Analysis of Chemical Warfare Agents at the NC Laboratory Spiez

The group for chemical analysis and verification at the NC Laboratory Spiez engages in the analysis of chemical warfare agents and related compounds in the frame of international chemical disarmament. Its area of work and instrumentation are described together with the analysis of a sample taken in Iraq after the Gulf War

Identification of acidic degradation products of chemical warfare agents by methylation with trimethylsilyldiazomethane and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

Sensitive and reliable analysis of alkylphosphonic acids (APAs) and 2-(N,N-dialkylamino)ethanesulfonic acids (SAs), the degradation products of chemical warfare agents (CWAs), is one of the most important tasks for verification of the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC). Unambiguous identification of these chemicals is required in a variety of environmental matrices, including soil and water. These acids with low volatility are very polar, and efficient and reliable methylation methods for their derivatization are needed for analysis with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). In this study, the derivatization conditions for trimethylsilyldiazomethane (TMSDAM) methylation were optimized for rapid GC-MS screening. Optimized methylation of APAs and SAs with TMSDAM was compared with methylation with diazomethane. The TMSDAM methylation of SAs and benzilic acid was further compared with silylation with N-methyl-N-(tert-butyldimethylsilyl)trifluoroacetamide. The significance and necessity of cation exchange prior to derivatization and analysis were tested on samples with a high inorganic background. A recommendation to use the method for methylation of water samples and aqueous extracts using TMSDAM is given. The robustness of the method was illustrated by the successful identification of APAs and SAs in aqueous samples from proficiency tests organized by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons.Peer reviewe

Première expérimentation de compensation par l'offre : bilan et perspective

Même s'il suscite encore de nombreux débats, le principe de compensation écologique pour les dégâtscausés à la biodiversité lors de projets d’aménagements a finalement été adopté en mars dernierdans le cadre de la loi « Biodiversité ». À travers l'exemple de la réhabilitation écologique et pastoraledu verger de Cossure en plaine de Crau, première expérimentation française de compensationécologique par l'offre, les auteurs s'intéressent ici au bilan écologique et économique de l'opérationpour en dégager les effets positifs, mais également les dysfonctionnements et les limites

Case Report: Hemianopia: From Suspected Glioblastoma to the Diagnosis of Ectopic Schistosomiasis Haematobium Infection in a Traveler Returning from the Republic of the Congo

International audienceSchistosomiasis due to Schistosoma haematobium is a widespread disease usually affecting the urinary tract associated with hematuria and kidney disorders. Neurological damage is rarely reported and symptoms are nonspecific and may suggest brain tumors such as glioma. We describe the first double ectopic haematobium schistosomiasis case involving the brain and intestine

Le PIECD : l’éducation à la citoyenneté et le dialogue démocratique pour l’émancipation des personnes en situation de handicap

Pour que les personnes en situation de handicap exercent pleinement leurs droits politiques, ne devrait-on pas accorder plus d’importance au processus de socialisation politique, à l’éducation à la citoyenneté démocratique, à l’action collective et à l’engagement politique ? Pour que la CDPH soit davantage qu’une utopie, les organisations publiques, les institutions de la société civile, les citoyennes et les citoyens, ayant ou non un handicap, doivent s’inscrire dans une transformation radicale de leurs rapports de pouvoir. C’est à cette fin qu’a été conçu et développé le PIECD

A comparative review of soil charcoal data: Spatiotemporal patterns of origin and long-term dynamics of Western European nutrient-poor grasslands

International audienceThe nutrient-poor grasslands of Western Europe are of major conservation concern because land use changes threaten their high biodiversity. Studies assessing their characteristics show that their past and ongoing dynamics are strongly related to human activities. Yet, the initial development patterns of this specific ecosystem remain unclear. Here, we examine findings from previous paleoecological investigations performed at local level on European grassland areas ranging from several hundred square meters to several square kilometers. Comparing data from these locally relevant studies at a regional scale, we investigate these grasslands' spatiotemporal patterns of origin and long-term dynamics. The study is based on taxonomic identification and radiocarbon AMS dating of charcoal pieces from soil/soil sediment archives of nutrient-poor grasslands in Mediterranean and temperate Western Europe (La Crau plain, Mont Lozère, Grands Causses, Vosges Mountains, Franconian Alb, and Upper-Normandy region). We address the following questions: (1) What are the key determinants of the establishment of these nutrient-poor grasslands? (2) What temporal synchronicities might there be? and (3) What is the spatial scale of these grasslands' past dynamics? The nutrient-poor grasslands in temperate Western Europe are found to result from the first anthropogenic woodland clearings during the late Neolithic, revealed by fire events in mesophilious mature forests. In contrast, the sites with Mediterranean affinities appear to have developed at earlier plant successional stages (pine forest, matorral), established before the first human impacts in the same period. However, no general pattern of establishment and dynamics of the nutrient-poor grasslands could be identified. Local mechanisms appear to be the key determinants of the dynamics of these ecosystems. Nevertheless, this paleoecological synthesis provides insights into past climate or human impacts on present-day vegetation