Evidence for in situ and in vitro association between beta-dystroglycan and the subsynaptic 43K rapsyn protein. Consequence for acetylcholine receptor clustering at the synapse.

The accumulation of dystrophin and associated proteins at the postsynaptic membrane of the neuromuscular junction and their co-distribution with nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (AChR) clusters in vitro suggested a role for the dystrophin complex in synaptogenesis. Co-transfection experiments in which alpha- and beta-dystroglycan form a complex with AChR and rapsyn, a peripheral protein required for AChR clustering (Apel, D. A., Roberds, S. L., Campbell, K. P., and Merlie, J. P. (1995) Neuron 15, 115-126), suggested that rapsyn functions as a link between AChR and the dystrophin complex. We have investigated the interaction between rapsyn and beta-dystroglycan in Torpedo AChR-rich membranes using in situ and in vitro approaches. Cross-linking experiments were carried out to study the topography of postsynaptic membrane polypeptides. A cross-linked product of 90 kDa was labeled by antibodies to rapsyn and beta-dystroglycan; this demonstrates that these polypeptides are in close proximity to one another. Affinity chromatography experiments and ligand blot assays using rapsyn solubilized from Torpedo AChR-rich membranes and constructs containing beta-dystroglycan C-terminal fragments show that a rapsyn-binding site is present in the juxtamembranous region of the cytoplasmic tail of beta-dystroglycan. These data point out that rapsyn and dystroglycan interact in the postsynaptic membrane and thus reinforce the notion that dystroglycan could be involved in synaptogenesis

The High-Resolution Imaging (HRI) Portable Array: A Seismic (and Internet) Network Dedicated to Kilometric-scale Seismic Imaging

International audienceWe have developed a network of portable seismic stations dedicated to the high resolution imaging of geological, potentially hazardous, targets. These targets - volcanoes, fault zones, landslide areas - are characterized by strong medium heterogeneities, rugged topography, rough field conditions, and require dedicated equipment in order to maximize the number of recording points. This new network is designed to a) operate experiments with a limited size crew, b) run on low power for possible use in remote areas and difficult conditions, c) record both active and passive seismic sources. The actual network consists of 30 clusters of 9 channels digital acquisition system (DAS), equipped with 6 vertical sensors plus 1 three-component sensor. Each DAS uses Ethernet and 802.11 (WiFi) connections that permit to a single operator to remotely control the entire network. We present the main characteristics of this new portable array, describe the calibration method developed for our sensors and show examples of configuration and recordings for two recent experiments

The moral economy of contemporary working-class adolescence: managing symbolic capital in a French public ‘Adolescent Centre’

International audienceWorking-class adolescents of French urban peripheries are key figures in a new social debate that reactivates the nineteenth century spectre of " dangerous " classes to be controlled. Since the 1990s, French social counselling has privileged two modalities of response: taking account of suffering and government by listening and speech. We hypothesize that the contemporary moral economy allows for social interactions that go beyond social control and institutional domination. This is partly because professionals engaged in this moral undertaking may keep a critical distance, and partly because the concerned populations aren " t necessarily devoid of resources to advance their interests or incapable of resistance. The concept of moral economy, coupled with the ethnographic method, is heuristic for fully comprehending the complexity of these issues and their stakes. Our fieldwork was centred on a French Adolescent Centre in an impoverished commune in Paris " s periphery, from January 2010 through March 2011. These institutions were established in the early 2000s to respond to adolescent " suffering " by crossing social work and psychiatry. Adolescents, parents, and other institutions (especially schools) solicit the professionally diverse staff for assistance, which in turn may take on cases and/or make referrals to other support institutions. By paying attention to all the scenes upon which the story of a counselled adolescent evolves, and bearing more general social evolutions in mind by applying the concept of moral economy, we can consider the multiplicity of seemingly contradictory processes as a whole. We see the destabilization of parents and their loss of symbolic capital, partly due to the norms of contemporary parenthood and partly due to the stigmatization of working-class adolescence. But we also discern possibilities for expressing sentiments of injustice and humiliation, for increasing symbolic capital, and in some cases a reappropriation of the system, particularly in trajectories marked by a will for social ascension

Listening to Suffering: Treating Mental Fragility at a Youth Center

International audienc

À l’écoute des souffrances. Fragilité psychique et fragilité sociale dans une maison des adolescents

International audienc

Listening to Suffering: Treating Mental Fragility at a Youth Center

International audienc

“Hoje é um inferno ter rapazes em França!”: gestão da emoção num centro francês para adolescentes

International audienceHow do contemporary health policies, especially those concerning the mastery of emotions in the psychiatric sector, weigh on individuals? Based on fieldwork in an Adolescent Center in a disadvantaged Parisian suburb from January 2010 to March 2011, this article analyses what these institutions reveal of and contribute to the fabrication of individuality in western societies. In these institutions at the crossroads of psychiatry and social work, the management of emotions appeared to be a useful tool for analyzing the transformation of power over individuals at the bottom of the social ladder, especially immigrants. Our analysis shows how the effects of this work are ambivalent, and vary according to gender and social trajectories.Como pesam sobre os indivíduos as políticas de saúde, especialmente as relacionadas com o domínio das emoções no setor psiquiátrico? Com base em trabalho de campo realizado de janeiro de 2010 a março de 2011 num centro para adolescentes de um bairro desfavorecido nos arredores de Paris, o artigo analisa o modo como estas instituições revelam e contribuem para a construção da individualidade nas sociedades ocidentais. Nestas instituições, situadas na interseção da psiquiatria e do serviço social, a gestão das emoções parecia ser um instrumento útil para analisar a transformação do poder sobre indivíduos nos escalões sociais mais baixos, especialmente os imigrantes. Esta análise mostra como os efeitos deste trabalho são ambivalentes e variam segundo o género e as trajetórias sociais

3-D linear inversion of gravity data: method and application to Basse-Terre volcanic island, Guadeloupe, Lesser Antilles

International audienceWe use a Bayesian formalism combined with a grid node discretization for the linear inversion of gravimetric data in terms of 3-D density distribution. The forward modelling and the inversion method are derived from seismological inversion techniques in order to facilitate joint inversion or interpretation of density and seismic velocity models. The Bayesian formulation introduces covariance matrices on model parameters to regularize the ill-posed problem and reduce the non-uniqueness of the solution. This formalism favours smooth solutions and allows us to specify a spatial correlation length and to perform inversions at multiple scales. We also extract resolution parameters from the resolution matrix to discuss how well our density models are resolved. This method is applied to the inversion of data from the volcanic island of Basse-Terre in Guadeloupe, Lesser Antilles. A series of synthetic tests are performed to investigate advantages and limitations of the methodology in this context. This study results in the first 3-D density models of the island of Basse-Terre for which we identify: (i) a southward decrease of densities parallel to the migration of volcanic activity within the island, (ii) three dense anomalies beneath Petite Plaine Valley, Beaugendre Valley and the Grande-Découverte-CarmichaëlSoufrì ere Complex that may reflect the trace of former major volcanic feeding systems, (iii) shallow low-density anomalies in the southern part of Basse-Terre, especially around LaSoufrì ere active volcano, Piton de Bouillante edifice and along the western coast, reflecting the presence of hydrothermal systems and fractured and altered rocks

At the Heart of the State: The Moral World of Institutions

http://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/distributed/A/bo20701891.htmlAnthropology, Culture and SocietyInternational audienceAt the Heart of the State argues against the idea of government institutions as the tools of politics and politicians and explores the inherent morality—or immorality—of such institutions supposedly designed for the public good. The result of a five-year investigation, conducted by ten scholars, At the Heart of the State describes and analyses the police, court systems, prisons, social services, and mental health facilities of France, analyzing the supposed neutrality of these government institutions. Combining genealogy and ethnography, the authors argue that government institutions are not simply concerned with the implementation of laws, rules, and procedures but also with the imposition of values, affects, and judgments

At the Heart of the State: The Moral World of Institutions

http://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/distributed/A/bo20701891.htmlAnthropology, Culture and SocietyInternational audienceAt the Heart of the State argues against the idea of government institutions as the tools of politics and politicians and explores the inherent morality—or immorality—of such institutions supposedly designed for the public good. The result of a five-year investigation, conducted by ten scholars, At the Heart of the State describes and analyses the police, court systems, prisons, social services, and mental health facilities of France, analyzing the supposed neutrality of these government institutions. Combining genealogy and ethnography, the authors argue that government institutions are not simply concerned with the implementation of laws, rules, and procedures but also with the imposition of values, affects, and judgments