Investigating the activity of indigenous microbial communities from Italian depleted gas reservoirs and their possible impact on underground hydrogen storage.

H produced from renewable energies will play a central role in both greenhouse gas reduction and decarbonization by 2050. Nonetheless, to improve H diffusion and utilization as a fuel, large storage capacity systems are needed. Underground storage of natural gas in depleted reservoirs, aquifers and salt caverns is a well-established technology.

Expanding the product portfolio of carbon dioxide and hydrogen-based gas fermentation with an evolved strain of Clostridium carboxidivorans.

CO:H-based gas fermentation with acetogenic Clostridium species are at an early stage of development. This work exploited the Adaptive Laboratory Evolution technique to improve the growth of C. carboxidivorans P7 on CO and H.

Design, Fabrication, and Experimental Validation of Microfluidic Devices for the Investigation of Pore-Scale Phenomena in Underground Gas Storage Systems.

The understanding of multiphase flow phenomena occurring in porous media at the pore scale is fundamental in a significant number of fields, from life science to geo and environmental engineering. However, because of the optical opacity and the geometrical complexity of natural porous media, detailed visual characterization is not possible or is limited and requires powerful and expensive imaging techniques. As a consequence, the understanding of micro-scale behavior is based on the interpretation of macro-scale parameters and indirect measurements.

Fostering Cyber-Physical Social Systems through an Ontological Approach to Personality Classification Based on Social Media Posts.

The exponential increase in social networks has led to emergent convergence of cyber-physical systems (CPS) and social computing, accelerating the creation of smart communities and smart organizations and enabling the concept of cyber-physical social systems. Social media platforms have made a significant contribution to what we call human behavior modeling. This paper presents a novel approach to developing a users' segmentation tool for the Romanian language, based on the four DISC personality types, based on social media statement analysis.

Computational Analysis of Dynamic Light Exposure of Unicellular Algal Cells in a Flat-Panel Photobioreactor to Support Light-Induced CO Bioprocess Development.

Cyanobacterial cell factories trace a vibrant pathway to climate change neutrality and sustainable development owing to their ability to turn carbon dioxide-rich waste into a broad portfolio of renewable compounds, which are deemed valuable in green chemistry cross-sectorial applications. Cell factory design requires to define the optimal operational and cultivation conditions. The paramount parameter in biomass cultivation in photobioreactors is the light intensity since it impacts cellular physiology and productivity.

Numerical study of the effect of channel aspect ratio on particle focusing in acoustophoretic devices.

Acoustophoretic microfluidic devices are promising non-contact and high-throughput tools for particle manipulation. Although the effectiveness of this technique has been widely demonstrated for applications based on micrometer-sized particles, the manipulation and focusing of sub-micrometer ones is challenging due to the presence of acoustic streaming. In this article, our study has the aim to investigate and understand which geometrical parameters could be changed to limit the acoustic streaming effect.

Risk factors of subclinical atherosclerosis in obesity and overweight.

Objective: To examine the relationship of carotid intima-media thickness with weight-gain, overweight and obesity..

Methods: The experimental, analytical study was conducted at the CF University Hospital, Cluj-Napoca, Romania, from 2012 to 2014, and comprised randomly selected in patients from the Medical Ward.

Analysis of the light intensity dependence of the growth of and of the light distribution in a photobioreactor energized by 635 nm light.

gathered momentum in modelling studies and biotechnological applications owing to multiple factors like fast growth, ability to fix carbon dioxide into valuable products, and the relative ease of genetic manipulation. physiology and metabolism, and consequently, the productivity of -based photobioreactors (PBRs), are heavily light modulated. Here, we set up a turbidostat-controlled lab-scale cultivation system in order to study the influence of varying orange-red light intensities on growth characteristics and photosynthetic activity.

Changing the root morphology in a case of periodontal impairment at a maxillary molar used as a sustaining tooth.

Research evolution regarding dental research determines the increase of patient's desire to preserve their dentition for a long time. The loss of a molar tooth as the last teeth present on the dental arch, raises issues regarding how the prosthesis should be placed, still patients are usually reluctant to use as last resort the prosthetic solution. This article describes the technique of root amputation to save a maxillary molar used as bridge abutments.

Immunohistochemical and electron microscopy aspects of the nerve structures from the dental pulp.

In this study, we have done an immunohistochemical and an electron microscopy examination of normal and inflamed human dental pulp specimens in order to evaluate the morphological aspects of the nerve structures from the dental pulp. The S100 protein immunohistochemical marking allowed us to observe the trajectory of the pulp nervous structures, which appear as continuous bands of high intensity at radicular level, coronary branch out and some branches cross the odontoblastic layer and penetrate in predentin along the dentinal tubules. It appears that not only the nerve structures are positive S100 protein but also macrophages or dendritic cells.

Probiotics--an alternative treatment for various diseases.

Modulating the microbiota of the gastrointestinal tract through probiotics is an alternative to the conventional treatment of various diseases, based on synthetic drugs. The lifestyle, nutrition and stress of the present modern society could be among the factors responsible for modifications in the intestinal microbiota, correlated with specific diseases. The present study describes the positive effects of probiotics use, with special reference to the yeasts use in several frequently encountered diseases, such as hypercholesterolemia, the irritable bowel syndrome, gastritis and several uro-genital disorders.

Mediastinal lymphoma: quantitative changes in gadolinium enhancement at MR imaging after treatment.

Purpose: To compare changes in gadolinium enhancement at magnetic resonance (MR) imaging with outcome in mediastinal lymphoma after treatment.

Materials And Methods: Thirty-one patients with bulky mediastinal lymphoma (17 with Hodgkin disease, 14 with non-Hodgkin lymphoma) underwent serial MR imaging before and up to 50 months after treatment, with routine follow-up (including computed tomography). Signal intensity ratios between masses and muscle were calculated on T1-weighted, T2-weighted, and contrast material-enhanced T1-weighted spin-echo MR images.

MRI of intralesional hemolysis in focal nodular hyperplasia of the liver.

A case of Kasabach-Merritt syndrome caused by focal nodular hyperplasia of the liver is presented with atypical magnetic resonance findings due to intratumoral hemosiderin deposition. The high sensitivity of magnetic resonance imaging for iron served to identify the site of hemolysis in this patient with Kasabach-Merritt syndrome.

Acute swelling of the limbs: magnetic resonance pictorial review of fascial and muscle signal changes.

Objective: This pictorial review analyzes the magnetic resonance (MR) fascial/muscular changes in 69 patients referred as emergencies with acute swelling of the limbs (ASL) from various causes.

Methods And Material: A prospective MR imaging (MRI) study of 69 patients referred as emergencies for ASL was performed. Our population consisted of 45 patients with skin and soft-tissue infections (cellulitis and necrotizing fasciitis, and pyomyositis), six patients with soft-tissue inflammatory diseases (dermatomyositis, graft-versus-host disease), 11 patients with acute deep venous thrombosis, three patients with rhabdomyolysis, one patient with acute denervation and three other patients with rare diseases.

[Mercury pulmonary embolism. Two case reports].

Mercury pulmonary embolism following intentional or accidental injection of metallic mercury are uncommon. Generally, there are few clinical signs (acute pneumopathy in 50% of the cases). Chest x-ray shows multiple and bilateral point opacities with a metallic density.

Benign and malignant hepatocellular tumors: evaluation of tumoral enhancement after mangafodipir trisodium injection on MR imaging.

The aim of this work was to study the ability of mangafodipir trisodium (Mn-DPDP)-enhanced MR imaging in differentiating malignant from benign hepatocellular tumors. Eleven patients with pathologically proved hepatocellular carcinomas, six with focal nodular hyperplasias, and one with a single hepatocellular adenoma were examined by spin-echo and gradient-echo T1-weighted sequences before, 1 h after, and 24 h after intravenous injection of Mn-DPDP (5 micromol/kg). Quantitative analysis including enhancement and lesion-to-liver contrast-to-noise ratio, and qualitative analysis including the presence of a central area and a capsule were done on pre- and post-Mn-DPDP-enhanced images.

[Computed tomography of lymphoma in adults. The Study Group of Lymphoma in Adults].

In order to avoid misinterpretation especially at the initial imaging procedure as well as on follow up CT, the authors illustrate the features of the multiple nodal and extranodal localisations of lymphoma. The evolutive findings are emphasized.

Pulmonary function in sickle cell disease with or without acute chest syndrome.

Recurrent acute chest syndrome (ACS) has been suggested as a risk factor for chronic lung dysfunction in sickle cell disease. To investigate this hypothesis, lung function tests were performed in 49 sickle cell disease outpatients whose condition was stable, including 23 patients with a history of two to four episodes of ACS (ACS+) and 26 with no history of ACS (ACS-). The two groups were comparable regarding the sex ratio, body mass index, smoking history, physical characteristics, clinical history and usual lung function tests.

Effects of positive end-expiratory pressure and different tidal volumes on alveolar recruitment and hyperinflation.

Background: The morphologic effect of positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP) and of two tidal volumes were studied by computed tomography to determine whether setting the tidal volume (Vt) at the upper inflection point (UIP) of the pressure-volume (P-V) curve of the respiratory system or 10 ml/kg have different effects on hyperinflation and alveolar recruitment.

Methods: Alveolar recruitment and hyperinflation were quantified by computed tomography in nine patients with the acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). First, end expiration was compared without PEEP and with PEEP set at the lower inflection point of the P-V curve; second, at end inspiration above PEEP, a reduced Vt set at the UIP (rVt) and a standard 10 ml/kg Vt (Vt) ending above the UIP were compared.

Hyperintense benign liver lesions on spin-echo T1-weighted MR images: pathologic correlations.

Background: To determine the incidence of hyperintensity on T1-weighted spin echo (SE) images in benign liver lesions, value of fat-suppressed magnetic resonance (MR) imaging for the detection of fat within these lesions, and the causes of hyperintensity by correlation to pathologic examinations.

Methods: Five hundred forty-nine patients with 805 benign liver lesions including 585 hemangiomas, 188 focal nodular hyperplasias (FNHs), 14 hepatic adenomas (HAs), 14 focal fatty infiltrations (FFIs), two biliary cystadenomas, and two hemorrhagic cysts were examined by T2-weighted and T1-weighted SE MR imaging. For hyperintense lesions on T1-weighted SE images, fat-suppressed images were obtained by selective presaturation of fat.

Intrapleural administration of streptokinase in complicated purulent pleural effusion: a CT-guided strategy.

Objective: To determine the usefulness and the results of a strategy using intrapleural streptokinase (SK) instillation guided by repeated computed tomography (CT) scan examinations in pleural empyemas unresponsive to chest tube drainage.

Design: A retrospective chart review.

Setting: The medical Intensive Care Unit and Department of Radiology, in a university hospital.

Color Doppler twinkling artifact in hyperechoic regions.

Purpose: To investigate a new color Doppler ultrasound (US) artifact that manifested as a rapidly changing mixture of red and blue behind a strongly reflecting structure.

Materials And Methods: In 140 consecutive patients with parenchymal calcifications seen at US, the presence of color signal was assessed in calcified areas relative to adjacent noncalcified tissue. The artifact, called the twinkling color artifact, was stimulated with various strongly reflecting structures immersed in still water.