De la portée de la « palatisation » en gbe et ses implications théoriques

Après avoir énuméré les différentes règles de « palatalisation » que l’on rencontre dans les différents parlers gbe sur les plans synchronique et diachronique, la présente étude suggère qu’il faudrait peut-être remplacer le terme « palatalisation » par « sibilantisation » pour refléter la diversité de ses manifestations concrètes. Mais plus que cela, cette étude tire les conséquences logiques de la portée du processus en gbe et les rattache à quelques questions d’universaux. Ainsi les hypothèses suivantes ont-elles été proposées : (i) que le processus ne se produit pas si la position générale de la langue n’est pas convexe; (ii) qu’il ne se produirait pas avec les autres voyelles s’il ne faisant de même avec les voyelles d’avant fermées; (iii) qu’il n’affecterait pas les fricatives sans affecter aussi les occlusives; et (iv) qu’il n’affecterait pas les consonnes antérieures sans les consonnes postérieures (du moins par le passé). Dans tous les cas, le processus passé en revue, loin d’être simple, est en fait non seulement complexe, mais encore multiple.After enumerating various "palatalisation" rules as they apply to various Gbe dialects synchronically and diachronically, the present paper suggests that perhaps the term "palatalisation" should be replaced with "sibilantisation" to cover the actual range of its manifestations. More importantly this study draws the logical consequences of the scope of the process in Gbe and relates them to some issues of universals. Thus the following hypotheses are put forwards: (i) that the process may not occur if the tongue body does not assume a convex position; (ii) that it may not take place with other vowels if it does not do same with the front close vowels; (iii) that it may not affect fricatives unless it also affects stops; and (iv) that it may not affect the anterior consonants without affecting the back ones (at least in the past). No doubt, the process reviewed, far from being a simple one, is in fact not only complex but also multiple

Synthesis of calculational methods for design and analysis of radiation shields for nuclear rocket systems

Eight computer programs make up a nine volume synthesis containing two design methods for nuclear rocket radiation shields. The first design method is appropriate for parametric and preliminary studies, while the second accomplishes the verification of a final nuclear rocket reactor design

Etude de l’impact de la dynamique de l’occupation du sol sur les ressources naturelles dans le sous-bassin de l’Okpara à Nano au Nord Bénin

Au Bénin, les pratiques agricoles actuelles caractérisées par l’agriculture itinérante sur brûlis, continuent de soumettre l’environnement à une pression anthropique importante. L’objectif de la recherche est d’apporter une contribution à la gestion des ressources naturelles et de l’occupation du sol dans le sous-Bassin versant de l’Okpara Nano. L’approche méthodologique adoptée a consisté à une description, et à une étude analytique des facteurs de la dynamique de l’occupation du sol et leurs implications sur la gestion des ressources naturelles du sous-Bassin. L’analyse des résultats a été faite à l’aide du modèle PEIR « Pression-Etat-Impact-Réponse ». Les résultats obtenus ont révélé qu’en une vingtaine d’années (1992-2012), la population des communes du sous-Bassin de Nano ont connu une augmentation de 74,48 %, passant ainsi de 155 164 habitants en 1992 à 608 015 habitants en 2012. Cette situation a conduit à une extension des espaces bâtis au sein du sous-Bassin avec un taux d’accroissement de l’ordre de 3,9 %. Aussi, a-t-il été constaté une évolution des unités d’occupation du sol entre les années 1985 et 2014 dans le sous-Bassin versant de Nano, une nette régression des unités de végétation naturelle ou artificielle, excepté les mosaïques de cultures qui sont en augmentation. In Benin, current agricultural practices characterized by shifting slash-and-burn agriculture continue to subject the environment to significant human pressure. The objective of the research is to make a contribution to the management of natural resources and land use in the Okpara Nano sub-watershed. The methodological approach adopted consisted of a description and an analytical study of the factors of land use dynamics and their implications on the management of the natural resources of the sub-basin. The results were analyzed using the PEIR "Pressure-State-Impact-Response" model. The results obtained revealed that in about twenty years (1992-2012), the population of the municipalities of the Nano sub-basin experienced an increase of 74.48%, from 155,164 inhabitants in 1992 to 608,015 inhabitants in 2012. This situation has led to an extension of built-up areas within the sub-basin with an increase rate of around 3.9%. Also, it was noted an evolution of the units of land use between the years 1985 and 2014 in the sub-basin of Nano, a clear regression of the units of natural or artificial vegetation, except the mosaics of cultures which are increasing

Cognitive functions in repeated glioma surgery

Low-grade gliomas (LGG) are slow-growing brain tumors infiltrating the central nervous system which tend to recur, often with malignant degeneration after primary treatment. Re-operations are not always recommended due to an assumed higher risk of neurological and cognitive deficits. However, this assumption is relatively ungrounded due to a lack of extensive neuropsychological testing. We retrospectively examined a series of 40 patients with recurrent glioma in eloquent areas of the left hemisphere, who all completed comprehensive pre- (T3) and post-surgical (T4) neuropsychological assessments after a second surgery (4-month follow up). The lesions were most frequent in the left insular cortex and the inferior frontal gyrus. Among this series, in 17 patients the cognitive outcomes were compared before the first surgery (T1), 4 months after the first surgery (T2), and at T3 and T4. There was no significant difference either in the number of patients scoring within the normal range between T3 and T4, or in their level of performance. Further addressing the T1\u2013T4 evolution, there was no significant difference in the number of patients scoring within the normal range. As to their level of performance, the only significant change was in phonological fluency. This longitudinal follow-up study showed that repeated glioma surgery is possible without major damage to cognitive functions in the short-term period (4 months) after surgery

Geochemical and Strontium Isotope Characterization of Produced Waters from Marcellus Shale Natural Gas Extraction

Extraction of natural gas by hydraulic fracturing of the Middle Devonian Marcellus Shale, a major gas-bearing unit in the Appalachian Basin, results in significant quantities of produced water containing high total dissolved solids (TDS). We carried out a strontium (Sr) isotope investigation to determine the utility of Sr isotopes in identifying and quantifying the interaction of Marcellus Formation produced waters with other waters in the Appalachian Basin in the event of an accidental release, and to provide information about the source of the dissolved solids. Strontium isotopic ratios of Marcellus produced waters collected over a geographic range of ∼375 km from southwestern to northeastern Pennsylvania define a relatively narrow set of values (εSr SW = +13.8 to +41.6, where εSr SW is the deviation of the 87Sr/86Sr ratio from that of seawater in parts per 104); this isotopic range falls above that of Middle Devonian seawater, and is distinct from most western Pennsylvania acid mine drainage and Upper Devonian Venango Group oil and gas brines. The uniformity of the isotope ratios suggests a basin-wide source of dissolved solids with a component that is more radiogenic than seawater. Mixing models indicate that Sr isotope ratios can be used to sensitively differentiate between Marcellus Formation produced water and other potential sources of TDS into ground or surface waters

42 correction of scid x1 by targeted genome editing of hematopoietic stem progenitor cells hspc in the mouse model

Targeted genome editing by engineered nucleases has brought the goal of gene correction within the reach of gene therapy. A candidate disease for HSPC gene correction is SCID-X1, because gene therapy trials with integrating vectors showed robust clinical efficacy even from few corrected cells but also the occurrence of leukemias due to insertional mutagenesis and unregulated transgene expression. To model SCID-X1 gene correction in preclinical studies, we developed a mouse model carrying the IL2RG human gene harboring a common disease-causing mutation in place of the murine Il2rg, allowing to use of the same reagents developed for gene correction of human cells. These mice have impaired lymphoid development which phenocopies that reported for Il2rg-/- mice. To assess the minimal level of corrected HSPC required to achieve immune reconstitution we performed competitive transplants with wild-type (WT) and Il2rg-/- HSPC and found that 1% of WT cells are sufficient to reconstitute in part the T and B cell compartments. We then tested gene correction of the murine Lin- HSPC by the delivery of donor DNA template by IDLVs followed by transfection of ZFN mRNAs. This protocol yielded high on-target nuclease activity (40%) and a mean of 6% transgene integration by HDR but also high cytotoxicity (65% cell loss) under the conditions we used. The surviving cells remained capable of expansion in culture and maintained their clonogenic potential. Importantly, upon transplant into lethally irradiated mice, only the gene corrected cells were able to generate lymphoid lineages (B and T cells), showing a clear selective advantage over the un-corrected SCID cells. These data indicate functional correction of the defective IL2RG gene by targeted editing. Furthermore, upon challenging the mice with a murine pathogen we observed viral-specific γIFN production by CD8+ gene corrected cells, proving their in vivo functionality. Yet, measuring the percentage of edited cells (either by NHEJ or HDR) within the HSC compartment long-term, we found that it was nearly undetectable. Despite the lack of HSC marking, gene corrected lymphoid cells persisted in the mice up to 7 months post transplantation within all the hematopoietic organs, indicating successful editing of at least 1% progenitors able to sustain long-term lymphopoiesis and partially correct the disease phenotype. We then developed a new protocol exploiting CRISPR/Cas9 technology that enabled to achieve substantial levels of targeted DNA repair by NHEJ (up to 70%) and HDR (up to 25%) with minimal cytotoxicity and provided stable engraftment of the edited cells in transplanted mice. By this strategy we are now assessing the impact of HSC vs. progenitor targeted editing and conditioning regimen for the extent and stability of disease correction. These studies will help establish the key factors underlying safe and effective rescue of the disease by HSPC gene editing and assist in the design of the protocol for its first clinical testing

Developing and Implementing an Online Course Framework

Integration of technology tools and resources is imperative when working with today’s students as many are expecting to encounter various apps and media-based software in the curriculum. It is important, however, to have a clear purpose for integrating technology into the classroom; technology should not be integrated into the curriculum simply for the sake of doing so! To assist with purposeful integration, faculty members from Nova Southeastern University and St. Thomas University created a Technology Integration Learning Community (TILC); an online professional learning community where members teach each other about the latest and greatest technological tools and share ideas for integration into the curriculum. Anytime an instructor is thinking of integrating technology into a classroom, it is important to use a model or framework as a guide to enhance the objectives or outcomes as well as ensure accessibility for all students. Therefore, the TILC developed The TILC Online Course Framework (TOCF), based on the ASSURE model (Smaldino, Lowther, Russell, & Mims, 2016), to guide this technology integration

481. Targeted Genome Editing in Mouse Hematopoietic Stem/Progenitor Cells (HSPC) To Model Gene Correction of SCID-X1

Targeted genome editing by artificial nucleases has brought the goal of gene correction within the reach of gene therapy. A candidate disease for HSPC gene correction is SCID-X1, because gene therapy with early generation integrating vectors showed robust clinical efficacy even from few corrected cells but also the occurrence of adverse events due to insertional mutagenesis and unregulated transgene expression. We recently reported a strategy that enabled targeted integration of a corrective cDNA into the IL2RG gene in 6% of human HSPC with high specificity. Gene corrected HSPC generated polyclonal lymphoid cells that express the IL2RG protein and have a selective growth advantage over those carrying disruptive IL2RG mutations (Genovese, Nature, 2014). Here, to model SCID-X1 disease correction, we developed a mouse model carrying the IL2RG human gene including a common disease-causing mutation in place of the murine Il2rg gene, allowing to use the same reagents utilized for gene correction of human cells. These mice have impairment in lymphoid development which phenocopies that reported for Il2rg-/- mice. To assess the minimal level of corrected HSPC required to achieve immune reconstitution we first performed competitive transplants with wild-type (WT) and Il2rg-/- HSPC and found that 1% of WT cells are sufficient to reconstitute at least in part the T and B cell compartments. We then developed a protocol to obtain gene correction in murine Lin- HSPC based on the delivery of donor DNA template by IDLVs followed by transfection of ZFN mRNAs. This protocol was associated with high on-target nuclease activity (40%) and a mean of 6% transgene integration by HDR, but also with high levels of acute cytotoxicity (65% cell loss). The surviving cells remained capable of expansion in culture and preserved their clonogenic potential. Importantly, upon transplant into lethally irradiated mice, only the gene corrected cells were able to generate lymphoid lineages (B and T cells), showing a clear selective advantage over un-corrected cells. These data indicate functional correction of the IL2RG gene by our strategy. Yet, measuring percentage of correction within myeloid cells at long-term we found that it was almost undetectable. Despite the lack of HSC marking, gene corrected lymphoid cells stably persisted in the mice up to 7 months post transplantation within all the hematopoietic organs. Furthermore, upon challenging the transplanted mice with a murine pathogen (LCMV Arm.) we observed viral-specific γIFN production by CD8+ gene corrected cells at a similar extent as for WT mice, proving in vivo the functionality of corrected T cells. These results suggest that our protocol achieves biologically relevant levels of gene correction in progenitors that sustain long-term lymphopoiesis but is limited in multipotent HSC. Ongoing studies aim to improve murine HSC gene targeting and to compare safety and efficacy of gene correction vs gene replacement in our disease model

Developing and Implementing an Online Course Framework

Integration of technology tools and resources is imperative when working with today’s students as many are expecting to encounter various apps and media-based software in the curriculum. It is important, however, to have a clear purpose for integrating technology into the classroom; technology should not be integrated into the curriculum simply for the sake of doing so! To assist with purposeful integration, faculty members from Nova Southeastern University and St. Thomas University created a Technology Integration Learning Community (TILC); an online professional learning community where members teach each other about the latest and greatest technological tools and share ideas for integration into the curriculum. Anytime an instructor is thinking of integrating technology into a classroom, it is important to use a model or framework as a guide to enhance the objectives or outcomes as well as ensure accessibility for all students. Therefore, the TILC developed The TILC Online Course Framework (TOCF), based on the ASSURE model (Smaldino, Lowther, Russell, & Mims, 2016), to guide this technology integration