Bioenergetic Measurements in Children with Bipolar Disorder: A Pilot 31^{31}P Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy Study

Background: Research exploring Bipolar Disorder (BD) phenotypes and mitochondrial dysfunction, particularly in younger subjects, has been insufficient to date. Previous studies have found abnormal cerebral pH levels in adults with BD, which may be directly linked to abnormal mitochondrial activity. To date no such studies have been reported in children with BD. Methods: Phosphorus Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy ($^{31}$P MRS) was used to determine pH, phopshocreatine (PCr) and inorganic phosphate (Pi) levels in 8 subjects with BD and 8 healthy comparison subjects (HCS) ages 11 to 20 years old. Results: There was no significant difference in pH between the patients and HCS. However, frontal pH values for patients with BD increased with age, contrary to studies of HCS and the pH values in the frontal lobe correlated negatively with the YMRS values. Global Pi was significantly lower in subjects with BD compared with HCS. There were no significant differences in PCr between the groups. Global PCr-to-Pi ratio (PCr/Pi) was significantly higher in subjects with BD compared with HCS. Conclusions: The change in Pi levels for the patients with BD coupled with the no difference in PCr levels, suggest an altered mitochondrial phosphorylation. However, our findings require further investigation of the underlying mechanisms with the notion that a mitochondrial dysfunction may manifest itself differently in children than that in adults. Limitations: Further investigations with larger patient populations are necessary to draw further conclusions

Raptor pellets as evidence in an inquiry-based teaching. Students’ perceptions on what they have learnt and felt

Las egragrópilas de rapaces se suelen utilizar en el aula para enseñar a los estudiantes a diseccionarlas y clasificar su contenido (huesos, pelos, plumas, etc.). En este artículo proponemos la transformación de esa secuencia en una práctica científica auténtica de indagación, donde el núcleo central de la secuencia sea plantear un problema auténtico (disminución de las rapaces en Doñana y cambios en su alimentación), el uso de las egagrópilas y la información que obtienen de ellas los/as científicos/as como pruebas para poder sacar conclusiones. El diseño de la secuencia nos ha permitido plantear la reflexión sobre los elementos imprescindibles para que una secuencia sea considerada de prácticas científicas de indagación. Su implementación y posterior evaluación en términos de percepciones de los estudiantes sobre lo que aprenden y sienten, muestra que los estudiantes perciben que la secuencia está contextualizada, también que su mayor aprendizaje guarda relación con la utilidad de las egagrópilas y, además, señalan interés y concentración como las principales emociones asociadas a la secuencia. Con estos resultados podemos concluir que emociona aprender contenidos biológicos por indagación y que, tanto docentes como alumnado, debemos ser conscientes de esas emociones para que no pasen desapercibidas.In this paper we try to make the best use of raptor pellets in science education, which are usually used in the classroom to teach students to dissect and classify their content (bones, hairs, feathers, etc.), through the design of an Inquiry-based instructional sequence. By using an authentic problem (disappearance of the Iberian imperial eagle of Doñana National Parkland and changes in their diet) and promoting the search of evidence to build explanations, students learn scientific contents about trophic networks and knowledge about how the scientific practices are. The evaluation of the sequence after implementing it with Secondary School students, in terms of students perceptions about their learnings and emotions felt, shows that it has had an influence on them, since they: perceive that the sequence is contextualized in a real problem, they express the greater learning obtained with the sequence as the utility of the raptor pellets as evidence for scientists to draw conclusions, and they recognize having mainly felt interest and concentration as the most remarkable emotions associated with the sequence. In conclusion, it is exciting to learn biological contents by inquiry. Teachers and students must be aware of these emotions so that they do not go unnoticed

A one-mutation mathematical model can explain the age incidence of acute myeloid leukemia with mutated nucleophosmin (NPM1)

Acute myeloid leukemia with mutated NPM1 gene and aberrant cytoplasmic expression of nucleophosmin (NPMc+acute myeloid leukemia) shows distinctive biological and clinical features. Experimental evidence of the oncogenic potential of the nucleophosmin mutant is, however, still lacking, and it is unclear whether other genetic lesion(s), e.g. FLT3 internal tandem duplication, cooperate with NPM1 mutations in acute myeloid leukemia development. An analysis of age-specific incidence, together with mathematical modeling of acute myeloid leukemia epidemiology, can help to uncover the number of genetic events needed to cause leukemia. We collected data on age at diagnosis of acute myeloid leukemia patients from five European Centers in Germany, The Netherlands and Italy, and determined the age-specific incidence of AML with mutated NPM1 (a total of 1,444 cases) for each country. Linear regression of the curves representing age-specific rates of diagnosis per year showed similar slopes of about 4 on a double logarithmic scale. We then adapted a previously designed mathematical model of hematopoietic tumorigenesis to analyze the age incidence of acute myeloid leukemia with mutated NPM1 and found that a one-mutation model can explain the incidence curve of this leukemia entity. This model fits with the hypothesis that NPMc+acute myeloid leukemia arises from an NPM1 mutation with haploinsufficiency of the wild-type NPM1 allele

Karst geomorphology of the “Canale di Pirro” polje, Apulia (Southern Italy).

In karst environment, a geomorphological map is a powerful instrument, which play a crucial role in understanding earth surface processes and landscape evolution. Furthermore, it could be very useful for speleological perspectives, natural resources exploitation and geo-hazards management (flood, sinkhole, subsidence, etc.), providing useful information that enhance the knowledge of the territory. In this work, we present a geomorphological map of the polje of “Canale di Pirro”, sited in the central part of Apulia Region, in Southern Italy, among the most interesting karst lands in the Mediterranean area. The map covers150km2withanelevationrangeof100-450ma.s.l.Thisareaisoneofthemostremarkablekarstlandforms in the region, characterized underground by a very interesting system of caves, that reaches the water table at a depth of -264 meters. The karst system, known as “Inghiottitoio di Masseria Rotolo”, following scuba-diving exploration below the watertable, has become with a depth of 324m, the deepest known cave in Apulia. The polje is bounded on both sides by tectonically-controlled ridges, showing an overall length of some 12 km. In ancient maps, dating back to the 16th century, the area is represented as crossed by a long river, called Cana. The map obtained derives from the integration of interpretation of aerial photographs, analysis of a digital elevation model and field surveys in order to obtain a correct distribution of landforms and fluvial processes, such as different varieties of karst depressions, conical hills, erosional gullies, alluvial fans and tectonic structures. It provides relevant information about the surface drainage processes, and for understanding, among other things, the groundwater circulation and the related recharge processes. This geomorphological map is part of a wider project, that combined geological, hydrogeological research and chemical analyses of the groundwater. It provides support to the ongoing studies of this part of Apulia region aimedto betterunderstand thegeological processes that originatedthe polje and its later evolution, and the related underground cave system. Further, it might also suggest possible improvements in land management and in the future choice of useful tools for the control of the quality and quantity of karst groundwater

An integrated approach to elaborate 3-D geological and geotechnical models: a case study from the Daunia Sub-Apennine (Apulia, southern Italy).

In the Daunia Sub-Apennine (Apulia, southern Italy) slope instability processes due to rainfalls and earthquakes are widespread and cause significant damage to buildings and other structures, and, in some cases, loss of life. A detailed slope stability assessment requires information on the predisposing and triggering factors, and a good knowledge of the geological and environmental conditions as well. As concerns seismic-induced landslides, conventional methods used for slope stability analysis can be divided in: i) force-based pseudo-static methods, ii) displacement-based methods, and iii) stress-strain methods. Detailed representations of geological and geotechnical units as well as static and dynamic geotechnical characterization of materials have to be considered for the correct choice of the method for slope stability analysis, since these are fundamental for slope behaviour prediction and modelling. The purpose of this paper was to present a methodological approach for elaborating detailed 3-D geological and geotechnical models for areas very heterogeneous in terms of geological and soil properties. In the southern portion of the eastern Daunia Sub-Apennine, the outermost formations of the chain domain crop out. These are represented by the Cretaceous-Miocene and Pliocene wedge-top basin units, followed upwards, in the easternmost portion, by the Plio-Pleistocene foredeep units and by Quaternary filling deposits. A high susceptibility to slope failures for the area is testified by the large number of slope movements consisting in mud flows, roto-translational and composite landslides, and soil slips. Field variability of the slope movements from site to site for mechanisms, velocity, depth of rupture surfaces and volume of materials involved is due to the presence of structurally complex formations, characterised by very poor mechanical properties and high variability of their lithological and structural features. The construction of geological and geotechnical models able to represent realistic information is conditioned by the efficacy of the methods used for assessing the spatial lithofacies distribution and parametrization. The case study of Deliceto is here presented, where the 3-D geological model was built based on the results of stratigraphic correlations between core logs and 2-D geological sections. In-situ surveys were performed by means of classical geological and geomorphological methods, and continuous coring boreholes. Silty-clayey sandstone materials (Conglomerates and Sandstones of Castello Schiavo) crop out along the slopes and rest on clayey silts and marls of turbidite origin (Flysch di Faeto). The Flysch di Faeto Fm. is a structurally complex geological unit which consists of three main lithofacies: 1) silty clays; 2) silty marly clays 3) marls and shales. A series of geotechnical laboratory tests, carried out in accordance with international standards for the static and dynamic characterization of materials, made it possible to obtain a detailed 3-D geotechnical model. In particular, resonant column (RC), cyclic torsional shear (CTS) and standard and cyclic triaxial (TXC) tests were performed on the silty clayey geotechnical unit of the Flysch di Faeto Fm., because it is highly susceptible to geotechnical fatigue resulting from cyclic stresses. The results of the laboratory tests confirmed a variable post-cyclic degradation in the range 40-80% and 12-36%, respectively for the secant shear modulus (G) and the undrained cohesion (cu) associated with an increase between 2.92% and 19.90% for the damping ratio (D), demonstrating the heterogeneity of the material in terms of geological and geotechnical characteristics

Hydro‐stratigraphic conditions and human activity leading to development of a sinkhole cluster in a Mediterranean water ecosystem

Salento Peninsula (Apulia, southern Italy) is characterised by many active sinkholes, which represent the main geological hazard. The stretch of coastline between the village of Casalabate and Le Cesine wildlife reserve is highly affected, with a system of dunes separating the low beach from extensive wetlands, which were subject to uncontrolled urban development after reclamation. The overall morphology is characterized by flat topography, whilst from a hydrogeological standpoint, the mixing of inland freshwater with advancing brackish water favours the higher aggressivity with respect to soluble rocks, and the development of enhanced dissolution (hyperkarst). The relict landscapes within the protected areas still allow for the recognition of actively occurring sinkholes, which cause damage to houses, the road network and infrastructures. In this article the case of Aquatina di Frigole is described, where in the last 15 years numerous sinkholes have formed, with the processes still in rapid evolution. Detailed surveys allow for to identification of the mechanisms of sinkhole formation (suffusion sinkholes), the deriving cluster, and the main hydrogeological links among the different water bodies in the area. Acquatina di Frigole provides an excellent natural laboratory to observe development and evolution of sinkholes, and their relationships with the stratigraphic and hydrogeological elements

Ecological commonalities among pelagic fishes: comparison of freshwater ciscoes and marine herring and sprat

Systematic comparisons of the ecology between functionally similar fish species from freshwater and marine aquatic systems are surprisingly rare. Here, we discuss commonalities and differences in evolutionary history, population genetics, reproduction and life history, ecological interactions, behavioural ecology and physiological ecology of temperate and Arctic freshwater coregonids (vendace and ciscoes, Coregonus spp.) and marine clupeids (herring, Clupea harengus, and sprat, Sprattus sprattus). We further elucidate potential effects of climate warming on these groups of fish based on the ecological features of coregonids and clupeids documented in the previous parts of the review. These freshwater and marine fishes share a surprisingly high number of similarities. Both groups are relatively short-lived, pelagic planktivorous fishes. The genetic differentiation of local populations is weak and seems to be in part correlated to an astonishing variability of spawning times. The discrete thermal window of each species influences habitat use, diel vertical migrations and supposedly also life history variations. Complex life cycles and preference for cool or cold water make all species vulnerable to the effects of global warming. It is suggested that future research on the functional interdependence between spawning time, life history characteristics, thermal windows and genetic differentiation may profit from a systematic comparison of the patterns found in either coregonids or clupeids

Day-ahead Energy Management for Hybrid Electric Vessel with Different PEM Fuel Cell Modular Configurations

The increasing demand for decarbonization of marine transportation motivates the utilization of low-carbon resources. Among different options, fuel cells are drawing attention. The selection of fuel cell (FC) and the design of energy management strategy would have a great impact on the vessel’s operational efficiency, and thereby needs to be considered carefully. The objective of this paper is to develop energy management system (EMS) to reduce the fuel consumption of a hybrid fuel cell/battery ship. To this end, a day-ahead EMS scheme is proposed that takes full use of information including ship cruising routines and the degradation status of the fuel cell modules. The developed EMS is optimization-based and conducted off-line to provide guideline for the next-day power generation plan. In addition, three power allocating strategies across the multiple fuel cell modules are considered and compared (equal, independent, and sequential). A sequential rotation procedure is proposed to reduce the degradation rates of the fuel cell modules. Simulation results show that the proposed EMS can effectively improve the fuel economy of the hybrid ship while enhancing sufficient energy backup throughout the full voyage. In addition, comparisons between different FC configurations implies that the independent distribution has the highest fuel efficiency, and with the proposed rotation procedure, the sequential distribution can effectively improve the fuel efficiency by up to 23.2%