Régie des populations de Cydia pomonella (Lepidoptera : Tortricidea) dans les vergers commerciaux du Québec avec des phéromones de synthèse

Des diffuseurs à phéromones sexuelles de synthèse ont été installés en 1992 et 1993 dans trois vergers de pommiers (Malus pumila) du Québec, à raison de 1000 diffuseurs ha lors d'un essai de régie des populations de carpocapse de la pomme, Cydia pomonella [Lepidoptera : Tortricidae]. De 1991 à 1992, soit après un an d'essai, les dégâts de carpocapse à la récolte sont passés de 54 % à 32 %, de 11 % à 2 %, et se sont maintenus à 0 % dans les vergers à forte, moyenne et faible pressions de carpocapse, respectivement. Après deux ans d'essai, les dégâts sont demeurés au même niveau ou ont été diminués davantage selon le type de programme de répression utilisé contre les autres ravageurs. En 1993, une baisse de 75-100 % des captures a aussi été observée dans les pièges à phéromones par rapport aux captures observées en 1991.Pheromone dispensers were installed in 1992 and 1993, at a rate of 1000 dispensers ha1, in three Quebec apple (Malus pumila) orchards, to reduce populations of the codling moth, Cydia pomonella [Lepidoptera : Tortricidae]. After one year, codling moth damage at harvest decreased from 54% to 32%, from 11% to 2% and remained at 0% in the high, medium and low codling moth pressure orchards, respectively. Damage remained at the same level after the second year, or further decreased, depending on the type of spray program used against other pests. Pheromone trap catches in 1993 also decreased from 75 to 100% when compared to 1991 catches

Étude du traitement et du recyclage des eaux issues des serres horticoles

La gestion de l'eau dans les systèmes de culture hors-sol fait apparaître deux problèmes distincts. D'une part, les ressources en eau doivent être de bonne qualité et ne pas contenir de pesticides ou de germes pathogènes. D'autre part, les rejets fortement " chargés " en nutriments (NO3-, PO43-) polluants pour l'environnement, doivent être limités par le biais de leur recyclage ce qui implique nécessairement la désinfection des effluents.La technique mise en œuvre pour obtenir cette maîtrise de la qualité tant chimique que microbiologique des solutions circulantes en culture hors-sol est celle d'une oxydation à l'ozone seul et couplé au peroxyde d'hydrogène dans des réacteurs constitués de mélangeurs statiques. Les conditions de traitement sont une dose d'oxydant de 10 g O3/m3 d'effluent à traiter, un rapport H2O2/O3 de 0,15 g/g pour un temps de contact dans le réacteur de l'ordre de la seconde. Etudié sur site dans le cadre du traitement de effluents de serre réels, le procédé s'est révélé tout à fait adapté pour abattre les pesticides (# 90 % pour l'atrazine), maîtriser la prolifération des micro-organismes (Flore aérobie mésophile, flore fongique) et en particulier des germes pathogènes (Clavibacter michiganensis, Fusarium, Pythium sp ).Le procédé novateur O3/H2O2 sur mélangeurs statiques constitue donc pour les serristes une réponse nouvelle dont l'un des intérêts est de combiner les effets " détoxiquant " et désinfectant.The management of water resources in soil-less cultures presents two difficulties. On one hand, the quality of these resources has to be good, that is to say without pesticides or pathogens. On the other hand, the effluents contain high concentrations of nutrients (NO3-, PO43-), damageable for the environment, and should be recycled. Thus, recycling has to include necessarily a disinfection step to satisfy the quality requirement. The main disinfection treatments used in soil-less cultures are slow sand filtration, ultraviolet treatment, heat treatment, nanofiltration, ozone or hydrogen peroxide oxidation, iodine or chlorine treatment.In order to control the chemical as well as the microbiological quality of the recycled nutrient solution, we suggest oxidation (O3) and advanced oxidation (O3/H2O2) processes, carried out in static mixers as chemical reactors instead of bubble columns. We have been studying this process in situ for the treatment of a 1-hectare greenhouse. The pilot plant unit can be configured under three setups (Figure 2) according to the aim to favor either the molecular action of ozone or the formation of very reactive radical species such as the hydroxyl radical. In this second case, the mechanism of ozone decomposition is given by Figure 1.The first step of the study was to measure the influence of the nutrient solution to be recycled on the efficiency of atrazine removal (Figures 3 and 4). In comparison with tap water, the percentage of pesticide removal is lower by about 10 to 20 %. Solutions with nutrients do not drastically change the process efficiency. The experiments were carried out with various ozone dosages and various ozone / hydrogen peroxide mass ratios, using the three configurations (Figures 5 and 6). With these results, the best operating conditions for micropollutant removal are a treatment rate of about 10 g O3 /m3 of treated solution, a H2O2/O3 ratio equal to 0.15 g/g and a contact time in the reactor in the range of 1 to 2 seconds. The influence of the configuration type is not really marked. The results show that, under these conditions, this technique leads to good pesticide removal efficiencies (about 90 % for atrazine).In a second step, experiments were carried out on real solutions containing microorganisms from the greenhouse, sometimes spiked with special bacteria (Clavibacter) or fungi (Fusarium). Some results are reported in Figures 7, 8 and 9. With the same oxidant dosage conditions, the role of the configuration is clearly demonstrated. The best results are obtained with a molecular action of ozone in the first static mixed reactor followed by a free-radical action within the second reactor. Thus, it is possible to prevent germ proliferation (aerobic mesophilic flora and fungi flora) and particularly pathogenic species. The abatement of Clavibacter michiganensis reaches 3.5 to 4 logarithmic units, 1 to 1.5 units for Pythium and 2 to 4 units for Fusarium. The treatment does not effect a complete sterilization, e.g., the beneficial bacterium Pseudomonas fluorescens survives. The global impact of the treatment on the nutritive quality of the treated solution is negligible. Nevertheless, we can note that the process induces a decrease of the ion concentrations of Fe (II) (- 5 to 30 %) and Mn (II) (-10 to 15 %) as a result of the oxidation of the EDTA chelate. In fact, this problem is observed with all oxidation and UV treatments. The residual oxidant (O3, H2O2) concentrations are low and do not induce obvious toxic effects on the cultures.Thus, the technique is consistent with a recycling of the treated effluents. The advantages of the process include very short contact times, compactness of the equipment, no need for pretreatment, reasonable investment and operating costs, an increase of the oxygen concentration in the treated effluent, and possible curative effects on the culture's germ contamination due to the residual concentration of hydrogen peroxide. The disinfection efficiency of this suggested process is similar to those obtained with more common techniques like UV irradiation. Moreover, the studied process can also reduce, for example, an eventual chemical pollution of the water resource. In conclusion, the O3, H2O2 process in static mixers appears to be a new solution for greenhouse farmers

Rocaglates as dual-targeting agents for experimental cerebral malaria

Cerebral malaria (CM) is a severe and rapidly progressing complication of infection by Plasmodium parasites that is associated with high rates of mortality and morbidity. Treatment options are currently few, and intervention with artemisinin (Art) has limited efficacy, a problem that is compounded by the emergence of resistance to Art in Plasmodium parasites. Rocaglates are a class of natural products derived from plants of the Aglaia genus that have been shown to interfere with eukaryotic initiation factor 4A (eIF4A), ultimately blocking initiation of protein synthesis. Here, we show that the rocaglate CR-1-31B perturbs association of Plasmodium falciparum eIF4A (PfeIF4A) with RNA. CR-1-31B shows potent prophylactic and therapeutic antiplasmodial activity in vivo in mouse models of infection with Plasmodium berghei (CM) and Plasmodium chabaudi (blood-stage malaria), and can also block replication of different clinical isolates of P. falciparum in human erythrocytes infected ex vivo, including drug-resistant P. falciparum isolates. In vivo, a single dosing of CR-1-31B in P. berghei-infected animals is sufficient to provide protection against lethality. CR-1-31B is shown to dampen expression of the early proinflammatory response in myeloid cells in vitro and dampens the inflammatory response in vivo in P. berghei-infected mice. The dual activity of CR-1-31B as an antiplasmodial and as an inhibitor of the inflammatory response in myeloid cells should prove extremely valuable for therapeutic intervention in human cases of CM.We thank Susan Gauthier, Genevieve Perreault, and Patrick Senechal for technical assistance. This work was supported by a research grant (to P.G.) from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) (Foundation Grant). J.P. and P.G. are supported by a James McGill Professorship salary award. D.L. is supported by fellowships from the Fonds de recherche sante Quebec, the CIHR Neuroinflammation training program. J.P. is supported by CIHR Research Grant FDN-148366. M.S. is supported by a CIHR Foundation grant. J.A.P. is supported by NIH Grant R35 GM118173. Work at the Boston University Center for Molecular Discovery is supported by Grant R24 GM111625. K.C.K. was supported by a CIHR Foundation Grant and the Canada Research Chair program. (Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR); James McGill Professorship salary award; Fonds de recherche sante Quebec; CIHR Neuroinflammation training program; FDN-148366 - CIHR Research Grant; CIHR Foundation grant; R35 GM118173 - NIH; Canada Research Chair program; R24 GM111625

Observation of individual molecules trapped on a nanostructured insulator

For the first time, ordered polar molecules confined in monolayer-deep rectangular pits produced on an alkali halide surface by electron irradiation have been resolved at room temperature by non-contact atomic force microscopy. Molecules self-assemble in a specific fashion inside pits of width smaller than 15 nm. By contrast no ordered aggregates of molecules are observed on flat terraces. Conclusions regarding nucleation and ordering mechanisms are drawn. Trapping in pits as small as 2 nm opens a route to address single molecules

Measurement of the conductance of a hydrogen molecule

Recent years have shown steady progress in research towards molecular electronics [1,2], where molecules have been investigated as switches [3-5], diodes [6], and electronic mixers [7]. In much of the previous work a Scanning Tunnelling Microscope was employed to address an individual molecule. As this arrangement does not provide long-term stability, more recently metal-molecule-metal links have been made using break junction devices [8-10]. However, it has been difficult to establish unambiguously that a single molecule forms the contact [11]. Here, we show that a single H2 molecule can form a stable bridge between Pt electrodes. In contrast to results for other organic molecules, the bridge has a nearly perfect conductance of one quantum unit, carried by a single channel. The H2-bridge provides a simple test system and a fundamental step towards understanding transport properties of single-molecule devices.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figure

Evaluation of candidate geomagnetic field models for IGRF-12

Background: The 12th revision of the International Geomagnetic Reference Field (IGRF) was issued in December 2014 by the International Association of Geomagnetism and Aeronomy (IAGA) Division V Working Group V-MOD (http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/IAGA/vmod/igrf.html). This revision comprises new spherical harmonic main field models for epochs 2010.0 (DGRF-2010) and 2015.0 (IGRF-2015) and predictive linear secular variation for the interval 2015.0-2020.0 (SV-2010-2015). Findings: The models were derived from weighted averages of candidate models submitted by ten international teams. Teams were led by the British Geological Survey (UK), DTU Space (Denmark), ISTerre (France), IZMIRAN (Russia), NOAA/NGDC (USA), GFZ Potsdam (Germany), NASA/GSFC (USA), IPGP (France), LPG Nantes (France), and ETH Zurich (Switzerland). Each candidate model was carefully evaluated and compared to all other models and a mean model using well-defined statistical criteria in the spectral domain and maps in the physical space. These analyses were made to pinpoint both troublesome coefficients and the geographical regions where the candidate models most significantly differ. Some models showed clear deviation from other candidate models. However, a majority of the task force members appointed by IAGA thought that the differences were not sufficient to exclude models that were well documented and based on different techniques. Conclusions: The task force thus voted for and applied an iterative robust estimation scheme in space. In this paper, we report on the evaluations of the candidate models and provide details of the algorithm that was used to derive the IGRF-12 produc

Evaluating Southern Ocean carbon eddy-pump from biogeochemical-Argo floats

The vertical transport of surface water and carbon into ocean's interior, known as subduction, is one of the main mechanisms through which the ocean influences Earth's climate. New instrumental approaches have shown the occurrence of localized and intermittent subduction episodes associated with small-scale ocean circulation features. These studies also revealed the importance of such events for the export of organic matter, the so-called eddy-pump. However, the transient and localized nature of episodic subduction hindered its large-scale evaluation to date. In this work, we present an approach to detect subduction events at the scale of the Southern Ocean using measurements collected by biogeochemical autonomous floats (BGCArgo). We show how subduction events can be automatically identified as anomalies of spiciness and Apparent Oxygen Utilization (AOU) below the mixed layer. Using this methodology over more than 4,000 profiles, we detected 40 subduction events unevenly distributed across the Sothern Ocean. Events were more likely found in hot spots of eddy kinetic energy (EKE), downstream major bathymetric features. Moreover, the bio-optical measurements provided by BGCArgo allowed measuring the amount of Particulate Organic Carbon (POC) being subducted and assessing the contribution of these events to the total downward carbon flux at 100 m (EP100). We estimated that the eddy-pump represents less than 19% to the EP100 in the Southern Ocean, although we observed particularly strong events able to locally duplicate the EP100. This approach provides a novel perspective on where episodic subduction occurs that will be naturally improved as BGCArgo observations continue to increase