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Prof. Fernando Fraternali
Department of Civil Engineering (DICIV); University of Salerno

Basic Info


Research Keywords & Expertise

0 Metamaterials
0 Sustainable Engineering
0 Tensegrity Structures
0 Seismic Isolation
0 seismic engineering

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Short Biography

Fernando Fraternali is Professor of Structural Mechanics in the Department of Civil Engineering at the University of Salerno (Diciv), Italy. He received his B.Sc. and M.Sc. degrees in Civil and Environmental Engineering from the University of Salerno, and a Ph.D. in Multiscale Mechanics from King's College London. F. Fraternali has participated as a PI or co-PI in various research projects funded by the Italian National Research Council, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Italy-USA scientific cooperation), and US research agencies. He currently serves as PI of the Research Project of National Relevance “Multiscale Innovative Materials and Structures” granted by the Italian Ministry of Education, University and Research for the years 2019 –2022 (MIUR Prin project 2017J4EAYB). Prof. Fernando Fraternali is Delegate to Research and Doctorate Affairs and serves as Coordinator of the PhD Course on “Risk and Sustainability in Civil, Architecture and Environmental Engineering Systems” at Diciv. Most of his research work concerns multiscale modeling and simulation of solids and structures, the nonlinear dynamics of materials and structures, and the design and engineering of sustainable materials at multiple scales. Additional information available on https://www.fernandofraternaliresearch.com/

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Review
Published: 28 May 2021
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Signatures of DNA motifs associated with distinct mutagenic exposures have been defined for somatic variants, but little is known about the consequences different mutational processes pose to the cancer cell, particularly the distribution of the resulting variants in the implied proteins and their structural regions (surface, core, interacting interface). Here we first compare the protein-level consequences of six mutational signatures (Aging, APOBEC, POLE, UV, 5-FU and Platinum) characterised by clear DNA motif preferences. By mapping individual substitution events observed in tumours to three-dimensional protein structures, we show that these common somatic mutational signatures are biased against the protein core, consistent with the lower tolerability of substitutions at such structurally important regions. On the other hand, deep mutational scanning (DMS) data allow us to probe the ‘dark matter’ of somatic mutational landscape, exploring variants which are otherwise removed in purifying selection. A computational DMS analysis identifies mutational contexts (5’-G/C[T>G]A/G-3’) which are associated with damaging mutations, by altering physicochemical characteristics of amino acids at the protein core. We argue that comprehensive DMS analysis can contribute to classification of variants according to their true impact to the stability/activity of the affected protein, decoupling this from pathogenicity prediction offered by conventional variant impact classifiers.

ACS Style

Joseph Chi-Fung Ng; Franca Fraternali. Protein structural consequences of DNA mutational signatures: A meta-analysis of somatic variants and deep mutational scanning data. 2021, 1 .

AMA Style

Joseph Chi-Fung Ng, Franca Fraternali. Protein structural consequences of DNA mutational signatures: A meta-analysis of somatic variants and deep mutational scanning data. . 2021; ():1.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Joseph Chi-Fung Ng; Franca Fraternali. 2021. "Protein structural consequences of DNA mutational signatures: A meta-analysis of somatic variants and deep mutational scanning data." , no. : 1.

Methods and resources
Published: 28 April 2021 in PLOS Biology
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Missense variants are present amongst the healthy population, but some of them are causative of human diseases. A classification of variants associated with “healthy” or “diseased” states is therefore not always straightforward. A deeper understanding of the nature of missense variants in health and disease, the cellular processes they may affect, and the general molecular principles which underlie these differences is essential to offer mechanistic explanations of the true impact of pathogenic variants. Here, we have formalised a statistical framework which enables robust probabilistic quantification of variant enrichment across full-length proteins, their domains, and 3D structure-defined regions. Using this framework, we validate and extend previously reported trends of variant enrichment in different protein structural regions (surface/core/interface). By examining the association of variant enrichment with available functional pathways and transcriptomic and proteomic (protein half-life, thermal stability, abundance) data, we have mined a rich set of molecular features which distinguish between pathogenic and population variants: Pathogenic variants mainly affect proteins involved in cell proliferation and nucleotide processing and are enriched in more abundant proteins. Additionally, rare population variants display features closer to common than pathogenic variants. We validate the association between these molecular features and variant pathogenicity by comparing against existing in silico variant impact annotations. This study provides molecular details into how different proteins exhibit resilience and/or sensitivity towards missense variants and provides the rationale to prioritise variant-enriched proteins and protein domains for therapeutic targeting and development. The ZoomVar database, which we created for this study, is available at fraternalilab.kcl.ac.uk/ZoomVar. It allows users to programmatically annotate missense variants with protein structural information and to calculate variant enrichment in different protein structural regions.

ACS Style

Anna Laddach; Joseph Chi Fung Ng; Franca Fraternali. Pathogenic missense protein variants affect different functional pathways and proteomic features than healthy population variants. PLOS Biology 2021, 19, e3001207 .

AMA Style

Anna Laddach, Joseph Chi Fung Ng, Franca Fraternali. Pathogenic missense protein variants affect different functional pathways and proteomic features than healthy population variants. PLOS Biology. 2021; 19 (4):e3001207.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Anna Laddach; Joseph Chi Fung Ng; Franca Fraternali. 2021. "Pathogenic missense protein variants affect different functional pathways and proteomic features than healthy population variants." PLOS Biology 19, no. 4: e3001207.

Paper
Published: 05 April 2021 in Nanoscale
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Molecular modelling and simulations elucidate the characteristics of a potent antimicrobial capsule, allowing the design of a novel unit.

ACS Style

Irene Marzuoli; Carlos H. B. Cruz; Christian D. Lorenz; Franca Fraternali. Nanocapsule designs for antimicrobial resistance. Nanoscale 2021, 13, 10342 -10355.

AMA Style

Irene Marzuoli, Carlos H. B. Cruz, Christian D. Lorenz, Franca Fraternali. Nanocapsule designs for antimicrobial resistance. Nanoscale. 2021; 13 (23):10342-10355.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Irene Marzuoli; Carlos H. B. Cruz; Christian D. Lorenz; Franca Fraternali. 2021. "Nanocapsule designs for antimicrobial resistance." Nanoscale 13, no. 23: 10342-10355.

Immunology
Published: 18 March 2021 in Frontiers in Immunology
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Separation of B cells into different subsets has been useful to understand their different functions in various immune scenarios. In some instances, the subsets defined by phenotypic FACS separation are relatively homogeneous and so establishing the functions associated with them is straightforward. Other subsets, such as the “Double negative” (DN, CD19+CD27-IgD-) population, are more complex with reports of differing functionality which could indicate a heterogeneous population. Recent advances in single-cell techniques enable an alternative route to characterize cells based on their transcriptome. To maximize immunological insight, we need to match prior data from phenotype-based studies with the finer granularity of the single-cell transcriptomic signatures. We also need to be able to define meaningful B cell subsets from single cell analyses performed on PBMCs, where the relative paucity of a B cell signature means that defining B cell subsets within the whole is challenging. Here we provide a reference single-cell dataset based on phenotypically sorted B cells and an unbiased procedure to better classify functional B cell subsets in the peripheral blood, particularly useful in establishing a baseline cellular landscape and in extracting significant changes with respect to this baseline from single-cell datasets. We find 10 different clusters of B cells and applied a novel, geometry-inspired, method to RNA velocity estimates in order to evaluate the dynamic transitions between B cell clusters. This indicated the presence of two main developmental branches of memory B cells. A T-independent branch that involves IgM memory cells and two DN subpopulations, culminating in a population thought to be associated with Age related B cells and the extrafollicular response. The other, T-dependent, branch involves a third DN cluster which appears to be a precursor of classical memory cells. In addition, we identify a novel DN4 population, which is IgE rich and closely linked to the classical/precursor memory branch suggesting an IgE specific T-dependent cell population.

ACS Style

Alexander Stewart; Joseph Chi-Fung Ng; Gillian Wallis; Vasiliki Tsioligka; Franca Fraternali; Deborah K. Dunn-Walters. Single-Cell Transcriptomic Analyses Define Distinct Peripheral B Cell Subsets and Discrete Development Pathways. Frontiers in Immunology 2021, 12, 1 .

AMA Style

Alexander Stewart, Joseph Chi-Fung Ng, Gillian Wallis, Vasiliki Tsioligka, Franca Fraternali, Deborah K. Dunn-Walters. Single-Cell Transcriptomic Analyses Define Distinct Peripheral B Cell Subsets and Discrete Development Pathways. Frontiers in Immunology. 2021; 12 ():1.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Alexander Stewart; Joseph Chi-Fung Ng; Gillian Wallis; Vasiliki Tsioligka; Franca Fraternali; Deborah K. Dunn-Walters. 2021. "Single-Cell Transcriptomic Analyses Define Distinct Peripheral B Cell Subsets and Discrete Development Pathways." Frontiers in Immunology 12, no. : 1.

Journal article
Published: 06 January 2021 in NAR Genomics and Bioinformatics
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Direct drug targeting of mutated proteins in cancer is not always possible and efficacy can be nullified by compensating protein–protein interactions (PPIs). Here, we establish an in silico pipeline to identify specific PPI sub-networks containing mutated proteins as potential targets, which we apply to mutation data of four different leukaemias. Our method is based on extracting cyclic interactions of a small number of proteins topologically and functionally linked in the Protein–Protein Interaction Network (PPIN), which we call short loop network motifs (SLM). We uncover a new property of PPINs named ‘short loop commonality’ to measure indirect PPIs occurring via common SLM interactions. This detects ‘modules’ of PPI networks enriched with annotated biological functions of proteins containing mutation hotspots, exemplified by FLT3 and other receptor tyrosine kinase proteins. We further identify functional dependency or mutual exclusivity of short loop commonality pairs in large-scale cellular CRISPR–Cas9 knockout screening data. Our pipeline provides a new strategy for identifying new therapeutic targets for drug discovery.

ACS Style

Sun Sook Chung; Joseph C F Ng; Anna Laddach; N Shaun B Thomas; Franca Fraternali. Short loop functional commonality identified in leukaemia proteome highlights crucial protein sub-networks. NAR Genomics and Bioinformatics 2021, 3, lqab010 .

AMA Style

Sun Sook Chung, Joseph C F Ng, Anna Laddach, N Shaun B Thomas, Franca Fraternali. Short loop functional commonality identified in leukaemia proteome highlights crucial protein sub-networks. NAR Genomics and Bioinformatics. 2021; 3 (1):lqab010.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Sun Sook Chung; Joseph C F Ng; Anna Laddach; N Shaun B Thomas; Franca Fraternali. 2021. "Short loop functional commonality identified in leukaemia proteome highlights crucial protein sub-networks." NAR Genomics and Bioinformatics 3, no. 1: lqab010.

Conference paper
Published: 18 December 2020 in IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering
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This work is focused on the computational design of tensegrity shading systems of energy efficient buildings which mitigate air conditioning consumption and optimize the energy performance of the building. It is concerned with the design of active solar façade screens based on lightweight tensegrity units, which are easily integrated with energy harvesting piezoelectric cables. The unit cells of the analyzed screens are controlled by tensioning and releasing selected cables of the structure and are used to direct the shading panels towards the sun. A numerical procedure simulates the dynamics of the analyzed tensegrity façades, by considering the opening and closure motions of the screens, and the vibrations produced by the action of dynamic wind forces. The energy harvesting ability of the proposed façade is numerically estimated.

ACS Style

R Miranda; E Babilio; N Singh; D P Villamil; F Santos; F Fraternali. Mechanics of energy harvesters based on tensegrity solar facades. IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering 2020, 999, 012003 .

AMA Style

R Miranda, E Babilio, N Singh, D P Villamil, F Santos, F Fraternali. Mechanics of energy harvesters based on tensegrity solar facades. IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering. 2020; 999 (1):012003.

Chicago/Turabian Style

R Miranda; E Babilio; N Singh; D P Villamil; F Santos; F Fraternali. 2020. "Mechanics of energy harvesters based on tensegrity solar facades." IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering 999, no. 1: 012003.

Conference paper
Published: 18 December 2020 in IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering
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In past one decade number of studies has been reported on optimization of process parameters of fused deposition modelling (FDM) for in-house developed thermoplastic composite based feed stock filaments. This paper investigates smart polymer-based composites prepared with hybrid feed stock filament (comprising of polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) reinforced with graphene (Gr) and barium titanate (BTO) powder). This work started with the Functional prototypes were 3D printed for tensile and flexural characterization using inhouse developed filament (PVDF (78%)+Gr (2%) with BTO (20%)) at optimized settings of FDM. The printed specimens were subjected to destructive testing for mechanical properties (to analyze the process capability indices, Cp and Cpk). For morphological properties, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images and 3D rendered images of the fractured surfaces of tensile and flexural specimen were used. It has been revealed from the SEM and 3D rendered images that the optimized settings of 3D printing process parameters resulted into uniform morphological features (based upon surface roughness (Ra) and amplitude distribution function (ADF), peak count (PC) and bearing ratio (BR) curve).

ACS Style

I Farina; R Sharma; R Singh; A Batish; N Singh; F Fraternali; F Colangelo. Mechanical characterization of FDM filaments with PVDF matrix reinforced with Graphene and Barium Titanate. IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering 2020, 999, 012010 .

AMA Style

I Farina, R Sharma, R Singh, A Batish, N Singh, F Fraternali, F Colangelo. Mechanical characterization of FDM filaments with PVDF matrix reinforced with Graphene and Barium Titanate. IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering. 2020; 999 (1):012010.

Chicago/Turabian Style

I Farina; R Sharma; R Singh; A Batish; N Singh; F Fraternali; F Colangelo. 2020. "Mechanical characterization of FDM filaments with PVDF matrix reinforced with Graphene and Barium Titanate." IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering 999, no. 1: 012010.

Conference paper
Published: 18 December 2020 in IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering
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The blast furnace slag (BFS) is non-metallic co-product (such as silicates and alumina silicates etc.) which absorbs sulphur from the charge and comprises of around 20% (by weight) of Fe production and its use as reinforcement in cement mortar has been widely explored to improve thermal and compressive properties along with addressing the sustainability issues related to Fe production. But hitherto little has been reported on effect of BFS and fly ash (FA) reinforced cement mortar from surface topography, thermal stability and morphological properties view point. This paper reports the comparison of compressive, thermal and morphological properties of cement mortar with air cooled BFS and FA reinforced cement mortar as a case study. The results of study suggests that 80% of BFS and 20% FA reinforced cement mortar (cement: (BFS+FA): 1: (0.8+0.2) by weight%) possess lowest thermal conductivity (0.65W/mK), greatest porosity (29.65%) and acceptable compressive strength (6.6MPa) in comparison to cement mortar comprising of cement: sand as 1:1. The results are supported with compressive strength data, optical photo micrographs, thermal analysis based upon differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), surface topography (based upon 3D rendered images).

ACS Style

I Farina; R Singh; M Singh; P Preet; R Kumar; F Fraternali; F Colangelo. Thermomechanical and morphological properties of sustainable mortars employing blast furnace slag and fly ash reinforced cement. IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering 2020, 999, 012009 .

AMA Style

I Farina, R Singh, M Singh, P Preet, R Kumar, F Fraternali, F Colangelo. Thermomechanical and morphological properties of sustainable mortars employing blast furnace slag and fly ash reinforced cement. IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering. 2020; 999 (1):012009.

Chicago/Turabian Style

I Farina; R Singh; M Singh; P Preet; R Kumar; F Fraternali; F Colangelo. 2020. "Thermomechanical and morphological properties of sustainable mortars employing blast furnace slag and fly ash reinforced cement." IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering 999, no. 1: 012009.

Conference paper
Published: 18 December 2020 in IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering
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To optimize the seismic performance prescribed by modern structural codes, buildings and infrastructures must provide adequate safety for design level earthquake excitations, with limited levels of damage. This paper deals with the computational modelling of a bracing system with tensegrity architecture, which operates as a lightweight mechanical amplifier of longitudinal displacements in the transverse direction, efficiently limiting the interstory drifts while dissipating energy. The proposed brace is based on a D-bar tensegrity structure with a rhomboidal shape comprising Shape-Memory Alloy (SMA) tendons. The SMA tendons can develop austenitic-martensitic (solid to solid) transformations, which enable them to amplify the signals into wide super elastic hysteresis, while subjected to mechanical cycles, comprising strains up to 6÷8%, with no residual deformations. The enhanced energy dissipation of the proposed SMA-D-bar (SMAD) braces are demonstrated through computational simulations of the response of braced frame to real earthquake events. The efficiency of the intended bracing to minimize the seismic impact of the served structure lays the foundation for the development of novel seismic energy dissipation systems integrating principles of tensegrity with superelasticity.

ACS Style

N Singh; A Amendola; F Santos; G Benzoni; F Fraternali. Mechanical response of tensegrity dissipative devices incorporating shape memory alloys. IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering 2020, 999, 012001 .

AMA Style

N Singh, A Amendola, F Santos, G Benzoni, F Fraternali. Mechanical response of tensegrity dissipative devices incorporating shape memory alloys. IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering. 2020; 999 (1):012001.

Chicago/Turabian Style

N Singh; A Amendola; F Santos; G Benzoni; F Fraternali. 2020. "Mechanical response of tensegrity dissipative devices incorporating shape memory alloys." IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering 999, no. 1: 012001.

Conference paper
Published: 18 December 2020 in IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering
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We report about the analysis, design, and experimental testing of modular structures composed of bistable units derived from the classic triangular tensegrity prism. Tensegrity structures are pin-connected frameworks, composed by bars and cables, possessing internal mechanisms and self-stress states, and featuring a variety of structural responses depending on their prestress, edge connectivity, and geometry. When a tensegrity system has only one internal mechanism and one self-stress state, as in the triangular prism case, it is possible to associate to it a corresponding bistable unit, by replacing all cables with bars and changing their edge-lengths slightly. After presenting experimental results of compression tests carried out on microscale specimens fabricated through multiphoton lithography, we compare them with the numerical predictions obtained by our computational model.

ACS Style

Z Vangelatos; I Farina; A Micheletti; N Singh; C P Grigoropoulos; F Fraternali. On the fabrication and mechanical modelling microscale bistable tensegrity systems. IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering 2020, 999, 012002 .

AMA Style

Z Vangelatos, I Farina, A Micheletti, N Singh, C P Grigoropoulos, F Fraternali. On the fabrication and mechanical modelling microscale bistable tensegrity systems. IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering. 2020; 999 (1):012002.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Z Vangelatos; I Farina; A Micheletti; N Singh; C P Grigoropoulos; F Fraternali. 2020. "On the fabrication and mechanical modelling microscale bistable tensegrity systems." IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering 999, no. 1: 012002.

Journal article
Published: 01 November 2020 in Buildings
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Although base isolation is nowadays a well-established seismic-protection technique for both buildings and bridges, and several issues are still open and attract the interest of the research community. Among them, the formulation of computationally efficient and accurate analysis methods is a relevant aspect in structural design of seismic-isolated buildings. In fact, codes and guidelines currently in force in various parts of the world generally include the possibility for designers to utilize linear-elastic analysis methods based on equivalent linearization of the non-linear force-displacement response of isolators. This paper proposes a formula for defining the force distribution in height that should be considered in linear-static analyses to obtain a more accurate approximation of the actual structural response, supposedly simulated by means of non-linear time history analysis. To do that, it summarizes the results of a wide parametric analysis carried out on a batch of structures characterized by three different heights and various properties of base isolators. The reported results highlight that the equivalent static force distribution provided by both Italian and European codes tend to underestimate the actual seismic lateral forces acting on base-isolated buildings, whereas the inverted triangular distribution, proposed in various American codes and standards, is often conservative.

ACS Style

Adamo Zinco; Fernando Fraternali; Gianmario Benzoni; Enzo Martinelli. On the Distribution in Height of Base Shear Forces in Linear Static Analysis of Base-Isolated Structures. Buildings 2020, 10, 197 .

AMA Style

Adamo Zinco, Fernando Fraternali, Gianmario Benzoni, Enzo Martinelli. On the Distribution in Height of Base Shear Forces in Linear Static Analysis of Base-Isolated Structures. Buildings. 2020; 10 (11):197.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Adamo Zinco; Fernando Fraternali; Gianmario Benzoni; Enzo Martinelli. 2020. "On the Distribution in Height of Base Shear Forces in Linear Static Analysis of Base-Isolated Structures." Buildings 10, no. 11: 197.

Preprint content
Published: 03 September 2020
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Separation of B cells into different subsets has been useful to understand their different functions in various immune scenarios. In some instances, the subsets defined by phenotypic FACS separation are relatively homogeneous and so establishing the functions associated with them is straightforward. Other subsets, such as the “Double negative” (DN, CD19+CD27-IgD-) population, are more complex with reports of differing functionality which could indicate a heterogeneous population. Recent advances in single-cell techniques enable an alternative route to characterise cells based on their transcriptome. To maximise immunological insight, we need to match prior data from phenotype-based studies with the finer granularity of the single-cell transcriptomic signatures. We also need to be able to define meaningful B cell subsets from single cell analyses performed on PBMCs, where the relative paucity of a B cell signature means that defining B cell subsets within the whole is challenging. Here we provide a reference single-cell dataset based on phenotypically sorted B cells and an unbiased procedure to better classify functional B cell subsets in the peripheral blood, particularly useful in establishing a baseline cellular landscape and in extracting significant changes with respect to this baseline from single-cell datasets. We find 10 different clusters of B cells and applied a novel, geometry-inspired, method to RNA velocity estimates in order to evaluate the dynamical transitions between B cell clusters. This indicated the presence of two main developmental branches of memory B cells. One involves IgM memory cells and two DN subpopulations, culminating in a population thought to be associated with Age related B cells and the extrafollicular response. The other branch involves a third DN cluster which appears to be a precursor of classical memory cells. In addition, we identify a novel DN4 population, which is IgE rich and on its own developmental branch but with links to the classical memory branch.

ACS Style

Alexander Stewart; Joseph Ng; Gillian Wallis; Vasiliki Tsioligka; Franca Fraternali; Deborah Dunn-Walters. Single-cell transcriptomic analyses define distinct peripheral B cell subsets and discrete development pathways. 2020, 1 .

AMA Style

Alexander Stewart, Joseph Ng, Gillian Wallis, Vasiliki Tsioligka, Franca Fraternali, Deborah Dunn-Walters. Single-cell transcriptomic analyses define distinct peripheral B cell subsets and discrete development pathways. . 2020; ():1.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Alexander Stewart; Joseph Ng; Gillian Wallis; Vasiliki Tsioligka; Franca Fraternali; Deborah Dunn-Walters. 2020. "Single-cell transcriptomic analyses define distinct peripheral B cell subsets and discrete development pathways." , no. : 1.

Journal article
Published: 01 September 2020 in Fibers
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This study presents a non-linear cracked-hinge model for the post-cracking response of fiber-reinforced cementitious composites loaded in bending. The proposed displacement-based model follows a meso-mechanical approach, which makes it possible to consider explicitly the random distribution and orientation of the reinforcing fibers. Moreover, the model allows for considering two different fiber typologies whereas the cement matrix is modelled as a homogeneous material. The proposed mechanical model combines a fracture-based, stress-crack opening relationship for the cementitious matrix with generalized laws aimed to capture the crack-bridging effect played by the reinforcing fibers. These laws are derived by considering both the fiber-to-matrix bond mechanism and fiber anchoring action possibly due to hooked ends. The paper includes a numerical implementation of the proposed theory, which is validated against experimental results dealing with fiber-reinforced cement composites reinforced with different short fibers. The excellent theory vs. experiment matching demonstrates the high technical potential of the presented model, obtained at a reasonable computational cost.

ACS Style

Enzo Martinelli; Marco Pepe; Fernando Fraternali. Meso-Scale Formulation of a Cracked-Hinge Model for Hybrid Fiber-Reinforced Cement Composites. Fibers 2020, 8, 56 .

AMA Style

Enzo Martinelli, Marco Pepe, Fernando Fraternali. Meso-Scale Formulation of a Cracked-Hinge Model for Hybrid Fiber-Reinforced Cement Composites. Fibers. 2020; 8 (9):56.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Enzo Martinelli; Marco Pepe; Fernando Fraternali. 2020. "Meso-Scale Formulation of a Cracked-Hinge Model for Hybrid Fiber-Reinforced Cement Composites." Fibers 8, no. 9: 56.

Protocol
Published: 28 August 2020 in Methods in Molecular Biology
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In studying biological processes and focusing on the molecular mechanisms at the basis of these, molecular dynamics (MD) simulations have demonstrated to be a very useful tool for the past 50 years. This suite of computational methods calculates the time-dependent evolution of a molecular system using physics-based first principles. In this chapter, we give a brief introduction to the theory and practical use of molecular dynamics simulations, highlighting the different models and algorithms that have been developed to tackle specific problems, with a special focus on classical force fields. Some examples of how simulations have been used in the past will help the reader in discerning their power, limitations, and significance.

ACS Style

Irene Marzuoli; Franca Fraternali. Molecular Simulations Guidelines for Biological Nanomaterials: From Peptides to Membranes. Methods in Molecular Biology 2020, 81 -100.

AMA Style

Irene Marzuoli, Franca Fraternali. Molecular Simulations Guidelines for Biological Nanomaterials: From Peptides to Membranes. Methods in Molecular Biology. 2020; ():81-100.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Irene Marzuoli; Franca Fraternali. 2020. "Molecular Simulations Guidelines for Biological Nanomaterials: From Peptides to Membranes." Methods in Molecular Biology , no. : 81-100.

Reference work
Published: 14 August 2020 in Encyclopedia of Biophysics
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The Rosetta software suite comprises a variety of packages that can be implemented to solve an array of biochemical and biophysical problems including protein structure prediction, homology modeling,...

ACS Style

Annika Keshu; Joseph Chi-Fung Ng; Franca Fraternali. The Rosetta Modeling Suite and CS-Rosetta. Encyclopedia of Biophysics 2020, 1 -7.

AMA Style

Annika Keshu, Joseph Chi-Fung Ng, Franca Fraternali. The Rosetta Modeling Suite and CS-Rosetta. Encyclopedia of Biophysics. 2020; ():1-7.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Annika Keshu; Joseph Chi-Fung Ng; Franca Fraternali. 2020. "The Rosetta Modeling Suite and CS-Rosetta." Encyclopedia of Biophysics , no. : 1-7.

Journal article
Published: 31 July 2020 in Nanomaterials
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This work establishes a tensegrity model of spider dragline silk. Tensegrity systems are ubiquitous in nature, being able to capture the mechanics of biological shapes through simple and effective modes of deformation via extension and contraction. Guided by quantitative microstructural characterization via air plasma etching and low voltage scanning electron microscopy, we report that this model is able to capture experimentally observed phenomena such as the Poisson effect, tensile stress-strain response, and fibre toughness. This is achieved by accounting for spider silks’ hierarchical organization into microfibrils with radially variable properties. Each fibril is described as a chain of polypeptide tensegrity units formed by crystalline granules operating under compression, which are connected to each other by amorphous links acting under tension. Our results demonstrate, for the first time, that a radial variability in the ductility of tensegrity chains is responsible for high fibre toughness, a defining and desirable feature of spider silk. Based on this model, a discussion about the use of graded tensegrity structures for the optimal design of next-generation biomimetic fibres is presented.

ACS Style

Fernando Fraternali; Nicola Stehling; Ada Amendola; Bryan Andres Tiban Anrango; Chris Holland; Cornelia Rodenburg. Tensegrity Modelling and the High Toughness of Spider Dragline Silk. Nanomaterials 2020, 10, 1510 .

AMA Style

Fernando Fraternali, Nicola Stehling, Ada Amendola, Bryan Andres Tiban Anrango, Chris Holland, Cornelia Rodenburg. Tensegrity Modelling and the High Toughness of Spider Dragline Silk. Nanomaterials. 2020; 10 (8):1510.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Fernando Fraternali; Nicola Stehling; Ada Amendola; Bryan Andres Tiban Anrango; Chris Holland; Cornelia Rodenburg. 2020. "Tensegrity Modelling and the High Toughness of Spider Dragline Silk." Nanomaterials 10, no. 8: 1510.

Original research article
Published: 16 July 2020 in Frontiers in Built Environment
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This paper presents with an effective and fast approach to the optimization of the pretension forces in arched bridges with suspended deck, which makes use of the influence matrix method (IMM). The given cable-tensioning procedure leads to a linear system of equations with a reduced number of unknowns and can be effectively implemented within active control procedures that handle time-varying loading conditions. This method produces a target bending moment distribution (TBMD) over the structure, which significantly mitigates the state of stress of the deck. Numerical simulations referred to a Nielsen arch bridge illustrate the versatility of the proposed approach when dealing with different loading conditions.

ACS Style

Mariano Modano; Arnas Majumder; Filipe Santos; Raimondo Luciano; Fernando Fraternali. Fast and Optimized Calculation of the Cable Pretension Forces in Arch Bridges With Suspended Deck. Frontiers in Built Environment 2020, 6, 1 .

AMA Style

Mariano Modano, Arnas Majumder, Filipe Santos, Raimondo Luciano, Fernando Fraternali. Fast and Optimized Calculation of the Cable Pretension Forces in Arch Bridges With Suspended Deck. Frontiers in Built Environment. 2020; 6 ():1.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Mariano Modano; Arnas Majumder; Filipe Santos; Raimondo Luciano; Fernando Fraternali. 2020. "Fast and Optimized Calculation of the Cable Pretension Forces in Arch Bridges With Suspended Deck." Frontiers in Built Environment 6, no. : 1.

Research article
Published: 16 June 2020 in Journal of Medicinal Chemistry
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Nowadays, it is possible to combine X-ray crystallography and fragment screening in a medium throughput fashion to chemically probe the surfaces used by proteins to interact and use the outcome of the screens to systematically design protein–protein inhibitors. To prove it, we first performed a bioinformatics analysis of the Protein Data Bank protein complexes, which revealed over 400 cases where the crystal lattice of the target in the free form is such that large portions of the interacting surfaces are free from lattice contacts and therefore accessible to fragments during soaks. Among the tractable complexes identified, we then performed single fragment crystal screens on two particular interesting cases: the Il1β-ILR and p38α-TAB1 complexes. The result of the screens showed that fragments tend to bind in clusters, highlighting the small-molecule hotspots on the surface of the target protein. In most of the cases, the hotspots overlapped with the binding sites of the interacting proteins.

ACS Style

Charlie Nichols; Chi Fung Joseph Ng; Annika Keshu; Geoff Kelly; Maria Rosaria Conte; Michael Marber; Franca Fraternali; Gian F. De Nicola. Mining the PDB for Tractable Cases Where X-ray Crystallography Combined with Fragment Screens Can Be Used to Systematically Design Protein–Protein Inhibitors: Two Test Cases Illustrated by IL1β-IL1R and p38α–TAB1 Complexes. Journal of Medicinal Chemistry 2020, 63, 7559 -7568.

AMA Style

Charlie Nichols, Chi Fung Joseph Ng, Annika Keshu, Geoff Kelly, Maria Rosaria Conte, Michael Marber, Franca Fraternali, Gian F. De Nicola. Mining the PDB for Tractable Cases Where X-ray Crystallography Combined with Fragment Screens Can Be Used to Systematically Design Protein–Protein Inhibitors: Two Test Cases Illustrated by IL1β-IL1R and p38α–TAB1 Complexes. Journal of Medicinal Chemistry. 2020; 63 (14):7559-7568.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Charlie Nichols; Chi Fung Joseph Ng; Annika Keshu; Geoff Kelly; Maria Rosaria Conte; Michael Marber; Franca Fraternali; Gian F. De Nicola. 2020. "Mining the PDB for Tractable Cases Where X-ray Crystallography Combined with Fragment Screens Can Be Used to Systematically Design Protein–Protein Inhibitors: Two Test Cases Illustrated by IL1β-IL1R and p38α–TAB1 Complexes." Journal of Medicinal Chemistry 63, no. 14: 7559-7568.

Editorial
Published: 15 May 2020 in Mechanics Research Communications
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Fernando Fraternali; Glaucio H. Paulino. Mechanics research communications special issue on advances in mechanical metamaterials and smart structures. Mechanics Research Communications 2020, 107, 103531 .

AMA Style

Fernando Fraternali, Glaucio H. Paulino. Mechanics research communications special issue on advances in mechanical metamaterials and smart structures. Mechanics Research Communications. 2020; 107 ():103531.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Fernando Fraternali; Glaucio H. Paulino. 2020. "Mechanics research communications special issue on advances in mechanical metamaterials and smart structures." Mechanics Research Communications 107, no. : 103531.

Journal article
Published: 31 March 2020 in Nanomaterials
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A bistable response is an innate feature of tensegrity metamaterials, which is a conundrum to attain in other metamaterials, since it ushers unconventional static and dynamical mechanical behaviors. This paper investigates the design, modeling, fabrication and testing of bistable lattices with tensegrity architecture and nanoscale features. First, a method to design bistable lattices tessellating tensegrity units is formulated. The additive manufacturing of these structures is performed through multiphoton lithography, which enables the fabrication of microscale structures with nanoscale features and extremely high resolution. Different modular lattices, comprised of struts with 250 nm minimum radius, are tested under loading-unloading uniaxial compression nanoindentation tests. The compression tests confirmed the activation of the designed bistable twisting mechanism in the examined lattices, combined with a moderate viscoelastic response. The force-displacement plots of the 3D assemblies of bistable tensegrity prisms reveal a softening behavior during the loading from the primary stable configuration and a subsequent snapping event that drives the structure into a secondary stable configuration. The twisting mechanism that characterizes such a transition is preserved after unloading and during repeated loading-unloading cycles. The results of the present study elucidate that fabrication of multistable tensegrity lattices is highly feasible via multiphoton lithography and promulgates the fabrication of multi-cell tensegrity metamaterials with unprecedented static and dynamic responses.

ACS Style

Zacharias Vangelatos; Andrea Micheletti; Costas P. Grigoropoulos; Fernando Fraternali. Design and Testing of Bistable Lattices with Tensegrity Architecture and Nanoscale Features Fabricated by Multiphoton Lithography. Nanomaterials 2020, 10, 652 .

AMA Style

Zacharias Vangelatos, Andrea Micheletti, Costas P. Grigoropoulos, Fernando Fraternali. Design and Testing of Bistable Lattices with Tensegrity Architecture and Nanoscale Features Fabricated by Multiphoton Lithography. Nanomaterials. 2020; 10 (4):652.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Zacharias Vangelatos; Andrea Micheletti; Costas P. Grigoropoulos; Fernando Fraternali. 2020. "Design and Testing of Bistable Lattices with Tensegrity Architecture and Nanoscale Features Fabricated by Multiphoton Lithography." Nanomaterials 10, no. 4: 652.