Università degli Studi di Genova

As part of the high-luminosity upgrade of CERN LHC accelerator project, the National Institute of Nuclear Physics (INFN) in Genoa, Italy, has developed the MBRD separation-recombination dipole, also known as D2, whose function is to bring beams into collision before and after the interaction regions of the CMS and ATLAS experiments. It is a NbTi cos-theta double aperture dipole that generates a 4.5 T field in a 105 mm aperture, with a magnetic length of 7.78 m, and has the specific feature that the magnetic field in the two apertures is oriented in the same direction. The agreements between INFN and CERN, signed in 2016 and 2020, called for the construction of a short model, 1.6 m long, a prototype of final size, and the six series magnets, four of which are to be installed in the tunnel and two spare. After an international tender, the construction of all magnets was awarded to ASG Superconductors. The short model was successfully tested at CERN in a vertical cryostat in August 2020, reaching nominal current after three quenches in the second thermal cycle, validating most of the mechanical, thermal, and electrical design and providing important insights into the improvements that were implemented in the prototype. Testing of the D2 cold mass prototype was performed in October 2022. Its performance was found to be extremely good, with no quenches below nominal current even in the first thermal cycle and showing excellent operating margin in terms of current, ramp rate, and temperature. Although the series magnets were designed to be identical to the prototype, some modifications and tuning improvements, including a small cross-sectional refinement, were implemented and assessed with the construction of the first magnet in the series. This contribution reports all the activities that, based on the short model and prototype experience, led us to the construction of the first series magnet.

The High-Luminosity upgrade of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) foresees the replacement of magnets around the interaction points of the ATLAS and CMS experiments. One of these is the recombination dipole MBRD (Main Bending Recombination Dipole), or D2. It consists of a cosine-theta magnet, double aperture with same polarity, wound with a Nb-Ti Rutherford cable, featuring a central field of 4.5 T, a magnetic length of 7.78 m and a 105 mm bore (diameter). In this paper we present the test results of the full-length prototype with a special focus on the mechanical measurements. The prototype has been instrumented with tens of strain gauges to monitor the mechanical behaviour and to allow for a comparison to the finite elements model of the magnet, to achieve a firm interpretation of the collected data in view of the series construction. In this contribution, the most important collected data will be shown, and compared with simulations results, giving a precise description of the mechanical performances of the prototype, with an outlook to the construction of the series magnets.

For mobile robots, navigating cluttered or dynamic environments often necessitates non-prehensile manipulation, particularly when faced with objects that are too large, irregular, or fragile to grasp. The unpredictable behavior and varying physical properties of these objects significantly complicate manipulation tasks. To address this challenge, this manuscript proposes a novel Reactive Pushing Strategy . This strategy allows a mobile robot to dynamically adjust its base movements in real-time to achieve successful pushing maneuvers towards a target location. Notably, our strategy adapts the robot motion based on changes in contact location obtained through the tactile sensor covering the base, avoiding dependence on object-related assumptions and its modeled behavior. The effectiveness of the Reactive Pushing Strategy was initially evaluated in the simulation environment, where it significantly outperformed the compared baseline approaches. Following this, we validated the proposed strategy through real-world experiments, demonstrating the robot capability to push objects to the target points located in the entire vicinity of the robot. In both simulation and real-world experiments, the object-specific properties (shape, mass, friction, inertia) were altered along with the changes in target locations to assess the robustness of the proposed method comprehensively.

This paper describes a simple methodology to calculate the two-dimensional seepage across an infinite unsaturated slope using models of one-dimensional infiltration through horizontal ground. The methodology decomposes the seepage across the infinite slope into antisymmetric and symmetric parts, whose respective solutions are combined to calculate the actual flow regime. The antisymmetric solution is trivial and does not even require integration of the governing continuity equation while the symmetric solution, albeit non-trivial, reduces to the case of one-dimensional flow through horizontal ground, for which solutions already exist. The methodology is generally applicable to the calculation of distinct seepage regimes across unsaturated slopes with different hydraulic properties under both stationary and transient conditions. The paper also defines the gradient of the piezometric head parallel to the slope, which is the Neumann boundary condition to be imposed on slope sections perpendicular to the ground surface. The rigorous definition of this gradient overcomes the need of imposing arbitrary boundary conditions in finite element models. Finally, the paper demonstrates that all infiltrated water crosses the slope along the shortest path, i.e. the path normal to the surface, while the flow parallel to the slope is entirely fed by an upstream source at infinite distance.

Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) is a process aimed at studying variations in the expected behavior of a structure in order to locate damage, material deterioration and other abnormalities. To this aim, SHM is usually performed continuously, thus generating large amounts of data, often by employing wired, expensive and proprietary systems. Introducing low-cost, low-energy consumption and low-rate IoT devices allows for cheaper and easier installations also in scenarios where computation and transmission resources are limited. Since many structural signals (e.g., vibrations) are sparse in the frequency domain, it is possible to apply well-known Compressive Sensing (CS) techniques to limit the amount of information to be transmitted. CS allows recovering a vector using a reduced amount of entries, thus being able to perform sub-Nyquist sampling. This paper shows the results obtained by applying CS to inertial signals coming from wireless IoT devices, developed as laboratory prototypes, applied to real structures (specifically, a bridge). Such findings are further expanded by discussing the efficiency of CS with respect to the number of used samples and its feasibility for IoT applications, from the transmission burden and energy consumption standpoints.

Gaze direction and pupil dilation play a critical role in communication and social interaction due to their ability to redirect and capture our attention and relevance for emotional information. The present study aimed to explore whether the pupil size and the gaze direction of the speaker affect language comprehension. Participants listened to sentences that could be correct or contain a syntactic anomaly, while the static face of a speaker was manipulated in terms of gaze direction (direct, averted) and pupil size (mydriasis, miosis). Left anterior negativity (LAN) and P600 linguistic ERP components were observed to syntactic anomalies for all conditions. The speaker’s gaze did not impact syntactic comprehension. However, the amplitude of the LAN component for mydriasis (dilated pupil) was larger than for miosis (constricted pupil) condition. Larger pupils are generally associated with care, trust, interest, and attention, which might facilitate syntactic processing at early automatic stages. The result also supports the permeable and context-dependent nature of syntax. Previous studies also support an automatic nature of syntax (fast and efficient), which combined with the permeability to relevant sources of communicative information, such as pupil size and emotions, is highly adaptive for language comprehension and social interaction.

This paper presents a tactile sensing glove based on piezoelectric sensors, embedded electronics, and a machine learning-based approach for texture discrimination. Various time and frequency features were extracted and evaluated through machine learning algorithms including support vector machines, Single-layer Feed-Forward Neural Network, and 1-D Convolution Neural Network. Six naturalistic surface textures were explored by simply sliding the index finger of seven participants on the surfaces with and without the tactile glove. Results showed that by employing an SVM classifier trained on both time and frequency features, a discrimination accuracy of 87% is achieved while utilizing only two sensors. Furthermore, this discrimination behavior was found to exceed the participants (76.79%) when attempting to discriminate the textures using their somatosensory system. This study demonstrated the capability of the tactile sensing glove in extracting tactile information opening up interesting perspectives for wearable feedback systems for post-stroke rehabilitation.

Cell-based therapies hold great promise for brain repair after stroke. While accumulating evidence confirms the preclinical and clinical benefits of cell therapies, the underlying mechanisms by which they promote brain repair remain unclear. Here, we briefly review endogenous mechanisms of brain repair after ischemic stroke and then focus on how different stem and progenitor cell sources can promote brain repair. Specifically, we examine how transplanted cell grafts contribute to improved functional recovery either through direct cell replacement or by stimulating endogenous repair pathways. Additionally, we discuss recently implemented preclinical refinement methods, such as preconditioning, microcarriers, genetic safety switches, and universal (immune evasive) cell transplants, as well as the therapeutic potential of these pharmacologic and genetic manipulations to further enhance the efficacy and safety of cell therapies. By gaining a deeper understanding of post-ischemic repair mechanisms, prospective clinical trials may be further refined to advance post-stroke cell therapy to the clinic.

Purpose The aim of this study is to critically evaluate the existing body of evidence regarding the efficacy of Retzius-sparing radical prostatectomy (RS-RARP) in achieving improved functional outcomes. Moreover, we explored possible strategies to further optimize functional outcomes. Methods Following PRISMA guidelines, a systematic review (PROSPERO ID CRD42024539915) was performed on 9th September 2023 on PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science. Only original articles in the English language reporting functional outcomes after RS-RARP were included. Results Overall, the search string yielded 99 results on PubMed, 122 on Scopus, and 120 on Web Of Science. After duplicate exclusion, initial screening and eligibility evaluation, a total of 47 studies were included in the qualitative analysis, corresponding to a cohort of 13.196 patients. All studies reported continence recovery. RS-RARP appeared to achieve better and faster continence recovery compared to S-RARP. However, it should be noted that continence definition was heterogeneous and not based on validated condition-specific questionnaires. Seven (15%) studies provided for any sort of rehabilitation for urinary incontinence after RS-RARP. 22 studies analyzed potency recovery rates, showing no difference between RS-RARP and S-RARP. The evaluation of this outcome poses a great challenge due to the lack of standardized assessment tools and reporting methods. Only two studies reported on the consistent use of post-operative PDE5i as penile rehabilitation. Conclusions The current review highlights the satisfactory functional results of Retzius-sparing robot assisted radical prostatectomy, which holds true irrespective of disease stage and prostate volume, with promising results even in patients previously treated for BPH or in the salvage setting. How can we optimize those results? The answer does not probably lie in further refinement of the surgical technique, but in giving greater attention to patient counselling and rehabilitation strategies in order to minimize regret and maximize satisfaction.

Background Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) comprises a heterogeneous group of conditions that can cause marked disability and diminished quality of life. Data on predictors of clinical response are insufficient to guide selection of the appropriate biologic agent for individual patients. This study aimed to investigate the propensity of S100A8/9 and S100A12 as predictive biomarkers of abatacept response in polyarticular-course juvenile idiopathic arthritis (pJIA). Methods Data from a phase 3 trial (NCT01844518) of subcutaneous abatacept in patients with active pJIA (n = 219) were used in this exploratory analysis. Association between biomarker levels at baseline and improvements in JIA-American College of Rheumatology (ACR) criteria responses or baseline disease activity (measured by Juvenile Arthritis Disease Activity Score in 27 joints using C-reactive protein [JADAS27-CRP]) were assessed. Biomarker level changes from baseline to month 4 were assessed for disease outcome prediction up to 21 months. Results At baseline, 158 patients had available biomarker samples. Lower baseline S100A8/9 levels (≤ 3295 ng/mL) were associated with greater odds of achieving JIA-ACR90 (odds ratio [OR]: 2.54 [95% confidence interval (CI): 1.25–5.18]), JIA-ACR100 (OR: 3.72 [95% CI: 1.48–9.37]), JIA-ACR inactive disease (ID; OR: 4.25 [95% CI: 2.03–8.92]), JADAS27-CRP ID (OR: 2.34 [95% CI: 1.02–5.39]) at month 4, and JIA-ACR ID (OR: 3.01 [95% CI: 1.57–5.78]) at month 16. Lower baseline S100A12 levels (≤ 176 ng/mL) were associated with greater odds of achieving JIA-ACR90 (OR: 2.52 [95% CI: 1.23–5.13]), JIA-ACR100 (OR: 3.68 [95% CI: 1.46–9.28]), JIA-ACR ID (OR: 3.66 [95% CI: 1.76–7.61]), JIA-ACR90 (OR: 2.03 [95% CI: 1.07–3.87]), JIA-ACR100 (OR: 2.14 [95% CI: 1.10–4.17]), and JIA-ACR ID (OR: 4.22 [95% CI: 2.15–8.29]) at month 16. From baseline to month 4, decreases in S100A8/9 and S100A12 generally exceeded 50% among JIA-ACR90/100/ID responders. Conclusion Lower baseline levels of S100A8/9 and S100A12 proteins predicted better response to abatacept treatment than higher levels and may serve as early predictive biomarkers in pJIA. Decreases in these biomarker levels may also predict longer-term response to abatacept in pJIA.

In this manuscript we provide a representation in infinite dimension for stochastic optimal control problems with delay in the control variable. The main novelty consists in the fact that the representation can be applied also to dynamics where the delay in the control appears as a nonlinear term and in the diffusion coefficient. We then apply the representation to a LQ case where an explicit solution can be found.

Socio-political research has shown that in metropolitan peripheries, populist parties have gained significant support. This is because these parties capitalise on a widespread feeling of exclusion, leading to a revanchist social representation of affluent metropolitan centres. This article contributes to the debate on metropolitan dynamics by exploring the social representations of the centre-periphery relationship, showing how symbolic representations play a role in shaping codes of action and revanchism alone is insufficient to understand the core-periphery relationship. Four suburbs with similar socioeconomic characteristics in the functional urban area of Milan were selected. Milan is the most important Italian metropolis, and it has a relevant socio-political fracture. Semi-structured interviews were carried out to analyse the cultural meanings of living on the periphery among local leaders. The metropolitan centre is perceived as necessary, evoking 'efficient' representations; however, these peripheral contexts are meaningful places of belonging. This article shows that an analysis of the dynamics at work at the metropolitan level should consider peripheral contexts.

The authors describe the case of a 12-year-old boy who presented with a generalized tonic-clonic seizure. His blood pressure was moderately elevated (148/109). He was eventually diagnosed with PRES (posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome) related to post-streptococcal glomerulonephritis.

Background Nowadays, different therapeutic options are available for the first-line treatment of metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC). Immuno-combinations are the standard first-line therapy in all mRCC patients regardless of the International Metastatic RCC Database Consortium (IMDC) risk category, even though TKI monotherapy is still a therapeutic option in selected patients. However, comparisons between the different first-line treatment strategies are lacking and few real-world data are available in this setting. For this reason, the regimen choice represents an important issue in clinical practice and the optimal treatment sequence remains unclear. Methods The REGAL study is a multicentric prospective observational study enrolling mRCC patients treated with first-line systemic therapy according to clinical practice in a real-world setting. A retrospective cohort of mRCC patients who received first-line systemic therapy from the 1st of January 2021 will also be included. The primary objective is to identify potential prognostic and predictive factors that could help guide the treatment choice; secondary objectives included the assessment of the prognostic performance of the novel prognostic Meet-URO score (IMDC score + neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio + bone metastases) compared with the IMDC score and the comparison between treatment strategies according to response and survival outcomes and toxicity profile. Discussion Considering the high number of therapeutic first-line strategies available for mRCC, the identification of clinical prognostic and predictive factors to candidate patients to a preferable systemic therapy is still an unmet clinical need. The Meet-URO 33 study aims to provide a large-scale real-world database on mRCC patients, to identify the clinical predictive and prognostic factors and the different performances between the ICI-based combinations according to response, survival and toxicity. Trial Registration CESC IOV 2023-78.

Context The 2019 AACE guidelines suggested peak GH-cutoffs to glucagon test (GST) of ≤3 µg/L and ≤1 µg/L in the diagnosis of permanent GH deficiency (GHD) during the transition phase. Objective Aim of the study was to evaluate the accuracy of GST compared to insulin tolerance test (ITT) in the definition of GHD at adult height achievement. Patients and methods Ninety-seven subjects with childhood-onset GHD (median age, 17.39 years) underwent ITT, GST and IGF-1 testing; 44 subjects were idiopathic (isolated GHD), 35 moderate organic GHD (0-2 hormone deficiencies-HDs) and 18 severe organic GHD (≥3 HDs). Results Bland and Altman analysis showed a high consistency of GH peak measures after ITT and GST. Receiver operating characteristic analysis-ROC- identified 7.3 μg/L as the optimal GH peak cutoff to GST (95% CI 4.15–8.91; sensitivity 95.7%, specificity 88.2%, positive predictive value-PPV-88.0%, negative predictive value-NPV-95.7%), able to correctly classify 91.8% of the entire cohort while 5.8 μg/L was the best GH peak cutoff able to correctly classify 91.4% of moderate organic GHD patients (95% CI 3.16–7.39; sensitivity 96.0%, specificity 80.0%, PPV 92.3%, NPV 88.9%). Patients with ≥3HDs showed a GH peak <5μg/L at ITT and <5.8μg/L at GST but one. The optimal cutoff for IGF1 was -1.4 SDS (95% CI -1.94–0.77; sensitivity 75%, specificity 94%, PPV 91.7%, NPV 81.0%) that correctly classified 85.1% of the study population. Conclusions A GH peak to GST <5.8 μg/L represents an accurate diagnostic cutoff for young adults with childhood-onset GHD and high pre-test probability of permanent GHD.

Recent events underline, once again, the importance and the potential opportunities for a stronger partnership between the European Union (EU) and the African Union (AU). Although there was general satisfaction at the end of the 6th EU-AU Summit, doubts remain about how “The Global Gateway Africa-Europe Investment Package” will be implemented. This ambitious financing plan for development was worth 150 billion euros and was mutually defined and described in the “Joint Vision for 2030”. It aims to support Africa in reaching the expected results in most of the fields identified as priorities in the AU’s “Agenda 2063”. The main challenge appears to be the realisation of adequate tools for its implementation able to mobilise, manage and monitor such huge resources and an ambitious development plan. In this regard, this chapter explores the possibility of accessing resources from the recent General Allocation of Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), through the creation of an ad hoc instrument that would allow for their rechannelling from the EU to Africa.

Importance Inconsistent reporting of outcomes in clinical trials of rosacea is impeding and likely preventing accurate data pooling and meta-analyses. There is a need for standardization of outcomes assessed during intervention trials of rosacea. Objective To develop a rosacea core outcome set (COS) based on key domains that are globally relevant and applicable to all demographic groups to be used as a minimum list of outcomes for reporting by rosacea clinical trials, and when appropriate, in clinical practice. Evidence Review A systematic literature review of rosacea clinical trials was conducted. Discrete outcomes were extracted and augmented through discussions and focus groups with key stakeholders. The initial list of 192 outcomes was refined to identify 50 unique outcomes that were rated through the Delphi process Round 1 by 88 panelists (63 physicians from 17 countries and 25 patients with rosacea in the US) on 9-point Likert scale. Based on feedback, an additional 11 outcomes were added in Round 2. Outcomes deemed to be critical for inclusion (rated 7-9 by ≥70% of both groups) were discussed in consensus meetings. The outcomes deemed to be most important for inclusion by at least 85% of the participants were incorporated into the final core domain set. Findings The Delphi process and consensus-building meetings identified a final core set of 8 domains for rosacea clinical trials: ocular signs and symptoms; skin signs of disease; skin symptoms; overall severity; patient satisfaction; quality of life; degree of improvement; and presence and severity of treatment-related adverse events. Recommendations were also made for application in the clinical setting. Conclusions and Relevance This core domain set for rosacea research is now available; its adoption by researchers may improve the usefulness of future trials of rosacea therapies by enabling meta-analyses and other comparisons across studies. This core domain set may also be useful in clinical practice.