Cytological and Ultrastructural Responses of Platanus acerifolia (Ait.) Willd. Leaves to Cerato-Platanin, a Protein from Ceratocystis fimbriata f.sp. platani

Cerato-platanin (CP) is a purified protein isolated from the culture filtrate of the ascomycete Ceratocystis fimbriata f. sp. platani (Cfp), the causal agent of canker stain disease of plane. The responses of cells/tissues of plane leaves to CP was studied by light microscopy (LM) and by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) using two experimental procedures. The most significant responses occurred already at 24 h after treatments, and were also visible at 48 h. The main effects of CP were to cause a great increase in primary starch and a certain degree of intercellular and intracellular disorganization of the spongy parenchyma cells and plasmolysis processes. In addition, an increase of intracellular phenolic compounds was observed in the palisade cells. The effects of Cfp were similar but less evident than those of CP

Randomised controlled trial of a home-based physical activity intervention in breast cancer survivors

Background: To improve adherence to physical activity (PA), behavioural support in the form of behavioural change counselling may be necessary. However, limited evidence of the effectiveness of home-based PA combined with counselling in breast cancer patients exists. The aim of this current randomised controlled trial with a parallel group design was to evaluate the effectiveness of a home-based PA intervention on PA levels, anthropometric measures, health-related quality of life (HRQoL), and blood biomarkers in breast cancer survivors. Methods: Eighty post-adjuvant therapy invasive breast cancer patients (age = 53.6 ± 9.4 years; height = 161.2 ± 6.8 cm; mass = 68.7 ± 10.5 kg) were randomly allocated to a 6-month home-based PA intervention or usual care. The intervention group received face-to-face and telephone PA counselling aimed at encouraging the achievement of current recommended PA guidelines. All patients were evaluated for our primary outcome, PA (International PA Questionnaire) and secondary outcomes, mass, BMI, body fat %, HRQoL (Functional assessment of Cancer Therapy-Breast), insulin resistance, triglycerides (TG) and total (TC), high-density lipoprotein (HDL-C) and low-density lipoprotein (LDL-C) cholesterol were assessed at baseline and at 6-months. Results: On the basis of linear mixed-model analyses adjusted for baseline values performed on 40 patients in each group, total, leisure and vigorous PA significantly increased from baseline to post-intervention in the intervention compared to usual care (between-group differences, 578.5 MET-min∙wk−1, p = .024, 382.2 MET-min∙wk−1, p = .010, and 264.1 MET-min∙wk−1, p = .007, respectively). Both body mass and BMI decreased significantly in the intervention compared to usual care (between-group differences, −1.6 kg, p = .040, and −.6 kg/m2, p = .020, respectively). Of the HRQoL variables, FACT-Breast, Trial Outcome Index, functional wellbeing, and breast cancer subscale improved significantly in the PA group compared to the usual care group (between-group differences, 5.1, p= .024; 5.6, p = .001; 1.9 p = .025; and 2.8, p=.007, respectively). Finally, TC and LDL-C was significantly reduced in the PA group compared to the usual care group (between-group differences, −.38 mmol∙L−1, p=.001; and −.3 mmol∙L−1, p=.023, respectively). Conclusions: We found that home-based PA resulted in significant albeit small to moderate improvements in selfreported PA, mass, BMI, breast cancer specific HRQoL, and TC and LDL-C compared with usual care

Impact of mobility in cooperative spectrum sensing: Theory vs. simulation

This work addresses the problem of cooperative spectrum sensing in cognitive radio networks, focusing on the impact of mobility on performance of cooperative sensing. First, a review of the most recent results on cooperative spectrum sensing is provided, resulting in the identification of measurement correlation and frame error rate in the reporting channel as the main parameters influencing the performance of cooperative sensing schemes. Next, the paper discusses the extension of the analysis to the case of mobile sensors, and determines the set of assumptions made in existing literature when taking into account mobility in sensing. The paper moves then to remove some of such assumptions, by presenting simulation results obtained in presence of realistic models for propagation in the considered area, as well as of a realistic mobility model. A comparison between theoretical derivation and simulation results shows that correlation among measurements taken by different sensors and the selected mobility model may significantly affect the sensing performance. © 2012 IEEE

In-Flight Broadband Connectivity : Architectures and Business Models for High Capacity Air-to-Ground Communications

In-flight broadband connectivity (IFBC) is a significant open market for mobile network operators considering more than 3.3 billion passengers being served by airlines in2015. On-board broadband services are provided via air-to-ground(A2G) connectivity through direct A2G communications(DA2GC) and satellite A2G communications (SA2GC). Available on-board connectivity systems have significant limitations: high latency in SA2GC and low capacity in DA2GC. The customer expectancy is multi-Mbps connections in every seat which leads to capacity requirements of Gbps to the aircraft. Creation of high capacity IFBC requires a collaborative interaction between different industrial partners. For this reason, we investigate A2Garchitectures in terms of economic and technical perspectives, and propose business models by identifying new roles and positioning them in the A2G business ecosystem. In addition, we provide an extensive summary of the state-of-the-art and future improvements for A2G communications.QCR 20170814ICARO-E