Something that Touches your Heart: an Unusual Case of Abdominal Clonic Movements

Background: Rarely, cardiac pacemaker implant can lead to the development of involuntary hyperkinetic movement disorders localized to the abdominal wall or the diaphragm. Phenomenology Shown: We report a case of a 79-year-old female who developed rhythmic continuous clonic right abdominal movements caused by cardiac pacemaker lead dislodgement. Educational Value: Our case highlights that, in the differential diagnosis of hyperkinetic abdominal movement disorder, the presence and the possible pathogenic role of a cardiac pacemaker should be kept in mind

Design of a 350 kW DC/DC Converter in 1200-V SiC Module Technology for Automotive Component Testing

In this paper, the design and implementation of a DC/DC converter for automotive component testing with state-of-the art performance is described. The converter is the core of a battery emulator for the characterization and development of automotive batteries, electronic chargers, traction inverters, DC-DC converters, E-motors and E-axles. Cutting edge performance, flexibility and compactness are obtained by exploiting 1200-V SiC modules, high switching frequency, planar transformer technology, suitable topology solutions and fast digital control strategies. The implemented system is a liquid-cooled, bidirectional converter with galvanic isolation capable of 350 kW continuous output power, output voltage range 48-1000 V, continuous output current up to 800 A (1600 A peak), voltage/current ramp-up time below 10/2 ms and 0.1% current/voltage accuracy. The entire instrument is implemented in a standard full-height 19-inch rack cabinet

Direct‐acting antivirals for HCV treatment in older patients: A systematic review and meta‐analysis

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CDK9 as a Valuable Target in Cancer: From Natural Compounds Inhibitors to Current Treatment in Pediatric Soft Tissue Sarcomas

Cyclin-Dependent Kinases (CDKs) are well-known reliable targets for cancer treatment being often deregulated. Among them, since the transcription-associated CDK9 represents the sentry of cell transcriptional homeostasis, it can be a valuable target for managing cancers in which the transcriptional machinery is dysregulated by tumor-driver oncogenes. Here we give an overview of some natural compounds identified as CDK inhibitors with reported activity also against CDK9, that were taken as a model for the development of highly active synthetic anti-CDK9 agents. After, we summarize the data on CDK9 inhibition in a group of rare pediatric solid tumors such as rhabdomyosarcoma, Ewing's sarcoma, synovial sarcoma and malignant rhabdoid tumors (soft tissue sarcomas), highlighting the more recent results in this field. Finally, we discuss the perspective and challenge of CDK9 modulation in cancer

Four loop reciprocity of twist two operators in N=4 SYM

The four loop universal anomalous dimension of twist-2 operators in N=4 SYM has been recently conjectured. In this paper, we prove that it obeys a generalized Gribov-Lipatov reciprocity, previously known to hold at the three loop level.Comment: 15 pages, v3: Appendix A.3 added, main body shortened, version accepted in JHE

The DivJ, CbrA and PleC system controls DivK phosphorylation and symbiosis in Sinorhizobium meliloti

Sinorhizobium meliloti is a soil bacterium that invades the root nodules it induces on Medicago sativa, whereupon it undergoes an alteration of its cell cycle and differentiates into nitrogen-fixing, elongated and polyploid bacteroid with higher membrane permeability. In Caulobacter crescentus, a related alphaproteobacterium, the principal cell cycle regulator, CtrA, is inhibited by the phosphorylated response regulator DivK. The phosphorylation of DivK depends on the histidine kinase DivJ, while PleC is the principal phosphatase for DivK. Despite the importance of the DivJ in C. crescentus, the mechanistic role of this kinase has never been elucidated in other Alphaproteobacteria. We show here that the histidine kinases DivJ together with CbrA and PleC participate in a complex phosphorylation system of the essential response regulator DivK in S. meliloti. In particular, DivJ and CbrA are involved in DivK phosphorylation and in turn CtrA inactivation, thereby controlling correct cell cycle progression and the integrity of the cell envelope. In contrast, the essential PleC presumably acts as a phosphatase of DivK. Interestingly, we found that a DivJ mutant is able to elicit nodules and enter plant cells, but fails to establish an effective symbiosis suggesting that proper envelope and/or low CtrA levels are required for symbiosis.National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (Grant GM31010

An innovative solution based on human-computer interaction to support cognitive rehabilitation

This contribution focuses its objective in describing the design and implementation of an innovative system to provide cognitive rehabilitation. People who will take advantage of this platform suffer from a post-stroke disease called Apraxia and Action Disorganisation Syndrome (AADS). The platform has been integrated at Universidad Politécnica de Madrid and tries to reduce the stay in hospital or rehabilitation center by supporting self-rehabilitation at home. So, the system acts as an intelligent machine that guides patients while executing Activities of Daily Living (ADL), Journal of Accessibility and Design for All (CC) JACCES, 2014 - 4(3): 238-254. ISSN: 2013-7087 J. M. Cogollor, M. Pastorino, J. Rojo, A. Fioravanti, A. Wing, M. T. Arredondo, M. Ferre, J. Breñosa, J. Hermsdörfer, J. De Teresa, C. Walton, A. Worthington, C. Giachritsis 239 such as preparing a simple tea, by informing them about the errors committed and possible actions to correct them. A short introduction to other works related to stroke, patients to work with, how the system works and how it is implemented are provided in the document. Finally, some relevant information from experiment made with healthy people for technical validation is also shown.Peer Reviewe

Indici per la valutazione della qualit? ecologica dei laghi

Collection of methods to evaluate lake quality using biological element

Exploring the symbiotic pangenome of the nitrogen-fixing bacterium Sinorhizobium meliloti

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p><it>Sinorhizobium meliloti </it>is a model system for the studies of symbiotic nitrogen fixation. An extensive polymorphism at the genetic and phenotypic level is present in natural populations of this species, especially in relation with symbiotic promotion of plant growth. AK83 and BL225C are two nodule-isolated strains with diverse symbiotic phenotypes; BL225C is more efficient in promoting growth of the <it>Medicago sativa </it>plants than strain AK83. In order to investigate the genetic determinants of the phenotypic diversification of <it>S. meliloti </it>strains AK83 and BL225C, we sequenced the complete genomes for these two strains.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>With sizes of 7.14 Mbp and 6.97 Mbp, respectively, the genomes of AK83 and BL225C are larger than the laboratory strain Rm1021. The core genome of Rm1021, AK83, BL225C strains included 5124 orthologous groups, while the accessory genome was composed by 2700 orthologous groups. While Rm1021 and BL225C have only three replicons (Chromosome, pSymA and pSymB), AK83 has also two plasmids, 260 and 70 Kbp long. We found 65 interesting orthologous groups of genes that were present only in the accessory genome, consequently responsible for phenotypic diversity and putatively involved in plant-bacterium interaction. Notably, the symbiosis inefficient AK83 lacked several genes required for microaerophilic growth inside nodules, while several genes for accessory functions related to competition, plant invasion and bacteroid tropism were identified only in AK83 and BL225C strains. Presence and extent of polymorphism in regulons of transcription factors involved in symbiotic interaction were also analyzed. Our results indicate that regulons are flexible, with a large number of accessory genes, suggesting that regulons polymorphism could also be a key determinant in the variability of symbiotic performances among the analyzed strains.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>In conclusions, the extended comparative genomics approach revealed a variable subset of genes and regulons that may contribute to the symbiotic diversity.</p

Colorectal Cancer Stage at Diagnosis Before vs During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Italy

IMPORTANCE Delays in screening programs and the reluctance of patients to seek medical attention because of the outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 could be associated with the risk of more advanced colorectal cancers at diagnosis. OBJECTIVE To evaluate whether the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic was associated with more advanced oncologic stage and change in clinical presentation for patients with colorectal cancer. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS This retrospective, multicenter cohort study included all 17 938 adult patients who underwent surgery for colorectal cancer from March 1, 2020, to December 31, 2021 (pandemic period), and from January 1, 2018, to February 29, 2020 (prepandemic period), in 81 participating centers in Italy, including tertiary centers and community hospitals. Follow-up was 30 days from surgery. EXPOSURES Any type of surgical procedure for colorectal cancer, including explorative surgery, palliative procedures, and atypical or segmental resections. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES The primary outcome was advanced stage of colorectal cancer at diagnosis. Secondary outcomes were distant metastasis, T4 stage, aggressive biology (defined as cancer with at least 1 of the following characteristics: signet ring cells, mucinous tumor, budding, lymphovascular invasion, perineural invasion, and lymphangitis), stenotic lesion, emergency surgery, and palliative surgery. The independent association between the pandemic period and the outcomes was assessed using multivariate random-effects logistic regression, with hospital as the cluster variable. RESULTS A total of 17 938 patients (10 007 men [55.8%]; mean [SD] age, 70.6 [12.2] years) underwent surgery for colorectal cancer: 7796 (43.5%) during the pandemic period and 10 142 (56.5%) during the prepandemic period. Logistic regression indicated that the pandemic period was significantly associated with an increased rate of advanced-stage colorectal cancer (odds ratio [OR], 1.07; 95%CI, 1.01-1.13; P = .03), aggressive biology (OR, 1.32; 95%CI, 1.15-1.53; P &lt; .001), and stenotic lesions (OR, 1.15; 95%CI, 1.01-1.31; P = .03). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE This cohort study suggests a significant association between the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic and the risk of a more advanced oncologic stage at diagnosis among patients undergoing surgery for colorectal cancer and might indicate a potential reduction of survival for these patients