The use of aerial- and close-range photogrammetry for the mapping of the Lavini di Marco tracksite (Hettangian, Southern Alps, NE Italy)

(EXCERPT FROM ABSTRACT) Close-range photogrammetry was executed following the procedure proposed by Mallison & Wings (2014). More than seventy 3D models were obtained and interpreted by means of color-coded and contour line images, which allow to improve the ichno- logical knowledge of the tracksite. The 3D models of the best-preserved tracks were used for the osteological reconstruction of the trackmakers’ autopodia, supposing the arthral position of the phalangeal pads. Three indirect methods were used to correlate tracks and their trackmakers: (i) synapomorphy-based approach; (ii) phenetic correlation; (iii) coincidence correlation (see Carrano & Wilson, 2001) The final map was produced with different level of knowledge due to the distribution of tracks and current state of site preservation. Furthermore, it represents a complete documentation that will be used for future work of enhancement, preservation and valorization of the tracksite. The ichnotaxonomical review of the quadrupedal trackways led us to emend the diagnosis of Lavinipes cheminii Avanzini et al. (2003) and to assign several other sparse tracks and trackways to L. chemini. The skeletal reconstruction of fore and hind limbs points towards Gongxianosaurus sp. as the most suitable trackmaker of L. cheminii. The herein supposed Laurasian affinity of the Lavini di Marco dinosaur assemblage clashes with the previous hypotheses that always link the Southern Alps sector with the Gondwana mainland

Energy balance of five fodder cropping systems in the irrigated lowlands of Northern Italy

Extensification has recently become an important option in Western European agriculture, driven both by economic considerations (product surpluses together with the fact that developed countries cropping systems have been heavily relying on fossil energy) and growing public concern on the possible adverse effects of intensive farming on the environment and human health. The adoption of rational fodder crop rotations, with the rediscovery of the beneficial effect of the meadow, is viewed as a possible mean to reduce the impact of farming systems in the lowlands of northern Italy, characterised by highly intensive cropping and animal husbandry. For this reason our study examines the effects of crop rotation on the energy balance during 1985-2007 period in a long-term crop rotation trial in Northern Italy comparing five fodder crop systems, different in the degree of crop intensification and for the presence or absence of the meadow: a 1-year continuous cereal double cropping (R1); a 3-year rotation (R3); a 6-year rotation (R6); a permanent meadow (PM); and a continuous grain maize cropping (CM). Each rotation was subjected to two input treatments, defined as high (mostly used in lowlands of northern Italy) and low (input reduction of ca. 30%) respectively, in terms of nutrient levels, herbicide doses, and soil tillage methods. The crop rotations exerted a marked influence on the energy balance. The most efficient rotations in terms of net energy production energy efficiency have been characterized by reduced length and presence of maize and catch-crops

Fracture assessment of polyamide 12 (PA12) specimens fabricated via Multi Jet FusionTM in the presence of geometrical discontinuities

This study aims to study the fracture resistance of additively manufactured polyamide 12 (PA12), specifically when subjected to notches and cracks, and how it varies with the printing direction using Multi Jet Fusion (MJF). The methodology involved conducting tensile tests on V-notched samples, with a focus on different combinations of opening angle (0◦-120◦) and tip radius (0.2–2 mm). The findings revealed that the sensitivity to the notch opening angle decreased with an increase in the notch tip radius. Furthermore, the fracture resistance for different mode mixities was examined using semi-circular bend (SCB) specimens, with the crack angle varied between 0◦ and 53◦. The results demonstrated two distinct fracture behaviours, namely brittle and ductile, depending on the crack angle. Theoretical analyses revealed that with appropriate tuning, average strain energy density (ASED) can predict the load capacity of notched and cracked PA12 parts manufactured with MJF, within an error range of ± 20 %

Automated Analysis of Large-Scale NMR Data Generates Metabolomic Signatures and Links Them to Candidate Metabolites.

Identification of metabolites in large-scale <sup>1</sup> H NMR data from human biofluids remains challenging due to the complexity of the spectra and their sensitivity to pH and ionic concentrations. In this work, we tested the capacity of three analysis tools to extract metabolite signatures from 968 NMR profiles of human urine samples. Specifically, we studied sets of covarying features derived from principal component analysis (PCA), the iterative signature algorithm (ISA), and averaged correlation profiles (ACP), a new method we devised inspired by the STOCSY approach. We used our previously developed metabomatching method to match the sets generated by these algorithms to NMR spectra of individual metabolites available in public databases. On the basis of the number and quality of the matches, we concluded that ISA and ACP can robustly identify ten and nine metabolites, respectively, half of which were shared, while PCA did not produce any signatures with robust matches

Use of water in the Iberoamérican dry lands: hydro-environmental and socioeconomic efficiency indicators

Uso del agua en tierras secas de Iberoamérica: indicadores de eficiencia hidro-ambiental y socio-económica. Las tierras secas comprenden una superficie sustancial de Iberoamérica (25% de América Latina y el Caribe, o más de la mitad del estado español). En este contexto, Brasil posee una porción significativa de los recursos hídricos superficiales y subterráneos. Sin embargo, en su territorio se encuentran áreas semi-áridas, con extrema escasez hídrica, que comprenden 1300 municipios (cerca del 25% del total de municipios del país), distribuidos en 9 estados, en los que viven más de 22,5 millones de habitantes. Estos se encuentran afectados directa o indirectamente por una situación de severa escasez de recursos hídricos agravada por cambios climáticos, consecuencia del calentamiento global. Resulta importante conocer el acervo de tecnologías tradicionales y no tradicionales para captar, almacenar, y utilizar el agua, adaptadas a las diferentes situaciones socio-económicas e hidro-ambientales, así como indicadores del uso eficiente del agua, validados y homologados como herramienta estratégica de gestión en políticas y programas de seguridad hídrica. Este trabajo tiene como objetivo conocer el estado de nuestro conocimiento sobre dichos indicadores y discutir el caso del semi-árido brasileño en el contexto de las tierras secas de Iberoamérica, y del Plan Nacional de Recursos Hídricos del Estado de Bahía.The dry lands cover  expressive  surface  of  Iberoamerican  (25%  of  Latin  American  and  Caribbean  and  more  than  half  of  the  Spanish  territory).  In  this context, Brazil is a country that possesses significant volume of the world superficial and underground water resources. However, more than 1300 municipal districts (about 25% of the total of municipal districts of the country), distributed in 9 states are directly or indirectly affected  by  extreme  shortage  of  water  resources  which  has  been  worsened  by  the  climatic  changes,  as  a  consequence  of  the  global warming.  More  than  22.5  million  inhabitants  live  in  the  semi-arid areas of Brazil. It is important to scrutiny all traditional and not traditional technologies  for  reception,  storage  and  use  of  the  water,  adapted  for  different  socioeconomic  and  hydro-environmental  situations  and approve and validate indicators of water use efficiency, as a management strategic tool for water security politics and programs. This work aimed to understand the state of the art on indicators and to discuss the Brazilian case of the semi-arid in the context of the Iberoamerican dry lands, based on the National Plan of Water Resources and on the State of Bahia Plan for Water Resource Management.Fil: Carneiro, A. P.. Universidad Politécnica de Catalunya; EspañaFil: da Silva, H. P.. Universidade Federal da Bahia; BrasilFil: Abraham, Elena Maria. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto Argentino de Investigaciones de las Zonas Áridas. Provincia de Mendoza. Instituto Argentino de Investigaciones de las Zonas Áridas. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Instituto Argentino de Investigaciones de las Zonas Áridas; ArgentinaFil: Morató, J.. No especifíca;Fil: Subirana, A.. Universidad Politécnica de Catalunya; EspañaFil: Tomasoni, M.. Universidade Federal da Bahia; Brasi

Thymic Dendritic Cells Express Inducible Nitric Oxide Synthase and Generate Nitric Oxide in Response to Self- and Alloantigens

Thymocytes maturing in the thymus undergo clonal deletion/apoptosis when they encounter self- or allo-Ags presented by dendritic cells (DCs). How this occurs is a matter of debate, but NO may play a role given its ability of inducing apoptosis of these cells. APC (a mixed population of macrophages (Mφ) and DCs) from rat thymus expressed high levels of inducible NO synthase (iNOS) and produced large amounts of NO in basal conditions whereas iNOS expression and NO production were very low in thymocytes. Analysis by FACS and by double labeling of cytocentrifuged preparations showed that DCs and MΦ both express iNOS within APC. Analysis of a purified preparation of DCs confirmed that these cells express high levels of iNOS and produce large amounts of NO in basal conditions. The capacity of DCs to generate NO was enhanced by exposure to rat albumin, a self-protein, and required a fully expressed process of Ag internalization, processing, and presentation. Peptides derived from portions of class II MHC molecules up-regulate iNOS expression and NO production by DCs as well, both in self and allogeneic combinations, suggesting a role of NO in both self and acquired tolerance. We also found that NO induced apoptosis of rat double-positive thymocytes, the effect being more evident in anti-CD3-stimulated cells. Altogether, the present findings might suggest that DC-derived NO is at least one of the soluble factors regulating events, in the thymus, that follow recognition of self- and allo-Ags