Molecular and immunological evaluation of the expression of cancer/testis gene products in human colorectal cancer

Tumor-specific gene products, such as cancer/testis (CT) antigens, constitute promising targets for the development of T cell vaccines. Whereas CT antigens are frequently expressed in melanoma, their expression in colorectal cancers (CRC) remains poorly characterized. Here, we have studied the expression of the CT antigens MAGE-A3, MAGE-A4, MAGE-A10, NY-ESO-1 and SSX2 in CRC because of the presence of well-described HLA-A2-restricted epitopes in their sequences. Our analyses of 41 primary CRC and 14 metastatic liver lesions confirmed the low frequency of expression of these CT antigens. No increased expression frequencies were observed in metastatic tumors compared to primary tumors. Histological analyses of CRC samples revealed heterogeneous expression of individual CT antigens. Finally, evidence of a naturally acquired CT antigen-specific CD8+ T cell response could be demonstrated. These results show that the expression of CT antigens in a subset of CRC patients induces readily detectable T cell response

Ground based and ultralight-borne lidar to highlight multilayered aerosol in the frame of AMMA

International audienceThe lidar system EZ LIDAR/textregister/LAUVA was operated both onboard an ultrahigh aircraft (ULA) and at the ground level (Niamey international airport, Niger, 13°31'N-2°07'E) within the framework of the first intensive field phase of the African Monsoon Multidisciplinary Analysis (AMMA; http:amma.mediasfrance.org/) which took place in the West African Sahel during the dry season in January-February 2006. This phase of AMMA was dedicated to the study of tropospheric aerosols from biomass burning and Aeolian erosion which are known to be the major aerosol sources in the West African Sahel (10-18°N) in winter. The overall objective of the campaign was to characterize the aerosol mixing between biomass burning and dust aerosols. Our system offered the only opportunity to deploy an airborne lidar during the campaign, which in turn offered a unique opportunity to document the vertical profile of the aerosol backscatter to extinction ration in a complex environment. Different aerosol layers have been observed against the altitude from both the ULA and the ground level. The lower layers were mainly composed of dust aerosol coming from the Saharan region. Significant variability has been observed in these layers due to frontal activity during the night. The upper layers were mainly associated to biomass burning aerosols coming from the Nigeria and Benin. Biomass burning aerosols were observed in the free troposphere between 2 and 5 km above the mean sea level. The presence of the biomass burning aerosols at such an altitude is likely due to the air mass ascendance associated to the monsoon flux. The existence of a complex multilayer aerosol structures against the altitude could significantly influence the radiative budget in the Sahelian area. Different aerosol vertical structures observed from lidar will be presented and their radiative impact in terms of heating rate will be discussed

Musée du quai Branly-Jacques Chirac 10 ans après

Quel a été le projet du musée du quai Branly ? Comment a-t-il été mis en œuvre, et quelles évolutions a-t-il connues ? Quel est son effet sur les conceptions muséales ailleurs dans le monde et en quoi a-t-il modifié les pratiques de conservation et de recherche ? Ce colloque international revient sur l’histoire du musée depuis son ouverture et surtout sur les questions auxquelles il a été confronté durant cette période. Il se penchera sur la politique d’exposition du musée, sur la place de la recherche et son lien avec les collections du musée, sur les modalités et les enjeux de son rapport aux publics, enfin sur les défis posés par l’évolution des rapports entre institutions muséales et communautés d’origine des œuvres. La conférence ne vise pas à dresser un bilan des actions du musée, encore moins à servir de prétexte à l’autocélébration. Elle cherche plutôt à situer l’institution dans un paysage des musées d’art et d’anthropologie qui s’est profondément renouvelé depuis une quinzaine d’années. Les intervenants chercheront à identifier le rôle qu’a joué le musée du quai Branly en tant qu’objet de réflexion et de critique pour les institutions qui l’entourent. Sans prétendre à l’exhaustivité, ce colloque rassemblera des grands témoins de la genèse et de la construction du musée, des acteurs des différents secteurs du musée, des chercheurs et des observateurs d’ici et d’ailleurs, des représentants des publics et des communautés concernées par le musée et ses collections. Plutôt qu’une succession d’exposés, les sessions du colloque prendront la forme soit de tables rondes, soit de discussions entre deux ou trois intervenants réagissant aux questions posées par des animateurs informés et par le public. Il aura pour objet, in fine, d’interroger et de dessiner la figure du musée de demain

Molecular and immunological evaluation of the expression of cancer/testis gene products in human colorectal cancer.

Tumor-specific gene products, such as cancer/testis (CT) antigens, constitute promising targets for the development of T cell vaccines. Whereas CT antigens are frequently expressed in melanoma, their expression in colorectal cancers (CRC) remains poorly characterized. Here, we have studied the expression of the CT antigens MAGE-A3, MAGE-A4, MAGE-A10, NY-ESO-1 and SSX2 in CRC because of the presence of well-described HLA-A2-restricted epitopes in their sequences. Our analyses of 41 primary CRC and 14 metastatic liver lesions confirmed the low frequency of expression of these CT antigens. No increased expression frequencies were observed in metastatic tumors compared to primary tumors. Histological analyses of CRC samples revealed heterogeneous expression of individual CT antigens. Finally, evidence of a naturally acquired CT antigen-specific CD8(+) T cell response could be demonstrated. These results show that the expression of CT antigens in a subset of CRC patients induces readily detectable T cell responses