Phylogenetic position of Fit insect toxin producing pseudomonads

Fit produced by Pseudomonas fluorescens CHA0 is a novel insect toxin in root colonizing pseudomonads, of which a homologue is described in Photorhabdus species.However, occurrence and abundance of insect pathogenicity in plant-associated pseudomonads is still unclear. An extensive screening outside the P. fluorescens complex identified strains of Pseudomonas chlororaphis as further Fit toxin producing candidates. Sequences of five different P. chlororaphis strains generated in this study were used to reconstruct the evolutionary history of the Fit toxin gene and to analyse its mode of evolution. We found that P. chlororaphis is closely associated with a small subgroup of 2,4-diacetylphloroglucinol and pyoluteorin- producing pseudomonads, both when analyzing four housekeeping genes and the nucleotide sequences for the Fit toxin gene. Additionally, we identified purifying selection to be the predominant mode of Fit toxin evolution.

Trophic resource partitioning and competition between the two sibling bat species Myotis myotis and Myotis blythii

1. Niche theory predicts that the stable coexistence of species within a guild should be associated, if resources are limited, with a mechanism of resource partitioning. Using extensive data on diets, the present study attempts: (i) to test the hypothesis that, in sympatry, the interspecific overlap between the trophic niches of the sibling bat species Myotis myotis and M. blythii-which coexist intimately in their roosts-is effectively lower than the two intraspecific overlaps; (ii) to assess the role played by interspecific competition in resource partitioning through the study of trophic niche displacement between several sympatric and allopatric populations. 2. Diets were determined by the analysis of faecal samples collected in the field from individual bats captured in various geographical areas. Trophic niche overlaps were calculated monthly for all possible intraspecific and interspecific pairs of individuals from sympatric populations. Niche breadth was estimated from: (i) every faecal sample; (ii) all the faecal samples collected per month in a given population (geographical area). 3. In every population, the bulk of the diets of M. myotis and M. blythii consisted of, respectively, terrestrial (e.g. carabid beetles) and grass-dwelling (mostly bush crickets) prey. All intraspecific trophic niche overlaps were significantly greater than the interspecific one, except in Switzerland in May when both species exploited mass concentrations of cockchafers, a non-limiting food source. This clearcut partitioning of resources may allow the stable, intimate coexistence observed under sympatric conditions. 4. Relative proportions of ground-and grass-dwelling prey, as well as niche breadths (either individual or population), did not differ significantly between sympatry and allopatry, showing that, under allopatric conditions, niche expansion does not take place. This suggests that active interspecific competition is not the underlying mechanism responsible for the niche partitioning which is currently observed between M. myotis and M. blythii.

Intervention de la pensée représentative de futurs enseignant-e-s dans leurs prises de position envers l'intégration scolaire

In the past two decades, international recommendations have made inclusive education a priority issue. Many countries have adopted school policies inciting players to question their representations about the duties and purposes of schooling and their role therein. In Switzerland, a new national and cantonal framework defines the integration of students with disabilities or special educational needs in the regular classroom as a priority. However, progress in this area is modest and many researchers are left wondering how teachers could be better prepared to meet the special needs of some students. Initial training is thus seen as essential in bringing pre-service teachers to develop open attitudes toward students with disabilities or special educational needs. While many studies have examined the role of training in building professional attitudes, very few deal with teacher representations of inclusive education, let alone those of future teachers. Our research focuses on two samples of pre-service teachers in the beginning, middle or end of their initial training. 261 pre-service teachers for primary education and 212 pre-service teachers for secondaiy education are involved in the study. The research aims to highlight the role of their representative thinking in building their attitudes towards inclusive education. Our results show that objectification remains essentialist and focuses on the prototypes of the most publicized disabilities. They also showed the weakness of the training system as perceived by future teachers. Even though they have maintained or strengthened positive attitudes towards integration, most leave their training with a reinforced sense of apprehension when faced with the disabilities or special educational needs that they expect to encounter in their future work. Although pre-service teachers consider their training insufficient, it nevertheless positively influences their attitudes toward integration. In particular, greater internship practice, however modest it may be, has a significant effect on attitudes of future teachers by increasing their perception of competence and confidence. -- Ces deux dernières décennies, les recommandations internationales ont fait de l'inclusion scolaire une thématique prioritaire. De nombreux pays ont adopté des politiques scolaires obligeant les acteurs scolaires à interroger leurs représentations des missions de l'école et leur rôle au sein de celle-ci. En Suisse, un nouveau cadre national et cantonal a défini comme prioritaire l'intégration dans l'école ordinaire des élèves en situation de handicap ou ayant des besoins éducatifs particuliers. Or, les avancées en la matière restent modestes et de nombreux chercheurs se questionnent sur la manière dont les enseignant-e-s pourraient être mieux préparés à répondre aux besoins éducatifs particuliers de certains élèves. La formation initiale est ainsi perçue comme essentielle pour amener les futurs enseignant-e-s pour développer des attitudes ouvertes envers les élèves en situation de handicap ou ayant des besoins éducatifs particuliers. Si beaucoup d'études portent sur le rôle de la formation dans la construction d'attitudes professionnelles, très peu traitent des représentations des enseignant-e-s à l'égard de l'intégration scolaire et encore moins de celles des futurs enseignant-e-s. Notre recherche porte sur deux populations de futurs enseignant-e-s en début, au milieu ou en fin de formation. Elles sont composées respectivement de 261 étudiant-e-s se destinant à l'enseignement primaire et de 212 étudiant-e-s se destinant à l'enseignement secondaire. La recherche vise à mettre en évidence l'intervention de leur pensée représentative dans leurs prises de position envers l'intégration scolaire. Nos résultats montrent que l'objectivation reste essentialiste et se focalise sur les prototypes de situations de handicap les plus médiatisés. Nos résultats font également fait apparaître la faiblesse du dispositif de formation tel que perçu les futurs enseignant-e-s. Quand bien même ont-ils conservé ou renforcé des attitudes favorables à l'intégration, ils quittent pour la plupart leur formation avec une appréhension renforcée à l'égard des situations de handicap ou de besoins éducatifs particuliers qu'ils s'attendent à rencontrer dans leur future pratique. Bien que la formation soit jugée insuffisante par les étudiant-e-s, elle oriente néanmoins favorablement leurs prises de position envers l'intégration des élèves concernés. En particulier, une plus grande pratique de stage, si modeste soit-elle, a un effet important sur ces prises de position par l'augmentation du sentiment de compétence et la perception d'assurance des futurs enseignant-e-s.

Prostate Cancer Unit Initiative in Europe: A position paper by the European School of Oncology.

The Prostate Cancer Programme of the European School of Oncology developed the concept of specialised interdisciplinary and multiprofessional prostate cancer care to be formalized in Prostate Cancer Units (PCU). After the publication in 2011 of the collaborative article "The Requirements of a Specialist Prostate Cancer Unit: A Discussion Paper from the European School of Oncology", in 2012 the PCU Initiative in Europe was launched. A multiprofessional Task Force of internationally recognized opinion leaders, among whom representatives of scientific societies, and patient advocates gathered to set standards for quality comprehensive prostate cancer care and designate care pathways in PCUs. The result was a consensus on 40 mandatory and recommended standards and items, covering several macro-areas, from general requirements to personnel to organization and case management. This position paper describes the relevant, feasible and applicable core criteria for defining PCUs in most European countries delivered by PCU Initiative in Europe Task Force.

Short stature and primary ovarian insufficiency possibly due to chromosomal position effect in a balanced X;1 translocation.

BACKGROUND: Primary ovarian insufficiency (POI) is defined as a primary ovarian defect characterized by absent menarche (primary amenorrhea), a decrease in the initial primordial follicle number, high follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) levels and hypoestrogenism. Although the etiology of a majority of POI cases is not yet identified, several data suggest that POI has a strong genetic component. Conventional cytogenetic and molecular analyses have identified regions of the X chromosome that are associated with ovarian function, as well as POI candidate genes, such as FMR1 and DIAPH2. Here we describe a 10.5-year-old girl presenting with high FSH and luteinizing hormone (LH) levels, pathologic GH stimulation arginine and clonidine tests, short stature, pterygium, ovarian dysgenesis, hirsutism and POI. RESULTS: Cytogenetic analysis demonstrated a balanced reciprocal translocation between the q arms of chromosomes X and 1, with breakpoints falling in Xq21 and 1q41 bands. Molecular studies did not unravel any chromosome microdeletion/microduplication, and no XIST-mediated inactivation was found on the derivative chromosome 1. Interestingly, through immunofluorescence assays, we found that part of the Xq21q22 trait, translocated to chromosome 1q41, was late replicating and therefore possibly inactivated in 30 % metaphases both in lymphocytes and skin fibroblasts, in addition to a skewed 100 % inactivation of the normal X chromosome. These findings suggest that a dysregulation of gene expression might occur in this region. Two genes mapping to the Xq translocated region, namely DIAPH2 and FMR1, were found overexpressed if compared with controls. CONCLUSIONS: We report a case in which gonadal dysgenesis and POI are associated with over-expression of DIAPH2 gene and of FMR1 gene in wild type form. We hypothesize that this over-expression is possibly due to a phenomenon known as "chromosomal position effect", which accounts for gene expression variations depending on their localization within the nucleus. For the same effect a double mosaic inactivation of genes mapping to the Xq21-q22 region, demonstrated by immunofluorescence assays, may be the cause of a functional Xq partial monosomy leading to most Turner traits of the proband's phenotype.

SocialPosition : Social Position Indicators Construction Toolbox

This R package provides to sociologists (and related scientists) a toolbox to facilitate the construction of social position indicators from survey data. Social position indicators refer to what is commonly known as social class and social status. There exists in the sociological literature many theoretical conceptualisation and empirical operationalization of social class and social status. This first version of the package offers tools to construct the International Socio-Economic Index of Occupational Status (ISEI) and the Oesch social class schema. It also provides tools to convert several occupational classifications (PCS82, PCS03, and ISCO08) into a common one (ISCO88) to facilitate data harmonisation work, and tools to collapse (i.e. group) modalities of social position indicators.

Effect of humeral stem design on humeral position and range of motion in reverse shoulder arthroplasty.

PURPOSE: The impacts of humeral offset and stem design after reverse shoulder arthroplasty (RSA) have not been well-studied, particularly with regard to newer stems which have a lower humeral inclination. The purpose of this study was to analyze the effect of different humeral stem designs on range of motion and humeral position following RSA. METHODS: Using a three-dimensional computer model of RSA, a traditional inlay Grammont stem was compared to a short curved onlay stem with different inclinations (155°, 145°, 135°) and offset (lateralised vs medialised). Humeral offset, the acromiohumeral distance (AHD), and range of motion were evaluated for each configuration. RESULTS: Altering stem design led to a nearly 7-mm change in humeral offset and 4 mm in the AHD. Different inclinations of the onlay stems had little influence on humeral offset and larger influence on decreasing the AHD. There was a 10° decrease in abduction and a 5° increase in adduction between an inlay Grammont design and an onlay design with the same inclination. Compared to the 155° model, the 135° model improved adduction by 28°, extension by 24° and external rotation of the elbow at the side by 15°, but led to a decrease in abduction of 9°. When the tray was placed medially, on the 145° model, a 9° loss of abduction was observed. CONCLUSIONS: With varus inclination prostheses (135° and 145°), elevation remains unchanged, abduction slightly decreases, but a dramatic improvement in adduction, extension and external rotation with the elbow at the side are observed.

The Role of the Subjectivist Position in the Probabilization of Forensic Science

This paper is concerned with the contribution of forensic science to the legal process by helping reduce uncertainty. Although it is now widely accepted that uncertainty should be handled by probability because it is a safeguard against incoherent proceedings, there remain diverging and conflicting views on how probability ought to be interpreted. This is exemplified by the proposals in scientific literature that call for procedures of probability computation that are referred to as "objective," suggesting that scientists ought to use them in their reporting to recipients of expert information. I find such proposals objectionable. They need to be viewed cautiously, essentially because ensuing probabilistic statements can be perceived as making forensic science prescriptive. A motivating example from the context of forensic DNA analysis will be chosen to illustrate this. As a main point, it shall be argued that such constraining suggestions can be avoided by interpreting probability as a measure of personal belief, that is, subjective probability. Invoking references to foundational literature from mathematical statistics and philosophy of science, the discussion will explore the consequences of this interdisciplinary viewpoint for the practice of forensic expert reporting. It will be emphasized that-as an operational interpretation of probability-the subjectivist perspective enables forensic science to add value to the legal process, in particular by avoiding inferential impasses to which other interpretations of probability may lead. Moreover, understanding probability from a subjective perspective can encourage participants in the legal process to take on more responsibility in matters regarding the coherent handling of uncertainty. This would assure more balanced interactions at the interface between science and the law. This, in turn, provides support for ongoing developments that can be called the "probabilization" of forensic science.

Position de la métropole Aix Marseille Provence dans les réseaux mondiaux d'entreprises multinationales

La construction de la métropole Aix Marseille Provence (AMP) vise à améliorer la cohérence et la complémentarité de ses territoires. Promouvoir la métropole ne doit pas seulement considérer les communes indépendamment les unes des autres, mais les aborder comme un ensemble constituant bien davantage que la somme de ses parties grâce aux synergies entre les différents acteurs publics et privés. L'attractivité internationale est un des aspects de la promotion de la métropole qui profiterait de cette meilleure cohésion. L'étude vise à évaluer le positionnement international et les forces et faiblesses de la cohérence de la métropole pour son rayonnement dans les réseaux des entreprises multinationales.

Evolution of the Helvetic shelf (Switzerland) during the Barremian-early Aptian : paleoenvironmental, paleogeographic and paleoceanographic controlling factors

The Early Cretaceous has experienced the development of large shallow-water carbonate platform in tropical and subtropical regions, favoured by exceptionally warm climatic conditions, optimal trophic conditions and a suitable tectonic and paleogeographic context. This period was also characterized by shorter intervals, in which the widespread deposition of marine sediments enriched in organic matter occurred ("oceanic anoxic episodes": OAE). This study focuses on the Barremian- Aptian interval, during which the Urgonian platform developed throughout the northern Tethyan passive margin. Due to the Alpine orogeny, sediments belonging to this platform - named locally Schrattenkalk Formation, are presently outcropping in the Helvetic Alps. This study aims to reconstruct the paleogeographic evolution of the Helvetic platform, and to define the environmental and oceanographic factors, which influenced its development. Several key episodes in the life of this platform have been identified: - The installation of the platform, covering hemipelagic sediments of the Drusberg Member, near the limit between the early and late Barremian. - The temporary change of carbonate production type during the basal Aptian, with the deposition of the Rawil Member. - And finally the definitive interruption of photozoan carbonate platform sedimentation in the study area, during the early Aptian. The sedimentological, biostratigraphical and chemostratigraphic (8I3C) data lead to the sequential subdivision of eleven sections and one core, located throughout the different Helvetic nappes of Switzerland. The sequence stratigraphie framework, initially defined for the Urgonian carbonate platform of the Vercors area (SE France), is confirmed in the Helvetic nappes, where the same number of sequences was observed. Many similarities between these two areas are put forward in this work. The sequence stratigraphie framework helped to highlight the installation of a bioclastic body, included in the Schrattenkalk Formation, since the middle Early Barremian (sequence B2). The age of the installation of the rudist-rich limestone, which corresponds to the Urgonian facies sensu stricto, is attributed to the late Barremian (maximum flooding surface of the sequence B3). This age coincides with the one determined in other northern Tethyan areas for the installation of the Urgonian platform. The results of this study show a strong tectonic control of the platform architecture, with the presence of syn-sedimentary faults in a perpendicular position to the progradation direction of the platform. The presence of these faults was highlighted by the study of the evolution of the microfacies distribution and by thickness variations in different areas. Sea level fluctuations also played an important role in the various life phases of the platform. Three major falls in sea level have been identified. A significant emersion of the proximal domain has been observed, involving an important drop of the relative sea level, leading to the exposure of the Drusberg Member hemipelagic series. A second major drop in sea level is identified near the Barremian-Aptian boundary, and a third is registered on the top of the Upper Schrattenkalk Member on the whole platform; it is associated with a karst affecting the underlying limestones to a depth of over 20 meters. This observation sheds new light on the conditions linked to the demise of Urgonian platform, which was strongly influenced by this phase of emersion.

Impact of the Femoral Head Position on Moment Arms in Total Hip Arthroplasty: A Parametric Finite Element Study.

BACKGROUND: Although the importance of accurate femoral reconstruction to achieve a good functional outcome is well documented, quantitative data on the effects of a displacement of the femoral center of rotation on moment arms are scarce. The purpose of this study was to calculate moment arms after nonanatomical femoral reconstruction. METHODS: Finite element models of 15 patients including the pelvis, the femur, and the gluteal muscles were developed. Moment arms were calculated within the native anatomy and compared to distinct displacement of the femoral center of rotation (leg lengthening of 10 mm, loss of femoral offset of 20%, anteversion ±10°, and fixed anteversion at 15°). Calculations were performed within the range of motion observed during a normal gait cycle. RESULTS: Although with all evaluated displacements of the femoral center of rotation, the abductor moment arm remained positive, some fibers initially contributing to extension became antagonists (flexors) and vice versa. A loss of 20% of femoral offset led to an average decrease of 15% of abductor moment. Femoral lengthening and changes in femoral anteversion (±10°, fixed at 15°) led to minimal changes in abductor moment arms (maximum change of 5%). Native femoral anteversion correlated with the changes in moment arms induced by the 5 variations of reconstruction. CONCLUSION: Accurate reconstruction of offset is important to maintaining abductor moment arms, while changes of femoral rotation had minimal effects. Patients with larger native femoral anteversion appear to be more susceptible to femoral head displacements.