Highly Water-Stable Zirconium Metal-Organic Framework UiO-66 Membranes Supported on Alumina Hollow Fibers for Desalination

In this study, continuous zirconium(IV)-based metal-organic framework (Zr-MOF) membranes were prepared. The pure-phase Zr-MOF (i.e., UiO-66) polycrystalline membranes were fabricated on alumina hollow fibers using an in situ solvothermal synthesis method. Single-gas permeation and ion rejection tests were carried out to confirm membrane integrity and functionality. The membrane exhibited excellent multivalent ion rejection (e.g., 86.3% for Ca2+, 98.0% for Mg2+, and 99.3% for Al3+) on the basis of size exclusion with moderate permeance (0.14 L m-2 h-1 bar-1) and good permeability (0.28 L m-2 h-1 bar-1 μm). Benefiting from the exceptional chemical stability of the UiO-66 material, no degradation of membrane performance was observed for various tests up to 170 h toward a wide range of saline solutions. The high separation performance combined with its outstanding water stability suggests the developed UiO-66 membrane as a promising candidate for water desalination

Plasma proteins elevated in severe asthma despite oral steroid use and unrelated to Type-2 inflammation

Rationale Asthma phenotyping requires novel biomarker discovery. Objectives To identify plasma biomarkers associated with asthma phenotypes by application of a new proteomic panel to samples from two well-characterised cohorts of severe (SA) and mild-to-moderate (MMA) asthmatics, COPD subjects and healthy controls (HCs). Methods An antibody-based array targeting 177 proteins predominantly involved in pathways relevant to inflammation, lipid metabolism, signal transduction and extracellular matrix was applied to plasma from 525 asthmatics and HCs in the U-BIOPRED cohort, and 142 subjects with asthma and COPD from the validation cohort BIOAIR. Effects of oral corticosteroids (OCS) were determined by a 2-week, placebo-controlled OCS trial in BIOAIR, and confirmed by relation to objective OCS measures in U-BIOPRED. Results In U-BIOPRED, 110 proteins were significantly different, mostly elevated, in SA compared to MMA and HCs. 10 proteins were elevated in SA versus MMA in both U-BIOPRED and BIOAIR (alpha-1-antichymotrypsin, apolipoprotein-E, complement component 9, complement factor I, macrophage inflammatory protein-3, interleukin-6, sphingomyelin phosphodiesterase 3, TNF receptor superfamily member 11a, transforming growth factor-β and glutathione S-transferase). OCS treatment decreased most proteins, yet differences between SA and MMA remained following correction for OCS use. Consensus clustering of U-BIOPRED protein data yielded six clusters associated with asthma control, quality of life, blood neutrophils, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein and body mass index, but not Type-2 inflammatory biomarkers. The mast cell specific enzyme carboxypeptidase A3 was one major contributor to cluster differentiation. Conclusions The plasma proteomic panel revealed previously unexplored yet potentially useful Type-2independent biomarkers and validated several proteins with established involvement in the pathophysiology of SA

Transfert de fabrication d'un broyeur de céréales : Société ELECTRA / Société MANUCYCLE. Rapport de mission

Le Ministère de la Coopération a lancé, avec le concours du Réseau TPA, un programme de suivi de projets de terrain, innovants dans le domaine de la transformation des produits alimentaires des pays en voie de développement. La société française Electra a transféré la fabrication de deux modèles de moulins à céréales (Baby et Farmi), d'un décortiqueur de riz et d'un broyeur à pâte d'arachide (Bapa) auprès de la société camerounaise Manucycle. Cette mission a eu pour vocation de faire un point technique sur la qualité des savoir-faire transférés. En outre, des éléments de méthodologie de ce transfert ont été dégagé

MBE growth and technology of 2-3μm Sb-based VeCSEL

International audienc

Thermal management for high power VECSEL emission in the near- and the mid-IR

International audienc

Thermal management for high power VECSEL emission in the near- and the mid-IR

International audienc

Effect of water adsorption on ion dynamics in confined geometry: Na+ faujasites and homoionic alkali exchanged montmorillonite

International audienc

A hybrid Photonic Crystal−based semiconductor Bragg mirror: A low loss functional mirror for high−Q external cavity lasers

International audienc