Le Triptyque des temps perdus de Jean Marcel : Modernité du roman biographique historique

Entre 1989 et 1993, Jean Marcel a publié le Triptyque des temps perdus, traversé par des tensions génériques et chronologiques. Après avoir désigné le Triptyque comme un roman biographique historique, les auteurs examinent la relation paradoxale entre l’écriture d’un passé lointain et crépusculaire et la dimension moderne de l’oeuvre de Jean Marcel. À travers les figures antiques d’Hypatie, de Jérôme et de Sidoine, Marcel parle de l’époque moderne et de sa tension entre le périssable et l’immuable. Il prend ensuite comme point de départ certains questionnements de la modernité pour renouveler plusieurs aspects formels du genre réputé désuet du roman biographique historique. Le Triptyque rejoint ainsi, du point de vue de l’écriture, les préoccupations littéraires des fictions contemporaines à incidence biographique.Between 1989 and 1993, Jean Marcel published Triptyque des temps perdus, a trilogy of three novels shot through with generic and chronological tensions. Having defined the Triptyque as belonging to the genre of the historical biographical novel, we offer a two-part analysis of the paradoxical relationship between writing of a dim and remote past—the decline of the Roman empire—and the undeniable modernity of Jean Marcel’s work. On the one hand, through the antique figures of Hypatie, Jérôme and Sidoine, Marcel speaks of the modern era and its constituent tension between what is perishable and what is changeless. On the other hand, he starts from questions raised by modernity to renew some of the formal aspects — documentation, utterance, narration — of a genre seen as obsolete: the biographical historical novel. In terms of writing, Triptyque ultimately shares the modern literary concerns of other contemporary fictions with a biographical dimension

Sexuality in the context of physical rehabilitation as perceived by occupational therapists

Introduction: One of the challenges for rehabilitation professionals is to discuss sexuality with their clients. The main objective of this study was to explore occupational therapists’ perceptions of the factors that influence their practice regarding the domain of sexuality, as well as the prioritization of these factors and the exploration of their needs. Methodology: Descriptive qualitative study who took place in Montreal, Canada. Two focus groups were realized with seven occupational therapists working in outpatient setting in two different rehabilitation centers for physical disabilities. The focus group guide was based on the Theoretical Domains Framework (TDF). The verbatims were coded using QDA-Miner software and analyzed according to the principles of the Framework approach. Results: The majority of participants were women (n = 6/7). Three main themes to answer the main objective emerged: (1) Occupational therapist’s intrinsic factors such as professional identity and knowledge/skills; (2) Contextual and process factors of practice, including assessment/analysis and human resources; (3) Client factors such as identity factors and capabilities. Several influencing factors that have a significant impact on practice have been prioritized, for instance, the perception of the skill level of occupational therapists, interdisciplinary collaboration, culture/language and openness of the client to the subject of sexuality. The needs related to the acquisition of knowledge/know-how, human resources and continuing education were raised by clinicians. Conclusion: There is a need in developing training tools to support clinical practice and to overcome the many barriers encountered by occupational therapists regarding the domain of sexuality

Tour d'horizon du potentiel de développement de l'aquaponie en France : présentation et regard critique sur cette voie de développement alternative pour les productions piscicoles et horticoles

L'aquaponie repose sur l'intégration de process de production aquacole et hydroponique permettant le recyclage et la valorisation des nutriments émis par l'élevage aquacole par des cultures végétales. Cette démarche innovante attire à la fois les filières aquacoles, car la co-production permet de réutiliser l'eau en permanence pour l'élevage ; mais également les filières horticoles en réduisant l'emploi d'intrants chimiques dans la conduite de production végétale. Le projet APIVA® (Aquaponie Innovation Végétale et Aquaculture) vise à développer et caractériser des pilotes aquaponiques fonctionnels, d'étudier leur faisabilité économique, leur impact environnemental et la qualité des produits obtenus, tout en modélisant les flux se produisant entre les compartiments (bassins d'élevage, surfaces de culture, filtre biologique). Après une rapide présentation de l'origine de l'aquaponie, cet article vise à définir les avantages et inconvénients de cette pratique innovante, les différentes formes qu'elle peut prendre, les diverses modalités de conception envisageables, ainsi que les aspects techniques à appréhender. En France, très peu de systèmes d'aquaponie commerciale sont actifs, mais beaucoup de projets émergent depuis quelques années, notamment en milieu urbain. Des exemples d'entreprises d'aquaponie commerciale à l'international sont présentés, avant de définir une typologie des porteurs de projet français. (Résumé d'auteur

A statistically robust EEG re-referencing procedure to mitigate reference effect

Background: The electroencephalogram (EEG) remains the primary tool for diagnosis of abnormal brain activity in clinical neurology and for in vivo recordings of human neurophysiology in neuroscience research. In EEG data acquisition, voltage is measured at positions on the scalp with respect to a reference electrode. When this reference electrode responds to electrical activity or artifact all electrodes are affected. Successful analysis of EEG data often involves re-referencing procedures that modify the recorded traces and seek to minimize the impact of reference electrode activity upon functions of the original EEG recordings. New method: We provide a novel, statistically robust procedure that adapts a robust maximum-likelihood type estimator to the problem of reference estimation, reduces the influence of neural activity from the re-referencing operation, and maintains good performance in a wide variety of empirical scenarios. Results: The performance of the proposed and existing re-referencing procedures are validated in simulation and with examples of EEG recordings. To facilitate this comparison, channel-to-channel correlations are investigated theoretically and in simulation. Comparison with existing methods: The proposed procedure avoids using data contaminated by neural signal and remains unbiased in recording scenarios where physical references, the common average reference (CAR) and the reference estimation standardization technique (REST) are not optimal. Conclusion:The proposed procedure is simple, fast, and avoids the potential for substantial bias when analyzing low-density EEG data

Effects of n-3 fatty acids, EPA v. DHA, on depressive symptoms, quality of life, memory and executive function in older adults with mild cognitive impairment: a 6-month randomised controlled trial

First published online 20 September 2011Depressive symptoms may increase the risk of progressing from mild cognitive impairment (MCI) to dementia. Consumption of n-3 PUFA may alleviate both cognitive decline and depression. The aim of the present study was to investigate the benefits of supplementing a diet with n-3 PUFA, DHA and EPA, for depressive symptoms, quality of life (QOL) and cognition in elderly people with MCI. We conducted a 6-month double-blind, randomised controlled trial. A total of fifty people aged >65 years with MCI were allocated to receive a supplement rich in EPA (1·67 g EPA + 0·16 g DHA/d; n 17), DHA (1·55 g DHA + 0·40 g EPA/d; n 18) or the n-6 PUFA linoleic acid (LA; 2·2 g/d; n 15). Treatment allocation was by minimisation based on age, sex and depressive symptoms (Geriatric Depression Scale, GDS). Physiological and cognitive assessments, questionnaires and fatty acid composition of erythrocytes were obtained at baseline and 6 months (completers: n 40; EPA n 13, DHA n 16, LA n 11). Compared with the LA group, GDS scores improved in the EPA (P=0·04) and DHA (P=0·01) groups and verbal fluency (Initial Letter Fluency) in the DHA group (P=0·04). Improved GDS scores were correlated with increased DHA plus EPA (r 0·39, P=0·02). Improved self-reported physical health was associated with increased DHA. There were no treatment effects on other cognitive or QOL parameters. Increased intakes of DHA and EPA benefited mental health in older people with MCI. Increasing n-3 PUFA intakes may reduce depressive symptoms and the risk of progressing to dementia. This needs to be investigated in larger, depressed samples with MCI.Natalie Sinn, Catherine M. Milte, Steven J. Street, Jonathan D. Buckley, Alison M. Coates, John Petkov, and Peter R. C. How

A Guide for Ex Vivo Handling and storage of stool samples Intended for Fecal Microbiota transplantation

International audienceOwing to the growing recognition of the gut microbiota as a main partner of human health, we are expecting that the number of indications for fecal microbiota transplantation (FMt) will increase. Thus, there is an urgent need for standardization of the entire process of fecal transplant production. This study provides a complete standardized procedure to prepare and store live and ready-to-use transplants that meet the standard requirements of good practices to applied use in pharmaceutical industry. We show that, if time before transformation to transplants would exceed 24 hours, fresh samples should not be exposed to temperatures above 20 °C, and refrigeration at 4 °C can be a safe solution. Oxygen-free atmosphere was not necessary and simply removing air above collected samples was sufficient to preserve viability. Transplants prepared in maltodextrin-trehalose solutions, stored in a-80 °C standard freezer and then rapidly thawed at 37 °C, retained the best revivification potential as proven by 16S rRNA profiles, metabolomic fingerprints, and flow cytometry assays over a 3-month observation period. Maltodextrin-trehalose containing cryoprotectants were also efficient in preserving viability of lyophilized transplants, either in their crude or purified form, an option that can be attractive for fecal transplant biobanking and oral formulation

Mucolipidosis II : a single causal mutation in the N-acetylglucosamine-1-phosphotransferase gene (GNPTAB) in a French Canadian founder population

Mucolipidosis (ML) II (I-cell disease) is a lysosomal storage disorder caused by a deficiency of UDP-N-acetylglucosamine:lysosomal enzyme N-acetylglucosamine-1-phosphotransferase. MLII is an autosomal recessive disease with a carrier rate estimated at 1/39 in Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean (SLSJ) (Quebec, Canada), which is the highest frequency documented worldwide. To identify the causing mutation, we sequenced GNPTAB exons in 27 parents of 16 MLII-deceased children from the SLSJ region as obligatory and potential carriers. We also performed a genealogical reconstruction for each parent to evaluate consanguinity levels and genetic contribution of ancestors. Our goal was to identify which parameters could explain the high MLII frequency observed in the SLSJ population. A single mutation (c.3503_3504delTC) was found in all obligatory carriers. In addition, 11 apparent polymorphisms were identified. The mutation was not detected in genomic DNA of 50 unrelated controls. Genealogical data show six founders (three couples) with a higher probability of having introduced the mutation in the population. The frequency of the mutation was increased as a consequence of this founder effect and of the resulting population structure. We suggest that c.3503_3504delTC is the allele causing MLII in the SLSJ population, and its high carrier rate is most likely explained by a founder effect

Weight and height z-scores improve after initiating ART among HIV-infected children in rural Zambia: a cohort study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Deficits in growth observed in HIV-infected children in resource-poor settings can be reversed with antiretroviral treatment (ART). However, many of the studies have been conducted in urban areas with older pediatric populations. This study was undertaken to evaluate growth patterns after ART initiation in a young pediatric population in rural Zambia with a high prevalence of undernutrition.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Between 2007 and 2009, 193 HIV-infected children were enrolled in a cohort study in Macha, Zambia. Children were evaluated every 3 months, at which time a questionnaire was administered, height and weight were measured, and blood specimens were collected. Weight- and height-for-age z-scores were constructed from WHO growth standards. All children receiving ART at enrollment or initiating ART during the study were included in this analysis. Linear mixed effects models were used to model trajectories of weight and height-for-age z-scores.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>A high proportion of study children were underweight (59%) and stunted (72%) at treatment initiation. Improvements in both weight- and height-for-age z-scores were observed, with weight-for-age z-scores increasing during the first 6 months of treatment and then stabilizing, and height-for-age z-scores increasing consistently over time. Trajectories of weight-for-age z-scores differed by underweight status at treatment initiation, with children who were underweight experiencing greater increases in z-scores in the first 6 months of treatment. Trajectories of height-for-age z-scores differed by age, with children older than 5 years of age experiencing smaller increases over time.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Some of the effects of HIV on growth were reversed with ART initiation, although a high proportion of children remained underweight and stunted after two years of treatment. Partnerships between treatment and nutrition programs should be explored so that HIV-infected children can receive optimal nutritional support.</p