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Since global demand for aquaculture products is expected to increase dramatically in the near future, policymakers and companies are considering the adoption of insect-based feed, which is more economically viable and environmentally sustainable than fish or vegetable-based meals currently used. Nonetheless, fish farmed with insects are still perceived as innovative products by consumers, and further studies exploring these demand-side concerns must be conducted to make sure a market for such products exists. This study focuses on the factors that can favour the acceptance of farmed fish fed with insects of a sample of young Italians. In particular, within the theoretical framework adopted in this analysis, we let acceptance be expressed by different dimensions, each potentially influenced by individual factors, such as socio-economic characteristics, as the provision of information on the nutritional and environmental benefits of insect-based feed for aquaculture, and as consumer psychometric indicators. In this respect, we use the by-dimensional definition of environmental attitude proposed by environmental psychologists, that considers attitude toward environmental protection and toward nature. In this survey, we reached 482 consumers, aged less than 40, using social networks. A Factor Analysis was performed to identify the different dimensions of the acceptance process. We then applied the Rasch model on consumers’ reported behaviours toward environmental protection or nature to retrieve their environmental attitudes. We performed a Seemingly Unrelated Regression to assess the importance of socio-demographic, information, and psychometric variables on the different dimensions of acceptance. Results indicate that the use of psychometric variables to study the acceptability of an innovative food product seems particularly appropriate. In addition to the role of environmental attitude, acceptance is also explained by some socio-demographic variables, with men and younger consumers being more inclined to accept the product. Acceptance is also higher among informed respondents, confirming the importance of reducing information asymmetries.

Issue EU Reg 625/2017 establishes that all Food Business Operator FBO needs to be categorised based on risk. The risk rating is obtained by summing the scores of the non-conformities and risk factors checked. Description of the problem In the past, various categorisation systems have been used but due to many FBO present in the regional territory, a new system of categorisation rapid and efficient is required. Results The system classifies the risk of FBO in two phases: the first, based on static criteria (type and volume of production, market areas), in which a default category is established; the second, based on dynamic and technical criteria (provisions and scores of official control, structural and productive features), in which a definitive category is established. When a FBO is set up, it presents a declaration of start-up that included the static criteria: a preliminary risk category is determined. The authorities assign a definitive rating by a complex inspection, during which specific check-lists of the dynamic and technical criteria are completed. Each element is assigned a percentage weight, which contributes to the risk assessment, and so to the frequency of controls. A value >70% means high risk and 1 control per year; a value of 69.9-50% means medium risk and 1 control every 2 year; a value of 59.9-30% means low risk and 1 control every 3 years, and a value Lessons In addition to being efficacious and efficient, this new system of categorisation optimises the work of the authorities. Key messages This new categorisation system makes risk-based controls simpler and more efficacious. The project involves various Italian regions and the OECD, thereby enabling official controls to be standardised at the European level.

Background During disaster events, the displaced populations living in tent camps are at high risk from foodborne illness outbreaks (FBO) as in these circumstances it is difficult to follow proper hygienic procedures during food handling and storage. When an outbreak occurs, an epidemiological investigation able to identify the source(s) of the exposure is essential to rapidly establish control measures to prevent continuing episodes of illness. This work aimed to evaluate the effectiveness and the applicability under simulated field conditions of an investigation protocol to be used during a FBO. Moreover, the application of the software ‘TOSSINFO' for data analysis was evaluated. Methods In May 2018, a FBO associated with the consumption of a tuna affecting 46 out of 75 people present in a tent camp in southern Italy was simulated. During the simulation, two teams of doctors and veterinarians participated in the investigation. The investigation protocol involved three steps: environmental inspection, epidemiological investigation, and data analysis through TOSSINFO. This software allows calculating different epidemiological indicators, several measures of association, and the visualization of the progression of the outbreak through epidemic curves. Results At the end of the exercise, both teams were able to trace the source of the infection. After data collection and data analysis, the groups demonstrated a strong association between illness people and tuna consumption. Furthermore, the teams achieved similar Results RR (7.50 vs 7.01), OR (27 vs 28), and Chi-square (12.1 vs 10.1). Conclusions The results demonstrated the validity of the procedure and the simple execution of the software analysis. These guidelines represent an opportunity for the implementation of foodborne disease management strategies and could be used throughout the community, leading to an improvement of the Public Health surveillance system. Key messages These guidelines allow for effective management of a food toxinfection episode. The original software TOSSINFO used in this procedure enables quick and easy identification of infected food.

The NEREID project (“NanoElectronics Roadmap for Europe: Identification and Dissemination”) is dedicated to mapping the future of European Nanoelectronics. NEREID’s objective is to develop a medium and long term roadmap for the European nanoelectronics industry, starting from the needs of applications to address societal challenges and leveraging the strengths of the European eco-system. The roadmap will also identify promising novel nanoelectronic technologies, based on the advanced concepts developed by Research Centres and Universities, as well as identification of potential bottlenecks along the innovation (value) chain. Industry applications include Energy, Automotive, Medical/Life Science, Security, loT, Mobile Convergence and Digital Manufacturing. The NEREID roadmap covers Advanced Logic and Connectivity, Functional Diversification (Smart Sensors, Smart Energy and Energy for Autonomous Systems), Beyond-CMOS, Heterogeneous Integration and System Design as well as Equipment, Materials and Manufacturing Science. This article gives an overview of the roadmap’s structure and content., Thanks are extended to the support of the EU, which has been funded the NEREID project as a Cooperation and Support action for three years from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 685559.

Cystic echinococcosis (CE) is a severe zoonosis, caused by the larval stage of the tapeworm Echinococcus granulosus. This helminth infection is of increasing public health and socio-economic concern due to the considerable morbidity rates that cause economic losses both in the public health sector and in the livestock industry. Control programmes against E. granulosus are considered long-term actions which require an integrated approach and high expenditure of time and financial resources. Since 2010, an integrated approach to control CE has been implemented in a highly endemic area of continental southern Italy (Campania region). Innovative procedures and tools have been developed and exploited during the control programme based on the following strategies: i) active and passive surveillance in livestock (using geospatial tools for georeferencing), ii) diagnosis in dogs (using the FLOTAC techniques and molecular analysis), iii) targeted treatment of farm dogs (using purpose-built confinement cages), iv) early diagnosis in livestock (by ultrasonography), v) surveillance in humans (through hospital discharge records analysis), vi) monitoring the food chain (analysing raw vegetables), vii) outreach activities to the general public (through dissemination material, e.g. brochures, gadgets, videos, virtual reality). Over eight years, the integrated approach and the new strategies developed have resulted in a noteworthy reduction of the parasite infection rates in livestock (e.g. up to 30 % in sheep). The results obtained so far highlight that using a one health multidisciplinary and multi-institution effort is of pivotal importance in preparing CE control programmes at regional level and could be extended to other endemic Mediterranean areas.

Controlling the motion of magnetic domain walls (DWs) in ultrathin films with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA) has opened perspectives for mass-storage applications such as ``racetrack memory''. However, a crucial issue for this technology is to efficiently move and store domain walls along very narrow wires. The authors' approach uses prepatterned substrates with regularly spaced nanoscale steps to grow high-quality films with PMA. The very low steps act as efficient pinning sites when DWs move $a\phantom{\rule{0}{0ex}}c\phantom{\rule{0}{0ex}}r\phantom{\rule{0}{0ex}}o\phantom{\rule{0}{0ex}}s\phantom{\rule{0}{0ex}}s$ them, yet as very efficient conduits when DWs move $a\phantom{\rule{0}{0ex}}l\phantom{\rule{0}{0ex}}o\phantom{\rule{0}{0ex}}n\phantom{\rule{0}{0ex}}g$ them. This may be a promising solution to crucial problems concerning edge damage at very small wire dimensions.

Ta(5 nm)/CoFeB(1 nm)/MgO(2 nm) stacks have been deposited by magnetron sputtering on top of 8" Si/SiN/SiO 2 substrates, where the effects of different passivation steps related to copper damascene processes have been simulated. It is shown that excellent thickness uniformity of the deposited stack is achieved on 8" areas, and strong uniaxial perpendicular magnetic anisotropy K u up to 0.5–1 × 10 6 J/m 3 develops in the 1 nm CoFeB following thermal annealing at 300 °C for 2 h, irrespective of the adopted passivation treatment. The CoFeB coercive field varies from 0.21 to 0.51 kA/m for substrate surface roughness in the range of 0.45–0.55 nm. These results are of relevance in the view of integrating into standard complementary metal-oxide semiconductor process, advanced magnetic memory concepts based on perpendicular magnetic anisotropy in ultrathin layers.

Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC) is a major cause of diarrhea in infants in developing countries. We have identified a functional type II secretion system (T2SS) in EPEC that is homologous to the pathway responsible for the secretion of heat-labile enterotoxin by enterotoxigenic E. coli . The wild-type EPEC T2SS was able to secrete a heat-labile enterotoxin reporter, but an isogenic T2SS mutant could not. We showed that the major substrate of the T2SS in EPEC is SslE, an outer membrane lipoprotein (formerly known as YghJ), and that a functional T2SS is essential for biofilm formation by EPEC. T2SS and SslE mutants were arrested at the microcolony stage of biofilm formation, suggesting that the T2SS is involved in the development of mature biofilms and that SslE is a dominant effector of biofilm development. Moreover, the T2SS was required for virulence, as infection of rabbits with a rabbit-specific EPEC strain carrying a mutation in either the T2SS or SslE resulted in significantly reduced intestinal colonization and milder disease.

The gene cluster gspCDEFGHIJKLM codes for various structural components of the type II secretion pathway which is responsible for the secretion of heat-labile enterotoxin by enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC). In this work, we used a variety of molecular approaches to elucidate the transcriptional organization of the ETEC type II secretion system and to unravel the mechanisms by which the expression of these genes is controlled. We showed that the gspCDEFGHIJKLM cluster and three other upstream genes, yghJ , pppA , and yghG , are cotranscribed and that a promoter located in the upstream region of yghJ plays a major role in the expression of this 14-gene transcriptional unit. Transcription of the yghJ promoter was repressed 168-fold upon a temperature downshift from 37°C to 22°C. This temperature-induced repression was mediated by the global regulatory proteins H-NS and StpA. Deletion mutagenesis showed that the promoter region encompassing positions −321 to +301 relative to the start site of transcription of yghJ was required for full repression. The yghJ promoter region is predicted to be highly curved and bound H-NS or StpA directly. The binding of H-NS or StpA blocked transcription initiation by inhibiting promoter open complex formation. Unraveling the mechanisms of regulation of type II secretion by ETEC enhances our understanding of the pathogenesis of ETEC and other pathogenic varieties of E. coli .

The fluorescence polarisation assay (FPA) was evaluated for the serological diagnosis of bovine brucellosis in buffalo (Bubalus Bubalis) in southern Italy. This assay uses O-polysaccharide prepared from Brucella Abortus lipopolysaccharide conjugated with fluorescein isothiocyanate as a tracer. It has many methodological advantages over older, more established tests and can be performed in short time. To measure the fluorescence polarization, a Tecan GENios Pro (Prionics) fluorescence-polarization analyzer was used with the procedure described by Nielsen et al. 1996. A cut-off value of 117 millipolarization (mP) units was used for testing 912 buffalo sera from Campania Region (526 positive sera and 386 negative sera according to the complement fixation test; CFT). All samples were tested with the Rose Bengal plate (RB). Sensitivity and specificity (Sn) for RB were 84.0% and 87.8% and for FPA were 92.6% and 88.9 percent. The FPA gave a kappa coefficient of agreement with respect to CFT of 0.755, while RB (relative to the CFT) gave coefficients of 0,715. Finally, ROC analysis suggested a cut-off value which did not agree with the one recommended in the test procedure for cow.

Solid-state mass storage has experienced recently an explosive growth, mainly related to digital consumer application (digital cameras, MP3 players, USB keys). The demand is not expected to slow down in the near future. Present storage technology is based on NAND Flash, and it appears that there is still margin to scale it down at least to the 45 nm node. The likely appearance of physical limits to scalability is pushing for the investigation of alternative storage technologies, and several solutions have been proposed. However, any kind of memory needs a selection mechanism, and related parasitic effects can be a severe limitation to scaling. Scaling challenges of select devices (mostly CMOS), and their impact on memory scaling will be investigated, and alternatives proposed.

High-frequency wave systems with high-power density launching capability have been the preferred choice to heat the Frascati Tokamak Upgrade (FTU) because of physics arguments (electron heating at ...

The ITER divertor test platform (DTP) located at ENEA's Research Centre in Brasimone, Italy is a full-scale mock-up of a 72° arc of the ITER 1998 vessel divertor region—the result of a major initiative over the period 1996–2000. Since the implementation of this facility, the design of the ITER vessel—and therefore much of the remote maintenance equipment—has changed substantially. However, the nature and principles of the remote handling equipment are still very similar, and hence many valuable lessons can yet be learned from the existing equipment for the future. In particular, true remote handling tests of the major maintenance subsystems were seen as an important step in determining their suitability for ITER. This paper describes and documents a series of three, discrete, remote-handling trials carried out using most of the major DTP subsystems, and presents an overview of the conclusions and suggestions for future development of ITER cassette remote handling equipment.

Canine infections with Leishmania infantum are important as a cause of serious disease in the dog and as a reservoir for human visceral leishmaniasis (VL). Accurate diagnosis of canine infections is essential to the veterinary community and for VL surveillance programs. A standardized ELISA using a purified recombinant antigen (rK39) specific to VL was compared to the immunofluorescent antibody test (IFAT) as the standard. The ELISA was developed, optimized and evaluated using sera from 6368 dogs. The standardized ELISA and IFAT results were highly concordant. The timing and pattern of ELISA and IFAT seroconversion in dogs followed prospectively after natural infections were very similar. Antibodies reacting with rK39 were more common in asymptomatic canine infections than reported for subclinical human VL. The rK39 ELISA is a relatively simple and rapid assay for assessing the infection status of dogs, and is an alternative to IFAT, especially when screening large numbers of samples.

Malaria is a major human health problem and is responsible for over 2 million deaths per year. It is caused by a number of species of the genus Plasmodium , and Plasmodium falciparum is the causative agent of the most lethal form. Consequently, the development of a vaccine against this parasite is a priority. There are a number of stages of the parasite life cycle that are being targeted for the development of vaccines. Important candidate antigens include proteins on the surface of the asexual merozoite stage, the form that invades the host erythrocyte. The development of methods to manipulate the genome of Plasmodium species has enabled the construction of gain–of–function and loss–of–function mutants and provided new strategies to analyse the role of parasite proteins. This has provided new information on the role of merozoite antigens in erythrocyte invasion and also allows new approaches to address their potential as vaccine candidates.

Cardiac amyloidosis (CA) is a disorder characterized by amyloid fibrils deposition in cardiac interstitium; it results in a restrictive cardiomyopathy with heart failure (HF) and conduction abnormalities. The "gold standard" for diagnosis of CA is myocardial biopsy but possible sampling errors and procedural risks, limit it's use. Magnetic resonance (RMN) offers more information than traditional echocardiography and allows diagnosis of CA but often it's impossible to perform. We report the case of a man with HF and symptomatic bradyarrhythmia that required an urgent pacemaker implant. Echocardiography was strongly suggestive of CA but wasn't impossible to perform an RMN to confirm this hypothesis because the patient was implanted with a definitive pacemaker. So was performed a Speckle Tracking Echocardiography (STE) and a 3D echocardiography: STE allows to differentiate CA from others hypertrophic cardiomyopathy by longitudinal strain value12% and 3D echocardiography shows regional left ventricular dyssynchrony with a characteristic temporal pattern of dispersion of regional volume systolic change. On the basis of these results, finally was performed an endomyocardial biopsy that confirmed the diagnosis of CA. This case underlines the importance of news, noninvasive techniques such as eco 3D and STE for early diagnosis of CA, especially when RMN cannot be performed.

The divertor assembly for the ITER fusion reactor consists of a number of rail mounted cassettes (54 now in ITER FEAT) located in the bottom region of the vacuum vessel. These cassettes shall be removed/installed remotely during the life of the reactor by means of specific devices. To demonstrate and optimise the feasibility of the in-vessel maintenance process the Divertor Test Platform (DTP) has been established at the ENEA Research Centre in Brasimone, Italy, as a major part of the large ITER RD the procurement and testing of new sub-systems (e.g. a force reflection manipulator arm), and the development of remote handling techniques including a virtual reality system. Following a short description of the DTP, this paper reports on the new results and achievements, draws the relevant conclusions, and finally discusses future activities.

Interconnection parasitic effects are one of the factors that limit the performances of deep sub-micron VLSI designs, since parasitic capacitance increases with decreasing geometrical dimensions, becoming the dominating delay contributor. Technology alone cannot offer a satisfying solution, because new materials offer only a limited reduction in parasitic effects, while introducing new reliability and manufacturability concerns. The problem must be managed at the design level, by adopting proper design and verification methodologies. However, the introduction of delay verification after layout is not enough, since, with increasing design complexity, no guarantee exists that the procedure of delay verification and layout correction will converge. Ways must be found to take care of interconnections at an early design stage, achieving a delay aware floor planning. A further source of problems, which is starting to play a significant role, is the delay introduced by cross-talk effects, which are essentially dynamic in nature. Cross-talk Aware Static Timing Analysis techniques must be introduced to identify, in a fast way, critical nets, limiting the required corrections to a small subset of the total design.

The ITER divertor assembly consists in 60 cassettes located in the bottom region of the vacuum vessel. Because of erosion and damage, their replacement is expected to be required eight times during the machine lifetime. The cassettes will be remotely withdrawn from the vessel through dedicated ducts and they will be transported to a hot cell for refurbishment. To demonstrate the feasibility of the withdrawal operations, and to optimise the maintenance scenario and the handling equipment design, a test facility has been set-up at the ENEA Research Centre of Brasimone (Italy), i.e. the divertor test platform (DTP) that allows to simulate, in full scale, all handling operations inside the vacuum vessel. This paper describes the objectives, test programme, layout, test results and future activities of the DTP.

Plasmodium falciparum causes the most lethal form of malaria in humans and is responsible for over two million deaths per year. The development of a vaccine against this parasite is an urgent priority and potential protein targets include those on the surface of the asexual merozoite stage, the form that invades the host erythrocyte. The development of methods to transfect P. falciparum has enabled the construction of gain-of-function and loss-of-function mutants and provided new strategies to analyse the role of parasite proteins. In this review, we describe the use of this technology to examine the role of merozoite antigens in erythrocyte invasion and to address their potential as vaccine candidates.

Rhoptry associated protein 1 (RAP1) and 2 (RAP2), together with a poorly described third protein RAP3, form the low molecular weight complex within the rhoptries of Plasmodium falciparum. These proteins are thought to play a role in erythrocyte invasion by the extracellular merozoite and are important vaccine candidates. We used gene-targeting technology in P.falciparum blood-stage parasites to disrupt the RAP1 gene, producing parasites that express severely truncated forms of RAP1. Immunoprecipitation experiments suggest that truncated RAP1 species did not complex with RAP2 and RAP3. Consistent with this were the distinct subcellular localizations of RAP1 and 2 in disrupted RAP1 parasites, where RAP2 does not traffic to the rhoptries but is instead located in a compartment that appears related to the lumen of the endoplasmic reticulum. These results suggest that RAP1 is required to localize RAP2 to the rhoptries, supporting the hypothesis that rhoptry biogenesis is dependent in part on the secretory pathway in the parasite. The observation that apparently host-protective merozoite antigens are not essential for efficient erythrocyte invasion has important implications for vaccine design.

Traditionally, lithography has been the driving force behind the exponential growth rate of Microelectronics, thanks also to the easy scalability of MOS devices. Even if up to now every prophecy for a slow-down of the growth rate has been proven false, there appears to be a growing uncertainty about which lithography could be used to go below 0.1@mm. However Microelectronics is not limited to smaller feature size, especially in the era of System-On-Chip integration. In this paper we would like to review the main factors which determine the performances of an integrated circuit and show how the density of integration perceived by the final user can be increased, independently from lithographic considerations.

The aim of the study was to investigate the acute effect of GH per se, independent from its lipolytic activity, on glucose and lipid oxidation and glucose turnover in seven healthy subjects. Five tests lasting 360 min were performed. Each test consisted of a 4-h equilibration period followed by a euglycemic hyperinsulinemic (25 mU/kg x h) clamp lasting 2 h. In test 1 (control experiment) saline was infused, leaving GH and FFA at basal levels. In tests 2, 3, and 4, GH was infused (80 ng/kg x min) to increase GH levels. Whereas in test 2 FFA levels were free to increase due to GH lipolytic activity, in test 3 FFA elevation was prevented by using an antilipolytic compound (Acipimox) that allowed evaluation of the effect of GH at low FFA levels. In test 4 (GH+Acipimox+heparin) GH infusion was associated with the administration of Acipimox and heparin to maintain FFA at the basal level to evaluate the effect of GH per se independent from GH lipolytic activity. In test 5 Acipimox and a variable heparin infusion were given to evaluate possible effects of Acipimox other than the inhibition of lipolysis. During the euglycemic hyperinsulinemic clamp in the presence of high GH and FFA levels (test 2), glucose oxidation was significantly lower and lipid oxidation was significantly higher than in tests 1, 3, 4, and 5. During the same period, hepatic glucose production was completely suppressed in the control study (test 1; 94%) and in test 5 (99.6%), whereas it was significantly less inhibited (65%, 74%, and 73%) when GH was administered in tests 2, 3, and 4. In conclusion, these results suggest that GH directly mediates the reduction of insulin's effect on the liver. In addition, the effect of GH on glucose and lipid oxidation is not direct, but is mediated by its lipolytic activity.

Successfully realizing single-chip solutions often requires adding functions on top of the CMOS logic. This project researched the integration of nonvolatile memory and extra analog-optimized devices in 0.35-micron CMOS processes.

Plasma processing has become an integral part of the IC fabrication, since it offers advantages in terms of directionality, low temperature and process convenience. However plasma processing induces an oxide charging damage, which is function of process conditions and gate interconnect layout. At the end of the process the plasma damage is “hidden” by hydrogen passivation and becomes latent. At a first electrical inspection all the devices on wafer present nearly the same electrical parameters, whereas a small stress is enough to reveal the plasma damage, producing again a drift of all transistor parameters. In fact the applied stress both depassivate the latent plasma damage and introduce newly defects, which are electrically undistinguishable from plasma damage and depend on applied stress conditions. In our contribution we propose an experimental stress methodology to investigate both the latent damage depassivation effect and the net contribution of plasma damage.

An increasing number of integrated circuits requires the embedding of a limited amount (up to 16–64 kbits) of EEPROM memory. For this application, low process complexity, robust structure and good reliability are more important than small cell size. In this paper we present the design and characterization of a single poly EEPROM cell, optimized for embedded applications, and characterized by a good shrink potential. A. cell area of 68.7 μ 2 has been obtained in 0.7 μm technology, and electrical characterization has shown the possibility of achieving a programming time of less than 1 msec, while an endurance of more than 10 million cycles has been achieved at 125°C, with a programming time of 2 msec. By further shrink of the same basic layout, cell areas of 55 and 44μm 2 have been obtained, and similar programming and endurance performances have been demonstrated.

The history of VLSI, has been marked since the early 70′s, by an exponential growth rate, with a new generation appearing every three years. Recent announcements by major manufacturers confirm this trend, and the Semiconductor Industry Association has tried, in a recent study, to extrapolate it to year 2010, evidencing the major constraints and the critical issues. However, if we take as an example the roadmap of the Flash memories, which will be one of the major device families around year 2000, we can see potentially critical issues that could slow down the growth rate: on one side the increased circuit complexity will force to push defect density down to values that are hardly conceivable today, on the other side the increasing cost of facilities, coupled to a constant reduction of the price/implemented function will strongly affect the picture of the semiconductor industry, drastically reducing the number of major players. In order to stay competitive, semiconductor industry must take advantage of new equipment to pursue a program of constant product shrink and yield increase, turning rapidly into profit the huge investments for new equipment. Furthermore, the increase in equipment costs will reduce the number of equipment manufacturers, and their willingness to commit to expensive development programs will be conditioned by the presence of clear strategies on the side of silicon manufacturers.

The design and the technological aspects involved in the integration of a high-performance Prolog machine on silicon are described. Many Prolog machines have been implemented by using a large number of boards. Consequently they are expensive, cumbersome, and not yet achievable by industrial standards. There have been many attempts in the US, Japan, and Europe to integrate Prolog engines in silicon, in order to increase performance. The described processor, PROXIMA (PROlog eXecutIon MAchine), is a VLSI Prolog engine suitable to be added onto a commercial workstation. The PROXIMA chip set has been integrated in silicon using a double-metal 0.8 mu m n-well SGS-Thomson proprietary CMOS technology. >

The ability of human B cells to produce granulocyte-macrophage (GM)-CSF and IL-3 was investigated. B cells, isolated from tonsils or from the peripheral blood of patients with B cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia using mAb and immune rosettes, were cultured with or without Staphylococcus aureus Cowan strain I. GM-CSF and IL-3 were measured in the culture supernatants using a bioassay based on the selective proliferative response of the MO7e megakaryoblastic cell line to IL-3 or GM-CSF. S. aureus Cowan I-stimulated normal B cells released measurable amounts of GM-CSF but not of IL-3 as determined in neutralization assays with specific mAb in the MO7e cell line test. Some of the unstimulated normal B suspensions also produced GM-CSF, albeit in lower quantities. When normal B cells were fractionated into small (resting) and large (activated) B cells by Percoll density gradients, spontaneous GM-CSF production was detected only in the large cell fractions, but small cells were induced to produce GM-CSF upon S. aureus Cowan I stimulation. On a per cell basis, tonsillar B cells were found capable of releasing more GM-CSF than activated peripheral blood monocytes. The amount of GM-CSF produced by B cells was always inferior to that released by stimulated peripheral blood T cells or NK cells. The purified B cell suspensions from all 14 B cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia patients studied released GM-CSF but not IL-3 in the culture supernatants, sometimes even in the absence of stimuli. Northern blot analysis on total or poly(A)+ RNA confirmed the presence of GM-CSF, but not of IL-3, mRNA transcripts in both normal and malignant B cells. The results of these studies support the notion that activated human B lymphocytes release sufficient GM-CSF to play a role in the control of both hematopoiesis and the inflammatory process.

The aim of this paper was to describe a case of massive atenol and nifedipine poisoning, complicated by the co-existence of liver cirrhosis, where standard therapies (fluid replacement, vasopressors and inotropic agents, insulin, glucagon, calcium and bowel decontamination) were ineffective in restoring an adequate heart rate, blood pressure, renal and intestinal blood flow. This led to consequent anuric renal insufficiency and incipient multiple organ failure syndrome (MOFS). The patient recovered completely after Continuous Veno-Venous Hemo-Dia-Filtration (CVVHDF); this treatment removed atenolol from blood, with predicted clearance levels. The patient was a 45-year old female with a history of hypertension, liver cirrhosis, neurological and psychiatric disorders, with a massive atenolol (69.6 microg/mL) and nifedipine (63 ng/mL) overdose. CVVHDF at an ultrafiltration rate of 1 500 mL/h was started on day 1. From day 2 onwards, as the plasma atenolol concentration decreased, the blood pressure rose at a slow but constant rate. On day 5, there was restoration of an adequate blood pressure, which restored both renal and intestinal function, and also improved MOFS. The standard therapeutic approach was ineffective at eliminating both substances from the blood, and the clinical picture became worse due to incipient MOFS. CVVHDF was used in order to maintain the fluid and electrolyte balance and also to clear the beta blocker from the blood. The clearance kinetics of atenolol were consistent with the expected clearance values, on the basis of a CVVHDF ultrafiltration flow of 1 500 mL/h, which corresponds to a creatinine clearance of about 25 mL/min.

In deep sub-micron (DSM) technologies, interconnects play a crucial role in the correct functionality and largely impact the performance of complex system-on-chip (SoC) designs. For technologies of 0.25 /spl mu/m and below, wiring capacitance dominates gate capacitance, thus rapidly increasing the interconnect-induced delay. Moreover, the coupling capacitance becomes a significant portion of the on-chip total wiring capacitance, and coupling between adjacent wires cannot be considered as a second-order effect any longer. As a consequence, the traditional top-down design methodology is ineffective, since the actual wiring delays can be computed only after layout parasitic extraction, when the physical design is completed. Fixing all the timing violations often requires several time-consuming iterations of logical and physical design, and it is essentially a trial-and-error approach. Increasingly tighter time-to-market requirements dictate that interconnect parasitics must be taken into account during all phases of the design flow, at different level of abstractions. However, given the aggressive technology scaling trends and the growing design complexity, this approach is only temporarily ameliorate the interconnect problem. We believe that in order to achieve gigascale designs in the nanometer regime, a novel design paradigm, based on new forms of regularity and newly created IP (intellectual property) blocks must be developed, to provide a direct path from system-level architectural exploration to physical implementation.

Canine Leishmaniasis (CanL) is endemic in Campania Region (Italy) and is strictly related to Human Visceral Leishmaniasis. Past and present reports of the prevalence in the Region show that exist places were CanL has been known for a century (Vesuvius and Ischia Foci) and other localities where the disease appears to be recent (Caserta and Salerno provinces); moreover, the zoonosis is seen not only in endemic foci (autochthonous), but also in non-endemic areas (imported cases), for example in the Benevento and Avellino provinces. Two zymodemes have been identified in human and canine population and also in sandflies: MON 1 and MON 72. Endemic or stable CanL foci correspond with Vesuvius Area, Ischia island, Maddaloni and neighbouring Commons, other foci in the Salerno province. These foci are associated with optimal ecological condition, abundance of reservoirs and hosts, abundance of phlebotomine vectors, prevalence in canine population around 10-40%, incidence in canine population 5%, risk for human population 0.002%. Instable foci occur at the border of the stable foci: they may be the result of changes in climate with the occasional introduction of infected dogs in the areas; in the foci are registered low presence of phlebotomine vectors, prevalence around 0.5-3%, sporadic human cases. Today, in Campania region CanL undoubtedly has an increased incidence and a wider geographic distribution than before: new cases are now reported in areas that were previously non-endemic. Ecological, demographic and environmental changes, large population movements, urbanization have led to an increased incidence and to importation into suburbs with high densities of people and sand-flies. These changes include "global warming", increased number of stray dogs, dogs and population movements, changes in human population (increased number of immune-depressed and old people). Nowadays, the most important focus of CanL and Human Visceral Leishmaniasis of the Mediterranean area is located in Campania Region: during the year 2000, 143 cases of Human Visceral Leishmaniasis have been recorded in Italy, an half of them (83 cases) in Campania region.

Project 8637-HIDICCA has been started at the end of 1993 by a consortium of European companies and research centres, within the Framework IV of ESPRIT, with the purpose to develop a new generation Smart Card, for public key algorithm, having the possibility of embedding large amounts of byte programmable non volatile memory. Main characteristics are high security, enhanced by the parallel development of the card and the operating system, flexibility, to allow optimised solutions for different applications, and low cost. A new type of EEPROM memory cell has been developed to allow the incorporation of large memory blocks. The first silicon of the new card is expected within August 1996.

Smartcards are one of the fastest growing market segments in the field of microelectronics, since they offer an easy way to implement secure transactions. In this paper we will consider the main characteristics of smartcards, with special regard to the ones used for secure transactions, and discuss the main market and technology trends.

The low-molecular-mass rhoptry complex of Plasmodium falciparum consists of three proteins, rhoptry-associated protein 1 (RAP1), RAP2, and RAP3. The genes encoding RAP1 and RAP2 are known; however, the RAP3 gene has not been identified. In this study we identify the RAP3 gene from the P. falciparum genome database and show that this protein is part of the low-molecular-mass rhoptry complex. Disruption of RAP3 demonstrated that it is not essential for merozoite invasion, probably because RAP2 can complement the loss of RAP3. RAP3 has homology with RAP2, and the genes are encoded on chromosome 5 in a head-to-tail fashion. Analysis of the genome databases has identified homologous genes in all Plasmodium spp., suggesting that this protein plays a role in merozoite invasion. The region surrounding the RAP3 homologue in the Plasmodium yoelii genome is syntenic with the same region in P. falciparum ; however, there is a single gene. Phylogenetic comparison of the RAP2/3 protein family from Plasmodium spp. suggests that the RAP2/3 duplication occurred after divergence of these parasite species.

A seroprevalence survey and risk analysis of Neospora caninum and Leishmania infantum was conducted in dogs from an area of the Campania region of southern Italy, in order to investigate the co-infection of these two protozoa. Blood samples were collected from 1058 asymptomatic dogs over a 18 months period. Serum samples were tested for antibodies to N. caninum and to L. infantum using the indirect fluorescent antibody test. Epidemiological data (breed, age, sex, and utilization) were collected and statistically analysed in relation to N. caninum and to L. infantum seropositivity and antibody titres. Out of the 1058 sera samples tested, 68 (6.4%) were found to have antibodies to N. caninum , and 222 (21.0%) to have antibodies to L. infantum . The co-presence of antibodies to N. caninum and to L. infantum was found in 46 (4.3%) dogs. Thus, 67.6% of the dogs positive for N. caninum also had antibodies to L. infantum . The major risk factor for N. caninum seropositivity was the presence of antibodies to L. infantum , and the major risk factor for L. infantum seropositivity was the presence of antibodies to N. caninum . In addition, high N. caninum seroprevalence was closely correlated to Boxer breed, and high L. infantum seroprevalence was correlated to masculine gender and Setter and Pit bull breeds. Low L. infantum seroprevalence was closely correlated to Yorkshire breed. The findings of this survey indicate that in the Campania region of southern Italy the co-presence of antibodies to N. caninum and to L. infantum is very common in dogs, and that infection by one protozoan seems to enhance the susceptibility to the other one. This is probably due to the immunological status of the tested dogs.

Neisseria meningitidisis a major cause of bacterial septicemia and meningitis.Sequence variation of surface-exposed proteins and cross-reactivity of the serogroup B capsular polysaccharide with human tissues have hampered efforts to develop a successful vaccine. To overcome these obstacles, the entire genome sequence of a virulent serogroup B strain (MC58) was used to identify vaccine candidates. A total of 350 candidate antigens were expressed inEscherichia coli, purified, and used to immunize mice. The sera allowed the identification of proteins that are surface exposed, that are conserved in sequence across a range of strains, and that induce a bactericidal antibody response, a property known to correlate with vaccine efficacy in humans.

Objectives Evaluation of any possible behavioural reactions in epileptic patients during vigabatrin treatment. Material and methods Ten patients with refractory partial epilepsy, previous mental retardation and psychosis or other significant psychiatric morbidity treated with vigabatrin were submitted periodically to specific tests (to quantify any possible change in behavioural parameters) and also to EEG recordings. Results After 1 year of treatment 5/10 patients became seizure-free, 3/10 of them presented reduction of seizures by over 75%. None of the subjects presented episodes that could be interpreted as psychotic reactions and, moreover, some patients showed a reduction in stereotypies, instability and aggressiveness. In 66% of these patients an improvement in cognitive functions was observed. Conclusion The onset of side effects can be prevented by a gradual introduction of vigabatrin and by the use of the drug in moderate doses. These data do not confirm the contraindication to treat with vigabatrin patients with a history of psychiatric disturbances.