Physics and Astronomy (all)

An X-ray and computational study of liquid pentylammonium nitrate

In this article we report the study of liquid pentylammonium nitrate with Wide Angle X-ray scattering and AIMD simulations. Static and dynamical features were characterized by comparing the experimental X-ray pattern with ab initio molecular dynamics simulation trajectories. From the analysis, we were able to focus our attention on the nature and time duration of the hydrogen bond network established between cation and anion.

The Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) as Countermeasure for Retinal Damage Onboard the International Space Station: the CORM Project

Cells, tissues and organs of astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) are exposed to the damaging effects of microgravity and cosmic radiation. Space Agencies are forced to find effective therapeutic countermeasures to safeguard astronauts’ health. Since retina is one of the most vulnerable target, we undertook a project entitled The Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) as countermeasure for retinal damage onboard the International Space Station: the CORM project, funded by the Italian Space Agency (ASI) and launched in the summer 2017.

Global hotspots and correlates of emerging zoonotic diseases

Zoonoses originating from wildlife represent a significant threat to global health, security and economic growth, and combatting their emergence is a public health priority. However, our understanding of the mechanisms underlying their emergence remains rudimentary. Here we update a global database of emerging infectious disease (EID) events, create a novel measure of reporting effort, and fit boosted regression tree models to analyze the demographic, environmental and biological correlates of their occurrence.

Focusing Leaky Waves: A Class of Electromagnetic Localized Waves with Complex Spectra

Localized waves, i.e., the wide class of limited-diffraction, limited-dispersion solutions to the wave equation are generally characterized by real wave numbers. We consider the role played by localized waves with generally complex "leaky" wave numbers. First, the impact of the imaginary part of the wave number (i.e., the leakage constant) on the diffractive (spatial broadening) features of monochromatic localized solutions (i.e., beams) is rigorously evaluated.

Self-induced Faraday instability laser

We predict the onset of self-induced parametric or Faraday instabilities in a laser, spontaneously caused by the presence of pump depletion, which leads to a periodic gain landscape for light propagating in the cavity. As a result of the instability, continuous wave oscillation becomes unstable even in the normal dispersion regime of the cavity, and a periodic train of pulses with ultrahigh repetition rate is generated. Application to the case of Raman fiber lasers is described, in good quantitative agreement between our conceptual analysis and numerical modeling.

Hydrodynamic 2D turbulence and spatial beam condensation in multimode optical fibers

We show that Kerr beam self-cleaning results from parametric mode mixing instabilities that generate a number of nonlinearly interacting modes with randomized phases - optical wave turbulence, followed by a direct and inverse cascade towards high mode numbers and condensation into the fundamental mode, respectively. This optical self-organization effect is an analogue to wave condensation that is well known in hydrodynamic 2D turbulence.

Synthesis, characterization and performance evaluation of Fe3O4/PES nano composite membranes for microbial fuel cell

In this study, nanocomposites based on polyethersulfone (PES) with different amounts of Fe3O4 nanoparticles have been synthesized, to be used as proton exchange membranes in a microbial fuel cell (MFC). Such new low-cost separators were fabricated by melt blending and tested in an MFC system.

Targeting the CoREST complex with dual histone deacetylase and demethylase inhibitors

Here we report corin, a synthetic hybrid agent derived from the class I HDAC inhibitor (entinostat) and an LSD1 inhibitor (tranylcypromine analog). Enzymologic analysis reveals that corin potently targets the CoREST complex and shows more sustained inhibition of CoREST complex HDAC activity compared with entinostat. Cell-based experiments demonstrate that corin exhibits a superior anti-proliferative profile against several melanoma lines and cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma lines compared to its parent monofunctional inhibitors but is less toxic to melanocytes and keratinocytes.

Numerical investigation of wave fields and currents in a coastal engineering case study

In this paper, we present a Boussinesq type model which is able to simulate wave fields and nearshore currents in coastal regions characterized by morphologically complex coastal lines and irregular seabed and by the presence of coastal structures. The proposed model solves the integral contravariant form of the fully nonlinear Boussinesq equations, from deep water up to just seaward of the surf zones, and the non-linear shallow water equations, in the surf zone, on curvilinear boundary conforming grids.

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