Secure Real-Time Monitoring and Management of Smart Distribution Grid Using Shared Cellular Network

The electricity production and distribution is facing two major changes. First, the production is shifting from classical energy sources such as coal and nuclear power towards renewable resources such as solar and wind. Secondly, the consumption in the low voltage grid is expected to grow significantly due to expected introduction of electrical vehicles. The first step towards more efficient operational capabilities is to introduce an observability of the distribution system and allow for leveraging the flexibility of end connection points with manageable consumption, generation and storage capabilities. Thanks to the advanced measurement devices, management framework, and secure communication infrastructure developed in the FP7 SUNSEED project, the Distribution System Operator (DSO) now has full observability of the energy flows at the medium/low voltage grid. Furthermore, the prosumers are able to participate pro-actively and coordinate with the DSO and other stakeholders in the grid. The monitoring and management functionalities have strong requirements to the communication latency, reliability and security. This paper presents novel solutions and analyses of these aspects for the SUNSEED scenario, where the smart grid ICT solutions are provided through shared cellular LTE networks

Multimodal Stimulation of Colorado Potato Beetle Reveals Modulation of Pheromone Response by Yellow Light

Orientation of insects to host plants and conspecifics is the result of detection and integration of chemical and physical cues present in the environment. Sensory organs have evolved to be sensitive to important signals, providing neural input for higher order multimodal processing and behavioral output. Here we report experiments to determine decisions made by Colorado potato beetle (CPB), Leptinotarsa decemlineata, in response to isolated stimuli and multimodal combinations of signals on a locomotion compensator. Our results show that in complete darkness and in the absence of other stimuli, pheromonal stimulation increases attraction behavior of CPB as measured in oriented displacement and walking speed. However, orientation to the pheromone is abolished when presented with the alternative stimulation of a low intensity yellow light in a dark environment. The ability of the pheromone to stimulate these diurnal beetles in the dark in the absence of other stimuli is an unexpected but interesting observation. The predominance of the phototactic response over that to pheromone when low intensity lights were offered as choices seems to confirm the diurnal nature of the insect. The biological significance of the response to pheromone in the dark is unclear. The phototactic response will play a key role in elucidating multimodal stimulation in the host-finding process of CPB, and perhaps other insects. Such information might be exploited in the design of applications to attract and trap CPB for survey or control purposes and other insect pests using similar orientation mechanisms

Dietary flavonoids inhibit the anticancer effects of the proteasome inhibitor bortezomib

Dietary flavonolds have many health-promoting actions, including anticancer activity via proteasome inhibition. Bortezomib is a dipeptide boronate proteasome inhibitor that has activity in the treatment of multiple myeloma but Is not effective In chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). Although CLL cells are sensitive In vitro to bortezomlb-induced apoptosis when cultured in medium, the killing activity was blocked when cultured In 50% fresh autologous plasma. Dietary flavonoids, quercetin and myrocetin, which are abundant In plasma, inhibited bortezomib-induced apoptosis of primary CLL and malignant B-cell lines in a dose-dependent manner. This inhibitory effect was associated with chemical reactions between quercetin and the boronic acid group, -RB(OH) 2 , in bortezomib. The addition of boric acid diminished the inhibitory effect of both quercetin and plasma on bortezomib-induced apoptosis. The protective effect was also reduced when myeloma cell lines, but not B-cell lines, were preincubated with quercetin, indicating a direct effect of quercetin on myeloma cells. At high doses, quercetin itself induced tumor cell death. These data indicate that dietary flavonoids limit the efficacy of bortezomib, whereas supplemental inorganic boric acid is able to reverse this. The complex interactions between quercetin, tumor cells, and bortezomib mean caution Is required when giving dietary advice to patients. © 2008 by The American Society of Hematology

Populism and feminist politics: The cases of Finland and Spain

While populism has been subject to growing scholarly interest, its relationship to feminist politics has remained conspicuously understudied. This article investigates this relationship by analysing two cases of European populism: left populism in Spain (Podemos), and right populism in Finland (the Finns Party). The questions asked, and the challenges posed to feminist politics from populist political forces are intriguing: How is feminist politics articulated in both left and right populism? What differences can be discerned between left and right populism for feminist politics? To explore this, the article analyses three core dimensions: (1) political representation: descriptive representation (numbers of women, men and minority positions) and substantive representation (policy content in relation to gender equality); (2) populist parties’ formal and informal gender institutions such as internal quotas, gender equality plans and institutional culture; and (3) dedicated spaces for feminist politics such as women’s sections or feminist groups. It is argued that political ideology matters for feminist politics, and while left parties are more responsive to feminist concerns and populism poses specific problems for feminist politics, it is the gendered culture of political parties that ensures both left and right parties are problematic for feminist politics

Glucocortiocoid Treatment of MCMV Infected Newborn Mice Attenuates CNS Inflammation and Limits Deficits in Cerebellar Development

Infection of the developing fetus with human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) is a major cause of central nervous system disease in infants and children; however, mechanism(s) of disease associated with this intrauterine infection remain poorly understood. Utilizing a mouse model of HCMV infection of the developing CNS, we have shown that peripheral inoculation of newborn mice with murine CMV (MCMV) results in CNS infection and developmental abnormalities that recapitulate key features of the human infection. In this model, animals exhibit decreased granule neuron precursor cell (GNPC) proliferation and altered morphogenesis of the cerebellar cortex. Deficits in cerebellar cortical development are symmetric and global even though infection of the CNS results in a non-necrotizing encephalitis characterized by widely scattered foci of virus-infected cells with mononuclear cell infiltrates. These findings suggested that inflammation induced by MCMV infection could underlie deficits in CNS development. We investigated the contribution of host inflammatory responses to abnormal cerebellar development by modulating inflammatory responses in infected mice with glucocorticoids. Treatment of infected animals with glucocorticoids decreased activation of CNS mononuclear cells and expression of inflammatory cytokines (TNF-α, IFN-β and IFNγ) in the CNS while minimally impacting CNS virus replication. Glucocorticoid treatment also limited morphogenic abnormalities and normalized the expression of developmentally regulated genes within the cerebellum. Importantly, GNPC proliferation deficits were normalized in MCMV infected mice following glucocorticoid treatment. Our findings argue that host inflammatory responses to MCMV infection contribute to deficits in CNS development in MCMV infected mice and suggest that similar mechanisms of disease could be responsible for the abnormal CNS development in human infants infected in-utero with HCMV

Genome sequence of an aichivirus detected in a common pipistrelle bat (Pipistrellus pipistrellus)

The family Picornaviridae includes important human and animal pathogens that are associated with a wide range of diseases and, in some cases, have zoonotic potential. During epidemiological surveillance of bats, we identified, by next-generation sequencing (NGS) techniques, the presence of picornavirus RNA in a common pipistrelle bat (Pipistrellus pipistrellus). By coupling NGS, primer-walking strategies, and sequence-independent protocols to obtain the sequences of the 5′ and 3′ termini, we reconstructed the genome sequence of picornavirus strain ITA/2017/189/18-155. The genome of the bat picornavirus is 8.2 kb in length and encodes a polyprotein of 2462 amino acids. A comparison of polyprotein sequences revealed that this virus is distantly related (65.1% and 70.9% sequence identity at the nucleotide and amino acid level, respectively) to a bat aichivirus identified in 2010. Phylogenetic analysis showed that this picornavirus clustered closely with members of the genus Kobuvirus, which also includes human and animal aichiviruses. The identification of aichiviruses in several animal hosts is providing hints that will lead to an understanding of their origin and evolutionary patterns