Mapping the dependency of crops on pollinators in Belgium

peer reviewe

Les forêts anciennes en Wallonie. 2ème partie : Cartographie

Un premier article a démontré que l’identification des forêts anciennes est une étape préalable pour pouvoir leur appliquer un mode de gestion spécifique et protéger le patrimoine qu’elles représentent. Cette deuxième partie énumère les sources historiques disponibles en Wallonie, donne un aperçu de l’état d’avancement du travail de numérisation de ces documents mené par le Service Public de Wallonie et en tire quelques informations très surprenantes sur l’évolution spatiale et temporelle des massifs forestiers de Wallonie depuis deux siècles et demi

SAPOLL : A cross-border action plan for wild pollinators

Wild pollinators in the France-Wallonia-Vlaanderen cross-border zone represent a valuable but highly endangered resource. In order to protect these pollinators, it is essential to set up a cross-border organization that enables coordinated actions and synergies between regions. Indeed, isolated actions on both sides of the border are unlikely to lead to the sustainable management of this indispensable resource. The challenge is huge because wild pollinators, wild bees, syrphs and butterflies, are essential to maintaining agriculture and ecosystems in our regions. In order to meet this challenge, the SAPOLL project initiates the implementation of a cross-border action plan for wild pollinators with the actors from Wallonia, Flanders and northern France. This plan is the initiator of actions in favor of pollinators, bringing the necessary scientific, didactic and applied context to citizens, decision-makers, entrepreneurs or enrionmental managers. It is also adapted to the regional context of each area. The action plan, which is co-built with the partners in the cross-border territory. The SAPOLL project also organizes activities that aim to homogenize and share scientific knowledge, awareness-raising experience and naturalistic competences

mRNP3 and mRNP4 are phosphorylatable by casein kinase II in Xenopus oocytes, but phosphorylation does not modify RNA-binding affinity

AbstractmRNP3 and mRNP4 (also called FRGY2) are two mRNA-binding proteins which are major constituents of the maternal RNA storage particles of Xenopus laevis oocytes. The phosphorylation of mRNP3–4 has been implicated in the regulation of mRNA masking. In this study, we have investigated their phosphorylation by casein kinase II and its consequence on their affinity for RNA. Comparison of the phosphopeptide map of mRNP3–4 phosphorylated in vivo with that obtained after phosphorylation in vitro by purified Xenopus laevis casein kinase II strongly suggests that casein kinase II is responsible for the in vivo phosphorylation of mRNP3–4 in oocytes. The phosphorylation occurs on a serine residue in a central domain of the proteins. The affinity of mRNP3–4 for RNA substrates remained unchanged after the treatment with casein kinase II or calf intestine phosphatase in vitro. This suggests that phosphorylation of these proteins does not regulate their interaction with RNA but rather controls their interactions with other proteins

Listening effort and fatigue among cochlear implant users: a scoping review

IntroductionIn challenging listening situations, speech perception with a cochlear implant (CI) remains demanding and requires high levels of listening effort, which can lead to increased levels of listening-related fatigue. The body of literature on these topics increases as the number of CI users rises. This scoping review aims to provide an overview of the existing literature on listening effort, fatigue, and listening-related fatigue among CI users and the measurement techniques to evaluate them.MethodsThe Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) Statements were used to conduct the scoping review. The search was performed on PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science to identify all relevant studies.ResultsIn total, 24 studies were included and suggests that CI users experience higher levels of listening effort when compared to normal hearing controls using scales, questionnaires and electroencephalogram measurements. However, executing dual-task paradigms did not reveal any difference in listening effort between both groups. Uncertainty exists regarding the difference in listening effort between unilateral, bilateral, and bimodal CI users with bilateral hearing loss due to ambiguous results. Only five studies were eligible for the research on fatigue and listening-related fatigue. Additionally, studies using objective measurement methods were lacking.DiscussionThis scoping review highlights the necessity for additional research on these topics. Moreover, there is a need for guidelines on how listening effort, fatigue, and listening-related fatigue should be measured to allow for study results that are comparable and support optimal rehabilitation strategies

Congenital hydrocephalus : new Mendelian mutations and evidence for oligogenic inheritance

Peer reviewe