Functional group analysis by H NMR/chemical derivatization for the characterization of organic aerosol from the SMOCC field campaign

Water soluble organic compounds (WSOC) in aerosol samples collected in the Amazon Basin in a period encompassing the middle/late dry season and the beginning of the wet season, were investigated by H NMR spectroscopy. HiVol filter samples (PM2.5 and PM>2.5) and size-segregated samples from multistage impactor were subjected to H NMR characterization. The H NMR methodology, recently developed for the analysis of organic aerosol samples, has been improved by exploiting chemical methylation of carboxylic groups with diazomethane, which allows the direct determination of the carboxylic acid content of WSOC. The content of carboxylic carbons for the different periods and sizes ranged from 12% to 20% of total measured carbon depending on the season and aerosol size, with higher contents for the fine particles in the transition and wet periods with respect to the dry period. A comprehensive picture is presented of WSOC functional groups in aerosol samples representative of the biomass burning period, as well as of transition and semi-clean atmospheric conditions. A difference in composition between fine (PM2.5) and coarse (PM>2.5) size fractions emerged from the NMR data, the former showing higher alkylic content, the latter being largely dominated by R-O-H (or R-O-R') functional groups. Very small particles (<0.14 &mu;m), however, present higher alkyl-chain content and less oxygenated carbons than larger fine particles (0.42&ndash;1.2 &mu;m). More limited variations were found between the average compositions in the different periods of the campaign

MuSCA: A multi-scale source-sink carbon allocation model to explore carbon allocation in plants. An application to static apple tree structures

Background and aims: Carbon allocation in plants is usually represented at a topological scale, specific to each model. This makes the results obtained with different models, and the impact of their scales of representation, difficult to compare. In this study, we developed a multi-scale carbon allocation model (MuSCA) that allows the use of different, user-defined, topological scales of a plant, and assessment of the impact of each spatial scale on simulated results and computation time. Methods: Model multi-scale consistency and behaviour were tested on three realistic apple tree structures. Carbon allocation was computed at five scales, spanning from the metamer (the finest scale, used as a reference) up to first-order branches, and for different values of a sap friction coefficient. Fruit dry mass increments were compared across spatial scales and with field data. Key Results: The model was able to represent effects of competition for carbon assimilates on fruit growth. Intermediate friction parameter values provided results that best fitted field data. Fruit growth simulated at the metamer scale differed of ~1 % in respect to results obtained at growth unit scale and up to 60 % in respect to first order branch and fruiting unit scales. Generally, the coarser the spatial scale the more predicted fruit growth diverged from the reference. Coherence in fruit growth across scales was also differentially impacted, depending on the tree structure considered. Decreasing the topological resolution reduced computation time by up to four orders of magnitude. Conclusions: MuSCA revealed that the topological scale has a major influence on the simulation of carbon allocation. This suggests that the scale should be a factor that is carefully evaluated when using a carbon allocation model, or when comparing results produced by different models. Finally, with MuSCA, trade-off between computation time and prediction accuracy can be evaluated by changing topological scales

Dynamic Obstacle Avoidance for Omnidirectional Mobile Manipulators

The last decade witnessed an unprecedented spread of robotics. The production paradigm of Industry 4.0 and 5.0 yielded collaborative robots in production lines of all sizes. Also, the robots started leaving the industrial scenario to play a leading role in the field of personal assistance. These environments share a common challenge, i.e. the safety of people working and/or living around the robots. Collision avoidance control techniques are essential to improve such aspect, by preventing impacts that can occur between the robot and humans or objects. The paper extends algorithms already developed by the authors for robotic arms to the case of mobile manipulators. The control strategy, which has been refined in the contribution of the robot bodies, has then been tested in two simulated case studies involving an industrial mobile robot and the custom service robot Paquitop, developed at Politecnico di Torino

Mathematical models for the diffusion magnetic resonance signal abnormality in patients with prion diseases

AbstractIn clinical practice signal hyperintensity in the cortex and/or in the striatum on magnetic resonance (MR) diffusion-weighted images (DWIs) is a marker of sporadic Creutzfeldt–Jakob Disease (sCJD). MR diagnostic accuracy is greater than 90%, but the biophysical mechanisms underpinning the signal abnormality are unknown. The aim of this prospective study is to combine an advanced DWI protocol with new mathematical models of the microstructural changes occurring in prion disease patients to investigate the cause of MR signal alterations. This underpins the later development of more sensitive and specific image-based biomarkers. DWI data with a wide a range of echo times and diffusion weightings were acquired in 15 patients with suspected diagnosis of prion disease and in 4 healthy age-matched subjects. Clinical diagnosis of sCJD was made in nine patients, genetic CJD in one, rapidly progressive encephalopathy in three, and Gerstmann–Sträussler–Scheinker syndrome in two. Data were analysed with two bi-compartment models that represent different hypotheses about the histopathological alterations responsible for the DWI signal hyperintensity. A ROI-based analysis was performed in 13 grey matter areas located in affected and apparently unaffected regions from patients and healthy subjects. We provide for the first time non-invasive estimate of the restricted compartment radius, designed to reflect vacuole size, which is a key discriminator of sCJD subtypes. The estimated vacuole size in DWI hyperintense cortex was in the range between 3 and 10 µm that is compatible with neuropathology measurements. In DWI hyperintense grey matter of sCJD patients the two bi-compartment models outperform the classic mono-exponential ADC model. Both new models show that T2 relaxation times significantly increase, fast and slow diffusivities reduce, and the fraction of the compartment with slow/restricted diffusion increases compared to unaffected grey matter of patients and healthy subjects. Analysis of the raw DWI signal allows us to suggest the following acquisition parameters for optimized detection of CJD lesions: b = 3000 s/mm2 and TE = 103 ms. In conclusion, these results provide the first in vivo estimate of mean vacuole size, new insight on the mechanisms of DWI signal changes in prionopathies and open the way to designing an optimized acquisition protocol to improve early clinical diagnosis and subtyping of sCJD

Grape pomace for topical application: Green nades sustainable extraction, skin permeation studies, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities characterization in 3d human keratinocytes

Food waste is a global problem due to its environmental and economic impact, so there is great demand for the exploitation of new functional applications. The winemaking process leads to an incomplete extraction of high-value compounds, leaving the pomace still rich in polyphenols. This study was aimed at optimising and validating sustainable routes toward the extraction and further valorisation of these polyphenols, particularly for cosmeceutical applications. New formulations based on red grape pomace polyphenols and natural deep eutectic solvents (NaDESs) were here investigated, namely betaine combined with citric acid (BET-CA), urea (BET-U) and ethylene glycol (BET-EG), in which DESs were used both as extracting and carrying agents for polyphenols. The flavonoid profile determined by HPLC-MS/MS analysis showed similar malvidin content (51\u201356 \ub5g mL 121 ) in the DES combinations, while BET-CA gave the best permeation performance in Franz cells, so it was further investigated in 3D human keratinocytes (HaCat spheroids) injured with the pro-oxidant agent menadione. BET-CA treatment showed good intracellular antioxidant activity (IC50 0.15 \ub1 0.02 \ub5g mL 121 in malvidin content) and significantly decreased (p &lt; 0.001) the release of the pro-inflammatory cytokine IL-8, improving cell viability. Thus, BET-CA formulation is worthy of investigation for potential use as a cosmetic ingredient to reduce oxidative stress and inflammation, which are causes of skin aging

Defined \u3b1-synuclein prion-like molecular assemblies spreading in cell culture

BACKGROUND: \u3b1-Synuclein (\u3b1-syn) plays a central role in the pathogenesis of synucleinopathies, a group of neurodegenerative disorders that includes Parkinson disease, dementia with Lewy bodies and multiple system atrophy. Several findings from cell culture and mouse experiments suggest intercellular \u3b1-syn transfer. RESULTS: Through a methodology used to obtain synthetic mammalian prions, we tested whether recombinant human \u3b1-syn amyloids can promote prion-like accumulation in neuronal cell lines in vitro. A single exposure to amyloid fibrils of human \u3b1-syn was sufficient to induce aggregation of endogenous \u3b1-syn in human neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cells. Remarkably, endogenous wild-type \u3b1-syn was sufficient for the formation of these aggregates, and overexpression of the protein was not required. CONCLUSIONS: Our results provide compelling evidence that endogenous \u3b1-syn can accumulate in cell culture after a single exposure to exogenous \u3b1-syn short amyloid fibrils. Importantly, using \u3b1-syn short amyloid fibrils as seed, endogenous \u3b1-syn aggregates and accumulates over several passages in cell culture, providing an excellent tool for potential therapeutic screening of pathogenic \u3b1-syn aggregates

Free testosterone (FT) is inversely related to frailty in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected men.

BACKGROUND HIV-infection is associated to several age-related comorbidities, such as a premature decline of serum testosterone (T). There is evidence about the relationship between health status, represented by frailty and comorbidities, and serum T levels in general population, while only one previous retrospective study investigated it in HIV-infected men. AIM To investigate the association between frailty and gonadal status by assessing serum total T (TT) with Liquid Chromatography tandem Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) in a cohort of HIV-infected men. METHODS Prospective, cross-sectional, observational study on HIV-infected men (age years) with ongoing Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy (HAART). Serum TT was assessed by the gold standard ID- LC-MS/MS. Sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) was measured by chemiluminescent immunoassay. Free T (FT) was calculated by Vermeulen equation. Frailty was calculated through -items multimorbidity frailty index. Saca aa Parameters were not normally distributed and Mann- Whitney U test was used to compare continuous variables. Correlations were performed using linear regression models. RESULTS consecutive HIV-infected men were enrolled (mean age .. years; average duration of HIV-infection .. years). patients (.) had TT below ng/dL and patients (.) had calculated FT below pg/mL. Overall, patients (.) had T deficiency defined by low TT levels and/or low FT. patients (.) showed SHBG above the normal range (. nmol/L). Frailty score (p.), age (p.), duration of HIV-infection and of HAART (p.) significantly differed between eugonadic and hypogonadic patients, while no difference was found for BMI (p.). FT inversely correlated with frailty score (p., R.), while TT did not (p.). At stepwise multivariate regression analysis, FT showed an inverse relation with age (p.,R.), years of infection (-.,p.,R.) and years of HAART (-.,p.,R.), but not with frailty score and BMI of patients. CONCLUSIONS To the best of our knowledge, this is the first properly-designed prospective study aiming to investigate the relationship between general health status and gonadal function in a cohort of HIV-infected men. FT is inversely related to frailty score, suggesting an impairment of gonadal function in those patients affected by more multimorbidities in this setting as well as in general population. At the same time, the age of patient and the duration of HIV-infection seem to be more potent predictive factors for serum FT levels than frailty score. In clinical practice it is important to check for testosterone in these patients due to frequent alterations of SHBG

Low Serum Testosterone (T) Is Associated with Poor Health Status in Young to Middle-Aged Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)-Infected Men.

BACKGROUND: The relationship between health status, defined by frailty and comorbidities, and serum T levels has been widely demonstrated in general population, while only one previous retrospective study has explored it in HIV-infected men1. AIM: To investigate the association between frailty and go- nadal status by assessing serum total T (TT) with Liquid Chromatography tandem Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) in a cohort of HIV-infected men. METHODS: Prospective, cross-sectional, observational study on HIV-infected men (age &lt;50 years) with on- going Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy. Serum TT was assessed by the gold standard ID-LC-MS/MS. Sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) was measured by chem- iluminescent immunoassay. Calculated free T (cFT) was obtained by Vermeulen equation. Multimorbidity was de- fined as at least 3 comorbid conditions, including: hyperten- sion, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, chronic kidney disease, osteoporosis, chronic viral hepatitis and cancers. Frailty was calculated through the validated 37-item frailty index (FI)2. Patients with FI&gt;0.21 were considered frail. Statistical ana- lysis: Mann-Whitney U test was used to compare contin- uous variables. Correlations were performed using linear regression models. RESULTS: 315 consecutive HIV-infected men were enrolled (mean age 45.3\ub15.3 years; average duration of HIV-infection 16.3\ub18.8 years). 128 patients (40.5%) were co- morbid and 207 (64.9%) were frail. Either cFT (p=0.001) or TT (p&lt;0.001) were lower in comorbid patients than others. FT was inversely related to the number of comorbidities (p&lt;0.001, R2=0.045). Accordingly, cFT (p=0.003) and TT (p&lt;0.001) were significantly lower in frail patients.Frailty score was inversely correlated with cFT (p&lt;0.001, R2=0.058), TT (p=0.041, R2=0.014) and SHBG (p=0.003, R2=0.029). However, after adjustment for age and duration of HIV-infection, cFT, TT and SHBG were excluded from the regression model. CONCLUSIONS: Low cFT and TT levels are associated with multimorbidity and poor health status in HIV infected men. The bidirectional nature of this relationship leads to the figuration of an intriguing vicious circle where T de- ficiency triggers the onset of comorbidities or, vice versa, poor health status induces hypogonadism. At the same time, notwithstanding the inverse relation between FT and frailty, it seems that other stronger predictive factors, and in particular the duration of infection, are involved in de- termining the health outcome in this clinical setting