Morphometric variations in white seabream Diplodus sargus (Linneus, 1758) populations along the Tunisian coast

Morphometric characters of the white seabream Diplodus sargus (Linnaeus 1758) were compared among samples collected from six marine and lagoon sites along the Tunisian coast to elucidate the impact of the geographical barrier of the Siculo-Tunisian Strait and/or the lagoon environment in the morphological variation among the Tunisian white seabream population. Two morphometric descriptors (twenty-five Truss elements and six traditional measurements) were used to study the pattern of this morphological variation. Univariate analysis of variance revealed significant differences (P < 0.001) for both traditional and Truss variables. Multivariate analysis using the two morphometric descriptors detected a clear variation in the body shape between D. sargus populations along the Tunisian coast. All these analyses showed the distinctness of the sample from El Biban lagoon compared to the remaining ones. This discrimination was due to the head and the peduncle of the studied fish. Varying degrees of differences were also observed between northern and southern samples, and between the lagoon and the marine samples. The morphological variations of the head explain also the discrimination between the different lagoons samples. Observed morphological heterogeneity seems to be related to the impact of ecological factors

Metabolic disorders during endogenous Cushing’s syndrome: prevalence, associated factors, and outcome after remission

Objective. The prognosis of Cushing’s syndrome (CS) is related to a higher cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of metabolic disorders in patients with CS, the associated factors, and the rate of remission of these disorders after the remission from CS

Morphological and genetic characterization of the sharpsnout seabream populations (<i>Diplodus puntazzo</i>, Sparidae) along a boundary area between the two Mediterranean basins

<p>In order to test the potential ecological role of the Siculo-Tunisian Strait as a geographic barrier, the morphological and genetic variation of eight Tunisian samples of the sharpsnout seabream, <i>Diplodus puntazzo</i>, were studied, based on 23 truss network elements and 13 polymorphic allozyme loci. Significant morphological differences were observed between studied samples, especially between lagoon ones. Although genetic data did not support the detected morphometric variation, <i>F</i>-statistics indices (<i>F</i>_IS and <i>F</i>_ST) revealed a significant departure from panmixia with heterozygote deficiencies and slight genetic differentiation between samples. Genetic results suggested the existence of moderate and local genetic heterogeneity that can be explained by the chaotic genetic patchiness hypothesis. Morphological and genetic results showed that the Siculo-Tunisian Strait does not seem to act as a barrier limiting the connectivity between the natural populations of <i>D. puntazzo</i>, at least at the scale of the Tunisian coast. Thus, the phenotypic variation identified in this study appears to be environmentally induced through the exploitation of different ecological niches and hydrodynamic constraints.</p

Tetraclinis articulata essential oil emulsion use as alternative to chemical fungicide to control tomato grey mould disease

Tetraclinis articulata essential oil proved to be effective in controlling tomato grey mould, so we would investigate its effect on some tomato defense mechanisms. The pretreatment of Botrytis cinerea infected tomato plants with TAEO emulsion enhanced the activity of antioxidant enzymes activity SOD, CAT, APX, and GPX, and total polyphenols content and it decreased IC50 of free radical-scavenging activity and H2O2 content. Results showed amelioration in antioxidant status in TAEO emulsion treated and B. cinerea infected plants indicating that treatment decreased infection in tomato plants. The qRT-PCR analysis of defense genes expression Chitinase SlChi, transcription factors SlWRKY and SlAP2/ERF, Lipoxygenase SlLOX, and Thioredoxin SlTRX showed that they were up-regulated as early as 12 hpi sustained with a second increase at 48 hpi in TAEO emulsion pretreated and infected plants. These results suggest the potential use of TAEO emulsion as natural product to induce tomato antioxidant status and activate defense genes

Alternating bio‐based pyridinic copolymers modified with hydrophilic and hydrophobic spacers as sorbents of aromatic pollutants

International audienceThe main objective of this work was to design new advanced sorbent phases, alternating copolymers, derived from isosorbide and 2,6-difluorpyridine, to be used for the removal of aromatic organic pollutants present in water at low concentrations. Six different monomers, dianhydrohexitols isomers and bisphenol derivatives, were synthesized in order to make it possible to study their hydrophilic and hydrophobic effect on the sorption efficiency of the resulting polymeric phases. Before this study, we have confirmed the chemicals structures, molecular weights, and thermal properties of the obtained polymeric phases. Sorption results show a higher adsorption efficiency of P6 co-poly(ether-pyridine) based on bisphenol substituted with pyridine units, for all tested pollutants, hydrophobic and hydrophilic ones, due to its less compact structure. Two aromatic organic pollutants, p-hydroxybenzoic acid and toluic acid, were selected as sorbates to study the adsorption characteristic, kinetics and isotherms of the co-poly(ether pyridine) P6. Langmuir model led to a better fitting of the sorption isotherms; the sorption of toluic acid is easier than of that p-hydroxybenzoic acid. Comparing 1/n values for benzoic acid was two time lower for P6 compared to that for biochar and for cross-linked methacrylate resin, showing a higher efficiency