A new access control unit for GANIL and SPIRAL 2

International audienceFor the GANIL safety revaluation and the new project of accelerator SPIRAL 2, it was decided to replace theexisting access control system for radiological controlled areas. These areas are all cyclotron rooms and experimental areas. The existing system is centralized around VME cards. Updating is becoming very problematic. The new UGA (access control unit) will becomposed of a pair of PLC to ensure the safety of each room. It will be supplemented by a system UGB (radiological control unit) that will assure the radiological monitoring of the area concerned

FMR1 expression in human granulosa cells increases with exon 1 CGG repeat length depending on ovarian reserve

Background: Fragile-X-Mental-Retardation-1- (FMR1)-gene is supposed to be a key gene for ovarian reserve and folliculogenesis. It contains in its 5’-UTR a triplet-base-repeat (CGG), that varies between 26 and 34 in general population. CGG-repeat-lengths with 55–200 repeats (pre-mutation = PM) show instable heredity with a tendency to increase and are associated with premature-ovarian-insufficiency or failure (POI/POF) in about 20%. FMR1-mRNA-expression in leucocytes and granulosa cells (GCs) increases with CGG-repeat-length in PM-carriers, but variable FMR1-expression profiles were also described in women with POI without PM-FMR1 repeat-length. Additionally, associations between low numbers of retrieved oocytes and elevated FMR1-expression levels have been shown in GCs of females with mid-range PM-CGG-repeats without POI. Effects of FMR1-repeat-lengths-deviations (n < 26 or n > 34) below the PM range (n < 55) on ovarian reserve and response to ovarian stimulation remain controversial. Methods: We enrolled 229 women undergoing controlled ovarian hyperstimulation for IVF/ICSI-treatment and devided them in three ovarian-response-subgroups: Poor responder (POR) after Bologna Criteria, polycystic ovary syndrome (PCO) after Rotterdam Criteria, or normal responder (NOR, control group). Subjects were subdivided into six genotypes according to their be-allelic CGG-repeat length. FMR1-CGG-repeat-length was determined using ALF-express-DNA-sequencer or ABI 3100/3130 × 1-sequencer. mRNA was extracted from GCs after follicular aspiration and quantitative FMR1-expression was determined using specific TaqMan-Assay and applying the ΔΔCT method. Kruskall-Wallis-Test or ANOVA were used for simple comparison between ovarian reserve (NOR, POR or PCO) and CGG-subgroups or cohort demographic data. All statistical analysis were performed with SPSS and statistical significance was set at p ≤ 0.05. Results: A statistically significant increase in FMR1-mRNA-expression-levels was detected in GCs of PORs with heterozygous normal/low-CGG-repeat-length compared with other genotypes (p = 0.044). Conclusion: Female ovarian response may be negatively affected by low CGG-alleles during stimulation. In addition, due to a low-allele-effect, folliculogenesis may be impaired already prior to stimulation leading to diminished ovarian reserve and poor ovarian response. A better understanding of FMR1 expression-regulation in GCs may help to elucidate pathomechanisms of folliculogenesis disorders and to develop risk-adjusted treatments for IVF/ICSI-therapy. Herewith FMR1-genotyping potentially provides a better estimatation of treatment outcome and allows the optimal adaptation of stimulation protocols in future

Mémoire de recherche: La chaine de valeur et le potentiel de marché du voandzou « Tiganikourou » pour renforcer la résilience climatique, la sécurité alimentaire et les revenus des femmes au Mali

Cette analyse de la chaine de valeur a été effectuée par Charlie Mbosso en collaboration avec Aminata Berthe Niang, Youssoufa Mohamadou, Stefano Padulosi, Amadou Sidibe and Gennifer Meldrum comme une partie du projet intitulé “ Connecter les chaînes de valeur de la biodiversité agricole à l'adaptation au changement climatique et la nutrition: autonomisation des pauvres pour la gestion des risques ” financé par le Fonds International du Développement Agricole (FIDA), l’Union Européenne (UE) et le Programmes de Recherche des centres CGIAR sur le changement climatique, l’agriculture et la sécurité alimentaire (CCAFS) ainsi que l’Agriculture pour la Nutrition et la santé (A4NH)

Research Brief: Value chain and market potential of fonio to strengthen climate resilience, food security and women’s incomes in Mali

This value chain analysis was carried out by Charlie Mbosso in collaboration with Aminata Berthe Niang, Youssoufa Mohamadou, Stefano Padulosi, Amadou Sidibe, and Gennifer Meldrum as part of the project "Linking Value Chains of Agricultural Biodiversity to Adaptation to Climate Change and Nutrition: Empowering the Poor for Risk Management "funded by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the European Union (EU) and the Research Programs of CGIAR Centers on Climate Change, Agriculture and Security (CCAFS) and Agriculture for Nutrition and Health (A4NH)

Research Brief: Value chain and market potential of Bambara groundnut to strengthen climate resilience, food security and women’s income in Mali

This value chain analysis was carried out by Charlie Mbosso in collaboration with Aminata Berthe Niang, Youssoufa Mohamadou, Stefano Padulosi, Amadou Sidibe, and Gennifer Meldrum as part of the project "Linking Value Chains of Agricultural Biodiversity to Adaptation to Climate Change and Nutrition: Empowering the Poor for Risk Management "funded by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the European Union (EU) and the Research Programs of CGIAR Centers on Climate Change, Agriculture and Security (CCAFS) and Agriculture for Nutrition and Health (A4NH