Showing papers by "Sapienza University of Rome published in 1991"

Electrothrombosis of saccular aneurysms via endovascular approach: Part 2: Preliminary clinical experience

Abstract: Fifteen patients with high-risk intracranial saccular aneurysms were treated using electrolytically detachable coils introduced via an endovascular approach The patients ranged in age from 21 to 69 years The most frequent clinical presentation was subarachnoid hemorrhage (eight cases) Considerable thrombosis of the aneurysm (70% to 100%) was achieved in all 15 patients, and preservation of the parent artery was obtained in 14 Although temporary neurological deterioration due to the technique was recorded in one patient, no permanent neurological deficit was observed in this series and there were no deaths It is believed that this new technology is a viable alternative in the management of patients with high-risk intracranial saccular aneurysms It may also play an important role in the occlusion of aneurysms in the acute phase of subarachnoid hemorrhage

Electrothrombosis of saccular aneurysms via endovascular approach. Part 1: Electrochemical basis, technique, and experimental results.

Abstract: ✓ Eleven experimental saccular aneurysms were created on the common carotid artery of swine. Between 3 and 15 days after creation of these aneurysms, they were thrombosed via an endovascular approach, using a very soft detachable platinum coil delivered through a microcatheter positioned within the aneurysm. This detachable platinum coil was soldered to a stainless steel delivery guidewire. Intra-aneurysmal thrombosis was then initiated by applying a low positive direct electric current to the delivery guidewire. Thrombosis occurred because of the attraction of negatively charged white blood cells, red blood cells, platelets, and fibrinogen to the positively charged platinum coil positioned within the aneurysm. The passage of electric current detached the platinum coil within the clotted aneurysm in 4 to 12 minutes. This detachment was elicited by electrolysis of the stainless steel wire nearest to the thrombus-covered platinum coil. Control angiograms obtained 2 to 6 months postembolization confirmed per...

The functional anatomy of motor recovery after stroke in humans: a study with positron emission tomography.

Abstract: We have studied regional cerebral blood flow changes in 6 patients after their recovery from a first hemiplegic stroke. All had a single well-defined hemispheric lesion and at least a brachial monoparesis that subsequently recovered. Each patient had 6 measurements of cerebral blood flow by positron tomography with 2 scans at rest, 2 during movement of fingers of the recovered hand, and 2 during movement of fingers of the normal hand. When the normal fingers were moved, regional cerebral blood flow increased significantly in contralateral primary sensorimotor cortex and in the ipsilateral cerebellar hemisphere. When the fingers of the recovered hand were moved, significant regional cerebral blood flow increases were observed in both contralateral and ipsilateral primary sensorimotor cortex and in both cerebellar hemispheres. Other regions, namely, insula, inferior parietal, and premotor cortex, were also bilaterally activated with movement of the recovered hand. We have also demonstrated, by using a new technique of image analysis, different functional connections between the thalamic nuclei and specific cortical and cerebellar regions during these movements. Our results suggest that ipsilateral motor pathways may play a role in the recovery of motor function after ischemic stroke.

Conceptual Database Design: An Entity-Relationship Approach

Abstract: I. CONCEPTUAL DATABASE DESIGN. 1. An Introduction to Database Design. 2. Data Modeling Concepts. 3. Methodologies for Conceptual Design. 4. View Design. 5. View Integration. 6. Improving the Quality of a Database Schema. 7. Schema Documentation and Maintenance. II. FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS FOR DATABASE DESIGN. 1. Functional Analysis Using the Dataflow Model. 2. Joint Data and Functional Analysis. 3. Case Study. III. LOGICAL DESIGN AND DESIGN TOOLS. 1. High-Level Logical Design Using the Entity-Relationship Model. 2. Logical Design for the Relational Model. 3. Logical Design for the Network Model. 4. Logical Design for the Hierarchical Model. 5. Database Design Tools. Index. 0805302441T04062001

Making arm movements within different parts of space: the premotor and motor cortical representation of a coordinate system for reaching to visual targets

Abstract: The activity of 156 individual arm-related neurons was studied in the premotor cortex (area 6) while monkeys made arm movements of similar directions within different parts of 3-dimensional space. This study was aimed at describing the relationship between premotor cortical cell activity and direction of arm movement and assessing the coordinate system underlying this relationship. We found that the activity of 152 (97.4%) cells varied in an orderly fashion with the direction of movement, in at least some region of the work space. Premotor cortical cells fired most for a given preferred direction and less for other directions of movement. These preferred directions covered the directional continuum in a uniform fashion across the work space. It was found that, as movements of similar directions were made within different parts of the work space, the cells' preferred directions changed their orientation. Although these changes had different magnitudes for different cells, at the population level, they followed closely the changes in orientation of the arm necessary to move the hand from one to another part of the work space. This shift of cells' preferred direction with the orientation of the arm in space has been observed with similar characteristics in the motor cortex (see Caminiti et al., 1990). In both premotor and motor cortices, neuronal movement population vectors provide a good description of movement direction. Unlike the individual cell preferred directions upon which they are based, movement population vectors did not change their spatial orientation across the work space, suggesting that they remain good predictors of movement direction regardless of the region of space in which movements are made. The firing frequency of both premotor and motor cortical neurons varied significantly with the position occupied by the hand in space. These static positional effects were observed in 88.5% of premotor and 91.8% of motor cortical cells. In a second task, monkeys made movements from differing origins to a common end point. This task was performed within 3 different parts of space and was aimed at dissociating movement direction from movement end point. It was found that in both premotor and motor cortices virtually all cells were related to the direction and not to the end point of movement. These data suggest that premotor and motor cortices use common mechanisms for coding arm movement direction. They also provide a basis for understanding the coordinate transformation required to move the hand toward visual targets in space.

Asymptotic stabilization of minimum phase nonlinear systems

Abstract: How a class of multivariable nonlinear systems can be stabilized about an equilibrium via smooth state feedback is shown. More precisely, conditions under which, for every compact set of initial states, it is possible to design a feedback law which drives to the equilibrium all initial states in this compact set are described. The theory includes the development of globally defined transformations of the system equations to their global normal form. >

Steps toward determination of the size and structure of the broad-line region in active galactic nuclei. I, an 8 month campaign of monitoring NGC 5548 with IUE

Abstract: This is an electronic version of an article published in The Astrophysical Journal. Clavel, J. et al. Steps toward determination of the size and structure of the broad-line region in active galactic nuclei. I. An 8 month campaign of monitoring NGC 5548 with IUE. The Astrophysical Journal 366 (1991): 64-81

Closed-form dynamic model of planar multilink lightweight robots

Abstract: Closed-form equations of motion are presented for planar lightweight robot arms with multiple flexible links. The kinematic model is based on standard frame transformation matrices describing both rigid rotation and flexible displacement, under small deflection assumption. The Lagrangian approach is used to derive the dynamic model of the structure. Links are modeled as Euler-Bernoulli beams with proper clamped-mass boundary conditions. The assumed modes method is adopted in order to obtain a finite-dimensional model. Explicit equations of motion are detailed for two-link case assuming two modes of vibration for each link. The associated eigenvalue problem is discussed in relation with the problem of time-varying mass boundary conditions for the first link. The model is cast in a compact form that is linear with respect to a suitable set of constant parameters. Extensive simulation results that validate the theoretical derivation are included. >

Structure and origin of the acute promyelocytic leukemia myl/RAR alpha cDNA and characterization of its retinoid-binding and transactivation properties.

Abstract: Acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) is characterized by the 15;17 chromosomal translocation Cloning experiments have established that the chromosome 17 breakpoint maps to the RAR alpha and the 15 to the myl locus The resulting chimeric gene is transcribed as a myl/RAR alpha fusion mRNA By isolating both normal myl and APL myl/RAR alpha cDNAs, we showed that the myl/RAR alpha mRNA encodes for a putative fusion protein with a molecular weight of about 103 kDa, which is made up of 530 amino acids derived from the myl N-terminus and 402 amino acids originating from the RAR alpha C-terminus The protein includes the RAR alpha DNA and retinoid-binding regions but lacks the A portion of the N-terminal region (A/B region) which is thought to contain one of the RAR alpha transactivation domains The myl/RAR alpha protein acted as a retinoid-inducible transcription factor with both ligand-independent repressor and ligand-dependent activator functions in transactivation experiments of a retinoic acid-responsive gene Myl/RAR alpha exerted this dual function three times more effectively than RAR alpha and had about 10-fold greater affinity for RA than RAR alpha Comparison of myl/RAR alpha genomic and cDNA sequences from the same case demonstrated that both chromosome 15 and 17 breakpoints occurred within introns and the myl and RAR alpha sequences are spliced in the same polyadenylated RNA

A measurement of the π0, η and η′ electromagnetic form factors

Abstract: We present measurement of the π0γ*γ, ηγ*γ and η′γ*γ form factors. The π0-form factor is for the first time observed in the space-like region. The transition form factor of the η-meson is determined from its decay modes π+π−π0, π+π−γ and the neutral decay mode γγ. The decay of the η′ is observed in the decay channels ργ, ηπ+π− with η→γγ and in the four charged prong final state stemming from ηπ+π− with the η decaying into π+π−(π0/γ). All form factors agree well with a simple ρ-pole predicted by the vector meson dominance model and also with the QCD inspired Brodsky-Lepage model.

A novel class of plant proteins containing a homeodomain with a closely linked leucine zipper motif.

Abstract: The homeobox, a 183 bp DNA sequence element, was originally identified as a region of sequence similarity between many Drosophila homeotic genes. The homeobox codes for a DNA-binding motif known as the homeodomain. Homeobox genes have been found in many animal species, including sea urchins, nematodes, frogs, mice and humans. To isolate homeobox-containing sequences from the plant Arabidopsis thaliana, a cDNA library was screened with a highly degenerate oligonucleotide corresponding to a conserved eight amino acid sequence from the helix-3 region of the homeodomain. Using this strategy two cDNA clones sharing homeobox-related sequences were identified. Interestingly, both of the cDNAs also contain a second element that potentially codes for a leucine zipper motif which is located immediately 3' to the homeobox. The close proximity of these two domains suggests that the homeodomain-leucine zipper motif could, via dimerization of the leucine zippers, recognize dyad-symmetrical DNA sequences.

Substantive and procedural uncertainty

Abstract: Different sources of uncertainty are analysed and a representation of decision-making in principle consistent with behavioural evidence is proposed. The endogenous emergence of “innovations”, in the forms of unexpected events and novel behaviours is also examined.

Multiresidue method for pesticides in drinking water using a graphitized carbon black cartridge extraction and liquid chromatographic analysis.

Abstract: A general liquid-solid extraction procedure for the isolation of pesticides from groundwater and drinking water for high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) is presented. This simple and rapid procedure involved passing a 2-L sample through a 250-mg graphitized carbon black (Carbopack B) cartridge at a flow rate of 150-160 mL/min. By taking advantage of the presence of positively charged active centers on the Carbopack B surface, a stepwise elution system allowed the complete separation of base-neutral pesticides from acidic ones. After partial solvent removal, the components in the two fractions were separated and quantified by gradient elution, reversed-phase HPLC with ultraviolet (UV) detection. The performance of the Carbopack cartridge was compared with that of a 500-mg C-18 bonded silica cartridge. With the Carbopack cartridge, the grand mean measurement accuracy of the 35 pesticides considered was 95%. With the C-18 cartridge, the grand mean measurement accuracy of the analytes was 76%. Compared to the C-18 cartridge, additional advantages of using a Carbopack cartridge are that the extraction procedure is about 7 times shorter, no pH adjustment of the environmental sample is necessary for trapping acidic compounds, and one cartridge instead of two suffices to extract base-neutral and acidic pesticides, making the Carbopack cartridge more adaptable than the C-18 one for field use. The detection limits by this method of all the pesticides considered were between 0.003 and 0.07 micrograms/L.

Every gauge orbit passes inside the Gribov horizon

Abstract: TheL 2 topology is introduced on the space of gauge connectionsA and a natural topology is introduced on the group of local gauge transformationsGT. It is shown that the mappingGT×A→A defined byA→A g=g*Ag+g*dg is continuous and that each gauge orbit is closed. The Hilbert norm of the gauge connection achieves its absolute minimum on each gauge orbit, at which point the orbit intersects the region bounded by the Gribov horizon.

Loss performance analysis of an ATM multiplexer loaded with high-speed on-off sources

Abstract: The performance of an asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) multiplexer whose input consists of the superposition of a multiplicity of homogeneous on-off sources modeled by a two-state Markovian process is studied. The approach is based on the approximation of the actual input process by means of a suitably chosen two-state Markov modulated Poisson process (MMPP), as a simple and effective choice for the representation of superposition arrival streams. To evaluate the cell loss performance, a new matching procedure that leads to accurate results compared to simulation is developed. The application limits of the proposed method are also discussed. The outstanding physical meaning of this procedure permits a deep insight into the multiplexer performance behavior as the source parameters and the multiplexer buffer size are varied. >

Neutralizing antibodies to interferon-alpha: relative frequency in patients treated with different interferon preparations.

Abstract: The frequencies of antibody development so far reported in patients treated with different interferons (IFNs) are not readily comparable because of differences in treatment regimens and assay methods. Thus the frequency of neutralizing antibody development was analyzed in a large sample of sera derived from a relatively homogeneous group of patients treated with different IFN-alpha preparations. The frequency of developing neutralizing antibody to IFN varied according to the IFN given. Particularly, the seroconversion frequency was significantly higher in patients treated with recombinant IFN-alpha 2a (20.2%) than in patients treated with either recombinant IFN-alpha 2b (6.9%) or IFN-alpha N1 (1.2%), a lymphoblastoid IFN-alpha. Furthermore, sera obtained from patients treated with either recombinant IFN neutralized both types of recombinant IFNs but failed to neutralize IFN-alpha N1.

Chronic pain: a PET study of the central effects of percutaneous high cervical cordotomy

Abstract: We have studied 5 patients with unilateral, severe chronic pain due to cancer before and after percutaneous, ventrolateral cervical cordotomy to investigate the central effects of the procedure. The aim was to identify the functional anatomical correlates of abolishing unilateral nociceptive input to the brain. Patients were investigated by positron emission tomography using C15O2 to evaluate cerebral blood flow. Comparisons were made between the patients with unilateral pain before cordotomy and normal volunteers. These demonstrated significantly less blood flow in 3 out of 4 of the individual quadrants of the hemithalamus contralateral to the side of pain (P < 0.01–0.05). These differences were abolished by cordotomy. Comparison of the patients before and after cordotomy showed a significant decrease in blood flow in the dorsal anterior quadrant of the thalamus contralateral to the side of pain (P < 0.05) which was normalised after cordotomy. There were no significant changes in the prefrontal or primary somatosensory cortex. We conclude that chronic pain results in a decrease of synaptic activity at thalamic level either from decreased activity in neurones projecting to that region and/or attenuated local neuronal firing. We have demonstrated no secondary remote effects in cortex, indicating the importance of subcortical mechanisms in central responses to chronic pain.

Inclusive particle production in 400 GeV/c pp-interactions

Abstract: We report on a study of inclusive particle production in pp-interactions at 400 GeV/c. The data are based on 472 K reconstructed events recorded in the NA 27 experiment using the LEBC-EHS facility at CERN. The production cross sections are determined of pseudo scalar (π±,0, η andK±), scalar (f0(975)), vector (ρ±,0(770), ω(783), ϕ(1020),K*0(892), and\(\bar K^{ * 0} \)(892)), and tensorf0 mesons, of protons and antiprotons, and theΔ++,+,0(1232), and Λ(1520) baryon resonances in the forward hemisphere of the center of mass system, as well as longitudinal and transverse momentum distributions. The results are compared with predictions of the FRITIOF model and with other experimental data.

Surgical treatment of hydatid disease of the liver. A 20-year experience.

Abstract: • The medical records of 135 consecutive patients (74 women and 61 men) who underwent surgery for hydatid liver disease were reviewed. The patients ranged in age from 4 to 81 years. Twenty-seven patients had undergone previous surgery for hydatid liver disease. Cysts were solitary in 100 patients and multiple in 35 patients. Seventeen patients had concomitant extrahepatic disease. Conservative procedures were used in 71 patients (capitonnage in 50 patients and partial pericystectomy in 21 patients). Radical procedures were used in 64 patients (total pericystectomy in 35 patients, subtotal pericystectomy in 16 patients, and wedge or major liver resection in 13 patients). Operative mortality was 2.2% and morbidity rate was 23.7%. Recurrent disease was found in 13 patients at a mean interval of 3 years from the first operation. Better short- and long-term results were obtained with the use of radical procedures. ( Arch Surg . 1991;126:518-523)

Spontaneous release of interferon gamma by intestinal lamina propria lymphocytes in Crohn's disease. Kinetics of in vitro response to interferon gamma inducers.

Abstract: The spontaneous induced release of interferon gamma (IFN gamma) by cultured intestinal lamina propria lymphocytes was investigated in patients with Crohn's disease. In contrast to normal lymphocytes, intestinal lymphocytes from these patients spontaneously released IFN gamma and seemed to contain IFN gamma in their cytoplasm. Autologous peripheral lymphocytes did not release IFN gamma. When stimulated with interferon inducers lamina propria lymphocytes from Crohn's disease tissue showed an increase in IFN gamma release 24 hours after induction with no appreciable further increase over the next two days of culture, while in control cells, either peripheral or intestinal, IFN gamma release progressively increased, peaking 72 hours after induction. These findings indicate that in Crohn's disease the intestinal lymphocytes are stimulated in vivo to produce IFN gamma and that the spontaneous IFN gamma production is compartmentalised to the gut lymphocytes. These data support the concept that locally released IFN gamma has a crucial role in cell interactions in the lamina propria and contribute to the locally occurring immune phenomena in Crohn's disease, including the increased epithelial expression of major histocompatibility complex class II antigens.

A Prediction of the Multifractal Model: the Intermediate Dissipation Range

Abstract: It is shown that the multifractal model of fully developed turbulence predicts a new form of universality for the energy spectrum E(k), which can be tested experimentally. Denoting by R the Reynolds number, log E/logR should be a universal function of log k/log R. This includes an intermediate dissipation range in which a continuous range of multifractal scaling exponents are successively turned off by viscosity.

Spontaneous emission in the optical microscopic cavity

Abstract: The quantum theory of the spontaneous emission (SpE) from an active microscopic cavity (microcavity) is given with emphasis on mirror separations of the order of the optical wavelength. The theory is based on a complete set of orthonormal-mode functions that include both transverse polarizations and span the infinite three dimensional space that pervades and surrounds the microcavity. SpE rates for different active-dipole orientations and cavity configurations are calculated. The SpE pulse shape detected outside the cavity is shown to be generally nonexponential. A detailed computer simulation of the process is presented on the basis of the given theory in the perspective of our experiment, for a cavity terminated by mirrors bearing either metal- or semiconductor-multilayered coatings. We then report an extensive experimental verification of the theory by adopting an Eu-dibenzoylmethane complex as active medium with SpE from the $^{5}$${\mathit{D}}_{0\mathrm{\ensuremath{-}}}^{7}$${\mathit{F}}_{2}$ line at \ensuremath{\lambda}=6111 \AA{}, under coherent uv excitation at ${\ensuremath{\lambda}}_{\mathit{p}}$=3547 \AA{}. The results show evidence of ``SpE inhibition'' and ``enhancement,'' of nonexponential decay of SpE signals, and of competition with superradiance and stimulated emission. Finally we report the results of an experimental test of the algorithm adopted in all computer calculations of the optical parameters of the multilayered structures used for cavity confinement.