Dynamical Supersymmetry Breaking in Intersecting Brane Models

In this paper we study dynamical supersymmetry breaking in absence of gravity with the matter content of the minimal supersymmetric standard model. The hidden sector of the theory is a strongly coupled gauge theory, realized in terms of microscopic variables which condensate to form mesons. The supersymmetry breaking scalar potential combines F, D terms with instanton generated interactions in the Higgs-mesons sector. We show that for a large region in parameter space the vacuum breaks in addition to supersymmetry also electroweak gauge symmetry. We furthermore present local D-brane configurations that realize these supersymmetry breaking patterns.Comment: 30 pages, 4 figures, pdflate

the colon epithelium as a target for the intracellular antioxidant activity of hydroxytyrosol a study on rat colon explants

Abstract The study aimed at investigating the intracellular antioxidant activity of hydroxytyrosol (HT), one of the most potent natural antioxidant phenolic compounds, directly on the colon epithelium, under basal physiological and pro-oxidant conditions. In situ confocal microscopy on rat colon explants loaded with the ROS sensitive fluorescent probe CM-H2DCFDA was applied. HT exerted a dose-dependent decrease of the basal ROS production of superficial colonocytes. Also, it induced a dose-dependent antioxidant action on the colon mucosa exposed to an H2O2 challenge. The effect of 100 µM HT was comparable to that of 10 µM Trolox. The HT effect was also tested against tert-butyl peroxide, another pro-oxidant. The results showed that HT can directly contribute to the redox balance of colonic epithelium by reducing ROS in both basal and pro-oxidant conditions, and support the potential of HT as a functional food ingredient with applications in protecting the intestinal mucosa against oxidative stress

Sustainable Production of Stiff and Crystalline Bacterial Cellulose from Orange Peel Extract

In this work, a potentially economic and environmentally friendly method for the synthesis of bacterial cellulose (BC) by Gluconacetobacter xylinus from a biomass containing orange peel extract was evaluated. Orange peel extract was used as a culture medium without any hydrolysis treatment, thus speeding up the synthesis procedure. The efficacy of orange peel as a carbon source was compared with that of sucrose. The orange peel extract formed thicker cellulose gels than those formed using sucrose. X-ray diffraction (XRD) revealed both a high crystallinity index and crystallite size of BC nanofibers in samples obtained from orange peel (BC_Orange). Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) revealed a highly densely packed nanofibrous structure (50 nm in diameter). BC_Orange presented a two-fold increase in water holding capacity (WHC), and dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) showed a 44% increase in storage modulus compared to sucrose derived BC. These results showed that the naturally available carbon sources derived from orange peel extract can be effectively used for BC production. The orange-based culture medium can be considered a profitable alternative to the generation of high-value products in a virtuous circular economy model

Phase II study of lonidamine in metastatic breast cancer.

Thirty patients with previously treated metastatic breast cancer were entered in a phase II study with oral lonidamine. Twenty-eight patients are evaluable for toxicity and 25 for response. A partial remission was obtained in four patients (16%) and disease stability in 11 (44%): 10 patients progressed (40%). Toxicity was acceptable, consisting mainly of myalgias (39% of patients) and asthenia (21.4%). No myelotoxicity was observed. The drug is active in previously treated metastatic breast cancer and, because of its peculiar pattern of action and toxicity, deserves to be evaluated in combination with cytotoxic chemotherapy

Galactic secondary positron flux at the Earth

Secondary positrons are produced by spallation of cosmic rays within the interstellar gas. Measurements have been typically expressed in terms of the positron fraction, which exhibits an increase above 10 GeV. Many scenarios have been proposed to explain this feature, among them some additional primary positrons originating from dark matter annihilation in the Galaxy. The PAMELA satellite has provided high quality data that has enabled high accuracy statistical analyses to be made, showing that the increase in the positron fraction extends up to about 100 GeV. It is therefore of paramount importance to constrain theoretically the expected secondary positron flux to interpret the observations in an accurate way. We find the secondary positron flux to be reproduced well by the available observations, and to have theoretical uncertainties that we quantify to be as large as about one order of magnitude. We also discuss the positron fraction issue and find that our predictions may be consistent with the data taken before PAMELA. For PAMELA data, we find that an excess is probably present after considering uncertainties in the positron flux, although its amplitude depends strongly on the assumptions made in relation to the electron flux. By fitting the current electron data, we show that when considering a soft electron spectrum, the amplitude of the excess might be far lower than usually claimed. We provide fresh insights that may help to explain the positron data with or without new physical model ingredients. PAMELA observations and the forthcoming AMS-02 mission will allow stronger constraints to be aplaced on the cosmic--ray transport parameters, and are likely to reduce drastically the theoretical uncertainties.Comment: 15 pages, 12 figures. The recent PAMELA data on the positron fraction (arXiv:0810.4995) have been included and the ensuing discussion has been extended. Accepted version in A&

Identification of the highest dose of docetaxel associable with active doses of epirubicin. Results from a dose-finding study in advanced breast cancer patients

n/

The colon epithelium as a target for the intracellular antioxidant activity of hydroxytyrosol: a study on rat colon explants

Oxidative stress is involved in the genesis and progress of many disorders of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. In particular, the colon epithelium is one of the GI tract segments more exposed to pro-oxidant conditions. We aimed to study the intracellular antioxidant activity of hydroxytyrosol (HT), one of the most potent natural antioxidant phenolic compounds typically present in olive oil, directly on the colon epithelium, under basal physiological and pro-oxidant conditions. Our approach was based on the application of in situ confocal microscopy on rat colon explants loaded with the fluorescent probe 5-(and-6)-chloromethyl-2’,7’-dichlorodihydrofluoresceindiacetate, which is sensitive to intracellular oxidative stress. In the intact mucosa, HT exerted a dose-dependent decrease of the basal intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) production of superficial colonocytes. Also, it induced a direct dose-dependent antioxidant action on the colon mucosa exposed to a pro-oxidant condition such as the H2O2 challenge. The effect of 100 µM HT was comparable to that of 10 µM Trolox, which is widely used as a standard in in vitro assays for the determination of antioxidant activity. The intracellular antioxidant activity of HT on the intact mucosa was also tested against tert-butyl peroxide, another pro-oxidant. The results show that HT can directly contribute to the redox balance of colonic epithelium by reducing ROS in both basal and pro-oxidant conditions, and support the potential of HT as a functional food ingredient with applications in protecting the intestinal mucosa against oxidative stress

Mitomycin-ifosfamide-cisplatinum (MIP) vs MIP-interferon vs cisplatinum-carboplatin in metastatic non-small-cell lung cancer: a FONICAP randomised phase II study. Italian Lung Cancer Task Force.

The FONICAP group is screening, with randomised phase II studies, the activity of new chemotherapy programmes for advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) looking for regimens with > 30% activity. In the present study, three regimens were tested: MIP (mitomycin 6 mg m-2, ifosfamide 3 g m-2, cisplatinum 80 mg m-2 on day 1 every 28 days); MIP-IFN (MIP and interferon alpha-2b 3 MU s.c. three times a week); and PC (cisplatinum 60 mg m-2 and carboplatin 400 mg m-2 on day 1 every 28 days). Overall 93 chemotherapy-naive patients were enrolled: 23 received MIP, 27 received MIP-IFN and 43 received PC. Eighty per cent of the patients had stage IV and 20% stage IIIb disease (positive pleural effusion or supraclavicular nodes). Response rates were as follows: MIP = 9% (95% CI 1-28%), MIP-IFN = 7% (95% CI 1-24%) and PC = 14% (95% CI 5-28%). The overall median survival was 183 days. Grade III-IV leucopenia was observed in 36% of patients treated with MIP-IFN vs 10% in the other two arms, and thrombocytopenia grade III-IV was reported in nearly 10% of patients overall. In conclusion, (1) all three regimens investigated have poor activity (< 30%); (2) when tested in multicentre randomised phase II trials, MIP displays lower activity than in phase II trials; (3) PC has similar activity to other platinum-containing regimens; (4) randomised phase II studies are a reliable and quick method of determining the anti-tumour activity of novel chemotherapeutic regimens in NSCLC