LA QUALITE, LA QUALIFICATION ET L'ACTION COLLECTIVE DANS LES PROCESSUS D'INNOVATION ET D'ACTIVATION DES SYAL LE CAS DES FROMAGERIES RURALES EN AMERIQUE LATINE

N° ISBN - 978-2-7380-1284-5International audienceSince the late nineties in Latin America, a new way of Rural Agro-Industry (RAI) development has been opened with Localized Agri-food Systems (SYAL in French). It appeared from existing relationships between geographical concentrations of RAI and the territory and with the idea of coping with new challenges brought about by globalization. This perspective is particularly relevant in the dairy and cheese dairy sectors. The main objective of this paper is to present an analysis of cheese dairy Localized Agri-food Systems activation, based on various case studies in Latin America that were presented during a workshop held in Toluca, Mexico, in November 2009. We highlight the necessary conditions to land resources activation in the strategies of local development based on the relationship between the territory and food products. In particular, we try to show that the various forms of the articulation between territory and value chain on the one hand, and the constitution of external or internal social networks on the other hand, largely determine the modality of collective actions and their results. In the specific case of milk that we are dealing with, it appears that the basis of local development process rests on the co-construction of a territorialized resource connected with quality and know-haw, such as collective trademarks, registered designation of origin and geographical indication of origin

SYAL : UN NOUVEL OUTIL POUR LE DEVELOPPEMENT DE TERRITOIRES MARGINAUX. LES LEÇONS DE L'ALLIANCE DES AGRO-INDUSTRIES RURALES DE LA SELVA LACANDONA, CHIAPAS.

N° ISBN - 978-2-7380-1284-5International audienceSince its beginnings in the eighties, Rural Agro-Industry (RAI) has emerged as an effective way to fight against poverty in marginalized rural areas, because of its ability to contribute to the overall improvement of small producers' living conditions. This development tool has been completed in the nineties by the Localized Agri-food Systems concept (SYAL in French) and the process of their activation. From the experience of a RAI development project promoted in the Selva Lacandona (Chiapas, Mexico), we present some lessons learned from this development project. One of the principal results was to identify and define the conditions of RAI sustainability in the Selva Lacandona. If economics profitability of the micro-enterprises proved to be essential to ensure their viability, it does not seem central as it doesn't represent a real problem. On the other hand, two aspects appeared to be fundamental to guarantee the RAI sustainable development in such marginalized region: the necessity of a prior favorable environment, in particular trough the presence of functional local public goods, and the resolution of organization and leadership problems

Non regression testing for the JOREK code

Non Regression Testing (NRT) aims to check if software modifications result in undesired behaviour. Suppose the behaviour of the application previously known, this kind of test makes it possible to identify an eventual regression, a bug. Improving and tuning a parallel code can be a time-consuming and difficult task, especially whenever people from different scientific fields interact closely. The JOREK code aims at investing Magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) instabilities in a Tokamak plasma. This paper describes the NRT procedure that has been tuned for this simulation code. Automation of the NRT is one keypoint to keeping the code healthy in a source code repository.Comment: No. RR-8134 (2012

Survival Analysis to Estimate Association between Short-Term Mortality and Air Pollution

BACKGROUND: Ecologic studies are commonly used to report associations between short-term air pollution and mortality. In such studies, the unit of observation is the day rather than the individual. Moreover, individual data on the subjects are rarely available, which limits the assessment of individual risk factors. These associations can also be investigated using case–crossover studies. However, by definition, individual risk factors are not studied, and such studies analyze only dead subjects, which limits the statistical power. OBJECTIVE: We suggest that the survival analysis is more suitable when cohorts are examined with a time-dependent ecologic exposure. To our knowledge, to date this type of analysis has never been proposed. DESIGN, PARTICIPANTS, MEASUREMENTS: In the present study we used a Cox proportional hazards model to investigate the distribution over time of the short-term effect of black smoke and sulfur dioxide in 439 nonaccidental and 158 cardiorespiratory deaths among the 1,469 subjects of the Personnes Agées QUID (PAQUID) cohort in Bordeaux, France. The model has a delayed entry and a polynomial distributed lag from 0 to 5 days. Results are adjusted for individual risk factors, temperature, relative humidity, weekday, season, influenza epidemics, and a time function to control temporal trends. RESULTS: We identified a positive and significant association between cardiorespiratory mortality and black smoke, with a 24% increase in deaths 3 days after a 10-μg/m(3) increase in black smoke (95% confidence interval, 4–47%). CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that the Cox proportional hazards model with time-dependent covariates is very suitable to investigate simultaneously the short-term effect of air pollution on health and the effect of individual risk factors on a cohort study

Intégration rapide de services vidéo Mpeg sur architectures parallèles

Le temps réel pour des applications audiovisuelles est une forte contrainte qui nécessite la mise en oeuvre de plates-formes constituées de plusieurs unités de calcul. Le but de nos travaux est de développer un processus de prototypage rapide sur des architectures parallèles pour des applications de traitement d'image. Le processus de prototypage débute par la description des algorithmes grâce à une interface visuelle de programmation orientée objet. Cette description est ensuite transformée automatiquement pour pouvoir être utilisée par Syndex, un logiciel permettant d'évaluer et de générer l'ordonnancement des tâches de l'algorithme sur des architectures multiprocesseurs. Nous démontrons ici l'efficacité de notre méthodologie avec les développement d'une application Mpeg-2 conséquente et son implantation multi-DSP

Mental Health Symptoms and Work-Related Stressors in Hospital Midwives and NICU Nurses: A Mixed Methods Study.

Hospital midwives and neonatal intensive care (NICU) nurses frequently encounter work-related stressors and are therefore vulnerable to developing mental health problems, such as secondary traumatic stress, burnout, anxiety, and depression. However, so far, the exact nature of these work-related stressors (traumatic vs. non-traumatic stressors) has not been investigated. This concurrent triangulation mixed methods cross-sectional study aimed to compare mental health symptoms in hospital midwives and NICU nurses, and to identify and compare work-related traumatic and non-traumatic stressors for both professional groups. 122 midwives and 91 NICU nurses of two Swiss university hospitals completed quantitative measures (Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale, STSS; Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, HADS; Maslach Burnout Inventory, MBI) and one qualitative question in an online survey. When controlling for socio-demographic variables, NICU nurses had a higher STSS total score and higher STSS subscales scores and less HADS anxiety subscale scores than hospital midwives. Work-related stressors were classified into five themes: "Working environment," "Nursing/midwifery care," "Dealing with death and dying," "Case management" and "Others." Forty-six (46.3%) percent of these were classified as traumatic work-related stressors. NICU nurses reported more traumatic stressors in their working environment but no other differences between professional groups regarding the total number of work-related traumatic vs. non-traumatic stressors were found. Measures, such as teaching strategies to amend the subjective appraisal of the traumatic stressors or providing time to recover in-between frequently occurring work-related traumatic stressors might not only improve the mental health of professionals but also decrease sick leave and improve the quality of patient care

Characterization of Deep Geothermal Energy Resources in Low enthalpy sedimentary basins in Belgium using Electro-Magnetic Methods – CSEM and MT results

International audienceSedimentary basins in Northwest Europe have significant potential for low to medium enthalpy, deep geothermal energy resources. These resources are generally assessed using standard seismic exploration techniques to resolve geological structures. The ElectroMagnetic campaign carried-out in Mol area (Belgium) has shown that despite the presence of high level of industrialization, the resistivity of deep formations (>3km) can be recovered from MT and CSEM methods and hence provide very valuable information for the assessment of geothermal resources. 1. INTRODUCTION Sedimentary basins in Northwest Europe have significant potential for low to medium enthalpy, deep geothermal energy resources. These resources are generally assessed using standard seismic exploration techniques to resolve geological structures. However, the electrical resistivity parameter, which can be directly impacted by the presence of a geothermal reservoir is rarely investigated in such context. Therefore, the development of alternative and complementary exploration techniques such as Electromagnetic (EM) techniques may have an important role in reducing the cost and uncertainty associated with geothermal resource assessment

A high-dose pharmacokinetic study of a new IgG4 monoclonal antibody temelimab/GNbAC1 antagonist of an endogenous retroviral protein pHERV-W Env

PURPOSE : Temelimab/GNbAC1 is a humanized immunoglobulin G4 monoclonal antibody antagonist of the human endogenous retrovirus W envelope protein, which is associated with multiple sclerosis (MS) pathophysiology and possibly with other autoimmune disorders. Human endogenous retrovirus W envelope protein is expressed in the central nervous system of patients with MS, and sufficient amount of temelimab must reach the target. The safety of very high dosages of temelimab should be tested to support further clinical trials in MS. METHODS : This randomized, placebo-controlled, dose-escalation study evaluated the safety and pharmacokinetic profile of temelimab in 24 healthy volunteers after a single intravenous infusion at doses of 36, 60, 85, and 110 mg/kg administered sequentially. FINDINGS : Temelimab was well tolerated, with no particular adverse drug reactions at any dose. The maximal dose of 110 mg/kg could be administered, and no antidrug antibodies were induced. After administration of 36–110 mg/kg, mean temelimab Cmax increased from 859 to 2450 μg/mL, and AUC values increased from 319,900 to 1,030,000 μg·h/mL. There was an approximate dose-proportional increase in exposure, similar to observations at lower doses. IMPLICATIONS : The favorable data in terms of safety and pharmacokinetic variables support temelimab use at high doses in future MS trials to optimally neutralize the temelimab target in the central nervous system. ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT03574428.GeNeuro SAhttps://www.journals.elsevier.com/clinical-therapeutics2020-09-01hj2020Pharmacolog

Mycoplasma mycoides, from "mycoides Small Colony" to "capri". A microevolutionary perspective

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The <it>Mycoplasma mycoides </it>cluster consists of five species or subspecies that are ruminant pathogens. One subspecies, <it>Mycoplasma mycoides </it>subspecies <it>mycoides </it>Small Colony (MmmSC), is the causative agent of contagious bovine pleuropneumonia. Its very close relative, <it>Mycoplasma mycoides </it>subsp. <it>capri </it>(Mmc), is a more ubiquitous pathogen in small ruminants causing mastitis, arthritis, keratitis, pneumonia and septicaemia and is also found as saprophyte in the ear canal. To understand the genetics underlying these phenotypic differences, we compared the MmmSC PG1 type strain genome, which was already available, with the genome of an Mmc field strain (95010) that was sequenced in this study. We also compared the 95010 genome with the recently published genome of another Mmc strain (GM12) to evaluate Mmc strain diversity.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The MmmSC PG1 genome is 1,212 kbp and that of Mmc 95010 is ca. 58 kbp shorter. Most of the sequences present in PG1 but not 95010 are highly repeated Insertion Sequences (three types of IS) and large duplicated DNA fragments. The 95010 genome contains five types of IS, present in fewer copies than in PG1, and two copies of an integrative conjugative element. These mobile genetic elements have played a key role in genome plasticity, leading to inversions of large DNA fragments. Comparison of the two genomes suggested a marked decay of the PG1 genome that seems to be correlated with a greater number of IS. The repertoire of gene families encoding surface proteins is smaller in PG1. Several genes involved in polysaccharide metabolism and protein degradation are also absent from, or degraded in, PG1.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The genome of MmmSC PG1 is larger than that of Mmc 95010, its very close relative, but has less coding capacity. This is the result of large genetic rearrangements due to mobile elements that have also led to marked gene decay. This is consistent with a non-adaptative genomic complexity theory, allowing duplications or pseudogenes to be maintained in the absence of adaptive selection that would lead to purifying selection and genome streamlining over longer evolutionary times. These findings also suggest that MmmSC only recently adapted to its bovine host.</p

SAPHIR - a multi-scale, multi-resolution modeling environment targeting blood pressure regulation and fluid homeostasis.

International audienceWe present progress on a comprehensive, modular, interactive modeling environment centered on overall regulation of blood pressure and body fluid homeostasis. We call the project SAPHIR, for "a Systems Approach for PHysiological Integration of Renal, cardiac, and respiratory functions". The project uses state-of-the-art multi-scale simulation methods. The basic core model will give succinct input-output (reduced-dimension) descriptions of all relevant organ systems and regulatory processes, and it will be modular, multi-resolution, and extensible, in the sense that detailed submodules of any process(es) can be "plugged-in" to the basic model in order to explore, eg. system-level implications of local perturbations. The goal is to keep the basic core model compact enough to insure fast execution time (in view of eventual use in the clinic) and yet to allow elaborate detailed modules of target tissues or organs in order to focus on the problem area while maintaining the system-level regulatory compensations