Coastal Cultural Heritage Protection in the United States, France and the United Kingdom

Exacerbated by climate change, sea levels are rising rapidly. This poses a significant, immediate threat to coastal or riverine urban areas and the tangible cultural heritage (e.g. artifacts, buildings, monuments, archaeological sites) that makes them unique. Protecting coastal cultural resources from climate change is quickly becoming a global priority, and comparing cultural heritage laws designed to protect historic resources in coastal areas from several countries may illuminate potential paths forward. Following a brief discussion of the economic and public health benefits arising from the protection of cultural heritage, this article describes, examines, and compares the legal frameworks through which the United States, France, and the United Kingdom address cultural heritage protection in coastal areas. Several case studies from each country are also presented to demonstrate different preservation initiatives

Coastal Cultural Heritage Protection in the United States, France and the United Kingdom

Exacerbated by climate change, sea levels are rising rapidly. This poses a significant, immediate threat to coastal or riverine urban areas and the tangible cultural heritage (e.g. artifacts, buildings, monuments, archaeological sites) that makes them unique. Protecting coastal cultural resources from climate change is quickly becoming a global priority, and comparing cultural heritage laws designed to protect historic resources in coastal areas from several countries may illuminate potential paths forward. Following a brief discussion of the economic and public health benefits arising from the protection of cultural heritage, this article describes, examines, and compares the legal frameworks through which the United States, France, and the United Kingdom address cultural heritage protection in coastal areas. Several case studies from each country are also presented to demonstrate different preservation initiatives

Genetic sex separation of the malaria vector, Anopheles arabiensis, by exposing eggs to dieldrin

BACKGROUND: The sterile insect technique (SIT) has been used with success for suppressing or eliminating important insect pests of agricultural or veterinary importance. In order to develop SIT for mosquitoes, female elimination prior to release is essential as they are the disease-transmitting sex. A genetic sexing strain (GSS) of Anopheles arabiensis was created based on resistance to dieldrin, and methods of sex separation at the egg stage were developed. The use of this strain for SIT will require sexually sterile males: useful radiation doses for this purpose were determined for pupae and adults. METHODS: For the creation of the sexing strain, dieldrin-resistant males were irradiated with 40 Gy using a (60)Co source and were subsequently crossed to homozygous susceptible virgin females. Individual families were screened for semi-sterility and for male resistance to dieldrin. For sex separation, eggs of a resulting GSS, ANO IPCL1, were exposed to varying concentrations of dieldrin for different durations. Percent hatch, larval survival, and male and female emergence were recorded. Radiation induced sterility was determined following adult and pupa exposure to gamma rays at 0–105 Gy. Mortality induced by dieldrin treatment, and levels of sterility post radiation were investigated. RESULTS: ANO IPCL1 contains a complex chromosome aberration that pseudo-links the male-determining Y chromosome and dieldrin resistance, conferring high natural semi-sterility. Exposure of eggs to 2, 3, and 4 ppm dieldrin solutions resulted in complete female elimination without a significant decrease of male emergence compared to the controls. A dose of 75 Gy reduced the fertility to 3.8 and 6.9% when males were irradiated as pupae or adults respectively, but the proportions of progeny of these males reaching adulthood were 0.6 and 1.5% respectively CONCLUSION: The GSS ANO IPCL1 was shown to be a suitable strain for further testing for SIT though high semi-sterility is a disadvantage for mass rearing

Insights into the control of taxane metabolism: Molecular, cellular, and metabolic changes induced by elicitation in Taxus baccata cell suspensions

More knowledge is needed about the molecular/cellular control of paclitaxel (PTX) production in Taxus spp. cell cultures. In this study, the yield of this anticancer agent in Taxus baccata cell suspensions was improved 11-fold after elicitation with coronatine (COR) compared to the untreated cells, and 18-fold when co-supplemented with methyl-β-cyclodextrins (β-CDs). In the dual treatment, the release of taxanes from the producer cells was greatly enhanced, with 81.6% of the total taxane content being found in the medium at the end of the experiment. The experimental conditions that caused the highest PTX production also induced its maximum excretion, and increased the expression of taxane biosynthetic genes, especially the flux-limiting BAPT and DBTNBT. The application of COR, which activates PTX biosynthesis, together with β - CDs, which form inclusion complexes with PTX and related taxanes, is evidently an efficient strategy for enhancing PTX production and release to the culture medium. Due to the recently described role of lipid droplets (LDs) in the trafficking and accumulation of hydrophobic taxanes in Taxus spp. cell cultures, the structure, number and taxane storage capacity of these organelles was also studied. In elicited cultures, the number of LDs increased and they mainly accumulated taxanes with a side chain, especially PTX. Thus, PTX constituted up to 50-70% of the total taxanes found in LDs throughout the experiment in the COR + β - CD-treated cultures. These results confirm that LDs can store taxanes and distribute them inside and outside cells. Keywords: Taxus baccata; cell cultures; coronatine; gene expression; lipid droplets; paclitaxel; taxane accumulation

High sensitivity of one-step real-time reverse transcription quantitative PCR to detect low virus titers in large mosquito pools

Background: Mosquitoes are the deadliest animals in the world. Their ability to carry and spread diseases to humans causes millions of deaths every year. Due to the lack of efficient vaccines, the control of mosquito-borne diseases primarily relies on the management of the vector. Traditional control methods are insufficient to control mosquito populations. The sterile insect technique (SIT) is an additional control method that can be combined with other control tactics to suppress specific mosquito populations. The SIT requires the mass-rearing and release of sterile males with the aim to induce sterility in the wild female population. Samples collected from the environment for laboratory colonization, as well as the released males, should be free from mosquito-borne viruses (MBV). Therefore, efficient detection methods with defined detection limits for MBV are required. Although a one-step reverse transcriptase quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) method was developed to detect arboviruses in human and mosquito samples, its detection limit in mosquito samples has yet to be defined. Methods: We evaluated the detection sensitivity of one step RT-qPCR for targeted arboviruses in large mosquito pools, using pools of non-infected mosquitoes of various sizes (165, 320 and 1600 mosquitoes) containing one infected mosquito body with defined virus titers of chikungunya virus (CHIKV), usutu virus (USUV), West Nile virus (WNV) and Zika virus (ZIKV). Results: CHIK, USUV, ZIKV, and WNV virus were detected in all tested pools using the RT-qPCR assay. Moreover, in the largest mosquito pools (1600 mosquitoes), RT-qPCR was able to detect the targeted viruses using different total RNA quantities (10, 1 and 0.1 ng per reaction) as a template. Correlating the virus titer with the total RNA quantity allowed the prediction of the maximum number of mosquitoes per pool in which the RT-qPCR can theoretically detect the virus infection. Conclusions: Mosquito-borne viruses can be reliably detected by RT-qPCR assay in pools of mosquitoes exceeding 1000 specimens. This will represent an important step to expand pathogen-free colonies for mass-rearing sterile males for programmes that have a SIT component by reducing the time and the manpower needed to conduct this quality control process. Keywords: Arbovirus; Chikungunya virus (CHIKV); Flavivirus; Pool size; RT-qPCR; Usutu virus (USUV); West Nile virus (WNV); Zika virus (ZIKV).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Acute myocardial infarction in a patient with hypofibrinogenemia: a case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>Congenital fibrinogen deficiency is a rare coagulation disorder usually responsible for hemorrhagic diathesis. However, it can be associated with thrombosis and there have been limited reports of arterial thrombotic complications in these patients.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>A 42-year-old Tunisian man with congenital hypofibrinogenemia and no cardiovascular risk factors presented with new onset prolonged angina pectoris. An electrocardiogram showed features of inferior acute myocardial infarction. His troponin levels had reached 17 ng/L. Laboratory findings confirmed hypofibrinogenemia and ruled out thrombophilia. Echocardiography was not useful in providing diagnostic elements but did show preserved left ventricular function. Coronary angiography was not performed and our patient did not receive any anticoagulant treatment due to the major risk of bleeding. Magnetic resonance imaging confirmed myocardial necrosis. Our patient was managed with aspirin, a beta-blocker, an angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor and statin medication. The treatment was well tolerated and no ischemic recurrence was detected.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Although coronary thrombosis is a rare event in patients with fibrinogen deficiency, this condition is of major interest in view of the difficulties observed in managing these patients.</p

Spontaneous rupture of metastatic α-fetoprotein-producing gastric cancer of the liver

An 80-year-old man was admitted to our hospital because of the rupture of the liver. Laboratory data showed iron-deficiency anemia, although there was no liver dysfunction. A computed tomography scan showed large liver tumor with intraperitoneal hemorrhage, and since a serum level of α-fetoprotein (AFP) was extremely high, we initially suspected a rupture of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Transarterial embolization was performed to stop bleeding from the tumor, followed by an endoscopic examination that revealed advanced gastric cancer. Histological analysis revealed that both the gastric and the hepatic tumors were moderately to poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma, as well as that both tumors were immunohistochemically positive for AFP. Finally, we diagnosed AFP-producing gastric cancer associated with liver metastasis. Rupture of metastatic liver cancer is rare, and accordingly, distinction from HCC is important, particularly for the cases of AFP-producing gastric cancer

An open source Bayesian Monte Carlo isotope mixing model with applications in Earth surface processes

The implementation of isotopic tracers as constraints on source contributions has become increasingly relevant to understanding Earth surface processes. Interpretation of these isotopic tracers has become more accessible with the development of Bayesian Monte Carlo (BMC) mixing models, which allow uncertainty in mixing end‐members and provide methodology for systems with multicomponent mixing. This study presents an open source multiple isotope BMC mixing model that is applicable to Earth surface environments with sources exhibiting distinct end‐member isotopic signatures. Our model is first applied to new δ18O and δD measurements from the Athabasca Glacier, which showed expected seasonal melt evolution trends and vigorously assessed the statistical relevance of the resulting fraction estimations. To highlight the broad applicability of our model to a variety of Earth surface environments and relevant isotopic systems, we expand our model to two additional case studies: deriving melt sources from δ18O, δD, and 222Rn measurements of Greenland Ice Sheet bulk water samples and assessing nutrient sources from ɛNd and 87Sr/86Sr measurements of Hawaiian soil cores. The model produces results for the Greenland Ice Sheet and Hawaiian soil data sets that are consistent with the originally published fractional contribution estimates. The advantage of this method is that it quantifies the error induced by variability in the end‐member compositions, unrealized by the models previously applied to the above case studies. Results from all three case studies demonstrate the broad applicability of this statistical BMC isotopic mixing model for estimating source contribution fractions in a variety of Earth surface systems.Key Points:Open source BMC model determines source contributions in Earth surface systemsEffectively applied to stable and radiogenic isotope systems in various settingsModel able to encompass end‐member uncertainties and multiple isotopic systemsPeer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/111937/1/ggge20708.pdfhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/111937/2/ggge20708-sup-0001-2014GC005683-ts01.pd