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The role of 68Ga-DOTATOC PET/CT in meningiomas treated by Proton therapy.
Get PDFLo scopo dello studio consiste nel confrontare in modo non invasivo i meningiomi tramite la misurazione dei valori di (SUVmax), e (MTV) nella PET/TC 68Ga-DOTATOC. Abbiamo valutato retrospettivamente 22 pazienti, con recidiva di meningioma, (5 con G1, 14 G2 e 3 G3), in attesa di pianificazione di terapia con protoni, e controllo post-terapia. Abbiamo eseguito immagini PET/TC, un'ora dopo l'iniezione del radiofarmaco. Il volume di interesse (VOI) è stato circoscritto manualmente per racchiudere approssimativamente tutti i siti di malattia, nell'area attorno al clivus, e attorno alla convessità cranica, includendo i bordi tumorali e cercando di escludere l'ipofisi, sede di ipercaptazione del radiofarmaco. Test non parametrici come il test della mediana, t di Student, Kruskal-Wallis e Mann-Whitney, che mettono in relazione la distribuzione del valore del SUVmax pre e post trattamento con protoni, e le diverse categorie come G1, G2, G3 e G1 vs. G2-G3. Abbiamo eseguito delle misurazioni per MTV pre e post trattamento, mettendo in relazione i tre sottogruppi. Nessuno dei test applicati ha dimostrato differenze statisticamente significative tra il valore di captazione tumorale massimo SUVmax e le categorie di classificazione, G1 vs G2-G3. La differenza tra il SUV max pre e post terapia non ha dimostrato differenze statisticamente significative con P= 0.548, con media SUVmax, 17.01 vs.18.29; mediana SUVmax, 15.8 vs.16.2. È stata evidenziata una differenza significativa in volume metabolico del tumore MTV di circa 20%, specie per il gruppo G2. Con una riduzione di volume di circa 22%. Per quanto riguarda il valore del SUVmax potrebbe essere legato ai molteplici trattamenti, creando un’omogeneizzazione della captazione tumorale. La riduzione del volume tumorale ci fa capire l’importanza della PET/TC, post-trattamento, insieme al RM, ad avere un panorama completo dell’efficacia della terapia e cercare di condurre la successiva pianificazione del trattamento e del follow-up.Meningiomas are often located in inaccessible sites and sometimes they are not completely resectable. Proton therapy (PT) remains a valid option for tumor mass control. Molecular imaging PET/CT, by 18F-FDG and 68Ga-DOTATOC, is essential for the prognostic and therapeutic implications of these tumors, especially in the evaluation of the most active part of the tumor, providing a non-invasive approach in the pre and post treatment. We evaluated 22 patients with recurrent meningiomas located in the area around the clivus or the cranial convexity, who underwent 68Ga-DOTATOC PET/CT before and after PT treatment. We performed PET/CT images, one hour after injection of the radiopharmaceutical. The volume of interest (VOI) was manually circumscribed to approximately enclose all disease sites. MTV (Metabolic Tumor Volume) was also assessed. Non-parametric tests (median test, Student's t-test, Kruskal-Wallis test, and Mann-Whitney test) performed in order to evaluate the differences between pre and post-treatment. None of the tests demonstrated statistically significant differences in the SUVmax grading categories, G1 vs G2-G3. Even the difference between the SUVmax before and after therapy did not show significant differences. There was a significant reduction in MTV of approximately 20%, especially for the G2 group, with a loss in volume, about 22%. Our results show that there is no correlation between SUVmax of the lesion and tumor grading. This happens probably by the fact that patients received several and different treatments. An important data was the MTV reduction of 20% for the most active part of the tumor, and a post-treatment reduction of 22% for the G2 subgroup. This could be relevant for patient’s selection before starting PT treatment. Our data, suggest that 68Ga-DOTATOC PET/CT may be an integration of MRI both before and after PT, to have a complete overview of treatment effectiveness and to evaluate residual disease
Transforming the university city: place-narratives and place-making practices of university students in Bologna and Lisbon
Get PDFGli studenti svolgono un ruolo cruciale nella vita politica delle città universitarie. La letteratura evidenzia diverse forme di partecipazione politica, come associazioni studentesche e movimenti sociali, che si mobilitano soprattutto per il diritto allo studio e questioni di politiche nazionali. Tuttavia, il loro ruolo nella negoziazione con le istituzioni pubbliche urbane e nella trasformazione dei luoghi urbani rimane poco esplorato.
Questa ricerca mira a contribuire a questo dibattito analizzando come gli studenti trasformano la città attraverso la propria partecipazione politica. Il concetto di senso(i) del luogo, comprensivo di significati di luogo e attaccamento ai luoghi, viene esaminato attraverso le lenti della psicologia narrativa e della Teoria delle Rappresentazioni Sociali, per comprendere come gli studenti costruiscano e mobilitino significati per legittimare pratiche di appropriazione e di place-making, considerandone le dinamiche di potere. La ricerca si basa su due studi etnografici condotti a Bologna e Lisbona, attraverso al conduzione di walking interviews (14 a Bologna, 11 a Lisbona) e di osservazioni partecipanti con un approccio sensoriale. Le interviste sono state analizzate attraverso Analisi Narrativa, mentre le note di campo sono state esaminate tramite Analisi Tematica Riflessiva.
I risultati rivelano due narrazioni predominanti in entrambe le città: una Narrazione Conflittuale, che enfatizza l'opposizione tra studenti e istituzioni, dove il senso del luogo è legato all'identità e all'attaccamento, e una Narrazione Polifonica, che evidenzia la convivenza tra diversi gruppi urbani, associata a un attaccamento ambivalente e alla porosità. A Bologna, le istituzioni sono percepite come difensive, limitando la porosità, mentre a Lisbona gli studenti non attivisti sono visti come indifferenti. Le osservazioni sono strutturate attorno a tre temi: appropriazione per il diritto alla città, place-making relazionale e abitare. Lo studio evidenzia come la dimensione urbana sia centrale per comprendere la partecipazione politica degli studenti e i suoi impatti materiali e sociali sulla vita urbana.Students play a crucial role in the political life of university cities. The literature highlights various forms of formal participation, such as student associations and social movements, which advocate for issues like the right to education and national policies. However, their role in negotiating with urban public institution and in transforming urban places remains underexplored. This research aims at contributing to address these gaps by analyzing how students shape the city through political participation. The concept of sense(s) of place, including place meaning and attachment, is examined through narrative psychology and Social Representations' Theory to understand how students construct and mobilize meanings to legitimize practices of place appropriation and place-making, considering power dynamics. The research is based on ethnographic studies in Bologna and Lisbon, using walking interviews (14 in Bologna, 11 in Lisbon) and participant observation adopting a sensory approach. Narrative Analysis was applied to interviews, while Reflexive Thematic Analysis was used for field notes. Findings reveal two predominant narratives in both cities: a Confrontational Narrative, emphasizing opposition between students and institutions, where sense of place is tied to identity and attachment, and a Polyphonic Narrative, highlighting coexistence among different urban groups, linked to ambivalent attachment and porosity. In Bologna, institutions are seen as defensive, limiting porosity, while in Lisbon, non-activist students are perceived as indifferent. Observations are structured around three themes: appropriation for the right to the city, relational place-making, and dwelling. The study highlights how the urban dimension is central to understanding student political participation and its material and social impacts on urban life
Cross-domain network service management and orchestration
Get PDFThe introduction of virtualization and cloud computing technologies in the telco industry has significantly changed how network services are delivered. The Network Function Virtualization paradigm leverages these technologies to replace physical network appliances with software network functions decoupled from the hardware. Moreover, the emergence of software-defined approaches such as Software Defined Networking and programmable data plane has increased network programmability. Although the combination of these paradigms provides unprecedented flexibility, a seamless orchestration of all network components is required to meet the functional and performance requirements of different types of services. This thesis addresses the management and orchestration of network services with a cross-domain study, presenting the orchestration solutions implemented during the three years of PhD. The work exploits the capabilities offered by the mentioned technologies and studies the benefits and challenges of their application in different scenarios. First, this thesis focuses on 5G network slicing, reporting the design and implementation of a network slice for mission-critical communications. Then, it discusses the orchestration of an industrial network digital twin for cybersecurity testing in a realistic virtualized environment. Finally, it presents a novel orchestration system to deploy secure machine learning pipelines for near-real-time control of network services. Two solutions are considered to secure the communications between the agents composing the pipelines. The former exploits IPsec secure channels using a Distributed Ledger Technology network for key exchange. The latter proposes in-network encryption performed with P4 programmable switches
ICF as a tool for co-construction of the PEI and the Life Project in the school context
Get PDFIl presente lavoro di ricerca si pone come obiettivo quello di analizzare le pratiche di co-costruzione del progetto di vita degli alunni con Bisogni Educativi Speciali nel contesto scolastico, coinvolgendo una scuola in un percorso di ricerca-formazione volta a riflettere sulle modalità di condivisione del PEI e di riformulazione dello stesso in chiave ICF. Il Piano Educativo Individualizzato si configura come lo strumento principale in cui convergono tutte le azioni condivise tra famiglia, AUSL, scuola, Ente Locale. L'adozione del modello bio-psico-sociale ICF sancita dai decreti 66/2017 e 96/2019 nella definizione del PEI, (e successivi D.I.182/20, D.I. 153/23), mette fortemente in discussione il paradigma medico-individuale della disabilità, declinandola in una dimensione sociale. Il modello bio-psico-sociale è stato adottato dall'OMS con la pubblicazione dell'ICF nel 2001 (Lascioli e Pasqualotto, 2018, p.32), grazie a tale classificazione la disabilità viene vista “come la conseguenza o il risultato di una complessa relazione tra la condizione di salute di un individuo, i fattori personali e i fattori ambientali che rappresentano le circostanze in cui vive l'individuo ”(ICF, 2004, p.32). La ricerca utilizza metodologie empiriche attraverso uno studio di caso, proponendo ad un Istituto Comprensivo di Bologna un percorso di ricerca-formazione. Lo scopo prioritario di questo disegno è quello di attivare cambiamenti collettivi attraverso il coinvolgimento dei diversi attori con il fine di renderli più consapevoli ed emancipati nell'analisi e nella definizione del contesto educativo (Asquini, 2018). Il disegno della ricerca è caratterizzato dall'utilizzo di metodologie miste con fasi sequenziali (Trinchero e Robasto, 2019). Si è optato per l'utilizzo sia di strumenti quantitativi (questionari, griglie per l’analisi documentale) che qualitativi (focus group, interviste) per avere una visione pluriprospettica dell'integrazione, prendendo in esame il punto di vista dei diversi attori, mettendo a confronto il dichiarato con le percezioni dei docenti e dei genitoriThe present research work aims to analyze the practices of co-construction of the life project of students with Special Educational Needs in the school context, involving a school in a research-training path aimed at reflecting on the methods of sharing the PEI and reformulating it in an ICF key. The Individualized Educational Plan is configured as the main tool in which all the actions shared between family, AUSL, school, Local Authority converge. The adoption of the ICF bio-psycho-social model sanctioned by decrees 66/2017 and 96/2019 in the definition of the PEI, (and subsequent D.I.182/20, D.I. 153/23), strongly calls into question the medical-individual paradigm of disability, declining it in a social dimension. The bio-psycho-social model was adopted by the WHO with the publication of the ICF in 2001 (Lascioli and Pasqualotto, 2018, p.32), thanks to this classification disability is seen "as the consequence or result of a complex relationship between the health condition of an individual, personal factors and environmental factors that represent the circumstances in which the individual lives" (ICF, 2004, p.32). The research uses empirical methodologies through a case study, proposing a research-training path to a comprehensive institute in Bologna. The primary purpose of this design is to activate collective changes through the involvement of the various actors with the aim of making them more aware and emancipated in the analysis and definition of the educational context (Asquini, 2018). The research design is characterized by the use of mixed methodologies with sequential phases (Trinchero and Robasto, 2019). We opted to use both quantitative tools (questionnaires, grids for document analysis) and qualitative tools (focus groups, interviews) to have a multi-perspective view of integration, examining the point of view of the different actors, comparing the declared with the perceptions of teachers and parents
Da figlie della classe lavoratrice a scrittrici: i racconti di filiazione delle donne transclasse
Get PDFLa production littéraire des femmes, en particulier leurs récits de filiation, assume aujourd’hui un important rôle dans la réparation et la préservation de la mémoire de la classe laborieuse du xxe siècle. Quels enjeux mobilisent l’écriture de ces autrices ? Quels moyens formels choisissent-elles pour raconter l’histoire de leur communauté ? De quelle manière ces récits s’inscrivent-ils dans la littérature contemporaine et les pensées féministes actuelles? Telles sont les questions auxquelles cette thèse s’attache à répondre, en proposant une étude comparative et interdisciplinaire des récits de filiation laborieuse français d’écrivaines transclasses, notamment La place (1983) et Une femme (1988) d’Annie Ernaux, Le Bois du Seigneur (1987) de Denise Avenas, Les Derniers Jours de la classe ouvrière (2003) d’Aurélie Filippetti, Atelier 62 (2008) de Martine Sonnet et L’Arrivée de mon père en France (2008) de Martine Storti. L’étude s’articule autour de deux volets principaux: l’analyse de la dimension formelle des textes à la lumière de l’éthique féministe du care et l’interprétation, dans une optique marxiste et féministe, des thématiques liées à la filiation laborieuse. En tenant compte du caractère transformateur et potentiellement révolutionnaire des pratiques et valeurs du care, la thèse soutient que la dimension engagée et politique des récits étudiés passe par une forme de « soin » scriptural, ainsi que par l’adoption d’une attitude caring s’exprimant dans certains choix formels propres au récit de filiation. Elle montre également que les ouvrages, tout en déconstruisant des stéréotypes de genre, contribuent à donner de la visibilité au rôle primordial des activités et valeurs du care. En outre, ils s’inscrivent dans l’imaginaire de la filiation caractéristique de la littérature des femmes et des pensées féministes actuelles – un imaginaire qui réinvestit l’axe vertical de la généalogie tout en s’ouvrant à d’autres sujets opprimés au-delà de la communauté des femmes.Women’s literary production, particularly their filiation narratives, currently plays a crucial role in repairing and preserving the memory of the twentieth-century working class. What issues drive these authors’ writing? What formal strategies do they adopt to tell the story of their community ? How do these narratives position themselves within contemporary literature and feminist thoughts ? These are the questions this thesis seeks to address through a comparative and interdisciplinary study of French working-class filiation narratives written by transclass women, particularly Annie Ernaux’s La place (1983) and Une femme (1988), Denise Avenas’ Le Bois du Seigneur (1987), Aurélie Filippetti’s Les Derniers Jours de la classe ouvrière (2003), Martine Sonnet’s Atelier 62 (2008), and Martine Storti’s L’Arrivée de mon père en France (2008). The study is structured around two main axes: an analysis of the formal aspects of the texts through the lens of the feminist ethics of care, and an interpretation – grounded in both Marxist and feminist perspectives – of themes related to working-class filiation. Considering the transformative and potentially revolutionary power of care practices and values, this thesis argues that the engagé and political dimensions of these narratives include a form of « scriptural care », as well as the adoption of a caring attitude which is manifested in specific formal choices intrinsic to filiation narrative. Furthermore, this work demonstrates that the texts in the corpus, while deconstructing gender stereotypes, contribute to highlighting the fundamental role of care activities and values. Additionally, they participate in the way contemporary women’s literature and feminist writings imagine filiation – an imaginary that reinvests the vertical axis of genealogy and extends it to other oppressed subjects beyond the women’s community.La produzione letteraria delle donne, in particolare i loro racconti di filiazione, assume oggi un ruolo importante nella riparazione e nella preservazione della memoria della classe lavoratrice del Novecento. Quali questioni guidano la scrittura di queste autrici ? Quali strategie letterarie adottano per raccontare la storia della loro comunità? In che modo questi racconti si collocano nel panorama letterario contemporaneo e nel pensiero femminista attuale ? Queste sono le domande a cui la tesi intende rispondere, proponendo uno studio comparativo e interdisciplinare dei racconti di filiazione francesi di scrittrici transclasse, in particolare La place (1983) e Une femme (1988) di Annie Ernaux, Le Bois du Seigneur (1987) di Denise Avenas, Les Derniers Jours de la classe ouvrière (2003) di Aurélie Filippetti, Atelier 62 (2008) di Martine Sonnet e L’Arrivée de mon père en France (2008) di Martine Storti. Lo studio si articola in due parti principali: l’analisi della dimensione formale dei testi alla luce dell’etica femminista del care e l’interpretazione, in un’ottica marxista e femminista, delle tematiche legate alla filiazione nel contesto della classe lavoratrice. Considerando il carattere trasformativo e potenzialmente rivoluzionario delle pratiche e dei valori connessi all'etica del care, la tesi sostiene che la dimensione impegnata e politica dei racconti analizzati includa una forma di « cura » nella scrittura, nonché l’adozione di un atteggiamento caring espresso in alcune scelte formali proprie del racconto di filiazione. Dimostra inoltre che questi testi, mentre decostruiscono gli stereotipi di genere, contribuiscono a dare visibilità al ruolo primordiale delle attività e dei valori inerenti all'etica del care. Per di più, essi si inscrivono nell’immaginario della filiazione caratteristico della letteratura contemporanea delle donne e dei pensieri femministi attuali – un immaginario che reinveste l’asse verticale della genealogia e si apre ad altri soggetti oppressi al di là della comunità delle donne
Innovative approaches for power conversion from renewables
Get PDFThis thesis summarizes the main results achieved during my Ph.D. research focused on power conversion from renewable energy sources. Two case studies are presented, exploring innovative approaches to renewable energy technologies. The first focuses on a solution for energy storage, i.e. Flywheel Energy Storage Systems (FESS). The innovative idea is to employ FESS as an alternative to chemical batteries for energy storage when coupled with a residential photovoltaic panel. An ironless dual-rotor electric machine prototype, is presented. The prototype has been designed for FESS application to increase its self-discharge duration time. An analysis of the machine is provided with simulations and experimental tests. Performances are assessed both from the mechanical and electromagnetic domains. Moreover, different motordrive solution are explored. As for the complete FESS, a tool simulating the power flow between all the nodes for energy savings estimates is presented. It allows to find the best match between the size of the system components and the power profiles of PV generation and electric load consumption. The second case study focuses on power conversion for wind energy. An innovative configuration for a Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor is proposed. This solution is the Opened End PMSM (OW-PMSM) fed by a dual inverter. This motordrive presents advantages making them an ideal technology for wind turbines, e.g. higher energy density and higher fault tolerance. However, it is affected by a Zero Sequence Current (ZSC) circulation that significantly decreases its performances. ZSC must be minimized through proper modulation of the phase voltages. Moreover, switching losses are double the one of a conventional single inverter. A modulation technique based on Discontinuous Pulse Width Modulation is proposed to cancel out the ZSC while achieving a consistent reduction of the switching losses of the double inverter system. The technique is explained in detail and validated with experimental tests
Nickel catalysis for advanced synthetic strategies and carbon dioxide valorisation
Get PDFThe kernel of this PhD thesis is the development of new synthetic methodologies involving homogeneous nickel catalysis. The final applicative outlet of these studies has been the shifting of known paradigms in CO2 valorisation as C1 synthon and the preparation of highly valuable trifluoromethylated compounds. The projects relative to CO2 chemistry illustrated herein should open a new sight about the feasible strategic routes for introducing the CO moiety directly from CO2 for the synthesis of elaborated organic scaffolds. The developed works accounts for the preparations of ketones, lactams and lactones as representative functional groups, thus also proving the great capabilities of the catalytic platform. Nickel catalysis has also been successfully applied in the preparation of α-aryl-α-trifluoromethyl alcohols, present in approved fluorinated drugs. This latter methodology introduces for the first time the paradigms of cross electrophile couplings as innovative tools to prepare the targeted entities. Moreover, the employed N-trifluoroethoxyphtalimide is an undoubtedly advantageous surrogate of hazardous trifluoroacetaldehyde, thus posing the developed methodology on a completely new level of safety standards
Evolving intrusion detection and prevention with programmable data planes
Get PDFNetwork monitoring has traditionally been constrained by the infrastructure’s inherent limitations, including diverse device capabilities, legacy systems, and the physical separation between data generation and monitoring. These constraints delay threat detection and response, providing adversaries opportunities to exploit network vulnerabilities and exhaust resources. While Software-Defined Networking (SDN) has introduced tools for enriched network visibility, its centralized nature imposes latency, limiting real-time threat mitigation. This thesis explores the potential of fully programmable P4 data planes to transform network threat detection. By enabling line-rate packet processing and custom pipelines, P4 empowers network engineers to proactively detect threats and react with unprecedented speed. Our work demonstrates the versatility of P4 through frameworks addressing diverse challenges. In Part II, we introduce P4RTHENON, which combines a simple data plane anomaly detection algorithm with control plane refinement to detect and mitigate DDoS attacks. Building on this, we propose an adaptive anomaly detection framework leveraging active learning to iteratively refine machine learning models, seamlessly integrating them into P4 pipelines. Part III investigates Distributed Ledger Technologies (DLTs) for tamper-proof alert dissemination, presenting P-IOTA, a framework linking P4-enabled switches directly to IOTA’s ledger, bypassing intermediaries and enhancing trust in alert systems. Part IV explores P4’s applications in IIoT networks, presenting use cases such as edge-assisted in-network computing with data integrity and industrial tunneling mechanisms, showcasing P4’s ability to secure legacy and resource-constrained systems. Concluding, the thesis outlines open challenges, such as balancing real-time detection with resource efficiency and extending P4’s capabilities for broader system integration, emphasizing its role as a cornerstone for future secure networks
Valorization of agri-food by-products for pharmaceutical, cosmetic, and nutraceutical applications in a circular economy perspective
Get PDFThe global food system faces a critical sustainability challenge with significant food loss and waste, substantially contributing to greenhouse gas emissions. Global efforts aim to reduce this waste by adopting circular economy principles. Indeed, the large amounts of agricultural waste generated are rich in valuable bioactive compounds like polyphenols and proteins, with applications in nutraceutical, pharmaceutical, and cosmetic industries. This research focuses on valorizing underutilized by-products from Fruttagel®, an Italian agri-food company processing many fruits (apples, apricots, peaches and tomato) and legumes (beans, green beans, peas and soy). By-products from fruit juice (pomace, peels, etc.) and tomato sauce production (peels), as well as legume by-products (skins, leaves, okara), were analyzed and compared to final products. Analytical methodologies, including Ultrasound-Assisted Extraction (UAE) for polyphenol recovery and chromatographic methods (HPLC-DAD and UHPLC-DAD-ESI-MSn), were developed and optimized for chemical characterization and stability evaluation. The Total Phenolic Content (TPC) and Total Antioxidant Status (TAS) assays were applied for functional screening. Protein content was determined using the Kjeldahl method. Pesticide analysis was also conducted on fruit by-products. Chemical analysis revealed significant amounts of different polyphenols in the by-products, such as chlorogenic acid in biological peach and apricot, feruloyl glucaric acid derivatives in beans, flavonols in green beans, and isoflavones in soy. Many by-products, especially soy, also showed high protein content suggesting potential in nutraceuticals and cosmetics. In collaboration with the pharmaceutical company Valpharma S.p.A., an enteric-coated tablet incorporating UAE extracts as active ingredients was formulated, exploiting the prebiotic potential of polyphenols. Purification and concentration methods for the extracts were optimized, and a "marker Tablet" strategy, employing a substitute active ingredient, was used to evaluate tablet properties. The obtained results demonstrate the significant potential of agri-food by-products as valuable and sustainable ingredients within a circular bio-economy, highlighting their nutritional and functional benefits for new formulations
Use of bioenergetically active membranes for the study of green chemicals
Get PDFIonic liquids (ILs) represent promising, more sustainable substitutes for canonical volatile organic compounds in many industries. Yet, their toxicity is still debated. While their impact on ecotoxicological model organisms has been extensively studied, and though it is known how their ability to interact with biological membranes is the determining factor at the base of their toxicity, a detailed understanding of ILs interaction with native membranes is still missing. In this context, we investigated ILs effect on bioenergetically active membranes using chromatophores, photosynthetic vesicles isolated from the purple non-sulfur bacteria Rhodobacter capsulatus, and bovine-heart derived submitochondrial particles. Chromatophores bear carotenoids associated to the light-harvesting complex II whose visible spectrum of absorbance responds linearly to the membrane electrical potential (ΔΨ), acting as an intramembrane voltmeter. We utilised this carotenoid shift to obtain information on the ΔΨ dissipation in the presence of ILs. Moreover, we tested the compounds effect on the electron transfer reactions occuring within the cytochrome bc1 and the light-driven ATP synthesis of chromatophores, and in vivo on the photosynthetic growth of Rb. capsulatus. Subsequently, we tested ILs on submitochondrial particles, investigating their effect on the electron transport, and on the activity of complexes I, III and IV of the mitochondrial electron transport chain. ILs were able to collapse the ΔΨ at micromolar concentrations by increasing the ionic current across the chromatophores lipid bilayer, with bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)amide (Ntf2-) containing ILs being particularly effective. The compounds did not significantly inhibit cytochrome bc1 electron transfer reactions. Still, Ntf2 caused a drammatic decrease in light-driven ATP synthesis, and was able to inhibit the bacterium growth at millimolar concentrations. Finally, we found the ILs tested on submitochondrial particles to exert a primary effect of inhibition of the electron transport chain complexes at concentrations of tens of millimolar, with a secondary effect on the membrane electrochemical potential