1,721,189 research outputs found
spes: a bridge between stars and society
No full textThe facility is being built at the Legnaro National Laboratory (LNL) of INFN, see fig. 1. The acronym stays for “Selective Production of Exotic Species”. Indeed the aim of the SPES project is to provide high-intensity and high-quality beams of neutron-rich nuclei as well as a facility for nuclear physics applications, mainly in Nuclear Medicine
New frontiers in cell-based immunotherapy of cancer
No full textBackground: Cancer remains one of the leading causes of death. Over the past decade, discovery of tumor antigens, as well as new findings in basic immunology, have led to novel opportunities for developing active immunotherapeutical approaches for prevention and treatment of cancer. Objective/methods: This is a review of the literature and patents on the therapeutic potential of immune-based cell cancer therapies. Results/conclusion: In this article, we discuss the different approaches at present used for immune-based cell cancer therapies, and the results obtained both in preclinical models and in clinical trials of hematological malignancies and solid tumors
Targeting IL-23 in human diseases
No full textImportance of the field: IL-23 is one of the most intriguing cytokine for its many immunological functions, which are the basis of its important role in host defense but also of its possible contribution to the pathogenesis of several diseases.Areas covered in this review: The literature and patents about IL-23 pathway and their targeting in therapeutic potential applications. Findings published within the last 5 years receive particular attention.What the reader will gain: An overview of the emerging role of IL-23 in physiological and pathological conditions and a review of the different approaches (IL-23 pathway-based) currently used for autoimmune diseases and cancer therapies and the results obtained both in preclinical models and in clinical trials.Take home message: Inhibition/targeting of IL-23 may be a good and novel therapeutic strategy, especially in the treatment of diseases like psoriasis, for which current treatments show more pronounced side effects than those of IL-23-blocking and employed as part of specific patient-tailored therapies in inflammatory bowel diseases
The effect of Helicobacter pylori on asthma and allergy
Get PDFCurrent evidence indicates an inverse association between Helicobacter pylori and asthma and allergy. H. pylori is a Gram-negative bacterium which represents the major cause of peptic ulcer and gastric cancer, and preferentially elicits a T helper (Th)-1 response. Many H. pylori factors, such as the neutrophil-activating factor of H. pylori (HP-NAP), are able to drive Th-1 polarization and to display a powerful inhibition of allergic Th-2 response. This article proposes an overview of the actual knowledge about the effects of H. pylori on asthma and allergy. Special attention has been drawn to HP-NAP as a potential novel strategy for the prevention and treatment of asthma and atopy
The neutrophil-activating protein of Helicobacter pylori (HP-NAP) as an immune modulating agent
No full textDuring evolution microorganisms have developed several immune modulating strategies. The Helicobacter pylori neutrophil-activating protein (HP-NAP) is a virulence factor that attracts and activates neutrophils, and promotes their endothelial adhesion and the production of oxygen radicals and chemokines, including CXCL8, CCL3 and CCL4. HP-NAP, a TLR2 agonist, is an immune modulator able to induce the expression of interleukin-12 (IL-12) and IL-23 by human neutrophils and monocytes. In fact, HP-NAP has the potential to shift antigen-specific T-cell responses from a predominant Th2 to a polarized Th1 cytotoxic phenotype, characterized by high levels of interferon-gamma and tumor necrosis factor-alpha production. Thus, HP-NAP is a key factor driving Th1 inflammation in H. pylori infection and may be a new tool for future therapeutic strategies aimed at redirecting Th2 into Th1 responses, for example in atopy, vaccinology and cancer immunotherapy
A combined experimental and numerical approach for the control and monitoring of the SPES target during operation at high temperature
No full textThe SPES project at INFN-LNL aims at the production of neutron-rich Radioactive Ion Beams (RIBs) using
the ISOL (Isotope Separation On Line) technique. A 40 MeV 200 lA proton beam will directly impinge a
uranium carbide target, generating approximately 1013 fissions per second. The target system is installed
under vacuum inside a water-cooled chamber, and have to maintain high working temperatures, close to
2000 C. During operation the proton beam provides the heating power required to keep the target at the
desired temperature level. As a consequence, its characteristics have to be strictly controlled in order to
avoid undesired overheating. According to the original design of the control system, the proton beam can
be suddenly interrupted in case of out of range vacuum or cooling water flow levels. With the aim to
improve the reliability of the control system a set of temperature sensors has been installed close to
the target. Their types and installation positions were defined taking into consideration the detailed
information coming from a dedicated thermal–electric model that allowed to investigate the most critical
and inaccessible target hot-spots.
This work is focused on the definition and experimental validation of the aforementioned numerical
model. Its results were used to appropriately install two type C thermocouples, a PT100 thermoresistance
and a residual primary beam current detector. In addition the numerical model will be used
for the definition of appropriate thresholds for each installed temperature sensor, since it allows to define
a relationship between the locally measured values with the overall calculated temperature field. In case
of over temperatures the monitoring system will send warning signals or in case interrupt the proton
beam
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Get PDFThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
The QMN beam line of the neutron-induced Single Event Effects facility at the 70 MeV cyclotron of LNL-INFN
No full textAbstractThe SPES project, based on a variable energy high current proton cyclotron (35-70 MeV; 750μA), soon to be operational at LNL, foresees a neutron irradiation facility for Single Event Effects (SEE) studies on microelectronic components and systems. The proposed facility will comprise both a beam line with continuous energy atmospheric-like neutron production targets, and a Quasi Mono-energetic Neutron (QMN) beam line. A direct proton beam line is also foreseen. Here we describe the general features of the proposed QMN beam line. The quasi mono-energetic neutrons will be produced in various thin Be and Li targets and the spent proton beam will be magnetically deflected towards a beam dump. The layout of the facility with a multi-angle collimator scheme for tail corrections is presented and the proton currents necessary to deliver high neutron fluxes using thin Be targets are estimated
Variations on the Author
Get PDF“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
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