Performance of a large limited streamer tube cell in drift mode

The performance of a large (3x3 $cm^2$) streamer tube cell in drift mode is shown. The detector space resolution has been studied using cosmic muons crossing an high precision silicon telescope. The experimental results are compared with a GARFIELD simulation.Comment: 18 pages, 7 figures. Accepted by Nucl. Instr. and Methods

Effects of hypophyseal or thymic allograft on thymus development in partially decerebrated chicken embryos: expression of PCNA and CD3 markers

Changes in chicken embryo thymus after partial decerebration (including the hypophysis) and after hypophyseal or thymic allograft were investigated. Chicken embryos were partially decerebrated at 36–40 h of incubation and on day 12 received a hypophysis or a thymus allograft from 18-day-old donor embryos. The thymuses of normal, sham-operated and partially decerebrate embryos were collected on day 12 and 18. The thymuses of the grafted embryos were collected on day 18. The samples were examined with histological method and tested for the anti-PCNA and anti-CD3 immune-reactions. After partial decerebration, the thymic cortical and medullary compartments diminished markedly in size. Anti-PCNA and anti-CD3 revealed a reduced immunereaction, verified also by statistical analysis. In hypophyseal or grafted embryos, the thymic morphological compartments improved, the anti-PCNA and anti-CD3 immune-reactions recovered much better after the thymic graft, probably due to the thymic growth factors and also by an emigration of thymocytes from the same grafted thymus

A new tow maneuver of a damaged boat through a swarm of autonomous sea drones

Given the huge rising interest in autonomous drone swarms to be employed in actual marine applications, the present paper explores the possibility to recover a distressed vessel by means of the other agents belonging to the swarm itself. Suitable approaches and control strategies are developed and tested to find the highest performance algorithms. Different rules are exploited to obtain a correct behaviour in terms of swarm interaction, namely collective and coordinated, and individual. An innovative feedback control strategy is adopted and demonstrated its effectiveness. Extensive simulation runs have been conducted, whose results validate the approach

Transgenic plants expressing immunosuppressive dsRNA improve entomopathogen efficacy against Spodoptera littoralis larvae

Transgenic plants that express double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) targeting vital insect genes have recently emerged as a valuable new tool for pest control. In this study, tobacco plants were transformed to produce dsRNA targeting Sl 102 gene that is involved in the immune response of Spodoptera littoralis larvae, a serious lepidopteran pest of several crops. Experimental larvae reared on transgenic tobacco lines showed (1) a strongly reduced level of Sl 102 transcripts, which was positively associated with food consumption; (2) a substantial impairment of the encapsulation response mediated by hemocytes; and (3) a marked increase in the susceptibility to Xentari™, a Bacillus thuringiensis-based insecticide. Importantly, this approach may allow a reduction in the doses of B. thuringiensis used for field applications and enhance its killing activity on mature larvae. The results obtained thus support the use of immunosuppressive RNAi plants to enhance the performance of microbial insecticides on lepidopteran larvae

Underwater Drone Architecture for Marine Digital Twin: Lessons Learned from SUSHI DROP Project

The ability to observe the world has seen significant developments in the last few decades, alongside the techniques and methodologies to derive accurate digital replicas of observed environments. Underwater ecosystems present greater challenges and remain largely unexplored, but the need for reliable and up-to-date information motivated the birth of the Interreg Italy–Croatia SUSHI DROP Project (SUstainable fiSHeries wIth DROnes data Processing). The aim of the project is to map ecosystems for sustainable fishing and to achieve this goal a prototype of an Unmanned Underwater Vehicle (UUV), named Blucy, has been designed and developed. Blucy was deployed during project missions for surveying the benthic zone in deep waters of the Adriatic Sea with noninvasive techniques compared to the use of trawl nets. This article describes the strategies followed, the instruments applied and the challenges to be overcome to obtain an accurately georeferenced underwater survey with the goal of creating a marine digital twin

Impact of Radiometric Variability on Ultra-High Resolution Hyperspectral Imagery Over Aquatic Vegetation: Preliminary Results

Over the last two decades, advancements in airborne imaging spectroscopy have prompted the exploitation of lightweight drones for detailed vegetation assessment at unprecedented resolutions. Yet, surface reflectance anisotropy and view-illumination effects may bias spectra extracted from push-broom scanners and derived spectral indices (SIs), particularly over aquatic vegetation, thus impacting the retrieval of biophysical and biochemical vegetation parameters. In this study, the impact of illumination conditions (overcast versus clear sky) and angular configurations (i.e., solar and viewing angles) on radiometric variability of centimetric resolution drone data was empirically investigated over four different aquatic plant species, representing different growth forms and canopy structures. Nadir-normalized reflectance spectra, broadband SIs, and the spectral angle distance to proximal leaf reflectance were used for characterizing and quantifying radiometric variability at canopy and leaf levels. Our findings demonstrated a decrement in reflectance under diffuse light conditions, especially in highly reflective domains within Green (520-580 nm) and Near-Infrared (700-850 nm) ranges, and a marked angular reflectance anisotropy in high absorption spectral regions (i.e., 450-500 nm and 630-700 nm) for aquatic vegetation. The normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) showed overall lower sensitivity to incoming light variability and angular configurations compared to other tested SIs, whereas the water adjusted vegetation index (WAVI), suitably designed for aquatic vegetation, was less affected by angular anisotropy in floating plants. Indeed, radiometric variability exhibited a dependence on aquatic plant features, i.e., leaf orientation, canopy structure, and affinity with water (as canopy background)

PEGylation Promotes Hemoglobin Tetramer Dissociation

Hemoglobin conjugated with poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) acts as an oxygen carrier free in plasma, substituting red blood cells in supplementing oxygen in hypo-oxygenation pathologies. Given the complexity of oxygen delivery controls, subtle structural and functional differences in PEGylated hemoglobins might be associated with distinct physiological responses and, potentially, adverse effects. We have compared hemoglobin PEGylated under anaerobic conditions, called PEG-Hb(deoxy), with hemoglobin PEGylated under aerobic conditions, called PEG-Hb(oxy), a product that mimics Hemospan, produced by Sangart, Inc. SDS PAGE and MALDI-TOF analyses demonstrated that PEG conjugation yields products characterized by a broad distribution of PEG/hemoglobin ratios. The elution profiles in size-exclusion chromatography indicate that both products exhibit a more homogeneous distribution of molecular weight/hydrodynamic volume under deoxy conditions and at higher concentrations. PEG-Hb(oxy) shows high oxygen affinity, low modulation of allosteric effectors, almost no cooperativity, a fast and monophasic CO binding, and a limited dependence of functional properties on concentration, whereas PEG-Hb(deoxy) exhibits oxygen binding curves that significantly depend on protein concentration, and a slow CO binding, similar to native hemoglobin. PEGylated CO-hemoglobins, probed by flash photolysis, exhibited a lower amplitude for the geminate rebinding phase with respect to native hemoglobin and a negligible T state bimolecular CO rebinding phase. These findings are explained by an increased dissociation of PEGylated hemoglobins into dimers and perturbed T and R states with decreased quaternary transition rates. These features are more pronounced for PEG-Hb(oxy) than PEG-Hb(deoxy). The detected heterogeneity might be a source of adverse effects when PEGylated Hbs are used as blood substitutes

Acid Sphingomyelinase Downregulation Enhances Mitochondrial Fusion and Promotes Oxidative Metabolism in a Mouse Model of Melanoma

Melanoma is the most severe type of skin cancer. Its unique and heterogeneous metabolism, relying on both glycolysis and oxidative phosphorylation, allows it to adapt to disparate conditions. Mitochondrial function is strictly interconnected with mitochondrial dynamics and both are fundamental in tumour progression and metastasis. The malignant phenotype of melanoma is also regulated by the expression levels of the enzyme acid sphingomyelinase (A-SMase). By modulating at transcriptional level A-SMase in the melanoma cell line B16-F1 cells, we assessed the effect of enzyme downregulation on mitochondrial dynamics and function. Our results demonstrate that A-SMase influences mitochondrial morphology by affecting the expression of mitofusin 1 and OPA1. The enhanced expression of the two mitochondrial fusion proteins, observed when A-SMase is expressed at low levels, correlates with the increase of mitochondrial function via the stimulation of the genes PGC-1alpha and TFAM, two genes that preside over mitochondrial biogenesis. Thus, the reduction of A-SMase expression, observed in malignant melanomas, may determine their metastatic behaviour through the stimulation of mitochondrial fusion, activity and biogenesis, conferring a metabolic advantage to melanoma cells

A first attempt to produce proteins from insects by means of a circular economy

The worldwide growing consumption of proteins to feed humans and animals has drawn a considerable amount of attention to insect rearing. Insects reared on organic wastes and used as feed for monogastric animals can reduce the environmental impact and increase the sustainability of meat/fish production. In this study, we designed an environmentally closed loop for food supply in which fruit and vegetable waste from markets became rearing substrate for Hermetia illucens (BSF\u2014 black soldier fly). A vegetable and fruit-based substrate was compared to a standard diet for Diptera in terms of larval growth, waste reduction index, and overall substrate degradation. Morphological analysis of insect organs was carried out to obtain indications about insect health. Processing steps such as drying and oil extraction from BSF were investigated. Nutritional and microbiological analyses confirmed the good quality of insects and meal. The meal was then used to produce fish feed and its suitability to this purpose was assessed using trout. Earthworms were grown on leftovers of BSF rearing in comparison to a standard substrate. Chemical analyses of vermicompost were performed. The present research demonstrates that insects can be used to reduce organic waste, increasing at the same time the sustainability of aquaculture and creating interesting by-products through the linked bio-system establishment

Statistical signatures of critical behavior in small systems

The cluster distributions of different systems are examined to search for signatures of a continuous phase transition. In a system known to possess such a phase transition, both sensitive and insensitive signatures are present; while in systems known not to possess such a phase transition, only insensitive signatures are present. It is shown that nuclear multifragmentation results in cluster distributions belonging to the former category, suggesting that the fragments are the result of a continuous phase transition.Comment: 31 pages, two columns with 30 figure