38 research outputs found
Head Injury Criterion: mini review
Head Injury Criterion (HIC) is the most important parameter
in terms of human survival; it is indicative of brain injuries due to
the impact of the head in numerous cases, with a vehicle. This index
can be estimated by integrating the resulting acceleration of the
head (measured in its gravity center) in a time windo
Unusual cause of right iliac fossa pain: sigmoid perforation due to ingested rabbit bone. Case report
Disorders of an organ not usually found in the right iliac fossa, such as the sigmoid colon, are an uncommon cause of right iliac fossa pain.
We present a case of right iliac fossa pain caused by a sigmoid perforation due to involuntary ingestion of a rabbit bone, and describe the main features of this condition
Temporal teleportation with pseudo-density operators: How dynamics emerges from temporal entanglement
open8We show that, by using temporal quantum correlations as expressed by pseudo-density operators (PDOs), it is possible to recover formally the standard quantum dynamical evolution as a sequence of teleportations in time. We demonstrate that any completely positive evolution can be formally reconstructed by teleportation with different temporally correlated states. This provides a different interpretation of maximally correlated PDOs, as resources to induce quantum time evolution. Furthermore, we note that the possibility of this protocol stems from the strict formal correspondence between spatial and temporal entanglement in quantum theory. We proceed to demonstrate experimentally this correspondence, by showing a multipartite violation of generalized temporal and spatial Bell inequalities and verifying agreement with theoretical predictions to a high degree of accuracy, in high-quality photon qubits.openMarletto, C; Vedral, V; Virzi', S; Avella, A; Piacentini, F; Gramegna, M; Degiovanni, IP; Genovese, MMarletto, C; Vedral, V; Virzi', S; Avella, A; Piacentini, F; Gramegna, M; Degiovanni, Ip; Genovese,
Temporal teleportation with pseudo-density operators: how dynamics emerges from temporal entanglement
We show that, by utilising temporal quantum correlations as expressed by
pseudo-density operators (PDOs), it is possible to recover formally the
standard quantum dynamical evolution as a sequence of teleportations in time.
We demonstrate that any completely positive evolution can be formally
reconstructed by teleportation with different temporally correlated states.
This provides a different interpretation of maximally correlated PDOs, as
resources to induce quantum time-evolution. Furthermore, we note that the
possibility of this protocol stems from the strict formal correspondence
between spatial and temporal entanglement in quantum theory. We proceed to
demonstrate experimentally this correspondence, by showing a multipartite
violation of generalised temporal and spatial Bell inequalities and verifying
agreement with theoretical predictions to a high degree of accuracy, in
high-quality photon qubits.Comment: preprin
Improvement of Fatty Acid Profile in Durum Wheat Breads Supplemented with Portulaca oleracea L. Quality Traits of Purslane-Fortified Bread
The addition of functional ingredients to breads could have effects on preventing cardiovascular
diseases, cancers and inflammation. The incorporation of 0–5–10–15% of three populations of dried
purslane flour on the rheological, sensorial and nutritional quality of fortified durum wheat breads
were evaluated. The increase in dried purslane (up to 15%) caused an increase in the resistance to
the mixture and a consequent reduction in its extensibility. The “panel test” gave a largely positive
evaluation in 10% of enrichment. The fatty acids in breads resulted higher with the 5% substitution.
Contrary to what has been imagined, the increase in percentage of substitution to 10 and 15% did
not lead to an increase in linoleic (omega-3) and α-linolenic (omega-6) acid and probably the cause
is in the cooking. The total phenols content and the antioxidant potential, evaluated by ferric
reducing antioxidant potential (FRAP) and 2,20 -azinobis (3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid)
(ABTS) assays of the enriched breads increased with the percentage of the dry purslane substitution.
The enrichment of the durum wheat flour with 5% purslane resulted in a good compromise to obtain
good rheological characteristics of loaves and breads with decreased omega-6/omega-3 ratio and
good antioxidant properties
Peritoneal carcinomatosis from ovarian cancer: chemosensitivity test and tissue markers as predictors of response to chemotherapy
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Platinum-based regimens are the treatments of choice in ovarian cancer, which remains the leading cause of death from gynecological malignancies in the Western world. The aim of the present study was to compare the advantages and limits of a conventional chemosensitivity test with those of new biomolecular markers in predicting response to platinum regimens in a series of patients with peritoneal carcinomatosis from ovarian cancer.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Fresh surgical biopsy specimens were obtained from 30 patients with primary or recurrent peritoneal carcinomatosis from ovarian cancer. <it>ERCC1, GSTP1, MGMT, XPD</it>, and <it>BRCA1 </it>gene expression levels were determined by Real-Time RT-PCR. An <it>in vitro </it>chemosensitivity test was used to define a sensitivity or resistance profile to the drugs used to treat each patient.</p> <p>Results</p> <p><it>MGMT </it>and <it>XPD </it>expression was directly and significantly related to resistance to platinum-containing treatment (p = 0.036 and p = 0.043, respectively). Significant predictivity in terms of sensitivity and resistance was observed for <it>MGMT </it>expression (75.0% and 72.5%, respectively; p = 0.03), while high predictivity of resistance (90.9%) but very low predictivity of sensitivity (37.5%) (p = 0.06) were observed for <it>XPD</it>. The best overall and significant predictivity was observed for chemosensitivity test results (85.7% sensitivity and 91.3% resistance; p = 0.0003).</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The in vitro assay showed a consistency with results observed in vivo in 27 out of the 30 patients analyzed. Sensitivity and resistance profiles of different drugs used in vivo would therefore seem to be better defined by the in vitro chemosensitivity test than by expression levels of markers.</p
Obesity and iron deficiency anemia as risk factors for asymptomatic bacteriur
Background: Few studies examined the risk factors of asymptomatic bacteriuria, showing contradictory results.
Our study aimed to examine the association between different clinical and laboratory parameters and
asymptomatic bacteriuria in internal medicine patients.
Materials and methods: 330 consecutive hospitalized subjects, asymptomatic for urinary tract infections (UTIs),
underwent to microscopic examination of urine specimens. 100 subjects were positive for microscopic
bacteriuria and were recruited into the study. At the quantitative urine culture 31 subjects of study population
were positive while 69 subjects were negative for bacteriuria.
Results: The analysis of clinical characteristics showed that the two groups of subjects (positive and negative
urine culture for bacteriuria) were significant different (p b 0.05) about obesity (76.7% vs 42% respectively),
metabolic syndrome (80.6% vs 44,9%), cholelithiasis (35.5% vs 13,2%) and iron deficiency anemia (80.6% vs
53,6%). The univariate analysis showed that only obesity, cholelithiasis and iron deficiency anemia were
positively associated with positive urine culture for bacteriuria (Odds Ratios [OR] = 3.79, p = 0.0003;
OR = 2,65, p =0.0091; OR = 2.63, p = 0.0097; respectively). However, the multivariate analysis by
logistic regression showed that only obesity and iron deficiency anemia, independently associated with
positive urine culture for bacteriuria (OR = 3.9695, p = 0.0075; OR = 3.1569, p = 0.03420 respectively).
Conclusions: This study shows that obesity and iron deficiency anemia are independent risk factors for
asymptomatic bacteriuria
Phase Noise in Real-World Twin-Field Quantum Key Distribution
We investigate the impact of noise sources in real-world implementations of
Twin-Field Quantum Key Distribution (TF-QKD) protocols, focusing on phase noise
from photon sources and connecting fibers. Our work emphasizes the role of
laser quality, network topology, fiber length, arm balance, and detector
performance in determining key rates. Remarkably, it reveals that the leading
TF-QKD protocols are similarly affected by phase noise despite different
mechanisms. Our study demonstrates duty cycle improvements of over 2x through
narrow-linewidth lasers and phase-control techniques, highlighting the
potential synergy with high-precision time/frequency distribution services.
Ultrastable lasers, evolving toward integration and miniaturization, offer
promise for agile TF-QKD implementations on existing networks. Properly
addressing phase noise and practical constraints allows for consistent key rate
predictions, protocol selection, and layout design, crucial for establishing
secure long-haul links for the Quantum Communication Infrastructures under
development in several countries.Comment: 18 pages, 8 figures, 2 table
Coherent phase transfer for real-world twin-field quantum key distribution
Quantum mechanics allows distribution of intrinsically secure encryption keys by optical means. Twin-field quantum key distribution is one of the most promising techniques for its implementation on long-distance fiber networks, but requires stabilizing the optical length of the communication channels between parties. In proof-of-principle experiments based on spooled fibers, this was achieved by interleaving the quantum communication with periodical stabilization frames. In this approach, longer duty cycles for the key streaming come at the cost of a looser control of channel length, and a successful key-transfer using this technique in real world remains a significant challenge. Using interferometry techniques derived from frequency metrology, we develop a solution for the simultaneous key streaming and channel length control, and demonstrate it on a 206 km field-deployed fiber with 65 dB loss. Our technique reduces the quantum-bit-error-rate contributed by channel length variations to <1%, representing an effective solution for real-world quantum communications