Dysgonia algira L. (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae - Catocalinae) dannosa a melograno (Punica granatum L.)

Dysgonia algira L. (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae-Catocalinae) HARMFUL TO POMEGRANATE (Punica granatum L.) A report is made of larval infestations of Dysgonia algira L. (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae- Catocalinae) occurring for the past few years on pomegranate (Punica granatum L.) in the countryside at Scafati and Nocera (Salerno, Southern Italy). The main aspects of the bio- ethology of this phytophagous are emphasized . The adults fly from May to September, with two freguency peaks in the end of June and in the second decade of August. The eggs are laid either separately or in groups of 2-4 on the underside of pomegranate leaves. The larvae which feed at night produce characteristic erosions on the leaves and sometimes skeletonize the twigs. In sumrner they pupate in silky white cocoons on the plant while in autumn in a cocoon at the crown of the host plant. In the area under observation, the D. algira completed two generations in one year and overwintered as pupa in the ground. The duration of postembryonal development, from the hatching of the eggs to their emergence from the cocoon under controlled conditions (RM 70-75%, 130 luxx 14 h/1) was greatly influenced by temperature, lasting 35, 46 and 68 days respectively at 30°, 25" and 21°C.Vengono segnalate infestazioni ]arvali di Dysgonia algira L. (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae- Catocalinae) verificatesi negli ultimi anni su melograno (Punica granatum L.) in agro di Scafati e Nocera (Salerno); viene messa in luce nelle linee fondamentali la bio-etologia di tale fitofago. Gli adulti volano da maggio a settembre, con due picchi di frequenza a fine giugno e nella seconda decade di agosto; le uova vengono deposte isolate o in gruppi di 2-4 elementi sulla pagina inferiore delle foglie del melograno; le larve, ad attività trofica notturna. producono vistose e caratteristiche erosioni sulle foglie, talvolta scheletrizzando i ramoscelli;in estate l'incrisalidamento ha luogo sulla pianta, in un bozzolo bianco sericeo, m autunno in una celletta nel terreno ai piedi delle piante ospiti. Nell'area di osservazione la D. algira ha completato due generazioni nell'arco dell'anno, svernando da crisalide nel terreno. La durata dello sviluppo postembrionale, dalla schiusura dell'uovo allo sfarfallamento. in condizioni controllate (UR = 70-75%; 130 lux X 14 h/ luce) è influenzata fortemente dalla temperatura, essendo risultata di circa 35, 46 e 68 giorni rispettivamente a 30, 25 e 2l°C.  

Progress and Perspectives in the Management of Wound Infections

The progress in nanotechnology and the medical application of novel generations of nanomaterials have opened new horizons in the definition of non-conventional approaches against multiple diseases. Biomaterials coated with antimicrobial metal nanoparticles, along with the topical applications of zinc, silver or copper-based formulations have demonstrated huge potential in prevention from infections associated with implantable medical devices and in biofilm eradication. In wound healing, in particular, the increasing healthcare costs and the antibiotic resistance demonstrated by several microorganisms have encouraged researchers and companies in the development of innovative wound dressings with antibacterial properties and capability to promote and enhance the healing process. Supported by scientific evidence, many formulations have been proposed and a large number of works involves the use of hybrid metal nanoparticles/polymer products, which have demonstrated encouraging results both in vitro and in vivo. In this chapter, recent progress in the development of novel wound dressings based on antibacterial metal nanoparticles is presented, along with the most interesting results achieved by the authors, mainly devoted to the application of silver nanocoatings in wound management

Investigating the Structure-Related Properties of Cellulose-Based Superabsorbent Hydrogels

Superabsorbent hydrogels are macromolecular networks able to absorb and retain large amounts of water solutions within their fine mesh-like structure. More importantly, they are capable of multiple swelling/shrinking transitions in response to specific environmental cues (e.g., pH, ionic strength, temperature, presence of given electrolytes), thus exhibiting a stimuli-sensitive behavior, which makes them appealing for the design of smart devices in a number of technological fields. In particular, in the last two decades, cellulose-based superabsorbent hydrogels have proven to be an environmentally friendly and cost-effective alternative to acrylamide-based products. This chapter reviews the relationship between the molecular structure of cellulose-based hydrogels and their physicochemical properties. First, the network formation through the use of different cellulose derivatives and chemical or physical crosslinking agents is presented. Successively, the smart swelling capability of the hydrogels as a function of composition and structure is thoroughly discussed. Finally, several approaches to the hydrogel characterization are reviewed, with focus on the assessment of key mechanical, thermal and morphological properties

Improved Lattice Spectroscopy of Minimal Walking Technicolor

We present a numerical study of spectroscopic observables in the SU(2) gauge theory with two adjoint fermions using improved source and sink operators. We compare in detail our improved results with previous determinations of masses that used point sources and sinks and we investigate possible systematic effects in both cases. Such comparison enables us to clearly assess the impact of a short temporal extent on the physical picture, and to investigate some effects due to the finite spatial box. While confirming the IR-conformal behaviour of the theory, our investigation shows that in order to make firm quantitative predictions, a better handle on finite size effects is needed.Comment: 33 pages, 30 figures, 18 table

Nuovi dati sulla Macrolepidotterofauna dell’Italia meridionale (Lepidoptera)

NEW RECORDS ON THE MACROLEPIDOPTERA OF SOUTHERN ITALY (LEPIDOPTERA) In this paper 135 species have been recognised. Seven species (Dahlica triquetrella (Hübner, 1813), Xanthorhoe designata (Hufnagel, 1767), Eupithecia inturbata (Hübner, 1817), Plusia festucae (Linnaeus, 1758), Calamia tridens (Hufnagel, 1766), Polymixis polymita (Linnaeus, 1761), Agrotis syricola Berio, 1936) are new for Southern Italy, 15 taxa were the first time recorded in Puglia, 87 in Campania, 10 in Basilicata and 20 in Calabria. The great amount of faunistic news underlines the high species richness of Southern Italy, a large amount of which is to date unknown. Key Words: Macrolepidoptera, faunistic reports, Southern Italy. Vengono riportati i dati di cattura di 135 specie delle quali sette nuove per la fauna dell’Italia meridionale (Dahlica triquetrella (Hübner, 1813), Xanthorhoe designata (Hufnagel, 1767), Eupithecia inturbata (Hübner, 1817), Plusia festucae (Linnaeus, 1758), Calamia tridens (Hufnagel, 1766), Polymixis polymita (Linnaeus, 1761), Agrotis syricola Berio, 1936), 15 nuove per la fauna pugliese, 87 per quella campana, 10 per quella lucana e 20 per quella calabrese. Le novità sottolineano ancora una volta la ricchezza della fauna dell’Italia meridionale che è ben lontana dall’essere quantificabile con una buona approssimazione. Parole chiave: Macrolepidotteri, segnalazioni faunistiche, Italia meridionale

Conformal scaling and the size of m-hadrons

The scaling laws in an infrared conformal (IR) theory are dictated by the critical exponents of relevant operators. We have investigated these scaling laws at leading order in two previous papers. In this work we investigate further consequences of the scaling laws, trying to identify potential signatures that could be studied by lattice simulations. From the first derivative of the form factor we derive the behaviour of the mean charge radius of the hadronic states in the theory. We obtain $\langle r_H^2 \rangle \sim m^{-2/(1+\gamma^*_m)}$ which is consistent with $\langle r_H^2 \rangle \sim 1/M_H^{2}$. The mean charge radius can be used as an alternative observable to assess the size of the physical states, and hence finite size effects, in numerical simulations. Furthermore, we discuss the behaviour of specific field correlators in coordinate space for the case of conformal, scale-invariant, and confining theories making use of selection rules in scaling dimensions and spin. We compute the scaling corrections to correlations functions by linearizing the renormalization group equations. We find that these correction are potentially large close to the edge of the conformal window. As an application we compute the scaling correction to the formula $M_H \sim m^{1/(1+\gamma_m^*)}$ directly through its associated correlator as well as through the trace anomaly. The two computations are shown to be equivalent through a generalisation of the Feynman-Hellmann theorem for the fermion mass, and the gauge coupling.Comment: 26pp, 3 figures, version nearly identical to PRD version (added appendix B finite size effects

Cultivated Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) Suffered a Severe Cytoplasmic Bottleneck during Domestication: Implications from Chloroplast Genomes

In various crops, genetic bottlenecks occurring through domestication can limit crop resilience to biotic and abiotic stresses. In the present study, we investigated nucleotide diversity in tomato chloroplast genome through sequencing seven plastomes of cultivated accessions from the Campania region (Southern Italy) and two wild species among the closest (Solanum pimpinellifolium) and most distantly related (S. neorickii) species to cultivated tomatoes. Comparative analyses among the chloroplast genomes sequenced in this work and those available in GenBank allowed evaluating the variability of plastomes and defining phylogenetic relationships. A dramatic reduction in genetic diversity was detected in cultivated tomatoes, nonetheless, a few de novo mutations, which still differentiated the cultivated tomatoes from the closest wild relative S. pimpinellifolium, were detected and are potentially utilizable as diagnostic markers. Phylogenetic analyses confirmed that S. pimpinellifolium is the closest ancestor of all cultivated tomatoes. Local accessions all clustered together and were strictly related with other cultivated tomatoes (S. lycopersicum group). Noteworthy, S. lycopersicum var. cerasiforme resulted in a mixture of both cultivated and wild tomato genotypes since one of the two analyzed accessions clustered with cultivated tomato, whereas the other with S. pimpinellifolium. Overall, our results revealed a very reduced cytoplasmic variability in cultivated tomatoes and suggest the occurrence of a cytoplasmic bottleneck during their domestication

An electronic patient-reported outcome mobile app for data collection in type a hemophilia:Design and usability study

BACKGROUND: There is currently limited evidence on the level and intensity of physical activity in individuals with hemophilia A. Mobile technologies can offer a rigorous and reliable alternative to support data collection processes but they are often associated with poor user retention. The lack of longitudinal continuity in their use can be partly attributed to the insufficient consideration of stakeholder inputs in the development process of mobile apps. Several user-centered models have been proposed to guarantee that a thorough knowledge of the end user needs is considered in the development process of mobile apps. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study is to design and validate an electronic patient-reported outcome mobile app that requires sustained active input by individuals during POWER, an observational study that aims at evaluating the relationship between physical activity levels and bleeding in patients with hemophilia A. METHODS: We adopted a user-centered design and engaged several stakeholders in the development and usability testing of this mobile app. During the concept generation and ideation phase, we organized a need-assessment focus group (FG) with patient representatives to elicit specific design requirements for the end users. We then conducted 2 exploratory FGs to seek additional inputs for the app’s improvement and 2 confirmatory FGs to validate the app and test its usability in the field through the mobile health app usability questionnaire. RESULTS: The findings from the thematic analysis of the need-assessment FG revealed that there was a demand for sense making, for simplification of app functionalities, for maximizing integration, and for minimizing the feeling of external control. Participants involved in the later stages of the design refinement contributed to improving the design further by upgrading the app’s layout and making the experience with the app more efficient through functions such as chatbots and visual feedback on the number of hours a wearable device had been worn, to ensure that the observed data were actually registered. The end users rated the app highly during the quantitative assessment, with an average mobile health app usability questionnaire score of 5.32 (SD 0.66; range 4.44-6.23) and 6.20 (SD 0.43; range 5.72-6.88) out of 7 in the 2 iterative usability testing cycles. CONCLUSIONS: The results of the usability test indicated a high, growing satisfaction with the electronic patient-reported outcome app. The adoption of a thorough user-centered design process using several types of FGs helped maximize the likelihood of sustained retention of the app’s users and made it fit for data collection of relevant outcomes in the observational POWER study. The continuous use of the app and the actual level of engagement will be evaluated during the ongoing trial. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04165135; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT0416513

Rotational atherectomy for the treatment of isolated femoral artery traumatic lesion: a case report

We describe the case of a 50-year-old man with an isolated plaque of the left distal superficial femoral artery (SFA), probably not related to atherosclerosis, but rather to a traumatic event. He was admitted to our hospital because of intermittent claudication. The critical distal SFA stenosis was documented by angiography and the lesion was treated by rotational atherectomy without stent implantation. At 1-year follow up, Doppler Ultrasound scan demonstrated a normal flow pattern of the left SFA and downstream districts in the absence of any complication. Therefore, rotational atherectomy is a safe and effective technique particularly in cases of peripheral arterial disease wherein stent implantation is dangerous