Look to Windward: The Michigan Environmental Protection Act and the Case for Atmospheric Trust Litigation in the Mitten State

Failure to address climate change or even slow the growth of carbon emissions has led to innovation in the methods activists are using to push decisionmakers away from disaster. In the United States, climate activists frustrated by decades of legislative and executive inaction have turned to the courts to force the hand of the state. In their most recent iteration, climate cases have focused on the public trust doctrine, the notion that governments hold their jurisdictions’ natural resources in trust for the public. Plaintiffs have argued that the atmosphere is part of the public trust and that governments have a duty to protect it. These types of lawsuits, known as Atmospheric Trust Litigation, have foundered on the shoals of courts wary of exceeding their powers, whether granted by Article III or state constitutions. The trouble in many cases, including Juliana v. United States, has been standing. Courts balk at declaring that any one actor has the power to affect climate change. Since they usually think one actor can’t fix the climate, redressability is out the window. Even if courts get past redressability, they believe the scale of any potential relief is just beyond the ability of a court to order. The number of lawsuits that have been filed suggests that that reasonable minds can differ, but most judges have found plaintiffs do not have standing before clearing the cases off their dockets. This Note contends that at least one state remains fertile ground for an atmospheric trust lawsuit. Michigan’s 1963 Constitution implies that the atmosphere is within the public trust, and the Michigan Environmental Protection Act, passed to carry out the state’s constitutional duties towards the natural world, does away with most, if not all, of the standing issues that have stymied climate cases across the nation. Motions, briefs, and equitable relief are not the only way to avoid the onset of what could be the greatest calamity in the history of humanity, but in Michigan, at least, Atmospheric Trust Litigation may well be what breaks and rolls back the carbon tide

A water-soluble supramolecular polymeric dual sensor for temperature and pH with an associated direct visible readout

We report a multi-stimuli responsive polymeric sensor consisting of a pseudorotaxane-like architecture fabricated from a 1,5-diaminonaphthalene end-functionalized poly(N-isopropyl)acrylamide (Napht-N-PNIPAM) and cyclobis(paraquat-p-phenylene) (CBPQT4+,4Cl-). The coloured nature of the poly-pseudorotaxane provides a sensor for temperature and pH in water with an associated visible readout. To create this dual responsive polymeric sensor, a new chain transfer agent (Napht-N-CTA) incorporating a pH-responsive 1,5-diaminonaphthalene unit was synthesized and used for the polymerization of N-isopropylacrylamide via Reversible Addition-Fragmentation Chain Transfer (RAFT). The ability of Napht-N-PNIPAM to form a pseudorotaxane architecture with CBPQT4+,4Cl- in aqueous media was studied by means of UV-Vis, NMR (1H, 2D-ROESY, DOSY) and ITC experiments. Interestingly, the pseudorotaxane architecture can be reversibly dissociated upon either heating the sample above its cloud point or protonating the nitrogen atoms of the 1,5-diaminonaphthalene-based guest unit by adjusting the pH to around 1. ln both cases a dramatic colour change occurs from intense blue-green to colourless

Synthèse et caractérisation de copolymères amphiphiles à base de poly(acide lactique) et de poly(éthylène glycol) pour la délivrance de principes actifs

The objective of this work was to synthesize and characterize amphiphilic copolymers based on poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) and poly(lactic acid) (PLA) intended for drug delivery applications. The polymers were chosen regarding to their biocompatibility and bioresorbability. Different architectures of amphiphilic copolymers were prepared, and their behavior in aqueous media, as well as their abilities to encapsulate drugs were studied. First, a graft copolymer was synthesized through copolymerization of a functional monomer, monopropargylated glycolide, with L-lactide to yield a functionalized polyester backbone. The latter was then grafted with different densities of hydrophilic branches of PEG. Then, a brush-like triblock copolymer was synthesized through ROP and ATRP. To this end, chain ends of a telechelic block of PLA were modified to yield a macroinitiator able to initiate oligo(ethylene glycol) methacrylate polymerization with variable substitution degrees. Self-assembly and drug loading studies revealed that architecture and hydrophobic/hydrophilic balance played a major role on the nature of the formed objects and on their encapsulation potential. Finally, to modulate and increase the efficacy of encapsulated drugs, functionalization strategies were realized. This is illustrated by the linking of a fluorescent model molecule on a triblock brush-like copolymer and, in a collaboration project, the linking of an immunostimulant peptide on an amphiphilic diblock system. Comparison with other formulations revealed that the conjugate allowed modulating and reinforcing the drug's efficacy.Ce travail avait pour but de synthétiser et caractériser des copolymères amphiphiles à base de poly(éthylène glycol) (PEG) et de poly(acide lactique) (PLA) pour la confection de systèmes de délivrance de principes actifs (PA). Les polymères ont été choisis pour leur biocompatibilité et de leur biorésorbabilité. Plusieurs architectures de copolymères amphiphiles ont été créées et leur comportement auto-associatif en milieu aqueux ainsi que leur capacité à encapsuler des principes actifs ont été étudiés. Tout d'abord, un copolymère greffé a été synthétisé par copolymérisation d'un monomère fonctionnel, le glycolide monopropargylé, avec du L-lactide pour obtenir un squelette polyester fonctionnel sur lequel des branches hydrophiles de PEG ont été greffés avec plusieurs degrés de substitution. Ensuite, un copolymère peigne tribloc a été synthétisé à partir d'un bloc central PLA dont les extrémités de chaînes ont été modifiées pour permettre l'amorçage de la polymérisation de méthacrylate d'oligo(éthylène glycol) avec des taux de substitution variables. L'étude de l'auto-assemblage et de la capacité à encapsuler des PA a révélé que l'architecture et la balance hydrophile/hydrophobe sont des facteurs déterminants pour la nature des objets formés et leur potentiel d'encapsulation. Enfin, des stratégies de fonctionnalisation ont été mises en place afin d'augmenter et de moduler l'efficacité des PA encapsulés. Ceci est illustré par le couplage d'une molécule fluorescente modèle et, dans le cadre d'une collaboration, par la conjugaison d'un peptide immunostimulateur sur un système dibloc amphiphile. La comparaison à d'autres formulations a montré que le conjugué permettait de moduler et renforcer l'efficacité du PA utilisé

A New Highly Conserved Antibiotic Sensing/Resistance Pathway in Firmicutes Involves an ABC Transporter Interplaying with a Signal Transduction System

Signal transduction systems and ABC transporters often contribute jointly to adaptive bacterial responses to environmental changes. In Bacillus subtilis, three such pairs are involved in responses to antibiotics: BceRSAB, YvcPQRS and YxdJKLM. They are characterized by a histidine kinase belonging to the intramembrane sensing kinase family and by a translocator possessing an unusually large extracytoplasmic loop. It was established here using a phylogenomic approach that systems of this kind are specific but widespread in Firmicutes, where they originated. The present phylogenetic analyses brought to light a highly dynamic evolutionary history involving numerous horizontal gene transfers, duplications and lost events, leading to a great variety of Bce-like repertories in members of this bacterial phylum. Based on these phylogenetic analyses, it was proposed to subdivide the Bce-like modules into six well-defined subfamilies. Functional studies were performed on members of subfamily IV comprising BceRSAB from B. subtilis, the expression of which was found to require the signal transduction system as well as the ABC transporter itself. The present results suggest, for the members of this subfamily, the occurrence of interactions between one component of each partner, the kinase and the corresponding translocator. At functional and/or structural levels, bacitracin dependent expression of bceAB and bacitracin resistance processes require the presence of the BceB translocator loop. Some other members of subfamily IV were also found to participate in bacitracin resistance processes. Taken together our study suggests that this regulatory mechanism might constitute an important common antibiotic resistance mechanism in Firmicutes. [Supplemental material is available online at http://www.genome.org.

Oscillations collectives d'un système de trous en présence de phonons

The screening effect of light particles surrounding heavy particles (the charge of which is of the opposite sign) can be characterized independently of the screened particles. The collective oscillations of holes are derived by analogy with phonons. The damping of these oscillations is shown to be very small.L'effet d'écran électrostatique dû à des particules légères entourant des particules lourdes de charge opposée peut, dans certaines conditions, être caractérisé indépendamment de la nature des particules écrantées. Les oscillations collectives des trous sont traitées par analogie avec les phonons ; leur amortissement semble très faible

Le Pearltrees du Collex Études ibériques : un outil de valorisation numérique des collections

Voici maintenant près de trois ans que le Collex Études ibériques s’est doté d’un outil de valorisation numérique de ses collections papiers, sur le site Pearltrees. Pearltrees est un service web de curation, qui permet d’organiser et de partager des contenus numériques tirés de la Toile ; moins populaire que Pinterest, il offre toutefois l’avantage d’une consultation intégrale par tout le monde, sans inscription préalable. L’idée initiale était d’articuler les collections papiers et le prol..

Look to Windward: The Michigan Environmental Protection Act and the Case for Atmospheric Trust Litigation in the Mitten State

Failure to address climate change or even slow the growth of carbon emissions has led to innovation in the methods activists are using to push decisionmakers away from disaster. In the United States, climate activists frustrated by decades of legislative and executive inaction have turned to the courts to force the hand of the state. In their most recent iteration, climate cases have focused on the public trust doctrine, the notion that governments hold their jurisdictions’ natural resources in trust for the public. Plaintiffs have argued that the atmosphere is part of the public trust and that governments have a duty to protect it. These types of lawsuits, known as Atmospheric Trust Litigation, have foundered on the shoals of courts wary of exceeding their powers, whether granted by Article III or state constitutions. The trouble in many cases, including Juliana v. United States, has been standing. Courts balk at declaring that any one actor has the power to affect climate change. Since they usually think one actor can’t fix the climate, redressability is out the window. Even if courts get past redressability, they believe the scale of any potential relief is just beyond the ability of a court to order. The number of lawsuits that have been filed suggests that that reasonable minds can differ, but most judges have found plaintiffs do not have standing before clearing the cases off their dockets. This Note contends that at least one state remains fertile ground for an atmospheric trust lawsuit. Michigan’s 1963 Constitution implies that the atmosphere is within the public trust, and the Michigan Environmental Protection Act, passed to carry out the state’s constitutional duties towards the natural world, does away with most, if not all, of the standing issues that have stymied climate cases across the nation. Motions, briefs, and equitable relief are not the only way to avoid the onset of what could be the greatest calamity in the history of humanity, but in Michigan, at least, Atmospheric Trust Litigation may well be what breaks and rolls back the carbon tide

Les modules de " détéction/résistance " aux antibiotiques peptidiques chez les Firmicutes

Signal transduction systems and ABC transporters often contribute jointly to adaptive bacterial responses to environmental changes. In Bacillus subtilis, three such pairs, thereafter called modules, are involved in responses to antibiotics: BceRSAB, PsdRSAB and YxdJKLM. They are characterized by a histidine kinase belonging to the Intramembrane Sensing - Histine Kinase family (IM-HK) and by a Membrane Spanning Domain (MSD) possessing an unusually large extracytoplasmic loop. Using a phylogenomic approach we were able to demonstrate that such modules, associating a phosphorelay and an ABC transporter, are specific but widespread in Firmicutes where they originated. This analyse highlight a highly dynamic evolutionary history involving numerous horizontal gene transfers, duplications and lost events, leading to a great variety of Bce-like module repertories in members of this bacterial phylum. Based on fine phylogenetic analyses, the Bce-like modules were divided into six well-defined subfamilies. Functional studies were performed on some members of subfamily IV comprising the bacitracin resistance module BceRSAB of B. subtilis, the expression of which being found to require, in the presence of bacitracin, the signal transduction system as well as the ABC transporter itself. The present results indicate that two other members of subfamily IV, YtsCD of B. licheniformis and BceAB of B. halodurans, were also found to participate in bacitracin resistance processes. The results also suggest that in these modules the ABC transporter works as the first sensor of the antibiotic and that it then activates the signal transduction system through an interaction between one of the two ABC transporter domains and the module kinase. Bacitracin dependent expression of bceAB and bacitracin resistance processes were shown to require the presence of the BceB translocator loop suggesting a crucial role for this loop as well at a functional level, as at a structural level. This study suggests that the original BceRSAB module regulatory mechanism might be generalised to other modules and would constitute an important common antibiotic resistance mechanism in Firmicutes which comprise many human pathogens.Les systèmes de transduction du signal et les transporteurs ABC contribuent de façon conjointe à la réponse adaptative des bactéries aux changements d'environnement. Trois modules, associant un phosphorelais et un transporteur ABC, ont été répertoriés chez B. subtilis et sont impliqués dans la réponse à différents antibiotiques: BceRSAB, PsdRSAB et YxdJKLM. Ils sont caractérisés par une histidine kinase possédant une boucle extracytoplasmique courte et appartenant à la famille des Intramembrane Sensing - Histidine Kinase (IM-HK) et par un transporteur ABC possédant une Membrane Spanning Domain (MSD) à boucle extracytoplasmique exceptionnellement longue. En utilisant une approche phylogénomique, il a été établi que ce type de modules était restreint aux Firmicutes, où ils sont apparus et se sont largement répandus. De plus, cette analyse met en lumière une histoire évolutive très dynamique impliquant de nombreux transferts horizontaux, duplications et pertes de gènes, conduisant à un répertoire de modules Bce-like très varié chez ce phylum. Grâce à une analyse phylogénétique fine, il a été proposé une classification de ces modules en six sous-familles bien définies. Des études fonctionnelles ont été réalisées sur des membres de la sous-famille IV comprenant le module de résistance à la bacitracine BceRSAB de B. subtilis, dont l'expression des gènes codant pour le transporteur requiert, en présence de l'antibiotique, le système de transduction du signal aussi bien que le transporteur lui-même. Les résultats de ces études montrent que d'autres membres de la sous-famille IV, YtsCD de B. licheniformis et BceAB de B. halodurans, sont également impliqués dans la résistance à la bacitracine. Ils suggèrent aussi que dans ces modules le transporteur ABC est le premier senseur de la présence de l'antibiotique et qu'il active le système de transduction une interaction entre une sous unité du transporteur et la kinase du module. De plus, en présence de bacitracine, l'expression des gènes codant pour le transporteur BceAB ainsi que la résistance à cet antibiotique requièrent la présence de la boucle de la MSD BceB ce qui démontre l'importance de cette boucle aussi bien au niveau fonctionnel que structural. Par ailleurs, l'étude que nous avons réalisée suggère que le mécanisme original de régulation des gènes du transporteur BceAB de B. subtilis pourrait être généralisé à tous les modules équivalents présents chez les Firmicutes. Ces modules constitueraient ainsi un mécanisme important de résistance aux antibiotiques peptidiques chez les bactéries de ce phylum qui comprend de nombreux pathogènes