Analytical Verification of the IDS-iSYS Intact Amino-terminal Propeptide of Type 1 Procollagen (P1NP)

Peer reviewe

Risk assessment of biogas in kitchens

International audienceThe health risk associated with human exposure to pollutants while using biogas for cooking was assessed following the methodology described by the US - National Research Council. Information of hazardous compounds and compositions of several biogas types were extracted from scientific literature. Compositions were dependent on the biogas origin (production process). First, a quantitative approach was conducted to identify substances with a high health risk based on their Human Toxicity Values. Then, a subsequent qualitative analysis was performed to complete the health risk assessment based on other toxicology data, effectiveness of purification processes, variability of the waste materials used for biogas generation and, when possible, a comparison with natural gas. The main conclusion of the study was that the injection in the grid of upgraded biogas originating from household and organic waste landfills, did not present an increase of health risks when compared to the domestic use of natural gas

Marqueurs moléculaires utilisables en sélection chez la canne à sucre : cas de la résistance à la rouille brune

Les cultivars modernes de canne à sucre (Saccharum spp., 2n=100 à 130) sont hautement polyploïdes, aneuploïdes et d'origine interspécifique. Un gène majeur (Bru1) conférant la résistance à la rouille brune, causée par le champignon Puccinia melanocephala, a été identifié chez le cultivar R570. Nous avons analysé 380 cultivars modernes et clones en cours de sélection, représentatifs de la diversité mondiale, à l'aide de 22 marqueurs moléculaires regroupés dans un segment de 8,2cM génétiquement lié à Bru1 chez R570. Nos résultats révèlent un fort déséquilibre de liaison dans la région autour de Bru1 et de fortes associations entre la plupart des marqueurs et la résistance à la rouille. Deux marqueurs PCR flanquant le segment portant Bru1 sont complètement associés et sont présents uniquement chez les clones résistants. Ces marqueurs constituent des marqueurs moléculaires diagnostics de Bru1. 86% des 194 clones de canne à sucre résistants possèdent les marqueurs diagnostics de Bru1, révélant que ce gène constitue la principale source de résistance à la rouille brune chez les cultivars modernes. Les marqueurs PCR diagnostics de Bru1 devraient être particulièrement utiles pour identifier des cultivars possédant des sources de résistance alternatives à Bru1 afin de diversifier la base génétique de la résistance à la rouille brune dans les programmes de sélection. (Résumé d'auteur

Rethinking business models for innovation

One of the major challenges confronted by those in charge of technological innovation involves anticipating the value creation model sufficiently early on,in a highly uncertain context both as far as the technology itself is concerned and the potential market. Today, in many industrial sectors, the innovation boundaries have moved towards projects that are more and more exploratory and fuzzy. The simple optimisation of linear processes of the "stage-gate" type is no longer sufficient to build sustainable competitive advantages. The notion of Business Models, when applied to innovation, enables us to describe how a company creates value through innovation, generally within a business ecosystem, and how the value will be distributed between the actors involved. The authors of this book believe that the notions of Business Modelling and value creation are key to all the dimensions of successful innovation, whether technology, marketing, organisational or economically based. Rethinking Business Models for Innovation: this title describes the relationship between thinking, modelling, and also field-testing. The book is based on a series of nine recent cases of innovation involving company managers, often assisted by researchers (the co-authors of each chapter), and how they built and formalised their Business Models and then tested their strategies. After having discovered the variety of the cases, the reader will understand that every innovation situation generates specific questions about Business Models. However, we feel that we can identify three key issues that arise, more or less, in each of these projects. The chapters in this book build on these issues: the identification of sources of value and revenue models (the notion of value creation), the position of the company in the value-network or ecosystem (the sharing of value) and finally the evolution of Business MoDdels over time (the sustainability and the competitiveness of the company). The last chapter goes over all the contributions, exploring the notion of value in the Business Model approach.business model ; innovation ; value ; entrepreneurial project

: Lessons from entrepreneurial projects

International audienceOne of the major challenges confronted by those in charge of technological innovation involves anticipating the value creation model sufficiently early on,in a highly uncertain context both as far as the technology itself is concerned and the potential market. Today, in many industrial sectors, the innovation boundaries have moved towards projects that are more and more exploratory and fuzzy. The simple optimisation of linear processes of the "stage-gate" type is no longer sufficient to build sustainable competitive advantages. The notion of Business Models, when applied to innovation, enables us to describe how a company creates value through innovation, generally within a business ecosystem, and how the value will be distributed between the actors involved. The authors of this book believe that the notions of Business Modelling and value creation are key to all the dimensions of successful innovation, whether technology, marketing, organisational or economically based. Rethinking Business Models for Innovation: this title describes the relationship between thinking, modelling, and also field-testing. The book is based on a series of nine recent cases of innovation involving company managers, often assisted by researchers (the co-authors of each chapter), and how they built and formalised their Business Models and then tested their strategies. After having discovered the variety of the cases, the reader will understand that every innovation situation generates specific questions about Business Models. However, we feel that we can identify three key issues that arise, more or less, in each of these projects. The chapters in this book build on these issues: the identification of sources of value and revenue models (the notion of value creation), the position of the company in the value-network or ecosystem (the sharing of value) and finally the evolution of Business MoDdels over time (the sustainability and the competitiveness of the company). The last chapter goes over all the contributions, exploring the notion of value in the Business Model approach.L'innovation technologique, qu'elle soit conduite par des start-ups ou par de grandes entreprises, n'est plus une condition suffisante de la création de valeur. Créer de la valeur sur des marchés nouveaux nécessite le plus souvent de repenser l'organisation de l'entreprise, sa façon de faire des affaires, ses partenariats stratégiques, autrement dit, son business model. Cet ouvrage se veut un guide pour les porteurs de projets d'innovation en leur fournissant des outils de compréhension et d'analyse de la dimension stratégique de leur projet. Les études de cas présentées sont le fruit d'une collaboration étroite entre les porteurs de chacun des projets et des chercheurs en management de l'innovation reconnus. Au travers de ces cas, trois grandes problématiques sont abordées : l'identification des sources de valeur chez les clients potentiels, la position que l'entreprise pourra prendre dans son écosystème et enfin l'évolution des business models dans le temps. Sur chacun des cas, le lecteur aura accès à une compréhension fine des problèmes stratégiques posés par l'innovation ainsi que des outils de management mis en œuvre pour aider à réfléchir et à agir. (http://www.rethinkingbusinessmodel.net/

A Unique Carrier for Delivery of Therapeutic Compounds beyond the Blood-Brain Barrier

BACKGROUND: Therapeutic intervention in many neurological diseases is thwarted by the physical obstacle formed by the blood-brain barrier (BBB) that excludes most drugs from entering the brain from the blood. Thus, identifying efficacious modes of drug delivery to the brain remains a "holy grail" in molecular medicine and nanobiotechnology. Brain capillaries, that comprise the BBB, possess an endogenous receptor that ferries an iron-transport protein, termed p97 (melanotransferrin), across the BBB. Here, we explored the hypothesis that therapeutic drugs "piggybacked" as conjugates of p97 can be shuttled across the BBB for treatment of otherwise inoperable brain tumors. APPROACH: Human p97 was covalently linked with the chemotherapeutic agents paclitaxel (PTAX) or adriamycin (ADR) and following intravenous injection, measured their penetration into brain tissue and other organs using radiolabeled and fluorescent derivatives of the drugs. In order to establish efficacy of the conjugates, we used nude mouse models to assess p97-drug conjugate activity towards glioma and mammary tumors growing subcutaneously compared to those growing intracranially. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Bolus-injected p97-drug conjugates and unconjugated p97 traversed brain capillary endothelium within a few minutes and accumulated to 1-2% of the injected by 24 hours. Brain delivery with p97-drug conjugates was quantitatively 10 fold higher than with free drug controls. Furthermore, both free-ADR and p97-ADR conjugates equally inhibited the subcutaneous growth of gliomas growing outside the brain. Evocatively, only p97-ADR conjugates significantly prolonged the survival of animals bearing intracranial gliomas or mammary tumors when compared to similar cumulated doses of free-ADR. SIGNIFICANCE: This study provides the initial proof of concept for p97 as a carrier capable of shuttling therapeutic levels of drugs from the blood to the brain for the treatment of neurological disorders, including classes of resident and metastatic brain tumors. It may be prudent, therefore, to consider implementation of this novel delivery platform in various clinical settings for therapeutic intervention in acute and chronic neurological diseases