The Use of Chemical Flocculants and Chitosan as a Pre-Concentration Step in the Harvesting Process of Three Native Microalgae Species from the Canary Islands Cultivated Outdoors at the Pilot Scale.

Biomass harvesting represents one of the main bottlenecks in microalgae large-scale production. Solid-liquid separation of the biomass accounts for 30% of the total production costs, which can be reduced by the use of flocculants as a pre-concentration step in the downstream process. The natural polymer chitosan and the two chemical flocculants FeCl and AlCl were tested on freshwater and two marine algae, and .

Computationally Efficient SVD Filtering for Ultrasound Flow Imaging and Real-Time Application to Ultrafast Doppler.

Over the past decade, ultrasound microvasculature imaging has seen the rise of highly sensitive techniques, such as ultrafast power Doppler (UPD) and ultrasound localization microscopy (ULM). The cornerstone of these techniques is the acquisition of a large number of frames based on unfocused wave transmission, enabling the use of singular value decomposition (SVD) as a powerful clutter filter to separate microvessels from surrounding tissue. Unfortunately, SVD is computationally expensive, hampering its use in real-time UPD imaging and weighing down the ULM processing chain, with evident impact in a clinical context.

A heterogeneous ultrasound open scanner for the real-time implementation of computationally demanding imaging methods.

Ultrasound open scanners have recently boosted the development and validation of novel imaging techniques. They are usually split into hardware- or software-oriented systems, depending on whether they process the echo data using embedded FPGAs/DSPs or a GPU on a host PC. The goal of this work was to realize a high-performance heterogeneous open scanner capable of leveraging the strengths of both hardware and software-oriented systems.

in ready to eat meat products from Zambia: phenotypical and genomic characterization of isolates.

The contamination of ready to eat foods (RTE) products due to could compromise the products safety becoming a great risk for the consumers. The high presence of in RTE products has been described worldwide, but few data are available about these products from African countries. The aims of this study were to report the presence of in Zambian RTE products, providing genomic characterization and data on similarity with African circulating strains using whole genome sequencing (WGS).

Strains Persisting in a Meat Processing Plant in Central Italy: Use of Whole Genome Sequencing and In Vitro Adhesion and Invasion Assays to Decipher Their Virulence Potential.

In this study, we used both a WGS and an in vitro approach to study the virulence potential of nine () strains belonging to genetic clusters persisting in a meat processing plant in Central Italy. The studied clusters belonged to CC1-ST1, CC9-ST9, and CC218-ST2801. All the CC1 and CC218 strains presented the same accessory virulence genes (LIPI-3, gltA, gltB, and aut_IVb).

The Slaughterhouse as Hotspot of CC1 and CC6 Strains with Hypervirulent Profiles in an Integrated Poultry Chain of Italy.

In Europe, very few studies are available regarding the diversity of clonal complexes (CCs) and sequence types (ST) in poultry and on the related typing of isolates using whole genome sequencing (WGS). In this study, we used a WGS approach to type 122 strains isolated from chicken neck skin samples collected in two different slaughterhouses of an integrated Italian poultry company. The studied strains were classified into five CCs: CC1-ST1 (21.

Kinetic Perimetry on Virtual Reality Headset.

Objective: We present a portable automatic kinetic perimeter based on a virtual reality (VR) headset device as an innovative and alternative solution for the screening of clinical visual fields. We compared the performances of our solution with a gold standard perimeter, validating the test on healthy subjects.

Methods: The system is composed of an Oculus Quest 2 VR headset with a clicker for participant response feedback.

Type I IFNs promote cancer cell stemness by triggering the epigenetic regulator KDM1B.

Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are a subpopulation of cancer cells endowed with high tumorigenic, chemoresistant and metastatic potential. Nongenetic mechanisms of acquired resistance are increasingly being discovered, but molecular insights into the evolutionary process of CSCs are limited. Here, we show that type I interferons (IFNs-I) function as molecular hubs of resistance during immunogenic chemotherapy, triggering the epigenetic regulator demethylase 1B (KDM1B) to promote an adaptive, yet reversible, transcriptional rewiring of cancer cells towards stemness and immune escape.

Atypical Serogroup IVb-v1 of Assigned to New ST2801, Widely Spread and Persistent in the Environment of a Pork-Meat Producing Plant of Central Italy.

In this study, we characterized 84 (Lm) strains having an atypical IVb-v1 profile and isolated in a meat producing plant of Central Italy. They were assigned to the new MLST type ST2801 (CC218). The new ST was widespread in the food-producing environment where it was able to persist for over a year even after cleaning and sanitation.

Whole-Genome Sequencing Characterization of Virulence Profiles of Food and Human Isolates and In Vitro Adhesion/Invasion Assessment.

() is the causative agent of human listeriosis. strains have different virulence potential. For this reason, we preliminarily characterised via Whole-Genome Sequencing (WGS) some strains for their key genomic features and virulence-associated determinants, assigning the clonal complex (CC).

Phylogenetic Analysis and Genome-Wide Association Study Applied to an Italian Outbreak.

From May 2015 to March 2016, a severe outbreak due to ST7 strain occurred in Central Italy and caused 24 confirmed clinical cases. The epidemic strain was deeply investigated using whole-genome sequencing (WGS) analysis. In the interested area, the foodborne outbreak investigation identified a meat food-producing plant contaminated by the outbreak strain, carried by pork-ready-to-eat products.

Hyper-Virulent Strains Associated With Respiratory Infections in Central Italy.

() is a foodborne pathogen causing listeriosis. Invasive forms of the disease mainly manifest as septicaemia, meningitis and maternal-neonatal infections. -associated respiratory infections are very rare and little known.

Intensive Environmental Surveillance Plan for in Food Producing Plants and Retail Stores of Central Italy: Prevalence and Genetic Diversity.

() can persist in food processing environments (FPEs), surviving environmental stresses and disinfectants. We described an intensive environmental monitoring plan performed in Central Italy and involving food producing plants (FPPs) and retail grocery stores (RSs). The aim of the study was to provide a snapshot of the circulation in different FPEs during a severe listeriosis outbreak, using whole genome sequencing (WGS) to investigate the genetic diversity of the isolated, evaluating their virulence and stress resistance profiles.

Experimental and simulation study of harmonic components generated by plane and focused waves.

Although there is increasing interest in the use of plane waves (PW) in high-frame-rate imaging, not much experimental data is available about their behavior in terms of nonlinear propagation. This paper presents a detailed study of fundamental and harmonic components of the ultrasound beam associated to PW transmission from a linear array. Simulations and hydrophone measurements of PW propagation in water were performed and compared to the results obtained for focused waves (FWs) at various levels of peak negative pressure (PNP).

Architecture for an Ultrasound Advanced Open Platform With an Arbitrary Number of Independent Channels.

Ultrasound open platforms are programmable and flexible tools for the development and test of novel methods. In most cases, they embed the electronics for the independent control of (maximum) 256 probe elements. However, a higher number of channels is needed for the control of 2-D array probes.

Can plasma antioxidants prevent DNA damage in oxidative stress condition induced by growth hormone deficiency? A pilot study.

Adult growth hormone deficiency (GHD), a condition characterized by increased oxidative stress, is related to augmented cardiovascular, metabolic and oncological risk. A case-control observational study has been performed to evaluate DNA oxidative damage analysing the production of thymidine-glycol in lymphocytes and its correlation with plasma antioxidant levels, evaluated as Total Antioxidant Capacity (TAC). GHD was diagnosed using GHRH 50μg iv+arginine 0,5 g/Kg test, with peak GH response <9 μg/L when BMI was <30 kg/m2 or <4 μg/L when BMI was >30 kg/m2.

Real-Time High Frame Rate Color Flow Mapping System.

Plane wave (PW) transmission (TX) can be profitably used to improve the performance of color flow mapping (CFM) systems by increasing the autocorrelation ensemble length (EL) and/or the frame rate (FR). Although high-end scanners tend to include imaging schemes using PW TX and parallel receive beams, high frame rate (HFR) CFM has been so far experimentally implemented mostly through research platforms that transmit PWs and beamform/process the received channel data off-line. In this article, full real-time implementation of PW CFM with continuous-time clutter filtering and extended FR/EL is reported.

Hypo- and Hyper-Virulent Clones Persisting in Two Different Food Processing Plants of Central Italy.

A total of 66 () isolated from 2013 to 2018 in a small-scale meat processing plant and a dairy facility of Central Italy were studied. Whole Genome Sequencing and bioinformatics analysis were used to assess the genetic relationships between the strains and investigate persistence and virulence abilities. The biofilm forming-ability was assessed in vitro.

Evaluation of Kisspeptin levels in prepubertal obese and overweight children: sexual dimorphism and modulation of antioxidant levels.

Objective: Kisspeptin, neuropeptide involved in puberty beginning and regulation of pituitary-gonadal axis, has been shown to stimulate antioxidant defenses in murine models. Its levels are greater in females than males and also in obese prepubertal girls. Therefore, our aim was to evaluate sex-related differences in prepubertal obese patients and the relationships of Kisspeptin with metabolic/hormonal parameters.

Evaluation of oxidative stress effects on different macromolecules in adult growth hormone deficiency.

Adult growth hormone deficiency (GHD) is being increasingly recognized to cause premature mortality exacerbated by oxidative stress. A case-control observational study has been performed with the primary objective of evaluating new parameters of oxidative stress and macromolecular damage in adult GHD subjects: serum nitrotryptophan; Total Antioxidant Capacity expressed as LAG time; urinary hexanoil-lysine; urinary dityrosine and urinary 8-OH-deoxyguanosine. GHD was diagnosed using Growth Hormone-Releasing Hormone 50μg iv+arginine 0,5 g/Kg test, with a peak GH response <9 μg /L when BMI was <30 kg/m2 or <4 μg/L when BMI was >30 kg/m2.

The effect of size range on ultrasound-induced translations in microbubble populations.

Microbubble translations driven by ultrasound-induced radiation forces can be beneficial for applications in ultrasound molecular imaging and drug delivery. Here, the effect of size range in microbubble populations on their translations is investigated experimentally and theoretically. The displacements within five distinct size-isolated microbubble populations are driven by a standard ultrasound-imaging probe at frequencies ranging from 3 to 7 MHz, and measured using the multi-gate spectral Doppler approach.

Crowd-Based Cognitive Perception of the Physical World: Towards the Internet of Senses.

This paper introduces a possible architecture and discusses the research directions for the realization of the Cognitive Perceptual Internet (CPI), which is enabled by the convergence of wired and wireless communications, traditional sensor networks, mobile crowd-sensing, and machine learning techniques. The CPI concept stems from the fact that mobile devices, such as smartphones and wearables, are becoming an outstanding mean for zero-effort world-sensing and digitalization thanks to their pervasive diffusion and the increasing number of embedded sensors. Data collected by such devices provide unprecedented insights into the physical world that can be inferred through cognitive processes, thus originating a digital sixth sense.

A Real-Time PCR Screening Assay for Rapid Detection of Outbreak Strains.

From January 2015 to March 2016, an outbreak of 23 human cases of listeriosis in the Marche region and one human case in the Umbria region of Italy was caused by strains showing a new pulsotype never described before in Italy. A total of 37 clinical strains isolated from patients exhibiting listeriosis symptoms and 1374 strains correlated to the outbreak were received by the Italian National Reference Laboratory for (It NRL Lm) of Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell'Abruzzo e del Molise (IZSAM) for outbreak investigation. A real-time PCR assay was purposely designed for a rapid screening of the strains related to the outbreak.