Mental maps of students - Volume 5

This eurobroadmap working paper, split in 5 different volumes, presents the synthesis of a large survey launched in 2009 on 9000 undergraduate students from 18 different countries. The volume 1 includes the executive summary, plus elements regarding the five different volumes (references, list of figures, etc). The second one presents the aims and the organisation of the survey. The third one deals with the scale of the feeling of belonging. The fourth one presents explanatory models about countries and cities attractiveness. The final volume presents Europe representations in both cartographic and lexical ways

Differential binding of the transcription factors Sp1, AP-1, and NFI to the promoter of the human α5 integrin gene dictates its transcriptional activity

Purpose. Damage to the corneal epithelium results in the massive secretion of fibronectin (FN) shortly after injury and induces the expression of its integrin receptor α5β1. The authors reported previously that FN induces α5 expression in human corneal epithelial cells and rabbit corneal epithelial cells by altering the binding of the transcription factor (TF) Sp1 to a regulatory element from the α5 promoter that it is also flanked by binding sites for the TFs NFI and AP-1. Here, they assessed the function of NFI and AP-1 on α5 gene expression and evaluated the contribution of FN to their overall regulatory influence. Methods. TF binding to the α5 promoter was evaluated in vitro by electrophoretic mobility shift assays and in vivo by ligation-mediated PCR or chromatin immunoprecipitation. TFs expression was monitored by Western blot, whereas their influence was assessed by transfection and RNAi analyses. Results. Coexpression of Sp1, NFI, and AP-1 was demonstrated in all cell types, and each TF was shown to bind efficiently to the α5 promoter. Whereas both AP-1 and Sp1 activated expression directed by the α5 promoter, NFI functioned as a potent repressor of that gene. Interestingly, FN could either promote or repress α5 promoter activity in a cell density–dependent manner by differentially altering the ratio of these TFs. Conclusions. These results suggest that α5 gene expression is likely dictated by subtle alterations in the nuclear ratio of TFs that either repress (NFI) or activate (Sp1 and AP-1) α5 transcription in corneal epithelial cells

Cellular Immune Responses Induced with Dose-Sparing Intradermal Administration of HIV Vaccine to HIV-Uninfected Volunteers in the ANRS VAC16 Trial

The objective was to compare the safety and cellular immunogenicity of intradermal versus intramuscular immunization with an HIV-lipopeptide candidate vaccine (LIPO-4) in healthy volunteers.A randomized, open-label trial with 24 weeks of follow-up was conducted in France at six HIV-vaccine trial sites. Sixty-eight healthy 21- to 55-year-old HIV-uninfected subjects were randomized to receive the LIPO-4 vaccine (four HIV lipopeptides linked to a T-helper-stimulating epitope of tetanus-toxin protein) at weeks 0, 4 and 12, either intradermally (0.1 ml, 100 microg of each peptide) or intramuscularly (0.5 ml, 500 microg of each peptide). Comparative safety of both routes was evaluated. CD8+ T-cell immune responses to HIV epitopes (ELISpot interferon-gamma assay) and tetanus toxin-specific CD4+ T-cell responses (lymphoproliferation) were assessed at baseline, two weeks after each injection, and at week 24.No severe, serious or life-threatening adverse events were observed. Local pain was significantly more frequent after intramuscular injection, but local inflammatory reactions were more frequent after intradermal immunization. At weeks 2, 6, 14 and 24, the respective cumulative percentages of induced CD8+ T-cell responses to at least one HIV peptide were 9, 33, 39 and 52 (intradermal group) or 14, 20, 26 and 37 (intramuscular group), and induced tetanus toxin-specific CD4+ T-cell responses were 6, 27, 33 and 39 (intradermal), or 9, 46, 54 and 63 (intramuscular). In conclusion, intradermal LIPO-4 immunization was well tolerated, required one-fifth of the intramuscular dose, and induced similar HIV-specific CD8+ T-cell responses. Moreover, the immunization route influenced which antigen-specific T-cells (CD4+ or CD8+) were induced.ClinicalTrials.gov NCT00121121

Filière « Histoire sociale et démographique »

Stéphane Baciocchi et Pascal Cristofoli, ingénieur d’étudesJean Daniel Gronoff, ingénieur de rechercheArnaud Bringé et Bénédicte Garnier, ingénieurs à l’INED Atelier « Analyse des données relationnelles »1. Introduction à l’analyse des données relationnelles En lien avec des équipes et des projets de recherches actifs, encadré par des ingénieurs méthodes en sciences humaines et sociales, l’atelier a pour l’essentiel repris et suivi la trame pédagogique mise en place et expérimentée l’année de..

Filière « Histoire sociale et démographique »

Stéphane Baciocchi et Pascal Cristofoli, ingénieurs d’étudesArnaud Bringé et Bénédicte Garnier, ingénieurs à l’INED Atelier « Analyse des données relationnelles » Pour cette année, les deux composantes de l’atelier (« Introduction à l’analyse des données relationnelles » et « Études de cas ») ont été regroupées de sorte à présenter de manière intégrée et continue l’ensemble des opérations qui règlent la conduite des enquêtes sur les sources et données relationnelles. Nous avons rassemblé, au ..

Dire l’Europe à travers le monde

Thinking about what Europe is, about its location or its limits often consists in trying to identify something such as a European identity, a common project or adherence to a lifestyle. In this perspective, the feeling of belonging to a place implies various dimensions, including subjective perceptions. To explore this, the research project EuroBroadMap and the survey “Visions of Europe”, conducted on a sample of 10,000 students living in eighteen different countries around the world, allows us to enrich our comprehension of these perceptions of Europe. From a set of words spontaneously related to Europe by the students surveyed, the methods of textual statistics enabled us to measure the variety of the vocabulary associated to this place. Several factors may explain the diversity of the words obtained: the students’ academic fields and countries of residence strongly condition the way they perceive Europe. Furthermore, it is noteworthy that belonging to the European Union or to its margins influences the individual perceptions