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With the increasing quantity and quality of the imagery available from a growing number of SAR satellites and the improved processing algorithms, multi-temporal interferometry (MTI) is expected to be commonly applied in landslide studies. MTI can now provide long-term (years), regular (weekly-monthly), precise (mm) measurements of ground displacements over large areas (thousands of km2), at medium (~20 m) to high (up to 1-3 m) spatial resolutions, combined with the possibility of multi-scale (regional to local) investigations, using the same series of radar images. We focus on the benefits as well as challenges of multisensor and multi-scale investigations by discussing MTI results regarding two landslide prone regions with distinctly different topographic, climatic and vegetation conditions (mountains in Central Albania and Southern Gansu, China), for which C-band (ERS or ENVISAT) and X-band COSMO-SkyMed (CSK) imagery was available (all in Stripmap descending mode). In both cases X-band MTI outperformed C-band MTI by providing more valuable information for the regional to local scale detection of slope deformations and landslide hazard assessment. This is related to the better spatial-temporal resolutions and more suitable incidence angles (40°-30° versus 23°) of CSK data While the use of medium resolution imagery may be appropriate and more cost-effective in reconnaissance or regional scale investigations, high resolution data could be preferentially exploited when focusing on urbanized landslides or potentially unstable slopes in urban/peri-urban areas, and slopes traversed by lifelines and other engineering structures.

Compelling evidence support an involvement of oxidative stress and intestinal inflammation as early events in the predisposition and development of obesity and its related comorbidities. Here, we show that deficiency of the major mitochondrial antioxidant enzyme superoxide dismutase 2 (SOD2) in the gastrointestinal tract drives spontaneous obesity. Intestinal epithelium-specific Sod2 ablation in mice induced adiposity and inflammation via phospholipase A2 (PLA2) activation and increased release of omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acid arachidonic acid. Remarkably, this obese phenotype was rescued when fed an essential fatty acid-deficient diet, which abrogates de novo biosynthesis of arachidonic acid. Data from clinical samples revealed that the negative correlation between intestinal Sod2 mRNA levels and obesity features appears to be conserved between mice and humans. Collectively, our findings suggest a role of intestinal Sod2 levels, PLA2 activity, and arachidonic acid in obesity presenting new potential targets of therapeutic interest in the context of this metabolic disorder., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing interests., (© 2021 The Author(s).)

We present a case study of a long-term integrated monitoring of a flood event which affected part of the Strymonas dammed river basin, a transboundary river with source in Bulgaria, which flows then through Greece to the Aegean Sea. The event, which affected the floodplain downstream the Kerkini dam, started at the beginning of April 2015, due to heavy rain upstream of the monitored area, and lasted for several months, with some water pools still present at the beginning of September, due to the peculiar geomorphological conditions of the watershed. We collected a multi-temporal dataset consisting of a high-resolution, X-band COSMO-SkyMed, and several C-band Sentinel-1 SAR and optical Landsat-8 images of the area. The results allow following the event in time, sketching a multi-temporal map of the post-flood evolution, with relatively high temporal resolution. We then use hydrological modeling to mimic the dynamics of the flooded area against post event weather patterns and thus explain the observed flood extent evolution. We show how integrating remote sensing-derived maps of flooded areas, geomorphological analyses of the landscape and simplified hydrological modeling allows accurate inference about long-term dynamics of flooded areas, very important in the post event in anthropogenic highly modified areas, where recovery time after the flood event is considerable, and long term water persistence may lead to large consequences, carrying economic damages and medical emergencies., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Multi-temporal InSAR (MTI) applications pose challenges related to the availability of coherent scattering from the ground surface, the complexity of the ground deformations, atmospheric artifacts, and visibility problems related to ground elevation. Nowadays, several satellite missions are available providing interferometric SAR data at different wavelengths, spatial resolutions, and revisit time. A new and interesting opportunity is provided by Sentinel-1, which has a spatial resolution comparable to that of previous ESA C-band sensors, and revisit times improved by up to 6 days. According to these different SAR space-borne missions, the present work discusses current and future opportunities of MTI applications in terms of ground instability monitoring. Issues related to coherent target detection, mean velocity precision, and product geo-location are addressed through a simple theoretical model assuming backscattering mechanisms related to point scatterers. The paper also presents an example of a multi-sensor ground instability investigation over Lesina Marina, a village in Southern Italy lying over a gypsum diapir, where a hydration process, involving the underlying anhydride, causes a smooth uplift and the formation of scattered sinkholes. More than 20 years of MTI SAR data have been processed, coming from both legacy ERS and ENVISAT missions, and latest-generation RADARSAT-2, COSMO-SkyMed, and Sentinel-1A sensors. Results confirm the presence of a rather steady uplift process, with limited to null variations throughout the whole monitored time-period.

Background & Aims: Reducing postprandial triglyceridemia may be a promising strategy to lower the risk of cardiovascular disorders associated with obesity and type 2 diabetes. In enterocytes, scavenger receptor class B, type 1 (SR-B1, encoded by SCARB1) mediates lipid-micelle sensing to promote assembly and secretion of chylomicrons. The nuclear receptor subfamily 1, group H, members 2 and 3 (also known as liver X receptors [LXRs]) regulate genes involved in cholesterol and fatty acid metabolism. We aimed to determine whether intestinal LXRs regulate triglyceride absorption., Methods: C57BL/6J mice were either fed a cholesterol-enriched diet or given synthetic LXR agonists (GW3965 or T0901317). We measured the production of chylomicrons and localized SR-B1 by immunohistochemistry. Mechanisms of postprandial triglyceridemia and SR-B1 regulation were studied in Caco-2/TC7 cells incubated with LXR agonists., Results: In mice and in the Caco-2/TC7 cell line, LXR agonists caused localization of intestinal SR-B1 from apical membranes to intracellular organelles and reduced chylomicron secretion. In Caco-2/TC7 cells, LXR agonists reduced SR-B1-dependent lipidic-micelle-induced Erk phosphorylation. LXR agonists also reduced intracellular trafficking of the apical apolipoprotein B pool toward secretory compartments. LXR reduced levels of SR-B1 in Caco-2/TC7 cells via a post-transcriptional mechanism that involves microRNAs., Conclusion: In Caco-2/TC7 cells and mice, intestinal activation of LXR reduces the production of chylomicrons by a mechanism dependent on the apical localization of SR-B1., (Copyright © 2016 AGA Institute. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

This study explores the potential of Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) to aid Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) navigation when Inertial Navigation System (INS) measurements are not accurate enough to eliminate drifts from a planned trajectory. This problem can affect medium-altitude long-endurance (MALE) UAV class, which permits heavy and wide payloads (as required by SAR) and flights for thousands of kilometres accumulating large drifts. The basic idea is to infer position and attitude of an aerial platform by inspecting both amplitude and phase of SAR images acquired onboard. For the amplitude-based approach, the system navigation corrections are obtained by matching the actual coordinates of ground landmarks with those automatically extracted from the SAR image. When the use of SAR amplitude is unfeasible, the phase content can be exploited through SAR interferometry by using a reference Digital Terrain Model (DTM). A feasibility analysis was carried out to derive system requirements by exploring both radiometric and geometric parameters of the acquisition setting. We showed that MALE UAV, specific commercial navigation sensors and SAR systems, typical landmark position accuracy and classes, and available DTMs lead to estimated UAV coordinates with errors bounded within ±12 m, thus making feasible the proposed SAR-based backup system.

Liver X receptors (LXRs) are members of the nuclear receptor superfamily of DNA-binding transcription factors and act as sensors of cholesterol homeostasis. Under normal conditions, when intracellular cholesterol concentration increases, cells synthesize oxysterols and activate the LXR transcriptional network to drive cholesterol efflux and reduce cholesterol influx and synthesis. During normal and cancer cell proliferation, there is a net uncoupling between intracellular cholesterol increase and LXR activation resulting from the reduced intracellular oxysterol concentration. This review dissects the novel mechanisms of a previously unrecognized metabolic uncoupling, supporting the activation of the LXR axis as a bona fide therapeutic approach in cancer., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)