Design and manufacturing concepts for thermoplastic structures

Results to date on the application of two manufacturing techniques, fiber placement and single diaphragm/coconsolidation, to produce cost-effective, thermoplastic composite (TPC), primary fuselage structure are presented. Applications relative to fuselage upper cover structure indicate potential cost savings relative to conventional approaches. Progress is also presented on efforts concerned with other design details which take advantage of thermoplastic composites such as fastener less stiffener/frame attachments. In addition, results are presented on the development and verification testing of a composite lug analysis program which incorporates through-the-thickness effects

Nonlinear analysis of laminated fibrous composites

A computerized analysis of the nonlinear behavior of fibrous composite laminates including axial loading, thermal loading, temperature dependent properties, and edge effects is presented. Ramberg-Osgood approximations are used to represent lamina stress-strain behavior and percent retention curves are employed to model the variation of properties with temperature. Balanced, symmetric laminates comprised of either boron/epoxy, graphite/epoxy, or borsic-aluminum are analyzed using a quasi-three-dimensional finite element analysis. Results are presented for the interlaminar stress distributions in cross-ply, angle-ply, and more complex laminates. Nonlinear stress-strain curves for a variety of composite laminates in tension and compression are obtained and compared to other existing theories and experimental results

Rate and time dependent behavior of structural adhesives

Studies on two adhesives (Metlbond 1113 and 1113-2) identified as having applications in the bonding of composite materials are presented. Constitutive equations capable of describing changes in material behavior with strain rate are derived from various theoretical approaches. It is shown that certain unique relationships exist between these approaches. It is also shown that the constitutive equation derived from mechanical models can be used for creep and relaxation loading. A creep to failure phenomenon is shown to exist and is correlated with a delayed yield equation proposed by Crochet. Loading-unloading results are presented and are shown to correlate well with the proposed form of the loading-unloading equations for the modified Bingham model. Experimental results obtained for relaxation tests above and below the glass transition temperature are presented. It is shown that the adhesives obey the time-temperature superposition principle

Palynological origin, Total Phenolic and Flavonoid contents and Antioxidant Properties of honey bee-collected pollen from Matelica (Marche, Italy): A seasonal analysis

Nowadays honey-bee collected pollen represents an apicultural product of great commercial interest due to its high nutritional value. Pollen is, in fact, generally referred to as a super-food; it contains high level of proteins (from 10% up to 40%), lipids (1-13%), carbohydrates (13-55%), minerals and vitamins (in particular of the B group) [1]. In addition, honey bee-pollen possesses antioxidant properties (mostly depending on the phenolic compounds) which are known to be very effective in fighting against free radicals; therefore, honey-bee collected pollen has high potential for both nutritional and medical applications [2]. However, the chemical composition of bee-pollen, may significantly changes according to the palynological and geographical origin, climatic conditions and month of collection [3-4]. Therefore, all these factors differently contribute to the final properties and biological activities of the bee-pollen (and thus, in turn, its therapeutic effects and nutritional properties). In this context, the present study aims to assess the palynological origin, total phenolic contents (TPC), total flavonoid content (TFC) and antioxidant properties of multifloral honey bee-collected pollen from a rural location in the area of municipality of Matelica (Marche Region, Italy). The project, realized in collaboration with the Cooperativa Apicoltori Montani of Matelica, has involved the analysis of multifloral pollen samples on a seasonal basis (from April to September 2016) by means of the following in vitro assays: a) the total phenolic contents (TPC) determined by the the Folin-Ciocalteu methods [5] using gallic acid as the standard compound; the total flavonoid contents determined by the aluminium chloride colorimetric assay developed by [6] using quercetin as reference standard and b) the 1, l-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) Scavenging Assay [7] and Hydroxyl Radical Scavenging Assay (HRSA) [8] for the analysis of the antioxidant properties. All these assays were realized using lyophilized bee pollen ethanolic extracts (LBPE). Qualitative and quantitative palynological characterization of the 4 pollen samples, showed the presence of a total of more than 20 plant families, with Fabaceae, Rosaceae, Salicaceae, Brassicaceae and Asteraceae being the most abundant (from 20% up to 33%). Results indicated that there were significant differences (p ≤ 0.001) among pollen samples for total phenolic and flavonoid contents. TPC values ranged from 11.8 (September) to 23.8 (May) to mg GAE/gr,; TFC contents ranged from 5.98 (September) to 14.14 (May) mg QE/g. Furthermore, results of the DPPH and HRSA scavenging activities indicated that the lyophilized bee pollen ethanolic extracts have significant antioxidant properties. In particular, the highest TPC and TFC contents and antioxidant properties were recorded for the May pollen samples. The present study represent the first “seasonal fingerprint” of pollen properties in Italy. In final, our study aims to give a) a contribution to the economic valorization of this important local natural resource; and, b) to possibly define seasonal/monthly baseline values (i.e minimum and maximum values) for bee pollen properties in the area of Matelica. References [1] Almeida-Muradian L.B., Pamplona L.C., Coimbra S. and Barth O.M. Chemical composition and botanical evaluation of dried bee pollen pellets. J. Food Comp. Anal. 2005, 18, 105-111. [2] Denisow, B., Denisow-Pietrzyk, M. Biological and therapeutic properties of bee pollen: a review. J. Sci. Food Agr., 2016, 4303-4309 [3] Almaraz-Abaraca, N., Campos, M.G., Ávila-Reyes, J.A. Variability of antioxidant activity among honey-bee collected pollen of different botanical origin, J. Sci. Tech. Amer. 2004, 29, 574-578. [4] Szczesna, T., Rybak-Chielewska, H., Chmielewski, W. Sugar composition of pollen loads harvested at different periods of the beekeeping season, J. Apic. Sci. 2002, 46, 107-115. [5] Vattem AD, Shetty K (2002) Solid-state production of phenolic antioxidants from Cranberry pomace by Rhizopus oligosporus. Food Biotechnol, 2002, 16, 189–210 [6] Zhishen, J., T. Mengcheng, and Jianming W. The determination of flavonoid contents in mulberry and their scavenging effects on superoxide radicals. Food Chem. 1999, 64, 555-559 [7] Yildirim A, Mavi A, Kara AA Determination of antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of Rumex crispus L. extracts. J. Agri.c Food Chem. 2001, 49, 4083–4089 [8] Ravindran C, Varatharajan GR, Rajasabapathy R, Vijayakanth S, HarishKumar A, Ram M. A role for antioxidants in acclimation of marine derived pathogenic fungus (NIOCC 1) to salt stress. Microb. Pathog. 2012, 168–17

Progetto di un sistema per la conservazione a lungo termine e a norma di legge di documenti elettronici

NOT AVAILABLENell\u27articolo viene presentato il lavoro svolto dall\u27Istituto di Fisiologia Clinica del CNR per la progetta- zione di un sistema di gestione elettronica dei dati prodotti durante l\u27attivit? clinica. Per garantire una conservazione di lungo periodo e il rispetto dei termini di validit? legale, ? stato necessario utilizzare strumenti e metodi di prevenzione nei confronti dell\u27invecchiamento dei supporti, dell\u27obsolescenza dei formati software e della scadenza delle firme digitali. Il sistema ? stato progettato rispettando la normativa CNIPA e in con- formit? con lo standard ISO OAIS. Il risultato finale ? stato la realizzazione di un sistema molto semplice dal punto di vista architetturale, modulare e flessibile in vista di un\u27esportazione verso altri enti. Particolare attenzione ? stata posta agli strumenti di indicizzazione e all\u27utilizzo di software open source

Rett Syndrome: Revised diagnostic criteria and nomenclature

Objective: Rett syndrome (RTT) is a severe neurodevelopmental disease that affects approximately 1 in 10,000 live female births and is often caused by mutations in Methyl-CpG-binding protein 2 (MECP2). Despite distinct clinical features, the accumulation of clinical and molecular information in recent years has generated considerable confusion regarding the diagnosis of RTT. The purpose of this work was to revise and clarify 2002 consensus criteria for the diagnosis of RTT in anticipation of treatment trials. Method: RettSearch members, representing the majority of the international clinical RTT specialists, participated in an iterative process to come to a consensus on a revised and simplified clinical diagnostic criteria for RTT. Results: The clinical criteria required for the diagnosis of classic and atypical RTT were clarified and simplified. Guidelines for the diagnosis and molecular evaluation of specific variant forms of RTT were developed. Interpretation These revised criteria provide clarity regarding the key features required for the diagnosis of RTT and reinforce the concept that RTT is a clinical diagnosis based on distinct clinical criteria, independent of molecular findings. We recommend that these criteria and guidelines be utilized in any proposed clinical research

The Alpaca Melanocortin 1 Receptor: Gene Mutations, Transcripts, and Relative Levels of Expression in Ventral Skin Biopsies

The objectives of the present study were to characterize the MC1R gene, its transcripts and the single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with coat color in alpaca. Full length cDNA amplification revealed the presence of two transcripts, named as F1 and F2, differing only in the length of their 5-terminal untranslated region (UTR) sequences and presenting a color specific expression. Whereas the F1 transcript was common to white and colored (black and brown) alpaca phenotypes, the shorter F2 transcript was specific to white alpaca. Further sequencing of the MC1R gene in white and colored alpaca identified a total of twelve SNPs; among those nine (four silent mutations (c.126C>A, c.354T>C, c.618G>A, and c.933G>A); five missense mutations (c.82A>G, c.92C>T, c.259A>G, c.376A>G, and c.901C>T) were observed in coding region and three in the 3UTR. A 4 bp deletion (c.224 227del) was also identified in the coding region. Molecular segregation analysis uncovered that the combinatory mutations in the MC1R locus could cause eumelanin and pheomelanin synthesis in alpaca. Overall, our data refine what is known about the MC1R gene and provides additional information on its role in alpaca pigmentation

Genetic variability of the short-haired and roughhaired Segugio Italiano dog breeds and their genetic distance from the other related Segugio breeds

The short-haired Segugio Italiano and rough-haired Segugio Italiano are two breeds of Italian scenthound. The two breeds were subjected to divergent selection based on the type (long versus short) and pigmentation (fawn versus black & tan) of the hair, leading to the development of the two above-mentioned phenotypes. Microsatellites markers from 120 unrelated dogs were used to estimate the genetic variability within the two Segugio Italiano breeds and to assess if divergent selection for the two phenotypes has possibly led to the development of subpopulations distinguished by coat type and pigmentation. Finally, we also estimated the genetic distance between the two Segugio Italiano breeds and two other related breeds, Segugio Maremmano and Segugio dell'Appennino. The mean Fis, Fit and Fst values indicated a moderate level of inbreeding. In both breeds the mean observed heterozygosity was lower than the expected heterozygosity. The AMOVA, PCoA and STRUCTURE analyses showed lack of differentiation between the two breeds and the absence of substructuring in the population. Cavalli- Sforza chord distance, Nei's genetic distance and Reynolds–Weir Cockerham’s genetic distance between the two Segugio Italiano breeds were low. Low genetic distances were also found between the Segugio Italiano and the others two related breeds indicating that there is no difference in terms of genetic distance among the three breeds despite the important phenotypic differences among them. This paper provides a basis to change the breeding guidelines of the four breeds in the light of these informations

Programmi di valutazione esterna di qualit? EQAS-CNR: gestione integrata di differenti VEQ attraverso l'uso dell'Information & Communication Technology

not availableLa Qualit? dei servizi ? un fattore d'importanza crescente. Diffondere la cultura della qualit? diventa una pratica fondamentale a garanzia dell'utente finale portando un beneficio indiretto anche al fornitore del servizio. I programmi di Valutazione Esterna di Qualit? (VEQ) sono fondamentali nel Sistema Qualit? dei laboratori clinici. In tutti i sistemi di valutazione e di accreditamento dei laboratori, i programmi di VEQ appaiono come elementi indispensabili per garantire in maniera obiettiva la competenza professionale e la qualit? delle prestazioni stimolando un continuo miglioramento. Il poster descrive le scelte effettuate nella progettazione ed implementazione del sistema informativo EQAS-CNR per la gestione delle VEQ