Collaboration among Legal Information Providers in Quebec: CAIJ and Lexum's Shared Vision

This note describes how collaboration among various providers of legal information can maximize the benefits for their respective users. The phenomenon is described from the perspective of two organizations heavily involved in providing access to law in the province of Quebec, Canada. The Centre d’accès à l’information juridique (CAIJ) serves members of the Quebec Bar by providing online access to case law, legislation and quite a rich selection of secondary materials. With respect to secondary materials, Lexum plays an important role in helping the CAIJ to publish numerous documents in HTML format, which are fully searchable and integrated with other CAIJ collections

Arctic shipping : future polar express seaways? : shipowners’ opinion

Since about 1995, climate change has begun to mark Arctic region. The first and strongest signs of global-scale climate change exist in the high latitudes of the planet. The Earth is indeed facing what is now known as Global Warming. With the world economy continuing to grow rapidly, driven in particular by fast economic take-off in countries such as China, Brazil and India, these climate changes are likely to rush the Arctic's development and usher in a new phase of globalization. Meanwhile, demand for energy (oil and gas) and raw materials (iron, nickel, zinc, etc.) is increasing. As the reserves of some important resources such as oil run out, and assuming that diversification of supply sources has been seen as the key to energy security, energy companies scour the globe in search of promising new fields, and now in inhospitable regions which until recently aroused little interest given the importance of costs of such exploration projects

Synthèse et étude de nanomatériaux hybrides magnétiques à base Fer-Bismuth

La recherche dans le domaine des nanosciences consacre de plus en plus d'intérêt à la synthèse et l'étude de nanoparticules hybrides combinant plusieurs matériaux inorganiques dans une même particule. L'engouement pour ces nouveaux matériaux réside dans l'énorme potentiel qu'apporte la combinaison de plusieurs propriétés au sein d'un même objet donnant ainsi l'accès à de nouvelles propriétés (synergie) et à des nanoplateformes multifonctionnelles pour des domaines aussi divers que le biomédical, la catalyse, l'électronique... Dans la recherche de fonctionnalités innovantes, nous nous sommes intéressés à la synthèse de nouveaux matériaux hybrides magnétiques combinant le fer et le bismuth, deux métaux totalement immiscibles dans le massif. Tout d'abord, nous avons étudié, par spectrométrie Mössbauer et transformée en ondelette du signal EXAFS, les nanoparticules de fer (0) synthétisées par réduction via un amine-borane, méthode utilisée pour l'obtention des domaines de fer composant les nanomatériaux hybrides envisagés. Par la suite, nous avons pu caractériser l'ordre chimique et structural (MET, WAXS, EXAFS et XANES) ainsi que les propriétés magnétiques des nanomatériaux hybrides FeBi synthétisés par des mesures couplées de SQUID et de spectrométrie Mössbauer. Ce système combinant des propriétés magnétiques attrayantes, une bonne résistance à l'oxydation ainsi que les propriétés physiques du bismuth est un candidat crédible pour des applications dans le domaine biomédical. Le transfert de ces nanomatériaux dans l'eau par le biais de ligands dérivés de galactose a donc également été investigué.Research in the field of nanoscience is focused to a greater and greater degree on the synthesis and study of hybrid nanoparticles combining several inorganic materials in the same particle. The popularity of these new materials is due to the huge potential brought by the combination of different properties within the same object giving access to new properties (synergy) and multifunctional nanoplatforms for fields as diverse as biomedicine, catalysis and electronics. In search of innovative features, we are interested in the synthesis of new hybrid magnetic materials combining iron and bismuth, two metals entirely immiscible in the bulk. Firstly, we used Mössbauer spectroscopy and wavelet transform of the EXAFS signal to study iron (0) nanoparticles synthesized by reduction, via an amine-borane, method, used to obtain the building-blocks needed to design the desired hybrid nanomaterials. Subsequently, we characterized the chemical and structural nature (TEM, WAXS, EXAFS and XANES) and magnetic properties of the hybrid FeBi nanomaterials synthesized by complementary methods: SQUID and Mössbauer spectroscopy. Combining attractive magnetic properties, good resistance to oxidation and the particular physical properties of bismuth, this system is a credible candidate for applications in the biomedical field. Consequently, investigation of the transfer of such nanomaterials in water by means of ligands derived from galactose was conducted

Abnormal insulin-like growth factor 1 signaling in human osteoarthritic subchondral bone osteoblasts

Insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-1 is a key factor in bone homeostasis and could be involved in bone tissue sclerosis as observed in osteoarthritis (OA). Here, we compare the key signaling pathways triggered in response to IGF-1 stimulation between normal and OA osteoblasts (Obs). Primary Obs were prepared from the subchondral bone of tibial plateaus of OA patients undergoing knee replacement or from normal individuals at autopsy. Phenotypic characterization of Obs was evaluated with alkaline phosphatase and osteocalcin release. The effect of IGF-1 on cell proliferation, alkaline phosphatase and collagen synthesis was evaluated in the presence or not of 50 ng/ml IGF-1, whereas signaling was studied with proteins separated by SDS-PAGE before western blot analysis. We also used immunoprecipitation followed by western blot analysis to detect interactions between key IGF-1 signaling elements. IGF-1 receptor (IGF-1R), Shc, Grb2, insulin receptor substrate (IRS)-1, and p42/44 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) levels were similar in normal and OA Obs in the presence or absence of IGF-1. After IGF-1 stimulation, the phosphorylation of IGF-1R in normal and OA Obs was similar; however, the phosphorylation of IRS-1 was reduced in OA Ob. In addition, the PI3K pathway was activated similarly in normal and OA Obs while that for p42/44 MAPK was higher in OA Obs compared to normal. p42/44 MAPK can be triggered via an IRS-1/Syp or Grb2/Shc interaction. Interestingly, Syp was poorly phosphorylated under basal conditions in normal Obs and was rapidly phosphorylated upon IGF-1 stimulation, yet Syp showed a poor interaction with IRS-1. In contrast, Syp was highly phosphorylated in OA Obs and its interaction with IRS-1 was very strong initially, yet rapidly dropped with IGF-1 treatments. The interaction of Grb2 with IRS-1 progressively increased in response to IGF-1 in OA Obs whereas this was absent in normal Ob. IGF-1 stimulation altered alkaline phosphatase in Ob, an effect reduced in the presence of PD98059, an inhibitor of p42/44 MAPK signaling, whereas neither IGF-1 nor PD98059 had any significant effect on collagen synthesis. In contrast, cell proliferation was higher in OA Obs compared to normal under basal conditions, and IGF-1 stimulated more cell proliferation in OA Obs than in normal Ob, an effect totally dependent on p42/44 MAPK activiy. The altered response of OA Obs to IGF-1 may be due to abnormal IGF-1 signaling in these cells. This is mostly linked with abnormal IRS-1/Syp and IRS-1/Grb2 interaction in these cells

The mining industry in Canada north of the 55th parallel : a maritime traffic generator?

This paper reviews and assesses the state of the mining industry in Canada north of the 55th parallel. It aims to describe and monitor to what extent the development of mining projects in the Canadian Arctic are likely to trigger and expand commercial shipping in Canadian Arctic waters. Based on a literature and statistical review of publicly available information, the results show that only 3 actives mines out of 10 rely on a shipping logistics through Canadian Arctic waters to export raw materials. Once active and in operation, seven other mining projects will likely increase commercial shipping activities through Canadian Arctic waters, while it remains difficult to quantify precisely. However, this paper argues that the viability of northern mineral development is related to a wide variety of conditions including access to capital and foreign direct investment for the development and construction of infrastructure, international market conditions, and shifting demand which largely determines commodity prices and the profitability of a project, harsh environmental conditions, and high operating costs in northern latitudes. In this context, there is no Arctic mining rush and all these factors contribute to increasing the cost of doing business in the north

Textural and hydration properties of a synthetic montmorillonite compared with a natural Na-exchanged clay analogue.

International audienceAn aluminous montmorillonite has been synthesized at hydrothermal conditions (623 K, 120 MPa) and compared to the natural Na-exchanged Wyoming montmorillonite (Na-SWy2). The synthetic product is characterized by a high cation exchange capacity (83 meq/100g) and ethylene glycol specific surface area (764 m2/g) similar to Na-SWy2 but with a higher purity with one crystalline phase. Compacted smectite samples were percolated with water by using an œdometer cell equipped with a separated injection system, in order to simulate the behaviour of an engineered clay barrier in the context of subsurface waste landfill. Percolation experiments showed very low hydraulic conductivities (10-12 m/s) for both synthetic and natural smectites, in addition to the non macroscopic swelling of the synthetic montmorillonite, in contrast to Na-SWy2. At the nanometric scale, this synthetic clay mineral is characterized by higher hydration states and a better organization in the distribution of water molecules in particles, as proved by X-ray diffraction technique and continuous water vapor gravimetry method. Moreover, adsorption-desorption isotherms of nitrogen revealed the classical feature of swelling clay minerals, and the Brunauer-Emmet-Teller calculation gives a nitrogen specific area of 87 m2/g for the synthetic smectite, twice higher than for the Wyoming clay, due to its higher mesoporosity. Finally, low-pressure argon adsorption coupled with the Derivative Isotherm Simulation procedure highlighted classical adsorption energy distributions of natural phyllosilicates, and thus the synthetic montmorillonite was characterized by an average of 11 layers per particle in the dry state, with basal and edge surface areas different from Na-SWy2

Specificity of Anti-Tau Antibodies when Analyzing Mice Models of Alzheimer's Disease: Problems and Solutions

Aggregates of hyperphosphorylated tau protein are found in a group of diseases called tauopathies, which includes Alzheimer's disease. The causes and consequences of tau hyperphosphorylation are routinely investigated in laboratory animals. Mice are the models of choice as they are easily amenable to transgenic technology; consequently, their tau phosphorylation levels are frequently monitored by Western blotting using a panel of monoclonal/polyclonal anti-tau antibodies. Given that mouse secondary antibodies can recognize endogenous mouse immunoglobulins (Igs) and the possible lack of specificity with some polyclonal antibodies, non-specific signals are commonly observed. Here, we characterized the profiles of commonly used anti-tau antibodies in four different mouse models: non-transgenic mice, tau knock-out (TKO) mice, 3xTg-AD mice, and hypothermic mice, the latter a positive control for tau hyperphosphorylation. We identified 3 tau monoclonal antibody categories: type 1, characterized by high non-specificity (AT8, AT180, MC1, MC6, TG-3), type 2, demonstrating low non-specificity (AT270, CP13, CP27, Tau12, TG5), and type 3, with no non-specific signal (DA9, PHF-1, Tau1, Tau46). For polyclonal anti-tau antibodies, some displayed non-specificity (pS262, pS409) while others did not (pS199, pT205, pS396, pS404, pS422, A0024). With monoclonal antibodies, most of the interfering signal was due to endogenous Igs and could be eliminated by different techniques: i) using secondary antibodies designed to bind only non-denatured Igs, ii) preparation of a heat-stable fraction, iii) clearing Igs from the homogenates, and iv) using secondary antibodies that only bind the light chain of Igs. All of these techniques removed the non-specific signal; however, the first and the last methods were easier and more reliable. Overall, our study demonstrates a high risk of artefactual signal when performing Western blotting with routinely used anti-tau antibodies, and proposes several solutions to avoid non-specific results. We strongly recommend the use of negative (i.e., TKO) and positive (i.e., hypothermic) controls in all experiments