically review the evidence of socioeconomic inequalities for adults with type 1 diabetes in relation to mortality, morbidity and diabetes management. METHODS: We carried out a systematic search across six relevant databases and included all studies reporting associations between socioeconomic indicators and mortality, morbidity, or diabetes management for adults with type 1 diabetes. Data extraction and quality assessment was undertaken for all included studies. A narrative synthesis was conducted. RESULTS: A total of 33 studies were identified. Twelve cohort, 19 cross sectional and 2 case control studies met the inclusion criteria. Regardless of healthcare system, low socioeconomic status was associated with poorer outcomes. Following adjustments for other risk factors, socioeconomic status was a statistically significant independent predictor of mortality in 9/10 studies and morbidity in 8/10 studies for adults with type 1 diabetes. There appeared to be an association between low socioeconomic status and some aspects of diabetes management. Although only 3 of 16 studies made adjustments for confounders and other risk factors, poor diabetes management was associated with lower socioeconomic status in 3/3 of these studies. CONCLUSIONS: Low socioeconomic status is associated with higher levels of mortality and morbidity for adults with type 1 diabetes even amongst those with access to a universal healthcare system. The association between low socioeconomic status and diabetes management requires further research given the paucity of evidence and the potential for diabetes management to mitigate the adverse effects of low socioeconomic status

Complementarity of Spike- and Rate-Based Dynamics of Neural Systems

Relationships between spiking-neuron and rate-based approaches to the dynamics of neural assemblies are explored by analyzing a model system that can be treated by both methods, with the rate-based method further averaged over multiple neurons to give a neural-field approach. The system consists of a chain of neurons, each with simple spiking dynamics that has a known rate-based equivalent. The neurons are linked by propagating activity that is described in terms of a spatial interaction strength with temporal delays that reflect distances between neurons; feedback via a separate delay loop is also included because such loops also exist in real brains. These interactions are described using a spatiotemporal coupling function that can carry either spikes or rates to provide coupling between neurons. Numerical simulation of corresponding spike- and rate-based methods with these compatible couplings then allows direct comparison between the dynamics arising from these approaches. The rate-based dynamics can reproduce two different forms of oscillation that are present in the spike-based model: spiking rates of individual neurons and network-induced modulations of spiking rate that occur if network interactions are sufficiently strong. Depending on conditions either mode of oscillation can dominate the spike-based dynamics and in some situations, particularly when the ratio of the frequencies of these two modes is integer or half-integer, the two can both be present and interact with each other

A Mismatch-Based Model for Memory Reconsolidation and Extinction in Attractor Networks

The processes of memory reconsolidation and extinction have received increasing attention in recent experimental research, as their potential clinical applications begin to be uncovered. A number of studies suggest that amnestic drugs injected after reexposure to a learning context can disrupt either of the two processes, depending on the behavioral protocol employed. Hypothesizing that reconsolidation represents updating of a memory trace in the hippocampus, while extinction represents formation of a new trace, we have built a neural network model in which either simple retrieval, reconsolidation or extinction of a stored attractor can occur upon contextual reexposure, depending on the similarity between the representations of the original learning and reexposure sessions. This is achieved by assuming that independent mechanisms mediate Hebbian-like synaptic strengthening and mismatch-driven labilization of synaptic changes, with protein synthesis inhibition preferentially affecting the former. Our framework provides a unified mechanistic explanation for experimental data showing (a) the effect of reexposure duration on the occurrence of reconsolidation or extinction and (b) the requirement of memory updating during reexposure to drive reconsolidation