Microbial Battles in the Xylem: How Endophytes Interact with Xylella fastidiosa in Salicaceae?

Lena Pesenti is a last year Ph.D. student at the Plant Health Lab (UCLouvain, Belgium) under the supervision of Prof. Claude Bragard. She began working on Xylella fastidiosa during her Master’s thesis, focusing on the identification of potential hosts in Northern Europe, particularly among Salicaceae species. These trees may act as efficient hosts—and possibly as stepping stones and reservoirs—for the propagation of the disease in northern regions. Her Ph.D. research investigates how xylem-inhabiting bacterial endophytes influence the outcome of X. fastidiosa infections, helping to explain the observed symptomatic/asymptomatic duality

Regeneration of cofactor used for CO2 conversion into formate.

Transforming CO2 into a valuable chemical compound is a promising approach toward carbon circularity. Formate is the first reduced form of CO2 and serves as a key precursor in the synthesis of various molecules. Enzyme-based CO2 conversion enables higher efficiency while reducing environmental impact (Al-Tamreh et al., 2021). A method for converting CO2 into formate using enzymes is inspired by a well-known biochemical pathway, which relies on a redox reaction between CO2 and NADH, catalyzed by formate dehydrogenases (FDH). Since NADH is expensive, its regeneration during the process is essential. In the complete CO2 conversion and NADH regeneration process, this last step can occur through hydride transfer from a reducing agent via an ion-exchange membrane. The reducing agent must be capable of regenerating the NADH without producing intermediate radical species that reduce the yield of the desired reaction, as is the case with electrochemical methods. A detailed study on potential reducing agents identified certain nicotinamides as particularly promising redox couples. This work presents the promising results of hydride exchange between NADH and certain low-cost nicotinamides, which could enable NADH to be regenerated continuously in a process for converting CO2 into formate

La finalité réflexive de l’éducation chez Humboldt et Dewey

Wilhelm von Humboldt et John Dewey jouent un rôle étonnament analogue dans l’histoire de la philosophie de l’éducation. Tous deux ont formulé explicitement le projet d’une théorie générale de l’éducation et de la formation de soi, en présentant, respectivement, l’idéal de Bildung et le concept d’éducation, comme une catégorie sociale et anthropologique englobante. L’un et l’autre ont développé une philosophie de la connaissance non pas spéculative ou abstraite, mais promouvant un modèle ouvert et processuel de la science, respectivement comme recherche (Forschung) ou comme enquête (inquiry). Les deux philosophes politiques ont défendu une conception libérale de l’État, ancrée dans une approche fondée sur la confiance dans le rôle éducatif et culturel d’un public bien formé. Nous voulons montrer ici que toutes ces analogies, loin d’être contingentes ou superficielles, peuvent reconduire à ce point conceptuel commun plus profond : Humboldt et Dewey ont tous les deux développé une conception originale de ce qu’on pourrait appeler la finalité réflexive de l’apprentissage et de l’éducation comme processus de formation de soi

A Penalized Distributed Lag Non-Linear Lee-Carter Framework for Regional Weekly Mortality Forecasting

Accurate forecasts of weekly mortality are essential for public health and the insurance industry. We develop a forecasting framework that extends the Lee–Carter model with age- and region-specific seasonal effects and penalized distributed lag non-linear components that capture the delayed and non-linear effects of heat, cold, and influenza on mortality. The model accommodates overdispersed mortality rates via a negative binomial distribution. We model the temporal dynamics of the latent factors in the model using SARIMAX processes and capture cross-regional dependencies through a copula-based approach. Using regional French mortality data (1990–2019), we demonstrate that the proposed framework yields well-calibrated forecast distributions and improves predictive accuracy relative to benchmark models. The results further show substantial heterogeneity in temperature- and influenza-related relative risks between ages and regions. These findings underscore the importance of incorporating exogenous drivers and dependence structures into a weekly mortality forecasting framework

Prorogation du Parlement canadien : le juge valide, la responsabilité politique vacille ?

Le 6 janvier 2025, Justin Trudeau annonça son intention de démissionner de son poste de premier ministre du Canada avant le terme de la législature. Face à la menace imminente d’une censure parlementaire, il décida de solliciter la prorogation du Parlement fédéral canadien par la gouverneure générale, et ce pour une période de près de 3 mois. Cette suspension du Parlement devait permettre au parti libéral de se donner le temps de désigner un nouveau leader, en remplacement de Trudeau. Contestée devant la Cour fédérale du Canada, la décision du premier ministre de recommander la prorogation ne fut finalement pas sanctionnée par le juge en date du 6 mars 2025, à quelques jours de la désignation de Mark Carney comme nouveau chef du parti libéral. Ce billet revient, à la lumière de la séquence canadienne, sur l’épineuse question de savoir si l’usage de la prorogation est compatible avec les principes du parlementarisme moderne, et singulièrement celui de la responsabilité politique

Simultaneous protection of the marine environment and critical infrastructures: a dual challenge for State action at sea. The Belgian example

This article is based on the contribution presented by the author in Marseille on March 25, 2025, during the First Conference of European Marine Academies. It provides an overview of current Belgian legislation on the protection of marine areas and highlights the role of these areas as critical infrastructures within the geopolitical context

Participative videos concerning climate change: The interplay between media experience, perceived effectiveness knowledge, attitudes, and behavioral intentions changes

Recent studies have shown that nearly all humans believe in the reality of climate change and its effects, and people engage with climate issues in diverse ways, including watching videos about how to mitigate those effects. However, research results have demonstrated that negative emotional videos are less effective on citizen engagement than they once were. Based on these findings, we developed five participative videos that a panel of 150 social media users evaluated. This chapter explores this evaluation, in terms of the perception of the media experience, the perceived effectiveness of the videos, and possible changes the videos have induced in behavioral intentions. Drawing from studies on media effects and digital climate communication (Doyle, 2020; Lee et al., 2020; Ojala & Lakey, 2017; Shaw et al., 2019; Macnamara, 2018; Coffman, 2002; FrenettRecent studies have shown that nearly all humans believe in the reality of climate change and its effects, and people engage with climate issues in diverse ways, including watching videos about how to mitigate those effects. However, research results have demonstrated that negative emotional videos are less effective on citizen engagement than they once were. Based on these findings, we developed five participative videos that a panel of 150 social media users evaluated. This chapter explores this evaluation, in terms of the perception of the media experience, the perceived effectiveness of the videos, and possible changes the videos have induced in behavioral intentions. Drawing from studies on media effects and digital climate communication (Doyle, 2020; Lee et al., 2020; Ojala & Lakey, 2017; Shaw et al., 2019; Macnamara, 2018; Coffman, 2002; Frenette, 2009), we investigate how these experiential factors influence attitudes and representations of climate change issues. Findings suggest that a more positively evaluated media experience is correlated with a greater reported sense of the effectiveness of the videos and measured changes in knowledge, attitudes, and behavioral intentions. However, correlations are uneven, and do not exempt campaign designers from the need to collect updated indicators about their audience.e, 2009), we investigate how these experiential factors influence attitudes and representations of climate change issues. Findings suggest that a more positively evaluated media experience is correlated with a greater reported sense of the effectiveness of the videos and measured changes in knowledge, attitudes, and behavioral intentions. However, correlations are uneven, and do not exempt campaign designers from the need to collect updated indicators about their audience