Impact of Morphology Variations on Evolved Neural Controllers for Modular Robots

Modular robots, in particular those in which the modules are physically interchangeable, are suitable to be evolved because they allow for many different designs. Moreover, they can constitute ecosystems where “old” robots are disassembled and the resulting modules are composed together, either within an external assembling facility or by self-assembly procedures, to form new robots. However, in practical settings, self-assembly may result in morphologies that are slightly different from the expected ones: this may cause a detrimental misalignment between controller and morphology. Here, we characterize experimentally the robustness of neural controllers for Voxel-based Soft Robots, a kind of modular robots, with respect to small variations in the morphology. We employ evolutionary computation for optimizing the controllers and assess the impact of morphology variations along two axes: kind of morphology and size of the robot. Moreover, we quantify the advantage of performing a re-optimization of the controller for the varied morphology. Our results show that small variations in the morphology are in general detrimental for the performance of the evolved neural controller. Yet, a short re-optimization is often sufficient for aligning back the performance of the modified robot to the original one

Histone H3 Lysine 4 and 27 Trimethylation Landscape of Human Alzheimer's Disease

none9sìBackground: Epigenetic remodeling is emerging as a critical process for both the onset and progression of Alzheimer's disease (AD), the most common form of neurodegenerative dementia. However, it is not clear to what extent the distribution of histone modifications is involved in AD. Methods: To investigate histone H3 modifications in AD, we compared the genome-wide distributions of H3K4me3 and H3K27me3 in entorhinal cortices from severe sporadic AD patients and from age-matched healthy individuals of both sexes. Results: AD samples were characterized by typical average levels and distributions of the H3K4me3 and H3K27me3 signals. However, AD patients showed a lower H3K4me3 and higher H3K27me3 signal, particularly in males. Interestingly, the genomic sites found differentially trimethylated at the H3K4 between healthy and AD samples involve promoter regions of genes belonging to AD-related pathways such as glutamate receptor signaling. Conclusions: The signatures of H3K4me3 and H3K27me3 identified in AD patients validate the role of epigenetic chromatin remodeling in neurodegenerative disease and shed light on the genomic adaptive mechanisms involved in AD.openPersico, Giuseppe; Casciaro, Francesca; Amatori, Stefano; Rusin, Martina; Cantatore, Francesco; Perna, Amalia; Auber, Lavinia Alberi; Fanelli, Mirco; Giorgio, MarcoPersico, Giuseppe; Casciaro, Francesca; Amatori, Stefano; Rusin, Martina; Cantatore, Francesco; Perna, Amalia; Auber, Lavinia Alberi; Fanelli, Mirco; Giorgio, Marc

Blood wettability of different dental implant surfaces after different pre-treatments: ultrasonic instrumentation, platelet-rich fibrin coating, and acid etching. An in vitro study

Background: The blood wettability of titanium implant surfaces favors primary osseointegration and tissue healing in peri-implantitis. The current study aims to evaluate this property on the main different kinds of surfaces, brand new and after treatments. Methods: grade IV titanium disks were used, five machined, five laser-treated, five sandblasted. The experiment was on four steps. Between each step, specimens were sterilized. At the end of each step, a 4 \ub5L blood drop was put on the samples, and contact angles were calculated. The steps consisted of\u20141: no treatment; 2: surface instrumentation with an ultrasonic titanium tip; 3: platelet-rich fibrin (PRF) coating and drying with sterile gauze; 4: etching with phosphoric acid, rinse and saline solution and air-drying. At the end of each phase, a blood drop was placed on the surfaces. Blood for PRF preparation and for calculation of contact angles was collected from a single source. Results: average wettability decreased after instrumentation, and increased after the PRF application to a superior level both to the first and second steps. The highest wettability was obtained after etching. This trend is statistically significant for machined and sandblasted surfaces. Conclusions: In the clinical environment, PRF and phosphoric acid used for conditioning exposed implant surfaces can be used for the healing of peri-implant tissue

Ambiente e viticoltura, un binomio vincente

La ricerca e le sperimentazioni per lo sviluppo di tecniche di coltivazione ad elevata sostenibilit\ue0 in viticoltura assumono fondamentale importanza nel conciliare un miglioramento qualitativo pienamente ecocompatibile con adeguata redditivit\ue0 agli agricoltori. E possibile, attraverso strategie di gestione del suolo, indurre nelle viti un sostanziale equilibrio vegeto- produttivo, evidenziato da rese soddisfacenti, produzioni di elevata qualit\ue0 e salubrit\ue0, ottimo stato nutrizionale e sanitario

Characterization of apple cultivar susceptibility to Neofusicoccum parvum Brazilian strains

Due to climate change, Neofusicoccum parvum is currently emerging as a new pathogen of Rosaceae plant species. This increases the need of gaining knowledge on the pathogenicity of this fungus, particularly on apple cultivars of considerable economic importance. In this study, the virulence and temperature dependence of N. parvum isolates was assayed on ‘Gala’ and ‘Fuji’ apple fruit and wood. At 25°C and 30°C, ‘Gala’ fruits showed a higher susceptibility to all fungal strains than ‘Fuji’, whereas low infection severity was shown at 15°C and 20°C on both cultivars. Infrared spectroscopy revealed that ‘Fuji’ fruit tissues displayed a higher content of phenolic compounds and pectin esterification degree, as factors possibly correlated with fruit susceptibility. When strain virulence was assayed on wood, no significant difference in susceptibility was detected, as also shown by SEM analysis. The virulence of N. parvum was also tested by assaying the activity of lytic enzymes such as cellulase, polygalacturonase, polymethylgalacturonase, and xylanase

Characterization of apple cultivar susceptibility to Neofusicoccum parvum Brazilian strains

Due to climate change, Neofusicoccum parvum is currently emerging as a new pathogen of Rosaceae plant species. This increases the need of gaining knowledge on the pathogenicity of this fungus, particularly on apple cultivars of considerable economic importance. In this study, the virulence and temperature dependence of N. parvum isolates was assayed on \u2018Gala\u2019 and \u2018Fuji\u2019 apple fruit and wood. At 25\ub0C and 30\ub0C, \u2018Gala\u2019 fruits showed a higher susceptibility to all fungal strains than \u2018Fuji\u2019, whereas low infection severity was shown at 15\ub0C and 20\ub0C on both cultivars. Infrared spectroscopy revealed that \u2018Fuji\u2019 fruit tissues displayed a higher content of phenolic compounds and pectin esterification degree, as factors possibly correlated with fruit susceptibility. When strain virulence was assayed on wood, no significant difference in susceptibility was detected, as also shown by SEM analysis. The virulence of N. parvum was also tested by assaying the activity of lytic enzymes such as cellulase, polygalacturonase, polymethylgalacturonase, and xylanase

An emerging problem affecting apple production: Neofusicoccum parvum. Aureobasidium pullulans L1 and L8 strains as an alternative control strategy

Aureobasidium pullulans strains L1 and L8 were used as an alternative strategy against Neofusicoccum parvum, pathogen of apple wood and fruit. Both strains displayed a great ability to reduce pathogen conidia germination of almost 50% and totally stop its sporification in wood of ‘Gala’ and ‘Fuji’ apple cultivars. In addition, by in vitro tests the antagonistic activity displayed by non-volatile metabolites produced by both yeasts was highlighted by 70% of reduction of the pathogen mycelial growth. On apple fruit, the pathogen severity was reduced by 66% and 50% in ‘Gala’, and 70% and 60% in ‘Fuji’ by L1 and L8 respectively. In wood, no statistical differences were observed between L1, L8 and the control, except for ‘Fuji’ wood, where L8 strain displayed a wood lesion reduction of 23% with respect to the untreated control. Infrared analysis showed how the presence of both strains on woody tissues helped preserving cellulose content, preventing in this way the faster wood degradation by the pathogen. In addition, L1 and L8 simply colonized the wood surface, probably displaying an endophytic attitude, an essential requirement for controlling N. parvum in field

An emerging problem affecting apple production: Neofusicoccum parvum. Aureobasidium pullulans L1 and L8 strains as an alternative control strategy

Aureobasidium pullulans strains L1 and L8 were used as an alternative strategy against Neofusicoccum parvum, pathogen of apple wood and fruit. Both strains displayed a great ability to reduce pathogen conidia germination of almost 50% and totally stop its sporification in wood of \u2018Gala\u2019 and \u2018Fuji\u2019 apple cultivars. In addition, by in vitro tests the antagonistic activity displayed by non-volatile metabolites produced by both yeasts was highlighted by 70% of reduction of the pathogen mycelial growth. On apple fruit, the pathogen severity was reduced by 66% and 50% in \u2018Gala\u2019, and 70% and 60% in \u2018Fuji\u2019 by L1 and L8 respectively. In wood, no statistical differences were observed between L1, L8 and the control, except for \u2018Fuji\u2019 wood, where L8 strain displayed a wood lesion reduction of 23% with respect to the untreated control. Infrared analysis showed how the presence of both strains on woody tissues helped preserving cellulose content, preventing in this way the faster wood degradation by the pathogen. In addition, L1 and L8 simply colonized the wood surface, probably displaying an endophytic attitude, an essential requirement for controlling N. parvum in field

Small molecule-induced epigenomic reprogramming of APL blasts leading to antiviral-like response and c-MYC downregulation

Acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) is an aggressive subtype of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in which the PML/RARα fusion protein exerts oncogenic activities by recruiting repressive complexes to the promoter of specific target genes. Other epigenetic perturbations, as alterations of histone H3 lysine 9 trimethylation (H3K9me3), have been frequently found in AMLs and are associated with leukemogenesis and leukemia progression. Here, we characterized the epigenomic effects of maltonis, a novel maltol-derived molecule, in APL cells. We demonstrate that maltonis treatments induce a profound remodulation of the histone code, reducing global H3K9me3 signal and modulating other histone post-translational modifications. Transcriptomic and epigenomic analyses revealed that maltonis exposure induces changes of genes expression associated with a genomic redistribution of histone H3 lysine 4 trimethylation (H3K4me3) and lysine 27 acetylation (H3K27ac). Upregulation of interferon alpha and gamma response and downregulation of c-MYC target genes, in function of c-MYC reduced expression (monitored in all the hematopoietic neoplasms tested), represent the most significant modulated pathways. These data demonstrate the ability of maltonis to epigenetically reprogram the gene expression profile of APL cells, inducing an intriguing antiviral-like response, concomitantly with the downregulation of c-MYC-related pathways, thus making it an attractive candidate for antileukemic therapy