Mixing Patterns from the Groups Sigma (n phi)

We survey the mixing patterns which can be derived from the discrete groups Sigma (36 x 3), Sigma (72 x 3), Sigma (216 x 3) and Sigma (360 x 3), if these are broken to abelian subgroups Ge and Gnu in the charged lepton and neutrino sector, respectively. Since only Sigma (360 x 3) possesses Klein subgroups, only this group allows neutrinos to be Majorana particles. We find a few patterns that can agree well with the experimental data on lepton mixing in scenarios with small corrections and that predict the reactor mixing angle theta_{13} to be 0.1 <= theta_{13} <= 0.2. All these patterns lead to a trivial Dirac phase. Patterns which instead reveal CP violation tend to accommodate the data not well. We also comment on the outer automorphisms of the discussed groups, since they can be useful for relating inequivalent representations of these groups.Comment: 1+28 pages, 6 tables, no figures; v2: matches version published in J. Phys. A: Math. Theo

Lepton Mixing from Delta (3 n^2) and Delta (6 n^2) and CP

We perform a detailed study of lepton mixing patterns arising from a scenario with three Majorana neutrinos in which a discrete flavor group Gf=Delta (3 n^2) or Gf=Delta(6 n^2) and a CP symmetry are broken to residual symmetries Ge=Z3 and Gnu=Z2 x CP in the charged lepton and neutrino sectors, respectively. While we consider all possible Z3 and Z2 generating elements, we focus on a certain set of CP transformations. The resulting lepton mixing depends on group theoretical indices and one continuous parameter. In order to study the mixing patterns comprehensively for all admitted Ge and Gnu, it is sufficient to discuss only three types of combinations. One of them requires as flavor group Delta (6 n^2). Two types of combinations lead to mixing patterns with a trimaximal column, while the third one allows for a much richer structure. For the first type of combinations the Dirac as well as one Majorana phase are trivial, whereas the other two ones predict in general all CP phases to be non-trivial and also non-maximal. Already for small values of the index n of the group, n <= 11, experimental data on lepton mixing can be accommodated well for particular choices of the parameters of the theory. We also comment on the relation of the used CP transformations to the automorphisms of Delta (3 n^2) and Delta (6 n^2).Comment: 60 pages, 12 tables and 10 figures. v2: typos corrected, references updated, some minor improvement of the text, matches version accepted for publication in Nuclear Physics

Two-zero Majorana textures in the light of the Planck results

The recent results of the Planck experiment put a stringent constraint on the sum of the light neutrino masses, m1+m2+m3 < 0.23 eV (95 % CL). On the other hand, two-zero Majorana mass matrix textures predict strong correlations among the atmospheric angle and the sum of the masses. We use the Planck result to show that, for the normal hierarchy case, the texture with vanishing (2,2) and (3,3) elements is ruled out at a high confidence level; in addition, we emphasize that a future measurement of the octant of the atmospheric mixing angle (or the one sigma determination of it based on recent fit to neutrino data) will put severe constraint on the possible structure of the Majorana mass matrix. The implication of the above mentioned correlations for neutrinoless double beta-decay are also discussed, for both normal and inverted orderings.Comment: 9 pages, 8 figure

Mboat7 down-regulation by hyper-insulinemia induces fat accumulation in hepatocytes

BACKGROUND: Naturally occurring variation in Membrane-bound O-acyltransferase domain-containing 7 (MBOAT7), encoding for an enzyme involved in phosphatidylinositol acyl-chain remodelling, has been associated with fatty liver and hepatic disorders. Here, we examined the relationship between hepatic Mboat7 down-regulation and fat accumulation. METHODS: Hepatic MBOAT7 expression was surveyed in 119 obese individuals and in experimental models. MBOAT7 was acutely silenced by antisense oligonucleotides in C57Bl/6 mice, and by CRISPR/Cas9 in HepG2 hepatocytes. FINDINGS: In obese individuals, hepatic MBOAT7 mRNA decreased from normal liver to steatohepatitis, independently of diabetes, inflammation and MBOAT7 genotype. Hepatic MBOAT7 levels were reduced in murine models of fatty liver, and by hyper-insulinemia. In wild-type mice, Mboat7 was down-regulated by refeeding and insulin, concomitantly with insulin signalling activation. Acute hepatic Mboat7 silencing promoted hepatic steatosis in vivo and enhanced expression of fatty acid transporter Fatp1. MBOAT7 deletion in hepatocytes reduced the incorporation of arachidonic acid into phosphatidylinositol, consistently with decreased enzymatic activity, determining the accumulation of saturated triglycerides, enhanced lipogenesis and FATP1 expression, while FATP1 deletion rescued the phenotype. INTERPRETATION: MBOAT7 down-regulation by hyper-insulinemia contributes to hepatic fat accumulation, impairing phosphatidylinositol remodelling and up-regulating FATP1. FUNDING: LV was supported by MyFirst Grant AIRC n.16888, Ricerca Finalizzata Ministero della Salute RF-2016-02,364,358, Ricerca corrente Fondazione IRCCS Ca\u27 Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico; LV and AG received funding from the European Union Programme Horizon 2020 (No. 777,377) for the project LITMUS- Liver Investigation: Testing Marker Utility in Steatohepatitis . MM was supported by Fondazione Italiana per lo Studio del Fegato (AISF) \u27Mario Coppo\u27 fellowship

Design for services and place development

Services are a constituent element of urban planning. Nevertheless, a new perspective arises when considering regional contexts, and when considering services as an approach to design and subject matter for design. The essay presents reflections raised by a group of projects in various parts of the world, conducted by local research partners within the international DESIS Network (Design for Social Innovation and Sustainability) and dealing with agricultural periurban territories. These projects are methodologically related to one currently in progress in Milan conducted by the Politecnico di Milano, Slow Food and Università Scienze Gastronomiche, which is expected to generate a scenario of sustainable local food production and consumption for the region

Design estratégico: onde estamos agora? Reflexão em torno dos alicerces de uma disciplina recente

The term Strategic Design is increasingly adopted in order to define approaches and methods to develop research and projects at a company or academic level. What do we mean when we say Strategic Design? After more than a decade of reflections, teaching and professional activities around this topic, the foundations of the discipline are established. Basically, we assert that Strategic Design is about conferring to social and market bodies a system of rules, beliefs, values and tools to deal with the external environment, thus being able to evolve (and so to survive successfully) as well as maintaining and developing one’s own identity. And, in doing so, influencing and changing the environment too. This paper intends to present a theoretical analysis of Strategic Design by pointing out some of the key points of this discipline, moving from the recent reflections and developments within the Italian and the international scientific community. Keywords: strategy, service design, sustainability.O termo Design Estratégico é cada vez mais utilizado a fim de definir as abordagens e os métodos para desenvolver pesquisas e projetos em empresas ou em um nível acadêmico. O que queremos dizer com Design Estratégico? Após mais de uma década de reflexões, de ensino e atividades profissionais em torno deste tema, as bases da disciplina estão estabelecidas. Basicamente, podemos afirmar que Design Estratégico confere aos órgãos sociais e de mercado um sistema de normas, crenças, valores e ferramentas para lidar com o ambiente externo, sendo capaz de evoluir (e, assim, sobreviver com sucesso), bem como manutenção e desenvolvimento de uma identidade própria. Ao fazê-lo, influencia e altera o ambiente. Este trabalho pretende apresentar uma análise teórica do Design Estratégico, destacando alguns dos pontos-chave desta disciplina, a partir de reflexões e recentes desenvolvimentos da comunidade científica italiana e internacional. Palavras-chave: estratégia, design de serviço, sustentabilidade