Placenta-Like Structure of the Aphid Endoparasitic Wasp Aphidius ervi: A Strategy of Optimal Resources Acquisition

Aphidius ervi (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) is an entomophagous parasitoid known to be an effective parasitoid of several aphid species of economic importance. A reduction of its production cost during mass rearing for inundative release is needed to improve its use in biological control of pests. In these contexts, a careful analysis of its entire development phases within its host is needed. This paper shows that this parasitoid has some characteristics in its embryological development rather complex and different from most other reported insects, which can be phylogenetically very close. First, its yolkless egg allows a high fecundity of the female but force them to hatch from the egg shell rapidly to the host hemocoel. An early cellularisation allowing a rapid differentiation of a serosa membrane seems to confirm this hypothesis. The serosa wraps the developing embryo until the first instar larva stage and invades the host tissues by microvilli projections and form a placenta like structure able to divert host resources and allowing nutrition and respiration of embryo. Such interspecific invasion, at the cellular level, recalls mammal's trophoblasts that anchors maternal uterine wall and underlines the high adaptation of A. ervi to develop in the host body

Thermal stability analysis of Cu-11.8 wt%Al milled samples by TEM and HT-XRD

In this work, the thermal stability of two samples of Cu-11.8 wt%Al obtained by different milling processes is analyzed. Several TEM techniques were used and HT-XRD experiments performed to determine the crystal structure and the morphological microstructure of the samples obtained during different heat treatments. The heat treatments were: quenching from 850 °C to room temperature and two consecutive calorimetric runs at 5 °C/min. After the quenching,α2 is the major phase observed, reaching 95 mass%. The remaining 5 mass% consisted of martensitic phases: one sample had γ′, a hexagonal structure, and the other β1′, a rhombohedral structure. During the first calorimetric run, the sample containing the γ′ phase exhibited a calorimetric event and the sample containing the β1′ phase did not. The calorimetric event is attributed to the austenitic transformation γ′ → β1. The lack of calorimetric event in the sample containing the β1′ is associated with the inhibition of the transformation β1′ → β1 because of the precipitation of the γ2 phase. Finally, the absence of a calorimetric event in the second run with the first sample is associated with the retransformation to β1′ instead to γ′ phase during cooling of the first calorimetric run. These studies determined that the first sample is a better candidate than the second sample to produce a shape memory alloy after thermo-mechanical treatments of the milled powders.Fil: Sánchez Pascal, Nadia Soledad. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ingeniería; ArgentinaFil: Giordana, María Florencia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Rosario. Instituto de Física de Rosario. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Instituto de Física de Rosario; ArgentinaFil: Napolitano, Federico Ricardo. Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica. Centro Atómico Bariloche; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Esquivel, Marcelo Ricardo Oscar. Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica. Centro Atómico Bariloche; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Centro Regional Universitario Bariloche; ArgentinaFil: Zelaya, Maria Eugenia. Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica. Centro Atómico Bariloche; Argentina. Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica. Centro Atómico Bariloche; Argentin

Impact of anatomical location of lower limb venous thrombus on the risk of subsequent cancer

International audienceAfter a proximal deep-vein thrombosis (P-DVT), the risk of diagnosis of a previously unsuspected cancer is high. Isolated distal DVT (iD-DVT; i.e. infra-popliteal DVT without pulmonary embolism [PE]) and isolated superficial-vein thrombosis (iSVT; i.e. without concomitant DVT and PE) are at least as frequent as P-DVT but their association with subsequent cancer is uncertain. We exploited data from the OPTIMEV prospective, observational, multicentre study to i) compare the risk of subsequent cancer three years after a first objectively confirmed iSVT, iD-DVT and iP-DVT in patients without a prior history of cancer or of venous thromboembolism, ii) assess predictors of subsequent cancer in cases of iD-DVT. The overall cumulative rates of cancer among the 304 patients with iSVT, 536 patients with iD-DVT, and 327 patients with iP-DVT were similar (3.4% 95% confidence interval [1.8-6.2], 3.9% [2.5-5.9] and 3.9% [2.3-6.8], respectively), regardless of whether the index venous thromboembolic event was unprovoked or associated with a major transient risk factor. Neither anatomical (muscular vs deep-calf DVT) nor ultrasound scan characteristics (number of thrombosed veins, clot diameter under compression) seemed strongly associated with the risk of cancer in cases of iD-DVT. In patients managed in routine practice, all the different clinical expressions of lower limb venous thromboembolism are associated with a similar risk of subsequent cancer. From a clinical practice point of view, this suggests that cancer screening, without discussing the necessity, or not, of such screening, should not differ between a deep-proximal, deep-distal or superficial location of thrombosis

1ères Rencontres Francophones sur les Légumineuses RFL (membres du comité d’organisation logistique)

National audienc

Psychometric Assessment of an Item Bank for Adaptive Testing on Patient-Reported Experience of Care Environment for Severe Mental Illness: Validation Study

BackgroundThe care environment significantly influences the experiences of patients with severe mental illness and the quality of their care. While a welcoming and stimulating environment enhances patient satisfaction and health outcomes, psychiatric facilities often prioritize staff workflow over patient needs. Addressing these challenges is crucial to improving patient experiences and outcomes in mental health care. ObjectiveThis study is part of the Patient-Reported Experience Measure for Improving Quality of Care in Mental Health (PREMIUM) project and aims to establish an item bank (PREMIUM-CE) and to develop computerized adaptive tests (CATs) to measure the experience of the care environment of adult patients with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or major depressive disorder. MethodsWe performed psychometric analyses including assessments of item response theory (IRT) model assumptions, IRT model fit, differential item functioning (DIF), item bank validity, and CAT simulations. ResultsIn this multicenter cross-sectional study, 498 patients were recruited from outpatient and inpatient settings. The final PREMIUM-CE 13-item bank was sufficiently unidimensional (root mean square error of approximation=0.082, 95% CI 0.067-0.097; comparative fit index=0.974; Tucker-Lewis index=0.968) and showed an adequate fit to the IRT model (infit mean square statistic ranging between 0.7 and 1.0). DIF analysis revealed no item biases according to gender, health care settings, diagnosis, or mode of study participation. PREMIUM-CE scores correlated strongly with satisfaction measures (r=0.69-0.78; P<.001) and weakly with quality-of-life measures (r=0.11-0.21; P<.001). CAT simulations showed a strong correlation (r=0.98) between CAT scores and those of the full item bank, and around 79.5% (396/498) of the participants obtained a reliable score with the administration of an average of 7 items. ConclusionsThe PREMIUM-CE item bank and its CAT version have shown excellent psychometric properties, making them reliable measures for evaluating the patient experience of the care environment among adults with severe mental illness in both outpatient and inpatient settings. These measures are a valuable addition to the existing landscape of patient experience assessment, capturing what truly matters to patients and enhancing the understanding of their care experiences. Trial RegistrationClinicalTrials.gov NCT02491866; https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT0249186

Trial of Lixisenatide in Early Parkinson’s Disease

International audienceBackground: Lixisenatide, a glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist used for the treatment of diabetes, has shown neuroprotective properties in a mouse model of Parkinson's disease.Methods: In this phase 2, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial, we assessed the effect of lixisenatide on the progression of motor disability in persons with Parkinson's disease. Participants in whom Parkinson's disease was diagnosed less than 3 years earlier, who were receiving a stable dose of medications to treat symptoms, and who did not have motor complications were randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to daily subcutaneous lixisenatide or placebo for 12 months, followed by a 2-month washout period. The primary end point was the change from baseline in scores on the Movement Disorder Society-Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (MDS-UPDRS) part III (range, 0 to 132, with higher scores indicating greater motor disability), which was assessed in patients in the on-medication state at 12 months. Secondary end points included other MDS-UPDRS subscores at 6, 12, and 14 months and doses of levodopa equivalent.Results: A total of 156 persons were enrolled, with 78 assigned to each group. MDS-UPDRS part III scores at baseline were approximately 15 in both groups. At 12 months, scores on the MDS-UPDRS part III had changed by -0.04 points (indicating improvement) in the lixisenatide group and 3.04 points (indicating worsening disability) in the placebo group (difference, 3.08; 95% confidence interval, 0.86 to 5.30; P = 0.007). At 14 months, after a 2-month washout period, the mean MDS-UPDRS motor scores in the off-medication state were 17.7 (95% CI, 15.7 to 19.7) with lixisenatide and 20.6 (95% CI, 18.5 to 22.8) with placebo. Other results relative to the secondary end points did not differ substantially between the groups. Nausea occurred in 46% of participants receiving lixisenatide, and vomiting occurred in 13%.Conclusions: In participants with early Parkinson's disease, lixisenatide therapy resulted in less progression of motor disability than placebo at 12 months in a phase 2 trial but was associated with gastrointestinal side effects. Longer and larger trials are needed to determine the effects and safety of lixisenatide in persons with Parkinson's disease

Jazz et anthropologie

En quoi le jazz, phénomène musical majeur du XXe siècle, peut-il constituer un objet d'étude et de réflexion anthropologiques, alors qu'il fut longtemps sinon ignoré du moins négligé par les approches musicologiques et ethnomusicologiques traditionnelles ? C'est à cette question que tentent de répondre les quinze articles réunis dans ce numéro, à travers son histoire, sa réception, sa diffusion, ses lieux de production, ses inventions organologique, harmoniques, mélodiques et surtout rythmiqu..