HIGH-RESOLUTION DIGITAL SURVEY OF FLOORS: A NEW PROTOTYPE FOR EFFICIENT PHOTOGRAMMETRIC ACQUISITION

High-resolution surveying of historical floors is a very common practice in both research and everyday life. The type of floors typically concerned are made of mosaic, marble and stone. Because of their intrinsic characteristics, their survey typically requires very highresolution results, to ensure excellent support for restoration, as well as in-depth knowledge of the artifact. In these cases, the focus must be kept on both geometric and radiometric content, to enable accurate metric representation and a rendering of colour and surfaces as close as possible to reality. In this research we propose a prototype of a photogrammetric acquisition system (under development) which tries to optimise the floor survey in terms of both geometric and colour documentation. In particular, the prototype makes use of the cross-polarisation technique with the aim of eliminating reflections from the images. The principle behind the prototype is the creation of a movable laboratory, a segregated space that allows excellent photographic acquisition even in difficult environmental conditions, which cannot always be controlled optimally. First tests showed its suitability and usefulness to reach the goal of a high resolution survey of historic floors

PHYSICAL AND VIRTUAL RECONSTRUCTION FOR AN INTEGRATED ARCHAEOLOGICAL MODEL: 3D PRINT AND MAQUETTE

Abstract. Museums perform various tasks such as collecting, cataloguing and preserving the cultural heritage (CH). In addition, they have an institutional task, which is to disseminate the heritage, discovering the most efficient tools to tell how a monument to the origin could have looked. In this process of knowledge and dissemination, digital technologies play an important role. In fact, they allow building a digital archive in which virtual copies of found objects are available to scholars for more or less in-depth analysis. Digital archives of this type also allow the dissemination of scientific data, constituting, if published, databases accessible everywhere. The role of the digital archive is also to preserve the characteristics of the finds, which are often already deteriorated, without worsening the situation through their continuous manipulation or movement. Of course, the construction of digital copies must be done in the most rigorous way so as to guarantee scholars the truthfulness of the data being analysed, and building procedures as standardized as possible to allow their use even by unskilled personnel. Moreover, museums have the very complex task of communicating the heritage, which envisages two steps: reconstruction and communication. The first phase, reconstruction, is a very complex operation, especially in the archaeological field, where there are few documents and the hypotheses are based on principles of similarity. Since no direct reference is available, the reconstruction takes place through comparison with similar objects from the same period, the same area and with the same function. Communication, then, has the task of disseminating the results and the hypotheses made, with the most appropriate tools. 3D printing allows to build three-dimensional models of reality, and therefore immediately comprehensible, even of complex forms, not always achievable with the traditional tools of modelling tools. This article describes this complex process, and its application to the funerary aediculae monument at the Museo Archeologico di Mantova, on the occasion of the refurbishment of the museum and its exhibits. In this experience, the use of new technologies is being investigated in combination with more traditional methods of representation, the maquette, but not less effective.</p

Cloning the barley nec3 disease lesion mimic mutant using complementation by sequencing

Disease lesion mimic (DLM) or necrotic mutants display necrotic lesions in the absence of pathogen infections. They can show improved resistance to some pathogens and their molecular dissection can contribute to revealing components of plant defense pathways. Although forward-genetics strategies to find genes causal to mutant phenotypes are available in crops, these strategies require the production of experimental cross populations, mutagenesis, or gene editing and are time- and resource-consuming or may have to deal with regulated plant materials. In this study, we described a collection of 34 DLM mutants in barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) and applied a novel method called complementation by sequencing (CBS), which enables the identification of the gene responsible for a mutant phenotype given the availability of two or more chemically mutagenized individuals showing the same phenotype. Complementation by sequencing relies on the feasibility to obtain all induced mutations present in chemical mutants and on the low probability that different individuals share the same mutated genes. By CBS, we identified a cytochrome P450 CYP71P1 gene as responsible for orange blotch DLM mutants, including the historical barley nec3 locus. By comparative phylogenetic analysis we showed that CYP71P1 gene family emerged early in angiosperm evolution but has been recurrently lost in some lineages including Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) Heynh. Complementation by sequencing is a straightforward cost-effective approach to clone genes controlling phenotypes in a chemically mutagenized collection. The TILLMore (TM) collection will be instrumental for understanding the molecular basis of DLM phenotypes and to contribute knowledge about mechanisms of host-pathogen interaction

A lineage-specific Exo70 is required for receptor kinase-mediated immunity in barley

In the evolution of land plants, the plant immune system has experienced expansion in immune receptor and signaling pathways. Lineage-specific expansions have been observed in diverse gene families that are potentially involved in immunity but lack causal association. Here, we show that Rps8-mediated resistance in barley to the pathogen Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici (wheat stripe rust) is conferred by a genetic module: Pur1 and Exo70FX12, which are together necessary and sufficient. Pur1 encodes a leucine-rich repeat receptor kinase and is the ortho-log of rice Xa21, and Exo70FX12 belongs to the Poales-specific Exo70FX clade. The Exo70FX clade emerged after the divergence of the Bromeliaceae and Poaceae and comprises from 2 to 75 members in sequenced grasses. These results demonstrate the requirement of a lineage-specific Exo70FX12 in Pur1-mediated immunity and sug-gest that the Exo70FX clade may have evolved a specialized role in receptor kinase signalin

A lineage-specific Exo70 is required for receptor kinase–mediated immunity in barley

In the evolution of land plants, the plant immune system has experienced expansion in immune receptor and signaling pathways. Lineage-specific expansions have been observed in diverse gene families that are potentially involved in immunity but lack causal association. Here, we show that Rps8-mediated resistance in barley to the pathogen Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici (wheat stripe rust) is conferred by a genetic module: Pur1 and Exo70FX12, which are together necessary and sufficient. Pur1 encodes a leucine-rich repeat receptor kinase and is the ortholog of rice Xa21, and Exo70FX12 belongs to the Poales-specific Exo70FX clade. The Exo70FX clade emerged after the divergence of the Bromeliaceae and Poaceae and comprises from 2 to 75 members in sequenced grasses. These results demonstrate the requirement of a lineage-specific Exo70FX12 in Pur1-mediated immunity and suggest that the Exo70FX clade may have evolved a specialized role in receptor kinase signaling

Avaliação da ocorrencia de secas no município de Viçosa-MG, utilizando o índice de precipitação padronizada (SPI).

A metodologia do Índice de Precipitação Padronizada (SPI) foi testada e avaliada a ocorrência de eventos de seca no município de Viçosa-MG, nas escalas de tempo 3, 6 e 12 meses

Do novel European Headache Federation criteria identify differences in migraine burden?: baseline data of an international real-life study on resistant and refractory migraine (REFINE)

Question. We evaluated if EHF criteria for resistant (RES) and refractory (REF) migraine identify patients with more severe migraine burden. Methods. We performed an observational, multi center, international study to compare baseline characteristics, comorbidities, and PROMs of non-resistant and non-refractory (NRNR) migraine, RES and REF individuals in the REFINE study. Results. We included 175 individuals with NRNR migraine, 133 (39.7%) with RES and 27 (8.0%) with REF. Individuals with RES and REF migraine as compared to those with NRNR reported higher monthly migraine days (median=8, IQR=5-14 vs. median=13, IQR=10- 17 and median=15, IQR=10-20; p≤0.001), months of chronification (median=24, IQR=12-72 vs. median=40, IQR=12-108 and median=60, IQR=18-96; p=0.044), monthly days of symptomatic drugs assumption (median=8, IQR=5-15 vs. median=12, IQR=9-20 and median=15, IQR=10-20; p≤0.001), medication overuse (19.4% vs. 45.9% and 40.7%; p≤0.001). They also had more comorbidities such as depression (18.3% vs. 31.1% and 44.4%; p=0.002) and anxiety (13.7% vs. 21.1% and 37%; p=0.009). In these groups, PROMs also revealed a higher presence of anxiety (p≤0.001) and depression (p≤0.001) symptoms and poorer sleep quality (p=0.006). Regarding specific perceptions about migraine, RES and REF individuals reported higher impact of migraine on daily life (p≤0.001) and work, household work, and social life (p≤0.001), along with a lower perception of the effectiveness of their ongoing treatment for migraine (p≤0.001), when compared to NRNR subjects (Table 1). Conclusion. RES and REF migraine is associated with relevant migraine burden considering migraine features, comorbidities and scores at several scales; the severe burdensome condition of RES and REF is confirmed by the median number of monthly migraine days and PROMs.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

APC Activation Restores Functional CD4+CD25+ Regulatory T Cells in NOD Mice that Can Prevent Diabetes Development

BACKGROUND: Defects in APC and regulatory cells are associated with diabetes development in NOD mice. We have shown previously that NOD APC are not effective at stimulating CD4(+)CD25(+) regulatory cell function in vitro. We hypothesize that failure of NOD APC to properly activate CD4(+)CD25(+) regulatory cells in vivo could compromise their ability to control pathogenic cells, and activation of NOD APC could restore this defect, thereby preventing disease. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: To test these hypotheses, we used the well-documented ability of complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA), an APC activator, to prevent disease in NOD mice. Phenotype and function of CD4(+)CD25(+) regulatory cells from untreated and CFA-treated NOD mice were determined by FACS, and in vitro and in vivo assays. APC from these mice were also evaluated for their ability to activate regulatory cells in vitro. We have found that sick NOD CD4(+)CD25(+) cells expressed Foxp3 at the same percentages, but decreased levels per cell, compared to young NOD or non-NOD controls. Treatment with CFA increased Foxp3 expression in NOD cells, and also increased the percentages of CD4(+)CD25(+)Foxp3(+) cells infiltrating the pancreas compared to untreated NOD mice. Moreover, CD4(+)CD25(+) cells from pancreatic LN of CFA-treated, but not untreated, NOD mice transferred protection from diabetes. Finally, APC isolated from CFA-treated mice increased Foxp3 and granzyme B expression as well as regulatory function by NOD CD4(+)CD25(+) cells in vitro compared to APC from untreated NOD mice. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: These data suggest that regulatory T cell function and ability to control pathogenic cells can be enhanced in NOD mice by activating NOD APC

Nutraceutical therapies for atherosclerosis

Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory disease affecting large and medium arteries and is considered to be a major underlying cause of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Although the development of pharmacotherapies to treat CVD has contributed to a decline in cardiac mortality in the past few decades, CVD is estimated to be the cause of one-third of deaths globally. Nutraceuticals are natural nutritional compounds that are beneficial for the prevention or treatment of disease and, therefore, are a possible therapeutic avenue for the treatment of atherosclerosis. The purpose of this Review is to highlight potential nutraceuticals for use as antiatherogenic therapies with evidence from in vitro and in vivo studies. Furthermore, the current evidence from observational and randomized clinical studies into the role of nutraceuticals in preventing atherosclerosis in humans will also be discussed