It Is High Time Physicians Thought of Natural Products for Alleviating NAFLD. Is There Sufficient Evidence to Use Them?

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the most common form of liver disease all over the world due to the obesity pandemic; currently, therapeutic options for NAFLD are scarce, except for diet recommendations and physical activity. NAFLD is characterized by excessive accumulation of fat deposits (>5%) in the liver with subsequent inflammation and fibrosis. Studies in the literature show that insulin resistance (IR) may be considered as the key mechanism in the onset and progression of NAFLD. Recently, using natural products as an alternative approach in the treatment of NAFLD has drawn growing attention among physicians. In this review, the authors present the most recent randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and lines of evidence from animal models about the efficacy of nutraceutics in alleviating NAFLD. Among the most studied substances in the literature, the following molecules were chosen because of their presence in the literature of both clinical and preclinical studies: spirulina, oleuropein, garlic, berberine, resveratrol, curcumin, ginseng, glycyrrhizin, coffee, cocoa powder, epigallocatechin-3-gallate, and bromelain.     

Cholinergic modulation, visual function and Alzheimer's dementia

Electrophysiological evidence at a cellular level and in vivo macroelectrode recordings converge in indicating a degree of specificity of acetylcholine action in vision. Acetylcholine (ACh) function is also thought to play a significant role in memory, learning and other cognitive processes. In this respect, ACh action is suggested to serve in both sensory and cognitive processes. The pharmacological blocking of brain muscarinic transmission has been proposed as a model of geriatric memory impairment and Alzheimer's dementia. Visual electrophysiological testing is deemed of diagnostic specificity for this disease. ACh brain neurotransmission, however, mostly contributes to the modulation of nonspecific aspects of cognition, such as arousal or attention. Alzheimer's dementia results from complex neuron alterations [which also affect muscarinic receptors among other (sub)cellular structures] rather than simply reflecting ACh impoverishment. A substantial loss of retinal ganglion cells is documented in patients with Alzheimer's disease and is consistent with electrophysiological observations. However, it is unclear to what extent the dysfunction of the visual system observable in Alzheimer's dementia is qualitatively different from that occurring spontaneously during aging. The dissimilarities between the effect of acute muscarinic blocking (e.g. by scopolamine) and dementia outnumber the similarities. Accordingly, the conventional ACh agonist-antagonist model of dementia now appears questionable, and replacement treatment with compounds enhancing ACh function proved disappointing. It is suggested that (nonspecific) ACh action becomes function-specific, as determined by the architecture of local brain circuits in which it is involved.     

The CNPM thermal heat pump. Part 1 — general description and thermodynamic analysis

A research programme, funded by CNR (National Research Council), has been undertaken by CNPM since 1973. The aim of the programme is the construction and testing of a prototype thermal heat pump. The most significant component is an organic Rankine cycle engine, driving the compressor of a heat pump. Since the heat rejected by the engine is supplied to the user — water for domestic heating — the whole system performs as a ‘heat multiplier’, converting the high temperature heat given to the engine into a larger amount of low temperature heat, to be used for domestic heating.In this paper, the selection criteria for the working fluid — a completely fluoro-substituted hydrocarbon — and the main thermodynamic data of both power and heat pump cycles, are discussed; the finally adopted plant configuration is described, with particular emphasis on the influence exterted by the working fluid nature on the heat exchangers and turbo-machinery dimensions and performance. A discussion on the merits of the single fluid solution (ie the same working fluid in the power and the heat pump cycle) and dual fluid solution is also carried out. The feasibility of a low-temperature heat distribution, based on compact-surface, natural-draft convectors, with the relevant advantages on the Rankine and heat-pump cycles, is also investigated.Finally, the expected overal; system performance is given, both at design and part-load conditions. As a premium for the rather complex but efficient thermodynamicscv of the system, significant energy savings are obtained in all situations.     

An approximate A algorithm and its application to the SCS problem

In this paper we deal with algorithm A^* and its application to the problem of finding the shortest common supersequence of a set of sequences. A^* is a powerful search algorithm which may be used to carry out concurrently the construction of a network and the solution of a shortest path problem on it. We prove a general approximation property of A^* which, by building a smaller network, allows us to find a solution with a given approximation ratio. This is particularly useful when dealing with large instances of some problem. We apply this approach to the solution of the shortest common supersequence problem and show its effectiveness.     

A heuristic approach to batching and scheduling a single machine to minimize setup costs

In this paper we consider the problem of creating batches of parts, to be processed in a flexible manufacturing cell, and scheduling their operations. We consider the case in which the system consists of one machine and at most k parts may be present in the system at the same time. Given that each part requires a sequence of operations, and each operation requires a given tool, the objective is to minimize the total number of setups. We develop a heuristic algorithm for its solution and we present an extensive computational experience.     

Anionic liposomes for small interfering ribonucleic acid (siRNA) delivery to primary neuronal cells: Evaluation of alpha-synuclein knockdown efficacy

Alpha-synuclein (α-syn) deposition in Lewy bodies (LB) is one of the main neuropathological hallmarks of Parkinson's disease (PD).LB accumulation is considered a causative factor of PD,which suggests that strategies aimed at reducing α-syn levels could be relevant for its treatment.In the present study,we developed novel nanocarriers suitable for systemic delivery of small interfering ribonucleic acid (siRNA) that were specifically designed to reduce neuronal α-syn by RNA interference.Anionic liposomes loaded with an siRNA-protamine complex for α-syn gene silencing and decorated with a rabies virus glycoprotein (RVG)-derived peptide as a targeting agent were prepared.The nanoparticles were characterized for their ability to load,protect,and deliver the functional siRNA to mouse primary hippocampal and cortical neurons as well as their efficiency to induce gene silencing in these cells.Moreover,the nanocarriers were evaluated for their stability in serum.The RVG-decorated liposomes displayed suitable characteristics for future in vivo applications and successfully induced α-syn gene silencing in primary neurons without altering cell viability.Collectively,our results indicate that RVG-decorated liposomes may be an ideal tool for further studies aimed at achieving efficient in vivo α-syn gene silencing in mouse models of PD.     

Erratum to: Anionic liposomes for small interfering ribonucleic acid (siRNA) delivery to primary neuronal cells: Evaluation of alpha-synuclein knockdown efficacy

Nano Research - The name of the fourth author in the original version of this article was unfortunately wrongly written on the first page. Instead of Caitriona M. O’iscoll It should read...     

A job-shop problem with one additional resource type

We consider a job-shop scheduling problem with n jobs and the constraint that at most p<n jobs can be processed simultaneously. This model arises in several manufacturing processes, where each operation has to be assisted by one human operator and there are p (versatile) operators. The problem is binary NP-hard even with n=3 and p=2. When the number of jobs is fixed, we give a pseudopolynomial dynamic programming algorithm and a fully polynomial time approximation scheme (FPTAS). We also propose an enumeration scheme based on a generalized disjunctive graph, and a dynamic programming-based heuristic algorithm. The results of an extensive computational study for the case with n=3 and p=2 are presented.     

Lithium intercalation and interfacial kinetics of composite anodes formed by oxidized graphite and copper

The electrochemical behavior of composite anodes prepared either by mixing partially oxidized graphite and Cu powders or by coating the pristine partially oxidized graphite electrodes with few-nanometer-thick Cu layers has been studied by slow-scan-rate cyclic voltammetry (SSCV) and galvanostatic charge/discharge cycles over the temperature range of −30 °C to 20 °C. The interfacial intercalation/deintercalation kinetics has also been investigated using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS).