Overall Indoor Quality of a Non-renewed Secondary-school Building

This work is the result of a field study about overall comfort aspects performed in a secondary-school building in the surroundings of Bologna during the winter season. The campaign aimed at describing overall comfort aspects of the school both from an objective and a subjective point of view, thus a questionnaire was administered to pupils during ongoing lessons to compare physical measurements and subjective responses. The monitored attributes and items concerned typical indoor quality aspects: acoustical, thermal, indoor air, and visual quality. As weak points emerged from the data analysis, possible solutions are illustrated, focusing on acoustics and optimizing effectiveness and cost

Architettura e acustica del cinema Jolly di Vinicio Vecchi in Bologna

Negli anni Cinquanta del 20° secolo il cinema assume la sua indipendenza tipologica dal teatro, divenendo un soggetto acusticamente identificabile. In Italia in questo periodo vennero realizzate numerose sale cinematografiche che sono testimonianza delle conquiste tecniche e tecnologiche acquisite in ambito acustico. In questo lavoro è studiato il cinema Jolly di Bologna, progettato da Vinicio Vecchi nel 1956, che presenta volumetria e soluzioni architettoniche originali. Nel 2002 sono stati effettuati interventi sui rivestimenti interni al fine di rendere la sala più simile ai cinema di oggi, allontanandola definitivamente dalla concezione “teatrale”. Grazie ad una campagna dettagliata di misurazioni di risposte all’impulso, è stato possibile valutare analogie e differenze tra caratterizzazione acustica dei cinema e normativa ISO 3382. Sono state inoltre realizzate auralizzazioni MIMO volte a riprodurre le condizioni di ascolto in diverse posizioni della sala per consentire un confronto percettivo con i parametri classici estratti dai segnali acquisiti

Notes about the early to late transition in Italian theatres

In some classical room acoustic criteria (e.g. C80, LG, IACC0,x, LF, JLF, JLFC) it is a standard practice to use a fixed temporal interval to quantify the weight of the early reflections versus the late reverberation. A value of 80 ms has been proposed in the literature also for opera houses. This paper, using the same approach of the previous literature, studies the temporal limit of integration in several Italian historical theatres. Early-to-late energy ratio and interaural cross correlation are tested and a new integration limit is proposed

Improving the Efficiency of Robot-Mediated Rehabilitation by Using a New Organizational Model: An Observational Feasibility Study in an Italian Rehabilitation Center

Robotic rehabilitation is a promising way to restore upper limb function, but new organizational models are crucial in order to improve its sustainability. We aimed to analyze the feasibility of a robot-Assisted REhabilitation Area (robotAREA) equipped with four devices, using a new organizational model in which one physiotherapist supervises up to four patients. In 33 days, 60 patients were treated in the robotAREA. Two hundred fifty-five rehabilitation sessions were analyzed, each including two, three, or four patients supervised by one physiotherapist (the R2, R3, and R4 group, respectively). For each session, the duration of (a) setup, (b) training, (c) supervision, (d) session closure, and participant satisfaction were measured. For each patient, upper limb impairment, disability, mobility, and comorbidity were recorded. The time of training in the R4 group was lower by only 2 and 3 min compared to the R2 and R3 groups, respectively, while the supervision significantly changed between the R2, R3, and R4 groups. No differences were observed in satisfaction. Moreover, according to the logistic regression analysis, when the mean disability of the group is moderate, four patients can be supervised by one physiotherapist. These results suggest that the proposed model is feasible, and the mean disability of the group could influence the proper physiotherapist/patient ratio

Rat schwann cells express M1-M4 muscarinic receptors subtypes

The expression of different muscarinic receptor subtypes was analyzed in immature Schwann cells obtained from sciatic nerve of 2-day neonatal rats. By using RT-PCR analysis, we demonstrated the presence of M1, M2, M3, and M4 receptor subtypes in cultured Schwann cells, with M2 displaying the highest expression levels. Muscarinic subtypes were also quantified by immunoprecipitation and [3H]QNB binding. With this approach, we found the levels of receptor expression to be M2 > M3 > M1. M4 is expressed at very low levels, and M5 receptor was not detectable. Moreover, we also demonstrated that stimulation of the receptors by muscarinic agonists activates previously described signal transduction pathways, leading to a decrease of cAMP and an increase of IP3 levels not associated with an efficient intracellular Ca2+ release. The presence and activity of particular muscarinic receptors in immature Schwann cells suggest that ACh may play an important role in Schwann cell development

Peripheral nerve ultrasound changes in CIDP and correlations with nerve conduction velocity

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the ultrasound (US) characteristics of peripheral nerves in chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyradiculoneuropathy (CIDP) and their correlations with electrodiagnostic (EDX) characteristics. METHODS: Nineteen patients with CIDP and 19 healthy controls matched by age and body mass index were included in a blind case-control, observational study. All patients underwent a neurologic examination (including inflammatory neuropathy cause and treatment [INCAT] and Medical Research Council [MRC] sum score) and an EDX study. Each patient and each control underwent a US study of 14 nerve segments, yielding a total number of 266 segments scanned in each group. RESULTS: US changes, characterized by an increased nerve cross-sectional area (NCSA), were detected in 53% of the 266 patient nerve segments. Mean NCSA was higher in nerve segments of patients than in those of controls (p < 0.001). Nerve segments with abnormal US belonged to patients with longer disease duration, lower MRC sum score, higher INCAT score, and progressive disease form (all p < 0.0001). All the aforementioned variables were independently associated with the occurrence of US changes. Motor nerve conduction was significantly lower in nerve segments with increased NCSA than in those with normal NCSA (p < 0.0001). NCSA in segments with prevalent myelin damage was higher than that in segments with prevalent axonal damage (p = 0.001) or in segments with normal EDX characteristics (p < 0.0001). NCSA and motor nerve conduction velocity were inversely correlated in nerve segments with EDX evidence of myelin damage (R = 0.599; p < 0.0001). Conduction blocks were associated with increased NCSA (p = 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: US may, similar to MRI, have a supporting role in the diagnosis of CIDP. US and EDX changes are correlated

Notch Signal Mediates the Cross-Interaction between M2 Muscarinic Acetylcholine Receptor and Neuregulin/ErbB Pathway: Effects on Schwann Cell Proliferation

The cross-talk between axon and glial cells during development and in adulthood is mediated by several molecules. Among them are neurotransmitters and their receptors, which are involved in the control of myelinating and non-myelinating glial cell development and physiology. Our previous studies largely demonstrate the functional expression of cholinergic muscarinic receptors in Schwann cells. In particular, the M2 muscarinic receptor subtype, the most abundant cholinergic receptor expressed in Schwann cells, inhibits cell proliferation downregulating proteins expressed in the immature phenotype and triggers promyelinating differentiation genes. In this study, we analysed the in vitro modulation of the Neuregulin-1 (NRG1)/erbB pathway, mediated by the M2 receptor activation, through the selective agonist arecaidine propargyl ester (APE). M2 agonist treatment significantly downregulates NRG1 and erbB receptors expression, both at transcriptional and protein level, and causes the internalization and intracellular accumulation of the erbB2 receptor. Additionally, starting from our previous results concerning the negative modulation of Notch-active fragment NICD by M2 receptor activation, in this work, we clearly demonstrate that the M2 receptor subtype inhibits erbB2 receptors by Notch-1/NICD downregulation. Our data, together with our previous results, demonstrate the existence of a cross-interaction between the M2 receptor and NRG1/erbB pathway-Notch1 mediated, and that it is responsible for the modulation of Schwann cell proliferation/differentiation

Acetylcholine inhibits cell cycle progression in rat Schwann cells by activation of the M2 receptor subtype

Cultures of schwalla cells froill ncoaatal rat sciatic aenes ivere treated with acety1cholilic agonists tvid the cjj cts oil cell Prolificratiou cniluatcd. 3[HI-thyaiidiac incorporation shows that accty1choliac (ACh) receptor agoiiists ilillibit cell proliftratioti, aiid FACS analysis deinoustratcs ccll-cyclc arrest and accunlulatioii of cells ill the Gi phase. The use of arecaiditie, a selective agouist of niuscariiiic M2 receptors reveals that this effect depends nictitily oil jW2 receptor acth,atioii. The arecaidine i1cpetialci i t- block ill Gi is rci,ersible becausc reinoval of arecaidiue froai the culture iiieditaii mduccs progrcssioil to the S phase. The block of the Gj-S transitioil is also characterized by inodulatiou of the expressioti ofscwrol cell-cycic inarkcrs. Morcoi,cr, trcatnicat ivith ACh receptor agmist causes both a decreasc ill the PCNA prolcin lci,cls ill Schivaiiii cell iniclci aad all iiicreasc ill P27 Olld P53 proteins. Filially, iinnnuio-elcctrou inicroscopy dcalonStl-atCS that M2 receptors arc expressed by Schivanii cells ill i,ivo. These results inclicate that ACh, by aiodulatiiig Schwaiin cell prolificratioii through M2 I-CCCPtOl- aclivatioa,)iiight cowributc to their progression to a niore dif rewiated phenotype