Background model of the CUPID-0 experiment Azzolini, O.; Beeman, J. W.; Bellini, F. ...
The European physical journal. C, Particles and fields,
07/2019, Letnik:
79, Številka:
7
Journal Article
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CUPID-0 is the first large mass array of enriched Zn
82
Se scintillating low temperature calorimeters, operated at LNGS since 2017. During its first scientific runs, CUPID-0 collected an exposure of ...9.95 kg year. Thanks to the excellent rejection of
α
particles, we attained the lowest background ever measured with thermal detectors in the energy region where we search for the signature of
82
Se
neutrinoless double beta decay. In this work we develop a model to reconstruct the CUPID-0 background over the whole energy range of experimental data. We identify the background sources exploiting their distinctive signatures and we assess their extremely low contribution down to
∼
10
-
4
counts/(keV kg year) in the region of interest for
82
Se
neutrinoless double beta decay search. This result represents a crucial step towards the comprehension of the background in experiments based on scintillating calorimeters and in next generation projects such as CUPID.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
From February 21 through April 1, 2019, a total of 229 cases of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest were reported in four provinces of Lombardy, Italy. During the same period in 2020 (the first 40 days of ...the Covid-19 epidemic), 362 cases were reported — a 58% increase. Of the additional 133 cases in 2020, a total of 103 involved suspected or diagnosed Covid-19.
Scintillators, materials that produce light pulses upon interaction with ionizing radiation, are widely employed in radiation detectors. In advanced medical-imaging technologies, fast scintillators ...enabling a time resolution of tens of picoseconds are required to achieve high-resolution imaging at the millimetre length scale. Here we demonstrate that composite materials based on fluorescent metal–organic framework (MOF) nanocrystals can work as fast scintillators. We present a prototype scintillator fabricated by embedding MOF nanocrystals in a polymer. The MOF comprises zirconium oxo-hydroxy clusters, high-Z linking nodes interacting with the ionizing radiation, arranged in an orderly fashion at a nanometric distance from 9,10-diphenylanthracene ligand emitters. Their incorporation in the framework enables fast sensitization of the ligand fluorescence, thus avoiding issues typically arising from the intimate mixing of complementary elements. This proof-of-concept prototype device shows an ultrafast scintillation rise time of ~50 ps, thus supporting the development of new scintillators based on engineered fluorescent MOF nanocrystals.Composites of fluorescent metal–organic framework nanocrystals in a polymer are exploited to create fast scintillators with a rise time of about 50 ps.
Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is a well-known independent prognostic factor in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and a sufficient criterion for lung transplant candidacy. Limited data are ...currently available on the hemodynamic and clinical effect of phosphodiesterase 5 inhibitors in patients with severe PH associated with COPD. This study assessed the effect of sildenafil on pulmonary hemodynamics and gas exchange in severe PH associated with COPD.
After screening, this multicenter, randomized, placebo-controlled double-blind trial randomized patients to receive 20 mg sildenafil or placebo 3 times a day (ratio 2:1) for 16 weeks. The primary end point was the reduction in pulmonary vascular resistance. Secondary end points included BODE (body mass index, airflow obstruction, dyspnea, and exercise capacity) index, 6-minute walk test, and quality of life questionnaire. Changes in the partial pressure of arterial oxygen were evaluated as a safety parameter.
The final population included 28 patients, 18 in the sildenafil group and 10 in the placebo group. At 16 week, patients treated with sildenafil had a decrease in pulmonary vascular resistance (mean difference with placebo -1.4 WU; 95% confidence interval, ≤ -0.05; p = 0.04). Sildenafil also improved the BODE index, diffusion capacity of the lung for carbon monoxide percentage, and quality of life. Change from baseline in the partial pressure of arterial oxygen was not significantly different between the sildenafil and placebo groups.
This pilot study found that treatment with sildenafil reduced pulmonary vascular resistance and improved the BODE index and quality of life, without a significant effect on gas exchange.
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•Fatigue tests on ‘as-built’ AlSi10Mg samples manufactured by SLM.•Moderate correlation between defects at the fracture origin and roughness parameters.•Fatigue strength model based ...on Kitagawa diagram including the effect of residual stresses.
This study investigated the effects of the ‘as-built’ condition on the fatigue properties of an AlSi10Mg aluminium alloy manufactured by Selective Laser Melting (SLM) in different orientations. The results showed a moderate correlation between defects/surface features at the fracture origin and the roughness measurements. On the other hand, a fatigue strength analysis based on the size of features at fracture origin and residual stress just below the surface proved to be successful. Although considering the synergistic effect of different variables increased the scatter in fatigue life data points, a fatigue strength model including short crack effect and residual stresses made it possible to estimate the EIFS close to the real critical features. Results for life prediction models based on EIFS showed that 87% of the estimated number of cycles to failure are within a factor of 0.5–2 with respect to the experimental number of cycles to failure.
Poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibitors represent a promising strategy toward the treatment of triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), which is often associated to genomic instability and/or BRCA ...mutations. However, clinical outcome is controversial and no benefits have been demonstrated in wild type BRCA cancers, possibly due to poor drug bioavailability and low nuclear delivery. In the attempt to overcome these limitations, we have developed H-Ferritin nanoformulated olaparib (HOla) and assessed its anticancer efficacy on both BRCA-mutated and non-mutated TNBC cells. We exploited the natural tumor targeting of H-Ferritin, which is mediated by the transferrin receptor-1 (TfR1), and its physiological tropism toward cell nucleus. TNBC cell lines over-expressing TfR-1 were successfully recognized by H-Ferritin, displaying a fast internalization into the cells. HOla induced remarkable cytotoxic effect in cancer cells, exhibiting 1000-fold higher anticancer activity compared to free olaparib (Ola). Accordingly, HOla treatment enhanced PARP-1 cleavage, DNA double strand breaks and Ola delivery into the nuclear compartment. Our findings suggest that H-Ferritin nanoformulation strongly enhances cytotoxic efficacy of Ola as a stand-alone therapy in both BRCA-mutated and wild type TNBC cells, by promoting targeted nuclear delivery.
Obesity is a health problem affecting more than 40% of US adults and 13% of the global population. Anti-obesity treatments including diet, exercise, surgery and pharmacotherapies have so far failed ...to reverse obesity incidence. Herein, we target obesity with a pharmacotherapeutic approach that decreases caloric efficiency by mitochondrial uncoupling. We show that a recently identified mitochondrial uncoupler BAM15 is orally bioavailable, increases nutrient oxidation, and decreases body fat mass without altering food intake, lean body mass, body temperature, or biochemical and haematological markers of toxicity. BAM15 decreases hepatic fat, decreases inflammatory lipids, and has strong antioxidant effects. Hyperinsulinemic-euglycemic clamp studies show that BAM15 improves insulin sensitivity in multiple tissue types. Collectively, these data demonstrate that pharmacologic mitochondrial uncoupling with BAM15 has powerful anti-obesity and insulin sensitizing effects without compromising lean mass or affecting food intake.
To assess incidence and predictors of acute symptomatic seizures in a prospective cohort of patients with first stroke.
Patients with first stroke hospitalized in 31 Italian centers were recruited. ...Relevant demographic data, disease characteristics, and risk factors were collected. Acute symptomatic seizures (≤7 days) were recorded and correlated to age, gender, family history of epilepsy, and vascular risk factors.
A total of 714 patients (315 women, 399 men; age 27-97 years) were enrolled. A total of 609 (85.3%) had cerebral infarction (32 cerebral infarction with hemorrhagic transformation CIHT) and 105 (14.7%) primary intracerebral hemorrhage (PIH). A total of 141 (19.7%) had a large lesion (>3 cm) and 296 (41.5%) cortical involvement. Twelve patients reported family history of seizures. Forty-five patients (6.3%) presented acute symptomatic seizures, 24 with cerebral infarction (4.2%), 4 with CIHT (12.5%), and 17 (16.2%) with PIH. In multivariate analysis, compared to cerebral infarction, PIH carried the highest risk (odds ratio OR 7.2; 95% confidence interval CI 3.5-14.9) followed by CIHT (OR 2.7; 95% CI 0.8-9.6). Cortical involvement was a risk factor for PIH (OR 6.0; 95% CI 1.8-20.8) and for CI (OR 3.1; 95% CI 1.3-7.8). Hyperlipidemia (OR 0.2; 95% CI 0.03-0.8) was a protective factor for IPH.
The incidence of acute symptomatic seizures is the highest reported in patients with first stroke with prospective follow-up. Hemorrhagic stroke and cortical lesion were independent predictors of acute symptomatic seizures. Hyperlipidemia was a protective factor for hemorrhagic stroke.
Primary Biliary Cholangitis (PBC) is an uncommon, chronic, cholangiopathy of autoimmune origin and unknown etiology characterized by positive anti-mitochondrial autoantibodies (AMA), female ...preponderance and progression to cirrhosis if left untreated. The diagnosis is based on AMA- or PBC-specific anti-nuclear antibody (ANA)-positivity in the presence of a cholestatic biochemical profile, histologic confirmation being mandatory only in seronegative cases. First-line treatment is ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA), which is effective in preventing disease progression in about two thirds of the patients. The only approved second-line treatment is obeticholic acid.
This article summarizes the most relevant conclusions of a meeting held in Lugano, Switzerland, from September 23rd-25th 2018, gathering basic and clinical scientists with various background from around the world to discuss the latest advances in PBC research. The meeting was dedicated to Ian Mackay, pioneer in the field of autoimmune liver diseases. The role of liver histology needs to be reconsidered: liver pathology consistent with PBC in AMA-positive individuals without biochemical cholestasis is increasingly reported, raising the question as to whether biochemical cholestasis is a reliable disease marker for both clinical practice and trials. The urgent need for new biomarkers, including more accurate markers of cholestasis, was also widely discussed during the meeting. Moreover, new insights in interactions of bile acids with biliary epithelia in PBC provide solid evidence of a role for impaired epithelial protection against potentially toxic hydrophobic bile acids, raising the fundamental question as to whether this bile acid-induced epithelial damage is the cause or the consequence of the autoimmune attack to the biliary epithelium. Strategies are needed to identify difficult-to-treat patients at an early disease stage, when new therapeutic approaches targeting immunologic pathways, in addition to bile acid-based therapies, may be effective. In conclusion, using interdisciplinary approaches, groundbreaking advances can be expected before long in respect to our understanding of the etiopathogenesis of PBC, with the ultimate aim of improving its treatment.
•The role of histology in PBC should be reconsidered.•Is disrupted bile acid homeostasis cause or consequence of the autoimmune attack?•The role of the microbiome is linked to its close physiological interaction with bile acids.•High-risk patients probably would benefit from early combined treatment.
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