Density hardening plasticity and mechanical aging of silica glass under pressure: A Raman spectroscopic study

In addition of a flow, plastic deformation of structural glasses (in particular amorphous silica) is characterized by a permanent densification. Raman spectroscopic estimators are shown to give a full account of the plastic behavior of silica under pressure. While the permanent densification of silica has been widely discussed in terms of amorphous-amorphous transition, from a plasticity point of view, the evolution of the residual densification with the maximum pressure of a pressure cycle can be discussed as a density hardening phenomenon. In the framework of such a mechanical aging effect, we propose that the glass structure could be labelled by the maximum pressure experienced by the glass and that the saturation of densification could be associated with the densest packing of tetrahedra only linked by their vertices

Etude du verre d'oxydes LBG : des propriétés optiques non linéaires au comportement sous haute pression

The possibility to induce a second-order non-linearity in glasses was prouved in 1991 on silica glasses, thanks to a thermal poling process. The susceptibility created in this manner remains weak. We have therefore studied another oxydes glass (LBG). We developped experimental set up allowing us to create and to characterize the anisotropy induced by thermal poling in LBG glass. The effects of laser UV nanosecond irradiations with the aim of writing waveguides are also studied. The opportunity to vary locally the refractive index and the structure of the glass, leads us to observe the behaviour of LBG glass under high pressures. The glass, densified in diamond anvil cell is studied in situ by Raman and X-rays absorption spectroscopies (XAS). We put forward a singular behaviour of this glass under pressure by Raman scattering : hysteresis curves, closed or opened are described, showing a non monotonous Raman shift of a band as a function of pressure. XAS measurements confirmed that a partiel irreversible germanium coordination number occured. If the applied pressure is high enough, structural modifications are permanent and steady at ambient pressure.La possibilité d'induire une susceptibilité non-linéaire d'ordre deux dans les verres a été démontrée en 1991 sur des verres de silice, par la méthode du poling thermique. La susceptibilité créée reste cependant peu élevée. Dans le cadre de cette thèse, notre intérêt s'est porté sur un verre à base d'oxydes de lanthane, bore et germanium (LBG), dont les propriétés optiques laissaient entrevoir de grandes possibilités. Des dispositifs expérimentaux ont été développés au cours de ce travail afin de créer et de caractériser l'anisotropie induite dans le verre LBG par poling thermique. Les effets d'irradiation laser UV nano-secondes en vue de l'inscription de guides d'onde sont également étudiés. La possibilité de changer localement l'indice de réfraction et la structure du verre nous a conduit à étudier pour la première fois le comportement de ce verre sous pression. Le verre comprimé en cellule à enclumes diamant est étudié in situ par spectroscopies Raman et d'absorption des rayons X (XAS). Nous mettons à jour un comportement singulier de ce verre sous pression par diffusion Raman : des cycles d'hystérésis ouverts ou fermés, peuvent être décrits et montrent une évolution non monotone d'une bande Raman en fonction de la pression. Les mesures XAS confirment un changement de coordinence partiellement irreversible du germa- nium. Si la pression appliquée est suffisamment élevée, les changements structuraux induits sont permanents et stables à pression atmosphérique

« Ich bin nicht rassistisch, aber… »

Das Thema Rassismus zieht sich wie ein roter Faden durch die Tätigkeiten des Vereins Association Jura Interaction Rencontres (AJIR). Da es AJIR ein Anliegen ist, den Betroffenen eine Stimme zu geben, veröffentlicht er hier ein Gespräch mit Alicia, einer jungen Lernenden, über ihre Erfahrungen

« On n'est pas racistes mais… »

La question du racisme traverse les activités de l’Association Jura Interactions Rencontres (AJIR) et résonne souvent dans les récits des personnes qui côtoient l’association. AJIR souhaite leur donner la parole en proposant le témoignage d’Alicia

One-Week Scutellar Somatic Embryogenesis in the Monocot Brachypodium distachyon

International audiencePlant somatic embryogenesis (SE) is a natural process of vegetative propagation. It can be induced in tissue cultures to investigate developmental transitions, to create transgenic or edited lines, or to multiply valuable crops. We studied the induction of SE in the scutellum of monocots with Brachypodium distachyon as a model system. Towards the in-depth analysis of SE initiation, we determined the earliest stages at which somatic scutellar cells acquired an embryogenic fate, then switched to a morphogenetic mode in a regeneration sequence involving treatments with exogenous hormones: first an auxin (2,4-D) then a cytokinin (kinetin). Our observations indicated that secondary somatic embryos could already develop in the proliferative calli derived from immature zygotic embryo tissues within one week from the start of in vitro culture. Cell states and tissue identity were deduced from detailed histological examination, and in situ hybridization was performed to map the expression of key developmental genes. The fast SE induction method we describe here facilitates the mechanistic study of the processes involved and may significantly shorten the production of transgenic or gene-edited plants

Brachypodium distachyon, a useful system for functional gene analysis in monocots

International audienc

Mature seeds as starting explants for regeneration and transformation of Poaceae species

International audienc

Fast-track transformation and genome editing in Brachypodium distachyon

Abstract Background Even for easy-to-transform species or genotypes, the creation of transgenic or edited plant lines remains a significant bottleneck. Thus, any technical advance that accelerates the regeneration and transformation process is welcome. So far, methods to produce Brachypodium distachyon (Bd) transgenics span at least 14 weeks from the start of tissue culture to the recovery of regenerated plantlets. Results We have previously shown that embryogenic somatic tissues grow in the scutellum of immature zygotic Bd embryos within 3 days of in vitro induction with exogenous auxin and that the development of secondary embryos can be initiated immediately thereafter. Here, we further demonstrate that such pluripotent reactive tissues can be genetically transformed with Agrobacterium tumefaciens right after the onset of somatic embryogenesis. In brief, immature zygotic embryos are induced for callogenesis for one week, co-cultured with Agrobacterium for three days, then incubated on callogenesis selective medium for three weeks, and finally transferred on selective regeneration medium for up to three weeks to obtain plantlets ready for rooting. This 7-to-8-week procedure requires only three subcultures. Its validation includes the molecular and phenotype characterization of Bd lines carrying transgenic cassettes and novel CRISPR/Cas9-generated mutations in two independent loci coding for nitrate reductase enzymes (BdNR1 and BdNR2). Conclusions With a short callogenesis stage and streamlined in vitro regeneration following co-cultivation with Agrobacterium, transgenic and edited T0 Bd plantlets can be produced in about 8 weeks, a gain of one to two months compared to previously published methods, with no reduction in transformation efficiency and at lower costs

A <em>Brachypodium</em> UDP-glycosyltransferase confers root tolerance to deoxynivalenol and resistance to <em>Fusarium</em> infection

International audienceFusarium head blight (FHB) is a cereal disease caused by Fusarium graminearum, a fungus able to produce type B trichothecenes on cereals, including deoxynivalenol (DON), which is harmful for humans and animals. Resistance to FHB is quantitative, and the mechanisms underlying resistance are poorly understood. Resistance has been related to the ability to conjugate DON into a glucosylated form, deoxynivalenol-3-O-glucose (D3G), by secondary metabolism UDP-glucosyltransferases (UGTs). However, functional analyses have never been performed within a single host species. Here, using the model cereal species Brachypodium distachyon, we show that the Bradi5g03300 UGT converts DON into D3G in planta. We present evidence that a mutation in Bradi5g03300 increases root sensitivity to DON and the susceptibility of spikes to F. graminearum, while overexpression confers increased root tolerance to the mycotoxin and spike resistance to the fungus. The dynamics of expression and conjugation suggest that the speed of DON conjugation rather than the increase of D3G per se is a critical factor explaining the higher resistance of the overexpressing lines. A detached glumes assay showed that overexpression but not mutation of the Bradi5g03300 gene alters primary infection by F. graminearum, highlighting the involvement of DON in early steps of infection. Together, these results indicate that early and efficient UGT-mediated conjugation of DON is necessary and sufficient to establish resistance to primary infection by F. graminearum and highlight a novel strategy to promote FHB resistance in cereals