Etude et optimisation de bioaccumulation de Mg2+ dans les microalgues « Chlorella vulgaris »

Chlorella vulgaris cultures were grown in triplicate over 15-30 days under autotrophic or mixotrophic conditions in order to study Mg2+ uptake and accumulation into the biomass. The concentrations of Mg2+ tested were 8.9 to 465 mg L-1. The results showed that Mg2+ is not toxic to C. vulgaris even at 465 mg L-1 which is not the case for other divalent ions (especially heavy metals). The mass balances for Mg2+ accumulation were determined for the cultures and were confirmed to an average of 90%. Beyond 46.1 mg of Mg2+ L-1 in the culture medium, the cells became saturated at 4 mg of Mg2+ absorbed per g of dry biomass. In the bioreactor (5L), at an initial Mg2+ concentration of 16 mg L-1, the cells accumulated 69% of the initial concentration, in which 18% was adsorbed and 51% absorbed. The chlorophyll a, nitrate and glucose concentrations were measured during the experiments. Under mixotrophic conditions (glucose 10 g L-1), a greater and faster biomass production was obtained than under autotrophic conditions. The Mg2+ bioaccumulation was higher in the autotrophic rather than the mixotrophic phase. In order to understand the kinetics of Mg2+ uptake, an original kinetic model was developed coupling the transfer and reaction phenomena in heterogeneous media. This model was confirmed experimentally.Des cultures de Chlorella vulgaris ont été réalisées en triplicata sur de longues périodes (15-30 jours) en autotrophie et en mixotrophie afin d’étudier l’effet de Mg2+ sur les microalgues et déterminer sa concentration dans la biomasse au cours de la croissance. Différentes concentrations ont été testées (de 8.9 à 465 mg L-1). Ceci a montré que le Mg2+ n’est pas toxique pour les algues à des concentrations élevées provoquant habituellement l’inhibition de la croissance dans le cas d’autres ions divalents (métaux lourds). Des bilans matière ont été établis et vérifiés avec une précision satisfaisante (écart moyen de 90%). La quantité de Mg2+ bioaccumulée augmente avec la concentration initiale de Mg2+ du milieu de culture. Une saturation en Mg2+ intracellulaire a été observée à partir d’environ 45 mg de Mg2+ L-1. Typiquement, la répartition entre le Mg2+ extracellulaire et intracellulaire est de 18% contre 51% dans le bioréacteur (5L) pour une concentration initiale de 16 mg L-1. En mixotrophie (addition de 10 g L-1 de glucose), une production de biomasse significativement plus importante et plus rapide que celle en autotrophie a été observée. En revanche, la quantité de Mg2+ accumulée dans les cellules est plus importante en autotrophie qu’en mixotrophie. Des mesures de chlorophylle a, de nitrate et de glucose ont été également réalisées. Afin de comprendre la cinétique relativement complexe de bioaccumulation du Mg2+, un modèle cinétique original a été élaboré couplant transfert (externe, membrane, interne) et réactions (ad/absorption) en milieu hétérogène. Le modèle a été validé expérimentalement. Il permet de rendre compte au mieux de l’ensemble des résultats obtenus

Ectopic expression of dehydration responsive element binding proteins (StDREB2) confers higher tolerance to salt stress in potato

Dehydration responsive element binding proteins (DREB) are members of a larger family of transcription factors, many of which have been reported to contribute to plant responses to abiotic stresses in several species. While, little is known about their role in potato (Solanum tuberosum). This report describes the cloning and characterization of a DREB transcription factor cDNA, StDREB2, isolated from potato(cv Nicola) plants submitted to salt treatment. Based on a multiple sequence alignment, this protein was classified into the A-5 group of DREB subfamily. Expression studies revealed that StDREB2 was induced in leaves, roots and stems upon various abiotic stresses and in response to exogenous treatment with abscisic acid (ABA). In agreement with this expression pattern, over-expression of StDREB2 in transgenic potato plants resulted in enhanced tolerance to salt stress. These data suggest that the isolated StDREB2 encodes a functional protein involved in plant response to different abiotic stresses. An electrophoretic mobility shift assay (EMSA) indicated that the StDREB2 protein bound specifically to the DRE core element (ACCGAGA) in vitro. Moreover, Semi quantitative RT-PCR analysis revealed that the transcript level of a putative target gene i.e. d1-pyrroline-5-carboxylate synthase (P5CS) was upregulated in transgenic plants submitted to salt stress conditions. A concomitant increase in proline accumulation was also observed under these conditions. Taking together, all these data suggest that StDREB2 takes part in the processes underlying plant responses to abiotic stresses probably via the regulation of ABA hormone signaling and through a mechanism allowing proline synthesis

Treatment of Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia with AIDA Based Regimen. Update of a Tunisian Single Center Study

In Tunisia, the ATRA era began in 1998 with the use, consecutively, of two regimens combining ATRA and an anthracycline with cytarabine (APL93), and without cytarabine (LPA99). From 2004, 51 patients with confirmed APL either by t(15;17) or PML/RARA were treated according to the PETHEMA LPA 99 trial. Forty three patients achieved CR (86%). The remaining seven patients had early death (one died before treatment onset): four caused by differentiation syndrome (DS) and three died from central nervous system hemorrhage. Multivariate analysis revealed that female gender (P=0.045), baseline WBC> 10 G/L (P=0.041) and serum creatinine > 1.4mg/dl (P=0.021) were predictive of mortality during induction. DS was observed in 16 patients (32%) after a median onset time of 15 days from treatment onset (range, 2–29). Body mass index ≥ 30 (P=0.01) remained independent predictor of DS. Occurrence of hypertensive peaks significantly predicted occurrence of DS (P=0.011) and was significantly associated with high BMI (p=0.003). With a median follow-up of 50 months, 5 year cumulative incidence of relapse, event free and overall survival were 4.7%, 74% and 78%, respectively

Bioaccumulation of Mg2+ by microalgae under different culture conditions

Des cultures de Chlorella vulgaris ont été réalisées en triplicata sur de longues périodes (15-30 jours) en autotrophie et en mixotrophie afin d’étudier l’effet de Mg2+ sur les microalgues et déterminer sa concentration dans la biomasse au cours de la croissance. Différentes concentrations ont été testées (de 8.9 à 465 mg L-1). Ceci a montré que le Mg2+ n’est pas toxique pour les algues à des concentrations élevées provoquant habituellement l’inhibition de la croissance dans le cas d’autres ions divalents (métaux lourds). Des bilans matière ont été établis et vérifiés avec une précision satisfaisante (écart moyen de 90%). La quantité de Mg2+ bioaccumulée augmente avec la concentration initiale de Mg2+ du milieu de culture. Une saturation en Mg2+ intracellulaire a été observée à partir d’environ 45 mg de Mg2+ L-1. Typiquement, la répartition entre le Mg2+ extracellulaire et intracellulaire est de 18% contre 51% dans le bioréacteur (5L) pour une concentration initiale de 16 mg L-1. En mixotrophie (addition de 10 g L-1 de glucose), une production de biomasse significativement plus importante et plus rapide que celle en autotrophie a été observée. En revanche, la quantité de Mg2+ accumulée dans les cellules est plus importante en autotrophie qu’en mixotrophie. Des mesures de chlorophylle a, de nitrate et de glucose ont été également réalisées. Afin de comprendre la cinétique relativement complexe de bioaccumulation du Mg2+, un modèle cinétique original a été élaboré couplant transfert (externe, membrane, interne) et réactions (ad/absorption) en milieu hétérogène. Le modèle a été validé expérimentalement. Il permet de rendre compte au mieux de l’ensemble des résultats obtenus.Chlorella vulgaris cultures were grown in triplicate over 15-30 days under autotrophic or mixotrophic conditions in order to study Mg2+ uptake and accumulation into the biomass. The concentrations of Mg2+ tested were 8.9 to 465 mg L-1. The results showed that Mg2+ is not toxic to C. vulgaris even at 465 mg L-1 which is not the case for other divalent ions (especially heavy metals). The mass balances for Mg2+ accumulation were determined for the cultures and were confirmed to an average of 90%. Beyond 46.1 mg of Mg2+ L-1 in the culture medium, the cells became saturated at 4 mg of Mg2+ absorbed per g of dry biomass. In the bioreactor (5L), at an initial Mg2+ concentration of 16 mg L-1, the cells accumulated 69% of the initial concentration, in which 18% was adsorbed and 51% absorbed. The chlorophyll a, nitrate and glucose concentrations were measured during the experiments. Under mixotrophic conditions (glucose 10 g L-1), a greater and faster biomass production was obtained than under autotrophic conditions. The Mg2+ bioaccumulation was higher in the autotrophic rather than the mixotrophic phase. In order to understand the kinetics of Mg2+ uptake, an original kinetic model was developed coupling the transfer and reaction phenomena in heterogeneous media. This model was confirmed experimentally

Hierarchical Structuring for the Olive Trees Irrigation Problem in Tunisia

The problem of choosing the best type of water for the irrigation of olive trees is one of the decisions that have a crucial impact on the water resource management. To solve this problem, we propose a multi-expert approach, implying several quantitative and qualitative criteria and combining the AHP method and Shannon’s entropy probability method. First, we use the AHP method to calculate all criteria weights for the various hierarchical levels as well as weights of the alternatives. Using the results obtained, we rank the types of water according to four experts. However, the data supplied by the experts are contradictory. We therefore combine these results according to the experts’ importance. We used Shannon’s entropy to determine the importance degree of each expert, to aggregate the results. The proposed approach showed that using well water was selected as the best for irrigation. Reuse of treated wastewater was classified as second, followed by desalinated brackish water and, next, by desalinated seawater

Magnesium Uptake by the Green Microalga Chlorella vulgaris in Batch Cultures

International audienceThe accumulation (internal and superficial distribution) of magnesium ions (Mg(2+)) by the green freshwater microalga Chlorella vulgaris (C. vulgaris) was investigated under autotrophic culture in a stirred photobioreactor. The concentrations of the three forms of Mg(2+) (dissolved, extracellular, and intracellular) were determined with atomic absorption spectroscopy during the course of C. vulgaris growth. The proportions of adsorbed (extracellular) and absorbed (intracellular) Mg(2+) were quantified. The concentration of the most important pigment in algal cells, chlorophyll a, increased over time in proportion to the increase in the biomass concentration, indicating a constant chlorophyll/biomass ratio during the linear growth phase. The mean-average rate of Mg(2+) uptake by C. vulgaris grown in a culture medium starting with 16 mg/l of Mg(2+) concentration was measured. A clear relationship between the biomass concentration and the proportion of the Mg(2+) removal from the medium was observed. Of the total Mg(2+) present in the culture medium, 18% was adsorbed on the cell wall and 51% was absorbed by the biomass by the end of the experiment (765 h). Overall, 69% of the initial Mg(2+) were found to be removed from the medium. This study supported the kinetic model based on a reversible first-order reaction for Mg(2+) bioaccumulation in C. vulgaris, which was consistent with the experimental data

Preference Modeling with Possibilistic Networks and Symbolic Weights: A Theoretical Study

International audienceThe use of possibilistic networks for representing conditional preference statements on discrete variables has been proposed only recently. The approach uses non-instantiated possibility weights to define conditional preference tables. Moreover, additional information about the relative strengths of these symbolic weights can be taken into account. The fact that at best we have some information about the relative values of these weights acknowledges the qualitative nature of preference specification. These conditional preference tables give birth to vectors of symbolic weights that reflect the preferences that are satisfied and those that are violated in a considered situation. The comparison of such vectors may rely on different orderings: the ones induced by the product-based, or the minimum-based chain rule underlying the possibilistic network, the discrimin, or leximin refinements of the minimum-based ordering, as well as Pareto ordering, and the symmetric Pareto ordering that refines it. A thorough study of the relations between these orderings in presence of vector components that are symbolic rather numerical is presented. In particular, we establish that the product-based ordering and the symmetric Pareto ordering coincide in presence of constraints comparing pairs of symbolic weights. This ordering agrees in the Boolean case with the inclusion between the sets of preference statements that are violated. The symmetric Pareto ordering may be itself refined by the leximin ordering. The paper highlights the merits of product-based possibilistic networks for representing preferences and provides a comparative discussion with CP-nets and OCF-networks

Graphical Models for Preference Representation: An Overview

International audienceRepresenting preferences into a compact structure has become an important research topic. Graphical models are of special interest. Indeed, they facilitate elicitation, exhibit some form of independence, and serve as a basis for solving optimization and dominance queries about choices. The expressiveness of the representation setting and the complexity of answering queries are then central issues for each approach. This paper proposes an extensive overview of the main graphical models for preference representation and provides a comparative survey by emphasizing their main characteristics. We also indicate possible transformations between some of these models. We contrast qualitative models such as CP-nets and TCP-nets with quantitative ones such as GAI networks, UCP-nets, and Marginal utility nets, and advocate π-Pref nets, recently introduced by the authors, as an interesting compromise between the two types of models

The Use of Chlorella Vulgaris to Accumulate Magnesium under Different Culture Conditions

International audienceWe investigated magnesium (Mg2+) ion uptake by Chlorella vulgaris under mixotrophic growth conditions (10 g/L of glucose) in a stirred photo-bioreactor. The culture nitrate and glucose consumptions were followed and analyzed during the experiments. The cellular chlorophyll α concentration decreased during exponential growth, indicating an adaptation to heterotrophic metabolism. The partition of magnesium partitioned between the culture medium, the cell surface and within the cells was determined throughout the experiment. A clear relationship between the microalgal concentration and Mg2+ ion removal-extent from the medium was observed. The removal rate was faster during mixotrophic growth than autotrophic growth and was related to the higher biomass production under the latter culture conditions. The Mg2+ concentration per gram of dry biomass was 3.44 mg/g under heterotrophic conditions and 6.0 mg/g under autotrophic growth. At the end of the experiment (330 h), 90 % of the initial magnesium (17.7 mg/L) in the medium was associated with the biomass, of which 4% was adsorbed and 86% absorbed by cells. This study was consistent with the kinetic model based on a reversible first-order reaction for Mg2+ bioaccumulation in C. vulgaris. Mixotrophic growth conditions can be used at industrial scale to increase both the speed and the extent of Mg2+ uptake by the microalgal