Room-Temperature Zwitterionic Ionic Liquids

A novel series of zwitterionic ionic liquids based on (E) or (Z) isomer of an urocanic moiety containing a carboxylate group have been prepared. All synthesized compounds present melting points below 100°C. This value can be easily tuned by changing the length of alkyl chain grafted on the imidazolium moiety and the nature of isomer.  Hence, melting temperature as low as -20°C was obtained for Z isomer with a N1, N3-methyloctyl imidazolium moiety

Neural Networks for Hyperspectral Imaging of Historical Paintings: A Practical Review

Hyperspectral imaging (HSI) has become widely used in cultural heritage (CH). This very efficient method for artwork analysis is connected with the generation of large amounts of spectral data. The effective processing of such heavy spectral datasets remains an active research area. Along with the firmly established statistical and multivariate analysis methods, neural networks (NNs) represent a promising alternative in the field of CH. Over the last five years, the application of NNs for pigment identification and classification based on HSI datasets has drastically expanded due to the flexibility of the types of data they can process, and their superior ability to extract structures contained in the raw spectral data. This review provides an exhaustive analysis of the literature related to NNs applied for HSI data in the CH field. We outline the existing data processing workflows and propose a comprehensive comparison of the applications and limitations of the various input dataset preparation methods and NN architectures. By leveraging NN strategies in CH, the paper contributes to a wider and more systematic application of this novel data analysis method

The Messale Rosselli : Scientific investigation on an outstanding 14th century illuminated manuscript from Avignon

The manuscript D.I.21 kept at Biblioteca Nazionale Universitaria in Torino, better known as Messale Rosselli, is one of the richest fully illustrated missals surviving from the mid-14th century. It was produced in Avignon for the Aragonese Cardinal Nicolas Rossell (1314–1362) but after the patron's death, it passed from hand to hand until it reached its final destination in Torino. The Messale Rosselli has recently been the object of a thorough interdisciplinary study, involving full characterisation of the colourants with non-invasive techniques (FORS, fluorimetry, XRF spectrometry, optical microscopy, IR photography). The full set of colourants was identified, highlighting the systematic use of precious pigments such as lapis lazuli, cinnabar and gold, a feature reinforcing the symbolic value of the manuscript; in addition, less valuable but interesting dyes such as brazilwood and folium were also identified, used either pure or in a mixture with pigments in order to obtain a wide range of hues. The palettes used by the various artists have been evaluated according to the availability of raw materials in the geographic area around Avignon, finding that most of the colourants could be at easy disposal of the artists. Information has also been obtained concerning the preparation of the parchment. The systematic measurement of the width of folios allowed hypothesising the number of the animals slaughtered to produce parchment, and the way of using skins. XRF analysis on the folios suggested that different preparations were used. Finally, eZooMS, a non-invasive technique able to provide information on the animal species from which parchment was produced, evidenced that calf and goat, but not sheep, were used to produce the parchment of the Messale Rosselli

Serum amyloid A: production by human white adipocyte and regulation by obesity and nutrition

AIMS/HYPOTHESIS: The acute-phase proteins, serum amyloid As (SAA), are precursors of amyloid A, involved in the pathogenesis of AA amyloidosis. This work started with the characterisation of systemic AA amyloidosis concurrent with SAA overexpression in the subcutaneous white adipose tissue (sWAT) of an obese patient with a leptin receptor deficiency. In the present study a series of histopathological, cellular and gene expression studies was performed to assess the importance of SAA in common obesity and its possible production by mature adipocytes. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Gene expression profiling was performed in the sWAT of two extremely obese patients with a leptin receptor deficiency. Levels of the mRNAs of the different SAA isoforms were quantified in sWAT cellular fractions from lean subjects and from obese subjects before and after a very-low-calorie diet. These values were subsequently compared with serum levels of SAA in these individuals. In addition, histopathological analyses of sWAT were performed in lean and obese subjects. RESULTS: In sWAT, the expression of SAA is more than 20-fold higher in mature adipocytes than in the cells of the stroma vascular fraction (p<0.01). Levels of SAA mRNA expression and circulating levels of the protein are sixfold (p<0.001) and 3.5-fold (p<0.01) higher in obese subjects than in lean subjects, respectively. In lean subjects, 5% of adipocytes are immunoreactive for SAA, whereas the corresponding value is greater than 20% in obese subjects. Caloric restriction results in decreases of 45-75% in levels of the transcripts for the SAA isoforms and in circulating levels of the protein. CONCLUSIONS/INTERPRETATION: The results of the present study indicate that SAA is expressed by sWAT, and its production at this site is regulated by nutritional status. If amyloidosis is seen in the context of obesity, it is possible that production of SAA by adipocytes could be a contributory factor

Mechanisms of somatostatin action in RINm5F cells in culture: Preliminary evidence for possible altered G protein function

Octreotide (SMS), a somatostatin analogue, is an established antigrowth peptide, but it does not effectively inhibit the growth of insulinoma cells. In order to study the mechanisms that underlie this apparent lack of an antiproliferative effect on insulinoma tumor cells we established the rat insulinoma cell line, RINm5F, in culture. Cells in culture were tested by incubation in media with and without SMS. To study tritiated [3H]-thymidine incorporation into extracted DNA (TTID), 2 [mu]Ci/well of 3H was added for 24 hr, and cells were harvested and assayed for TTID (cpm/[mu]g DNA). Insulin (IRI) and intracellular cAMP (cAMPi) were measured by RIA. To study the effects of SMS on insulin secretion, conditioned media were sampled after 24 hr. To study the effects of cAMP1, conditioned medium was used to extract cAMPi, following incubation with SMS for 15 min. Increasing concentrations of SMS had no significant effect on TTID in the presence of 1% FBS. Trypan blue exclusion tests showed&gt;90% viable cells throughout all stages of these experiments. There were no significant differences in cell numbers and protein content in the presence of SMS. There was a significant decrease in the secretion of insulin and intracellular cAMP levels in response to 50 nM SMS. However, SMS significantly inhibited TTID in RINm5F cells following a 4-hr pretreatment with pertussis toxin (PT) (23553 +/- 1747 vs 20635 [cpm/[mu]g DNA] +/- 1983 [SEM], P &lt; 0.01). We conclude that the inhibition of insulin secretion by SMS is associated with an attenuation of CAMP formation. However, the effects of SMS on cell proliferation appear to be distinct and more complex. The unexpected ability of PT to induce the inhibition of TTID by SMS suggests that SMS mediates, at least some of, its effects on cell proliferation in RINm5F cells via a possibly altered G protein or related signal transducing mechanism. Further study of the signal transduction system in RINm5F cells may elucidate the mechanisms of tumor growth in insulinoma.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/29757/1/0000095.pd

The Long Exception: Rethinking the Place of the New Deal in American History

The Long Exception examines the period from Franklin Roosevelt to the end of the twentieth century and argues that the New Deal was more of an historical aberration—a byproduct of the massive crisis of the Great Depression—than the linear triumph of the welfare state. The depth of the Depression undoubtedly forced the realignment of American politics and class relations for decades, but, it is argued, there is more continuity in American politics between the periods before the New Deal order and those after its decline than there is between the postwar era and the rest of American history. Indeed, by the early seventies the arc of American history had fallen back upon itself. While liberals of the seventies and eighties waited for a return to what they regarded as the normality of the New Deal order, they were actually living in the final days of what Paul Krugman later called the interregnum between Gilded Ages. The article examines four central themes in building this argument: race, religion, class, and individualism

The ThomX project status

Work supported by the French Agence Nationale de la recherche as part of the program EQUIPEX under reference ANR-10-EQPX-51, the Ile de France region, CNRS-IN2P3 and Université Paris Sud XI - http://accelconf.web.cern.ch/AccelConf/IPAC2014/papers/wepro052.pdfA collaboration of seven research institutes and an industry has been set up for the ThomX project, a compact Compton Backscattering Source (CBS) based in Orsay - France. After a period of study and definition of the machine performance, a full description of all the systems has been provided. The infrastructure work has been started and the main systems are in the call for tender phase. In this paper we will illustrate the definitive machine parameters and components characteristics. We will also update the results of the different technical and experimental activities on optical resonators, RF power supplies and on the electron gun