“Interactive Technology Assessment” and Beyond: the Field Trial of Genetically Modified Grapevines at INRA-Colmar

International audienc

Survival and electrotransformation of Pseudomonas syringae strains under simulated cloud-like conditions.

International audienceTo diversify their genetic material, and thereby allow adaptation to environmental disturbances and colonization of new ecological niches, bacteria use various evolutionary processes, including the acquisition of new genetic material by horizontal transfer mechanisms such as conjugation, transduction and transformation. Electrotransformation mediated by lightning-related electrical phenomena may constitute an additional gene-transfer mechanism occurring in nature. The presence in clouds of bacteria such as Pseudomonas syringae capable of forming ice nuclei that lead to precipitation, and that are likely to be involved in triggering lightning, led us to postulate that natural electrotransformation in clouds may contribute to the adaptive potential of these bacteria. Here, we quantify the survival rate of 10 P. syringae strains in liquid and icy media under such electrical pulses and their capacity to acquire exogenous DNA. In comparison to two other bacteria (Pseudomonas sp. N3 and Escherichia coli TOP10), P. syringae CC0094 appears to be best adapted for survival and for genetic electrotransformation under these conditions, which suggests that this bacterium would be able to survive and to get a boost in its adaptive potential while being transported in clouds and falling back to Earth with precipitation from storms

Characterising Essential Fish Habitat using spatio‐temporal analysis of fishery data: A case study of the European seabass spawning areas

Fish habitats sustain essential functions for fish to complete their life cycle, such as feeding, growing and spawning. Conservation is crucial to maintain fish populations and their exploitation. Since 2013, the spawning stock biomass of the northern stock of European seabass (Dicentrarchus labrax) has been in a worrying state. A series of low recruitments with a persistently high level of fishing has been blamed, raising concerns about the processes involved in seabass reproduction and settlement in nurseries. Here, we characterise seabass spawning areas along the French Atlantic coast using vessel monitoring system (VMS) data. A non‐linear geostatistical approach was applied, from 2008 to 2014, to detect locations where seabass aggregate for spawning. Occurrence maps of spawning distribution were combined into probability maps to quantify the seasonal and inter‐annual variability and to highlight recurrent, occasional and unfavourable spawning areas. We identified three main spawning areas: the Rochebonne Plateau in the Bay of Biscay, the Western English Channel and the North of the Cotentin peninsula in the Eastern English Channel. The correlative link between this geographical distribution and environmental factors was investigated using a Bayesian spatio‐temporal model. The spatio‐temporal structure accounted for the vast majority of the model predictive skills, whereas environmental covariates had a negligible effect. Our model revealed the persistence of the spatial distribution of spawning areas with intra‐ and inter‐annual variability. Offshore areas appear to be essential spawning areas for seabass, and should be considered in spatial management strategies