Thermalization of Mesh Reinforced Ultra-Thin Al-Coated Plastic Films: A Parametric Study Applied to the Athena X-IFU Instrument.

The X-ray Integral Field Unit (X-IFU) is one of the two focal plane detectors of Athena, a large-class high energy astrophysics space mission approved by ESA in the Cosmic Vision 2015-2025 Science Program. The X-IFU consists of a large array of transition edge sensor micro-calorimeters that operate at ~100 mK inside a sophisticated cryostat. To prevent molecular contamination and to minimize photon shot noise on the sensitive X-IFU cryogenic detector array, a set of thermal filters (THFs) operating at different temperatures are needed.

Evaluation of chronic alcohol self-administration by a 3-bottle choice paradigm in adult male rats. Effects on behavioural reactivity, spatial learning and reference memory.

Chronic ethanol consumption is able to modify emotional behaviour and cognition in humans. In particular, the effects exerted by alcohol may depend on doses, time and modalities of administration. In this study we investigated, in adult male rats, ethanol self-administration and preference patterns using a 3-bottle choice paradigm with water, 10% ethanol solution, and white wine (10%, v/v), along a four-week period.

Ethanol modulates corticotropin releasing hormone release from the rat hypothalamus: does acetaldehyde play a role?

Background And Methods: Ethanol (EtOH) activates hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, resulting in adrenocorticotropin hormone, glucocorticoid release, and in modifications of the response of the axis to other stressors. The initial site of EtOH action within the HPA system seems to be the hypothalamus. Thus, to determine the mechanisms responsible for these effects, we investigated: (i) whether EtOH was able to release corticotrophic releasing hormone (CRH) from incubated hypothalamic explants; (ii) whether acetaldehyde (ACD), its first metabolite formed in the brain by catalase activity, might play a role in EtOH activity.

Fine thermal structure of a coronal active region.

The determination of the fine thermal structure of the solar corona is fundamental to constraining the coronal heating mechanisms. The Hinode X-ray Telescope collected images of the solar corona in different passbands, thus providing temperature diagnostics through energy ratios. By combining different filters to optimize the signal-to-noise ratio, we observed a coronal active region in five filters, revealing a highly thermally structured corona: very fine structures in the core of the region and on a larger scale further away.