Wheat glutenin subunits and dough elasticity: findings of the EUROWHEAT project

Detailed studies of wheat glutenin subunits have provided novel details of their molecular structures and interactions which allow the development of a model to explain their role in determining the visco-elastic properties of gluten and dough. The construction and analysis of near-isogenic and transgenic lines expressing novel subunit combinations or increased amounts of specific subunits allows differences in gluten properties to be related to the structures and properties of individual subunits, with potential benefits for the production of cultivars with improved properties for food processing or novel end user

Effects of Cognitive Fatigue on High Intensity Circuit Exercise: Preliminary study

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Cytogenetic and molecular characterization of durum wheat chromosome transfers with 1D-associated gluten protein genes and their pyramiding

Gluten quality of bread wheat is known to be mainly associated with high- (HMW-GS) and low-(LMW-GS) molecular weight glutenin subunits encoded by Glu-1 (L arm of group-1 chromosomes) and Glu-3 (S arm of group-1 chromosomes) genes, respectively, with the 1D alleles of such genes having the major impact on bread making properties. Transfer of chromosomal segments containing the Glu-D1 and Gli-D1/Glu-D3 loci was successfully achieved in a number of instances resorting to chromosome engineering. Using this strategy, we isolated two 1A-1D recombinant lines, in which the Gli-D1/Glu-D3 genes and the Glu-D1d allele (HMW-GS "5+10") were separately transferred into the 1AS and 1AL arm, respectively, of recipient durum wheat lines (named PS and PL, respectively). Also, a detailed genetic map of both recombinant chromosome arms was developed. Stable PS + PL double-recombinant lines have been obtained as a result of homologous recombination in the 1A portions shared by the two recombinant chromosomes present in PS x PL hybrids. Preliminary quality tests suggest that the Glu-D3 + Glu-D1d combined presence could determine a slight increase of gluten quality parameters over those associated with Glu-D1d alone

Proton and photon beams interaction with radiosensitizing agents in human glioblastoma cells

In oncological field, chemoradiotherapy treatments that combine radiations to radiosensitizing chemical agents are spreading out. The aim of this kind of treatment is to obtain a better tumor local control and at the same time to reduce the distant failure. The combination of radiation with microtubule-stabilizing agents is very promising in cancer therapy. In the present study, the combination of clinical proton beams and the microtubule-stabilizing agent Epothilone B has been investigated in human glioblastoma cells cultured in vitro. Photon beams have been used for comparison. Cell survival has been evaluated by colony forming assay and the interaction mechanism between radiation and Epothilone B has been investigated: survival curves relative to the combined treatment (protons or photons with Epothilone B) showed a linear trend, different from the linear quadratic behavior found with radiation alone. The analysis performed showed a synergism in the radiation-drug interaction. Thus, Epothilone B in conjunction with radiation acts as a radiosensitizer. Finally proton Relative Biological Effectiveness has been determined and results are reported in this paper

Cognitive Fatigue Influences Time-On-Task during Bodyweight Resistance Training Exercise

Prior investigations have shown measurable performance impairments on continuous physical performance tasks when preceded by a cognitively fatiguing task. However, the effect of cognitive fatigue on bodyweight resistance training exercise task performance is unknown. In the current investigation 18 amateur athletes completed a full body exercise task preceded by either a cognitive fatiguing or control intervention. In a randomized repeated measure design, each participant completed the same exercise task preceded by a 52 minute cognitively fatiguing intervention (vigilance) or control intervention (video). Data collection sessions were separated by 1 week. Participants rated the fatigue intervention as being significantly more mentally demanding than the control intervention (p .05). There was no statistical difference for heart rate or metabolic expenditure as a function of fatigue intervention during exercise. Cognitively fatigued athletes have decreased time-on-task in bodyweight resistance training exercise tasks

Wheat glutenin polymers 1. structure, assembly and properties

The importance of wheat glutenin polymers in determining the processing quality of wheat is generally accepted. Similarly, genetic and molecular studies have provided detailed information on the sequences of the glutenin subunits and identified associations between individual subunits and either good or poor quality for breadmaking. However, our knowledge of the polymers themselves, including their molecular masses, structures and pathways of synthesis and assembly, remains incomplete and is largely based on studies carried out between 20 and 50 years ago. The current paper therefore reviews this knowledge and identifies priorities for future research which is required to facilitate the use of modern molecular tools to develop improved types of wheat for future requirement

It's not me, it's a deepfake. Un percorso d’orientamento tra i media manipolati attraverso l’intelligenza artificiale

Since the day of their birth in 2017 on Reddit, the rise of deepfake videos in the media landscape has generated new techno-phobias. They are algorithmic images, digital faces manipulated through artificial intelligence, the result of automatic processes involving GANs (Adversarial Generative Networks) and software such as DeepFaceLab or FakeApp. Their producers, the deepfake designers, have several times been accused of spreading misinformation, encouraging and facilitating the production process of audiovisual fake news, so undermining the already fragile ecosystem of digital information. In her pioneering book Deep Fakes and the infocalypse (2020) Nina Schick spoke of “infocalypse” in relation to the informational short-circuit that could be generated by the advent of deepfakes. Following Schick, Michael Grothaus has provocatively titled his essay dedicated to the birth and prospects of the practice Trust No One (2021). At the same time, deepfake videos are fostering the emergence of new forms of audiovisual storytelling within the sphere of auteur cinema, advertising, pornography and videoclips, giving birth to a new aesthetics and re-actualizing the ancient debate around mimesis. Adopting a multidisciplinary approach, and through a series of case studies from the porn, cinematic and videoclip fields this dissertation tries to present a taxonomy and a theoretical framework in which moving the future debate around deepfakes, the risks they pose and the chances they pave the way for