Convolutional neural network allows amylose content prediction in yam (Dioscorea alata L.) flour using near infrared spectroscopy

Background: Yam (Dioscorea alata L.) is the staple food of many populations in the intertropical zone where it is grown. The lack of phenotyping methods for tuber quality hinders the adoption of new genotypes from the breeding programs. Recently, near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) has been used as a reliable tool to characterize the chemical composition of the yam tuber. However, it failed to predict the amylose content, although this trait is strongly involved in the quality of the product. Results: This study used NIRS to predict the amylose content from 186 yam flour samples. Two calibration methods were developed and validated on an independent dataset: Partial Least Square (PLS) and Convolutional Neural Network (CNN). To evaluate final model performances, the coefficient of determination (R2 ), the root mean square error (RMSE), and the Ratio of Performance to Deviation (RPD) were calculated using predictions on an independent validation dataset. Tested models showed contrasting performances (i.e. R2 of 0.72 and 0.89, RMSE of 1.33 and 0.81, RPD of 2.13 and 3.49 respectively, for the PLS and the CNN model). Conclusion: According to the quality standard for NIRS model prediction used in food science, the PLS method proved unsuccessful (RPD<3 and R2 <0.8) for predicting amylose content from yam flour, while the CNN proved reliable and efficient method. With the application of deep learning method, this study established the proof of concept that amylose content, a key driver of yam textural quality and acceptance, could be predicted accurately using NIRS as a high throughput phenotyping method. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved

Cross-transmission of resistant gastrointestinal nematodes between wildlife and transhumant sheep

ABSTRACT Wild and domestic ungulates can be infected with the same species of gastrointestinal parasitic nematodes. These parasites have a free leaving stage in the environment that contributes to the ease of transmission among different host species. In addition, gastrointestinal nematodes have developed resistance to anthelmintics which is now considered a major problem for the livestock sector. In a context where wild and domestic ungulates share the same pastures, the maintenance and circulation of resistant gastrointestinal nematodes between species have rarely been explored. In the European Alps, domestic sheep are driven in the high-altitude summer pastures leaving in sympatry with wild ungulates for several months. In this study we investigated the nemabiome of domestic sheep and Alpine ibex, Capra ibex , in three different areas of the French Alps to evaluate the parasites circulation between the two host species. The Alpine ibex is a protected mountain ungulate that is phylogenetically related to sheep and hosts nematode species common to sheep. Using internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS-2) nemabiome metabarcoding, we found sheep and ibex sharing similar gastrointestinal nematodes, except for a few species, such as Marshallagia marshalli and Trichostrongylus axei . This suggests that the long-term co-occurrence of sheep and ibex on mountain pastures has promoted the exchange of gastrointestinal nematodes between the two hosts. Based on the sequencing of the isotype 1 of the beta tubulin gene, associated with benzimidazole resistance, we found resistant nematodes in all sheep farms and in all Ibex populations. Our results demonstrated that Ibex can host and shed resistant strains before transhumant sheep arrive on pastures, and then can act as a reservoir or refugia for resistant gastrointestinal nematodes. The relative role of ibex to the nemabiome and in particular to the maintenance and circulation of resistant strains in sheep remain to be determined

Sectoral Issues and Environmental Causes: The Mobilization of the French Basque Fishermen after the Sinking of the Prestige

This article analyses the mobilization of French Basque fishermen following the sinking of the oil tanker Prestige off the coast of Galicia (Spain) in 2002. This environmental disaster led to intense political action and bottom-up mobilization in the French Basque region, especially within a profession already undergoing structural changes since the 1990s, partly because of the implementation of the EU Common Fisheries Policy. The Basque fishermen's reactions clearly illustrate the specific stakes and power game at play within the trade. The Prestige disaster occurred at a time of deep changes, if not destabilization, of the sectoral modes of regulation, thus straining relationships between Europe, nations and infra-national bodies. It led to a reorganization of the local institutional order. The management of the crisis also shed light on the paradoxical dimension of a fishing community caught in between solidarity and competitive localism, sectoral interests and environmental issues, unity of the milieu and internal fragmentation. It reopened debate over EU regulations in so far as two competing perceptions of Europeanization were revealed by this crisis — general awareness among professionals of the European dimension in environmental issues vs specific awareness of the EU's extensive regulatory framework for the fishing industry