Place des thérapeutiques complémentaires et alternatives dans les dermatites atopiques

As widely used by patients as they are criticised by doctors, complementary therapies do not feature in any recommendations or consensus conferences due to the lack of strong evidence of their efficacy. However, some of these therapies can represent a credible alternative depending on the individuals. They can form part of patients’ personalised care, notably those suffering from atopic dermatitis

Polar molecule reactive collisions in quasi-1D systems

We study polar molecule scattering in quasi-one-dimensional geometries. Elastic and reactive collision rates are computed as a function of collision energy and electric dipole moment for different confinement strengths. The numerical results are interpreted in terms of first order scattering and of adiabatic models. Universal dipolar scattering is also discussed. Our results are relevant to experiments where control of the collision dynamics through one dimensional confinement and an applied electric field is envisioned.Comment: 25 pages, 13 figure

Prise en charge officinale de la dermatite atopique

The treatment of atopic dermatitis in the community pharmacy is not simply a case of dispensing medication. It is also important to develop prevention strategies for people at high risk (primary prevention), as well as for individuals with a recently diagnosed atopic allergy (secondary prevention)

Monitoring the Variable Interstellar Absorption toward HD 219188 with HST/STIS

We discuss the results of continued spectroscopic monitoring of the variable intermediate-velocity (IV) absorption at v = -38 km/s toward HD 219188. After reaching maxima in mid-2000, the column densities of both Na I and Ca II in that IV component declined by factors >= 2 by the end of 2006. Comparisons between HST/STIS echelle spectra obtained in 2001, 2003, and 2004 and HST/GHRS echelle spectra obtained in 1994--1995 indicate the following: (1) The absorption from the dominant species S II, O I, Si II, and Fe II is roughly constant in all four sets of spectra -- suggesting that the total N(H) and the (mild) depletions have not changed significantly over a period of nearly ten years. (2) The column densities of the trace species C I (both ground and excited fine-structure states) and of the excited state C II* all increased by factors of 2--5 between 1995 and 2001 -- implying increases in the hydrogen density n_H (from about 20 cm^{-3} to about 45 cm^{-3}) and in the electron density n_e (by a factor >= 3) over that 6-year period. (3) The column densities of C I and C II* -- and the corresponding inferred n_H and n_e -- then decreased slightly between 2001 and 2004. (4) The changes in C I and C II* are very similar to those seen for Na I and Ca II. The relatively low total N(H) and the modest n_H suggest that the -38 km/s cloud toward HD 219188 is not a very dense knot or filament. Partial ionization of hydrogen appears to be responsible for the enhanced abundances of Na I, C I, Ca II, and C II*. In this case, the variations in those species appear to reflect differences in density and ionization [and not N(H)] over scales of tens of AU.Comment: 33 pages, 6 figures, aastex, accepted to Ap

The Conserved nhaAR Operon Is Drastically Divergent between B2 and Non-B2 Escherichia coli and Is Involved in Extra-Intestinal Virulence

The Escherichia coli species is divided in phylogenetic groups that differ in their virulence and commensal distribution. Strains belonging to the B2 group are involved in extra-intestinal pathologies but also appear to be more prevalent as commensals among human occidental populations. To investigate the genetic specificities of B2 sub-group, we used 128 sequenced genomes and identified genes of the core genome that showed marked difference between B2 and non-B2 genomes. We focused on the gene and its surrounding region with the strongest divergence between B2 and non-B2, the antiporter gene nhaA. This gene is part of the nhaAR operon, which is in the core genome but flanked by mobile regions, and is involved in growth at high pH and high sodium concentrations. Consistently, we found that a panel of non-B2 strains grew faster than B2 at high pH and high sodium concentrations. However, we could not identify differences in expression of the nhaAR operon using fluorescence reporter plasmids. Furthermore, the operon deletion had no differential impact between B2 and non-B2 strains, and did not result in a fitness modification in a murine model of gut colonization. Nevertheless, sequence analysis and experiments in a murine model of septicemia revealed that recombination in nhaA among B2 strains was observed in strains with low virulence. Finally, nhaA and nhaAR operon deletions drastically decreased virulence in one B2 strain. This effect of nhaAR deletion appeared to be stronger than deletion of all pathogenicity islands. Thus, a population genetic approach allowed us to identify an operon in the core genome without strong effect in commensalism but with an important role in extra-intestinal virulence, a landmark of the B2 strains

Electron transport through multilevel quantum dot

Quantum transport properties through some multilevel quantum dots sandwiched between two metallic contacts are investigated by the use of Green's function technique. Here we do parametric calculations, based on the tight-binding model, to study the transport properties through such bridge systems. The electron transport properties are significantly influenced by (a) number of quantized energy levels in the dots, (b) dot-to-electrode coupling strength, (c) location of the equilibrium Fermi energy $E_F$ and (d) surface disorder. In the limit of weak-coupling, the conductance ($g$) shows sharp resonant peaks associated with the quantized energy levels in the dots, while, they get substantial broadening in the strong-coupling limit. The behavior of the electron transfer through these systems becomes much more clearly visible from our study of current-voltage ($I$-$V$) characteristics. In this context we also describe the noise power of current fluctuations ($S$) and determine the Fano factor ($F$) which provides an important information about the electron correlation among the charge carriers. Finally, we explore a novel transport phenomenon by studying the surface disorder effect in which the current amplitude increases with the increase of the surface disorder strength in the strong disorder regime, while, the amplitude decreases in the limit of weak disorder. Such an anomalous behavior is completely opposite to that of bulk disordered system where the current amplitude always decreases with the disorder strength. It is also observed that the current amplitude strongly depends on the system size which reveals the finite quantum size effect.Comment: 12 pages, 7 figure

Experimental Tool of woven Reinforcement Forming

International audienceThis paper concerns the development of an experimental device which is able to form very complex double curved geometry. Objectives are to analyze the evolution of the woven preform during the forming process. This device contains one mechanical module containing the classical tools in forming process, (punch, blank holder, and open-die), and one optical module to measure the 3D-deformed shape and the distribution of local deformations, like shear angles of the woven reinforcement during all the process. Experimental results are obtained with an interlock carbon woven fabric, used in aeronautical applications. Wrinkling and buckling will be analyzed at the global scale of the piece. The evolution of the shear angle will be presented at local scale (on face, or edges of the geometry)

Design and stability study of a paediatric oral solution of methotrexate 2mg/ml

Oral paediatric forms development by pharmaceutical industry is still insufficient. The present study was performed to propose an adapted and pleasant formulation of liquid oral formulation of MTX. The solution is composed of injectable methotrexate, water, Ora Sweet(®) and sodium bicarbonate. After 120 days storage, pH remained stable at about 8 in all formulations, insuring no risk of MTX precipitation. MTX content in solution formulation, determined by high performance liquid chromatography measurements, remained in the specifications of >90% of the initial concentration when stored at 4 and 25°C. Forced degradation of MTX by heat and acidic conditions allowed formation and detection of degradation products by the analytical method. Microbial study of the preparation shows that the solution remains in the specifications during all the storage, or after one sample each week during one month, eventually indicating the microbial properties are not affected by patient use. To conclude, we here propose a new MTX liquid formulation stable for at least 120 days

The cosmic microwave background radiation temperature at z = 3.025 toward QSO 0347--3819

From the analysis of the CII fine-structure population ratio in the damped Ly_alpha system at z = 3.025 toward the quasar Q0347--3819 we derive an upper bound of 14.6 (+/- 0.2) K on the cosmic microwave background temperature regardless the presence of other different excitation mechanisms. The analysis of the ground state rotational level populations of H_2 detected in the system reveals a Galactic-type UV radiation field ruling out UV pumping as an important excitation mechanism for CII. The low dust content estimated from the Cr/Zn ratio indicates that the IR dust emission can also be neglected. When the collisional excitation is considered, we measure a temperature for the cosmic background radiation of T = 12.1 (+1.7, -3.2) K. The results are in agreement with the T = 10.968 (+/-) 0.004 K predicted by the hot Big Bang cosmology at z = 3.025.Comment: Accepte

Atomic Diagnostics of X-ray Irradiated Protoplanetary Disks

We study atomic line diagnostics of the inner regions of protoplanetary disks with our model of X-ray irradiated disk atmospheres which was previously used to predict observable levels of the NeII and NeIII fine-structure transitions at 12.81 and 15.55mum. We extend the X-ray ionization theory to sulfur and calculate the fraction of sulfur in S, S+, S2+ and sulfur molecules. For the D'Alessio generic T Tauri star disk, we find that the SI fine-structure line at 25.55mum is below the detection level of the Spitzer Infrared Spectrometer (IRS), in large part due to X-ray ionization of atomic S at the top of the atmosphere and to its incorporation into molecules close to the mid-plane. We predict that observable fluxes of the SII 6718/6732AA forbidden transitions are produced in the upper atmosphere at somewhat shallower depths and smaller radii than the neon fine-structure lines. This and other forbidden line transitions, such as the OI 6300/6363AA and the CI 9826/9852AA lines, serve as complementary diagnostics of X-ray irradiated disk atmospheres. We have also analyzed the potential role of the low-excitation fine-structure lines of CI, CII, and OI, which should be observable by SOFIA and Herschel.Comment: Accepted by Ap