Ecological goods and services and agroforestry : the benefits for farmers and the interests for society

Paper presented at the 11th North American Agroforesty Conference, which was held May 31-June 3, 2009 in Columbia, Missouri.In Gold, M.A. and M.M. Hall, eds. Agroforestry Comes of Age: Putting Science into Practice. Proceedings, 11th North American Agroforestry Conference, Columbia, Mo., May 31-June 3, 2009.The main objective of this project is to estimate the social value of environmental goods and services (EG&S) generated by agroforestry practices and to evaluate the profitability of these practices for agricultural producers and for society. Two agroforestry practices are considered: riparian buffer zones and windbreaks. Moreover, the situations in two representative agricultural watersheds serve our analysis (Chateauguay and Fouquette watersheds). Among the numerous EG&S that are provided through agroforestry practices, nine have been chosen for this study: agriculture-related odors, aestheticism of the landscape, terrestrial biodiversity, surface water quality, carbon sequestration, road accidents, clearing snow from roads, treatment of drinking water and wild pollinating insects. Several economic valuation methods have been used, such as hedonic pricing value, benefit transfer, productivity method or experimental economics.Jean Nolet (1), Claude Sauve_ (1), Maria Olar (1), Maribel Hernandez (1), Marjolaine Mondon (1), Caroline Simard (1), Louis-Samuel Jacques (1), Andr� V�zina (2), Nathan De Baets (2), Maud Ablain (3), and Pierre Etcheverry (3) ; 1. EcoRessources Consultants, 825, rue Raoul-Jobin, Qu�bec, QC, Canada, G1N 1S6. 2. Activa Environnement Inc., 106, rue Industrielle, New Richmond (Qu�bec), G0C 2B0. 3. Centre d'expertise sur les produits agroforestiers (CEPAF), 235, route 230 ouest, La Pocati�re, QC, Canada, G0R 1Z0.try pIncludes bibliographical references

Derived variants at six genes explain nearly half of size reduction in dog breeds

Selective breeding of dogs by humans has generated extraordinary diversity in body size. A number of multibreed analyses have been undertaken to identify the genetic basis of this diversity. We analyzed four loci discovered in a previous genome-wide association study that used 60,968 SNPs to identify size-associated genomic intervals, which were too large to assign causative roles to genes. First, we performed fine-mapping to define critical intervals that included the candidate genes GHR, HMGA2, SMAD2, and STC2, identifying five highly associated markers at the four loci. We hypothesize that three of the variants are likely to be causative. We then genotyped each marker, together with previously reported size-associated variants in the IGF1 and IGF1R genes, on a panel of 500 domestic dogs from 93 breeds, and identified the ancestral allele by genotyping the same markers on 30 wild canids. We observed that the derived alleles at all markers correlated with reduced body size, and smaller dogs are more likely to carry derived alleles at multiple markers. However, breeds are not generally fixed at all markers; multiple combinations of genotypes are found within most breeds. Finally, we show that 46%–52.5% of the variance in body size of dog breeds can be explained by seven markers in proximity to exceptional candidate genes. Among breeds with standard weights <41 kg (90 lb), the genotypes accounted for 64.3% of variance in weight. This work advances our understanding of mammalian growth by describing genetic contributions to canine size determination in non-giant dog breeds

Inflammatory dendritic cells—not basophils—are necessary and sufficient for induction of Th2 immunity to inhaled house dust mite allergen

It is unclear how Th2 immunity is induced in response to allergens like house dust mite (HDM). Here, we show that HDM inhalation leads to the TLR4/MyD88-dependent recruitment of IL-4 competent basophils and eosinophils, and of inflammatory DCs to the draining mediastinal nodes. Depletion of basophils only partially reduced Th2 immunity, and depletion of eosinophils had no effect on the Th2 response. Basophils did not take up inhaled antigen, present it to T cells, or express antigen presentation machinery, whereas a population of FceRI+ DCs readily did. Inflammatory DCs were necessary and sufficient for induction of Th2 immunity and features of asthma, whereas basophils were not required. We favor a model whereby DCs initiate and basophils amplify Th2 immunity to HDM allergen

INDIFFERENCIE : DROIT DE L'HOMME ET UNION EUROPEENNE

Conférences de l’IREDIES / IREDIES Conference Paper n° 2 /2019La présente étude est le fruit d’un travail collectif réalisé par les étudiants de la promotion 2018-2019 du Master 2 « Droits de l’homme et Union européenne » de l’Ecole de droit de la Sorbonne (Paris 1). Ce diplôme – qui a l’intérêt de disposer d’un séminaire entièrement consacré à l’étude de la Charte des droits fondamentaux de l’Union européenne – a été le lieu de réflexion de cette recherche menée avec enthousiasme et professionnalisme par tous les étudiants. Les travaux doctrinaux sur ce texte novateur sont en général centrés sur la manière dont la Cour de justice de l’Union l’interprète et l’applique. Or, il ne s’agit là que de la face visible de l’iceberg contentieux. Dans ce contexte, il est apparu essentiel de s’interroger sur la manière dont les juridictions internes avaient apprivoisé ce texte moderne (au regard de la variété des droits qu’il consacre) et complexe (au regard de son champ d’application).Les étudiants se sont répartis en trois groupes afin d’étudier la manière dont les juridictions internes (Conseil constitutionnel, Conseil d’Etat et Cour de cassation), mais également le législateur, se sont emparés de ce texte.Les résultats de cette étude, où l’outil statistique a constitué un support cardinal, démontrent que si la Charte des droits fondamentaux est connue du pouvoir législatif et des « acteurs » judiciaires, il n’est pas encore devenu une référence incontournable du processus législatif et de l’argumentaire des juges. L’antériorité de la Convention de sauvegarde des droits et libertés fondamentales comme les spécificités du champ d’application de la Charte sont deux éléments explicatifs d’un tel état de fait.Ce travail, mené avec sérieux et rigueur, méritait d’être rendu public au sein de la collection des Working papers de l’IREDIES

Evolution of coastal zone vulnerability to marine inundation in a global change context. Application to Languedoc Roussillon (France)

The coastal system is likely to suffer increasing costal risk in a global change context. Its management implies to consider those risks in a holistic approach of the different vulnerability components of the coastal zone, by improving knowledge of hazard and exposure as well as analyzing and quantifying present day and future territory vulnerability. The ANR/VMC2007/MISEEVA project (2008-2011) has applied this approach on Languedoc Roussillon region in France. MISEEVA approach relies on several scenarios for 2030 and 2100, in terms of meteorology (driver of coastal hazard), sea level rise, and also considering further trends in demography and economy, and possible adaption strategies Hazard has been modeled (SWAN, MARS and SURFWB), on the base of the presentday situation, sea level rise hypotheses, and existing or modeled data, of extreme meteorological driving f. It allowed to assess the possible surges ranges and map coastal zone exposure to: - a permanent inundation (considering sea level rise in 2030 and 2100, - a recurrent inundation (considering sea level rise and extreme tidal range) - an exceptional inundation (adding extreme storm surge to sea level rise and tidal range). In 2030, exposure will be comparable to present day exposure. In 2100, extreme condition will affect a larger zone. Present days social and economic components of the coastal zone have been analyzed in terms of vulnerability and potential damaging. Adaptation capacity was approached by public inquiries and interviews of stakeholders and policy makers, based on existing planning documents The knowledge of the present day system is then compared to the possible management strategies that could be chosen in the future, so to imagine what would be the evolution of vulnerability to marine inundation, in regards to these possible strategies

The evolving SARS-CoV-2 epidemic in Africa: Insights from rapidly expanding genomic surveillance

INTRODUCTION Investment in Africa over the past year with regard to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) sequencing has led to a massive increase in the number of sequences, which, to date, exceeds 100,000 sequences generated to track the pandemic on the continent. These sequences have profoundly affected how public health officials in Africa have navigated the COVID-19 pandemic. RATIONALE We demonstrate how the first 100,000 SARS-CoV-2 sequences from Africa have helped monitor the epidemic on the continent, how genomic surveillance expanded over the course of the pandemic, and how we adapted our sequencing methods to deal with an evolving virus. Finally, we also examine how viral lineages have spread across the continent in a phylogeographic framework to gain insights into the underlying temporal and spatial transmission dynamics for several variants of concern (VOCs). RESULTS Our results indicate that the number of countries in Africa that can sequence the virus within their own borders is growing and that this is coupled with a shorter turnaround time from the time of sampling to sequence submission. Ongoing evolution necessitated the continual updating of primer sets, and, as a result, eight primer sets were designed in tandem with viral evolution and used to ensure effective sequencing of the virus. The pandemic unfolded through multiple waves of infection that were each driven by distinct genetic lineages, with B.1-like ancestral strains associated with the first pandemic wave of infections in 2020. Successive waves on the continent were fueled by different VOCs, with Alpha and Beta cocirculating in distinct spatial patterns during the second wave and Delta and Omicron affecting the whole continent during the third and fourth waves, respectively. Phylogeographic reconstruction points toward distinct differences in viral importation and exportation patterns associated with the Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Omicron variants and subvariants, when considering both Africa versus the rest of the world and viral dissemination within the continent. Our epidemiological and phylogenetic inferences therefore underscore the heterogeneous nature of the pandemic on the continent and highlight key insights and challenges, for instance, recognizing the limitations of low testing proportions. We also highlight the early warning capacity that genomic surveillance in Africa has had for the rest of the world with the detection of new lineages and variants, the most recent being the characterization of various Omicron subvariants. CONCLUSION Sustained investment for diagnostics and genomic surveillance in Africa is needed as the virus continues to evolve. This is important not only to help combat SARS-CoV-2 on the continent but also because it can be used as a platform to help address the many emerging and reemerging infectious disease threats in Africa. In particular, capacity building for local sequencing within countries or within the continent should be prioritized because this is generally associated with shorter turnaround times, providing the most benefit to local public health authorities tasked with pandemic response and mitigation and allowing for the fastest reaction to localized outbreaks. These investments are crucial for pandemic preparedness and response and will serve the health of the continent well into the 21st century