Ultrasounds have been successfully and safely employed in underwater communications and for health diagnosis in the last 60 years because of their good performance in environments with high water ...concentration. Recently it has been proposed also to employ them for supporting intra-body communications; however exploitation of ultrasounds inside the body calls for a deep understanding of their features and a full characterization of the impulse response inside these challenging channels. In this paper we provide a complete experimental characterization of the impulse response inside a human body communication channel, composed for more than 65–70% of water. To this purpose we developed a testbed which employs a human phantom of ballistic gel to emulate the human body propagation features and performed a set of measurements to fully discuss the channel behavior as a function of different parameters such as the employed frequency, the channel composition and the distance. Our results show that, it is possible to clearly identify the three main components generated by multipath propagation inside the human phantom, i.e. the direct, lateral and reflected waves. Also, it is possible to observe that the excess delay which measures the time elapsed between the first and the last arriving waves, increases approximately as 10 μs per cm. Our analysis provides interesting has strong implications on the design of communication protocols for intra-body scenarios.
Coxiella burnetii causes diseases in humans (Q fever) and animals, domestic ruminants playing a major role in the epidemiology of the infection. Information on C. burnetii infection in Lebanon is ...scanty. In order to assess the prevalence of C. burnetii infection in ruminants, a cross-sectional study was undertaken in 2014. A total of 1633 sera from ruminants (865 cattle, 384 sheep and 384 goats) from 429 farms (173 cattle, 128 sheep and 128 goats), in seven provinces of Lebanon were randomly selected and assayed for the presence of antibodies.
39.86% of farms (95% CI: 35.23–44.56) resulted positive. The seroprevalence was 30.63% in Cattle-farms, 46.88% in sheep-farms and 45.31% in goat-farms.
Milk samples collected from 282 seropositive animals (86 cows, 93 sheep and 103 goats) from 171 positive farms were tested by a high sensitive Real-Time PCR targeted to the IS1111 transposon of C. burnetii. The overall prevalence in farms was estimated to be 14.04%. Cattle-, sheep- and goat farm prevalence rates were 15.09%, 10% and 17.24%, respectively.
The findings of the study show that C. burnetii prevalence in Lebanese domestic ruminants is related to animal species and farming practices. Indeed, the mixed herds with sheep (p < 0.01), the presence of common lambing/kidding areas (p < 0.001) in farms where the use of disinfectants was not a routine practice (p < 0.05) were identified as important risk factors.
The results of the study provide baseline information for setting up herd management and public health measures for the prevention and control of Q fever in Lebanon.
Background & Aims Obeticholic acid (OCA; INT-747, 6α-ethyl-chenodeoxycholic acid) is a semisynthetic derivative of the primary human bile acid chenodeoxycholic acid, the natural agonist of the ...farnesoid X receptor, which is a nuclear hormone receptor that regulates glucose and lipid metabolism. In animal models, OCA decreases insulin resistance and hepatic steatosis. Methods We performed a double-blind, placebo-controlled, proof-of-concept study to evaluate the effects of OCA on insulin sensitivity in patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and type 2 diabetes mellitus. Patients were randomly assigned to groups given placebo (n = 23), 25 mg OCA (n = 20), or 50 mg OCA (n = 21) once daily for 6 weeks. A 2-stage hyperinsulinemic-euglycemic insulin clamp was used to measure insulin sensitivity before and after the 6-week treatment period. We also measured levels of liver enzymes, lipid analytes, fibroblast growth factor 19, 7α-hydroxy-4-cholesten-3-one (a BA precursor), endogenous bile acids, and markers of liver fibrosis. Results When patients were given a low-dose insulin infusion, insulin sensitivity increased by 28.0% from baseline in the group treated with 25 mg OCA ( P = .019) and 20.1% from baseline in the group treated with 50 mg OCA ( P = .060). Insulin sensitivity increased by 24.5% ( P = .011) in combined OCA groups, whereas it decreased by 5.5% in the placebo group. A similar pattern was observed in patients given a high-dose insulin infusion. The OCA groups had significant reductions in levels of γ-glutamyltransferase and alanine aminotransferase and dose-related weight loss. They also had increased serum levels of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol and fibroblast growth factor 19, associated with decreased levels of 7α-hydroxy-4-cholesten-3-one and endogenous bile acids, indicating activation of farnesoid X receptor. Markers of liver fibrosis decreased significantly in the group treated with 25 mg OCA. Adverse experiences were similar among groups. Conclusions In this phase 2 trial, administration of 25 or 50 mg OCA for 6 weeks was well tolerated, increased insulin sensitivity, and reduced markers of liver inflammation and fibrosis in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. Longer and larger studies are warranted. ClinicalTrials.gov , Number: NCT00501592.
A LYSO calorimeter for the SuperB factory Eigen, G.; Zhou, Z.; Chao, D. ...
Nuclear instruments & methods in physics research. Section A, Accelerators, spectrometers, detectors and associated equipment,
08/2013, Letnik:
718
Journal Article
Recenzirano
The SuperB project is an asymmetric e+e− accelerator of 1036cm−2s−1 design luminosity, capable of collecting a data sample of 50–75ab−1 in five years running. The SuperB electromagnetic calorimeter ...(EMC) provides energy and direction measurement of photons and electrons, and is used for identification of electrons versus other charged particles. In particular we present its design, geometry study and related simulations, as well as R&D on LYSO crystals and developments on readout electronics. A matrix of 25 crystals has been tested at the Beam Test Facility of Frascati (BTF) in May 2011 at energies between 200MeV and 500MeV. Results from this test are presented.
Background & Aims We evaluated the efficacy and safety of obeticholic acid (OCA, α-ethylchenodeoxycholic acid) in a randomized controlled trial of patients with primary biliary cirrhosis who had an ...inadequate response to ursodeoxycholic acid therapy. Methods We performed a double-blind study of 165 patients with primary biliary cirrhosis (95% women) and levels of alkaline phosphatase (ALP) 1.5- to 10-fold the upper limit of normal. Patients were randomly assigned to groups given 10 mg, 25 mg, or 50 mg doses of OCA or placebo, once daily for 3 months. Patients maintained their existing dose of ursodeoxycholic acid throughout the study. The primary outcome was change in level of ALP from baseline (day 0) until the end of the study (day 85 or early termination). We also performed an open-label extension of the trial in which 78 patients were enrolled and 61 completed the first year. Results OCA was superior to placebo in achieving the primary end point. Subjects given OCA had statistically significant relative reductions in mean ALP from baseline to the end of the study ( P < .0001 all OCA groups vs placebo). Levels of ALP decreased 21%–25% on average from baseline in the OCA groups and 3% in the placebo group. Sixty-nine percent (68 of 99) of patients given OCA had at least a 20% reduction in ALP compared with 8% (3 of 37) of patients given placebo ( P < .0003). Among secondary end points, levels of γ-glutamyl transpeptidase decreased 48%–63%, on average, among subjects given OCA, vs a 7% decrease in the group given placebo; levels of alanine aminotransferase decreased 21%–35% on average among subjects given OCA vs none of the patients given placebo. Pruritus was the principal adverse event; incidence values in the OCA 10 mg, 25 mg, and 50 mg groups were 47% (not significantly different), 87% ( P < .0003), and 80% ( P < .006), respectively, vs 50% in the placebo group. In the extension study, levels of ALP continued to decrease to a mean level of 202 ± 11 U/L after 12 months vs 285 ± 15 U/L at baseline. Conclusions Daily doses of OCA, ranging from 10 to 50 mg, significantly reduced levels of ALP, γ-glutamyl transpeptidase, and alanine aminotransferase, compared with placebo, in patients with primary biliary cirrhosis who had inadequate responses to ursodeoxycholic acid. The incidence and severity of pruritus were lowest among patients who received 10 mg/d OCA. Biochemical responses to OCA were maintained in a 12-month open-label extension trial. ClinicalTrials.gov ID: NCT00550862.
The CMS RPC gas gain monitoring system: An overview and preliminary results Benussi, L.; Bianco, S.; Colafranceschi, S. ...
Nuclear instruments & methods in physics research. Section A, Accelerators, spectrometers, detectors and associated equipment,
05/2009, Letnik:
602, Številka:
3
Journal Article
Recenzirano
The status of the Compact Solenoid Spectrometer (CMS) Resistive Plate Counter (RPC) Gas Gain Monitoring (GGM) system developed at the Frascati Laboratory of INFN (Istituto Nazionale di Fisica ...Nucleare) is reported. The GGM system is a cosmic ray telescope based on small RPC detectors operated with the same gas mixture used by the CMS RPC system. The GGM gain and efficiency are continuously monitored on-line, thus providing a fast and accurate determination of any shift in working point conditions. The construction details and the first result of GGM commissioning are described.
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