Experimental underground facility to evaluate remote sensing instruments

International audienceSince the end of eighties optical remote sensing instruments have been used by French air quality monitoring networks. This type of instrument offers new perspectives to characterise the atmospheric pollution. Indeed, it is possible to measure simultaneously several pollutants like S02, NO, N02, Oa, hydrocarbons, and specific pollutants such äs NH3, naphtalene,..

Elastin-Derived Peptides Are New Regulators of Thrombosis

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The Innate Immune Response in Eisenia Fetida to Microbial Challenges

The common earthworm, Eisenia fetida, exhibits a rudimentary immune system. The earthworm needs cellular and chemical responses against a constant microbial exposure from its natural environment. Some cellular and chemical responses are found in the coelomic fluid and have been shown to demonstrate anti-microbial characteristics. This project uses microscopy and modified staining techniques to differentiate and categorize the cellular components found in the coelomic fluid. Following a microbial challenge by Klebsiella pneumoniae, an inflammatory response was initiated. Six groups of earthworms were injected with 0.05 ml of 1.0 x 106 cfu /ml K. pneumoniae on day one and tested over a period of five days. A group of three worms was shocked each day for the next five days to cause the coelomic fluid and cells to pass through the body wall. The coelomic fluid was placed directly on glass slides, dried and stained with a modified Wright’s stain using a wash buffer solution with a pH of 6.3. The stained cells were differentiated into four categories. Total cell counts were determined. The data indicated a marked proliferation in total cell counts in comparison to the control worms. This trend of increasing total cell counts continued over the five days. The percent ages of the four types of coelomic cells from the differential remained constant. Cells were photographed and documented for comparisons. Additional studies are ongoing to determine how long the Eisenia fetida take to remove Klebsiella pneumoniae from the coelomic cavity

Financial and relational impact of having a boy with posterior urethral valves

IntroductionChildhood chronic diseases affect family functioning and well-being. The aim of this study was to measure the impact of caring for a child with PUV, and the factors that most impact the burden of care.Patients and methodWe gave a questionnaire on the familial impact of having a child with posterior urethral valves to all parents of a child included in the CIRCUP trial from 2015 onwards. The questionnaire included questions about the parents' demographics, health, professional, financial and marital status and how these evolved since the child's birth as well as the “impact on family scale” (IOFS), which gives a total score ranging from 15 (no impact) to 60 (maximum impact). We then analyzed both the results of the specific demographic questions as well as the factors which influenced the IOFS score.ResultsWe retrieved answers for 38/51 families (74.5% response rate). The average IOFS score was 23.7 (15–51). We observed that the child's creatinine level had an effect on the IOFS score (p = 0.02), as did the parent's gender (p = 0.008), health status (p = 0.015), being limited in activity since the birth of the child (p = 0.020), being penalized in one's job (p = 0.009), being supported in one's job (p = 0.002), and decreased income (p = 0.004). Out of 38 mother/father binomials, 8/33 (24.2%) declared that they were no longer in the same relationship afterwards.ConclusionIn conclusion, having a boy with PUV significantly impacts families. The risk of parental separation and decrease in revenue is significant. Strategies aiming to decrease these factors should be put in place as soon as possible

Export support services and SME internationalization process

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Implementation of open-path measurement techniques

International audienceFor a long time INERIS has carried out metrological tests on automatic devices used in air quality monitoring networks. In France the standard text NF X 20-300 drives the evaluations in terms of the following metrological features : response time, linearity, limits, drift, ... In order to apply this text, the instruments have been fed with reference mixtures of gases in several reproducible concentrations. Compliance with this requirement is quite easy to obtain, in the case of conventional techniques, but the problems remain with optical remote sensing instruments. Indeed, it is impossible to manufacture a measurement cell as long as the optical path (greater than 100 meters). This difficulty can be solved by using the Beer-Lambert law indicating that the product of the concentration by the distance is a constant value

How do SMEs use support services during their internationalisation process: A comparative study of French traditional SMEs and INVs in Asia

International audienceThis article integrates research on the internationalisation processes of small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) and export assistance services to investigate how such firms use support services drawing upon a large, qualitative study of 32 French traditional SMEs and international new ventures (INVs) that have entered Asia. Our key contribution is to consider the time to internationalisation (gradual or rapid) and the stage of internationalisation (entrance or intensification) rather than export intensity alone, and to examine how support services can help SMEs internationalise. The identification of different configurations of uses leads to the development of theoretical propositions that extend existing models pertaining to support services and firm internationalisation. These findings have several important managerial implications for support services to target their offer more precisely to two types of SMEs; they also provide useful guidance for SMEs to determine which tailor-made offerings from private and public actors are most applicable to their internationalisation efforts

Real-time low cost passive imaging system for automative applications

International audienceThis paper presents the construction of a real-time low-cost radiometric system working around 94 GHz for the safety of people in automotive transportation. This camera will realize 25 images per second and will be able to see several hundred meters in bad weather conditions. We have chosen to use an adding noise radiometer with low energy consumption. Four important points are discussed. First, the radiometric visibility gives the investigation volume for different weather conditions. The computation of such volumes shows a real interest for the radiometric technique. Secondly, a new calibration method, based on a modulated noise diode source, followed by a real-time Kalman filter processing is validated on a 4 GHz radiometer. Thirdly the image processing, based on a deconvolution process and followed by a regularization of the temperature improves the spatial resolution and optimizes the radiometer matrix located in the focal plane of a Fresnel lens. Finally the millimeter-wave radiometer in the 51-55 GHz band is described. We present also the low-noise amplifier (LNA) that will be used in the final project of the camera system working in the 94 GHz band

Role for furin in tumor necrosis factor alpha-induced activation of the matrix metalloproteinase/sphingolipid mitogenic pathway.

International audienceNeutral sphingomyelinase (nSMase), the initial enzyme of the sphingolipid signaling pathway, is thought to play a key role in cellular responses to tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha), such as inflammation, proliferation, and apoptosis. The mechanism of TNF-alpha-induced nSMase activation is only partly understood. Using biochemical, molecular, and pharmacological approaches, we found that nSMase activation triggered by TNF-alpha is required for TNF-alpha-induced proliferation and in turn requires a proteolytic cascade involving furin, membrane type 1 matrix metalloproteinase (MT1-MMP), and MMP2, and leading finally to extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2 (ERK1/2) phosphorylation and DNA synthesis, in smooth muscle cells (SMC) and fibroblasts. Pharmacological and molecular inhibitors of MMPs (batimastat), furin (alpha1-PDX inhibitor-transfected SMC), MT1-MMP (SMC overexpressing a catalytically inactive MT1-MMP), MMP2 (fibroblasts from MMP2(-/-) mice), and small interfering RNA (siRNA) strategies (siRNAs targeting furin, MT1-MMP, MMP2, and nSMase) resulted in near-complete inhibition of the activation of nSMase, sphingosine kinase-1, and ERK1/2 and of subsequent DNA synthesis. Exogenous MT1-MMP activated nSMase and SMC proliferation in normal but not in MMP2(-/-) fibroblasts, whereas exogenous MMP2 was active on both normal and MMP2(-/-) fibroblasts. Altogether these findings highlight a pivotal role for furin, MT1-MMP, and MMP2 in TNF-alpha-induced sphingolipid signaling, and they identify this system as a possible target to inhibit SMC proliferation in vascular diseases