The quest for stable circumbinary companions to post-common envelope sdB eclipsing binaries Does the observational evidence support their existence?

Context. Period variations have been detected in a number of eclipsing close compact binary subdwarf B stars (sdBs) and these have often been interpreted as caused by circumbinary massive planets or brown dwarfs. Various evolutionary scenarios have been proposed for these stars, but a definite mechanism remains to be established. Equally puzzling is the formation of these putative circumbinary objects which must have formed either from the remaining post common envelope circumbinary disk or survived its evolution. Aims. In this paper we review the eclipse time variations (ETVs) exhibited by seven such systems and explore if there is conclusive evidence that the ETVs observed over the last two decades can reliably predict the presence of circumbinary bodies. Methods. We report 246 new observations of the seven sdB systems made between 2013 September and 2017 July using a worldwide network of telescopes. We combined our new data with previously published measurements to analyse the ETVs of these systems. Results. Our data shows that period variations cannot be modelled simply on the basis of circumbinary objects. This implies that more complex processes may be taking place in these systems. From eclipse time variations, it has historically been suggested that five of the seven binary systems reported herein had circumbinary objects. Based on our recent observations and analysis only three systems remain serious contenders. We find agreement with other observers that at least a decade of observations is required to establish reliable ephemeris. With longer observational baselines it is quite conceivable that the data will support the circumbinary object hypothesis of these binary systems. Also we generally agree with other observers that larger values of (O-C) residuals are found with secondary companions of spectral type M5/6 or earlier as a result of an Applegate type mechanismComment: 15 pages, 13 figures, 4 tables. 3 tables archived on CD

Effects of Single-Dose Prucalopride on Intestinal Hypomotility in Horses: Preliminary Observations

Abnormalities of gastrointestinal motility are often a challenge in horses; however, the use of prokinetic drugs in such conditions must be firmly established yet. For this reason we carried out a preliminary study on the effects of prucalopride on intestinal motor activity of horses with gut hypomotility. The effect of prucalopride per os by oral dose syringe (2 mg/100 kg body weight) was assessed by abdominal ultrasound (evaluating duodenal, cecal, and colonic motor activity) in six horses with gut hypomotility. After administration of prucalopride, a significant increase of contractile activity was found in the duodenum at 30 minutes (p = 0.0005), 60 minutes (p = 0.01) and 90 minutes (p = 0.01), whereas in the cecum and in the left colon the increase was only present at 60 minutes (p = 0.03, and p = 0.02, respectively). No changes from baseline heart and respiratory rate or behavior side effects were observed after administration of the drug and throughout the observation period. Prucalopride may be a useful adjunct to the therapeutic armamentary for treating hypomotile upper gut conditions of horses. Dosing information is however needed to establish its actual clinical efficacy and its proper effects on the large bowel in these animals

Low power RF test of a quadrupole-free X-Band mode launcher for high brightness applications

In this work we present the low power RF characterization of a novel TM01 X-band mode launcher for the new generation of high brightness RF photo-injectors. The proposed mode launcher exploits a fourfold symmetry which minimizes both the dipole and the quadrupole fields in order to mitigate the emittance growth in the early stages of the acceleration process. Two identical aluminum mode launchers have been assembled and measured in back-to-back configurations for three different central waveguide lengths. From the back-to-back results we infer the performance of each mode launcher. The low power RF test, performed at the Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare Laboratori Nazionali del Sud (INFN-LNS), validate both the numerical simulations and the quality of fabrication. An oxygen-free high-conductivity copper version of the device is being manufactured for high power and ultra high vacuum tests that are planned to be conducted at SLAC

The control of abstinence in the treatment of alcohol dependence: the use of Acamprosate in relapse prevention

"The alcoholism can also deal with drug treatments." This is the message that emerges from the press conference of presentation of Campral, trade name of acamprosate, a neuromodulator specifically indicated in the maintenance of abstinence in alcohol-dependent patients.Alcoholism is a disease characterized by: craving, loss of control, tolerance and physical dependence.For many years the prevention of relapse in use of alcohol after detoxification was supported almost exclusively by psychosocial procedures and techniques with modest success. Treatment with acamprosate is a valid tool to complement psychotherapy as it does not cause addiction, abuse or withdrawal of its suspension and does not interfere with other medications that patients often alcoholics must take.To evaluate the effectiveness, our study evaluated the effects of Acamprosate compared to GHB in clinical-physiological and social health in a way indicators of a possible therapeutic success in terms of abstinence from alcohol and social reintegration. The hypothesis of the project is that pharmacotherapy anticraving with acamprosate integrated with psycho-social support, can reduce relapse in alcohol together with the reduction of the risk of abuse arising from the use of GHB. This work purports to be an account of 11 months of observation of patients treated with acamprosate. Results: A total of 36 patients were observed, of which 5, 4 men and 1 woman at the Ser.T Alcamo and 31, 21 men and 10 women at the Ser.T of Palermo. In the fight against alcoholism, this therapy with acamprosate offers significant potential: decreases, in fact, the incidence, severity and frequency of relapses (Fig. 1). As regards the craving, during the period of treatment with acamprosate, there has been a change, in the sense of reduction, of craving for alcohol: if before therapy was in 68% of cases, medium-high, becomes after 3-4 months after therapy in low-nil in 89% of patients observed. It has been recorded that, after 3-4 months after receiving acamprosate, the clinical picture of the patient is greatly improved by referring to biological markers (Fig. 2). Conclusions: The study shows that treatment with acamprosate is an exciting opportunity within a project of integrated care for the treatment of alcohol addiction. The acamprosate may also be used early in the pharmacological treatment of dependence on alcohol to prevent the appearance of excitability neuronal associated abstinence.On the other hand, its use must have a duration sufficient to allow neuronal excitability to normalize in the most enduring possible: the treatment, in fact, is recommended for one year. In any case, the use can be continued even in the face of relapses, with the aim to reduce the frequency or severity.In particular, the strong point seems to be the ability for the user to experience a new sense of normalcy and to remove the desire for significant periods of alcohol

Compact S-band linear accelerator system for ultrafast, ultrahigh dose-rate radiotherapy

Radiation therapy is currently the most utilized technique for the treatment of tumors by means ofionizing radiation, such as electrons, protons and x/gamma rays, depending on the type, size and depth ofthe cancer mass. Radiation therapy has in general fulfilled the main requirement of targeting thus damagingthe malignant cells and sparing the healthy tissues as best as possible. In this scenario, electron linearaccelerators have been operated as viable tools for the delivery of both high-energetic electrons and x-raybeams, which are obtained via the bremsstrahlung process of the electrons hitting on a high-Z material.Recently, it has been experimentally demonstrated that ultrahigh dose-rate bursts of electrons and x-raybeams increase the differential response between healthy and tumor tissues. This beneficial response isreferred to as the FLASH effect. For this purpose, we have developed the first dedicated compactS-bandlinear accelerator for FLASH radiotherapy. This linac is optimized for a nominal energy of 7 MeV and apulsed electron beam current of 100 mA and above. The accelerator is mounted on a remote-controlledsystem for preclinical research studies in the FLASH regime. We will show the rf and beam dynamicsdesign of theS-band linac as well as the commissioning and high-power rf tests. Furthermore, the results ofthe dosimetric measurements will be illustrate

Pulmonary squamous cell carcinoma with lepidic growth pattern : new insights into lung cancer classification

Lung squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) has always been considered a monomorphic entity, different from lung adenocarcinoma which is known to be a very heterogeneous tumor from morphological and molecular point of view. Just two histological subtypes of SCC are recognised, the basaloid and lymphoepithelioma-like histotypes, as in other sites different from the lung. Recently, different studies tried to expand the classification of SCC by adding different subtypes based on morphological characteristics (such as keratinization or clear cell features) or different growth patterns (papillary or basaloid). We report a case of squamous cell carcinoma with a previously unreported, distinctive and predominant "lepidic" growth pattern, with its immunophenotypical and molecular characterization

Studies of a Ka-band high power klystron amplifier at INFN-LNF

In the framework of the Compact Light XLS project [1], a Ka-band linearizer with electric field ranging from 100 to 150 MV/m is requested [2, 3, 4]. In order to feed this structure, a proper Ka-band high power klystron amplifier with a high efficiency is needed. This paper reports a possible solution for a klystron amplifier operating on the TM010 mode at 36 GHz, the third harmonic of the 12 GHz linac frequency, with an efficiency of 44% and 10.6MW radiofrequency output power. We discuss also here the high-power DC gun with the related magnetic focusing system, the RF beam dynamics and finally the multiphysics analysis of a high- power microwave window for a Ka-band klystron providing 16 MW of peak power

Two-pass two-way acceleration in a superconducting continuous wave linac to drive low jitter x-ray free electron lasers

We present a design study of an innovative scheme to generate high rep rate (MHz-class) GeV electron beams by adopting a two-pass two-way acceleration in a Superconducting (SC) linac operated in Continuous Wave (CW) mode. The electron beam is accelerated twice by being re-injected in opposite direction of propagation into the linac after the first passage. Acceleration in opposite directions is accomplished thanks to standing waves supported in RF cavities. The task of recirculating the electron beam when it leaves the linac after first pass is performed by a Bubble-shaped Arc Compressor composed by a sequence of Double Bend Achromat. In this paper we address the main issues inherent to the two-pass acceleration process and the preservation of the electron beam quality parameters (emittance, energy spread, peak current) required to operate X-ray Free Electron Lasers with low jitters in the amplitude, spectral and temporal domain, as achieved by operating in seeding and/or oscillator mode a CW FEL up to 1 MHz rep rate. Detailed start-to-end simulations are shown to assess the capability of this new scheme to double the electron beam energy as well as to compress the electron bunch length from picoseconds down to tens of femtoseconds. The advantage of such a scheme is to halve the requested linac length for the same final electron beam energy, which is typically in the few GeV range, as needed to drive an X-ray FEL. The AC power to supply the cryogenic plant is also significantly reduced with respect to a conventional single-pass SC linac for the same final energy. We are reporting also X-ray FEL simulations for typical values of wavelengths of interest (in the 200 eV \u2013 8 keV photon energy range) to better illustrate the potentiality of this new scheme