410 research outputs found
Author Correction: Gluten consumption and inflammation affect the development of celiac disease in at-risk children
No full textThe original version of this Article contained an error in the spelling of the authors Renata Auricchio, Ilaria Calabrese, Martina Galatola, Donatella Cielo, Fortunata Carbone, Marianna Mancuso, Giuseppe Matarese, Riccardo Troncone, Salvatore Auricchio & Luigi Greco which were incorrectly given as Auricchio Renata, Calabrese Ilaria, Galatola Martina, Cielo Donatella, Carbone Fortunata, Mancuso Marianna, Matarese Giuseppe, Troncone Riccardo, Auricchio Salvatore & Greco Luigi. The original article has been corrected
Capillary thinning analysis
No full textThe data analysis package is composed of three distinct scripts designed to be run in Matlab with png image files. ContactAngle.m measures the contact angle of a liquid bridge and the spreading distance on the substrate for a series of images during liquid bridge thinning. Startpoint_Symmetry finds the minimum radius for a series of liquid bridge thinning images, identifies the start and end point of thinning, and gives information about the overall symmetry of the trials. EC_binning identifies the fitting region, fits and reports relaxation time for elastocapillary thinning fluids. For all three scripts, an example dataset is provided to demonstrate script functionality.This collection of scripts is a package for analyzing extensional rheology data of liquid bridges. While this was created with Dripping-onto-Substrate datasets, this data analysis package may be useful for other liquid bridge thinning applications such as CaBER. Any pre-processing of images, such as binarizing, converting to png or cropping, can be completed with ImageJ.This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship under Grant No. CON-75851, project 00074041. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.Lauser, Kathleen T; Calabrese, Michelle A. (2022). Capillary thinning analysis. Retrieved from the University Digital Conservancy, https://doi.org/10.13020/gkz4-8z17
Novel Biological Therapies for Severe Asthma Endotypes
No full textSevere asthma comprises several heterogeneous phenotypes, underpinned by complex pathomechanisms known as endotypes. The latter are driven by intercellular networks mediated by molecular components which can be targeted by specific monoclonal antibodies. With regard to the biological treatments of either allergic or non-allergic eosinophilic type 2 asthma, currently available antibodies are directed against immunoglobulins E (IgE), interleukin-5 (IL-5) and its receptor, the receptors of interleukins-4 (IL-4) and 13 (IL-13), as well as thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP) and other alarmins. Among these therapeutic strategies, the best choice should be made according to the phenotypic/endotypic features of each patient with severe asthma, who can thus respond with significant clinical and functional improvements. Conversely, very poor options so far characterize the experimental pipelines referring to the perspective biological management of non-type 2 severe asthma, which thereby needs to be the focus of future thorough research
Biological Therapy of Severe Asthma with Dupilumab, a Dual Receptor Antagonist of Interleukins 4 and 13
No full textInterleukin-4 (IL-4) and interleukin-13 (IL-13) are key cytokines involved in the pathophysiology of both immune-inflammatory and structural changes underlying type 2 asthma. IL-4 plays a pivotal role in Th2 cell polarization, immunoglobulin E (IgE) synthesis and eosinophil recruitment into the airways. IL-13 synergizes with IL-4 in inducing IgE production and also promotes nitric oxide (NO) synthesis, eosinophil chemotaxis, bronchial hyperresponsiveness and mucus secretion, as well as the proliferation of airway resident cells such as fibroblasts and smooth muscle cells. The biological effects of IL-4 and IL-13 are mediated by complex signaling mechanisms activated by receptor dimerization triggered by cytokine binding to the α-subunit of the IL-4 receptor (IL-4Rα). The fully human IgG4 monoclonal antibody dupilumab binds to IL-4Rα, thereby preventing its interactions with both IL-4 and IL-13. This mechanism of action makes it possible for dupilumab to effectively inhibit type 2 inflammation, thus significantly reducing the exacerbation of severe asthma, the consumption of oral corticosteroids (OCS) and the levels of fractional exhaled NO (FeNO). Dupilumab has been approved not only for the add-on therapy of severe asthma, but also for the biological treatment of atopic dermatitis and nasal polyposis
Corrigendum to “Esophageal motility disorders among elderly patients: An international multicenter study” [Digestive and Liver Disease 57 (2025) 1615-1621]
No full textThe authors regret that the name of author Francesco Calabrese was spelt incorrectly. The correct spelling appears above and the online article has been amended. The authors would like to apologise for any inconvenience caused
The bridge: suggestions about the meaning of a pictorial motif
No full textDeveloping research begun at the Warburg Institute in 1983, this paper reflects on the construction of meaning in a work of art, through the analysis of the bridge’s function in painting. It tries to reply to some objections the author received there from Gombrich, about the chance of finding a stable content in the configuration of the bridge. Hence, the study reconsiders the concept of ‘motif’ applied to this structure. In a semiotic perspective a motif is partially independent as regards to a single textual organization, because it has a mobile and migrant feature. However, it is also partially flexible as it depends upon the same organization. The inquiry shows that bridge’s internal structure corresponds to the category of a ‘junction’, with two opposite items, ‘conjunction’ and ‘disjunction’. The development of this theoretical object can be carried out also by figures that are not ‘bridges’, in the natural sense of the word. Furthermore, its meaning does not depend upon the number of examples we can find but only upon their relevance for constructing a ‘grammar of cases’. Differently from the traditional iconographical approach, but also from panofskian iconology, the analysis moves not only towards the simple or complex content of a figure but also towards its description
Relative entanglement entropies in 1 + 1-dimensional conformal field theories
No full textWe study the relative entanglement entropies of one interval between excited states of a 1+1 dimensional conformal field theory (CFT). To compute the relative entropy S(ρ1‖ρ0) between two given reduced density matrices ρ1 and ρ0 of a quantum field theory, we employ the replica trick which relies on the path integral representation of Tr(ρ1ρn−10) and define a set of R\'enyi relative entropies Sn(ρ1‖ρ0). We compute these quantities for integer values of the parameter n and derive via the replica limit, the relative entropy between excited states generated by primary fields of a free massless bosonic field. In particular, we provide the relative entanglement entropy of the state described by the primary operator i∂φ, both with respect to the ground state and to the state generated by chiral vertex operators. These predictions are tested against exact numerical calculations in the XX spin-chain finding perfect agreement. © 2017, The Author(s)
La Strategia europea e italiana di Bioeconomia. Scenari e impatti territoriali, opportunità e rischi. Documento di valutazione e indirizzo
No full textLa conferenza multidisciplinare “La Strategia europea di Bioeconomia: scenari e impatti territoriali, opportunità e rischi” dello scorso settembre – patrocinata da società scientifiche e università – ha raccolto i contributi di storici, geografi, economisti, urbanisti, costituzionalisti, biologi, biologi forestali e medici le cui analisi hanno messo in evidenza una serie di criticità sulla base delle quali si può asserire che la Strategia di Bioeconomia della Commissione europea (del 2012 aggiornata nel 2018) e la conseguente Strategia italiana siano distanti dall’idea originaria di Bioeconomia teorizzata da Georgescu-Roegen, ovvero una bioeconomia compatibile con la vita e le leggi della natura.
La Strategia di Bioeconomia – promossa come la nuova frontiera dell’economia “verde” e basata sulla sostituzione delle fonti fossili con la biomassa – presenta forti contraddizioni rispetto agli stessi obiettivi che si pone, ovvero la riduzione dell’uso di fonti non sostenibili e non rinnovabili e della dipendenza dalle importazioni. La mera sostituzione delle fonti (che non prenda in considerazione anche la riduzione dei consumi di energia, materia e acqua) non solo non è sufficiente ma può essere dannosa. Questa si basa sulla produzione di biomassa su larga scala – e, quindi, sulla necessità di suolo fertile (sottratto anche alle foreste), acqua e input chimici – prodotta secondo il modello (e le logiche) dell’agro-industria che, come ampiamente dimostrato in letteratura, ha un forte impatto su ambiente, biodiversità ed economia territoriale. La Strategia, fondandosi sulla produzione energetica prevalentemente via combustione di sostanza biologica, compromette il recupero di questa per la compensazione dei suoli incidendo, così, sul clima a causa de bilancio di CO2 sfavorevole.
Con riferimento all’Italia, è stata rilevata una stretta connessione fra la Strategia di Bioeconomia e il
Testo Unico Forestale (TUF) del 2018, il cui impatto sul patrimonio forestale e la biodiversità appare piuttosto negativo. Con l’aggiornamento del 2018, la Strategia di bioeconomia si connette strettamente al processo di digitalizzazione (adeguamento alla Nuova Strategia di Politica Industriale 2017) aumentando esponenzialmente il fabbisogno di minerali essenziali alla produzione di alta tecnologia, come le terre rare che – oltre a non essere rinnovabili – sono fortemente impattanti per l’ambiente e la salute (ad esempio, la produzione di una tonnellata di terre rare genera fra 1 e 1,4 tonnellate di rifiuti radioattivi) e rendono, inevitabilmente, l’UE dipendente dalle importazioni (considerato che oltre il 90% delle terre rare sono prodotte in Cina).
Pertanto, la Strategia di bioeconomia risulta dipendente da risorse non sostenibili, non rinnovabili e dalle importazioni, motivo per cui richiederebbe una rielaborazione sistematica partendo dall’imprescindibile adeguamento alla Strategia europea sulla biodiversità, al Piano nazionale integrato per l’energia e il clima (PNIEC) e ai piani di adattamento climatico.
Il Comitato scientifico ha elaborato il Documento di valutazione e indirizzo della Strategia europea e italiana di bioeconomia - che esprime osservazioni e proposte già presentate alla Commissione europea e al governo italiano - pubblicato sulla Rivista “Economia e Ambiente” e liberamente scaricabile dall’homepage del sito www.economiaeambiente.i
Microbiological and hydrogeological assessment of groundwater in southern Italy
No full textThis study represents the first investigation of microbiological groundwater pollution as a function of aquifer type and season for the Apulia region of southern Italy. Two hundred and seven wells were randomly selected from those monitored by the Regional Agency for Environmental Protection for emergency use. Both compulsory (Escherichia coli, Total Coliform, and Enterococci) and optional (Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella spp., Heterotrophic Plate Count at 37 and 22 °C) microbiological parameters were assessed regularly at these wells. Groundwater from only 18 of the 207 (8.7 %) wells was potable; these all draw from karst-fissured aquifers. The remaining 189 wells draw from karst-fissured (66.1 %) or porous (33.9 %) aquifers. Of these, 82 (43.4 %) tested negative for Salmonella spp. and P. aeruginosa, while 107 (56.6 %) tested positive for P. aeruginosa (75.7 %), Salmonella spp. (10.3 %), or for both Salmonella spp. and P. aeruginosa (14 %). A logistic regression model shows that the probability of potable groundwater depends on both season and aquifer type. Typically, water samples were more likely to be potable in autumn-winter than in spring-summer periods (odds ratio, OR = 2.1; 95 % confidence interval, 95 % CI = 1.6-2.7) and from karst-fissured rather than porous aquifers (OR = 5.8; 95 % CI = 4.4-7.8). Optional parameters only showed a seasonal pattern (OR = 2.6; 95 % CI = 1.7-3.9). Clearly, further investigation of groundwater microbiological aspects should be carried out to identify the risks of fecal contamination and to establish appropriate protection methods, which take into account the hydrogeological and climatic characteristics of this region
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