Pseudosmittia fabioi sp. n., a new species from Sardinia (Diptera: Chironomidae, Orthocladiinae)

A new species of Pseudosmittia Edwards 1932, P. fabioi, from Sardinia (Palearctic region), is described and figured as male and female. The generic diagnosis is emended based on characters found in the new species. The species is characterized by a triangular anal point with microtrichia at apex (not projecting beyond tergite IX), an inferior volsella characterized by a rounded lobe with a setose accessory lobe adpressed to the gonocoxite, a well developed tooth-like projection on the outer margin of the gonostylus, the lack of acrostichals and an antenna with 6 flagellomeres in female

Integração de Esquemas Relacionais e XML com realização de Consultas na Base de Dados Integrada

A modelagem de estrutura de dados em um Sistema Gerenciador de Banco de Dados (SGBD) normalmente é feita de acordo com as regras de negócio da realidade que está sendo representada. Organizações que possuem o mesmo negócio nem sempre terão as mesmas estruturas de dados, por terem sido modeladas por pessoas diferentes e também para atender a necessidades diferentes. Atualmente, a identificação da correspondência existente entre esquemas relacionais é feita manualmente na maioria dos casos e tem sido tema de muitas pesquisas na área de Banco de Dados. Este processo é fundamental para possibilitar a integração de esquemas criados de forma independente e de bases de dados diferentes, uma vez que o problema da integração é o transporte de dados armazenados de um esquema para o outro. A proposta para este trabalho é desenvolver uma interface que, após a identificação dos atributos correspondentes entre os esquemas selecionados, realize a integração dos esquemas permitindo a busca de dados na base integrada. Mesmo com o processo de integração e casamento criado, a correspondência entre os esquemas é semi-automática porque os atributos podem ser relacionados sem possuir similaridade real

Using pERK immunostaining to quantify neuronal activity induced by stress in zebrafish larvae

The larval zebrafish has emerged as a very useful model organism to study the neuronal circuits controlling neuroendocrine and behavioral responses to stress. This protocol describes how to expose zebrafish larvae to hyperosmotic stress and test whether candidate populations of neurons are activated or inhibited by the stressor using a relatively rapid immunofluorescence staining approach. This approach takes advantage of the phosphorylation of the extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) upon neuronal activation. For complete details on the use and execution of this protocol, please refer to Corradi et al. (2022)

Start of SPIDER operation towards ITER neutral beams

Heating Neutral Beam (HNB) Injectors will constitute the main plasma heating and current drive tool both in ITER and JT60-SA, which are the next major experimental steps for demonstrating nuclear fusion as viable energy source. In ITER, in order to achieve the required thermonuclear fusion power gain Q=10 for short pulse operation and Q=5 for long pulse operation (up to 3600s), two HNB injectors will be needed [1], each delivering a total power of about 16.5 MW into the magnetically-confined plasma, by means of neutral hydrogen or deuterium particles having a specific energy of about 1 MeV. Since only negatively charged particles can be efficiently neutralized at such energy, the ITER HNB injectors [2] will be based on negative ions, generated by caesium-catalysed surface conversion of atoms in a radio-frequency driven plasma source. A negative deuterium ion current of more than 40 A will be extracted, accelerated and focused in a multi-aperture, multi-stage electrostatic accelerator, having 1280 apertures (~ 14 mm diam.) and 5 acceleration stages (~200 kV each) [3]. After passing through a narrow gas-cell neutralizer, the residual ions will be deflected and discarded, whereas the neutralized particles will continue their trajectory through a duct into the tokamak vessels to deliver the required heating power to the ITER plasma for a pulse duration of about 3600 s. Although the operating principles and the implementation of the most critical parts of the injector have been tested in different experiments, the ITER NBI requirements have never been simultaneously attained. In order to reduce the risks and to optimize the design and operating procedures of the HNB for ITER, a dedicated Neutral Beam Test Facility (NBTF) [4] has been promoted by the ITER Organization with the contribution of the European Union\u2019s Joint Undertaking for ITER and of the Italian Government, with the participation of the Japanese and Indian Domestic Agencies (JADA and INDA) and of several European laboratories, such as IPP-Garching, KIT-Karlsruhe, CCFE-Culham, CEA-Cadarache. The NBTF, nicknamed PRIMA, has been set up at Consorzio RFX in Padova, Italy [5]. The planned experiments will verify continuous HNB operation for one hour, under stringent requirements for beam divergence (< 7 mrad) and aiming (within 2 mrad). To study and optimise HNB performances, the NBTF includes two experiments: MITICA, full-scale NBI prototype with 1 MeV particle energy and SPIDER, with 100 keV particle energy and 40 A current, aiming at testing and optimizing the full-scale ion source. SPIDER will focus on source uniformity, negative ion current density and beam optics. In June 2018 the experimental operation of SPIDER has started

Management of hydrocele in adolescent patients

Hydrocele is defined as an abnormal collection of serous fluid in the potential space between the parietal and visceral layers of the tunica vaginalis. In the majority of affected adolescents, hydrocele is acquired and is idiopathic in origin. The pathogenesis of idiopathic hydrocele is thought to be an imbalance in the normal process of fluid production and reabsorption. The diagnosis is usually clinical. Taking a thorough history is essential to rule out any fluctuation in size, which is an indication of a patent processus vaginalis. Scrotal ultrasonography is mandatory in nonpalpable testicles to rule out a subtending testicular solid mass requiring inguinal exploration. Otherwise, open hydrocelectomy via a scrotal incision is the standard treatment of idiopathic hydroceles. The second most common cause of hydrocele in adolescents is varicocelectomy. The risk of hydrocele formation is higher with non-artery-sparing procedures or those performed without microsurgical aid, and in surgery requiring cord dissection. If hydrocele occurs after varicocelectomy, initial management should include observation with or without hydrocele aspiration. Large persistent hydroceles are best served by open hydrocelectomy

Feeding on the roof of the world: the first gut content analysis of very high altitude Plecoptera

The biology of Plecoptera from high altitude Himalayan freshwaters is almost unknown. Very few and sporadic studies have been devoted to these insects, and exclusively with a taxonomic approach. We provide information on the feeding of Capnia nymphs from three lakes localized above 4,800 m a.s.l. (NE Nepal). Nymphs from these high altitude lakes feed mainly on fine detritus, acting as collector- gatherers, with the accidental ingestion of mineral matter, mostly in larger specimens. It is likely that the harsh environmental conditions in our study area create an environment unfavorable to both the allochthonous input of coarse particulate organic matter (such as terrestrial leaves) and the autochthonous input related to aquatic primary productivity, so that these nymphs feed on small organic particles that originates mainly from the catchment

A Service-oriented Process to Develop Web Applications

Web applications are widely disseminated, but, traditional development methods for this type of application still require a substantial amount of new modeling and programming. Current methods do not take significant advantage of reuse techniques, such as software product lines (PL). This paper presents the WIDE-PL environment focusing on its application generation process, called Application DEvelopment based on Services - ADESE. This environment is an evolution of WIDE - Waterloo Informatics Development Environment. The WIDE-PL environment supports the generation of Web applications based on the Service-oriented Architecture (SOA) and the product line approach. Our solution encompasses a general software architecture, an application generation process, and a set of mandatory and optional services. Examples of applications from two different domains were developed using ADESE to evaluate its feasibility. The results show that the process offers several advantages including an increase in reuse and an explicit separation between the services and the business process connecting those services