FLEXIBLE LOW-COST HW/SW ARCHITECTURES FOR TEST, CALIBRATION AND CONDITIONING OF MEMS SENSOR SYSTEMS

During the last years smart sensors based on Micro-Electro-Mechanical systems (MEMS) are widely spreading over various fields as automotive, biomedical, optical and consumer, and nowadays they represent the outstanding state of the art. The reasons of their diffusion is related to the capability to measure physical and chemical information using miniaturized components. The developing of this kind of architectures, due to the heterogeneities of their components, requires a very complex design flow, due to the utilization of both mechanical parts typical of the MEMS sensor and electronic components for the interfacing and the conditioning. In these kind of systems testing activities gain a considerable importance, and they concern various phases of the life-cycle of a MEMS based system. Indeed, since the design phase of the sensor, the validation of the design by the extraction of characteristic parameters is important, because they are necessary to design the sensor interface circuit. Moreover, this kind of architecture requires techniques for the calibration and the evaluation of the whole system in addition to the traditional methods for the testing of the control circuitry. The first part of this research work addresses the testing optimization by the developing of different hardware/software architecture for the different testing stages of the developing flow of a MEMS based system. A flexible and low-cost platform for the characterization and the prototyping of MEMS sensors has been developed in order to provide an environment that allows also to support the design of the sensor interface. To reduce the reengineering time requested during the verification testing a universal client-server architecture has been designed to provide a unique framework to test different kind of devices, using different development environment and programming languages. Because the use of ATE during the engineering phase of the calibration algorithm is expensive in terms of ATE’s occupation time, since it requires the interruption of the production process, a flexible and easily adaptable low-cost hardware/software architecture for the calibration and the evaluation of the performance has been developed in order to allow the developing of the calibration algorithm in a user-friendly environment that permits also to realize a small and medium volume production. The second part of the research work deals with a topic that is becoming ever more important in the field of applications for MEMS sensors, and concerns the capability to combine information extracted from different typologies of sensors (typically accelerometers, gyroscopes and magnetometers) to obtain more complex information. In this context two different algorithm for the sensor fusion has been analyzed and developed: the first one is a fully software algorithm that has been used as a means to estimate how much the errors in MEMS sensor data affect the estimation of the parameter computed using a sensor fusion algorithm; the second one, instead, is a sensor fusion algorithm based on a simplified Kalman filter. Starting from this algorithm, a bit-true model in Mathworks Simulink(TM) has been created as a system study for the implementation of the algorithm on chip

Progettazione e sviluppo di una infrastruttura hardware e software per un sistema di supporto integrato in ambiente domestico

La domotica sta diventando una disciplina sempre meno futuristica: sono sempre più i dispositivi offerti dal mercato che permettono l'integrazione di apparecchi standard con nuove tecnologie per offrire funzionalità complesse, che permettono di migliorare le funzionalità, il confort e la sicurezza di un ambiente domestico. L'oggetto di questo lavoro è lo sviluppo hardware e firmware di una scheda di controllo, basata su microcontrollore ARM7, nel contesto di un sistema integrato in grado di rendere sicuro, intelligente e maggiormente usabile il sistema "cucina domestica", assistendo l'utente nella sua attività sulla base delle informazioni presenti in una base di conoscenza(offrendo ricette in base alla cartella clinica, ai gusti, ecc.), impostando automaticamente gli attuatori e segnalando eventuali anomalie e malfunzionamenti. La scheda di controllo sviluppata permetterà la comunicazione mediante protocollo ModBus, AmicLan(protocollo proprietario dell'Amic S.R.l.) over TCP/IP e AmicLan over USB

Breast cancer incidence and mortality in North Sardinia in the period 1992–2010

The aim of this study was to analyze and describe the epidemiological characteristics and trends of breast cancer in Sassari province (Sardinia, Italy) in the period 1992 2010. Data were obtained from the local tumor registry which makes part of a wider registry web, coordinated today by the Italian Association for Tumor Registries. The overall number of breast cancer cases registered was 5,483 (46 males and 5,437 females). The mean age was 64.8 years for males and 60.4 years for females. The standardized incidence rates were 1/100,000 and 106.2/100,000 and the standardized mortality rates 0.3/100,000 and 23.2/100,000 for males and females respectively. An increasing trend in incidence and mortality rates of breast cancer in Sassari province was evidenced in the years under investigation. Relative survival at 5 years from diagnosis was 78.2% (73.1% for males and 78.3% for females

Mobility and land-use system in the sport mega-events. The case of the Cagliari stadium (Sardinia, Italy)

The evaluation of the mobility of the Sport infrastructures associated with Mega Events (SMEs), as football stadiums, and, in particular, the modal choices adopted by participants, are the focus of this study. Mobility, geographical aspects and urban planning that characterize a city hosting the SME are the main fields of investigation. In particular, in Italy there is a limited collaborative convergence among technical and scientific principles and the rules expressed by the Italian National Olympic Committee (CONI), to which an obsolete regulation for the accessibility of sports facilities refers. The progressive awareness of the communities on the fundamental role of sustainable mobility, energy efficiency, reduction of air pollution, also deriving from the impulse of the 2030 objectives, highlights how it is illusory to think of reaching them without gradual changes in the lifestyle of the communities themselves through political rules of urban development. Furthermore, the pandemic and the recent energy crisis highlighted the need to develop integrated systems - considering geographical, urban and regional planning, transport and mobility issues capable of innovating to improve planning activities and the quality of urban life

Detection of serum antibodies cross-reacting with <i>Mycobacterium avium</i> subspecies <i>paratuberculosis</i> and beta-cell antigen zinc transporter 8 homologous peptides in patients with high-risk proliferative diabetic retinopathy

Purpose: MAP3865c, a Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis (MAP) cell membrane protein, has a relevant sequence homology with zinc transporter 8 (ZnT8), a beta-cell membrane protein involved in Zn++ transportation. Recently, antibodies recognizing MAP3865c epitopes have been shown to cross-react with ZnT8 in type 1 diabetes patients. The purpose of this study was to detect antibodies against MAP3865c peptides in patients with high-risk proliferative diabetic retinopathy and speculate on whether they may somehow be involved in the pathogenesis of this severe retinal disorder. Methods: Blood samples were obtained from 62 type 1 and 80 type 2 diabetes patients with high-risk proliferative diabetic retinopathy and 81 healthy controls. Antibodies against 6 highly immunogenic MAP3865c peptides were detected by indirect ELISA. Results: Type 1 diabetes patients had significantly higher rates of positive antibodies than controls. Conversely, no statistically significant differences were found between type 2 diabetes patients and controls. After categorization of type 1 diabetes patients into two groups, one with positive, the other with negative antibodies, we found that they had similar mean visual acuity (&#8764;0.6) and identical rates of vitreous hemorrhage (28.6%). Conversely, Hashimoto's thyroiditis prevalence was 4/13 (30.7%) in the positive antibody group and 1/49 (2%) in the negative antibody group, a statistically significant difference (P = 0.016). Conclusions: This study confirmed that type 1 diabetes patients have significantly higher rates of positive antibodies against MAP/ZnT8 peptides, but failed to find a correlation between the presence of these antibodies and the severity degree of high-risk proliferative diabetic retinopathy. The significantly higher prevalence of Hashimoto's disease among type 1 diabetes patients with positive antibodies might suggest a possible common environmental trigger for these conditions

Detection of <i>Mycobacterium avium</i> subsp. <i>paratuberculosis</i> (MAP) in animals and human tissue

The aim of this work was the detection of MAP in human with CD and in ovine with natural and experimental PTBC, by in “situ” techniques. ISH showed strong signals in the macrophages infiltrating the mucosal and submucosal layers in PTBC samples and positive signals in macrophages of CD cases. Furthermore, ISPCR signals were more numerous than those obtained by ISH. This result indicate that ISPCR is able to detect also less copies of MAP DNA

Identification of GOLPH3 Partners in <i>Drosophila</i> Unveils Potential Novel Roles in Tumorigenesis and Neural Disorders.

Golgi phosphoprotein 3 (GOLPH3) is a highly conserved peripheral membrane protein localized to the Golgi apparatus and the cytosol. GOLPH3 binding to Golgi membranes depends on phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate [PI(4)P] and regulates Golgi architecture and vesicle trafficking. GOLPH3 overexpression has been correlated with poor prognosis in several cancers, but the molecular mechanisms that link GOLPH3 to malignant transformation are poorly understood. We recently showed that PI(4)P-GOLPH3 couples membrane trafficking with contractile ring assembly during cytokinesis in dividing Drosophila spermatocytes. Here, we use affinity purification coupled with mass spectrometry (AP-MS) to identify the protein-protein interaction network (interactome) of Drosophila GOLPH3 in testes. Analysis of the GOLPH3 interactome revealed enrichment for proteins involved in vesicle-mediated trafficking, cell proliferation and cytoskeleton dynamics. In particular, we found that dGOLPH3 interacts with the Drosophila orthologs of Fragile X mental retardation protein and Ataxin-2, suggesting a potential role in the pathophysiology of disorders of the nervous system. Our findings suggest novel molecular targets associated with GOLPH3 that might be relevant for therapeutic intervention in cancers and other human diseases

Role of BRCA2 mutation status on overall survival among breast cancer patients from Sardinia

Background: Germline mutations in BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes have been demonstrated to increase the risk of developing breast cancer. Conversely, the impact of BRCA mutations on prognosis and survival of breast cancer patients is still debated. In this study, we investigated the role of such mutations on breast cancer-specific survival among patients from North Sardinia. Methods: Among incident cases during the period 1997–2002, a total of 512 breast cancer patients gave their consent to undergo BRCA mutation screening by DHPLC analysis and automated DNA sequencing. The Hakulinen, Kaplan-Meier, and Cox regression methods were used for both relative survival assessment and statistical analysis. Results: In our series, patients carrying a germline mutation in coding regions and splice boundaries of BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes were 48/512 (9%). Effect on overall survival was evaluated taking into consideration BRCA2 carriers, who represented the vast majority (44/48; 92%) of mutation-positive patients. A lower breast cancer-specific overall survival rate was observed in BRCA2 mutation carriers after the first two years from diagnosis. However, survival rates were similar in both groups after five years from diagnosis. No significant difference was found for age of onset, disease stage, and primary tumour histopathology between the two subsets. Conclusion: In Sardinian breast cancer population, BRCA2 was the most affected gene and the effects of BRCA2 germline mutations on patients' survival were demonstrated to vary within the first two years from diagnosis. After a longer follow-up observation, breast cancer-specific rates of death were instead similar for BRCA2 mutation carriers and non-carriers

Identification of GOLPH3 Partners in Drosophila Unveils Potential Novel Roles in Tumorigenesis and Neural Disorders.

Golgi phosphoprotein 3 (GOLPH3) is a highly conserved peripheral membrane protein localized to the Golgi apparatus and the cytosol. GOLPH3 binding to Golgi membranes depends on phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate [PI(4)P] and regulates Golgi architecture and vesicle trafficking. GOLPH3 overexpression has been correlated with poor prognosis in several cancers, but the molecular mechanisms that link GOLPH3 to malignant transformation are poorly understood. We recently showed that PI(4)P-GOLPH3 couples membrane trafficking with contractile ring assembly during cytokinesis in dividing Drosophila spermatocytes. Here, we use affinity purification coupled with mass spectrometry (AP-MS) to identify the protein-protein interaction network (interactome) of Drosophila GOLPH3 in testes. Analysis of the GOLPH3 interactome revealed enrichment for proteins involved in vesicle-mediated trafficking, cell proliferation and cytoskeleton dynamics. In particular, we found that dGOLPH3 interacts with the Drosophila orthologs of Fragile X mental retardation protein and Ataxin-2, suggesting a potential role in the pathophysiology of disorders of the nervous system. Our findings suggest novel molecular targets associated with GOLPH3 that might be relevant for therapeutic intervention in cancers and other human diseases

Detection of patients with COVID-19 by the emergency medical services in Lombardy through an operator-based interview and machine learning models

BackgroundThe regional emergency medical service (EMS) in Lombardy (Italy) developed clinical algorithms based on operator-based interviews to detect patients with COVID-19 and refer them to the most appropriate hospitals. Machine learning (ML)-based models using additional clinical and geospatial epidemiological data may improve the identification of infected patients and guide EMS in detecting COVID-19 cases before confirmation with SARS-CoV-2 reverse transcriptase PCR (rtPCR).MethodsThis was an observational, retrospective cohort study using data from October 2020 to July 2021 (training set) and October 2021 to December 2021 (validation set) from patients who underwent a SARS-CoV-2 rtPCR test within 7 days of an EMS call. The performance of an operator-based interview using close contact history and signs/symptoms of COVID-19 was assessed in the training set for its ability to determine which patients had an rtPCR in the 7 days before or after the call. The interview accuracy was compared with four supervised ML models to predict positivity for SARS-CoV-2 within 7 days using readily available prehospital data retrieved from both training and validation sets.ResultsThe training set includes 264 976 patients, median age 74 (IQR 55-84). Test characteristics for the detection of COVID-19-positive patients of the operator-based interview were: sensitivity 85.5%, specificity 58.7%, positive predictive value (PPV) 37.5% and negative predictive value (NPV) 93.3%. Contact history, fever and cough showed the highest association with SARS-CoV-2 infection. In the validation set (103 336 patients, median age 73 (IQR 50-84)), the best-performing ML model had an AUC of 0.85 (95% CI 0.84 to 0.86), sensitivity 91.4% (95 CI% 0.91 to 0.92), specificity 44.2% (95% CI 0.44 to 0.45) and accuracy 85% (95% CI 0.84 to 0.85). PPV and NPV were 13.3% (95% CI 0.13 to 0.14) and 98.2% (95% CI 0.98 to 0.98), respectively. Contact history, fever, call geographical distribution and cough were the most important variables in determining the outcome.ConclusionML-based models might help EMS identify patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection, and in guiding EMS allocation of hospital resources based on prespecified criteria