Search

BACKGROUND: Most COVID-19 patients were treated in primary health care (PHC) in Europe. OBJECTIVES: To demonstrate the scope of PHC workflow during the COVID-19 pandemic emphasising similarities and differences of patient's clinical pathways in Europe. METHODS: Descriptive, cross-sectional study with data acquired through a semi-structured questionnaire in PHC in 30 European countries, created ad hoc and agreed upon among all researchers who participated in the study. GPs from each country answered the approved questionnaire. Main variable: PHC COVID-19 acute clinical pathway. All variables were collected from each country as of September 2020. RESULTS: COVID-19 clinics in PHC facilities were organised in 8/30. Case detection and testing were performed in PHC in 27/30 countries. RT-PCR and lateral flow tests were performed in PHC in 23/30, free of charge with a medical prescription. Contact tracing was performed mainly by public health authorities. Mandatory isolation ranged from 5 to 14 days. Sick leave certification was given exclusively by GPs in 21/30 countries. Patient hotels or other resources to isolate patients were available in 12/30. Follow-up to monitor the symptoms and/or new complementary tests was made mainly by phone call (27/30). Chest X-ray and phlebotomy were performed in PHC in 18/30 and 23/30 countries, respectively. Oxygen and low-molecular-weight heparin were available in PHC (21/30). CONCLUSION: In Europe PHC participated in many steps to diagnose, treat and monitor COVID-19 patients. Differences among countries might be addressed at European level for the management of future pandemics. ispartof: Eur J Gen Pract vol:29 issue:2 pages:2182879- ispartof: location:England status: published

Background: Most COVID-19 patients were treated in primary health care (PHC) in Europe. Objectives: To demonstrate the scope of PHC workflow during the COVID-19 pandemic emphasising similarities and differences of patient’s clinical pathways in Europe. Methods: Descriptive, cross-sectional study with data acquired through a semi-structured questionnaire in PHC in 30 European countries, created ad hoc and agreed upon among all researchers who participated in the study. GPs from each country answered the approved questionnaire. Main variable: PHC COVID-19 acute clinical pathway. All variables were collected from each country as of September 2020. Results: COVID-19 clinics in PHC facilities were organised in 8/30. Case detection and testing were performed in PHC in 27/30 countries. RT-PCR and lateral flow tests were performed in PHC in 23/30, free of charge with a medical prescription. Contact tracing was performed mainly by public health authorities. Mandatory isolation ranged from 5 to 14 days. Sick leave certification was given exclusively by GPs in 21/30 countries. Patient hotels or other resources to isolate patients were available in 12/30. Follow-up to monitor the symptoms and/or new complementary tests was made mainly by phone call (27/30). Chest X-ray and phlebotomy were performed in PHC in 18/30 and 23/30 countries, respectively. Oxygen and low- molecular-weight heparin were available in PHC (21/30). Conclusion: In Europe PHC participated in many steps to diagnose, treat and monitor COVID-19 patients. Differences among countries might be addressed at European level for the management of future pandemics.

Cationic amidotitanocene complexes [Cp2 Ti(NPhAr)][B(C6 F5 )4 ] (Cp=η5 -C5 H5 ; Ar=phenyl (1 a), p-tolyl (1 b), p-anisyl (1 c)) were isolated. The bonding situation was studied by DFT (Density Functional Theory) using EDA-NOCV (Energy Decomposition Analysis with Natural Orbitals for Chemical Valence). The polar Ti-N bond in 1 a-c features an unusual inversion of σ and π bond strengths responsible for the balance between stability and reactivity in these coordinatively unsaturated species. In solution, 1 a-c undergo photolytic Ti-N cleavage to release Ti(III) species and aminyl radicals ⋅NPhAr. Reaction of 1 b with H3 BNHMe2 results in fast homolytic Ti-N cleavage to give [Cp2 Ti(H3 BNHMe2 )][B(C6 F5 )4 ] (3). 1 a-c are highly active precatalysts in olefin hydrogenation and silanes/amines cross-dehydrogenative coupling, whilst 3 efficiently catalyzes amine-borane dehydrogenation. The mechanism of olefin hydrogenation was studied by DFT and the cooperative H2 activation key step was disclosed using the Activation Strain Model (ASM).

PurposeThe crane plays an essential role in modern construction sites as it supports numerous operations and activities on-site. Additionally, the crane produces a big amount of data that, if analyzed, could significantly affect productivity, progress monitoring and decision-making in construction projects. This paper aims to show the usability of crane data in tracking the progress of activities on-site.Design/methodology/approachThis paper presents a pattern-based recognition method to detect concrete pouring activities on any concrete-based construction sites. A case study is presented to assess the methodology with a real-life example.FindingsThe analysis of the data helped build a theoretical pattern for concrete pouring activities and detect the different phases and progress of these activities. Accordingly, the data become useable to track progress and identify problems in concrete pouring activities.Research limitations/implicationsThe paper presents an example for construction practitioners and researcher about a practical and easy way to analyze the big data that comes from cranes and how it is used in tracking projects' progress. The current study focuses only on concrete pouring activities; future studies can include other types of activities and can utilize the data with other building methods to improve construction productivity.Practical implicationsThe proposed approach is supposed to be simultaneously efficient in terms of concrete pouring detection as well as cost-effective. Construction practitioners could track concrete activities using an already-embedded monitoring device.Originality/valueWhile several studies in the literature targeted the optimization of crane operations and of mitigating hazards through automation and sensing, the opportunity of using cranes as progress trackers is yet to be fully exploited.

Cet article est un compte-rendu du livre : Jean Lorrain, Lettres à Jérôme Doucet, édition établie et annotée par Évanghélia Stead & Éric Walbecq, Tusson : Édition Du Lérot, 2022, 192 p., EAN 9782355481635.

To translate and validate the Greek version of the Somatic Symptom Scale-8 (SSS-8) in patients with chronic low back pain (CLBP). The Greek SSS-8, created through forth and back translation and cultural adaption processes, was handed over to 145 patients recruited using simple random sampling. Test–retest, composite, and internal consistency reliability were assessed. Construct validity was examined by assessing correlations with Patient Health Questionnaire-15 (PHQ-15), Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7), and EuroQoL 5-dimension 5-level (EQ-5D-5L) instruments. Structural validity was assessed using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Convergent, discriminant, and known group validity were also evaluated. The response rate was 95.1% (138 subjects, mean age 43.2 ± 11.7) and the overall Cronbach’s alpha was 0.831. Test–retest reliability assessment revealed excellent results (Pearson's r > 0.996; Lin’s concordance coefficient > 0.995; intraclass correlation coefficient >0.995, all p < 0.001). Composite reliability scores for the pain, cardiopulmonary, and fatigue domains were 0.712, 0.787, and 0.567, respectively. The correlation analyses indicated good construct validity. CFA revealed excellent fit results and known group validity output indicated a linear increasing trend in the severity of somatic symptom disorders (SSDs), depression, and anxiety with higher PHQ-15, PHQ-9, and GAD-7 scores (Jonckheere-Terpstra test, p value < 0.001). The Greek SSS-8 was shown to be a reliable and valid tool for measuring SSDs in patients with CLBP.Implications for RehabilitationAccording to the Global Burden of Diseases Study 2017, LBP was one of the leading causes of disability for both sexes combined since 1990.Strategies to identify SSDs in patients with LBP at an earlier stage are essential both for the provision of an optimal targeted treatment and for minimizing its direct and indirect economic burden.The Greek SSS-8 is a standardized and validated instrument, which its utilization will enhance the physical therapy assessment process in the Greek population.Not only is the SSS-8 an easy-to-use and highly accurate diagnostic tool for detecting SSDs, but also a short alternative to PHQ-15 in settings with limited assessment time. According to the Global Burden of Diseases Study 2017, LBP was one of the leading causes of disability for both sexes combined since 1990. Strategies to identify SSDs in patients with LBP at an earlier stage are essential both for the provision of an optimal targeted treatment and for minimizing its direct and indirect economic burden. The Greek SSS-8 is a standardized and validated instrument, which its utilization will enhance the physical therapy assessment process in the Greek population. Not only is the SSS-8 an easy-to-use and highly accurate diagnostic tool for detecting SSDs, but also a short alternative to PHQ-15 in settings with limited assessment time.

Cet article est un compte-rendu du livre : Luce Abélès, Marges et cimaises. Art et littérature au XIXe siècle, du musée aux imprimés, articles réunis et édités sous la direction d’Hélène Védrine, Paris / Tusson, Saaj / Du Lérot, 2021, 456 p. et 80 p. (cahier iconographique en couleur), ISBN : 9782355481581.

Despite the unequivocal value of vaccination in reducing the global burden of infectious diseases, the anti-vaccination movement thrives. The vast majority of the existing validated tools explore attitudes regarding vaccination in children. The aim of our study was to develop and validate a scale assessing attitudes towards adult immunisation. This national cross-sectional study included adult healthcare users who visited 23 Greek Primary Healthcare Units. The development of the scale was the result of literature review, semi-structured interviews and pilot testing of its preliminary versions. The initial version contained 15 items measuring respondents' attitudes on a 6-point Likert scale. The sample was randomly split into two halves. Exploratory factor analysis, performed in the first sample, was used for the creation of multi-item scales; confirmatory factor analysis was used in the second sample to assess goodness of fit. Moreover, concurrent validity, internal consistency reliability, test-retest reliability and ceiling and floor effects were explored. The total sample consisted of 1,571 individuals. Overall 'Cronbach's alpha' (0.821) indicated good internal consistency. The initial exploratory factor analysis resulted in a three-factor model. The subsequent confirmatory factor analysis indicated that an 11-item version of the scale provided the best fit of the model to the data (RMSEA = 0.050, SRMR = 0.053, TLI = 0.937, CFI = 0.955, AIC = 24,999.949). All subscales ('value of adult vaccination', 'safety concerns' and 'perceived barriers') demonstrated strong concurrent associations with participants' attitudes and behaviour regarding vaccination (p < .001). No ceiling or floor effects were noted for any of the subscales (0.13%, 2.61% and 0.51%; 0.13%, 0.57% and 0.45% respectively). The 11-item ATAVAC scale proved to be a reliable and valid tool, suitable for assessing attitudes towards adult vaccination.

Aims To determine the prevalence of type-2 diabetes patients that were initially and currently being treated by primary care physicians (PCPs) or diabetes specialists and assess predictors influencing their choice. Methods This cross-sectional study was conducted in nine Greek primary healthcare units. Patients’ choices were modeled using a bivariate probit analysis. Results A total of 225 patients participated (84% response rate). Only 15.9% and 11.9% of the respondents acknowledged having chosen a diabetes specialist for their initial or current treatment, respectively. The family history of diabetes in siblings and the screening for diabetic retinopathy during the past year were significantly positively associated with choosing a diabetes specialist (initially p = 0.033 or currently p = 0.007), and resulted in a statistically significant reduction of the joint probabilities of choosing a PCP by 15.6% and 13.6%, respectively. Younger age (p = 0.040), female sex (p = 0.017), higher HbA1c (p = 0.004), experience of hypoglycemia (p = 0.029) and low cardiovascular morbidity index (p = 0.016) emerged as important predictors for choosing a diabetes specialist for their treatment. Conclusions Our findings provide a better insight in diabetes patients’ choices regarding the category of their treating physicians and their predictors. More studies are required to replicate them and identify patient subpopulations that may favor diabetes specialists’ guidance.

In this study, we explore automated reasoning tools (ART) in geometry education and we argue that these tools are part of a wider, nascent ecosystem for computer-supported geometric reasoning. To p...

Cet article est un compte-rendu du livre : Irène Fabry-Tehranchi et Catherine Nicolas, L’Iconographie du Lancelot-Graal, Turnhout : Brepols, coll. « Répertoire iconographique de la littérature du Moyen Âge » (série « Corpus » n° 7), 2021, 628 p., EAN 9782503580036.

The chapter theorizes the logic of a postcolonial black elite appropriating cultures of white colonial power to define itself, while cultivating a secular worship of ancestors who vanquished white supremacy. It reads a history of the whiteness/blackness binary phenomenologically and discovers culture irreducibly guarding the boundaries of privilege indexed by whiteness in the Atlantic. These boundaries become transracially permeable between the transmissibility of culture and the need of capitalist modernity to reinvent itself continually, making hitherto “white” privilege accessible to people “of color” with requisite competence in cultures of whiteness. The chapter notes the central importance accorded a Western “education” by other black Atlantic postcolonial elites, by way of arguing that, in the (post)colony as much as in Europe, such education produces a certain subjectivity, not a certain physiognomy. The chapter then engages critically with discourses and practices around French cultures that articulate with a privileged class situation in Haiti.

This book redefines Haiti from the first “Black Republic” to the first bourgeois nation-state of the Americas, albeit one forged from a slave insurrection by an alliance of black and mulatto natives of Saint-Domingue who had been free, enslaved, or slaveholders. In a prototype of bourgeois political economy, the state proclaims universal liberty of the person within the nation and subjugates the labor of a class of working people to personal enrichment in an elite class that controls capital. It also withholds citizenship from native Africans. Mapping and theorizing the conjugated work of race and class in the politics of privilege in Haiti, this ethnography’s ultimate ambition as engaged scholarship is to contribute clarity on the instrumentality of race, color, and nation in postcolonial social stratification in the orbit of the West. The country was the first postcolonial Western place, where non-whites attained privileges hitherto reserved for whites. Today, throughout the West, elite subjects routinely hold powers that reproduce class privilege and concomitant social inequality, while becoming in elite discourses racial subjects whose “race” is presumptively a formation of oppressed people. How do we reveal who is doing what to whom beyond the race discourse? How do we speak to race and racism, when oppressors “of color” can experience racism while standing in solidarity coherently with “white” oppressors, and political resistance by the oppressed remains fragmented in racialism? As David Scott might say, this study seeks questions worth asking, when the answer worth having is a social justice beyond racial justice in the postcolonial bourgeois society.

This chapter explores the peculiar place of whiteness in the privileged Haitian’s imaginary. Light-skinned Haitians do not generally become whites. Mulattoes nonetheless in general fetishize the appearance of whiteness in the body. From the material valuation of whiteness in the USA (Hacker 1992; Bush 2004), the chapter apprehends color prejudice in its material logic, which seeks the derivative valuation of a relatively light complexion in a nonwhite people. The prejudiced mulatto is not moving away from a Haitian identity but staking a claim on the value of global whiteness within an alternate (of the black) national imaginary. Drawing on Trouillot (1990a), the chapter also shows that blacks as well as mulattoes operationalize colorism as but one modality among others toward the reproduction of a privileged-class situation. The final section of the chapter captures the rupture of liberal politics in Haitian civil society by the politics of color.

The introduction unpacks the Black Republic trope, states class as Haiti’s primordial vector of social inclusion/exclusion, and announces subsequent chapters. Chapter 1, contextualizing the study historically, finds native Africans being denied citizenship at the nation’s founding. Chapter 2 sketches privileged Haitian lives in crosscurrents of color and class. Chapter 3 investigates a nationalism that makes the black Haitian the ideal national subject. Chapter 4 explores a privileged black sociality that challenges the negation of the nation’s Blackness by mulatto colorism. Chapter 5 illustrates mulatto fetishism of the “white” body in the context of global white racism. Chapters 6 and 7 show a broader colorism and other class ideologies uniting bilingual blacks and mulattoes in the reproduction of privilege and the marginalization of monolingual Creole-speaking Haitians. Chapter 8 delineates a political economy of French competence undergirding privilege. The conclusion finds the rupture of liberal politics among privileged Haitians at the boundary of color and considers what might repair it.

Bearing black-nationalist anger at mulatto color prejudice, Haiti’s progressive privileged blacks, bourgeois subjects, see themselves a priori in unity with the —generally dark-skinned—poor majority and in disunity with mulattoes, fellow bourgeois subjects. In the contradiction, politically liberal blacks and politically liberal mulattoes become mutually unintelligible on the national condition, and this hermeneutic failure preempts a coherent liberal politics in the privileged classes. Theorizing this dilemma, the conclusion conflates black classist colorism with mulatto color prejudice as a singular praxis of privilege to be confronted honestly in civil society as pre-condition of an effective Haitian liberalism that might produce a state with a modicum of accountability to the nation. Finally, reading the scope of Haiti’s “color question” in the global valuation of whiteness, for the ultimate defeat of colorism in Haiti and elsewhere in the Western postcolony, the study suggests theoretical pathways toward a systematic global devaluation of “white” skin as currency of social economy.

The chapter works to reveal that the Blackness of Haiti reproduced by the global intelligentsia is politically instrumental in Haitian social stratification. It begins at an international conference, where a panelist’s extemporaneous musing about “the first black republic” reaffirms taken-for-granted postulates in the dominant narrative of Haiti. The middle section critically reads the 1968 unveiling of the iconic sculpture Le marron inconnu by the noiriste dictator François Duvalier and the mulatto architect Albert Mangonès. It notes their mutual accommodation of the nationalist traditions of their respective color formations, while Duvalier does blunt discursive violence to the memory of the colonial bossale. It then reads a contemporary newspaper reportage that insistently delegitimates the views of poor Haitians, who fail to see any historic significance in The Unknown Maroon. The chapter ends by further mapping patterns of significance and insignificance of the Black Republic narrative among, respectively, privileged and non-privileged Haitians.

Class is the terrain on which both the privileged black and the privileged mulatto perform their distinction from Haiti’s poor and culturally marginalized subjects. They share a corpus of class ideologies, which include color ideologies and in aggregate regulate social stratification. Theorizing not-black as effectively the social color of relatively dark-skinned privileged Haitians in everyday life, through literary productions and the ethnographic moment, the chapter maps discursive ways in which bilingual privileged blacks and mulattoes—Western bourgeois subjects—alternately blacken the poor Haitian and distance themselves from social blackness. It ends with a critical reading of the moment in 1960 when noiristes and mulattoes of the privileged classes celebrated the “crowning” of Claudinette Fouchard, a daughter of the mulatto elite, as a “beauty queen” on the global stage. The analysis reveals the transcendent unity of the privileged classes and the externality of the peasantry in that celebration of the nation’s bourgeois pedigree.

The chapter explores spatial and temporal dimensions of the unity of privileged Haitians across the boundary of color in the articulation of class reproduction. Among research participants contingently encountered in the field, it draws intersecting diachronic genealogical trajectories that link the Haitian rural elite and urban privilege in Port-au-Prince and the Western metropolis beyond. The chapter delineates a cohesive sociality that encompasses blacks and mulattoes from the middle classes and the economic and political elites in professional relationships, or in friendships forged as children in a genteel neighborhood where they still live. To illustrate cogently the material unity of the two colorized formations of privilege as a modality of class formation, the chapter concludes with an ethnographic moment, in which a prejudiced mulatto entrepreneur enacts the reproduction of his class situation in concert with that of a black peer at the expense of his poor, monolingual, creolophone workers.

The first part of this chapter links the experience of a working-class unemployed mother of two to that of an upper-middle-class black couple to reveal across class lines Haitians’ aspirational turn to Western ways of being social. Between the two emerges a practical critique of the romantic longing for mythic anticolonial narratives (Scott 2004), among which the tale of the Black Republic is an alluring epic. The chapter also teases out a political liberalism that circulates among privileged blacks and among privileged mulattoes, while the sociopolitics of color preempt linkages between liberals across the boundaries of their respective formations. Through the Haitian bourgeois liberal experience, it ends with a critique of Susan Buck-Morss’s ahistorical reading of the Saint-Domingue Revolution through Hegel’s “universal.” This critical engagement sees Buck-Morss’s exercise in dehistoricization as the epitome of a global imagining of Haiti as a project of absolute liberation derailed by global forces.

The historical contextualization of this study, which apprehends Haiti’s two colorized formations as united classes of privileged people, begins with an exegesis of the Acte de l’Indépendance, the country’s birth declaration. It addresses the nation’s subjects as indigène and citizen interchangeably, explicitly defining indigène as one born on “this land,” otherwise known as a creole, irrespective of color. The Armée indigène, a creole alliance, ruthlessly destroyed armies of bossales, the former slaves born in Africa, before defeating the French and authoring both the nation and the Acte. Arguing that it withheld citizenship from native Africans present at the nation’s founding, the chapter notes that the Haitian state has never revisited the matter and no scholar of Haiti or Haitian intellectual has ever considered the significance of the Founding Fathers’ “indigène” vocabulary. It then traces the imbrication of Haiti’s elites in the Atlantic and their instrumentalization of color in national politics.

François Duvalier appropriated the figure of the negro and reconstructed it as a Haitian nègre central to noirisme. The chapter situates Duvalier’s nègre as a pivot of a black-nationalist sociality of the privileged, where it preempts mulatto participation, given mulattoes’ valuation of European bodily ideals. It then shows (black) constituents of this sociality crossing class boundaries at an event in a Port-au-Prince slum, where markers of their class remain operative. The chapter then finds them in a transcendent sociality—at a trendy bistro—where mulattoes and blacks together realize and reproduce their class situations. They are again later at another space of privilege, where this time the black-nationalist sociality reproduces itself in contradistinction to the mulatto, who becomes the other Haitian. In an ethnographic moment ending the chapter, the black-nationalist sociality of privilege can neither contain nor deny class tensions that inhere between privileged and nonprivileged blacks of the nation.

Connexin 43 (Cx43) gap junctions and hemichannels mediate astrocyte intercellular communication in the central nervous system under normal conditions and contribute to astrocyte-mediated neurotoxicity in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Here, we show that astrocyte-specific knockout of Cx43 in a mouse model of ALS slows disease progression both spatially and temporally, provides motor neuron (MN) protection, and improves survival. In addition, Cx43 expression is up-regulated in human postmortem tissue and cerebrospinal fluid from ALS patients. Using human induced pluripotent stem cell–derived astrocytes (hiPSC-A) from both familial and sporadic ALS, we establish that Cx43 is up-regulated and that Cx43-hemichannels are enriched at the astrocyte membrane. We also demonstrate that the pharmacological blockade of Cx43-hemichannels in ALS astrocytes using GAP 19, a mimetic peptide blocker, and tonabersat, a clinically tested small molecule, provides neuroprotection of hiPSC-MN and reduces ALS astrocyte-mediated neuronal hyperexcitability. Extending the in vitro application of tonabersat with chronic administration to SOD1G93A mice results in MN protection with a reduction in reactive astrocytosis and microgliosis. Taking these data together, our studies identify Cx43 hemichannels as conduits of astrocyte-mediated disease progression and a pharmacological target for disease-modifying ALS therapies.

Background Spinal cord motor neurons (MNs) from human iPS cells (iPSCs) have wide applications in disease modeling and therapeutic development for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and other MN-associated neurodegenerative diseases. We need highly efficient MN differentiation strategies for generating iPSC-derived disease models that closely recapitulate the genetic and phenotypic complexity of ALS. An important application of these models is to understand molecular mechanisms of action of FDA-approved ALS drugs that only show modest clinical efficacy. Novel mechanistic insights will help us design optimal therapeutic strategies together with predictive biomarkers to achieve better efficacy. Methods We induce efficient MN differentiation from iPSCs in 4 days using synthetic mRNAs coding two transcription factors (Ngn2 and Olig2) with phosphosite modification. These MNs after extensive characterization were applied in electrophysiological and neurotoxicity assays as well as transcriptomic analysis, to study the neuroprotective effect and molecular mechanisms of edaravone, an FDA-approved drug for ALS, for improving its clinical efficacy. Results We generate highly pure and functional mRNA-induced MNs (miMNs) from control and ALS iPSCs, as well as embryonic stem cells. Edaravone alleviates H2O2-induced neurotoxicity and electrophysiological dysfunction in miMNs, demonstrating its neuroprotective effect that was also found in the glutamate-induced miMN neurotoxicity model. Guided by the transcriptomic analysis, we show a previously unrecognized effect of edaravone to induce the GDNF receptor RET and the GDNF/RET neurotrophic signaling in vitro and in vivo, suggesting a clinically translatable strategy to activate this key neuroprotective signaling. Notably, edaravone can replace required neurotrophic factors (BDNF and GDNF) to support long-term miMN survival and maturation, further supporting the neurotrophic function of edaravone-activated signaling. Furthermore, we show that edaravone and GDNF combined treatment more effectively protects miMNs from H2O2-induced neurotoxicity than single treatment, suggesting a potential combination strategy for ALS treatment. Conclusions This study provides methodology to facilitate iPSC differentiation and disease modeling. Our discoveries will facilitate the development of optimal edaravone-based therapies for ALS and potentially other neurodegenerative diseases. Graphical abstract

L'intégration de systèmes autonomes dans les transports continuent de progresser afin d'atteindre, à terme, des systèmes entièrement autonomes. Le domaine du transport ferroviaire ne fait pas exception et de nombreux projets, nationaux ou internationaux, sont en cours ou voient le jour. Le transport ferroviaire est réputé sûr. Cela passe notamment par des processus de certification des systèmes ferroviaires déployés. Un principe fondamental de l'assurance de sécurité ferroviaire est : l'intégration d'une nouvelle fonction ou la modification d'une fonction ne doit pas péjorer le niveau de sécurité. Pour vérifier ce principe, le projet TA-SV a fait le choix de réaliser une comparaison par rapport aux systèmes existants. Cela impose de connaitre le niveau de sécurité (et de fiabilité humaine) du conducteur actuel vis-à-vis des événements redoutés qui seront à la charge du futur système technique. L'objet des activités présentées dans ce papier est de proposer une méthodologie permettant d'atteindre cet objectif.

Cet article est un compte-rendu du livre : Dominique Millet-Gérard, Études d’esthétique théologique et comparée sur la littérature européenne, Paris : Honoré Champion, coll. « Poétiques et esthétiques xxe‑xxie siècles », 2020, 540 p., EAN 9782745354198.

Since the opening of Earth Observation (EO) archives (USGS/NASA Landsat and EC/ESA Sentinels), large collections of EO data are freely available, offering scientists new possibilities to better understand and quantify environmental changes. Fully exploiting these satellite EO data will require new approaches for their acquisition, management, distribution, and analysis. Given rapid environmental changes and the emergence of big data, innovative solutions are needed to support policy frameworks and related actions toward sustainable development. Here we present the Swiss Data Cube (SDC), unleashing the information power of Big Earth Data for monitoring the environment, providing Analysis Ready Data over the geographic extent of Switzerland since 1984, which is updated on a daily basis. Based on a cloud-computing platform allowing to access, visualize and analyse optical (Sentinel-2; Landsat 5, 7, 8) and radar (Sentinel-1) imagery, the SDC minimizes the time and knowledge required for environmental analyses, by offering consistent calibrated and spatially co-registered satellite observations. SDC derived analysis ready data supports generation of environmental information, allowing to inform a variety of environmental policies with unprecedented timeliness and quality., Measurement(s)surface reflectance • backscatterTechnology Type(s)satellite imagingSample Characteristic - LocationSwitzerland Machine-accessible metadata file describing the reported data: 10.6084/m9.figshare.14635485

The role of the International Office of Catholic Education (OIEC) is to represent the Catholic education movement at the international level and help promote exchanges between Catholic schools and ...

The ability to generate human‐induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC)‐derived neural cells displaying region‐specific phenotypes is of particular interest for modeling central nervous system biology in vitro. We describe a unique method by which spinal cord hiPSC‐derived astrocytes (hiPSC‐A) are cultured with spinal cord hiPSC‐derived motor neurons (hiPSC‐MN) in a multielectrode array (MEA) system to record electrophysiological activity over time. We show that hiPSC‐A enhance hiPSC‐MN electrophysiological maturation in a time‐dependent fashion. The sequence of plating, density, and age in which hiPSC‐A are cocultured with MN, but not their respective hiPSC line origin, are factors that influence neuronal electrophysiology. When compared to coculture with mouse primary spinal cord astrocytes, we observe an earlier and more robust electrophysiological maturation in the fully human cultures, suggesting that the human origin is relevant to the recapitulation of astrocyte/motor neuron crosstalk. Finally, we test pharmacological compounds on our MEA platform and observe changes in electrophysiological activity, which confirm hiPSC‐MN maturation. These findings are supported by immunocytochemistry and real‐time PCR studies in parallel cultures demonstrating human astrocyte mediated changes in the structural maturation and protein expression profiles of the neurons. Interestingly, this relationship is reciprocal and coculture with neurons influences astrocyte maturation as well. Taken together, these data indicate that in a human in vitro spinal cord culture system, astrocytes support hiPSC‐MN maturation in a time‐dependent and species‐specific manner and suggest a closer approximation of in vivo conditions. stem cells translational medicine 2019;8:1272&1285, We describe a fully human, spinal cord‐specific, coculture platform with human‐induced pluripotent stem cell‐derived motor neurons and astrocytes for multielectrode array recording. We show that human‐induced pluripotent stem cell‐derived motor neurons/human‐induced pluripotent stem cell‐derived astrocytes bidirectional morphological and molecular maturation is reflected by electrophysiological recordings with multielectrode array recording.

Background The management of patients with high cardiovascular risk and OSA must target not only improving adherence to CPAP, but should also include strategies aimed at reducing BP and increasing physical activity. The study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of an integrated intervention using remote patient telemonitoring in reducing BP in high cardiovascular risk patients with OSA. Methods In a multicenter, open, randomized trial, patients with OSA were randomly assigned at CPAP initiation to usual care or multimodal telemonitoring for 6 months. Telemonitoring used electronic equipment collecting information about BP, symptoms, CPAP side effects, and physical activity with home care providers prespecified protocoled actions. The primary effectiveness outcome was assessed using home self-measured BP on 3 consecutive days. Secondary outcomes included CPAP compliance, symptoms, and physical activity. Results Of 306 patients with a median age of 61.3 years [interquartile range, 54.1; 66.1], who were predominantly men, 226 (74%) with a BMI of 32.0 [28.7; 35.6] kg/m2 and an apnea-hypopnea index of 46 [35; 61] events/h, 149 received usual care and 157 received telemonitoring. After 6 months of CPAP, home self-measured BP did not differ significantly between groups. In secondary analyses, there was no significant difference in steps per day, but a significant increase in CPAP adherence and an improvement in daytime sleepiness and quality of life in favor of the multimodal telemonitoring. Conclusions In OSA patients with high cardiovascular risk, multimodal telemonitoring was not superior to usual CPAP care for improving home BP; however, telemonitoring improved adherence and patient-centered outcomes.

International audience; As it had already been observed in other domains, such as aircraft or automotive sectors, the development of fully automated driving systems in the mainline railway sector faces multiple technical and safety barriers. Before such an advanced system can be overcome, systems with intermediate and adaptive levels of automation must be considered and studied. In this context, human operators maintain a crucial role for the train driving activity and their interactions with technical systems and other agents must remain among the main focuses of the conception phase. These interactions are considered through a thorough Human-Machine cooperation model. The objective of this paper is to present a conception and evaluation method implementing this model in the development of assistance systems for cooperation with human operators. The method is currently being applied for train remote driving as part of the TC-Rail project, where the aim of the study is to focus on Human-Factors aspects. A second phase of development is currently in progress and has been complemented by the results of a first phase. Along with the conception method, the state of this second phase, as well as use cases for future tests that implement it, are presented in this paper.

BackgroundSpinal cord motor neurons (MNs) from human iPS cells (iPSCs) have wide applications in disease modeling and therapeutic development for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and other MN-associated neurodegenerative diseases. We need highly efficient MN differentiation strategies for generating iPSC-derived disease models that closely recapitulate the genetic and phenotypic complexity of ALS. An important application of these models is to understand molecular mechanisms of action of FDA-approved ALS drugs that only show modest clinical efficacy. Novel mechanistic insights will help us design optimal therapeutic strategies together with predictive biomarkers to achieve better efficacy.MethodsWe induce efficient MN differentiation from iPSCs in 4 days using synthetic mRNAs coding two transcription factors (Ngn2 and Olig2) with phosphosite modification. These MNs after extensive characterization were applied in electrophysiological and neurotoxicity assays as well as transcriptomic analysis, to study the neuroprotective effect and molecular mechanisms of edaravone, an FDA-approved drug for ALS, for improving its clinical efficacy.ResultsWe generate highly pure and functional mRNA-induced MNs (miMNs) from normal and ALS iPSCs, as well as embryonic stem cells. Edaravone alleviates H2O2-induced neurotoxicity and electrophysiological dysfunction in miMNs, demonstrating its neuroprotective effect that was also found in the glutamate-induced miMN neurotoxicity model. Guided by the transcriptomic analysis, we show a previously unrecognized effect of edaravone to induce the GDNF receptor RET and the GDNF/RET neurotrophic signaling in vitro and in vivo, suggesting a clinically translatable strategy to activate this key neuroprotective signaling. Notably, edaravone can replace required neurotrophic factors (BDNF and GDNF) to support long-term miMN survival and maturation, further supporting the neurotrophic function of edaravone-activated signaling. Furthermore, we show that edaravone and GDNF combined treatment more effectively protects miMNs from H2O2-induced neurotoxicity than single treatment, suggesting a potential combination strategy for ALS treatment.ConclusionsThis study provides methodology to facilitate iPSC differentiation and disease modeling. Our discoveries will facilitate the development of optimal edaravone-based therapies for ALS and potentially other neurodegenerative diseases.Graphic Abstract

Environmental scientific research is highly becoming data-driven and dependent on high performance computing infrastructures to process ever increasing large volume and diverse data sets. Consequently, there is a growing recognition of the need to share data, methods, algorithms, and infrastructure to make scientific research more effective, efficient, open, transparent, reproducible, accessible, and usable by different users. However, Earth Observations (EO) Open Science is still undervalued, and different challenges remains to achieve the vision of transforming EO data into actionable knowledge by lowering the entry barrier to massive-use Big Earth Data analysis and derived information products. Currently, FAIR-compliant digital repositories cannot fully satisfy the needs of EO users, while Spatial Data Infrastructures (SDI) are not fully FAIR-compliant and have difficulties in handling Big Earth Data. In response to these issues and the need to strengthen Open and Reproducible EO science, this paper presents SwissEnvEO, a Spatial Data Infrastructure complemented with digital repository capabilities to facilitate the publication of Ready to Use information products, at national scale, derived from satellite EO data available in an EO Data Cube in full compliance with FAIR principles.

Additional file 1: Figure S1. Flow chart describing statistical methodology.

Additional file 2: Figure S2. Comparison of the different model accuracy on blind test data.

International audience; Objectives: To evaluate the reliability of attenuation values of the liver parenchyma and focal liver lesions on virtual unenhanced images from arterial (VUEart) and portal venous phases (VUEport) compared to native unenhanced (NU) attenuation values in patients referred for assessment of malignant liver lesions.Methods: Seventy-three patients with confirmed primary or metastatic liver tumors who underwent a multiphase contrast-enhanced rapid-switching kVp dual-energy CT (rsDECT) were included in this IRB-approved retrospective study. Both qualitative and quantitative analyses - including the lesion-to-liver contrast-to-noise ratio (LL-CNR) - were performed and compared between NU and both VUEart and VUEport images.Results: The mean liver attenuation values were significantly lower in VUEart images (56.7 ± 6.7 HU) than in NU images (59.6 ± 7.5 HU, p = 0.008), and were comparable between VUEart and VUEport images (57.9 ± 6 UH, p = 0.38) and between VUEport and NU images (p = 0.051). The mean liver lesions attenuation values were comparable between NU, VUEart and VUEport images (p = 0.60). Strong and significant correlations values were found both in liver lesions and tumor-free parenchyma (r = 0.82-0.91, p < 0.01). The mean LL-CNR was significantly higher in VUEart and VUEport images than in NU images (1.7 ± 1 and 1.6 ± 1.1 vs 0.9 ± 0.6; p < 0.001), but was comparable between VUEart and VUEport images (p > 0.9). Lesion conspicuity was significantly higher in VUEport images than in NU images (p < 0.001).Conclusion: VUEport images derived from 3rd generation rsDECT could confidently replace NU images in patients undergoing assessment for malignant liver lesions. These images provide comparable attenuation values in both liver lesions and liver parenchyma while reducing the radiation dose and scanning time.

The synthesis and characterization of a range of bis(iminophosphoranyl)phosphide (BIPP) group 4 and coinage metals complexes is reported. BIPP ligands bind group 4 metals in a pseudo fac-fashion, and the central phosphorus atom enables the formation of d0–d10 heterobimetallic complexes. Various DFT computational tools (including AIM, ELF and NCI) show that the phosphorus–metal interaction is either electrostatic (Ti) or dative (Au, Cu). A bridged homobimetallic Cu–Cu complex was also prepared and its spectroscopic properties were investigated. The theoretical analysis of the P–P bond in BIPP complexes reveals that (i) BIPP are closely related to ambiphilic triphosphenium (TP) cations; (ii) the P–P bonds are normal covalent (i.e. not dative) in both BIPP and TP., The synthesis, characterization and computational analysis of a range of bis(iminophosphoranyl)phosphide (BIPP) group 4 and coinage metals complexes is reported. White phosphorus was used to install the central phosphorus atom.

Cet article est un compte-rendu du livre : Léo Spitzer, Textes théoriques et méthodologiques, éd. Étienne Karabétian, Genève, Droz, coll. « Titre courant » n° 68, 2019, 400 p., EAN 9782600005685.