Changes of Sand Fly Populations and Leishmania infantum Infection Rates in an Irrigated Village Located in Arid Central Tunisia

Citation: Barhoumi, W., Fares, W., Cherni, S., Derbali, M., Dachraoui, K., Chelbi, I., . . . Zhioua, E. (2016). Changes of Sand Fly Populations and Leishmania infantum Infection Rates in an Irrigated Village Located in Arid Central Tunisia. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 13(3), 10. doi:10.3390/ijerph13030329The current spread of zoonotic visceral leishmaniasis (ZVL) throughout arid areas of Central Tunisia is a major public health concern. The main objective of this study is to investigate whether the development of irrigation in arid bio-geographical areas in Central Tunisia have led to the establishment of a stable cycle involving sand flies of the subgenus Larroussius and Leishmania infantum, and subsequently to the emergence of ZVL. Sand flies were collected from the village of Saddaguia, a highly irrigated zone located within an arid bio-geographical area of Central Tunisia by using modified Centers for Diseases Control (CDC) light traps. Morphological keys were used to identify sand flies. Collected sand flies were pooled with up to 30 specimens per pool according to date and tested by nested Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) DNA sequencing from positive pools was used to identify Leishmania spp. A total of 4915 sand flies (2422 females and 2493 males) were collected from Saddaguia in September and in October 2014. Morphological identification confirmed sand flies of the subgenus Larroussius to be predominant. PCR analysis followed by DNA sequencing indicated that 15 pools were infected with L. infantum yielding an overall infection rate of 0.6%. The majority of the infected pools were of sand fly species belonging to subgenus Larroussius. Intense irrigation applied to the arid bio-geographical areas in Central Tunisia is at the origin of the development of an environment capable of sustaining important populations of sand flies of the subgenus Larroussius. This has led to the establishment of stable transmission cycles of L. infantum and subsequently to the emergence of ZVL

Intracellular degradation of functionalized carbon nanotube/iron oxide hybrids is modulated by iron via Nrf2 pathway.

The in vivo fate and biodegradability of carbon nanotubes is still a matter of debate despite tremendous applications. In this paper we describe a molecular pathway by which macrophages degrade functionalized multi-walled carbon nanotubes (CNTs) designed for biomedical applications and containing, or not, iron oxide nanoparticles in their inner cavity. Electron microscopy and Raman spectroscopy show that intracellularly-induced structural damages appear more rapidly for iron-free CNTs in comparison to iron-loaded ones, suggesting a role of iron in the degradation mechanism. By comparing the molecular responses of macrophages derived from THP1 monocytes to both types of CNTs, we highlight a molecular mechanism regulated by Nrf2/Bach1 signaling pathways to induce CNT degradation via NOXjournal article2017 Jan 252017 01 25importe

Advances in ab-initio theory of Multiferroics. Materials and mechanisms: modelling and understanding

Within the broad class of multiferroics (compounds showing a coexistence of magnetism and ferroelectricity), we focus on the subclass of "improper electronic ferroelectrics", i.e. correlated materials where electronic degrees of freedom (such as spin, charge or orbital) drive ferroelectricity. In particular, in spin-induced ferroelectrics, there is not only a {\em coexistence} of the two intriguing magnetic and dipolar orders; rather, there is such an intimate link that one drives the other, suggesting a giant magnetoelectric coupling. Via first-principles approaches based on density functional theory, we review the microscopic mechanisms at the basis of multiferroicity in several compounds, ranging from transition metal oxides to organic multiferroics (MFs) to organic-inorganic hybrids (i.e. metal-organic frameworks, MOFs)Comment: 22 pages, 9 figure

Operando monitoring of the solution-mediated discharge and charge processes in a Na-O2 battery using liquid-electrochemical TEM

Despite the fact that Na-O2 batteries show promise as high-energy storage systems, this technology is still the subject of intense fundamental research, owing to the complex reaction by which it operates. To understand the formation mechanism of the discharge product, NaO2, advanced experimental tools must be developed. Here we present for the first time the use of a Na-O2 micro-battery using a liquid aprotic electrolyte coupled with fast imaging transmission electron microscopy to visualize, in real time, the mechanism of NaO2 nucleation/growth. We observe that the formation of NaO2 cubes during reduction occurs by a solution-mediated nucleation process. Furthermore, we unambiguously demonstrate that the subsequent oxidation of NaO2, of which little is known, also proceeds via a solution mechanism. We also provide insight into the cell electrochemistry via the visualization of an outer shell of parasitic reaction product, formed through chemical reaction at the interface between the growing NaO2 cubes and the electrolyte, and suggest that this process is responsible for the poor cyclability of Na-O2 batteries. The assessment of the discharge- charge mechanistic in Na-O2 batteries through operando electrochemical TEM visualization should facilitate the development of this battery technology

Operando monitoring of the solution-mediated discharge and charge processes in a Na-O2 battery using liquid-electrochemical transmission electron microscopy

Although in sodium–oxygen (Na–O2) batteries show promise as high-energy storage systems, this technology is still the subject of intense fundamental research, owing to the complex reaction by which it operates. To understand the formation mechanism of the discharge product, sodium superoxide (NaO2), advanced experimental tools must be developed. Here we present for the first time the use of a Na–O2 microbattery using a liquid aprotic electrolyte coupled with fast imaging transmission electron microscopy to visualize, in real time, the mechanism of NaO2 nucleation/growth. We observe that the formation of NaO2 cubes during reduction occurs by a solution-mediated nucleation process. Furthermore, we unambiguously demonstrate that the subsequent oxidation of NaO2 of which little is known also proceeds via a solution mechanism. We also provide insight into the cell electrochemistry via the visualization of an outer shell of parasitic reaction product, formed through chemical reaction at the interface between the growing NaO2 cubes and the electrolyte, and suggest that this process is responsible for the poor cyclability of Na–O2 batteries. The assessment of the discharge–charge mechanistic in Na–O2 batteries through operando electrochemical transmission electron microscopy visualization should facilitate the development of this battery technology

Infection of sand flies collected from different bio-geographical areas of Tunisia with phleboviruses.

International audienceAn entomological investigation performed in 2013 covering different bio-geographical areas varying from humid in the north to the arid in the center showed that sand flies of the subgenus Larroussius including Phlebotomus perniciosus, Phlebotomus perfiliewi, and Phlebotomus longicuspis are abundant and widely distributed in Tunisia A total of 3992 collected and pooled with up to 30 specimens per pool based on sex, trapping location and collection date were tested for the presence of phleboviruses by nested reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction and sequencing Of a total of 135 pools, 23 were positive, yielding and minimum infection rate of 0.6%. Phylogenetic analysis performed using partial amino acid sequence in the polymerase gene showed that all these phleboviruses were grouped in one cluster clearly distinct from but closely related to Massilia virus and Granada virus This putative novel virus, tentatively called Saddaguia virus (SADV), is widely distributed in Tunisia Together with Toscana, Punique, and Utique viruses, SADV is the fourth recognized phlebovirus to be transmitted by sand flies in Tunisia The medical and public health interest of SADV remains to be investigated