La migrazione delle prove INVALSI di Matematica da PPT a CBT. Uno studio sulle prove di pre-test per la II superiore

This article describes an INVALSI trial for passing from paper based tests to computer-based tests conducted in the 2016 math pre-test campaign for the second class of the secondary school (level 10). The purpose of the study is to compare paper & pencil and computer-based delivery of the same test, in relation to the student’s ability and to the item functioning in terms of difficulty(b), discrimination (Id), and percentage of missing. A nationally representative sample of 10th grade students was administered computer-based mathematics test. In addition a parallel sample of students was administered the same test in paper & pencil mode. The results show that test in computer- based mode was significantly harder statistically than the paper-based test. There are no significant differences in the estimated student’s ability.Questo articolo dà conto dei risultati di una sperimentazione INVALSI per il passaggio da prove cartacee a prove computer based condotta nella campagna di pre-test del 2016 di matematica del livello 10. Scopo dello studioè il confronto fra la somministrazione cartacea e quella computer based della stessa prova, sia in relazione alla stima dell’abilità degli studenti sia in relazione al comportamento degli item in termini di parametri di difficoltà, di indice di discriminatività e di percentuale di risposte omesse. A un campione rappresentativo a livello nazionale degli studenti di livello 10 è stata somministrata una prova di matematica in modalità computer based e a un campione parallelo la stessa prova in modalità cartacea. I risultati mostrano che la prova in formato computer based risulta mediamente più difficile della prova in formato cartaceo. Non ci sono invece differenze significative nella stima dell’abilità degli studenti

Germinative potential of Ocimum basilicum L. seeds in commercial substrate and soil conditioner

In the production process Ocimum basilicum seeds, the substrate selection is an important characterist in qualitative terms, as way to obtain a great culture development, in addition to reducing the production costs. The objective of this reserach was to analyze the effect of the substrate based on tanned bovine manure, at diferent concentration, on the germination of O. basilicum seeds. The research was conducted under greenhouse conditions, ans composed by six treatments, related with the comercial substrate Carolina Soil® and also by tanned bovine manure, analyzed alone, but also in misture with diferente concentrations. For each treatment, six replicates were carried out, directed into plastic polyethylene trays, and each replicate was characterized by 10 cells from the tray. After filling the cells with each treatments, sowing was carried out, and after second day of planting, evaluation were carried out regarding the average number of germination seeds, germination speed index (GSI) and the average germination time (AGT). The best results were related to the treatments based on commercial substrate and also commercial substrate (80%) + tanned bovine manure (20%), with average seed germination above 78.33%, and addition to higher GSI, with average above 1.21, and lower AGT, whose average was below 6.78 days, showing the positive effect of the addition of up to 20% tanned bovine manure in the commercial substrate Carolina Soil®, regarding the germination of O. basilicum seeds.In the production process Ocimum basilicum seeds, the substrate selection is an important characteristic in qualitative terms, as way to obtain a great culture development, in addition to reducing the production costs. The objective of this research was to analyze different concentrations of commercial substrate associated with a soil conditioner, based on tanned bovine manure, in the germination of O. basilicum seeds. The research was conducted under greenhouse conditions, in a completely randomized experimental design, and composed by six treatments [commercial substrate (100%) (T1); commercial substrate (80%) + tanned bovine manure (20%) (T2); commercial substrate (60%) + tanned bovine manure (40%) (T3); commercial substrate (40%) + tanned bovine manure (60%) (T4); commercial substrate (20%) + tanned bovine manure (80%) (T5); and tanned bovine manure (100%) (T6)], and six replicates, and each replicate was characterized by 10 cells from the tray. The seeds were placed into plastic polyethylene trays, under steel countertops. After filling the cells with each treatment, sowing was carried out, and after second day of planting, evaluation was carried out regarding the average number of germination seeds, germination speed index (GSI) and the average germination time (AGT). The best results were related to the treatments based on commercial substrate and also commercial substrate (80%) + tanned bovine manure (20%), with average seed germination above 78.33%, and addition to higher GSI, with average above 1.21, and lower AGT, whose average was below 6.78 days, showing the positive effect of the addition of up to 20% tanned bovine manure in the commercial substrate Carolina Soil®, regarding the germination of O. basilicum seeds

High-throughput docking for the identification of new influenza A virus polymerase inhibitors targeting the PA-PB1 protein-protein interaction

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Large T cell clones expressing immune checkpoints increase during multiple myeloma evolution and predict treatment resistance

Large T cell; Immune checkpoints; Multiple myelomaCèl·lules T grans; Punts de control immunitari; Mieloma múltipleCélulas T grandes; Puntos de control inmunitario; Mieloma múltipleTumor recognition by T cells is essential for antitumor immunity. A comprehensive characterization of T cell diversity may be key to understanding the success of immunomodulatory drugs and failure of PD-1 blockade in tumors such as multiple myeloma (MM). Here, we use single-cell RNA and T cell receptor sequencing to characterize bone marrow T cells from healthy adults (n = 4) and patients with precursor (n = 8) and full-blown MM (n = 10). Large T cell clones from patients with MM expressed multiple immune checkpoints, suggesting a potentially dysfunctional phenotype. Dual targeting of PD-1 + LAG3 or PD-1 + TIGIT partially restored their function in mice with MM. We identify phenotypic hallmarks of large intratumoral T cell clones, and demonstrate that the CD27− and CD27+ T cell ratio, measured by flow cytometry, may serve as a surrogate of clonal T cell expansions and an independent prognostic factor in 543 patients with MM treated with lenalidomide-based treatment combinations.This work was supported by grants from the Instituto de Salud Carlos III/Subdireccion General de Investigacion Sanitaria and co-financed by FEDER funds (CB16/12/00233, CB16/12/00369, PI17/01243, PI19/00818 and PI20/00048), and together with Fundación Científica de la Asociación Española Contra el Cáncer (FCAECC) for iMMunocell Transcan-2 (AC17/00101), FCAECC Predoctoral Grant Junta Provincial Navarra, the Cancer Research UK (C355/A26819), FCAECC and Italian Association for Cancer Research (AIRC) under the Accelerator Award Program (EDITOR), 2017 Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation Immunotherapy Networks of Excellence, Black Swan Research Initiative of the International Myeloma Foundation, European Hematology Association nonclinical advanced research grant (3680644), European Research Council 2015 Starting Grant (MYELOMANEXT grant 680200), the Cancer Research Innovation in Science Cancer Foundation (PR_EX_2020-02), the Leukemia Lymphoma Society, unrestricted grants from Bristol-Myers Squibb/Celgene and Takeda, Roche imCORE program (NAV-4 and NAV-15), Fondazione Regionale per la Ricerca Biomedica (Regione Lombardia) (Project ID 065 JTC 2016), ERA-NET TRANSCAN-2, and by My First AIRC Grant 2020 (n. 24534, 2021/2026), and by the Riney Family Multiple Myeloma Research Program Fund

Probing the Binding Site of Abl Tyrosine Kinase Using in Situ Click Chemistry

Modern combinatorial chemistry is used to discover compounds with desired function by an alternative strategy, in which the biological target is directly involved in the choice of ligands assembled from a pool of smaller fragments. Herein, we present the first experimental result where the use of in situ click chemistry has been successfully applied to probe the ligand-binding site of Abl and the ability of this enzyme to form its inhibitor. Docking studies show that Abl is able to allow the in situ click chemistry between specific azide and alkyne fragments by binding to Abl-active sites. This report allows medicinal chemists to use protein-directed in situ click chemistry for exploring the conformational space of a ligand-binding pocket and the ability of the protein to guide its inhibitor. This approach can be a novel, valuable tool to guide drug design synthesis in the field of tyrosine kinases

Computational studies of the interaction between the HIV-1 integrase tetramer and the cofactor LEDGF/p75: Insights from molecular dynamics simulations and the informational spectrum method

A crystal structure of the integrase binding domain (IBD) of the lens epithelium-derived growth factor (LEDGF/p75) in complex with the dimer of the HIV-1 integrase (IN) catalytic core domain (CCD) provides useful information that might help in the understanding of essential protein-protein contacts in HIV-1. However, mutagenic studies indicated that interactions between the full-length proteins were more extensive than the contacts observed in the co-crystal structure of the isolated domains. On the other hand, the biochemical characterization of the interaction between full-length IN and LEDGF/p75 has recently proved that LEDGF/p75 promotes IN tetramerization with two LEDGF/p75 IBD molecules bound to the IN tetramer. This experimental evidence suggests that to obtain a complete structural description of the interactions between the two proteins, the full-length tetrameric structure of IN should be considered. Our aim was to obtain a detailed picture of HIV-1 IN interactions with cellular co-factors that was of general interest, particularly for the development of small molecule IN inhibitors, which mimic the IBD of LEDGF/p75. To this end, we performed bioinformatics analyses to identify protein sequence domains involved in long-range recognition. Subsequently, we applied molecular dynamics techniques to investigate the detailed interactions between the complete tetrameric form of IN and two molecules of the IBD of LEDGF/p75. Our dynamic picture is in agreement with experimental data and, thereby, provides new details of the IN-LEDGF/p75 interaction

Clinical features of respiratory syncytial virus bronchiolitis in an infant: rapid and fatal brain involvement

BACKGROUND: Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) infection is a significant cause of bronchiolitis and pneumonia, mostly responsible for hospitalization and infant death worldwide. However, in recent years the importance of extrapulmonary RSV manifestations, especially at neurological level, have become evident. Seizures, lethargy, ataxia and status epilepticus are suggestive of brain involvement, but also in their absence a direct neurological damage RSV-related need to be evaluated. CASE PRESENTATION: A 40-day old male infant was admitted to the Emergency Department with severe bronchiolitis and dyspnea. The patient was reported to be coughing for a week with a vomiting episode in the previous two days. The nasopharyngeal swab confirmed the diagnosis of RSV infection and blood gas test showed hypoxemia and respiratory acidosis. For these reasons, the patient was provided with oxygen therapy. A few hours later, after an initial improvement in clinical parameters, a worsening of respiratory dynamics occurred and the patient was prepared for endotracheal intubation, but in the meantime death occurred. During all the observation period in the Emergency Room, no signs of neuropathological damage were evident. Post mortem examination showed lungs congestion with alveolar atelectasis and white matter degradation with severe edema at brain level. Microbiological analysis performed on autoptic samples confirmed the presence of RSV genome in tracheobronchial aspirate, meningeal swabs, pericardic and abdominal fluids, lung and brain biopsies. CONCLUSIONS: RSV is usually associated with respiratory diseases, however, as reported by an increasingly number of studies, the systemic dissemination of virus during severe disease can lead to a sudden infant death. The clinical picture herein reported showed a severe bronchiolitis resulting in a fatal and underestimated cerebral involvement due to RSV neurotropic behaviour and underline the need for clinicians to pay more attention to neurological involvement of RSV infection, even in absence of cerebral damage evidence

Prospective Studies for LEP3 with the CMS Detector

On July 4, 2012, the discovery of a new boson, with mass around 125 GeV/c2 and with properties compatible with those of a standard-model Higgs boson, was announced at CERN. In this context, a high-luminosity electron-positron collider ring, operating in the LHC tunnel at a centre-of-mass energy of 240 GeV and called LEP3, becomes an attractive opportunity both from financial and scientific point of views. The performance and the suitability of the CMS detector are evaluated, with emphasis on an accurate measurement of the Higgs boson properties. The precision expected for the Higgs boson couplings is found to be significantly better than that predicted by Linear Collider studies.Comment: 25 pages, 13 figures, 3 tables, Submitted to the European Strategy Preparatory Group (contribution 171), Companion to arXiV:1208.0504. Version 2 contains several additional Higgs decay channels studied, and numbers for TLEP as well as for LEP