Distribution of KIR Genes and Their HLA Ligands in Different Viral Infectious Diseases: Frequency Study in Sicilian Population

Natural killer (NK) cells play a role in defence against viral infections by killing infected cells or by producing cytokines and interacting with adaptive immune cells. Killer immunoglobulin-like receptors (KIRs) regulate the activation of NK cells through their interaction with human leucocyte antigens (HLA). Ninety-six Sicilian patients positive to Human Immunodeficiency Virus-1 (HIV) and ninety-two Sicilian patients positive to SARS-CoV-2 were genotyped for KIRs and their HLA ligands. We also included fifty-six Sicilian patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB) already recruited in our previous study. The aim of this study was to compare the distribution of KIR–HLA genes/groups of these three different infected populations with healthy Sicilian donors from the literature. We showed that the inhibitory KIR3DL1 gene and the KIR3DL1/HLA-B Bw4 pairing were more prevalent in individual CHB. At the same time, the frequency of HLA-C2 was increased in CHB compared to other groups. In contrast, the HLA-C1 ligand seems to have no contribution to CHB progression whereas it was significantly higher in COVID-19 and HIV-positive than healthy controls. These results suggest that specific KIR–HLA combinations can predict the outcome/susceptibility of these viral infections and allows to plan successful customized therapeutic strategies.     

Speaky for robots: the development of vocal interfaces for robotic applications

The currently available speech technologies on mobile devices achieve effective performance in terms of both reliability and the language they are able to capture. The availability of performant speech recognition engines may also support the deployment of vocal interfaces in consumer robots. However, the design and implementation of such interfaces still requires significant work. The language processing chain and the domain knowledge must be built for the specific features of the robotic platform, the deployment environment and the tasks to be performed. Hence, such interfaces are currently built in a completely ad hoc way. In this paper, we present a design methodology together with a support tool aiming to streamline and improve the implementation of dedicated vocal interfaces for robots. This work was developed within an experimental project called Speaky for Robots. We extend the existing vocal interface development framework to target robotic applications. The proposed solution is built using a bottom-up approach by refining the language processing chain through the development of vocal interfaces for different robotic platforms and domains. The proposed approach is validated both in experiments involving several research prototypes and in tests involving end-users.     

Effects of supercritical and liquid carbon dioxide extraction on hemp (Cannabis sativa L.) seed oil

The increase in the popularity of hemp-based products is mainly linked to the presence of non-psychoactive cannabinoids that provide relief from aches, pain and anxiety. In this study, hemp seed oils were produced by two innovative and environmentally friendly extraction techniques: supercritical and liquid carbon dioxide (CO₂) extraction. The chemical composition of the two oils was analysed and compared with that of a control oil obtained by solvent (n-hexane) extraction. Both oils obtained by liquid and supercritical CO₂ extraction presented interesting compositions: they contained large amounts of cannabinoids, polyphenols and tocopherols and were less oxidised than the control and contained a large amount of hexanal, which provided a pleasant aroma. The maximum cannabinoid content was found in the oil obtained by liquid CO₂ extraction (71.51 mg of cannabidiol per kg of oil and 113.92 mg of cannabinol per kg of oil). Carotenoids were prevalent in the oil obtained by supercritical CO₂ extraction (61.00 mg kg⁻¹ of oil).     

Immigrant-Chinese and Euro-American parents' physical closeness with young children: Themes of family relatedness.

This study examined cultural differences in the expression and meaning of physical closeness. Findings indicated that immigrant-Chinese parents, as compared with Euro-American parents, sleep in closer proximity with their children; more often view independence as children growing with the family; are more likely to emphasize the family unit; and place greater importance on inhibition of expression adherence to correct values, and hierarchy of relations. Euro-Americans, by contrast, are more accepting of nudity; place more emphasis on psychological benefit of physical closeness and on the child's expression of wants and feelings; more often view independence as celebrating the child's distinctiveness; and place greater importance on intimacy, pleasure, and spousal exclusiveness. The authors suggest that closeness is characterized by an overarching theme of harmony in immigrant-Chinese families and by an overarching theme of romance in Euro American families. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Peptides from Pisum sativum L. enzymatic protein digest with anti‐adhesive activity against Helicobacter pylori: Structure–activity and inhibitory activity against BabA,SabA, HpaA and a fibronectin‐binding adhesin

Scope: Identification of anti‐adhesive peptides against Helicobacter pylori obtained by enzymatic hydrolysis of seed proteins from Pisum sativum L. (Fabaceae). Methods and results: Bioassay‐guided fractionation of protein tryptic digest by ultrafiltration, size exclusion chromatography (SEC) and reversed phase chromatography (RPC) were used. Identification of bioactive peptides was achieved by MALDI‐TOF‐MS. Adhesion of H. pylori was monitored by two different assays, using a quantitative in vitro assay on human AGS cells with evaluation of bacterial binding by flow cytometry, beside a semi‐quantitative in situ adhesion assay using FITC‐labelled H. pylori on human stomach tissue sections. From two highly active fractions (F3, F3.3) two anti‐adhesive peptides (S3, S5) were identified. Neither F3 nor S3 or S5 had any cytotoxic effect against H. pylori. By hemagglutination assay and semiquantitative dot blot overlay assay with immobilized ligands it was shown that F3 interacts specifically with H. pylori adhesins BabA, SabA, HpaA and a fibronectin‐binding adhesin, while S3 and S5 inhibit only BabA. It was demonstrated that BabA, usually interacting with carbohydrate motifs such as fucosylated blood group antigens, interacts with the peptide moieties. Conclusion: Bioactive peptides from pea protein could be applied as functional ingredients for protecting infants and children against infections such as H. pylori.     

Activity of water-soluble turmeric extract using hydrophilic excipients

Turmeric (Curcuma longa) is extensively used in a number of ailments by the traditional medical practitioners. Traditionally turmeric is extracted with different non-edible organic solvents or supercritical fluid extraction using carbon dioxide and suffers from many drawbacks as it fails to achieve aqueous solubility, acceptable content of active principle in edible form and stability in biofluids. In the present work we report application of food-grade polyglycolized glycerides to obtain water-soluble extract of turmeric, which contains lipophilic curcuminoids in the aqueous phase. Extraction of turmeric using amphiphilic vehicles such as Gelucire 44/14, Gelucire 50/13, and PEG 6000 was able to achieve aqueous solubility. Gelucire 44/14 gives the maximum concentration of curcuminoids than extraction with Gelucire 50/13 and PEG 6000, as quantified with RP-HPLC. Turmeric extract was further screened for in vitro free radical scavenging assays, ROS scavenging ability and cell proliferation activity in cell line.     

The ITER EC H&CD Upper Launcher: Transient mechanical analysis

Four Electron Cyclotron Heating and Current Drive (EC H&CD) Upper Launchers (UL) are foreseen for plasma stabilization purposes in ITER. The mission of the UL is to mitigate neoclassical tearing modes (NTM) and the sawtooth instability by localized heating and current drive with high precision and accuracy. Special attention is to be aimed to the structural design of the UL, because of highly restrictive space requirements. The ECH upper launcher has a length close to 6 m and the nominal gap to the neighbouring components is 20 mm. Electromagnetic perturbations could induce forces on the conductive materials and result in an excessive displacement of the portions that are located far from the fixation.During the last years, the design of the UL has been optimized by means of static simulations of the structure. The peak loads obtained by the electromagnetic simulation of the eddy currents induced during an upward Vertical Displacement Event (VDE) (considered as the worst case disruption scenario for the UL) were used. Static simulations are a fast tool for comparing different structure configurations and optimization of the UL design, but they do not provide a complete picture of the real situation, since they do not take into account for dynamic effects that could lead to larger displacements.In this paper, modal and transient analyses of the structure of the quasi-optical design (Preliminary Design Review status) of the upper launcher are presented. The results of transient and static analysis have been compared together and the Dynamic Amplification Factor (DAF) with respect to the transient loads have been assessed. The transient study and the modal analysis have shown that the EC upper launcher has a stiff structure with relatively high natural oscillation frequencies (compared to the duration of the VDE) and that the dynamic effects do not constitute a critical issue.     

Shear failure characterization of time–temperature sensitive interfaces

Poor interlayer bonding can lead to early failures and thus to a reduction in service life of bituminous pavements. For this reason, it is important to identify the parameters influencing the interlayer shear failure and to characterize their effect by means of laboratory test. In particular, this study is focussed on the effects of test temperature and deformation rate on the interlayer shear strength (ISS) of double-layered asphalt concrete specimens. First, the ISS was measured at temperatures ranging from 0 °C to 30 °C and deformation rates ranging from 0.5 mm/min to 9 mm/min using the Ancona Shear Testing Research and Analysis (ASTRA) device. Then the experimental data were analyzed using a two-stage statistical modelling approach. In the first stage, the variation of ISS versus deformation rate, at each testing temperature, was modelled using both a power-law and a logarithmic function. In the investigated range of deformation rate, the models allowed to estimate the mean ISS with residual standard error varying from 0.062 MPa to 0.128 MPa. Moreover, the linear regression coefficients, which measure the influence of the deformation rate on ISS, changed with temperature. In the second stage, both temperature and deformation rate were used as joint predictors of ISS by using an approach based on the superposition of their effects. Results showed that the time–temperature superposition approach is applicable and a sigmoid-shaped master curve for ISS was obtained. The proposed approach was validated by using ISS measurements obtained on the same materials with different test devices.     

Chemical analysis of the sponge Suberites massa coming from the Lagoon of Venice: Isolation of a New Diacetylenic Carotenoid

A new carotenoid pigment ( 1 ) containing a diacetylenic function was isolated from a sample of Suberites massa collected in the Lagoon of Venice. Its structure and absolute configuration have been elucitated by spectroscopic method including 2D-NMR experiments. Also reported here is the analysis of the most abundant lipophylic metabolites of this organism.