Effects of the nature of the doping salt and of the thermal pre-treatment and sintering temperature on spark plasma sintering of transparent alumina

A slurry of a-Al2O3 was doped with Mg, Zr and La nitrates or chlorides, in various amounts in the range 150-500 wt ppm and then freeze-dried to produce nanosized doped powder (~150 nm). The powder was sintered by SPS to yield transparent polycrystalline alpha alumina. The influence of the nature of the doping element and the starting salt, the thermal treatment before sintering and the sintering emperature on the transparency of the ceramics were investigated. The transparency of the ceramics of nanosized Al2O3 was shown to depend mainly on the way the powder was prepared, the nature of the doping salt also had an effect. Finally, a high real inline transmittance, reaching 48.1% was achieved after optimization

Marine culturable yeasts in deep-sea hydrothermal vents: species richness and association with fauna

The definitive version is available at ww3.interscience.wiley.com. Post-print en libre-accès sur Archimer : http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00006/11704/8475.pdfInternational audienceInvestigations of the diversity of culturable yeasts at deep-sea hydrothermal sites have suggested possible interactions with endemic fauna. Samples were collected during various oceanographic cruises at the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, South Pacific Basins and East Pacific Rise. Cultures of 32 isolates, mostly associated with animals, were collected. Phylogenetic analyses of 26S rRNA gene sequences revealed that the yeasts belonged to Ascomycota and Basidiomycota phyla, with the identification of several genera: Rhodotorula, Rhodosporidium, Candida, Debaryomyces and Cryptococcus. Those genera are usually isolated from deep-sea environments. To our knowledge, this is the first report of yeasts associated with deep-sea hydrothermal animals

Microbial diversity associated with the hydrothermal shrimp Rimicaris exoculata gut and occurrence of a resident microbial community

En libre-accès sur Archimer : http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00000/11142/7919.pdfInternational audienceRimicaris exoculata dominates the megafauna of several Mid-Atlantic Ridge hydrothermal sites. Its gut is full of sulphides and iron-oxide particles and harbours microbial communities. Although a trophic symbiosis has been suggested, their role remains unclear. In vivo starvation experiments in pressurized vessels were performed on shrimps from Rainbow and Trans-Atlantic Geotraverse sites in order to expel the transient gut contents. Microbial communities associated with the gut of starved and reference shrimps were compared using 16S rRNA gene libraries and microscopic observations (light, transmission and scanning electron microscopy and FISH analyses). We show that the gut microbiota of shrimps from both sites included mainly Deferribacteres, Mollicutes, Epsilon- and Gammaproteobacteria. For the first time, we have observed filamentous bacteria, inserted between microvilli of gut epithelial cells. They remained after starvation periods in empty guts, suggesting the occurrence of a resident microbial community. The bacterial community composition was the same regardless of the site, except for Gammaproteobacteria retrieved only in Rainbow specimens. We observed a shift in the composition of the microbiota of long-starved specimens, from the dominance of Deferribacteres to the dominance of Gammaproteobacteria. These results reinforce the hypothesis of a symbiotic relationship between R. exoculata and its gut epibionts

A Nematode of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge Hydrothermal Vents Harbors a Possible Symbiotic Relationship

Deep-sea hydrothermal vent meiofauna have been the focus of recent research and the discovery of an abundant well-adapted free-living marine nematode on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge offers new perspectives on adaptations to the vent environment. Indeed, knowledge concerning biological interactions of microbes and meiofauna in marine extreme environments is scarce, especially for nematodes. In this study, we used microscopic observations [fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM)] and metabarcoding of 16S rRNA to characterize the bacterial community of the nematode species Oncholaimus dyvae, an overlooked but ecologically important vent organism. Detection of bacteria in the buccal cavity and on the cuticle (SEM) and epibionts in its intestine (FISH) suggests that O. dyvae harbors its own bacterial community. Molecular results and phylogenetic analysis show that bacteria associated with this species are related to symbiotic lineages typical of hydrothermal vent fauna, such as sulfur-oxidizing bacteria related to Epsilonproteobacteria and Gammaproteobacteria. This multi-approach study suggests a potential symbiotic role of bacteria with its nematode host and opens new research perspectives on vent meiofauna

Évaluer l'impact du vieillissement des digues sur les mécanismes et scénarios de rupture

Digues Maritimes et Fluviales de Protection contre les Inondations : Digues 2019, AIX EN PROVENCE, FRANCE, 20-/03/2019 - 21/03/2019Les scénarios de rupture des digues sont basés sur des hypothèses d'enchaînement de dégradations ou de ruptures partielles de différentes parties des ouvrages. Ainsi, pour qu'une défaillance intervienne sur un tronçon de digue, il faut que certaines parties d'ouvrage arrivent à la limite de leur 'bon' fonctionnement et que leurs propriétés passent en-dessous d'un certain niveau de performance. L'évolution des propriétés et des performances n'est cependant pas toujours 'binaire' : l'ouvrage semble être dans un état correct puis, instantanément, arrive à la rupture. Cet article propose une discussion sur les mécanismes de vieillissement des matériaux utilisés notamment pour leur fonction d'étanchéité, à partir d'exemples concrets. Le vieillissement est un phénomène normal qui apparaît soit par un usage répété de l'ouvrage soit par des phénomènes normaux de dégradation et d'usure par le temps et les conditions extérieures. Ce vieillissement normal peut être identifié au travers de mécanismes de dégradation qui seraient classés par type de dégradation (météorologique, interaction avec le vivant, interaction avec des masses d'eau), par intensité (fort, moyen, faible) et par cinétique (très long, rapide, instantané). Ces mécanismes de dégradations seraient dépendants de la localisation géographique de l'ouvrage, de la nature des composants et de la qualité initiale de la réalisation de l'ouvrage

Effect of amount of doping agent on sintering, microstructure and optical properties of Zr- and La-doped alumina sintered by SPS

SPS-produced α-alumina samples are prepared from powders doped with different amounts of Zr4+ and La3+ cations. Zr4+ cations segregate at grain boundaries. m-ZrO2 particles are formed at 570 but not at 280 cat ppm. A β-alumina LaAl11O18 structure is found at 310 cat ppm when the lanthanum grain boundary solubility limit is exceeded (∼200 cat ppm). 100 cat ppm La is sufficient to block the diffusion path across grain boundaries and inhibit grain growth. Both doping cations disturb the grain boundary diffusion whatever their amount. They delay the densification at higher temperatures while limiting grain growth. The real in-line transmittance (RIT) of α-alumina is improved due to the reduced grain size. Nevertheless, increasing the cation amount leads to an increase in porosity or even the formation of secondary phase particles, both detrimental for optical properties. Finally, optimised amounts of cation of 200 and 150 cat ppm are found for La- and Zr-doped alumina, respectively

Microbial Communities of the Shallow-Water Hydrothermal Vent Near Naples, Italy, and Chemosynthetic Symbionts Associated With a Free-Living Marine Nematode

Shallow-water hydrothermal vents are widespread, especially in the Mediterranean Sea, owing to the active volcanism of the area. Apart free microbial communities’ investigations, few biological studies have been leaded yet. Investigations of microbial communities associated with Nematoda, an ecologically important group in sediments, can help to improve our overall understanding of these ecosystems. We used a multidisciplinary-approach, based on microscopic observations (scanning electron microscopy: SEM and Fluorescence In Situ Hybridization: FISH) coupled with a molecular diversity analysis using metabarcoding, based on the 16S rRNA gene (V3-V4 region), to characterize the bacterial community of a free-living marine nematode and its environment, the shallow hydrothermal vent near Naples (Italy). Observations of living bacteria in the intestine (FISH), molecular and phylogenetic analyses showed that this species of nematode harbors its own bacterial community, distinct from the surrounding sediment and water. Metabarcoding results revealed the specific microbiomes of the sediment from three sites of this hydrothermal area to be composed mainly of sulfur oxidizing and reducing related bacteria

Characterization of Blood Immune Cells in Patients With Decompensated Cirrhosis Including ACLF

Background and Aims: Patients with cirrhosis and acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF) have immunosuppression, indicated by an increase in circulating immune-deficient monocytes. The aim of this study was to investigate simultaneously the major blood-immune cell subsets in these patients. Material and Methods: Blood taken from 67 patients with decompensated cirrhosis (including 35 critically ill with ACLF in the intensive care unit), and 12 healthy subjects, was assigned to either measurements of clinical blood counts and microarray (genomewide) analysis of RNA expression in whole-blood; microarray (genomewide) analysis of RNA expression in blood neutrophils; or assessment of neutrophil antimicrobial functions. Results: Several features were found in patients with ACLF and not in those without ACLF. Indeed, clinical blood count measurements showed that patients with ACLF were characterized by leukocytosis, neutrophilia, and lymphopenia. Using the CIBERSORT method to deconvolute the whole-blood RNA-expression data, revealed that the hallmark of ACLF was the association of neutrophilia with increased proportions of macrophages M0-like monocytes and decreased proportions of memory lymphocytes (of B-cell, CD4 T-cell lineages), CD8 T cells and natural killer cells. Microarray analysis of neutrophil RNA expression revealed that neutrophils from patients with ACLF had a unique phenotype including induction of glycolysis and granule genes, and downregulation of cell-migration and cell-cycle genes. Moreover, neutrophils from these patients had defective production of the antimicrobial superoxide anion. Conclusions: Genomic analysis revealed that, among patients with decompensated cirrhosis, those with ACLF were characterized by dysregulation of blood immune cells, including increases in neutrophils (that had a unique phenotype) and macrophages M0-like monocytes, and depletion of several lymphocyte subsets (including memory lymphocytes). All these lymphocyte alterations, along with defective neutrophil superoxide anion production, may contribute to immunosuppression in ACLF, suggesting targets for future therapies