Bollettino della Comunità Scientifica in Australasia

Ambasciata d’Italia CANBERRA Bollettino della Comunità Scientifica in Australasia Aprile 2008 Anno VIII – Fascicolo I Ufficio dell’Addetto Scientifico PIAR (Publications for Italian and Australian Reseachers Inc) Bollettino della Comunità Scientifica in Australasia Ambasciata d’Italia CANBERRA Aprile 2008 Bollettino della Comunità Scientifica in Australasia Ambasciata d’Italia Aprile 2008 CANBERRA Bollettino della Comunità Scientifica in Australasia Aprile 2008 Sponsored by: I Bollettino della Comunità Scientifica in Australasia Ambasciata d’Italia Aprile 2008 CANBERRA II Bollettino della Comunità Scientifica in Australasia Ambasciata d’Italia Aprile 2008 CANBERRA Introduzione ARIA-Canberra Award Lo strumento delle borse di studio destinate a giovani ricercatori ed in particolare a dottorandi in ricerca e’ oggi piu’ che mai un elemento indispensabile per la cooperazione scientifica e tecnologica fra due paesi Attraverso il sostegno di tali iniziative si ipoteca il futuro della cooperazione internazionale nell’ambito della ricerca Nel corso di questi sette anni sono state organizzati un centinaio di scambi di ricercatori finanziati soprattutto da alcune Regioni Italiane nell’ambito di singoli accordi Vorrei ricordare le borse di studio finanziate nell’ambito dell’evento IATICE del 2002 a Melbourne; le 15 borse di studio cofinaziate dalla Regione Campania in collaborazione cinque universita’ australiane in aree tematiche; le numerose borse di studio cofinanziate dalla Regione Lombardia, attraverso il Politecnico di Milano, la Bocconi, il CNR e l’Universita’ di Milano Bicocca nei settori del design, dell’economia del telerilevamento e della telemedicina per un ammontare complessivo di circa 200.000 euro (320.000 A$); alcune borse di studio cofinanziate dalla Regione Veneto e lo Stato del Victoria nei settori dell’agrofood e del restauro; ed infine, notizia dello scorso mese, le numerose borse di studio cofinanziate dalla Regione Puglia e dallo Stato del South Australia per un importo di 1.500.000 di Euro (2.400.000 di dollari Australiani) da destinare a scambi fra le due Regioni per i prossimi tre anni in diverse discipline dall’agrofood all’automazione, all’ICT etc In tale ambito vi e’ da segnalare l’importante iniziativa dell’Associazione ARIACanberra che, stimolando alcuni interlocutori istituzionali del Territorio dell’ACT quali il Governo del’ACT, l’Ambasciata d’Italia a Canberra, l’Australian Academy of Science, il FEAST (Forum for European –Australian Scientific and Technological Cooperation) e l’Associazione PIAR (Publication for Italian and Australian Researcher), raccolto consensi e risorse necessarie per promuove l’ARIA Award: due borse di studio da 3000 dollari australiani da destinare a giovani ricercatori interessati ad uno scambio tra universita’ e centri di ricerca italiani e quelli dell’Australian Capital Territory Il risultato di tale iniziativa e’ stato davvero sorprendente: sono pervenute 17 richieste in totale, di cui 10 da ricercatori italiani (Universita’ di Bologna, Torino, Cagliari, Brescia, l’Aquila, Catania e Milano) per sviluppare attivita’ di ricerca in ACT e da ricercatori australiani (provenienti da Australian National University ed ADFA UNSW) per lavorare per un breve periodo presso universita’ o centri di ricerca italiani I settori di afferenza di coloro che hanno presentato domanda sono i piu’ disparati: dalle geoscienze allo spazio, alla chimica, alla biologia, alle scienze sociali ed economiche I criteri di selezione sono stati individuati fra i vari partner dell’iniziativa ed hanno favorito giovani ricercatori che operano nell’ambito di attivita’ di ricerca gia’ consolidate in passato fra gli istituti coinvolti e, in particolare, sono state premiate le proposte una eccellente credibilita’ di attuazione e che possano stimolare nuovi finanziamenti La prima borsa di studio e’ stata assegnata al dott Stefano Dimarco del Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Biomediche della Facolta’ di Medicina dell’Universita dell’Acquila che trascorrera’ un periodo di ricerca presso i laboratori del Research School of Biological Sciences del College of Science dell’Australian National University nel campo della biofisica medica e dell'analisi delle immagini, dei meccanismi retinici e degli algoritmi cerebrali della visione L’applicazione di questa attivita’ di ricerca consentira’ di progettare robot autonomi guidati da informazioni visive Inoltre, tale attivita’ rietra nella cooperazione esistente tra le due Universita’ nell’ambito del programma di ricerca “Centre of Excellence in Vision Science” finanziato fino al 2010 dell’Australian Reserach Council In tale ambito l’ANU e l’Universita’ dell’Aquila studieranno l’equilibrio tra sopravvivenza e degenerazione delle componenti cellulari oculari lo scopo a lungo termine di III Bollettino della Comunità Scientifica in Australasia Ambasciata d’Italia Aprile 2008 CANBERRA sviluppare strategie di diagnosi e terapie in malattie oculari che portano alla cecita’ La seconda borsa di studio e’ stata assegnata alla dott.ssa Sudantha Balage del gruppo di ricerca “Hypersonic” della ADFA NSW di Canberra che trascorerra’ un periodo di lavoro presso il Centro Italiano di Ricerca Aereospaziale CIRA di Capua in Campania dove si occupera’ della fluidodinamica applicata alle navicelle spaziali di rientro dalle missioni nella zona prossima all’atmosfera ARIA Canberra intrapreso un’importante iniziativa che merita di poter essere perseguita in futuro e da altre Associazioni coinvolte nella promozione della cooperazione S&T: poche risorse economiche di partenza si e’ stati in grado di coinvolgere gli enti locali preposti a stimolare la ricerca sul territorio e di creare un notevole interesse fra i ricercatori coinvolti nella cooperazione bilaterale Nicola Sasanelli Addetto Scientifico IV Bollettino della Comunità Scientifica in Australasia Ambasciata d’Italia Aprile 2008 CANBERRA Introduction ARIA-Canberra Award Scholarships in favour of young researchers and in particular PhD students conducting their studies on research are a crucial element to boost scientific and technological cooperation among countries, now more than ever The support to these initiatives mortgages the future of international cooperation in the field of research During the last seven years, about a hundred exchanges for researchers have been organised, also thanks to this Office They are mainly funded by Italian regions under individual agreements It is worth recalling the scholarships funded under the 2002 IATICE event in Melbourne Furthermore, the Campania Region funded 15 scholarships on themes in cooperation with five Australian universities; the Lombardy region, through the Politecnico of Milan, the “Bocconi” university, CNR (National Council for Research) and the university of Milano Bicocca, funded numerous scholarships in the field of design, and medical telesurvey amounting to 200,000 euro (320,000 AUD); the Veneto Region and the State of Victoria co-funded several scholarships in the sector of agrofood and restoration; and finally, last month’s news, the Apulia Region and the State of South Australia allocated 1,500,000 euro (2,400,000 AUD) in favour of scholarships aimed at exchanges between the two Regions over the next three years in several areas, such as agrofood, automation and ICT In this context, it is worth mentioning the important initiative tabled by the ARIACanberra Association which, stimulating institutional interlocutors in the Australian Capital Territory, such as the ACT Government, the Embassy of Italy in Canberra, the Australian Academy of Science, FEAST (Forum for European –Australian Scientific and Technological Cooperation) and PIAR Association (Publication for Italian and Australian Researcher), has been able to gather the necessary resources to promote ARIA Award, two 3,000 AUD-worth scholarships for young researchers interested in an exchange between Italian and ACT universities and research centres The result of such initiative was astonishing 17 applications, 10 from Italian researchers (University of Bolonia, Turin, Cagliari, Brescia, L'Aquila, Catania and Milan) for the development of research activities in ACT and from Australian researchers (ANU and ADFA UNSW) to conduct research in Italian universities and research centres for a short period, were submitted Sectors involved are varied and include earth sciences, space, chemistry, biology, social sciences and economics Selection criteria were identified by partners involved in the initiative favouring young researchers who operate in well-established research activities which see the participation of the institutions involved Proposals with greater implementation feasibility and able to boost new funds in future were awarded The first scholarship has been assigned to Dr Stefano Dimarco of the Department of Biomedical Science and Technology of the University of L’Aquila Dr Dimarco will spend a period of research at the Research School of Biological Sciences, at the College of Science of the Australian National University in the field of medical biophysics, to work at the analysis of images and in particular on the retinal mechanisms and the cerebral algorithms of the vision Dr Dimarco’s expertise in patch-clamp studies of the isolated retina will enable an entirely new way of analyzing the impact of photoreceptor degeneration on the inner retina, using the ANU model of human retinal dystrophies The research in cooperation between ANU and the University of L’Aquila will study the equilibrium between survival and degeneration of the ocular cellular components aiming, in the long term, to develop strategies of diagnosis and therapies for ocular diseases that lead to blindness This application will allow designing new robots guided by visual information Dr Dimarco’s scholarship fits well with the program of the ARC “Centre of Excellence in Vision Science”, under which these research activities are supported until 2010 V Bollettino della Comunità Scientifica in Australasia Ambasciata d’Italia Aprile 2008 CANBERRA The second scholarship has been assigned to dr Sudantha Balage from the "Hypersonic" research group of ADFA -UNSW in Canberra Dr Balage will spend a period of research activity at the Italian Aerospace Research Center CIRA in Capua, Campania, where he will work at flow dynamics of the near wake region of the atmospheric entry capsules ARIA Canberra has undertaken an important initiative which deserves greater attention in future as well as the participation of other Associations which promote S&T cooperation; with few initial economic resources local bodies have been involved in order to stimulate research in the territory and create greater interest among researchers involved in bilateral cooperation Nicola Sasanelli Scientific Attache’ VI Bollettino della Comunità Scientifica in Australasia Ambasciata d’Italia Aprile 2008 CANBERRA VII Bollettino della Comunità Scientifica in Australasia Ambasciata d’Italia Aprile 2008 CANBERRA VIII Bollettino della Comunità Scientifica in Australasia Ambasciata d’Italia CANBERRA Aprile 2008 exile on the Island of Elba, on the day of his death (May 5, 1821) on the Island of Saint Helena, and on the day after his death Samples taken from the King of Rome (Napoleon’s son) in the years 1812, 1816, 1821, and 1826, and samples from the Empress Josephine, collected upon her death in 1814, were also analysed The hair samples were provided by the Glauco-Lombardi Museum in Parma (Italy), the Malmaison Museum in Paris, and the Napoleonic Museum in Rome In addition to these “historical” hair samples, 10 hairs from living persons were examined for comparison purposes The hairs were placed in capsules and inserted in the core of the nuclear reactor in Pavia The technique used is known as “neutron activation”, which has two enormous advantages: it does not destroy the sample and it provides extremely precise results even on samples with an extremely small mass, such as human hair samples Using this technique, the researchers have established that all of the hair samples contained traces of arsenic The researchers chose to test for arsenic in particular because for a number of years various historians, scientists, and writers have hypothesized that Napoleon was poisoned by guards during his imprisonment in Saint Helena following the Battle of Waterloo The examination produced some surprising results First of all, the level of arsenic in all of the hair samples from 200 years ago is 100 times greater than the average level detected in samples from persons living today In fact, the Emperor’s hair had an average arsenic level of around ten parts per one million whereas the arsenic level in the hair samples from currently living persons was around one tenth of a part per one million In other words, at the beginning of the 19th people evidently ingested arsenic that was present in the environment in quantities that are currently considered as dangerous The other surprise regards the finding that there were no significant differences in arsenic levels between when Napoleon was a boy and during his final days in Saint Helena According to the researchers, and in particular the toxicologists who participated in the study, it is evident that this was not a case of poisoning but instead the result of the constant absorption of arsenic Further information: prof Ettore Fiorini, INFN ettore.fiorini@mib.infn.it 135 Bollettino della Comunità Scientifica in Australasia Ambasciata d’Italia CANBERRA Aprile 2008 MEDICINE  Comparison of anticoagulants for angioplasty show similar outcomes In a comparison of anticoagulants and stents for use with angioplasty following a heart attack, the anticoagulants abciximab and tirofiban had similar outcomes for some cardiac measures within 90 minutes after the procedure, while patients who received stents that released the drug sirolimus had a lower risk of major adverse cardiac events within months than patients who received uncoated stents, according to a JAMA study being released early online March 30 to coincide with its presentation at the annual conference of the American College of Cardiology In their study Marco Valgimigli, M.D., Ph.D., of the Cardiovascular Institute, University of Ferrara, Italy, and colleagues evaluated the effect of high-dose tirofiban and sirolimus-releasing stents compared with abciximab infusion and uncoated-stent implantation in 745 patients with STEMI undergoing PCI The trial was conducted in Italy, Spain, and Argentina between October 2004 and April 2007 “In summary, our study provides evidence that in a broad population of largely unselected patients undergoing PCI for STEMI, tirofiban therapy is associated with a noninferior resolution from ST-segment elevation at 90 minutes postintervention compared with abciximab, and at 8-month follow-up, MACE are approximately halved by sirolimus-eluting stent implantation compared with uncoated stents,” the authors write Modified from http://www.eurekalert.org/  A new method to identify mutated genes in human diseases Researchers from the University of Turin, Italy and the University of Nijmegen, The Netherlands, have devised a new method that may help the medical community to determine the genetic basis of many common diseases Their findings are described in an article published March 21st in the open-access journal PLoS Computational Biology Thousands of human diseases originate from mutations in one or more genes Identification of mutated genes is a crucial first step towards understanding the molecular mechanisms at the origin of diseases and devising a treatment In many cases, we not know the identity of the affected gene, only a chromosomal region (typically containing hundred of genes) in which the mutation is located The research group, led by Ferdinando Di Cunto and Paolo Provero, analyzed gene expression data (patterns of gene activity in tissues and cell lines) from thousands of published experiments to identify genes showing patterns comparable to the ones of mutated genes in similar diseases The study identified candidate genes for 81 diseases, including various forms of epilepsy and muscular dystrophy As in all such analyses, the results must be verified experimentally However, the task of understanding the molecular basis of many diseases could be significantly simplified by the results of this work Modified from http://www.eurekalert.org/  A new study locates variants associated with Lipid Levels and risk for Coronary Artery Disease An international study co-led by the Institute of Neurogenetic and Neuropharmacology of Cagliari, found seven new genes that influence blood cholesterol levels, a major factor in heart disease, and confirmed 11 other genes previously thought to influence cholesterol Scientists initially examined million genetic variants in 8,800 Finnish (from the FUSION study) and Sardinian individuals (from the SardiNIA study) using the novel approach known as “genome-wide association”, and ended up focusing on a total of 25 genetic variants on 18 genes in 20,000 individuals from around the world Of the seven new variants, two 136 Bollettino della Comunità Scientifica in Australasia Ambasciata d’Italia CANBERRA Aprile 2008 influenced HDL, one influenced LDL, and three influenced triglycerides, which are found in fat and in the bloodstream and like LDL, and one variant influenced both triglycerides and LDL Altogether, the variations reported are responsible for less than a quarter of the genetic contributions to lipid levels Besides identifing comprehensively genetic variants that influence lipid levels, the purpose of the study was also to examine the relationships between these genetic variants and risk of coronary artery disease (CAD), a condition where plaque accumulates on the walls of coronary arteries, is the most common type of heart disease and a leading cause of death in industrialized countries While none of the variants influencing HDL (“good cholesterol”) were associated with decreased risk of CAD, nearly all of the gene regions found to be involved in higher LDL("bad" cholesterol) levels were also associated with an increased risk of CAD This is a remarkable result and suggests that new drug therapies that target the genes in these regions will also help prevent coronary artery disease and allow people to live longer and healthier lives Further information: Serena Sanna serena.sanna@gmail.com  Common genetic variants linked to arthritis may also play a role in human height To arrive at their findings, researchers from the Institute of Neurogenetic and Neurofarmacology in Cagliari, analyzed the DNA of 4,000 Sardinian volunteers from the SardiNIA project, in a collaborative study with scientists from The United States and Europe, analyzing at the end more than 30,000 people from around the world If there were average height differences for individuals with certain genetic variants, this indicated that something in that genomic region containing the variants likely influenced height In this particular study, researchers initially examined the effects of more than million genetic variants, using a novel approch named “genome-wide association” The variants most strongly associated with height lie in a region of the human genome thought to influence expression of a gene for growth differentiation factor 5, called GDF5, which is a protein involved in the development of cartilage in the legs and other long bones Rare variants in the GDF5 gene have been associated with disorders of skeletal development, and more common variants recently have been tied to susceptibility to osteoarthritis of the hip and knees in Asian and European populations The new variant is associated with an average difference in height of about 0.4 centimeters, or a little more than an eighth of an inch The range went from 0.3 cm to 1.4 cm, depending on the population and whether an individual had one or two copies of the so-called taller version of the variant A variety of factors, including genetics, diet and prenatal environment, interact to determine how tall someone grows It is currently thought that genetic factors are responsible for at least 80 percent of the variation in height amongst people This variant accounts for less than percent of the genetic basis of height as so, also the only previous variant identified untill now Thus, many of the genetic components have yet to be discovered Further information: Serena Sanna serena.sanna@gmail.com  A new role for free radicals Estrogens control growth and survival of hormone-sensitive cells by inducing expression of genes important for cell cycle progression and apoptosis The hormone 17b-estradiol regulates transcription of target genes through interaction with one of two estrogen receptors (ERa and ERb), which then bind to estrogen responsive elements (EREs) on DNA After hormone activation, ERa interacts with transcription co-activators that covalently modify histone proteins within nucleosomes and contibute to the control of gene expression Estrogen-induced expression of target genes is marked by hormone-dependent demethylation of histone H3 at lysine and methylation of lysine within the same histone Demethylation of mono- and dimethylated H3 lysine is catalyzed by the lysinespecific demethylase (LSD1), which generates H2O2 as a byproduct, resulting into formation of 8-oxo-guanine at the ERE and promoter sites After LSD1-dependent 137 Bollettino della Comunità Scientifica in Australasia Ambasciata d’Italia CANBERRA Aprile 2008 DNA oxidation, the DNA repair enzymes, 8-oxo-guanine DNA glycosylase (OGG1) and topoisomerase IIb, are recruited at the ERE and promoter loci yielding to generation of abasic sites due to removal of 8-oxo-guanine by OGG1, These sites are ultimately repaired by topoisomerase IIb that also relaxes the DNA and facilitates the activation of the RNA polymerase, RNA Pol II, leading to efficient transcription of the gene In sum, hormone-responsive regions, where the transcription complex is asssembeld, are marked by demethylation of lysine in histone H3 Hence, the RNA pol II complex intimately associates with DNA repair enzymes to initiate hormone-dependent gene expression Further information: Bruno Perillo perillo@unina.it  An ambulance man for muscle damage Scientists harness a natural emergency response to increase the regeneration ability of muscle It does not take much to injure a muscle Sometimes one sudden, inconsiderate movement does the job Unfortunately, damaged muscles are not as efficient at repair as other tissues such as bone Researchers of the European Molecular Biology Laboratory’s Mouse Biology Unit (EMBL), Italy, and the Harefield Heart Science Centre of Imperial College London, have now discovered a molecular signal that helps muscle regenerate and protects it from atrophy In this week’s issue of the Journal of Cell Biology they report that the naturally occurring protein is a promising candidate for new strategies in treating muscle damage and wasting Muscle regeneration after injury is complex and requires a coordinated interplay between many different processes Key players in regeneration are muscle stem cells, so-called satellite cells They divide and produce many new muscle cells to fix the damage incurred by injury A crucial regulator of muscle function and repair is a signalling molecule called calcineurin It is activated by injury and controls the activity of other key proteins involved in differentiation and the response to damage “This system allows flexible reaction to muscle injury,” says Rosenthal, head of EMBL’s Mouse Biology Unit, “Permanently active CnAß1 is expressed only in proliferating stem cells and regenerating muscles, suggesting it as something like an ambulance man that is called only in response to muscle damage.” Modified from http://www.eurekalert.org/  Springer publishes La Chirurgia degli Organi de Movimento English-language journal on musculoskeletal surgery joins expanding orthopedics program Springer, one of the leading STM publishers, will begin publishing La Chirurgia degli Organi de Movimento: Musculoskeletal Surgery in December 2007 The journal is the official publication of the Istituti Ortopedici Rizzoli, one of the most renowned orthopedic institutes in Europe It is published three times a year entirely in English La Chirurgia degli Organi di Movimento – Musculoskeletal Surgery, founded in 1917 at the Istituti Ortopedici Rizzoli in Bologna, Italy, is a peer-reviewed journal which is international in scope and readership Its editorial team, including experts from around the globe, is headed by Sandro Giannini and Armando Giunti Providing upto-date information to orthopedic clinicians and practitioners, the journal publishes original papers, reviews, case reports and brief communications dealing with surgical treatment of diseases and injuries of the musculoskeletal system Carlotta d’Imporzano, Managing Editor, Medical Journals, at Springer Italy, said, “La Chirurgia degli Organi di Movimento benefits from a long tradition and is already well known and cited by experts all over the world To further enhance the journal’s visibility, the print version is now supported by its electronic counterpart at www.springerlink.com Springer, with its publishing expertise, can help the journal reach its growth objectives.” La Chirurgia degli Organi di Movimento is published at Springer online and in print The journal includes Online First™, Cross Reference Linking, and Alert services All authors, via the Springer Open Choice™ program, have the option of publishing their articles using the open access publishing model 138 Bollettino della Comunità Scientifica in Australasia Ambasciata d’Italia Aprile 2008 CANBERRA Modified from http://www.eurekalert.org/  Walking and moderate exercise help prevent dementia People age 65 and older who regularly walk and get other forms of moderate exercise appear to significantly lower their risk of developing vascular dementia, the second most common form of dementia after Alzheimer’s disease The four-year study involved 749 men and women in Italy who were over age 65 and did not have memory problems at the beginning of the study Researchers measured the amount of energy exerted in the participants’ weekly physical activities, including walking, climbing stairs, and moderate activities, such as house and yard work, gardening, and light carpentry By the end of the study, 54 people developed Alzheimer’s disease and 27 developed vascular dementia “Our findings show moderate physical activity, such as walking, and all physical activities combined lowered the risk of vascular dementia in the elderly independent of several sociodemographic, genetic and medical factors,” said study author Giovanni Ravaglia, MD, with University Hospital S Orsola Malpighi, in Bologna, Italy “It’s important to note that an easy-to-perform moderate activity like walking provided the same cognitive benefits as other, more demanding activities.” Ravaglia says it’s possible that physical activity may improve cerebral blood flow and lower the risk of cerebrovascular disease, which is a risk factor for vascular dementia, but further research is needed about the mechanisms operating between physical activity and a person’s memory Modified from http://www.eurekalert.org/  Acute coronary events decreased after public smoking ban in Italy The number of acute coronary events such as heart attack in adults dropped significantly after a smoking ban in public places in Italy, researchers reported in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association Researchers in Rome compared acute coronary events in the city for five years preceding a public smoking ban with those occurring one year after the ban They found an 11.2 percent reduction of acute coronary events in persons 35 to 64 years and a 7.9 percent reduction in those ages 65 to 74 “Smoking bans in all public and workplaces result in an important reduction of acute coronary events,” said Francesco Forastiere, M.D., Ph.D., co-author of the study and head of the Environmental and Occupational Epidemiology Unit, Department of Epidemiology, Rome E Health Authority, Italy “The smoking ban in Italy is working and having a real protective effect on population health.” The study was the first in Europe to show long-term health benefits of smoking bans in public places It also was the first to consider in detail other factors such as temperature, air pollution, flu epidemics and time trends that affect acute coronary events such as heart attack Modified from http://www.eurekalert.org/  Reprogrammed human adult stem cells rescue diseased muscle in mice Scientists report that adult stem cells isolated from humans with muscular dystrophy can be genetically corrected and used to induce functional improvement when transplanted into a mouse model of the disease The research, published by Cell Press in the December issue of Cell Stem Cell, represents a significant advance toward the future development of a gene therapy that uses a patient’s own cells to treat this devastating muscle-wasting disease Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is a hereditary disease caused by a mutation in the gene that codes for a muscle protein called dystrophin Dystrophin is a key structural protein that helps to keep muscle cells intact DMD is characterized by a chronic degeneration of skeletal muscle cells that leads to progressive muscle weakness Although intense research has focused on finding a way to replace the defective dystrophin protein, at this time there is no cure for DMD 139 Bollettino della Comunità Scientifica in Australasia Ambasciata d’Italia CANBERRA Aprile 2008 A research group led by Dr Yvan Torrente from the University of Milan used a combination of cell- and gene-based therapy to isolate adult human stem cells from DMD patients and engineer a genetic modification to correct the dystrophin gene “Use of the patient’s own cells would reduce the risk of implant rejection seen with transplantation of normal muscle-forming cells,” explains Dr Torrente Modified from http://www.eurekalert.org/  Outbreak of tropical disease in nontropical area emphasizes need for preparedness and response A chikungunya virus outbreak in Italy – a temperate country not usually affected by such viruses – emphasises the need for preparedness and response to emerging infectious threats as globalisation increases These are the conclusions of authors of an Article published in this week’s edition of The Lancet Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is an insect-borne virus transmitted to humans by the Aedes mosquitoes Outbreaks have been reported in several African countries, the Indian subcontinent, and in southeast Asia In recent years, a series of outbreaks have occurred in a large geographic area, covering Kenya, the Comoros Islands, La Réunion Island, other islands in the Indian Ocean, and India During the outbreak on islands in the Indian Ocean, travellers from industrialised countries with a temperate climate became infected and were still infected on returning home Symptoms of the CHIKV infection include joint pain and a fever of above 38.5 degrees Celsius Professor Antonio Cassone, Department of Infectious, Parasitic, and Immunomediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Roma, Italy and colleagues investigated reports of large numbers of cases of febrile illness and arthralgia (showing signs of fever and joint pains) of unknown origin in two neighbouring villages in Ravenna, northeastern Italy An active surveillance system was implemented, and blood samples were gathered and analysed to identify the cause CHIKV was suspected early in the outbreak because one of the first patients to present symptoms was from a country affected by an outbreak of the virus, and the mosquitoes which carry the virus were present at high density in the area The authors conclude: “The occurrence of an outbreak of CHIKV infection in a country with a temperate climate emphasises that the predicted globalisation of human beings and vectors has become a reality To promptly identify new potential threats that were previously restricted to tropical areas, clinical and diagnostic capacities have to be developed in countries with a temperate climate and in which vectors of exotic diseases already circulate.” Modified from http://www.eurekalert.org/ 140 Bollettino della Comunità Scientifica in Australasia Ambasciata d’Italia CANBERRA Aprile 2008 ENVIRONMENT AND EARTH SCIENCES  Deep-sea species' loss could lead to oceans' collapse, study suggests The loss of deep-sea species poses a severe threat to the future of the oceans, suggests a new report publishing early online on December 27th and in the January 8th issue of Current Biology, a publication of Cell Press In a global-scale study, the researchers found some of the first evidence that the health of the deep sea, as measured by the rate of critical ecosystem processes, increases exponentially with the diversity of species living there “For the first time, we have demonstrated that deep-sea ecosystem functioning is closely dependent upon the number of species inhabiting the ocean floor,” said Roberto Danovaro of the Polytechnic University of Marche, in Italy “This shows that we need to preserve biodiversity, and especially deep-sea biodiversity, because otherwise the negative consequences could be unprecedented We must care about species that are far from us and [essentially] invisible.” Ecosystem functioning involves several processes, which can be summarized as the production, consumption, and transfer of organic matter to higher levels of the food chain, the decomposition of organic matter, and the regeneration of nutrients, he explained Recent investigations on land have suggested that biodiversity loss might impair the functioning and sustainability of ecosystems, Danovaro said However, the data needed to evaluate the consequences of biodiversity loss on the ocean floor had been completely lacking, despite the fact that the deep sea covers 65% of the Earth and is “by far the most important ecosystem for the cycling of carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus of the biosphere.” The deep sea also supports the largest “biomass” of living things, including a large proportion of undiscovered species Modified from http://www.eurekalert.org/  New portrait of Earth shows land cover as never before A new global portrait taken from space details Earth’s land cover with a resolution never before obtained ESA, in partnership with the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation, presented the preliminary version of the map to scientists last week at the 2nd GlobCover User Consultation workshop held in Rome, Italy Earth’s land cover has been charted from space before, but this map, which will be made available to the public upon its completion in July, has a resolution 10 times sharper than any of its predecessors Scientists, who will use the data to plot worldwide land-cover trends, study natural and managed ecosystems and to model climate change extent and impacts, are hailing the product – generated under the ESA-initiated GlobCover project – as 'a milestone.' "The GlobCover system is a great step forward in our capacities to automatically produce new global land cover products with a finer resolution and a more detailed thematic content than ever achieved in the past," Frédéric Achard of the European Commission's Joint Research Centre (JRC) said "This GlobCover product is much more than a map It is an operational scientific and technical demonstration of the first automated land cover mapping on a global scale and may provide the detailed description of the land surface states needed for regional climate modelling," said Prof Pierre Defourny, from the Université catholique de Louvain, who designed the land classification process "Land cover data is an essential requirement of the sustainable management of natural resources, environmental protection, food security, climate change and humanitarian programmes," John Latham of the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) said 141 Bollettino della Comunità Scientifica in Australasia Ambasciata d’Italia CANBERRA Aprile 2008 "The GlobCover product will be the first freely available product at 300m resolution and is therefore a milestone product which will be fundamental to a broad level stakeholder community." Modified from http://www.eurekalert.org/ 142 Bollettino della Comunità Scientifica in Australasia Ambasciata d’Italia CANBERRA Aprile 2008 SPACE  Firing photons makes advance in space communication For the first time, physicists have been able to identify individual returning photons after firing and reflecting them off of a space satellite in orbit almost 1,500 kilometres above the earth The experiment has proven the possibility of constructing a quantum channel between Space and Earth Research published on Friday, 28 March, in the New Journal of Physics, discusses the feasibility of building a completely secure channel for global communication, via satellites in space, all thanks to advances in quantum mechanics The research team, led by Paolo Villoresi and Cesare Barbieri from Padova University, Italy, has taken intricate steps to fire photons directly at the Japanese Ajisai Satellite The researchers have been able to prove that the photons received back at the Matera ground-based station, in southern Italy, are the same as those originally emitted This news will be welcomed by communication companies, banks, and MI5-types worldwide as it paves the way for quantum-encrypted communication - the only form of communication that could ensure beyond any doubt that there are no eavesdroppers Until now, quantum-encrypted communication has only been proven possible at distances up to about 150 kilometres, either down optical fibres or via telescopes When sent down optical fibres, photons are dissipated due to scattering and adsorption and, when using telescopes, photons are subject to interfering atmospheric conditions Anton Zeilinger, 2008 winner of the Institute of Physics’ premier award, the Newton Medal, was involved in the research The team now believes that Space-to-Earth quantum communication is possible with available technology The scientists write, “We have achieved significant experimental results towards the realization of a quantum communication channel, as well as how to actually adapt an existing laser ranging facility for quantum communication.” The team will now be furthering the research by making it possible to emit and receive quantum keys, uncrackable strings of 1s and 0s that enable quantum communication from an active sender in space Very recently, the Italian Space Agency has funded the initial phase of this project Taken from http://www.eurekalert.org/  Successful qualification firing test for Zefiro 23 On 27 March 2008, the second stage motor for Vega - Europe's new small launcher - successfully completed a static firing test at the Salto Di Quirra Inter-force Test Range in Sardinia, Italy Ignition of the qualification model of the Zefiro 23 solid-propellant rocket motor occurred at 13:15 CET In just 14 seconds, the thrust reached 930 kN, equivalent to nearly 95 tonnes of force This was the second and final firing test for the Zefiro 23, in which over 24 tonnes of propellant was consumed with a flame temperature of over 3000 K The burn lasted approximately 75 seconds and initial results show the test to be a success The combustion chamber pressure and motor thrust were well within the test prediction Large amplitude movements of the thrust vector control system were executed - simulating worst-case manoeuvres - and the performance was very satisfactory Additionally, modifications implemented in the nozzle design following the anomaly experienced during the previous Zefiro test were proven to be effective “The success of this test demonstrates the soundness of the design and rewards the enormous efforts of the team that has worked on the project,” stated Francesco Betti, Head of the Design Department at Avio's Space Division The motor will now be transported back to Avio's facility at Colleferro (Italy) for a thorough inspection of all its components and the data obtained from the 400 sensors deployed during the test will be analysed in more detail 143 Bollettino della Comunità Scientifica in Australasia Ambasciata d’Italia CANBERRA Aprile 2008 “The project team will rendezvous at Salto Di Quirra in June for the Zefiro firing test,” announced Paolo Bellomi, Technical Director of ELV, the Vega launcher prime contractor In the past 27 months, four Vega test firings have taken place at Salto Di Quirra, each one a milestone in the development of the Vega launcher The Zefiro 23 is the second Vega solid rocket motor to achieve qualification, following the P80 first stage motor, which completed qualification testing in December 2007 “The teams of Avio, ELV, SABCA APP and of the Integrated Programme Team of ESA, CNES and ASI did a great job This success paves the way for the Vega maiden flight,” said Stefano Bianchi, Head of the Vega Programme at ESA Modified from http://www.eurekalert.org/  Artemis provides communications for Jules Verne ATV ESA's Artemis data relay satellite, controlled from Fucino (Italy) and with its mission control centre and Earth terminal located at Redu (Belgium), is providing communications between the Jules Verne ATV and the ATV Control Centre in Toulouse (France) Jules Verne ATV was launched from Europe's Spaceport in French Guiana at 05:03 CET on March First contact between Artemis and the ATV was established at 06:46, exactly on schedule Artemis communicates with Jules Verne, receiving telemetry and sending telecommands, each time the two spacecraft are within sight of one another During every ATV orbit, there is around 40 minutes of continuous contact Artemis will provide dedicated support to Jules Verne throughout the free-flying phase of its mission - up to the docking planned for April After docking, Artemis' data relay resource will be shared between ATV and ESA's Envisat Earth observation mission Artemis is in geostationary orbit over the Atlantic Ocean It has three main purposes: the provision of voice and data communications between mobile terminals in remote areas of Europe and North Africa, as well as in the Atlantic performing a key role within Europe's EGNOS satellite navigation system by broadcasting enhanced GPS and GLONASS signals for use by civilian 'safety critical' transport and navigational services the provision of inter-orbit satellite communication using advanced S- and Ka-band radio links and laser technology Modified from http://www.eurekalert.org/  New light on dark energy Astronomers have used ESO’s Very Large Telescope to measure the distribution and motions of thousands of galaxies in the distant Universe This opens fascinating perspectives to better understand what drives the acceleration of the cosmic expansion and sheds new light on the mysterious dark energy that is thought to permeate the Universe “Explaining why the expansion of the Universe is currently accelerating is certainly the most fascinating question in modern cosmology,” says Luigi Guzzo, lead author of a paper in this week’s issue of Nature, in which the new results are presented “We have been able to show that large surveys that measure the positions and velocities of distant galaxies provide us with a new powerful way to solve this mystery.” Ten years ago, astronomers made the stunning discovery that the Universe is expanding at a faster pace today than it did in the past “This implies that one of two very different possibilities must hold true,” explains Enzo Branchini, member of the team “Either the Universe is filled with a mysterious dark energy which produces a repulsive force that fights the gravitational brake from all the matter present in the Universe, or, our current theory of gravitation is not correct and needs to be modified, for example by adding extra dimensions to space.” Current observations of the expansion rate of the Universe cannot distinguish between these two options, but the international team of 51 scientists from 24 144 Bollettino della Comunità Scientifica in Australasia Ambasciata d’Italia CANBERRA Aprile 2008 institutions found a way that could help in tackling this problem The technique is based on a well-known phenomenon, namely the fact that the apparent motion of distant galaxies results from two effects: the global expansion of the Universe that pushes the galaxies away from each other and the gravitational attraction of matter present in the galaxies’ neighbourhood that pulls them together, creating the cosmic web of large-scale structures “By measuring the apparent velocities of large samples of galaxies over the last thirty years, astronomers have been able to reconstruct a three-dimensional map of the distribution of galaxies over large volumes of the Universe This map revealed large-scale structures such as clusters of galaxies and filamentary superclusters ”, says Olivier Le Fèvre, member of the team “But the measured velocities also contain information about the local motions of galaxies; these introduce small but significant distortions in the reconstructed maps of the Universe We have shown that measuring this distortion at different epochs of the Universe’s history is a way to test the nature of dark energy.” Modified from http://www.eurekalert.org/ 145 Bollettino della Comunità Scientifica in Australasia Ambasciata d’Italia CANBERRA Aprile 2008 PROGRAMMA DELLE CONFERENZE IN AUSTRALASIA NEL 2008 28 Jan-2 feb, 2008, linux.conf.au, Australia's annual linux conference University of Melbourne, Melbourne Contacts: contact@mel8ourne.org, web: http://linux.conf.au/home February 10-13, 2008 -19th Congress of the International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, Melbourne ISAPS Executive Office, 45 Lyme Road Suite 304, Hanover, NH 03755, USA Telephone: +1 603 643-2325, Fax: +1 603 643-1444 Email: isaps@sover.net Web: http://www.isapscongress2008.org/ 17-21 February, 2008, 3rd International Solar Cities Congress, Adelaide, SA Contact: Congress Manager, Plevin and Associates Pty Ltd, PO Box 54, BURNSIDE 5066 South Australia, Tel National 00 8379 8222, Fax National 00 8379 8177 Email: events@plevin.com.au, web: http://www.solarcitiescongress.com.au 18 to 20 February 2008, 6th Biennial International Sentinel Node Society Meeting (SN2008) Sydney, NSW Contact name: Tour Hosts Pty Limited, Website: http://sentinelnode2008.com 21–23 February 2008, Australian Society for Antimicrobials, 9th Annual Scientific Meeting, Antimicrobials 2008, Stamford Plaza, Sydney Contact: Secretariat email: antimicrobials2008@icms.com.au, Web: http://www.antimicrobials2008.com/ March 5-6, 2008, The 4th Australasian Redesigning Health Care Summit, Melbourne Cricket Ground , Melbourne Contact: Secretariat: Telephone:+61 9682 0244 Fax:+61 9682 0288, email: redesignhealth2008@icms.com.au, web: http://www.redesignhealth2008.org/ 12-14 March 2008, WALIS International Forum, Perth, Western Australia Contact Genevieve Gongora-Mesas tel +61 9273 7042, email: forum@walis.wa.gov.au, web: http://www.walis.wa.gov.au/forum 26 to 28 March 2008, Ecology & Community Development:People and places in a changing world: How C.D engages the need for change to meet ecological sustainability Melbourne, Victoria Contact, email: aok@deakin.edu.au, web: http://www.deakin.edu.au/arts/cchr/eco-cd-conf08/index.php 26-30 March, 2008, Australasian Society for Ultrasound in Medicine (ASUM) Multidisciplinary Ultrasound Workshop (MDW) 2008, Sydney Contact: Telephone:+61 9438 2078 Fax:+61 9438 3686, Email: Secretariat: asummdw2008@icms.com.au , Web: http://www.asummdw2008.com/ 30 April 2008 to May 2008, 10th International Paediatric and Child Health Nursing Conference, Darwin, Northern Territory Contact: Event Planners Australia, PO Box 1280, MILTON QLD 4064, AUSTRALIA, T: 07 38585503, F: 07 38585499, Email: info@ipchnconference.com.au, web: http://www.ipchnconference.com.au/ May 1-6, 2008, 38th Annual Scientific Meeting of the Australian and New Zealand Society of Nuclear Medicine 2008, Conrad Jupiters, Gold Coast, QLD Contact: Secretariat: Telephone:+61 96820244 Fax:+61 9682 0288 anzsnm2008@icms.com.au, web: http://www.anzsnm2008.com/ 19–23 May 2008, Australian and New Zealand Association of Neurologists Annual Scientific Meeting 2008 Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre, Brisbane, QLD Contact: Telephone:+61 3307 4000 Fax:+61 3844 0909 Secretariat: anzan2008@icms.com.au, web: http://www.anzan2008.com/ 146 Bollettino della Comunità Scientifica in Australasia Ambasciata d’Italia CANBERRA Aprile 2008 June 15-19, 2008, 17th World Hydrogen Energy Conference Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre, Brisbane, QLD Contact: Secretariat: Telephone: +61 3307 4000 Fax:+61 3844 0909, email: whec2008@icms.com.au, web: http://www.whec2008.com/ 29 June 2008, The 2nd International Workshop on Web Mining for Ecommerce and E-services (WMEE2008) Melbourne, Australia Web http://wwwusers.cs.york.ac.uk/~derrick/WMEE2008/ Contact name: I-HSIEN TING July 21-25, 2008, 9th World Meeting of International Society for Bayesian Analysis, Hamilton Island Queensland Contact: email: isba08@qut.edu.au, web: http://www.isba2008.sci.qut.edu.au/index.shtml 27 July, 2008, International Conference on Photochemical Conversion and Storage of Solar Energy, Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre, Sydney, Australia Contact: Email: ips17@icms.com.au, web: http://www.ips17.com/ 29 July- August 1, 2008, 7th Australasian Workshop on Mutation DetectionMethods, Cancer Gene Analysis & Diagnostic Application, Broome Western Australia Contact: http://www.mutationdetection.org/ - August 2008, 5th SETAC World Congress, Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre, Sydney Australia Contact: Email: setac2008@tourhosts.com.au, web: http://www.setac2008.com/ 14-17 August, 2008, Biennial conference of the International Society for Justice Research Adelaide South Australia Contact: email isjr@flinders.edu.au, web: http://socsci.flinders.edu.au/isjr/home.php 10-12 September, 2008, 5th World Conference on Promotion of Mental Health and the Prevention of Mental and Behavioral Disorders Melbourne Convention Centre, Melbourne Contact: Email: info@margins2mainstream.com, Web: http://www.margins2mainstream.com/ 24-25 September, Open Access and Research Conference 2008, Stamford Plaza Hotel, Brisbane, Queensland Contact : email oar2008@qut.edu.au, Web: http://www.oar2008.qut.edu.au/contact.jsp 28 - 30 October 2008 Horizons In Livestock Sciences 2008 The future of agriculture - value or volume?, Convention Centre, Christchurch New Zealand Contact: The Conference Secretariat, Professional Development Group, PO Box 84, Lincoln University, Canterbury 7647, New Zealand, Telephone: +64 (0) 3253 661 , Facsimile: +64 (0) 3253 685, Email: lathamj@lincoln.ac.nz, Web: http://www.livestockhorizons.com/index.html 16–21 November 2008, Australian Health & Medical Research Congress, Brisbane, Australia Contact: ASN Events Pty Ltd, PO Box 200, Balnarring, Victoria, Australia, 3926, ph+61 (0) 5983 2400 , +61 (0) 5983 2223, web: http://www.ahmrcongress.org.au/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1 147 Bollettino della Comunità Scientifica in Australasia Ambasciata d’Italia Aprile 2008 CANBERRA PRINCIPALI SITI WEB Siti d’interesse scientifico www.aao.gov.au/ www.ausindustry.gov.au\ www.antdiv.gov.au www.aims.gov.au Anglo-Australian Observatory AusIndustry Australian Antarctic Division Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS) Australian Nuclear Science and www.ansto.gov.au/ Technology Organisation (ANSTO) Australian Academic and Research Network Australian Research Council Bureau of Meteorology CSIRO Cooperative Research Centres Defence Science and Technology Organisation (DSTO) Department of Industry, Tourism and Resources Department of Agriculture, www.aarnet.edu.au/ www.arc.gov.au/ www.bom.gov.au/ www.csiro.au/ www.crc.gov.au www.dsto.defence.gov.au/ www.industry.gov.au/ www.affa.gov.au/ Fisheries and Forestry – Australia Department of Education Science and Training (DEST) Environment Australia EPA New South Wales EPA Queensland EPA Western Australia EPA South Australia EPA Northern Territory EPA Victoria Feast (Forum for European- www.dest.gov.au www.ea.gov.au www.epa.nsw.gov.au www.epa.qld.gov.au www.epa.wa.gov.au www.epa.sa.gov.au www.epa.nt.gov.au www.epa.vic.gov.au www.feast.org Australian Science and Technology cooperation) Geoscience Australia Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA) IPAustralia Land and Water Australia National Environment Protection Council National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) National Standards Commission www.ga.gov.au/ www.gbrmpa.gov.au/ www.ipaustralia.gov.au/ www.lwa.gov.au/ www.ephc.gov.au/ www.health.gov.au/nhmrc/ www.nsc.gov.au/ 148 Bollettino della Comunità Scientifica in Australasia Ambasciata d’Italia Aprile 2008 CANBERRA Informazioni generali sull’Australia Australian Bureau of Statistics Australian Federal Government Entry Point Australian Universities www.abs.gov.au www.fed.gov.au www.avcc.edu.au Principali fonti d’informazione australiane Australian Financial Review Sydney Morning Herald The Age The Australian Australian Broadcasting www.afr.com.au www.smh.com.au www.theage.com.au www.theaustralian.com.au www.abc.net.au/science Corporation, Science Programs 149 ... 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