The assessment of the effectiveness of the unimodal and bimodal models to evaluate the water flow through nature-based solutions substrates.

Nature-based solutions are popular techniques for managing stormwater. Most of them allow porous media as their main layer. The description of the Soil Water Retention Curve (SWRC) as the Unsaturated Hydraulic Conductivity Curve (UHCC) is often required to run the hydrological simulations with the physically based models. Using the unimodal and bimodal models to assess the SWRC and UHCC of soils is a widespread technique but their evaluation is often present in literature only in terms of curve fitting. Based on these assumptions, this work presents the performance assessment of the van Genuchten unimodal and bimodal models by functional evaluation of them based on the runoff from several substrates. Four substrates were investigated to define the structure, the SWRC, and the UHCC. Results showed that all substrates had a bimodal behaviour with lowest values of RMSE (RMSE_Θ = 0.0023 to 0.0037, RMSE_K = 0.0636 to 0.1284). Finally, a numerical simulation using the HYDRUS-1D model was performed for a three-month data set to check the effectiveness of the unimodal model instead of the bimodal one. The findings have shown that the unimodal model must be preferred instead of the bimodal because it has fewer parameters and assured low discrepancies in runoff volume (ε=0.00% to 6.25%).

Experimental analysis to assess the hydrological efficiency and the nutrient leaching behavior of a new green wall system.

Green Walls represent a sustainable solution to mitigate the effects due to climate change and urbanization. However, although they have been widely investigated in different fields of science, studies on the potential of these systems to manage urban stormwater are still few. Moreover, even if these systems provide multiple benefits, as other nature-based solutions, they leach nutrients due to growing media, decomposed vegetation, and the possibility of fertilizer use. In this regard, several studies have evaluated the nutrient concentrations in the runoff from green roofs, while studies that have analyzed the nutrient-leaching behavior of green walls are still limited. To bridge these scientific gaps, this study presents experimental findings on the hydrological efficiency and nutrient-leaching behavior of an innovative modular living wall system. Some rainfall-runoff tests were carried out to assess the hydrological response of a new green wall system in retaining stormwater. To evaluate the concentration of the nutrients, the collected outflow was analyzed by spectrophotometer UV-visible. The findings show that the developed green wall panel presents good retention capacity by considering different simulated rainfalls and varying the initial soil moisture conditions. The results in terms of nutrient concentrations highlight that the vegetation life cycle and the fertilizer uses affect the quality of the water released from the green wall panel. The concentration of the analyzed nutrients is influenced by the simulated rainfall's hydrological characteristics and the days between the planting phase and the test. However, the overall results show that the concentrations of each analyzed nutrient are low, except after the fertilizer use, highlighting that the choice of vegetation that does not need external nutrients should be preferred during the design of a green wall.

Smart Technologies for Water Resource Management: An Overview.

The latest progress in information and communication technology (ICT) and the Internet of Things (IoT) have opened up new opportunities for real-time monitoring and controlling of cities' structures, infrastructures, and services. In this context, smart water management technology provides the data and tools to help users more effectively manage water usage. Data collected with smart water devices are being integrated with building management systems to show how much water is used by occupants as well as to identify the consumption areas to use water more efficiently. By this approach, smart buildings represent an innovative solution that enhances a city's sustainability and contributes to overcoming environmental challenges due to increasing population and climate change. One of the main challenges is resource-saving and recovery. Water is an all-important need of all living beings, and the concerns of its scarcity impose a transition to innovative and sustainable management starting from the building scale. Thus, this manuscript aims to provide an updated and valuable overview for researchers, consumers, and stakeholders regarding implementing smart and sustainable technologies for water resource management, primarily for building-scale uses.

Atomic force microscopy imaging of Xenopus laevis oocyte plasma membrane purified by ultracentrifugation.

Atomic force microscopy (AFM) was used to investigate the native plasma membrane of Xenopus laevis (X. laevis) oocyte purified by means of ultracentrifugation on sucrose gradient and subsequently adsorbed on mica leaves through a physisorption process. Reproducible AFM topography images were collected, analyzed, and compared. AFM images showed the presence of large single or double bilayer membrane sheets covered with protein complexes. The lateral dimension and height of protein complexes imaged in air showed a normal distribution centred on 15.4 +/- 0.4 nm (mean +/- SE; n = 59) and 3.9 +/- 0.2 nm (mean +/- SE; n = 57), respectively. A density of about 270 protein complexes per square micron was calculated. Less frequently, ordered nanometer domains with densely packed protein complexes arranged in hexagonal patterns were also visualized in AFM images, confirming previously published data. Their lateral dimension and height showed a normal distribution centred on 23.0 +/- 0.4 nm (mean +/- SE; n = 42) and 1.5 +/- 0.6 nm (mean +/- SE; n = 90), respectively. A density of about 870 protein complexes per square micrometer was calculated. Advantages and drawbacks of this new sample preparation for AFM imaging are discussed.

Structural domains involved in substrate selectivity in two neutral amino acid transporters.

The ability of the two highly homologous Na(+)/Cl(-)-dependent neutral amino acid transporters KAAT1 and CAATCH1, cloned from the midgut epithelium of the larva Manduca sexta, to transport different amino acids depends on the cotransported ion, on pH, and on the membrane voltage. Different organic substrates give rise to transport-associated currents with their own characteristics, which are notably distinct between the two proteins. Differences in amplitude, kinetics, and voltage dependence of the transport-associated currents have been observed, as well as different substrate selectivity patterns measured by radioactive amino acid uptake assays. These diversities represent useful tools to investigate the structural determinants involved in the substrate selectivity. To identify these regions, we built four chimeric proteins between the two transporters. These proteins, heterologously expressed in Xenopus laevis oocytes, were analyzed by two-electrode voltage clamp and uptake measurements. Initially, we exchanged the first three domains, obtaining the chimeras C3K9 and K3C9 (where numbers indicate the transmembrane domains and letters represent the original proteins), which showed electrophysiological and [(3)H]amino acid uptake characteristics resembling those of KAAT1 and CAATCH1, respectively. Subsequent substitution of the last four domains in C3K9 and K3C9 gave the proteins C3K5C4 and K3C5K4, which showed the same behavior as KAAT1 and CAATCH1 in electrophysiological and transport determinations. These results suggest that in KAAT1 and CAATCH1, only the central transmembrane domains (from 4 to 8) of the protein are responsible for substrate selectivity.

The beneficial effect of revascularization on jeopardized myocardium: reverse remodeling and improved long-term prognosis.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the impact of viability/ischemia before revascularization on improvement in systolic performance, reverse remodeling, symptoms and long-term prognosis post-revascularization. METHODS: Fifty patients underwent thallium-201 imaging before revascularization to assess stress-induced ischemia and viability ('jeopardized myocardium'). Left ventricular (LV) ejection fraction (EF), LV end-systolic volume index (LVESVI) and LV end-diastolic volume index (LVEDVI) were determined before and 3 months post-revascularization. Graft/vessel patency was controlled by repeat angiography. Long-term follow-up data (New York Heart Association (NYHA) class, hard events) were acquired up to 3 years. RESULTS: Patients with > or = 5 jeopardized segments on thallium-201 imaging demonstrated improvement of LVEF at 3 months (from 35+/-6 to 43+/-6%, P<0.001), with reverse remodeling (LVESVI decreased from 68+/-16 to 52+/-14 ml/m(2), P<0.001; LVEDVI decreased from 103+/-21 to 91+/-18 ml/m(2), P<0.001), and improved in NYHA class with excellent long-term prognosis (0% event rate). Conversely, patients with <5 jeopardized segments failed to improve in LVEF (34+/-4 vs. 33+/-7%, NS), and exhibited ongoing remodeling (LVESVI increased from 70+/-14 to 78+/-23 ml/m(2), P<0.001; LVEDVI increased from 106+/-19 to 116+/-25 ml/m(2), P<0.001), without improvement in NYHA class, and worse long-term prognosis (29% event rate). CONCLUSION: Patients with jeopardized myocardium benefit from revascularization with improvement in LVEF, reverse remodeling, improvement in NYHA class and favorable long-term prognosis.