Occurrence of an Intersexual Blacktip Shark in the Northern Gulf of Mexico, with Notes on the Standardization of Classifications for This Condition in Elasmobranchs

An intersexual Blacktip Shark Carcharhinus limbatus with a testis, immature female reproductive tracts (embedded), and claspers was caught in the Gulf of Mexico. Histology of the single gonad revealed that all stages of spermatogenesis were occurring; however, the absence of ovaries and a male duct system suggests that neither sex would have been functional in this individual. Intersexuality has been reported in 17 families and 36 species of elasmobranchs. The degree to which the different sexes are present in a given individual is often difficult to categorize by normal hermaphroditic standards, as this is typically an anomalous presentation in elasmobranchs. Therefore, this report provides three categories for classification (basic, incomplete, and complete intersexuality) to standardize terminology and allow for more precise comparisons to be made among elasmobranch examples. Basic intersexuals have gonadal tissue of only one sex and a combination of other male and female characters with neither or only one sex being complete. Incomplete intersexuals have gonadal tissue of both sexes and a combination of other male and female characters; however, neither or only one sex is complete. Complete intersexuals have claspers as well as gonadal tissue and tracts for both sexes. The majority of the reported intersexual elasmobranchs, including the shark described here, are basic intersexuals

Increased maternal TSH and decreased maternal FT4 are associated with a higher operative delivery rate in low-risk pregnancies: A prospective cohort study

Background:  The increasing number of operative deliveries is a topic of major concern in modern obstetrics. Maternal thyroid function is of known influence on many obstetric parameters. Our objective was to investigate a possible relation between maternal thyroid function, and operative deliveries. Secondary aim was to explore whether thyroid function was related to specific reasons for operative deliveries. Methods:  In this prospective cohort study, low-risk Caucasian women, pregnant of a single cephalic fetus were included. Women with known auto-immune disease, a pre-labour Caesarean section, induction of labour, breech presentation or preterm delivery were excluded. In all trimesters of pregnancy the thyroid function was assessed. Differences in mean TSH and FT4 were assessed using t-test. Mean TSH and FT4 levels for operative deliveries were determined by one way ANOVA. Repeated measurement analyses were performed (ANOVA), adjusting for BMI, partiy, maternal age and gestational age at delivery. Results:  In total 872 women were included, of which 699 (80.2 %) had a spontaneous delivery. At 36 weeks gestation women who had an operative delivery had a significantly higher mean TSH (1.63mIU/L versus 1.46mIU/L, p = 0.025) and lower mean FT4 (12.9pmol/L versus 13.3pmol/L, p = 0.007)) compared to women who had a spontaneous delivery. Mean TSH was significantly higher (p = 0.026) and mean FT4 significantly lower (p = 0.030) throughout pregnancy for women with an operative delivery due to failure to progress in second stage of labour, compared to women with a spontaneous delivery or operative delivery for other reasons. Conclusion:  Increased TSH and decreased FT4 seem to be associated with more operative vaginal deliveries and Caesarean sections. After adjusting for several confounders the association remained for operative deliveries due to failure to progress in second stage of labour, possibly to be explained by less efficient uterine action

Sur un mâle de Bacillus Rossii Fabr. [Orthopt.] capturé aux environs de Marseille

Vayssière Albert, Decrock E. Sur un mâle de Bacillus Rossii Fabr. [Orthopt.] capturé aux environs de Marseille. In: Bulletin de la Société entomologique de France, volume 23 (12),1918. pp. 188-189

Sur un mâle de Bacillus Rossii Fabr. [Orthopt.] capturé aux environs de Marseille

Vayssière Albert, Decrock E. Sur un mâle de Bacillus Rossii Fabr. [Orthopt.] capturé aux environs de Marseille. In: Bulletin de la Société entomologique de France, volume 23 (12),1918. pp. 188-189

Age effects on the neural processing of object-context associations in briefly flashed natural scenes

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FGF1 C-terminal domain and phosphorylation regulate intracrine FGF1 signaling for its neurotrophic and anti-apoptotic activities

International audienceFibroblast growth factor 1 (FGF1) is a prototypic member of the FGFs family overexpressed in various tumors. Contrarily to most FGFs, FGF1 lacks a secretion peptide signal and acts mainly in an intracellular and nuclear manner. Intracellular FGF1 induces cell proliferation, differentiation and survival. We previously showed that intracellular FGF1 induces neuronal differentiation and inhibits both p53- and serum-free-medium-induced apoptosis in PC12 cells. FGF1 nuclear localization is required for these intracellular activities, suggesting that FGF1 regulates p53-dependent apoptosis and neuronal differentiation by new nuclear pathways. To better characterize intracellular FGF1 pathways, we studied the effect of three mutations localized in the C-terminal domain of FGF1 (i.e., FGF1(K132E), FGF1(S130A) and FGF1(S130D)) on FGF1 neurotrophic and anti-apoptotic activities in PC12 cells. The change of the serine 130 to alanine precludes FGF1 phosphorylation, while its mutation to aspartic acid mimics phosphorylation. These FGF1 mutants kept both a nuclear and cytosolic localization in PC12 cells. Our study highlights for the first time the role of FGF1 phosphorylation and the implication of FGF1 C-terminal domain on its intracellular activities. Indeed, we show that the K132E mutation inhibits both the neurotrophic and anti-apoptotic activities of FGF1, suggesting a regulatory activity for FGF1 C terminus. Furthermore, we observed that both FGF1(S130A) and FGF1(S130D) mutant forms induced PC12 cells neuronal differentiation. Therefore, FGF1 phosphorylation does not regulate FGF1-induced differentiation of PC12 cells. Then, we showed that only FGF1(S130A) protects PC12 cells against p53-dependent apoptosis, thus phosphorylation appears to inhibit FGF1 anti-apoptotic activity in PC12 cells. Altogether, our results show that phosphorylation does not regulate FGF1 neurotrophic activity but inhibits its anti-apoptotic activity after p53-dependent apoptosis induction, giving new insight into the poorly described FGF1 intracrine/nuclear pathway. The study of nuclear pathways could be crucial to identify key regulators involved in neuronal differentiation, tumor progression and resistances to radio- and chemo-therapy

Etude des paléoméandres holocènes de la plaine alluviale du Cher (site de Bigny, moyenne vallée du Cher)

International audienceL’identification de paléochenaux dans les plaines alluviales permet d’apporter des éléments de compréhension des morphologies et des processus fluviaux passés. L’étude présentée porte sur le secteur de Bigny, localisé dans la moyenne vallée du Cher, où se trouve un nombre important de paléoméandres, dont certains sont datés de la seconde moitié de l’Holocène. La démarche méthodologique mise en œuvre comprend l’étude de MNT LiDAR, la caractérisation des formes fluviales héritées (altitude, largeur, amplitude et rayon de courbure) et l’estimation de paramètres paléohydrauliques à partir des dimensions des chenaux abandonnés (paléodébits à pleins-bords). Les résultats permettent de disposer les premiers jalons d’une chronologie d’évolution paléohydrographique. La comparaison avec la morphologie locale de la rivière et avec les cartes historiques montre que la réduction de la sinuosité a eu lieu entre le Moyen-Âge et l’Epoque Moderne. Elle démontre également la stabilisation du tracé du Cher dans ce secteur depuis le milieu du XVIIIème siècle, probablement en lien avec des aménagements hydrauliques historiques. L’analyse morphométrique permet ensuite de distinguer des gabarits variés parmi lesquels des paléoméandres de grande taille. Néanmoins, la comparaison des paléoméandres avec le référentiel actuel montre que la série étudiée est proche du gabarit des chenaux du XIXème siècle. On ne peut donc pas conclure à un changement majeur de régime hydrologique enregistré par les paléoméandres, mais plutôt à des ajustements mineurs de la morphologie des chenaux (largeur, profondeur) liés à des modifications des débits liquides et solides