The cremation structures of the Roman Empire: anthracological data versus historical sources

ISSN: : 0210-3729International audienceDuring the excavation of the Roman necropolis site Richeaume (Bouches-du-Rhone, Provence, France), cremation primary structures have been identified. A specific protocol consisting in collecting the entire sediment for sampling charred funeral remains on a grid of 20 to 40 cm, was systematically experimented and put into practice. The first anthracological results offer a reading of both qualitative and quantitative spatial residues of the cremation (including the discovery of the ignition lock, and technical aspects revealing a specific choice adapted to the practice of cremation). This reading led to interpret anthracological results in a technical and social prospect. These results led also to a systematic re-reading of written Roman sources, collecting exhaustive historical documents and comparing them to previous and new data. The terms used by ancient writers to describe the structures studied by anthracologists, far from being general, relate to facts and precise gesture

The Effect of Acetaminophen on Oxidative Modification of Low-Density Lipoproteins in Hypercholesterolemic Rabbits

Oxidative modification of low-density lipoproteins (LDL) contributes to the pathology of atherosclerosis. Antioxidants may protect LDL against oxidative modification. Acetaminophen, a widely used analgesic and antipyretic agent, has significant antioxidant properties. However, there is little evidence to suggest that acetaminophen acts as an antioxidant for LDL oxidation in vivo. In this study, we investigated the in vivo effect of acetaminophen on LDL oxidation in hypercholesterolemic rabbits. The oxidative modification of LDL was identified by conjugated dienes and thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARS). In the cholesterol group which rabbits were fed a diet contained 1% g cholesterol for 8 weeks, TBARS contents and conjugated diene levels in the plasma and isolated LDL samples significantly increased compared with the control rabbits (p<0.05). However, in the cholesterol + acetaminophen group, the TBARS contents and conjugated diene levels were significantly lower than that of the cholesterol group (p<0.05). The results from in vitro studies also demonstrated that the LDL isolated from serum was oxidized by Cu++ ions and this oxidation reduced in the presence of acetaminophen. The reduced oxidative modification of LDL by acetaminophen may be of therapeutic value in preventing the development and progression of atherosclerosis

Fighting the Other Within and Without: Confrontation as the Driving Force in the Work of Lydie Salvayre

Although the novels of the French writer Lydie Salvayre tend to be soliloquic, they are far from being mono-logical: founded on the clashes of different logics and systems of value, discourses and desires, they embody the protagonists' inherent antagonism and rage, reflecting the violence of the outside world. This study analyses some common matrixes underlying Salvayre’s prose. It focuses on the manifestations of resistance to either external or self-imposed oppressions, restrictions and mystifications. It aims to demonstrate that Salvayre’s novels not only represent subjects in permanent and incurable crises, but also challenge the very imperative of the subject's constitution through the foreclosure of the other, of what is outside the self.Salvayre’s texts are typically monologues in which an individual strives to affirm his or her distinct unicity and separation from the rest of the universe. These discourses are defensive, since the protagonists present themselves as endangered by an external element, oppressed in a relationship or socially marginalized. At the same time, they are sarcastic and often (self)destructive. In those cases where the word is given to more than one character, the interaction does not result in a dialogue but in a series of speeches which do not intersect. The subjects blindly plead their cause and recognize only aggression and malevolence in the others’ discourse. The most obvious example can be found in the novel The Cintegabelle Conference (La Conférence de Cintegabelle): a local intellectual delivers a lengthy, pompous and heavy lecture on what he calls the lost art of conversation—cultural heritage which was once preeminently French, and is today sadly abandoned. Ironically, he who speaks out as a defender of the conversational virtue, remains blatantly monological; although very careful not to lose his listeners, he does not leave them any time even to answer his questions, showing interest in nothing but his own voice. Another irony resides in his confession that he used to be bored by the conversations with his wife while she was alive, whereas now that she is dead, he converses with her regularly and with great satisfaction

Modification of subunit interaction in membrane-bound acid β-glucosidase from Gaucher disease

AbstractThe radiation inactivation method has been used to determine the molecular mass of membrane-bound acid β-glucosidase (EC 3.2.1.21) in situ, in normal human spleen and in that of two patients with type I Gaucher disease: the molecular mass in Gaucher spleen is about double (125 000 ± 8900) of that found in the normal spleen (67 000 ± 7700) which is compatible with the existence of subunit coupling in the muted acid β-glucosidase. From the results, we conclude that subunit interaction is altered in mutant acid β-glucosidase and that this may be due to a direct effect of the mutation

Stress-Induced Sphingolipid Signaling: Role of Type-2 Neutral Sphingomyelinase in Murine Cell Apoptosis and Proliferation

International audienceBACKGROUND: Sphingomyelin hydrolysis in response to stress-inducing agents, and subsequent ceramide generation, are implicated in various cellular responses, including apoptosis, inflammation and proliferation, depending on the nature of the different acidic or neutral sphingomyelinases. This study was carried out to investigate whether the neutral Mg(2+)-dependent neutral sphingomyelinase-2 (nSMase2) plays a role in the cellular signaling evoked by TNFalpha and oxidized LDLs, two stress-inducing agents, which are mitogenic at low concentrations and proapoptotic at higher concentrations. METHODOLOGY AND PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: For this purpose, we used nSMase2-deficient cells from homozygous fro/fro (fragilitas ossium) mice and nSMase2-deficient cells reconstituted with a V5-tagged nSMase2. We report that the genetic defect of nSMase2 (in fibroblasts from fro/fro mice) does not alter the TNFalpha and oxidized LDLs-mediated apoptotic response. Likewise, the hepatic toxicity of TNFalpha is similar in wild type and fro mice, thus is independent of nSMase2 activation. In contrast, the mitogenic response elicited by low concentrations of TNFalpha and oxidized LDLs (but not fetal calf serum) requires nSMase2 activation. CONCLUSION AND SIGNIFICANCE: nSMase2 activation is not involved in apoptosis mediated by TNFalpha and oxidized LDLs in murine fibroblasts, and in the hepatotoxicity of TNFalpha in mice, but is required for the mitogenic response to stress-inducing agents

Oxidized low density lipoproteins elicit DNA fragmentation of cultured lymphoblastoid cells

AbstractLymphoblastoid cell lines continuously pulsed with mildly oxidized low density lipoproteins, exhibited a significant increase of DNA fragmentation induced by oxidized LDL internalized by cells. DNA fragmentation was associated with an increasing number of morphologically characteristic apoptotic cells simultaneously with the increase of cytotoxicity indexes, and the activation of the poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase, a nuclear enzyme stimulated by DNA strand breaks. The potential involvement of these biochemical and morphological changes in antherogenesis is discussed

Une conversation avec Lydie Salvayre

WM : Tout d’abord, puisqu’il s’agit ici d’une conversation, j’aimerais vous demander ce que vous pensez du principe. Beaucoup de vos livres, surtout au début de votre carrière (je pense par exemple à La Déclaration, à La Vie commune, à La Puissance des mouches, à La Compagnie des spectres) sont monologiques. Dans La Conférence de Cintegabelle, livre strictement monologique, le conférencier prône les vertus de la conversation— et cependant il fait tout pour tuer dans l’oeuf toute possibilité de dialogue. Comment voyez-vous la chose ? LS : Aussi loin que remontent mes souvenirs, j’ai toujours eu des difficultés à prendre la parole. Comme vous le savez, mes parents qui étaient arrivés en France en 1939 pour fuir le franquisme parlaient une langue mixte et transpyrénéenne où le français était régulièrement piétiné, bousculé, estropié, bref mis à très rude épreuve. Le problème c’est que je reproduisais, enfant, leurs fantaisies et écarts langagiers, et que j’éprouvais une honte affreuse chaque fois que j’étais prise en défaut de mal dire. Ce n’est que plus tard, bien plus tard, que j’ai trouvé à ce mal dire transmis par mes parents, une puissance poétique, une drôlerie, une forme d’impertinence et une façon joyeuse de résister à la langue majoritaire dont j’ai tenté de rendre compte dans mon roman Pas pleurer