Au-Modified Pd catalyst exhibits improved activity and stability for NO direct decomposition

International audienceThe direct decomposition of NO x at moderate temperatures is a challenge because of the poisoning of the surface of noble metals by oxygen, yet the modification of Pd with Au enables obtaining a highly stable catalyst under an O 2-free feed at 450°C. Care was taken to ensure that the reaction was not due to the reduction of NO x with carbonaceous residues by monitoring CO 2 evolution. Pd-Au alloyed domains with a wide range of compositions were evidenced by in situ and ex situ XRD, the Pd content of which decreased with the increasing oxidising nature of the feed due to phase segregation giving rise to PdO and an Au-rich alloy. Under air, the limiting alloy composition was Pd 0.2 Au 0.8. The catalyst was yet inactive in the presence of 5% O 2

The Consequences of a Disruption in Cyto-Nuclear Coadaptation on the Molecular Response to a Nitrate Starvation in Arabidopsis

International audienceMitochondria and chloroplasts are important actors in the plant nutritional efficiency. So, it could be expected that a disruption of the coadaptation between nuclear and organellar genomes impact plant response to nutrient stresses. We addressed this issue using two Arabidopsis accessions, namely Ct-1 and Jea, and their reciprocal cytolines possessing the nuclear genome from one parent and the organellar genomes of the other one. We measured gene expression, and quantified proteins and metabolites under N starvation and non-limiting conditions. We observed a typical response to N starvation at the phenotype and molecular levels. The phenotypical response to N starvation was similar in the cytolines compared to the parents. However, we observed an effect of the disruption of genomic coadaptation at the molecular levels, distinct from the previously described responses to organellar stresses. Strikingly, genes differentially expressed in cytolines compared to parents were mainly repressed in the cytolines. These genes encoded more mitochondrial and nuclear proteins than randomly expected, while N starvation responsive ones were enriched in genes for chloroplast and nuclear proteins. In cytolines, the non-coadapted cytonuclear genomic combination tends to modulate the response to N starvation observed in the parental lines on various biological processes

Pediatric-Inspired Therapy in Adults With Philadelphia Chromosome-Negative Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia: The GRAALL-2003 Study

Purpose Retrospective comparisons have suggested that adolescents or teenagers with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) benefit from pediatric rather than adult chemotherapy regimens. Thus, the aim of the present phase II study was to test a pediatric-inspired treatment, including intensified doses of nonmyelotoxic drugs, such as prednisone, vincristine, or L-asparaginase, in adult patients with ALL up to the age of 60 years. Patients and Methods Between 2003 and 2005, 225 adult patients (median age, 31 years; range, 15 to 60 years) with Philadelphia chromosome-negative ALL were enrolled onto the Group for Research on Adult Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia 2003 protocol, which included several pediatric options. Some adult options, such as allogeneic stem-cell transplantation for patients with high-risk ALL, were nevertheless retained. Results were retrospectively compared with the historical France-Belgium Group for Lymphoblastic Acute Leukemia in Adults 94 (LALA-94) trial experience in 712 patients age 15 to 55 years. Results Complete remission rate was 93.5%. At 42 months, event-free survival (EFS) and overall survival (OS) rates were 55% (95% CI, 48% to 52%) and 60% (95% CI, 53% to 66%), respectively. Age remained an important bad prognostic factor, with 45 years of age as best cutoff. In older versus younger patients, there was a higher cumulative incidence of chemotherapy-related deaths (23% v 5%, respectively; P < .001) and deaths in first CR (22% v 5%, respectively; P < .001), whereas the incidence of relapse remained stable (30% v 32%, respectively). Complete remission rate (P = .02), EFS (P = .001), and OS (P = .001) compared favorably with the previous LALA-94 experience. Conclusion These results suggest that pediatric-inspired therapy markedly improves the outcome of adult patients with ALL, at least until the age of 45 years

Adverse prognostic significance of CD20 expression in adults with Philadelphia chromosome-negative B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia

The prognostic significance of CD20 expression in B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia (BCP-ALL) has been mostly studied in children and yielded conflicting results. In 143 adults with Philadelphia chromosome-negative BCP-ALL treated in the multicentric GRAALL 2003 trial, CD20 positivity over 20% was observed in 32% of patients. While not influencing complete remission achievement, CD20 expression was associated with a higher cumulative incidence of relapse (CIR) at 42 months (P=0.04), independently of the ALL high-risk subset (P=0.025). Notably, the negative impact of CD20 expression on CIR was only observed in patients with a white blood cell count (WBC) over 30x10(9)/L (P=0.006), while not in those with a lower WBC. In the former subgroup, this impact translated into lower event-free survival (15% vs. 59% at 42 months, P=0.003). CD20 expression thus appears to be associated with a worse outcome, which reinforces the interest of evaluating rituximab combined to chemotherapy in CD20-positive adult BCP-ALL. ClinicalTrials.gov ID, NCT00222027

Rilpivirine in HIV-1-positive women initiating pregnancy: to switch or not to switch?

International audienceBackgroundSafety data about rilpivirine use during pregnancy remain scarce, and rilpivirine plasma concentrations are reduced during second/third trimesters, with a potential risk of viral breakthroughs. Thus, French guidelines recommend switching to rilpivirine-free combinations (RFCs) during pregnancy.ObjectivesTo describe the characteristics of women initiating pregnancy while on rilpivirine and to compare the outcomes for virologically suppressed subjects continuing rilpivirine until delivery versus switching to an RFC.MethodsIn the ANRS-EPF French Perinatal cohort, we included women on rilpivirine at conception in 2010–18. Pregnancy outcomes were compared between patients continuing versus interrupting rilpivirine. In women with documented viral suppression (<50 copies/mL) before 14 weeks of gestation (WG) while on rilpivirine, we compared the probability of viral rebound (≥50 copies/mL) during pregnancy between subjects continuing rilpivirine versus those switching to RFC.ResultsAmong 247 women included, 88.7% had viral suppression at the beginning of pregnancy. Overall, 184 women (74.5%) switched to an RFC (mostly PI/ritonavir-based regimens) at a median gestational age of 8.0 WG. Plasma HIV-1 RNA nearest delivery was <50 copies/mL in 95.6% of women. Among 69 women with documented viral suppression before 14 WG, the risk of viral rebound was higher when switching to RFCs than when continuing rilpivirine (20.0% versus 0.0%, P = 0.046). Delivery outcomes were similar between groups (overall birth defects, 3.8/100 live births; pregnancy losses, 2.0%; preterm deliveries, 10.6%). No HIV transmission occurred.ConclusionsIn virologically suppressed women initiating pregnancy, continuing rilpivirine was associated with better virological outcome than changing regimen. We did not observe a higher risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes