Review of nutrient actions on age-related macular degeneration

The actions of nutrients and related compounds on age-related macular degeneration (AMD) are explained in this review. The findings from 80 studies published since 2003 on the association between diet and supplements in AMD were reviewed. Antioxidants and other nutrients with an effect on AMD susceptibility include carotenoids (lutein and zeaxanthin, β-carotene), vitamins (vitamin A, E, C, D, B), mineral supplements (zinc, copper, selenium), dietary fatty acids [monounsaturated fatty acids, polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA both omega-3 PUFA and omega-6 PUFA), saturated fatty acids and cholesterol], and dietary carbohydrates. The literature revealed that many of these antioxidants and nutrients exert a protective role by functioning synergistically. Specifically, the use of dietary supplements with targeted actions can provide minimal benefits on the onset or progression of AMD; however, this does not appear to be particularly beneficial in healthy people. Furthermore, some supplements or nutrients have demonstrated discordant effects on AMD in some studies. Since intake of dietary supplements, as well as exposure to damaging environmental factors, is largely dependent on population habits (including dietary practices) and geographical localization, an overall healthy diet appears to be the best strategy in reducing the risk of developing AMD. As of now, the precise mechanism of action of certain nutrients in AMD prevention remains unclear. Thus, future studies are required to examine the effects that nutrients have on AMD and to determine which factors are most strongly correlated with reducing the risk of AMD or preventing its progression

Abrupt climate change as an important agent of ecological change in the Northeast U.S. throughout the past 15,000 years

Author Posting. © The Author(s), 2009. This is the author's version of the work. It is posted here by permission of Elsevier B.V. for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Quaternary Science Reviews 28 (2009): 1693-1709, doi:10.1016/j.quascirev.2009.04.005.We use a series of tests to evaluate two competing hypotheses about the association of climate and vegetation trends in the northeastern United States over the past 15 kyrs. First, that abrupt climate changes on the scale of centuries had little influence on long-term vegetation trends, and second, that abrupt climate changes interacted with slower climate trends to determine the regional sequence of vegetation phases. Our results support the second. Large dissimilarity between temporally-close fossil pollen samples indicates large vegetation changes within 500 years across >4° of latitude at ca. 13.25-12.75, 12.0-11.5, 10.5, 8.25, and 5.25 ka. The evidence of vegetation change coincides with independent isotopic and sedimentary indicators of rapid shifts in temperature and moisture balance. In several cases, abrupt changes reversed long-term vegetation trends, such as when spruce (Picea) and pine (Pinus) pollen percentages rapidly declined to the north and increased to the south at ca. 13.25-12.75 and 8.25 ka respectively. Abrupt events accelerated other long‐term trends, such as a regional increase in beech (Fagus) pollen percentages at 8.5-8.0 ka. The regional hemlock (Tsuga) decline at ca. 5.25 ka is unique among the abrupt events, and may have been induced by high climatic variability (i.e., repeated severe droughts from 5.7-2.0 ka); autoregressive ecological and evolutionary processes could have maintained low hemlock abundance until ca. 2.0 ka. Delayed increases in chestnut (Castanea) pollen abundance after 5.8 and 2.5 ka also illustrate the potential for multi-century climate variability to influence species’ recruitment as well as mortality. Future climate changes will probably also rapidly initiate persistent vegetation change, particularly by acting as broad, regional-scale disturbances.This work was supported by NSF grants to B. Shuman (EAR‐0602408; DEB‐0816731) and J. Donnelly (EAR‐0602380)

Correction to: SERENA: Particle Instrument Suite for Determining the Sun-Mercury Interaction from BepiColombo

International audienc

SERENA:Particle Instrument Suite for Determining the Sun-Mercury Interaction from BepiColombo

International audienceThe ESA-JAXA BepiColombo mission to Mercury will provide simultaneous measurements from two spacecraft, offering an unprecedented opportunity to investigate magnetospheric and exospheric particle dynamics at Mercury as well as their interactions with solar wind, solar radiation, and interplanetary dust. The particle instrument suite SERENA (Search for Exospheric Refilling and Emitted Natural Abundances) is flying in space on-board the BepiColombo Mercury Planetary Orbiter (MPO) and is the only instrument for ion and neutral particle detection aboard the MPO. It comprises four independent sensors: ELENA for neutral particle flow detection, Strofio for neutral gas detection, PICAM for planetary ions observations, and MIPA, mostly for solar wind ion measurements. SERENA is managed by a System Control Unit located inside the ELENA box. In the present paper the scientific goals of this suite are described, and then the four units are detailed, as well as their major features and calibration results. Finally, the SERENA operational activities are shown during the orbital path around Mercury, with also some reference to the activities planned during the long cruise phase

The Energetic Particle Detector (EPD) Investigation and the Energetic Ion Spectrometer (EIS) for the Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) Mission

Abstract The Energetic Particle Detector (EPD) Investigation is one of 5 fields-and-particles investigations on the Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) mission. MMS comprises 4 spacecraft flying in close formation in highly elliptical, near-Earth-equatorial orbits targeting understanding of the fundamental physics of the important physical process called magnetic reconnection using Earth’s magnetosphere as a plasma laboratory. EPD comprises two sensor types, the Energetic Ion Spectrometer (EIS) with one instrument on each of the 4 spacecraft, and the Fly’s Eye Energetic Particle Spectrometer (FEEPS) with 2 instruments on each of the 4 spacecraft. EIS measures energetic ion energy, angle and elemental compositional distributions from a required low energy limit of 20 keV for protons and 45 keV for oxygen ions, up to \u3e0.5 MeV (with capabilities to measure up to \u3e1 MeV). FEEPS measures instantaneous all sky images of energetic electrons from 25 keV to \u3e0.5 MeV, and also measures total ion energy distributions from 45 keV to \u3e0.5 MeV to be used in conjunction with EIS to measure all sky ion distributions. In this report we describe the EPD investigation and the details of the EIS sensor. Specifically we describe EPD-level science objectives, the science and measurement requirements, and the challenges that the EPD team had in meeting these requirements. Here we also describe the design and operation of the EIS instruments, their calibrated performances, and the EIS in-flight and ground operations. Blake et al. (The Flys Eye Energetic Particle Spectrometer (FEEPS) contribution to the Energetic Particle Detector (EPD) investigation of the Magnetospheric Magnetoscale (MMS) Mission, this issue) describe the design and operation of the FEEPS instruments, their calibrated performances, and the FEEPS in-flight and ground operations. The MMS spacecraft will launch in early 2015, and over its 2-year mission will provide comprehensive measurements of magnetic reconnection at Earth’s magnetopause during the 18 months that comprise orbital phase 1, and magnetic reconnection within Earth’s magnetotail during the about 6 months that comprise orbital phase 2

État social actif ou travailleurs, chômeurs et citoyens activés

Ce livre est fondamental pour tous ceux qui s’intéressent aux transformations de l’État Social (ES) en un État social actif (ESA) et qui s’interrogent sur la nature du basculement dans les logiques et les pratiques, ainsi que sur leur efficacité. L’équipe de rédaction est inter­nationale. L’approche du problème est interdisciplinaire : des écono­mistes, des sociologues, des politicologues, des juristes et des philosophes étudient le changement de paradigme qui conduit l’État social à devenir ..