On the adoption of carbon dioxide thermodynamic cycles for nuclear power conversion: A case study applied to Mochovce 3 Nuclear Power Plant

In this study, closed CO2 cycles are investigated for potential application in existing nuclear power stations, referring in particular to Mochovce power station currently under construction in Slovak Republic. Three different CO2 cycles layouts are explored in the range of temperatures offered by the nuclear source and of the existing cooling towers. The investigation shows that the common opinion that S-CO2 cycles are well suited in the medium to a high temperature range only (higher than about 450 °C) seems unjustified. For a primary heat source with a maximum temperature of 299 °C and a heat sink with a minimum temperature of 19 °C and reasonable assumptions about advanced turbomachines and heat exchanger performances, the supercritical recompressed reheated regenerative CO2 cycle would yield a net efficiency of 34.04%, which compares well with the 33.51% net efficiency of the existing Rankine cycle. The estimated length of the complete turboset (2 turbines, 1 pump and 1 compressor) would be less than 11 m (versus two wet steam turbines of 22 m each for the same power), resulting in a factor of 10 reduction in the footprint of the balance of plant.The total CO2 cycle equipment and main pipelines would have a combined weight of 3957 tons, while in the Mochovce 3 NPP existing Rankine cycle, the main components and connecting piping weigh nearly 7377 tons, thus a 40% reduction.These results suggest that the adoption of CO2 in nuclear power stations would not penalize the plant efficiency and would yield significant savings on installation costs and construction times from the much more compact balance of plant

Study of the Displacement per Atom in the n-alpha reaction on MgB2

In the frame of the High-Luminosity LHC*) project (Working Package 6.4, dedicated to the energy deposition and material studies), the effects of the energy deposition from the 7+7 TeV p-p debris on the High Temperature Superconducting Links (made of MgB2) is evaluated. This paper is focused on the effect of the n-alpha reaction on MgB2 and the determination of the induced Displacement per Atom (DPA). The contribution of the single component of the reaction i.e. neutrons, alpha particles and lithium atoms on the DPA is evaluated

Bell lysaker emotion recognition test: a contribution for the italian validation

INTRODUCTION: Emotion recognition deficits in psychopathology have been extensively studied with a variety of measures. The Bell Lysaker Emotion Recognition Test (BLERT; Bell et al., 1997) is an effective method to assess emotion recognition by presenting affect stimuli which may have greater verisimilitude with real life events. Indeed, BLERT combines facial expressions with affective information transmitted in prosody or body posture. This method has allowed the study of emotion recognition deficit in psychotic patients, as well as its relationships with other aspects of psychopathology (Vohs et al., 2014). OBJECTIVES: We aimed at testing the validity and reliability of an Italian version of the BLERT. AIMS: First, a group-comparison was carried out between clinical and nonclinical participants. Then, correlations among BLERT scores and other indices of psychological functioning were explored. METHODS: We recruited 12 inpatients with psychotic disorders (mean age= 54.75; 58.3% female) and 45 nonclinical participants (mean age= 24.04; 75.6% female). We administered the BLERT (Bell et al., 1997), along with the following measures: Empathy Quotient (Lawrence et al., 2004), Interpersonal Reactivity Index (Davis, 1980), Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (Gratz & Roemer, 2004), and the Inventory of Interpersonal Problems-47 (Pilkonis et al., 1996). RESULTS: Clinical participants resulted impaired in all indices of the BLERT. Further, the construct validity of the BLERT was confirmed by associations with measures of empathy, emotion dysregulation, and interpersonal problems. CONCLUSIONS: The use of the Italian version of the BLERT seemed promising for the study of emotion recognition in both clinical and nonclinical samples

Therapeutic potential of the phosphino Cu(I) complex (HydroCuP) in the treatment of solid tumors

[Cu(thp)4][PF6] (HydroCuP) is a phosphino copper(I) complex highly soluble and stable in physiological media that has been developed as a possible viable alternative to platinum-based drugs for anticancer therapy. HydroCuP potently inhibited the growth of human cancer cells derived from solid tumors by inducing endoplasmatic reticulum (ER) stress thus leading to cell death through paraptosis with a preferential efficacy against cancer rather than non-cancer cells. Aim of the present study was to assess the therapeutic potential of HydroCuP in vivo, in syngenic and xenograft murine models of solid tumors by triggering the Unfolded Protein Response (UPR) pathway. With respect to platinum drugs, HydroCuP induced a markedly higher reduction of tumor growth associated with minimal animal toxicity. In human colorectal cancer xenografts, chemotherapy with HydroCuP was extremely effective in both oxaliplatin-sensitive and resistant models. The favorable in vivo tolerability of HydroCuP was also correlated to an encouraging biodistribution profile. Additionally, no signs of drug-related neurotoxicity and nephrotoxicity were observed. Altogether, these results demonstrate that HydroCuP appears worth of further investigation to evaluate its therapeutic activity towards a broad spectrum of solid malignancies

Circ-ZNF609 regulates G1-S progression in rhabdomyosarcoma

Circular RNAs (circRNAs) represent a class of covalently closed RNAs, derived from non-canonical splicing events, which are expressed in all eukaryotes and often conserved among different species. We previously showed that the circRNA originating from the ZNF609 locus (circ-ZNF609) acts as a crucial regulator of human primary myoblast growth: indeed, the downregulation of the circRNA, and not of its linear counterpart, strongly reduced the proliferation rate of in vitro cultured myoblasts. To deepen our knowledge about circ-ZNF609 role in cell cycle regulation, we studied its expression and function in rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS), a pediatric skeletal muscle malignancy. We found that circ-ZNF609 is upregulated in biopsies from the two major RMS subtypes, embryonal (ERMS) and alveolar (ARMS). Moreover, we discovered that in an ERMS-derived cell line circ-ZNF609 knock-down induced a specific block at the G1-S transition, a strong decrease of p-Akt protein level and an alteration of the pRb/Rb ratio. Regarding p-Akt, we were able to show that circ-ZNF609 acts by counteracting p-Akt proteasome-dependent degradation, thus working as a new regulator of cell proliferation-related pathways. As opposed to ERMS-derived cells, the circRNA depletion had no cell cycle effects in ARMS-derived cells. Since in these cells the p53 gene resulted downregulated, with a concomitant upregulation of its cell cycle-related target genes, we suggest that this could account for the lack of circ-ZNF609 effect in ARMS

COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF TOXICITY OF BIS[BIS(3,5-DIMETHYLPYRAZOL-1-YL)ACETATO]COPPER AND CU 2 (3,5- DIPS) 4 (H 2 O) 3 COPPER(II)-BASED COMPLEXES

One of the priority tasks of modern medicine is the search for new effective means of facilitating the treatment of injuries of various nature. Besides the stability, ease of use and prolonged action, the requirements for such compounds also include low toxicity. In this regard, copper-based complexes with high antioxidant activity are of particular interest. The aim of this work is to determine and compare the toxicity of bis[bis(3,5-dimethylpyrazol-1-yl)acetato]copper(II) complex, (Cu[HC(COO)(pzMe2)2]2 (complex 1) and Cu2(3,5-DIPS)4(H2O)3 (complex 2) by evaluating the survival, life expectancy and several blood parameters. According to the obtained data, complexes 1 and 2 proved to be low-toxic compounds. According to the test results: in case of complex 1 at a dose of 1450 mg/kg, we received a survival rate of 87,5%, and an average life expectancy of 26,8 days, and in the case of complex 2 at the same dose, the survival rate was 75% and the average life expectancy was 22,9 days, which indicates the low toxicity of these compounds (complex 2 has however a higher toxicity, since an identical result is achieved with a lower dose). Using the method of integration according to Behrens in experiments on rats, an average lethal dose of LD50/7 was found, which is more than 2000 mg/kg. Regarding the blood parameters: in case of complex 1, on the 3rd day of the experiment, an increase in the level of all studied blood parameters was observed. This was followed by a decrease, and on the 7th day there was a normalization of all blood parameters except for the number of platelets. Nevertheless, a trend towards normalization was observed in this indicator as well, which led to the normal value of platelet levels by the 21st day. When complex 2 was administered subcutaneously, a significant decrease in hemoglobin level was observed, which was restored by the 7th day; a significant decrease in blood clotting time (BCT), which persisted until the end of the study. By the 7th day, a significant decrease in the levels of platelets and erythrocytes was also noted. The results of haematological studies also confirmed the lowest toxicity of complex 1