Research and training in medicinal chemistry in south and central american countries and sub-saharan Africa

With the proposal to search for universal cooperation in the field of Medicinal Chemistry, the IUPAC group has elaborated a line of work divided into two phases: a- An Awareness of the true situation of Medicinal Chemistry in the different geographic areas of the world; b- A proposal of actions as to achieve more effective cooperation. This first report presents and discusses the actual situation in South and Central America as well as in sub-Saharan Africa.

Serological and virological surveys of the influenza A viruses in Antarctic and sub-Antarctic penguins

To evaluate the avian influenza virus (AIV) circulation in Antarctic and sub-Antarctic penguins we carried out a serosurvey on six species from Livingston, Marion and Gough islands. Seropositivity against AIV was performed on serum samples using a competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and haemagglutination and neuraminidase inhibition assays. Some oropharyngeal and cloacal swabs were also assayed to detect influenza virus genomes by real time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. Overall, 12.1% (n = 140) penguins were seropositive to AIV. By species, we detected 5% (n = 19) and 11% (n = 18) seroprevalence in sub-Antarctic rockhopper penguins (Eudyptes spp.) from Gough and Marion islands, respectively, 42% (n = 33) seroprevalence in macaroni penguins (Eudyptes chysolophus Brandt), but no positives in the three other species, gentoo (Pygoscelis papua Forster; n = 25) and chinstrap penguins (P. antarctica Forster; n = 16), from Livingston Island and king penguins (Aptenodytes patagonicus Miller; n = 27) from Marion Island. While seropositivity reflected previous exposure to the AIV, the influenza genome was not detected. Our results indicate that AIV strains have circulated in penguin species in the sub-Antarctic region, but further studies are necessary to determine the precise role that such penguin species play in AIV epidemiology and if this circulation is species (or genus) specific.

ZONE INTERMÉDIAIRE – Recontruction de l’identité raciale dans L’Amant de Marguerite Duras

Tutkielman aiheena on Marguerite Durasin romaani L’Amant (suom. Rakastaja). Tarkastelen romaanin valkoihoisen nuoren tytön ”rodullisen” identiteetin rakentumista käyttäen heijastuskuvana Toista, tytön ”erirotuista” kiinalaista rakastajaa. Osittain omaelämäkerrallisen romaanin tapahtumat sijoittuvat Ranskan entiseen siirtomaahan, Indokiinaan. Kolonialismin aikainen rotusorto ja valkoisen ”rodun” mytologisen vallan rakentuminen ja konkretisoituminen ovat siis sekä tutkimukseni konteksti että tutkimuskohde. Tarkastelen missä määrin tytön rodullinen identiteetti pitää yllä – tai toisaalta rikkoo – ”rotujen” hierarkkista ajattelua. Tutkimuksen teoreettinen viitekehys on jälkikoloniaalinen (postkoloniaalinen) tutkimus, joka on monitieteellinen itsekriittinen tutkimusmetodi. Tutkimuksen tarkoituksena on kyseenalaistaa länsimaissa vallitsevia kategorioita. Päälähteinä käytetään mm. Dyerin (1997), Memmin (1994), Todorovin (1989), Girodin (2004), Hallin (1992, 1996), Derridan (1967, 1972, 1992), Shevoryn (2000), Dufourmentellen (2003) ja De Beauvoirin (1947) teoksia. Tutkimuksen keskeinen käsite on välitila, johon teoksen nuori tyttö voidaan tutkimustulosteni mukaan sijoittaa. Tyttö häilyy eräänlaisessa välitilassa valkoisen ja keltaisen ”rodun” välillä: hän tuntee kuuluvansa tavallaan molempiin ”rotuihin”, sillä hän on syntynyt Indokiinassa, puhuu paikallista kieltä ja suhtautuu paikallisiin tasavertaisemmin kuin valkoihoinen eliitti, mutta kuuluu kuitenkin syntyperältään valkoiseen ”rotuun”. Valkoisuutta ei usein määritellä ”roduksi”, vaikka muiden kuin valkoihoisten kohdalla ”rotu” määritellään joko negatiivisten tai positiivisten typologioiden mukaisesti. Tästä syystä valkoiset nähdään helposti ihmisyyden normina neutraaliksi väitetyssä valkoisten diskriminoivassa diskurssissa. L’Amant’ssa valkoisuus on näkemykseni mukaan kuitenkin näkyvää ja valkoisuuden valtaa kyseenalaistavaa. Valkoisen tytön perhe on valkoisten kolonialistien arvoasteikon alimmalla portaalla, sillä perhe on köyhä ja valkoisten valta rakentui suurelta osin siirtomaaisäntien taloudellispoliittiseen ylivaltaan. Koska tytön perheellä ei ole tarpeeksi varaa elitistiseen herruuteen, eliitti paheksuu tytön perhettä avoimesti erityisesti ”rotujen” välisen kielletyn suhteen tullessa julki, jolloin tyttö eristetään valkoisesta yhteisöstä. Kiinalainen puolestaan on miljardöörin perijä ja tämä suo hänelle hieman korkeamman aseman ”rotujen” hierarkiassa, vaikka hänen vaurautensa toisaalta uhkaakin valkoista valtaa. Myös romaanin monella tapaa konventioita rikkova seksuaalisuus on osa kielletyn suhteen välistä valtapeliä. Kirjailija strukturoi uudelleen patriarkaalisen sukupuolen rakentumisen feminisoimalla kiinalaisen miehen, sillä muussa tapauksessa hänen maskuliinisuutensa saattaisi saada ylivallan tytöstä, joka on sukupuolisesti Toinen.

Capillary thermal desorption unit for near real-time analysis of VOCs at sub-trace levels. Application to the analysis of environmental air contamination and breath samples

A capillary microtrap thermal desorption module is developed for near real-time analysis of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) at sub-ppbv levels in air samples. The device allows the direct injection of the thermally desorbed VOCs into a chromatographic column. It does not use a second cryotrap to focalize the adsorbed compounds before entering the separation column so reducing the formation of artifacts. The connection of the microtrap to a GC–MS allows the quantitative determination of VOCs in less than 40 min with detection limits of between 5 and 10 pptv (25 °C and 760 mmHg), which correspond to 19–43 ng m−3, using sampling volumes of 775 cm3. The microtrap is applied to the analysis of environmental air contamination in different laboratories of our faculty. The results obtained indicate that most volatile compounds are easily diffused through the air and that they also may contaminate the surrounding areas when the habitual safety precautions (e.g., working under fume hoods) are used during the manipulation of solvents. The application of the microtrap to the analysis of VOCs in breath samples suggest that 2,5-dimethylfuran may be a strong indicator of a person's smoking status

Bulletin des armées de la République : réservé à la zone des armées

1915/01/04 (N60)-1915/06/30 (N110).

Bulletin des armées de la République : réservé à la zone des armées

1914/08/15 (N1)-1915/01/03 (N59).

An Engineering Solution for using Coarse Meshes in the Simulation of Delamination with Cohesive Zone Models

This paper presents a methodology to determine the parameters used in the simulation of delamination in composite materials using decohesion finite elements. A closed-form expression is developed to define the stiffness of the cohesive layer. A novel procedure that allows the use of coarser meshes of decohesion elements in large-scale computations is proposed. The procedure ensures that the energy dissipated by the fracture process is correctly computed. It is shown that coarse-meshed models defined using the approach proposed here yield the same results as the models with finer meshes normally used in the simulation of fracture processes

Simulation of Delamination Propagation in Composites Under High-Cycle Fatigue by Means of Cohesive-Zone Models

A damage model for the simulation of delamination propagation under high-cycle fatigue loading is proposed. The basis for the formulation is a cohesive law that links fracture and damage mechanics to establish the evolution of the damage variable in terms of the crack growth rate dA/dN. The damage state is obtained as a function of the loading conditions as well as the experimentally-determined coefficients of the Paris Law crack propagation rates for the material. It is shown that by using the constitutive fatigue damage model in a structural analysis, experimental results can be reproduced without the need of additional model-specific curve-fitting parameters

Biotransformation and endocrine disruptive effects of contaminants in ringed seals - implications for monitoring and risk assessment

Marine mammals are exposed to persistent organic pollutants (POPs), which may be biotransformed to metabolites some of which are highly toxic. Both POPs and their metabolites may lead to adverse health effects, which have been studied using various biomarkers. Changes in endocrine homeostasis have been suggested to be sensitive biomarkers for contaminant-related effects. The overall objective of this doctoral thesis was to investigate biotransformation capacity of POPs and their potential endocrine disruptive effects in two contrasting ringed seal populations from the low contaminated Svalbard area and from the highly contaminated Baltic Sea. Biotransformation capacity was studied by determining the relationships between congener-specific patterns and concentrations of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), organochlorine pesticides (OCPs), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and their hydroxyl (OH)- and/or methylsulfonyl (MeSO₂)-metabolites, and catalytic activities of hepatic xenobiotic-metabolizing phase I and II enzymes. The results suggest that the biotransformation of PCBs, PBDEs and toxaphenes in ringed seals depends on the congener-specific halogen-substitution pattern. Biotransformation products detected in the seals included OH-PCBs, MeSO₂-PCBs and –DDE, pentachlorophenol, 4-OHheptachlorostyrene, and to a minor extent OH-PBDEs. The effects of life history state (moulting and fasting) on contaminant status and potential biomarkers for endocrine disruption, including hormone and vitamin homeostasis, were investigated in the low contaminated ringed seal population from Svalbard. Moulting/fasting status strongly affected thyroid, vitamin A and calcitriol homeostasis, body condition and concentrations of POPs and their OH-metabolites. In contrast, moulting/fasting status was not associated with variations in vitamin E levels. Endocrine disruptive effects on multiple endpoints were investigated in the two contrasting ringed seal populations. The results suggest that thyroid, vitamin A and calcitriol homeostasis may be affected by the exposure of contaminants and/or their metabolites in the Baltic ringed seals. Complex and non-linear relationships were observed between the contaminant levels and the endocrine variables. Positive relationships between circulating free and total thyroid hormone concentration ratios and OH-PCBs suggest that OH-PCBs may mediate the disruption of thyroid hormone transport in plasma. Species differences in thyroid and bone-related effects of contaminants were studied in ringed and grey seals from low contaminated references areas and from the highly contaminated Baltic Sea. The results indicate that these two species living at the same environment approximately at the same trophic level respond in a very different way to contaminant exposure. The results of this thesis suggest that the health status of the Baltic ringed seals has still improved during the last decade. PCB and DDE levels have decreased in these seals and the contaminant-related effects are different today than a decade ago. The health of the Baltic ringed seals is still suggested to be affected by the contaminant exposure. At the present level of the contaminant exposure the Baltic ringed seals seem to be at a zone where their body is able to compensate for the contaminant-mediated endocrine disruption. Based on the results of this thesis, several recommendations that could be applied on monitoring and assessing risk for contaminant effects are provided. Circulating OH-metabolites should be included in monitoring and risk assessment programs due to their high toxic potential. It should be noted that endogenous variables may have complex and highly variable responses to contaminant exposure including non-linear responses. These relationships may be further confounded by life history status. Therefore, it is highly recommended that when using variables related to endocrine homeostasis to investigate/monitor or assess the risk of contaminant effects in seals, the life history status of the animal should be carefully taken into consideration. This applies especially when using thyroid, vitamin A or calcitriolrelated parameters during moulting/fasting period. Extrapolations between species for assessing risk for contaminant effects in phocid seals should be avoided.

Indicadores químicos de qualidade da matéria orgânica de solo da sub-bacia do Rio das Mortes sob manejos diferenciais de cafeeiro

This work evaluated the chemical quality of organic matter (OM) of a Brazilian Oxisol cultivated with coffee plants, under organic and conventional managements. Total organic C (TOC), light fraction C (LF-C) and C in humic (HA-C) and fulvic (FA-C) acids fractions was measured. Amongst the evaluated indexes, TOC and LF-C discriminated better OM attributes as a function of management. The stratification ratio (TOC5-10cm/TOC10-20cm) did not show differences between the systems studied. The organic system can contribute to the sustainability of coffee plantations in Brazil, because it maintains the chemical attributes of OM closer to the indexes verified under forest conditions.

De fatis scientiae chemicae sub epocha patrum

Invocatio: D.D.

De candela sub aquis ardente

Invocatio: Q.F.F.Q.S.

Avaliação da qualidade de sedimentos - estudo de caso: sub-bacia do Ribeirão Espírito Santo, afluente do Rio São Francisco

This study evaluated the environmental impact resulting from surface water and sediment contamination by metals in a watershed affected by a tailing basin that controls effluents coming from a zinc-ore beneficiation plant. The studies combined assessments of sediment chemistry (exceedances of sediment quality guidelines), benthic assemblage structure and acute and chronic ecotoxicity. The results showed that the levels of metal contamination in sediments are not yet enough to cause deleterious effects to the biota. However, the ecotoxicity tests indicated the occurrence of chronic effects, demonstrating that other factors, as the use of fertilizers, could also be a source of contamination.