Back to the Origins: Background and Perspectives of Grapevine Domestication

Domestication is a process of selection driven by humans, transforming wild progenitors into domesticated crops. The grapevine (Vitis vinifera L.), besides being one of the most extensively cultivated fruit trees in the world, is also a fascinating subject for evolutionary studies. The domestication process started in the Near East and the varieties obtained were successively spread and cultivated in different areas. Whether the domestication occurred only once, or whether successive domestication events occurred independently, is a highly debated mystery. Moreover, introgression events, breeding and intense trade in the Mediterranean basin have followed, in the last thousands of years, obfuscating the genetic relationships. Although a succession of studies has been carried out to explore grapevine origin and different evolution models are proposed, an overview of the topic remains pending. We review here the findings obtained in the main phylogenetic and genomic studies proposed in the last two decades, to clarify the fundamental questions regarding where, when and how many times grapevine domestication took place. Finally, we argue that the realization of the pan-genome of grapes could be a useful resource to discover and track the changes which have occurred in the genomes and to improve our understanding about the domestication.     

Growth factors, CD34 positive cells, and fibrin network analysis in concentrated growth factors fraction

An interesting clinical option for optimizing healing tissue is the use of platelet concentrate. Platelets contain high quantities of growth factors, among these TGF-β1 and VEGF, which are known to be implicated in tissue regeneration. CGF is produced by processing blood samples with a special centrifuge device; three layers are formed: top acellular plasma (PPP), middle CGF and bottom red blood cells (RBC) layers. Given that to date there are no data concerning the biological characteristic of CGF, the aim of this study was to evaluate the presence of TGF-β1 and VEGF in CGF and also in PPP and RBC layers. In addition, since circulating stem cells are recruited from blood to injured tissue for healing we also evaluated the presence of CD34 positive cells. Our data show the presence of TGF-β1 and VEGF in CGF and RBC layers. In addition, we show CD34 positive cells in CGF.     

Lateral‐Polarity Structure of AlGaN Quantum Wells: A Promising Approach to Enhancing the Ultraviolet Luminescence

Aluminum‐gallium‐nitride alloys (Al _x Ga_{1– x} N, 0 ≤ x ≤ 1) can emit light covering the ultraviolet spectrum from 210 to 360 nm. However, these emitters have not fulfilled their full promise to replace the toxic and fragile mercury UV lamps due to their low efficiencies. This study demonstrates a promising approach to enhancing the luminescence efficiency of AlGaN multiple quantum wells (MQWs) via the introduction of a lateral‐polarity structure (LPS) comprising both III and N‐polar domains. The enhanced luminescence in LPS is attributed to the surface roughening, and compositional inhomogeneities in the N‐polar domain. The space‐resolved internal quantum efficiency (IQE) mapping shows a higher relative IQE in N‐polar domains and near inversion domain boundaries, providing strong evidence of enhanced radiative recombination efficiency in the LPS. These experimental observations are in good agreement with the theoretical calculations, where both lateral and vertical band diagrams are investigated. This work suggests that the introduction of the LPS in AlGaN‐based MQWs can provide unprecedented tunability in achieving higher luminescence performance in the development of solid state light sources.     

BashDungeon

We present here the first of a series of video-games designed for teaching fundamentals of computer science to university students. We built the game as an adventure inside a dungeon, which aims at reproducing the topology of a Unix file system. Inside the different rooms, the players can learn how to use several Unix commands, from simple file system actions to complex text manipulations, to complete the quests and win the game. We performed a user test on a class of B.Sc. students at the University of Cagliari. The results show a good acceptance of the game metaphor and its effectiveness in supporting the learning process. We plan to expand this game and to design similar games for teaching object-oriented programming and algorithms and data structures.

     

Fracture toughness characterisation of a glass fibre‐reinforced plastic composite

By examining the state of the art, it can be realised that few research works have been done on the fracture behaviour of plastic composites reinforced with continuous glass fibres. Therefore, the present paper deals with the fracture toughness of a unidirectional glass fibre‐reinforced plastic (GFRP), such a parameter being analytically determined by means of the modified two‐parameter model (MTPM). The input data of the MTPM are obtained from an experimental campaign related to three‐point bending tests on single edge‐notched specimens characterised by different sizes. The novelty of this research work is that the MTPM, originally proposed for isotropic materials, is here employed to estimate the fracture toughness of GFRPs characterised by orthotropic mechanical properties.     

Multiparty session types as coherence proofs

Acta Informatica - We propose a Curry–Howard correspondence between a language for programming multiparty sessions and a generalisation of Classical Linear Logic (CLL). In this framework,...     

Proteomics in farm animals models of human diseases

The need to provide in vivo complex environments to understand human diseases strongly relies on the use of animal models, which traditionally include small rodents and rabbits. It is becoming increasingly evident that the few species utilised to date cannot be regarded as universal. There is a great need for new animal species that are naturally endowed with specific features relevant to human diseases. Farm animals, including pigs, cows, sheep and horses, represent a valid alternative to commonly utilised rodent models. There is an ample scope for the application of proteomic techniques in farm animals, and the establishment of several proteomic maps of plasma and tissue has clearly demonstrated that farm animals provide a disease environment that closely resembles that of human diseases. The present review offers a snapshot of how proteomic techniques have been applied to farm animals to improve their use as biomedical models. Focus will be on specific topics of biomedical research in which farm animal models have been characterised through the application of proteomic techniques.     

Mercury emissions from coal combustion: modeling and comparison of Hg capture in a fabric filter versus an electrostatic precipitator

Mercury emissions from coal combustion must be reduced, in response to new air quality regulations in the U.S. Although the most mature control technology is adsorption across a dust cake of powdered sorbent in a fabric filter (FF), most particulate control in the U.S. associated with coal combustion takes the form of electrostatic precipitation (ESP). Using recently developed models of mercury adsorption within an ESP and within a growing sorbent bed in a FF, parallel analyses of elemental mercury (Hg(0)) uptake have been conducted. The results show little difference between an ESP and a FF in absolute mercury removal for a low-capacity sorbent, with a high-capacity sorbent achieving better performance in the FF. Comparisons of fractional mercury uptake per-unit-pressure-drop provide a means for incorporating and comparing the impact of the much greater pressure drop of a FF as compared to an ESP. On a per-unit-pressure-drop basis, mercury uptake within an ESP exhibited better performance, particularly for the low-capacity sorbent and high mass loadings of both sorbents.