Structure and diversity of shallow soft-bottom benthic macrofauna in the Gulf of Lions (NW Mediterranean).

14 páginas, 10 figuras, 4 tablas.Samples of soft-sediment macrobenthos from 92 sites between 10 and 50 m depth were used to assess (1) the main soft-bottom macrofauna communities in the Gulf of Lions, (2) the different components of the diversity of benthic macrofauna in this area, and (3) the relevance of the use of major taxonomic groups as surrogates for the analysis of the structure and diversity of total macrofauna. Three main communities were identified by cluster analysis and associated procedures. These communities corresponded well to the assemblages recently identified on the basis of polychaete composition. The a-diversity indices were in accordance with those reported for similar communities in the Mediterranean. Conversely, the b-diversity value was higher than the few other data available in the literature for marine soft-bottom macrofauna. The total number of species in the studied area estimated by the ‘‘total species accumulation curve’’ (TS) method was 2,319, which was only 10% higher than the number obtained by extrapolation of the species–area curve. The similarity matrix based on polychaetes correlated best with the one based on total macrofauna. Polychaetes and crustaceans were also the best surrogates of total macrofauna when assessing a-diversity (except in the case of D*). Conversely, molluscs were the best surrogates of total macrofauna b-diversity. Our results show that the choice of an optimal surrogate for total benthic macrofauna depends on the characteristic of the benthic macrofauna to be studied. Moreover, this choice is also dependent on the environment to be studiedThis work is part of the PhD thesis of Ce´line Labrune. It was carried out within the EC Network of Excellence MARBEF. Ce´line Labrune was supported by the SYSCOLAG project run by the Re´gion Languedoc-Roussillon.Peer reviewe

A survey on parallel and distributed Multi-Agent Systems

International audienceSimulation has become an indispensable tool for researchers to explore systems without having recourse to real experiments. Depending on the characteristics of the modeled system, methods used to represent the system may vary. Multi-agent systems are, thus, often used to model and simulate complex systems. Whatever modeling type used, increasing the size and the precision of the model increases the amount of computation, requiring the use of parallel systems when it becomes too large. In this paper, we focus on parallel platforms that support multi-agent simulations. Our contribution is a survey on existing platforms and their evaluation in the context of high performance computing. We present a qualitative analysis, mainly based on platform properties, then a performance comparison using the same agent model implemented on each platform

Abundance of Delta Resonances in 58Ni+58Ni Collisions between 1 and 2 AGeV

Charged pion spectra measured in 58Ni-58Ni collisions at 1.06, 1.45 and 1.93 AGeV are interpreted in terms of a thermal model including the decay of Delta resonances. The transverse momentum spectra of pions are well reproduced by adding the pions originating from the Delta-resonance decay to the component of thermal pions, deduced from the high transverse momentum part of the pion spectra. About 10 and 18% of the nucleons are excited to Delta states at freeze-out for beam energies of 1 and 2 AGeV, respectively.Comment: 14 pages, LaTeX with 3 included figures; submitted to Physics Letters

Stopping and Radial Flow in Central 58Ni + 58Ni Collisions between 1 and 2 AGeV

The production of charged pions, protons and deuterons has been studied in central collisions of 58Ni on 58Ni at incident beam energies of 1.06, 1.45 and 1.93 AGeV. The dependence of transverse-momentum and rapidity spectra on the beam energy and on the centrality of the collison is presented. It is shown that the scaling of the mean rapidity shift of protons established for AGS and SPS energies is valid down to 1 AGeV. The degree of nuclear stopping is discussed; the IQMD transport model reproduces the measured proton rapidity spectra for the most central events reasonably well, but does not show any sensitivity between the soft and the hard equation of state (EoS). A radial flow analysis, using the midrapidity transverse-momentum spectra, delivers freeze-out temperatures T and radial flow velocities beta_r which increase with beam energy up to 2 AGeV; in comparison to existing data of Au on Au over a large range of energies only beta_r shows a system size dependence

Concurrent sampling of transitional and coastal waters by Diffusive Gradient in Thin-films (DGT) and spot sampling for trace metals analysis

This protocol was developed based on the knowledge acquired in the framework of the Interreg MONITOOL project (EAPA_565/2016) where extensive sampling campaigns were performed in transitional and coastal waters covering eight European countries. It provides detailed procedures and guidelines for the sampling of these waterbodies by concurrent collection of discrete water samples and the deployment of Diffusive Gradient in Thin-films (DGT) passive samplers for the measurement of trace metal concentrations. In order to facilitate the application of this protocol by end-users, it presents steps to follow in the laboratory prior to sampling campaigns, explains the procedures for field campaigns (including in situ measurement of supporting parameters) and subsequent sample processing in the laboratory in preparation for trace metal analyze by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and voltammetry. The protocol provides a systematic, coherent field sampling and sample preparation strategy that was developed in order to ensure comparability and reproducibility of the data obtained from each project Partner in different regions. • Standardization of the concurrent sampling of transitional and coastal waters by DGT passive samplers and spot sampling. • Robust procedures and tips based on existing international standards and comprehensive practical experience. • Links to demonstration videos produced within the MONITOOL project

Assessing variability in the ratio of metal concentrations measured by DGT-type passive samplers and spot sampling in European seawaters

The current study evaluates the effect of seawater physico-chemical characteristics on the relationship between the concentration of metals measured by Diffusive Gradients in Thin films (DGT) passive samplers (i.e., DGT-labile concentration) and the concentrations measured in discrete water samples. Accordingly, Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) was used to measure the total dissolved metal concentrations in the discrete water samples and the labile metal concentrations obtained by DGT samplers; additionally, lead and cadmium conditional labile fractions were determined by Anodic Stripping Voltammetry (ASV) and total dissolved nickel was measured by Cathodic Stripping Voltammetry (CSV). It can be concluded that, in general, the median ratios of DGT/ICP and DGT/ASV(CSV) were lower than 1, except for Ni (median ratio close to 1) and Zn (higher than 1). This indicates the importance of speciation and time-integrated concentrations measured using passive sampling techniques, which is in line with the WFD suggestions for improving the chemical assessment of waterbodies. It is the variability in metal content in waters rather than environmental conditions to which the variability of the ratios can be attributed. The ratios were not significantly affected by the temperature, salinity, pH, oxygen, DOC or SPM, giving a great confidence for all the techniques used. Within a regulatory context such as the EU Water Framework Directive this is a great advantage, since the simplicity of not needing to use corrections to minimize the effects of environmental variables could help in implementing DGTs within monitoring networks

Evaluation of the impact of pharmaceutical trainings and tools on the proper use of medicines in pediatrics

Introduction: After six years of medication errors’ (MEs) collection and analysis in a pediatric unit of a French University Hospital, the number of MEs was no longer decreasing. We then decided to set up pharmaceutical training and tools and evaluate their impact on the occurrence of ME.Materials and methods: This monocentric prospective study was carried out in the form of audits of prescriptions, preparations, and administrations before and after intervention (A1 and A2). After the analysis of A1 results, feedback was given to the teams, some tools for the proper use of medication (PUM) were distributed, and A2 was conducted. Finally, A1 and A2 results were compared.Results: Each audit included 202 observations. A total of 120 MEs were identified during A1 and 54 for A2 (p < 0.0001). The observation rate with at least 1 ME decreased from 39.11% to 21.29% (p < 0.0001), and no observation had more than two MEs during A2 in contrast to A1 (n = 12). Human factors were responsible for the majority of MEs. The audit feedback allowed professionals to feel concerned about ME. The PUM tools received an average satisfaction rating of 9/10. The staff had never participated in this type of training, and all felt it was useful to apply PUM.Conclusion: This study showed a significant impact of pharmaceutical training and tools on the pediatric PUM. Clinical pharmaceutic actions allowed us to reach our objectives and satisfied all the staff. They must, therefore, be continued to limit human factors’ impact and thus contribute to the safety of drug management in pediatrics

K^+ production in the reaction 58Ni+58Ni^{58}Ni+^{58}Ni at incident energies from 1 to 2 AGeV

Semi-inclusive triple differential multiplicity distributions of positively charged kaons have been measured over a wide range in rapidity and transverse mass for central collisions of $^{58}$Ni with $^{58}$Ni nuclei. The transverse mass ($m_t$) spectra have been studied as a function of rapidity at a beam energy 1.93 AGeV. The $m_t$ distributions of K^+ mesons are well described by a single Boltzmann-type function. The spectral slopes are similar to that of the protons indicating that rescattering plays a significant role in the propagation of the kaon. Multiplicity densities have been obtained as a function of rapidity by extrapolating the Boltzmann-type fits to the measured distributions over the remaining phase space. The total K^+ meson yield has been determined at beam energies of 1.06, 1.45, and 1.93 AGeV, and is presented in comparison to existing data. The low total yield indicates that the K^+ meson can not be explained within a hadro-chemical equilibrium scenario, therefore indicating that the yield does remain sensitive to effects related to its production processes such as the equation of state of nuclear matter and/or modifications to the K^+ dispersion relation.Comment: 24 pages Latex (elsart) 7 PS figures to be submitted to Nucl. Phys

Long-term (1998–2010) large-scale comparison of the ecological quality status of gulf of lions (NW Mediterranean) benthic habitats

12 páginas, 4 tablas, 8 figuras.A comprehensive Mediterranean data set has been used to address 3 questions associated with the use of sensitivity/tolerance based biotic indices to infer the Ecological Quality status (EcoQs) of benthic habitats. Our results showed: (1) a significant effect of the reference database on derived sensitivity/tolerance measure (ES500.05) as well as associated Benthic Quality Index values and derived EcoQs; (2) a lack of correlation neither between BQI and AZTI Marine Biotic Index values nor between BQI and Multivariate-AZTI Marine Biotic Index values; (3) a lack of correlation between the values of the Benthic Habitat Quality Index (index derived from Sediment Profile Imagery) and those of either of the 3 tested biotic indices; and (4) a general agreement between the 3 tested biotic indices in describing the lack of global trend for the EcoQs of the Gulf of Lions despite the occurrence of significant changes in benthic macrofauna composition between 1998 and 2010.This study has been carried out with financial support from the French National Research Agency (ANR) in the frame of the Investments for the future Programme, within the Cluster of Excellence COTE (ANR-10-LABX-45).Peer reviewe

Severe gastric variceal haemorrhage due to splenic artery thrombosis and consecutive arterial bypass

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Upper gastrointestinal haemorrhage is mainly caused by ulcers. Gastric varicosis due to portal hypertension can also be held responsible for upper gastrointestinal bleeding. Portal hypertension causes the development of a collateral circulation from the portal to the caval venous system resulting in development of oesophageal and gastric fundus varices. Those may also be held responsible for upper gastrointestinal haemorrhage.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>In this study, we describe the case of a 69-year-old male with recurrent severe upper gastrointestinal bleeding caused by arterial submucosal collaterals due to idiopathic splenic artery thrombosis. The diagnosis was secured using endoscopic duplex ultrasound and angiography. The patient was successfully treated with a laparoscopic splenectomy and complete dissection of the short gastric arteries, resulting in the collapse of the submucosal arteries in the gastric wall. Follow-up gastroscopy was performed on the 12^thpostoperative week and showed no signs of bleeding and a significant reduction in the arterial blood flow within the gastric wall. Subsequent follow-up after 6 months also showed no further gastrointestinal bleeding as well as subjective good quality of life for the patient.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Submucosal arterial collaterals must be excluded by endosonography via endoscopy in case of recurrent upper gastrointestinal bleeding. Laparoscopic splenectomy provides adequate treatment in preventing any recurrent bleeding, if gastric arterial collaterals are caused by splenic artery thrombosis.</p