Plate bearing tests for working platforms

During piling and other construction works, a working platform is often constructed across the site. These platforms comprise aggregate material placed and compacted to a designed thickness. Satisfactory performance of the platform may be confirmed by a plate bearing test. Current guidance given on plate bearing testing of granular soils suggests that the plate be at least five times the nominal size of the coarsest material. For a working platform this may be large and the reaction load required from plant and resources to carry out the bearing test may become excessively high. The aim of the research presented in this paper was to investigate the effect of particle to plate size ratios to establish if the use of a smaller plate would still allow a reliable test to be performed on site. Plate bearing tests were carried out in a centrifuge using a large, coarse grained limestone. The limestone was graded to a scale representation of 6F2 material, a commonly specified particle size distribution for working platforms. The size of plate was varied and the load displacement response recorded. The measured bearing capacity was correlated with the ratio of particle to plate size

Design and development of a large shear box for testing working platform material

On large construction projects where deep foundations are to be installed, a working platform is placed across the entire site. This is comprised of a layer of aggregate (often crushed construction waste) usually with a particle size ranging from 120 mm downwards. Deep foundations are installed using heavy and tall drilling rigs and the working platform is thus safety critical to reduce the risk of machinery sinking and/or toppling which would lead to accidents and often serious injury to workers. Currently available design guidance is felt to result in conservative designs and there are many benefits to be gained from a greater understanding of the behaviour of working platform material. The design of these platforms is primarily governed by the angle of friction of the platform material. The measurement of friction angle for geomaterials that have large particle sizes is problematic (due to reasons of scale) and is often addressed by scaling down the material's grading curve prior to testing in small to medium size direct shear apparatus. The work presented here details the design of and the rationale for a large scale direct shear apparatus suitable for testing geomaterials with particle size distributions of the type that would be utilised in working platforms

Long-term safety and efficacy of trifarotene 50 μg/g cream, a first-in-class RAR-γ selective topical retinoid, in patients with moderate facial and truncal acne.

BackgroundTreatment for both facial and truncal acne has not sufficiently been studied.ObjectivesTo evaluate the long-term safety and efficacy of trifarotene in both facial and truncal acne.MethodsIn a multicentre, open-label, 52-week study, patients with moderate facial and truncal acne received trifarotene 50 μg/g cream (trifarotene). Assessments included local tolerability, safety, investigator and physician's global assessments (IGA, PGA) and quality of life (QOL). A validated QOL questionnaire was completed by the patient at Baseline, Week 12, 26 and 52/ET.ResultsOf 453 patients enrolled, 342 (75.5%) completed the study. Trifarotene-related treatment-emergent adverse events (TEAEs) were reported in 12.6% of patients, and none was serious. Most related TEAEs were cutaneous and occurred during the first 3 months. Signs and symptoms of local tolerability were mostly mild or moderate and severe signs, and symptoms were reported for 2.2% to 7.1% of patients for the face and 2.5% to 5.4% for the trunk. Local irritation increased during the first week of treatment on the face and up to Weeks 2 to 4 on the trunk with both decreasing thereafter. At Week 12, IGA and PGA success rates were 26.6% and 38.6%, respectively. Success rates increased to 65.1% and 66.9%, respectively at Week 52. Overall success (both IGA and PGA success in the same patient) was 57.9% at Week 52. At Week 52 visit, 92/171 (53.8%) patients who had completed their assessments had scores from 0 to 1 (i.e. no effect of acne on their QOL) vs. 47/208 (22.6%) patients at Baseline visit.ConclusionIn this 52-week study, trifarotene was safe, well tolerated and effective in moderate facial and truncal acne

Antiangiogenic activity of semisynthetic biotechnological heparins: low-molecular-weight-sulfated Escherichia coli K5 polysaccharide derivatives as fibroblast growth factor antagonists.

OBJECTIVE: Low-molecular-weight heparin (LMWH) exerts antitumor activity in clinical trials. The K5 polysaccharide from Escherichia coli has the same structure as the heparin precursor. Chemical and enzymatic modifications of K5 polysaccharide lead to the production of biotechnological heparin-like compounds. We investigated the fibroblast growth factor-2 (FGF2) antagonist and antiangiogenic activity of a series of LMW N,O-sulfated K5 derivatives. METHODS AND RESULTS: Surface plasmon resonance analysis showed that LMW-K5 derivatives bind FGF2, thus inhibiting its interaction with heparin immobilized to a BIAcore sensor chip. Interaction of FGF2 with tyrosine-kinase receptors (FGFRs), heparan sulfate proteoglycans (HSPGs), and alpha(v)beta3 integrin is required for biological response in endothelial cells. Similar to LMWH, LMW-K5 derivatives abrogate the formation of HSPG/FGF2/FGFR ternary complexes by preventing FGF2-mediated attachment of FGFR1-overexpressing cells to HSPG-bearing cells and inhibit FGF2-mediated endothelial cell proliferation. However, LMW-K5 derivatives, but not LMWH, also inhibit FGF2/alpha(v)beta3 integrin interaction and consequent FGF2-mediated endothelial cell sprouting in vitro and angiogenesis in vivo in the chick embryo chorioallantoic membrane. CONCLUSIONS: LMW N,O-sulfated K5 derivatives affect both HSPG/FGF2/FGFR and FGF2/alpha(v)beta3 interactions and are endowed with FGF2 antagonist and antiangiogenic activity. These compounds may provide the basis for the design of novel LMW heparin-like angiostatic compounds

'Covid-19 opened the pandora box' of the creative city:creative and cultural workers against precarity in Milan

Creative and cultural workers (CCWs) concentrate in large cities due to the livelihood opportunities they facilitate. Synchronously, cities have experienced the highest rate of Covid-19 infections. Focusing on the case study of Milan, the paper explores the criticalities of the sector and the impact of the pandemic using qualitative interviews and digital ethnography. It highlights how C-19 has exacerbated the effects of neoliberalism on CCWs, illuminating their precarious working conditions but paradoxically providing time and focus for workers to collectively organise. This paper captures CCWs use of the city to make their precarious working conditions visible in response to the unsustainable demands of neoliberalism. It also engages with the need for re-futuring contemporary understanding of the creative city, questioning the value of agglomeration economies and creative city policies, especially if workers' rights and livelihoods do not become central to the future local policy agenda.</p

Alla base di uno stereotipo: il successo dei mungitori punjabi in Emilia-Romagna

Starting from the ‘90s, Emilia-Romagna’s milking niche has experienced the progressive involvement of workers coming from the Indian state of Punjab. Over the past few years, the extraordinary rise of milk production made possible by the Punjab workers led to a stereotype: the holiness that cows are appointed with in India would make Punjab workers “ethnically susceptible” to perform milking. This originates from a superficial and incorrect belief. Nonetheless, it helps to stimulate a discussion about the reasons of the ability Punjabis indeed demonstrate in their work. Through the ethnographic method, it will be shown how Punjabis are qualified because they embody specific skills, displayed in Italian cowsheds, on account of the rural environment they grew up in.In Emilia-Romagna, a partire dagli anni ’90, la nicchia lavorativa deputata alla mungitura di latte vaccino è stata occupata in maniera capillare da persone provenienti dallo Stato indiano del Punjab. Gli ottimi risultati raggiunti dai lavoratori punjabi all’interno delle aziende nel corso degli anni hanno prodotto uno stereotipo: i mungitori, poiché indiani, considererebbero la vacca un animale sacro e dunque sarebbero “etnicamente predisposti” al loro lavoro. La falsa credenza è frutto di una conoscenza superficiale ed errata, ma ha il pregio di stimolare una riflessione sulle cause dell’effettiva perizia dimostrata dai mungitori punjabi. La ricerca etnografica ha messo in luce che i punjabi, provenendo in maggioranza da contesti agricoli, sono competenti perché depositari di una serie di pratiche incorporate e riprodotte nelle stalle Italiane

Cosmeceuticals based on Rhealba® Oat plantlet extract for the treatment of acne vulgaris

Recent evidence suggests that acne vulgaris begins as an inflammation in and around the sebaceous gland and alterations in the lipid content of sebum, which drive hyperproliferation and increased desquamation of keratinocytes within sebaceous follicles. This prevents sebum drainage, causing the formation of microcomedones, which spontaneously regress or become acne lesions when the pilosebaceous unit is further blocked by the accumulation of corneocytes. These conditions are favourable for the proliferation of Propionibacterium acnes, which further aggravates acne by enhancing abnormal desquamation, sebum production and inflammation. Also, skin fragility due to inflammation or irritation by anti-comedogenic agents can worsen the situation. Rhealba((R)) Oat plantlet extract (Pierre Fabre Dermo Cosmetique) soothes and restores fragile skin in acne by reducing inflammation and inhibits bacterial adhesion of Propionibacterium acnes. Cosmeceuticals combining Rhealba((R)) Oat plantlet extract and hydro-compensating actives, which are available with or without anti-comedogenic hydroxy acids, provide a balanced, multifaceted approach for acne patients

Stability of Working Platforms for Tracked Plant

The aim of this research is to improve the design of working platforms for tracked plant in order to guarantee safety but also a more economical approach to the design. The reason for this concern derives in part from incidents of overturning plant which have taken place in the past, some of them resulting in injuries and/or death of operatives, but also from the consequent use of excessively conservative and therefore uneconomical design. Common practice for the design of working platforms is the use of bearing capacity methods normally adopted for the construction of spread foundations. The objective of this approach is the definition of an appropriate platform thickness which is back calculated from a bearing capacity equation. According to this type of design, the thickness of the platform changes based on the characteristics of the platform material and of the subgrade. Among these factors, the one having more influence on the resulting thickness is the design angle of friction of the platform material, which therefore need to be accurately established. A common laboratory method used to measure the angle of friction of soils is the direct shear test. Difficulties in the correct interpretation of the results of this test are mainly associated with the presence of scale effects. As extensively reported by literature, scale effects can derive from testing material with a large particle size which is not suitable for testing in a standard apparatus, that would cause the shear strength of the material to be overestimated. A solution to this issue often consists of testing a scaled sample of the material using the standard apparatus. Nonetheless, even this approach can induce scale effects leading to an underestimation of the angle of friction when an important reduction in particle size is produced. Another method used to derive the angle of friction of the platform material is the plate bearing capacity test which is normally conducted on site. In order to guarantee reliable results for the bearing capacity of the material and the derived angle of friction, an appropriate ratio between plate diameter and particle size must be used. The problem of this method is associated with the high costs of the testing apparatus which are substantially increased by the large particle size of the material requiring large plate diameters to be used during the test and consequently high reaction forces to be applied. In order to investigate the scale effects associated with testing the material at smaller scale using the standard shear box apparatus and with using different plate diameters in case of plate loading tests, a series of small scale direct shear tests and plate loading test using a centrifuge model were conducted on two small scale samples of crushed limestone. The results of these tests were used to derive the angle of friction of the material and were compared with the ones obtained from testing the same material at full scale using a large shear box apparatus which was designed and manufactured for the purpose of this research. Comparison of the results allowed to identify the magnitude of the scale effects on the value of the angle of friction of the material. Differences in results should be taken into account in order to define an appropriate value for the design

Fixed-Combination Halobetasol Propionate and Tazarotene in the Treatment of Psoriasis: Narrative Review of Mechanisms of Action and Therapeutic Benefits

Psoriasis is a lifelong disease associated with cycles of remission and relapse. Topical treatments are the front line of psoriasis therapy for most patients and have antiproliferative, anti-inflammatory, and immunosuppressive mechanisms of action. Novel fixed-dose combinations of topical therapeutic agents are becoming increasingly available, leveraging multiple mechanisms of action to improve safety and efficacy with formulations that are easier to use and may allow for the use of lower doses of active ingredients. A fixed-combination lotion containing the potent-to-super-potent corticosteroid halobetasol propionate (HP) and the retinoid tazarotene (HP 0.01%/TAZ 0.045%) was recently developed using polymeric emulsion technology. This new formulation technology allows for more uniform and efficient delivery of the active ingredients at lower doses than conventional monotherapy formulations of either ingredient while providing enhanced hydration and moisturization. This review provides an up-to-date overview of the therapeutic mechanisms of action of HP and TAZ, the rationale behind the development of HP 0.01%/TAZ 0.045% lotion, and clinical trials data on the efficacy, safety and tolerability, and maintenance of therapeutic effect with HP 0.01%/TAZ 0.045% lotion in the treatment of moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis