Les termes égyptiens désignant le scorpion

Étude des termes qui désignent le scorpion en égyptien ancien. Il apparaît que deux mots principaux sont utilisés, qui se retrouvent en copte, mais dans des dialectes différents. L'un des termes est utilisé dans le Delta, l'autre plus au sud. Cette répartition géographique semble remonter aux époques antérieures.

La formule épistolaire copte «c'est votre serviteur qui ose écrire à son Seigneur»

Étude de la formule épistolaire :« c'est votre serviteur qui ose écrire à son Seigneur ». Cette tournure, utilisée aux VIIe et VIIIe siècle, est caractéristique de Moyenne-Égypte. Corrections à plusieurs papyrus présentant cette formule. Publication d'un papyrus inédit de Bruxelles présentant cette tournure épistolaire.

Une étiquette de momie copte de l'ancienne collection G.A. Michaelidès

Édition d'une étiquette de momie portant un texte en copte.

Recherches sur le monastère copte d'Apa Apollô (Baouît). L'organisation du monastère aux VIIe et VIIIe siècles

Présentation de l'organisation du monastère de Baouît, à travers notamment la documentation écrite.

L'apophtegme de Grégoire de Nysse au Deir Abou Hennis

Réédition d'une inscription copte peinte au plafond de l'église rupestre de Deir Abou Hennis. Le texte n'avait pas été correctement traduit ou interprété par les premiers éditeurs. Le texte se présente comme une citation de Grégoire de Nysse, et on trouve en effet à deux reprises dans son œuvre la phrase qui est traduite en copte dans l'inscription. Mais il s'agit en réalité chez Grégoire d'une citation biblique (Prov. 13, 13). L'inscription est donc bien une citation de Grégoire de Nysse, qui est elle-même une citation du livre des Proverbes.

Le cycle de l'enfance du Christ dans l'église rupestre de Saint-Jean Baptiste à Deir Abou Hennis

Publication des peintures et inscriptions des murs nord et est du narthex de l'église rupestre du Deir Abou Hennis

Salted fish products from the Coptic monastery at Bawit, Egypt: evidence from the bones and texts

Fish bone assemblages are described that were recently discovered in the storage area of two rooms, dated to the 7th century AD, from the monastery of Bawit, Egypt. The species composition, the reconstructed sizes of the fish and the find contexts show that this material represents pickled fish (salsamenta). This product was made in one case of medium-sized Clarias catfish, whereas another assemblage, found inside an amphora, consisted of small-sized fish, mainly cyprinids and alestiids. The latter product was stored in a Late Roman Amphora 5/6 of Palestinian origin, traditionally considered as a container for wine. The amphora was clearly re-used since the fish found in it are Nilotic species which excludes that the salsamenta came from outside Egypt. A few additional finds of fish inside amphorae were available, but due to the low number of bones it was unclear if salted fish products were stored in them. Textual information provided by ostraca and papyri from the same site shows that the monks exerted fishing activities themselves and also suggests that the production of pickled fish took place locally. One of the two Nilotic fish taxa (Labeo) that is specifically mentioned by written evidence is the most common ingredient found in the amphora with abundant fish remains. The paper ends with a brief summary of other faunal evidence for salted fish products from monastic and other historic sites in Egypt.

Les derniers écueils vers la parité aux élections régionales en Belgique

La Belgique impose depuis les années 2000 la parité femmes-hommes sur les listes de candidats pour les élections aux différents niveaux de pouvoir (local, régional, fédéral et européen). Cette obligation a accru la féminisation des assemblées pour atteindre entre un quart et un tiers d’élues. Le progrès est donc réel mais la stricte parité reste éloignée. Cet article s’interroge sur les raisons de ce « plafond de verre ». Elles sont à chercher dans la réticence des partis à accorder les premières places sur les listes à des candidates, et encore plus à placer une femme en première position. Dans un scrutin proportionnel de listes semi-ouvertes, la part d’élues s’en trouve automatiquement réduite, surtout lorsque la magnitude des circonscriptions est faible. Parmi les motivations de ces réticences à la parité l’une des plus importantes est la conviction que les candidates seraient de moins bonnes « locomotives électorales » que leurs homologues masculins. Pourtant, et cet article le démontre, ces craintes ne résistent pas à l’épreuve des faits. Une analyse détaillée des résultats électoraux en Belgique montre bien que les femmes ne réalisent pas de moins bonnes performances électorales que les hommes lorsqu’elles sont placées en tête de liste.

Fragments bibliques coptes

Identification et réédition de deux ostraca, un papyrus et un parchemin coptes. Les documents portent des textes bibliques. O. Brit. Mus. Copt. II 44 :Ps. 18, 8; 36, 1; 78, 9 (?) et 98, 6. O. Brit. Mus. Copt. II 45 :Ps. 31, 10-11. P. Med. Copto Inv. 246b :Mt 1, 18; 20. P. Med. Copto Inv. 71.41c :Lc 1, 64-65; 68-69.

Deux inscriptions du temple d'Horus à Edfou

Edition d'un proscynème grec inédit (époque impériale) et réédition d'une inscription copte, déjà publiée comme un texte grec (I.Lefebvre 551).

CD4+ CD25+ regulatory T cells control T helper cell type 1 responses to foreign antigens induced by mature dendritic cells in vivo.

Recent evidence suggests that in addition to their well known stimulatory properties, dendritic cells (DCs) may play a major role in peripheral tolerance. It is still unclear whether a distinct subtype or activation status of DC exists that promotes the differentiation of suppressor rather than effector T cells from naive precursors. In this work, we tested whether the naturally occurring CD4+ CD25+ regulatory T cells (Treg) may control immune responses induced by DCs in vivo. We characterized the immune response induced by adoptive transfer of antigen-pulsed mature DCs into mice depleted or not of CD25+ cells. We found that the development of major histocompatibility complex class I and II-restricted interferon gamma-producing cells was consistently enhanced in the absence of Treg. By contrast, T helper cell (Th)2 priming was down-regulated in the same conditions. This regulation was independent of interleukin 10 production by DCs. Of note, splenic DCs incubated in vitro with Toll-like receptor ligands (lipopolysaccharide or CpG) activated immune responses that remained sensitive to Treg function. Our data further show that mature DCs induced higher cytotoxic activity in CD25-depleted recipients as compared with untreated hosts. We conclude that Treg naturally exert a negative feedback mechanism on Th1-type responses induced by mature DCs in vivo.

Identification of ribosomal proteins specific to higher eukaryotic organisms

This report describes the identification of a novel protein named PS1D (Genbank accession number ), which is composed of an S1-like RNA-binding domain, a (cysteine)x3-(histidine) CCCH-zinc finger, and a very basic carboxyl domain. PS1D is expressed as two isoforms, probably resulting from the alternative splicing of mRNA. The long PS1D isoform differs from the short one by the presence of 48 additional amino acids at its amino-terminal extremity. Analysis of PS1D subcellular distribution by cell fractionation reveals that this protein belongs to the core of the eukaryotic 60S ribosomal subunit. Interestingly, PS1D protein is a highly conserved protein among mammalians as murine, human, and simian PS1D homologues share more than 95% identity. In contrast, no homologous protein is found in lower eukaryotes such as yeast and Caenorhabditis elegans. These observations indicate that PS1D is the first eukaryotic ribosomal protein that is specific to higher eukaryotes.

Diversion of intestinal flow decreases the numbers of interleukin 4 secreting and interferon gamma secreting T lymphocytes in small bowel mucosa.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: The intestinal immune system faces large amounts of antigens, and its regulation is tightly balanced by cytokines. In this study, the effect of intestinal flow diversion on spontaneous secretion of interleukin (IL)-4 and interferon (IFN)- gamma was analysed. METHODS: Eight patients (two with Crohn's disease, four with ulcerative colitis, and two with previous colon cancer) carrying a double lumen small bowel stoma after a total colectomy procedure were included in the study. For each patient, eight biopsy samples were taken endoscopically from both the diverted and non-diverted part of the small bowel. Intraepithelial lymphocytes (IELs) and lamina propria lymphocytes (LPLs) were isolated separately and assayed for numbers of cells spontaneously secreting IL-4 and/or IFN-gamma by an ELISPOT technique. RESULTS: Compared with the non-diverted mucosa, a significant decrease in the number of spontaneously IFN-gamma secreting CD3 lymphocytes was observed in the diverted small bowel mucosa among both IELs (p = 0.008) and LPLs (p = 0.007). The same results, although less significant, were obtained for IL-4, especially in LPLs (p = 0.01). CONCLUSION: The intestinal content influences the spontaneous secretion of IFN-gamma and IL-4 by intestinal lymphocytes. These results could help to elucidate the anti-inflammatory role of split ileostomy in patients suffering from inflammatory bowel diseases.

Effective detection of celiac disease using salivary anti-transglutaminase.

Comment

Optimal assessment of the ability of children with recurrent respiratory tract infections to produce anti-polysaccharide antibodies.

Specific anti-polysaccharide antibody deficiency (SPAD) is an immune disorder. Diagnostic criteria have not yet been defined clearly. One hundred and seventy-six children evaluated for recurrent respiratory tract infections were analysed retrospectively. For each subject, specific anti-pneumococcal antibodies had been measured with two enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs), one overall assay (OA) using the 23-valent pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (23-PPSV) as detecting antigen and the other purified pneumococcal polysaccharide serotypes (serotype-specific assay, SSA) (serotypes 14, 19F and 23F). Antibody levels were measured before (n = 176) and after (n = 93) immunization with the 23-PPSV. Before immunization, low titres were found for 138 of 176 patients (78%) with OA, compared to 20 of 176 patients (11%) with the SSA. We found a significant correlation between OA and SSA results. After immunization, 88% (71 of 81) of the patients considered as responders in the OA test were also responders in the SSA; 93% (71 of 76) of the patients classified as responders according to the SSA were also responders in the OA. SPAD was diagnosed in 8% (seven of 93) of patients on the basis of the absence of response in both tests. Thus, we propose to use OA as a screening test for SPAD before 23-PPSV immunization. After immunization, SSA should be used only in case of a low response in OA. Only the absence of or a very low antibody response detected by both tests should be used as a diagnostic criterion for SPAD.