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This paper proposes a space-vector dynamic model of the dual three-phase induction motor that tries to overcome some limits of the previously developed models. It is expressed in state form assuming the stator current and the rotor flux as state variables and formalized in the stator reference frame. The model has been formulated mathematically in such a formal way that the same structure can be used in both structurally balanced and unbalanced (open stator phase winding) working conditions. Moreover, the model can describe the behavior of the motor for any open stator winding. The proposed dynamic model has been tested in numerical simulation and has been validated experimentally, in both structurally balanced and unbalanced working conditions. To this aim, a dual three-phase winding has been designed and constructed starting from an off-the-shelf traditional three-phase induction motor.

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The current study evaluated the potential enhancement of lauric acid (LA) in black soldier fly, Hermetia illucens, (L.) (Diptera: Stratiomyidae) larvae (BSFL), a source of this short-chain fatty acid which has antimicrobial and immunostimulatory properties. Replicate groups of BSFL were reared on either the coconut or Gainesville diet for 7 days. After the rearing period, BSFL were harvested, purged, dried, and subjected to proximate, fatty acid and amino acid compositions, and pepsin digestibility analyses. Results demonstrate changes in proximate composition. BSFL reared on the coconut had significantly (P= 0.002) higher lipid content (47.3% vs. 25.2%) on a dry-matter basis. The LA concentration in BSFL produced on the coconut was 31% greater than those reared on Gainesville, resulting in almost 150% more LA. Furthermore, BSFL-fed coconut had reduced crude protein (29.7% of dry weight) and ash (3.7% of dry weight) relative to those fed Gainesville (43.4% and 7.5% for crude protein and ash, respectively) but higher pepsin digestibility (91.0% vs. 87.0%). The relative amounts of various amino acids in the 2 BSFL meals did not differ extensively, with statistically lower concentrations of only phenylalanine and tryptophan and higher concentrations of alanine, arginine, isoleucine, leucine, and serine in BSFL reared on coconut. Results demonstrate that the nutritional composition of BSFL can be manipulated, and an enhancement of LA concentrations of 150% was achieved with coconut, which has value for BSFL as a feed for various livestock, including aquaculture. Lower protein content is a tradeoff in terms of BSFL value as a feed additive.

ABSTRACTIntroductionIn recent years, thanks to significant advances in basic science and biotechnologies, nephrology has witnessed a deeper understanding of the mechanisms leading to various conditions associated with or causing kidney disease, opening new perspectives for developing specific treatments. These new possibilities have brought increased challenges to physicians, who face with a new complexity in disease characterization and selection the right treatment for individual patients.Areas coveredWe chose four therapeutic situations: anaemia in chronic kidney disease (CKD), heart failure in CKD, IgA nephropathy (IgAN) and membranous nephropathy (MN). The literature search was made through PubMed.Expert opinionAnaemia management remains challenging in CKD; a personalized therapeutic approach is often needed. Identifying patients who could benefit from a specific therapy is also an important goal for patients with CKD and heart failure with reduced ejection fraction. Several new treatments are under clinical development for IgAN; interestingly, they target specifically the pathogenetic mechanisms of the disease. The understanding of MN pathogenesis as an autoimmune disease and the discovery of several autoantibodies allows a better characterization of patients. High-sensible techniques for lymphocyte counting open the possibility of more personalized use of anti CD20 therapies.

Purpose To test reliability and reproducibility of ESASO morphologic OCT-based classification of diabetic maculopathy (DM).Methods This is a multi-center cross-sectional study including a coordination center (CC) and 18 participating centers (PCs). After instruction on the correct use of ESASO Classification, the validation process was carried out in two consecutive stages. In the first retrospective phase, we evaluated the concordance between PCs and CC in the staging of OCT images collected during PCs’ daily activity (608 images). In a second prospective phase, we analyzed the inter-observer agreement of staging assigned by each PCs to OCT images selected by the CC (22 images).Results The overall concordance achieved in the retrospective phase was 89.8% (Kappa = 0.83 (95% CI: 0.78–0.87); p<0.0001). In 99.5% of cases, concordance did not differ by more than one stage. In the prospective phase, PCs reached an inter-operator agreement of 93.0% (Krippendorff's Alpha = 0.953, 95% CI: 0.929–0.977, p<0.0001). Any discrepancy among the 22 images was within one stage.Conclusion The results achieved in this study confirm that ESASO OCT-based Classification can be considered as an easy and reproducible method to stage DM during clinical practice. A diffused use of a common and validated method to describe the progression of retinal damage in DM may offer several clinical and scientific advantages.

The Eurasian beaver Castor fiberL., 1758, absent in Italy for over 500 years, has established reproductive populations in Central Italy since 2019, most likely following unauthorized releases. Besides positive effects on local biodiversity, beavers may host a plethora of infective agents, including parasites. Therefore, an assessment of parasitic load of released beavers is pivotal to predict potential risks for other species and human health, following beaver releases. Microscopical and molecular analyses on collected beaver feces confirmed the presence of Giardia duodenalis, Trichurisspp., and Travassosius rufus, a species of nematode recorded in Italy for the first time. The necropsy carried out on a road-killed adult female beaver provided us the first records for Italy of the beaver beetle Platypsyllus castoris, and of the ectoparasite “fur mites,” belonging to the genus Schizocarpus. The bacterium Bordetella bronchisepticawas isolated for the first time from the bronchi of C. fiber, and it may represent a threat to wild and domestic animals and human health. The dipteran species Chrysomya albicepswas also recorded for the first time on a beaver; this blowfly can cause myiasis in livestock and humans. Although the acquired data represent a first assessment for Italy, the high number of pathogens found in these few samples should be evaluated in terms of disease risk analysis.

OpticalAntennas (OAs) based on Fluorescent Concentrators (FCs) promise a revolution in the deployment of Visible Light Communication (VLC) and Optical Wireless Communication (OWC), due to their inherent advantages over conventional receivers in terms of exceedingly larger field of view (FoV) and optical gain (OG). Whilst FC-based OAs have been demonstrated in VLC applications in a wealth of works embedding monochromatic UV and Blue LED sources, a detailed study demonstrating the performances of OA in white-light VLC (WLC) applications, which is at the basis of the deployment of VLC for Internet of Things (IoT), 6G and pervasive networks, is still lacking. In our work we present and test two 50 mm x 50 mm OAs for WLC, based on two of the most effective fluorophores (Lumogen© Red 305 F and DQ1, respectively) used in Luminescent Solar Concentrator (LSC) applications. We perform a detailed characterization of intrinsic and VLC performances, comparing the results with a novel Monte Carlo model accurately describing the photon conversion and propagation processes. Whilst DQ1 represents the most suited solution for high-speed VLC with UV/blue LEDs, our results highlight excellent performances of Lumogen-based OA in white-light settings, outpacing the performances of ordinary photodiode-based receivers. Our results pave the way towards the full-fledged deployment of VLC in IoT applications, where the availability of detectors with large-area, wide FoV and enhanced OG covering the white LEDs emission is a central element.

IntroductionNPC1mutations are responsible for Niemann-Pick disease type C (NPC), a rare autosomal recessive neurodegenerative disease. Patients harbouring heterozygous NPC1mutations may rarely show parkinsonism or dementia. Here, we describe for the first time a large family with an apparently autosomal dominant late-onset Alzheimer’s disease (AD) harbouring a novel heterozygous NPC1mutation.MethodsAll the five living siblings belonging to the family were evaluated. We performed clinical evaluation, neuropsychological tests, assessment of cerebrospinal fluid markers of amyloid deposition, tau pathology and neurodegeneration (ATN), structural neuroimaging and brain amyloid-positron emission tomography. Oxysterol serum levels were also tested. A wide next-generation sequencing panel of genes associated with neurodegenerative diseases and a whole exome sequencing analysis were performed.ResultsWe detected the novel heterozygous c.3034G>T (p.Gly1012Cys) mutation in NPC1, shared by all the siblings. No other point mutations or deletions in NPC1or NPC2were found. In four siblings, a diagnosis of late-onset AD was defined according to clinical characterisation and ATN biomarkers (A+, T+, N+) and serum oxysterol analysis showed increased 7-ketocholesterol and cholestane-3β,5α,6β-triol.DiscussionWe describe a novel NPC1heterozygous mutation harboured by different members of a family with autosomal dominant late-onset amnesic AD without NPC-associated features. A missense mutation in homozygous state in the same aminoacidic position has been previously reported in a patient with NPC with severe phenotype. The alteration of serum oxysterols in our family corroborates the pathogenic role of our NPC1mutation. Our work, illustrating clinical and biochemical disease hallmarks associated with NPC1heterozygosity in patients affected by AD, provides relevant insights into the pathogenetic mechanisms underlying this possible novel association.

IntroductionLead exposure from discharged lead dust is a recognised risk at firing ranges. We report a lead poisoning outbreak among staff and their close contacts at a UK civilian indoor 24 m firing range.MethodsA retrospective review was undertaken of data collected on all patients at risk of lead poisoning identified either by direct referral to the Clinical Toxicology clinicians at the West Midlands Poisons Unit, or via the Trace Elements Supra-Regional Assay Service Laboratory at Sandwell hospital.ResultsEighty-seven patients were identified as having possible lead exposure, either at the firing range or via close contacts. Of these, 63 patients aged between 6 months and 78 years attended for blood lead concentration (BLC) testing. The highest BLC at presentation was 11.7 µmol/L (242 µg/dL). Only nine patients reported any symptoms at presentation. Fifteen patients received lead chelation therapy with oral dimercaptosuccinic acid (or succimer) 30 mg/kg/day or intravenous sodium calcium edetate (EDTA) 75 mg/kg/day, dependent on stock availability.DiscussionThis report highlights the need for vigilance of lead poisoning as an occupational hazard in the UK, including at recreational facilities such as indoor firing ranges. It emphasises the importance of regulation of lead exposure in the workplace, particularly given the vague symptoms of lead poisoning, and proposes re-appraisal of UK legislation. This report also highlights potential issues surrounding stock availability of rarely used antidotes for uncommon presentations in the event of an outbreak of poisoning.

Background: The wide use of the term Cognitive Reserve (CR) is in need of a clear and shared definition of its concept and of the development of new tools, quick and easy to use and updated for the people of today. This study describes the online short CRIq (s-CRIq), the new shorter version of the CRIq, following an item analysis revision, and compares the data distribution of different samples. Methods: The s-CRIq was administered online to 435 people while another 440 filled out the s-CRIq in self-administration. A further 588 participants had been administered the original paper-and-pencil long CRIq and 344 the online long CRIq. Results: The major difference in the databases of s-CRIq versus the long versions is an increased score in education and in leisure activity. However, the density distributions of the total score of CRI in the 4 databases share 64% of their areas, and at least two of them share 84%. Conclusion: The s-CRIq proved to be a simple and easy-to-administer tool. Similarly, to the original version, the s-CRIq is freely available on the web, and it is our hope that it will be of fruitful use for researchers and clinicians alike.

Safe and visually appealing experiments can help the general public, even from a young age, to better understand the fundamental role of chemistry and materials in the energy transition and our everyday lives. Luminescent solar concentrators (LSCs) are efficient devices for harvesting sunlight based on the fluorescent compounds’ properties. They constitute an exciting demonstration platform to engage audiences because of their coloration, intriguing interaction with light, and relevance toward the UN sustainability goals. While LSCs are usually made of transparent plastic and fluorescent dyes, in this study, they were fabricated employing only ready-available common food materials, such as isomalt, an amorphous sugar, and vitamin B2 or curcumin as edible fluorophores. This makes the fabrication procedure remarkably safe and rapid without affecting the final LSC’s performances, which were comparable to other state-of-the-art devices. Furthermore, a simple and rapid characterization of LSC was developed for qualitative performance determination and required only two smartphones. The gathered results render this approach appealing to design interesting dissemination experiments where the participants can explore the phenomenon of fluorescence and understand the principles behind functional real-world applications such as LSCs. In this sense, this demonstration offers an interesting take to discuss one of the many roles of chemistry in the energy transition.

This article presents 13.56-MHz inductive power transfer (IPT) through soil for sensors in agricultural applications. Two IPT system designs and their prototypes are presented. The first was designed for gathering data and observing the relationship between the performance of the coil driving circuits in response to water content, salinity, organic matter, and compaction of the soil. The second prototype was designed as an application demonstrator, featuring IPT to an in-house sensor node enclosure buried 200 mm under the surface of an agricultural field. The results highlight that from the parameters studied, the combination of high salinity and high water content significantly increases the losses of the IPT system. The experiments demonstrate an over 40% rise in the losses from dc source to dc load after a 16% increase in soil water content and high salinity. In the technology demonstrator, we mounted an IPT transmitter on a drone to wirelessly power an in-house bank of supercapacitors in the buried sensor-node enclosure. A peak power transfer of 30 W received at over 40% efficiency was achieved from a 22-V power supply on the drone to the energy storage under the ground. The coil separation in these experiments was 250 mm of which 200 mm correspond to the layer of soil. The coupling factor in all the experiments was lower than 5%. This system was trialed in the field for 40 days and wireless power was performed 5 times throughout.

IMPORTANCE: Metabolic surgery leads to weight loss and improved health, but these outcomes are highly variable. Poor weight loss is associated with lower circulating levels of glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1). OBJECTIVE: To assess the efficacy and safety of the GLP-1 receptor agonist, liraglutide, 3.0 mg, on percentage body weight reduction in patients with poor weight loss and suboptimal GLP-1 response after metabolic surgery. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: The Evaluation of Liraglutide 3.0 mg in Patients With Poor Weight Loss and a Suboptimal Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 Response (BARI-OPTIMISE) randomized placebo-controlled trial recruited adult patients at least 1 year after metabolic surgery who had experienced 20% or less body weight loss from the day of surgery and a suboptimal nutrient-stimulated GLP-1 response from 2 hospitals in London, United Kingdom, between October 2018 and November 2019. Key exclusion criteria were type 1 diabetes; severe concomitant psychiatric, gastrointestinal, cardiac, kidney or metabolic disease; and use of insulin, GLP-1 receptor analogues, and medication that can affect weight. The study period was 24 weeks followed by a 4-week follow-up period. Last participant follow-up was completed in June 2020. All participants and clinical study personnel were blinded to treatment allocation. Of 154 assessed for eligibility, 70 met trial criteria and were included in the study, and 57 completed follow-up. INTERVENTIONS: Liraglutide, 3.0 mg, once daily or placebo as an adjunct to lifestyle intervention with a 500-kcal daily energy deficit for 24 weeks, on a 1:1 allocation by computer-generated randomization sequence, stratified by surgery type (Roux-en-Y gastric bypass [RYGB] or sleeve gastrectomy [SG]) and type 2 diabetes status. MAIN OUTCOME AND MEASURES: The primary outcome was change in percentage body weight from baseline to the end of the 24-week study period based on an intention-to-treat analysis. Participant safety was assessed through monitoring of biochemical parameters, including kidney and liver function, physical examination, and assessment for adverse events. RESULTS: A total of 70 participants (mean [SD] age, 47.6 [10.7] years; 52 [74%] female) with a poor weight loss response following RYGB or SG were randomized to receive 3.0-mg liraglutide (n = 35) or placebo (n = 35). All participants received at least 1 dose of the trial drug. Eight participants discontinued treatment (4 per group), and 2 in the 3.0-mg liraglutide group and 1 in the placebo group were lost to follow-up. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, 3 participants in the 3.0-mg liraglutide group and 7 in the placebo group were unable to attend their final in-person assessment. Estimated change in mean (SD) percentage body weight from baseline to week 24 was −8.82 (4.94) with liraglutide, 3.0 mg (n = 31), vs −0.54 (3.32) with placebo (n = 26). The mean difference in percentage body weight change for liraglutide, 3.0 mg, vs placebo was −8.03 (95% CI, −10.39 to −5.66; P &lt; .001). Adverse events, predominantly gastrointestinal, were more frequent with liraglutide, 3.0 mg (28 events [80%]), than placebo (20 events [57%]). There were no serious adverse events and no treatment-related deaths. CONCLUSION AND RELEVANCE: These findings support the use of adjuvant liraglutide, 3.0 mg, for weight management in patients with poor weight loss and suboptimal GLP-1 response after metabolic surgery. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT03341429

High-frequency inductive power transfer systems can be designed for operation with high tolerance to misalignment and large air-gaps, making it possible to operate in highly dynamic environments. Most examples in the literature use a single active transmitter and a single passive receiver (active–passive approach). Such systems are limited to unidirectional power flow and are susceptible to detuning of the transmitter due to changes of reflected reactance stemming from diode nonlinearities. This also limits the range of coupling over which the system can be operated efficiently. Therefore, there is a significant potential for expanding the range of applications of inductive power transfer systems by moving to an active–active configuration. This will enable bidirectional power flow, power routing through several nodes, and on-the-fly retuning to eliminate reflected reactances. One of the greatest challenges in achieving an active secondary in an inductive power transfer (IPT) system is obtaining a stable frequency and phase reference for the synchronous rectifier/transceiver with respect to the transmitter coil current and, hence, the magnetic field. Various methods for synchronization have been proposed in the literature, but they either require a separate, out-of-band communication link, or are difficult to scale to MHz operation. This article describes an alternative to the existing solutions, using an injection-locked oscillator to provide optimal phase tracking. A series of candidate feedback configurations are also proposed to provide high system resilience. In this work, the basic principles of injection locking are described as applied to synchronous IPT transceivers, and the experimental results are presented demonstrating its application to a bidirectional back-to-back Class-EF configuration operating at 13.56 MHz, with coupling factors ranging from 1.9% to 8.4% and power levels of up to 25 W.

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is a devastating tumor of the central nervous system, currently missing an effective treatment. The therapeutic gold standard consists of surgical resection followed by chemotherapy (usually with temozolomide, TMZ) and/or radiotherapy. TMZ does not, however, provide significant survival benefit after completion of treatment because of development of chemoresistance and of heavy side effects of systemic administration. Improvement of conventional treatments and complementary therapies are urgently needed to increase patient survival and quality of life. Stimuli-responsive lipid-based drug delivery systems offer promising prospects to overcome the limitations of the current treatments. In this work, multifunctional lipid-based magnetic nanovectors functionalized with the peptide angiopep-2 and loaded with TMZ (Ang-TMZ-LMNVs) were tested to enhance specific GBM therapy on an in vivomodel. Exposure to alternating magnetic fields (AMFs) enabled magnetic hyperthermia to be performed, that works in synergy with the chemotherapeutic agent. Studies on orthotopic human U-87 MG-Luc2 tumors in nude mice have shown that Ang-TMZ-LMNVs can accumulate and remain in the tumor after local administration without crossing over into healthy tissue, effectively suppressing tumor invasion and proliferation and significantly prolonging the median survival time when combined with the AMF stimulation. This powerful synergistic approach has proven to be a robust and versatile nanoplatform for an effective GBM treatment.

Prevention of cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains one of the largest public health challenges of our time. Identifying individuals at increased cardiovascular risk at an asymptomatic, sub-clinical stage is of paramount importance for minimizing disease progression as well as the substantial health and economic burden associated with overt CVD. Vascular ageing (VA) involves the deterioration in vascular structure and function over time and ultimately leads to damage in the heart, brain, kidney, and other organs. Vascular ageing encompasses the cumulative effect of all cardiovascular risk factors on the arterial wall over the life course and thus may help identify those at elevated cardiovascular risk, early in disease development. Although the concept of VA is gaining interest clinically, it is seldom measured in routine clinical practice due to lack of consensus on how to characterize VA as physiological vs. pathological and various practical issues. In this state-of-the-art review and as a network of scientists, clinicians, engineers, and industry partners with expertise in VA, we address six questions related to VA in an attempt to increase knowledge among the broader medical community and move the routine measurement of VA a little closer from bench towards bedside.

ABSTRACTThe paper aims at investigating the interplay of urban form and women’s mobilities in three peripheral districts in the city of Bogotá. Integrating a morpho-functional analysis of the built environment with an ethnographic analysis focused on the walking practices of a sample of women, the paper highlights the main gendered spatial experiences and how the perceived safety acts as a mediator between built environment attributes and walking behaviours. The conclusion introduces two challenges: first, the need for new interpretative lenses, different from those of a man-centred perspective and able to interpret the women’s territoriality– considered as the spaces produced through their mobility practices; second, the possibility to use women’s mobilities experiences and their tactics of adaptation as a tool for more effective urban and mobility policies.

Prostate malignancy represents the second leading cause of cancer-specific death among the male population worldwide. Herein, enhanced intracellular magnetic fluid hyperthermia is applied in vitroto treat prostate cancer (PCa) cells with minimum invasiveness and toxicity and highly specific targeting. We designed and optimized novel shape-anisotropic magnetic core–shell–shell nanoparticles (i.e., trimagnetic nanoparticles - TMNPs) with significant magnetothermal conversion following an exchange coupling effect to an external alternating magnetic field (AMF). The functional properties of the best candidate in terms of heating efficiency (i.e., Fe3O4@Mn0.5Zn0.5Fe2O4@CoFe2O4) were exploited following surface decoration with PCa cell membranes (CM) and/or LN1 cell-penetrating peptide (CPP). We demonstrated that the combination of biomimetic dual CM-CPP targeting and AMF responsiveness significantly induces caspase 9-mediated apoptosis of PCa cells. Furthermore, a downregulation of the cell cycle progression markers and a decrease of the migration rate in surviving cells were observed in response to the TMNP-assisted magnetic hyperthermia, suggesting a reduction in cancer cell aggressiveness.

A general limitation of the use of enzymes in biotechnological processes under sometimes nonphysiological conditions is the complex interplay between two key quantities, enzyme activity and stability, where the increase of one is often associated with the decrease of the other. A precise stability-activity trade-off is necessary for the enzymes to be fully functional, but its weight in different protein regions and its dependence on environmental conditions is not yet elucidated. To advance this issue, we used the formalism that we have recently developed to effectively identify stability strength and weakness regions in protein structures and applied it to a large set of globular enzymes with known experimental structure and catalytic sites. Our analysis showed a striking oscillatory pattern of free energy compensation centered on the catalytic region. Indeed, catalytic residues are usually nonoptimal with respect to stability, but residues in the first shell around the catalytic site are, on the average, stability strengths and thus compensate for this lack of stability; residues in the second shell are weaker again, and so on. This trend is consistent across all enzyme families. It is accompanied by a similar, but less pronounced, pattern of residue conservation across evolution. In addition, we analyzed cold- and heat-adapted enzymes separately and highlighted different patterns of stability strengths and weaknesses, which provide insight into the longstanding problem of catalytic rate enhancement in cold environments. The successful comparison of our stability and conservation results with experimental fitness data, obtained by deep mutagenesis scanning, led us to propose criteria for improving catalytic activity while maintaining enzyme stability, a key goal in enzyme design.

BackgroundNitrous oxide (N2O) is the second most common recreational drug used by 16- to 24-year-olds in the UK. Neurological symptoms can occur in some people that use N2O recreationally, but most information comes from small case series.MethodsWe describe 119 patients with N2O-myeloneuropathy seen at NHS teaching hospitals in three of the UK’s largest cities: London, Birmingham and Manchester. This work summarises the clinical and investigative findings in the largest case series to date.ResultsParaesthesia was the presenting complaint in 85% of cases, with the lower limbs more commonly affected than the upper limbs. Gait ataxia was common, and bladder and bowel disturbance were frequent additional symptoms. The mid-cervical region of the spinal cord (C3–C5) was most often affected on MRI T2-weighted imaging. The number of N2O canisters consumed per week correlated with methylmalonic acid levels in the blood as a measure of functional B12deficiency (rho (ρ)=0.44, p=0.04).ConclusionsPreventable neurological harm from N2O abuse is increasingly seen worldwide. Ease of access to canisters and larger cylinders of N2O has led to an apparent rise in cases of N2O-myeloneuropathy in several areas of the UK. Our results highlight the range of clinical manifestations in a large group of patients to improve awareness of risk, aid early recognition, and promote timely treatment.

Teleoperation of humanoid robots enables the integration of the cognitive skills and domain expertise of humans with the physical capabilities of humanoid robots. The operational versatility of humanoid robots makes them the ideal platform for a wide range of applications when teleoperating in a remote environment. However, the complexity of humanoid robots imposes challenges for teleoperation, particularly in unstructured dynamic environments with limited communication. Many advancements have been achieved in the last decades in this area, but a comprehensive overview is still missing. This survey article gives an extensive overview of humanoid robot teleoperation, presenting the general architecture of a teleoperation system and analyzing the different components. We also discuss different aspects of the topic, including technological and methodological advances, as well as potential applications.