CLEF 2013 and beyond: evolution of the CLEF initiative

[EN] The CLEF Initiative is structured in two main parts: a series of Evaluation Labs, to conduct evaluation of information access systems and a peer-reviewed Conference on a broad range of issues on evaluation. The annual CLEF events have been partially supported by the EU FP7 PROMISE project (contract n. 258191) and by the ELIAS RNP network.The annual CLEF events have been partially supported by the EU FP7 PROMISE project (contract n. 258191) and by the ELIAS RNP network.Ferro, N.; Rosso, P. (2013). CLEF 2013 and beyond: evolution of the CLEF initiative. Ercim News. 95:51-52. http://hdl.handle.net/10251/46694S51529

Immagini dall'antimateria: la tomografia ad emissione di positroni.

L'antimateria è una parte dell'universo suggestiva e sfuggente. Oggi abbiamo imparato a usarne piccole quantità per osservare e studiare le funzioni biologiche invivo nell'uomo e negli animali

Total knee arthroplasty and infection: how surgeons can reduce the risks

Total joint arthroplasty (TJA) is one of the most common orthopaedic procedures. Nevertheless, several complications can lead to implant failure. Peri-prosthetic joint infections (PJI) certainly represent a significant challenge in TJA, constituting a major cause of prosthetic revision. The surgeon may have an important role in reducing the PJI rate by limiting the impact of significant risk factors associated to either the patient, the operative environment or the post-operative care. In the pre-operative period, several preventive measures may be adopted to manage reversible medical comorbidities. Other recognised pre-operative risk factors are urinary tract infections, intra-articular corticosteroid injections and nasal colonisation with Staphylococcus (S.) aureus, particularly the methicillin-resistant strain (MRSA). In the intra-operative setting, protective measures for PJI include antibiotic prophylaxis, surgical-site antisepsis and use of pre-admission chlorhexidine washing and pulsed lavage during surgery. In this setting, the use of plastic adhesive drapes and sterile stockinette, as well as using personal protection systems, do not clearly reduce the risk of infection. On the contrary, using sterile theatre light handles and splash basins as well as an increased traffic in the operating room are all associated with an increased risk for PJI. In the post-operative period, other infections causing transient bacteraemia, blood transfusion and poor wound care are considered as risk factors for PJI. Cite this article: Ratto N, Arrigoni C, Rosso F, Bruzzone M, Dettoni F, Bonasia DE, Rossi R. Total knee arthroplasty and infection: how surgeons can reduce the risks. EFORT Open Rev 2016;1: 339-344 DOI: 10.1302/2058-5241.1.000032

Cruciate retaining and cruciate substituting ultra-congruent insert

The posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) conservation and the polyethylene insert constraint in total knee arthroplasty (TKA) are still debated. The PCL is one of the primary stabilizers of the joint, but cruciate retaining (CR) implants have the disadvantage of a difficult balancing of the PCL. Postero-stabilized (PS) implants were introduced to reduce this problem. However, also the PS implants have some disadvantages, due to the cam-mechanism, such as high risk of cam-mechanism polyethylene wear. To minimize the polyethylene wear of the cam-mechanism and the bone sacrifice due to the intercondylar box, different types of inserts were developed, trying to increase the implant conformity and to reduce stresses on the bone-implant interface. In this scenario ultra-congruent (UC) inserts were developed. Those inserts are characterized by a high anterior wall and a deep-dished plate. This conformation should guarantee a good stability without the posterior cam. Few studies on both kinematic and clinical outcomes of UC inserts are available. Clinical and radiological outcomes, as well as kinematic data are similar between UC mobile bearing (MB) and standard PS MB inserts at short to mid-term follow-up. In this manuscript biomechanics and clinical outcomes of UC inserts will be described, and they will be compared to standard PS or CR inserts

Corylus avellana L. Aroma Blueprint: Potent Odorants Signatures in the Volatilome of High Quality Hazelnuts

The volatilome of hazelnuts (Corylus avellana L.) encrypts information about phenotype expression as a function of cultivar/origin, post-harvest practices, and their impact on primary metabolome, storage conditions and shelf-life, spoilage, and quality deterioration. Moreover, within the bulk of detectable volatiles, just a few of them play a key role in defining distinctive aroma (i.e., aroma blueprint) and conferring characteristic hedonic profile. In particular, in raw hazelnuts, key-odorants as defined by sensomics are: 2,3-diethyl-5-methylpyrazine (musty and nutty); 2-acetyl-1,4,5,6-tetrahydropyridine (caramel); 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline (popcorn-like); 2-acetyl-3,4,5,6-tetrahydropyridine (roasted, caramel); 3-(methylthio)-propanal (cooked potato); 3-(methylthio)propionaldehyde (musty, earthy); 3,7-dimethylocta-1,6-dien-3-ol/linalool (citrus, floral); 3-methyl-4-heptanone (fruity, nutty); and 5-methyl-(E)-2-hepten-4-one (nutty, fruity). Dry-roasting on hazelnut kernels triggers the formation of additional potent odorants, likely contributing to the pleasant aroma of roasted nuts. Whiting the newly formed aromas, 2,3-pentanedione (buttery); 2-propionyl-1-pyrroline (popcorn-like); 3-methylbutanal; (malty); 4-hydroxy-2,5-dimethyl-3(2H)-furanone (caramel); dimethyl trisulfide (sulfurous, cabbage) are worthy to be mentioned. The review focuses on high-quality hazelnuts adopted as premium primary material by the confectionery industry. Information on primary and secondary/specialized metabolites distribution introduces more specialized sections focused on volatilome chemical dimensions and their correlation to cultivar/origin, post-harvest practices and storage, and spoilage phenomena. Sensory-driven studies, based on sensomic principles, provide insights on the aroma blueprint of raw and roasted hazelnuts while robust correlations between non-volatile precursors and key-aroma compounds pose solid foundations to the conceptualization of aroma potential

Optimization of an Impact-Based Frequency Up-Converted Piezoelectric Vibration Energy Harvester for Wearable Devices

This work presents a novel development of the impact-based mechanism for piezoelectric vibration energy harvesters. More precisely, the effect of an impacting mass on a cantilever piezoelectric transducer is studied both in terms of the tip mass value attached to the cantilever and impact position to find an optimal condition for power extraction. At first, the study is carried out by means of parametric analyses at varying tip mass and impact position on a unimorph MEMS cantilever, and a suitable physical interpretation of the associated electromechanical response is given. The effect of multiple impacts is also considered. From the analysis, it emerges that the most effective configuration, in terms of power output, is an impact at the cantilever tip without a tip mass. By changing the value of the tip mass, a sub-optimal impact position along the beam axis can also be identified. Moreover, the effect of a tip mass is deleterious on the power performance, contrary to the well-known case of a resonant energy harvester. A mesoscale prototype with a bimorph transducer is fabricated and tested to validate the computational models. The comparison shows a good agreement between numerical models and the experiments. The proposed approach is promising in the field of consumer electronics, such as wearable devices, in which the impact-based device moves at the frequencies of human movement and is much lower than those of microsystems