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The pyrin inflammasome acts as a guard of RhoA GTPases and is central to immune defenses against RhoA-manipulating pathogens. Pyrin activation proceeds in two steps. Yet, the second step is still poorly understood. Using cells constitutively activated for the pyrin step 1, a chemical screen identifies etiocholanolone and pregnanolone, two catabolites of testosterone and progesterone, acting at low concentrations as specific step 2 activators. High concentrations of these metabolites fully and rapidly activate pyrin, in a human specific, B30.2 domain-dependent manner and without inhibiting RhoA. Mutations in MEFV, encoding pyrin, cause two distinct autoinflammatory diseases pyrin-associated autoinflammation with neutrophilic dermatosis (PAAND) and familial Mediterranean fever (FMF). Monocytes from PAAND patients, and to a lower extent from FMF patients, display increased responses to these metabolites. This study identifies an unconventional pyrin activation mechanism, indicates that endogenous steroid catabolites can drive autoinflammation, through the pyrin inflammasome, and explains the "steroid fever" described in the late 1950s upon steroid injection in humans.

AbstractMono-and poly- iodinated peptides form frequently during radioiodination procedures. However, the formation of a single species in its mono-iodinated form is essential for quantitative studies such as determination of tissue concentration or image quantification. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to define the optimal experimental conditions in order to exclusively obtain the mono-iodinated form of L-maurocalcine (L-MCa). L-MCa is an animal venom toxin which was shown to act as a cell-penetrating peptide. In order to apply the current direct radioiodination technique using oxidative agents including chloramine T, Iodo-Gen®or lactoperoxidase, an analogue of this peptide containing a tyrosine residue (Tyr-L-MCa) was synthesized and was shown to fold/oxidize properly. The enzymatic approach using lactoperoxidase/H2O2was found to be the best method for radioiodination of Tyr-L-MCa. MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry analyses were then used for identification of the chromatographic eluting components of the reaction mixtures. We observed that the production of different radioiodinated species depended upon the reaction conditions. Our results successfully described the experimental conditions of peptide radioiodination allowing the exclusive production of the mono-iodinated form with high radiochemical purity and without the need for a purification step. Mono-radioiodination of L-Tyr-MCa will be crucial for future quantitative studies, investigating the mechanism of cell penetration and in vivo biodistribution.

This study highlights the clinical features, treatments, and outcomes of the rare myocarditis in adult-onset Still disease (AOSD). Among a case series of 57 patients fulfilling either Yamaguchi or Fautrel AOSD criteria and seen between 1998 and 2010, we identified 4 cases of myocarditis. From a comprehensive literature review, we collected 20 additional cases of myocarditis-complicated AOSD. The characteristics of patients with myocarditis were compared with those of AOSD patients without myocarditis.

Despite recent diagnostic advances, a fever of unknown origin (FUO) remains a clinical challenge.

The excavations of the Greek settlement of Ai Khanoum took place between 1965 and 1978; they are not yet fully published, and work is still in progress. This article presents the spatial organization of the town by taking into account the results of recent research, which help clarify the different stages of its history. Ai Khanoum was founded as a city by the Seleucid king Antiochos I (r. 281–261 B.C.E.) and thereafter underwent development, particularly from the beginning of the second century. But it was only under Eucratides (r. ca. 170–145) that it took the form we now know. Several elements considered in this article shed light on the nature and functions of the settlement: its urban organization, the division between public spaces and private spaces, and the extent of Greek influence on these elements. We know that Ai Khanoum was a royal residence and that the Seleucid and Graeco-Bactrian kings were very much present there throughout its history. It may have looked like other eastern royal capitals of that time, whose architecture, which combined eastern and Greek influences, was inspired by that of the royal residences of the eastern part of the Seleucid kingdom.

We conducted a retrospective observational study to describe a cohort and identify the prognostic factors in adult-onset Still disease (AOSD). Patients enrolled in this retrospective chart review fulfilled either Yamaguchi or Fautrel criteria. Candidate variables were analyzed with logistic unadjusted and adjusted regression models.Fifty-seven patients were seen in the internal medicine (75%) and rheumatology (25%) departments over a mean period of 8.4 years. The median time to diagnosis was 4 months. The course of AOSD was monocyclic in 17 patients, polycyclic in 25, and chronic in 15. The assessment of glycosylated ferritin (GF) in 37 patients was correlated with early diagnosis. Nine 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (18FDG-PET) scans identified the lymph nodes and glands as the main sites of hypermetabolism. Complications were frequent (n = 19), including reactive hemophagocytic syndrome (n = 8). None of the 3 deaths could be attributed to AOSD. Corticosteroid dependence, as predicted by a low GF level, occurred in 23 patients (45%). A quarter of the patients received tumor necrosis factor-α blockers or anakinra with good tolerance. Fever >39.5°C was predictive of monocyclic AOSD, while arthritis and thrombocytopenia were associated with chronic and complicated AOSD, respectively. The youngest patients had the highest risks of resistance to first-line treatments.AOSD remains difficult to diagnose. Mortality is low despite frequent complications. GF and 18FDG-PET scans were of value in the diagnostic approach. The condition in highly symptomatic patients evolved to systemic AOSD, whereas more progressive patterns with arthritis predicted chronic AOSD.

The aim of this experiment was to investigate whether insulin resistance is related to the dietary concentration of Trp and the ADFI of primiparous sows having similar body conditions. Twenty-four primiparous sows were catheterized on d 97 of pregnancy. Blood samples were collected during 3 tests: after the ingestion of 1.5 kg of feed (meal test), after the intravenous infusion of 0.5 g of glucose/kg of BW (glucose tolerance test), and during an euglycemic hyperinsulinemic clamp with an infusion rate of 100 ng of insulin·kg of BW−1·min−1. Both tests were performed at 4 stages at approximately d 103 and 110 of pregnancy and at d 3 and 10 of lactation. Sows were fed a diet containing 0.16 or 0.26% of total Trp (suboptimal vs. slight excessive Trp supply according to recommendations for lactating sows) from d 104 of pregnancy after the first clamp until weaning. The dietary treatment did not result in differences in ADFI, BW, and backfat changes, and growth of piglets during lactation. Plasma Trp concentration was greater for the sows allocated to the slight excessive Trp diet than for the sows allocated to the suboptimal Trp diet (P< 0.05). Plasma glucose, NEFA, and urea profiles during the meal tests were not affected by the dietary treatment. At d 3 of lactation, the insulin concentration at 105 (P= 0.03) and 120 min (P= 0.04) after meal intake was less for the sows allocated to the slight excessive Trp diet than for the sows allocated to the suboptimal Trp diet. On d 10 of lactation, the glucose half life (P= 0.03) and the time needed to reach 25% of the area under the insulin curve (P= 0.04) during the tolerance test were less for the sows allocated to the slight excessive Trp diet than for the sows allocated to the suboptimal Trp diet. The glucose infusion rate during euglycemic hyperinsulinemic clamps was similar in the 2 Trp groups of sows. Irrespective of the dietary treatment, the ADFI of the sows was negatively related to the glucose half life during the glucose tolerance test and positively related to the glucose infusion rate during the clamp (P< 0.05). This relationship observed with the tests performed during early lactation was already found with the tests performed during late pregnancy (P< 0.02). Present findings indicate that a dietary Trp supply of 0.26% does not increase feed intake in lactating primiparous sows. This result indicates that the interest in a Trp supplementation during the peripartum period can be questioned. Irrespective of the dietary treatment, the reasons why sows with similar rearing conditions develop different rates of insulin resistance during pregnancy remain to be elucidated.

Sarcoidosis is not rare in patients aged more than 65 years, but studies of elderly patients with sarcoidosis are scarce. We analyzed the characteristics and outcomes of patients in a French teaching hospital with late-onset sarcoidosis, defined as sarcoidosis diagnosed in patients aged 65 years or older, and compared them with those of younger patients with sarcoidosis. From 2002 to 2006, 30 patients were identified as having late-onset sarcoidosis and were compared to 70 patients randomly selected aged younger than 65 years. We compared clinical characteristics, laboratory data at diagnosis, severity, therapy, and outcome. The female to male ratio was higher in the late-onset sarcoidosis group than in the younger group (5:1 vs. 1:1, respectively; p = 0.003). Asthenia (30 vs. 10; p = 0.012), uveitis (33.3 vs. 8.6; p = 0.002), and specific skin lesions (36.7 vs. 15.7; p = 0.002) occurred more frequently in patients with late-onset sarcoidosis than in younger patients. On the contrary, asymptomatic chest radiograph abnormalities (p = 0.031) and erythema nodosum (p = 0.016) were not reported in the group of elderly patients. The 2 groups were similar with regard to race, other organ systems involved, pulmonary function, radiographic stage, laboratory values, and severity. The proportion of patients with accessory salivary glands (p = 0.002) and skin (p = 0.023) biopsies was more often contributory to the diagnosis in the late-onset group.

We describe the main characteristics and treatment of urogenital manifestations in patients with Wegener granulomatosis (WG). We conducted a retrospective review of the charts of 11 patients with WG. All patients were men, and their median age at WG diagnosis was 53 years (range, 21–70 yr). Urogenital involvement was present at onset of WG in 9 cases (81), it was the first clinical evidence of WG in 2 cases (18), and was a symptom of WG relapse in 6 cases (54). Symptomatic urogenital involvement included prostatitis (n = 4) (with suspicion of an abscess in 1 case), orchitis (n = 4), epididymitis (n = 1), a renal pseudotumor (n = 2), ureteral stenosis (n = 1), and penile ulceration (n = 1). Urogenital symptoms rapidly resolved after therapy with glucocorticoids and immunosuppressive agents. Several patients underwent a surgical procedure, either at the time of diagnosis (n = 3) (consisting of an open nephrectomy and radical prostatectomy for suspicion of carcinoma, suprapubic cystostomy for acute urinary retention), or during follow-up (n = 3) (consisting of ureteral double J stents for ureteral stenosis, and prostate transurethral resection because of dysuria). After a mean follow-up of 56 months, urogenital relapse occurred in 4 patients (36).

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IgG4-related systemic disease is now recognized as a systemic disease that may affect various organs. The diagnosis is usually made in patients who present with elevated IgG4 in serum and tissue infiltration of diseased organs by numerous IgG4 plasma cells, in the absence of validated diagnosis criteria. We report the clinical, laboratory, and histologic characteristics of 25 patients from a French nationwide cohort. We also report the treatment outcome and show that despite the efficacy of corticosteroids, a second-line treatment is frequently necessary. The clinical findings in our patients are not different from the results of previous reports from Eastern countries. Our laboratory and histologic findings, however, suggest, at least in some patients, a more broad polyclonal B cell activation than the skewed IgG4 switch previously reported. These observations strongly suggest the implication of a T-cell dependent B-cell polyclonal activation in IgG4-related systemic disease, probably at least in part under the control of T helper follicular cells.

Kawasaki disease (KD) is an acute multisystemic vasculitis occurring predominantly in children and rarely in adults. Diagnosis is made clinically using diagnostic guidelines; no specific test is available. "Incomplete" KD is a more recent concept, which refers to patients with fever lasting ≥5 days and 2 or 3 clinical criteria (rash, conjunctivitis, oral mucosal changes, changes of extremities, adenopathy), without reasonable explanation for the illness.

Health degradation modifies Trp metabolism through induction of Trp catabolism. This could limit the amount of Trp available for growth. The aims of the present experiment were to investigate the effects of a low grade inflammation and dietary Trp on growth and Trp metabolism. Eighty weaned pigs were assigned to 4 experimental treatments according to a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement: 2 sanitary statuses × 2 dietary Trp contents. The Trp content was deficient (low-Trp: 2.4 and 1.9 g of Trp/kg of the phase I and phase II diets, respectively) or adequate (high-Trp: 2.9 and 2.4 g of Trp/kg of the phase I and phase II diets, respectively). A low grade inflammatory response was induced by housing pigs in unsanitary environment, whereas control pigs were housed in good sanitary conditions. Pigs were not fed ad libitum to avoid feed refusals. Growth performance was calculated 3, 5, and 7 wk after weaning. Blood was sampled 12, 33, and 47 d after weaning for the determination of plasma concentrations of Trp and related metabolites, kynurenine and pyridoxal-5-phosphate. The interaction between sanitary status and dietary Trp was not statistically significant in all measured criteria. Pigs kept in poor sanitary conditions grew slower (P< 0.001) during the entire experimental period and had greater plasma concentrations of haptoglobin (P< 0.001) than pigs housed in good sanitary conditions. Pigs housed in poor sanitary conditions had also decreased Trp plasma concentrations (P< 0.001), but plasma kynurenine concentrations were not affected. Our results indicated that a moderate inflammatory response was obtained by degrading the sanitary quality of environment. Additionally, poor sanitary conditions modified Trp metabolism, indicating that the amount of Trp available for growth and other metabolic functions might be reduced.

L’atteinte médullaire est une localisation rare de la sarcoïdose, avec un risque conséquent de séquelles neurologiques pour le patient.

Voluntary feed intake in sows after parturition may be related to the capacity of the sow to cope with the numerous changes occurring around farrowing. This experiment was undertaken to investigate whether the feed intake during lactation was related to the reactivity of the sow during gestation and plasma Trp and cortisol concentrations. On d 58 of pregnancy, 37 sows were individually placed in a novel environment, and their behavior was observed during a 5-min open-field test. This test allowed the selection of 12 reactive (R) and 8 nonreactive (NR) sows for the study. Sows were fed 3 kg of a standard gestation diet/d before farrowing and a standard lactation diet ad libitum thereafter. The behavioral reactivity of sows when a human touched their neck in the farrowing crate was evaluated on d 72 of gestation, and their behavior during farrowing was analyzed. Sows were catheterized on d 70 of gestation, and blood samples were taken after an overnight fast on d 37 before farrowing, daily during the week before and the week after parturition, and on d 14 and 21 of lactation for plasma Trp and cortisol determination. The NR sows were less reactive to human contact (P= 0.02), had a shorter farrowing duration (P= 0.02), and tended to have a shorter birth interval between piglets (P= 0.09) than the R sows. Feed intake was greater for the NR sows than for the R sows during wk 1 of lactation (P= 0.02), as well as during the whole lactation (P= 0.03). Plasma cortisol concentration was maximal on the day after farrowing (P= 0.01) and returned to basal concentration within 4 d postpartum. No relationship was observed between sow behavior and plasma concentration of cortisol. For both groups of sows, plasma concentrations of Trp between d 2 and 4 postpartum were less than during gestation (P< 0.05). The NR sows had decreased plasma Trp concentrations compared with the R sows during wk 1 of lactation (P= 0.02). A low reactivity during gestation was associated with behavior of the sow that was favorable to piglet survival during farrowing, increased feed intake, and decreased plasma Trp concentration during wk 1 of lactation. Further research is needed to elucidate whether Trp or Trp metabolites are related to reactivity and ADFI of the reproducing sow.

Small birth weight and excess of early protein intake are suspected to enhance later adiposity. The present study was undertaken to determine the impact of diets differing in protein content on short-term growth, adipose tissue development, and the insulin-like growth factor (IGF) system in piglets. Normal (NW) and small (SW) birth weight piglets were fed milk-replacers formulated to provide an adequate (AP) or a high protein (HP) supply between 7 and 28 d of age. The fractional growth rate was higher (p< 0.01) in SW than in NW piglets. At 7 d of age, the lower (p< 0.05) weight of perirenal adipose tissue relative to body mass in SW than in NW piglets did not involve significant changes in plasma IGF-I, leptin, or insulin-like growth factor binding protein levels, but involved differences (p< 0.05) in the expression of IGF-I and leptin in adipose tissue. Growth rates did not differ between AP and HP piglets. At 28 d of age, HP piglets had lower (p< 0.001) relative perirenal adipose tissue weight but did not differ clearly from AP piglets with regard to the IGF system. It remains to be determined whether piglets fed such a high protein intake will stay subsequently with a low adiposity.

AbstractThis study examined contextual information sharing between table tennis players during competitive interaction (two opponents during singles) and cooperative interaction (two partners during doubles) in a study based on the notion of shared context (Salembier & Zouinar, 2000) and conducted within the semiological framework of the course‐of‐action (Theureau, 2003). Matches were videotaped and players’ verbalizations as they viewed the tapes were collected a posteriori.The analysis and comparison of their courses of action served to characterize the nature and content of the contextual information that was shared between the players during singles and doubles matches. The results revealed alternating forms of sharing (i.e., symmetrical sharing, asymmetrical sharing, and no sharing) and highlighted several processes for regulating contextual information sharing (i.e., inquiry, monitoring, displaying, masking, and focusing). The discussion is organized in three sections: (a) the changes in information that was shared between players during sports interactions, (b) the role of awareness during sports interactions, and (c) the relationship between information sharing and collective effectiveness during sports interactions

A partire dalla definizione dei termini «indipendenza» e «autonomia», che sfociano nella qualità della vita, e della loro analisi in funzione della situazione di handicap, l’obiettivo di questo articolo è quello di presentare le valutazioni che sono in rapporto con questi termini. L’indipendenza concerne la capacità di realizzare da solo le attività della vita quotidiana. Disponiamo di numerosi strumenti che ne consentono la valutazione. L’interdipendenza è la condizione inesorabile del rapporto della persona con il suo ambiente nel senso più ampio del termine. La sua valutazione pertanto misura le ripercussioni dell’interdipendenza sulla produzione della persona e i risultati ottenuti devono sempre essere associati a un’analisi personalizzata della relazione messa in atto. Infine, l’autonomia, collegata alla dipendenza dalla società, è un processo interattivo di adattamento che si basa sulla capacità di scegliere e gestire la propria vita in piena coscienza. L’autonomia non è misurabile, in quanto rappresenta una entità soggettiva e personale; soltanto alcuni modelli ne consentono un approccio. I legami tra autonomia e progetto di vita mostrano l’interazione tra indipendenza, interdipendenza e autonomia, e quanto, anche qui, la valutazione della qualità della vita è delicata.

In pigs, inflammation modifies Trp metabolism and consequently could impact on Trp requirement for growth. In this study, the effects of lung inflammation, induced by the intravenous injection of complete Freund's adjuvant, and dietary Trp content on Trp metabolism and availability were investigated. Two dietary Trp contents, one corresponding to a low-Trp diet (1.5 g of Trp/kg of diet, Basal diet) and the second to an adequate-Trp diet (2 g of Trp/kg of diet, TRP diet), were used. Ten blocks of 4 littermate piglets were selected at 40 d of age. Within each block, piglets were randomly assigned to 1 of the 4 experimental treatments: (1) healthy control and Basal diet, (2) inflammation and Basal diet, (3) inflammation and Basal diet + antioxidant, and (4) inflammation and TRP diet. Inflammation induced an increase in indoleam-ine 2,3 dioxygenase (IDO) activity, an enzyme involved in Trp catabolism, in lung, lymph nodes, heart, and spleen (P< 0.01). Contrary to piglets fed the TRP diet, pigs suffering from inflammation did not maintain their plasma Trp concentrations when they were fed the Basal diet. Furthermore, pigs fed the TRP diet had decreased plasma haptoglobin concentrations, IDO activity, and lung weight than those fed the Basal diet, indicating that the inflammatory response was moderated with the greater Trp supply. Antioxidant addition in the Basal diet decreased the effects of inflammation on plasma Trp concentrations and IDO activity. These results indicated that inflammation increases Trp catabolism and thus may decrease Trp availability for growth.

To describe the main characteristics and treatment of autoimmune hemolytic anemia (AHA) in patients with common variable immunodeficiency (CVID), we analyzed data from 18 patients, 4 from an earlier study and 14 from the French DEF-I cohort on adult patients with primary hypogammaglobulinemia. To be included, patients had to have CVID and a previous history of AHA with a hemoglobin level ≤90 g/L at onset. To determine whether AHA is associated with a particular clinical phenotype of CVID, we conducted a case-control study from the DEF-I cohort.

A study was conducted to investigate the biochemistry of digestion of field pea (Pisum sativumL.) albumins and globulins in the stomach and along the small intestine of weaned piglets with a particular emphasis on the respective roles of these compartments in pea protein digestion. Twenty-four piglets were weaned at 28 d of age. They were allocated to 2 diets (control and pea) and 3 slaughter times (3, 6, or 9 h after the last meal) in a 2 ×3 factorial arrangement of treatments in a randomized complete block design. Pea flour provided 30% of total dietary protein in the pea diet. The diets were fed for 2 wk after weaning. After slaughter, gastrointestinal tract (GIT) compartments were weighed, digesta were collected, and pH was measured. Digesta from the stomach and cranial, middle, and caudal small intestine (SI) were extracted for soluble proteins and analyzed for specific pea proteins using SDS-PAGE, immunoblotting, and mass spectrometry. Tissue weight of the whole GIT (P= 0.015), cecum (P<0.001), and colon (P<0.001) was greater in the pea diet. Digesta pH in the stomach and caudal SI was lower (P= 0.02) in the pea diet than the control diet. In the stomach, vicilin, lectin, and pea albumin 2 were not digested, whereas legumin was only partly digested. Legumin and vicilin were totally digested in the SI in less than 3 h. A resistant peptide of 15 kDa located at the N-terminus of pea albumin 2 was transiently detected at 3 h. A protein band at 20 kDa was consistently identified as lectin. It was present in high intensity in intestinal digesta of pea-fed piglets at all times after the meal compared with those fed the control diet (P<0.001). Various proteins of, presumably, endogenous origin displayed differential digestion patterns between the control and the pea-fed piglets (P<0.05). In conclusion, differences in digestion between specific pea proteins were observed along the GIT of piglets. They could be partly explained by differences in protein digestion in the stomach.

In this review, the terminology that is used to describe the bioavailability and ileal digestibility of AA in pig feed ingredients is defined. Aspects of the methodology to establish bioavailability and ileal digestibility values also are discussed, and recommendations about the use of these values are provided. Two main factors can contribute to differences between bioavailability and ileal digestibility of AA. First, some AA, such as Lys, may be absorbed in chemical complexes that preclude their use for metabolism. Second, fermentation in the upper gut may result in a net loss or gain of AA to the animal. In addition, dietary effects on the efficiency of using bioavailable AA intake for tissue growth or milk production should be considered and may be attributed to endogenous AA losses in the hindgut and the metabolic costs associated with endogenous gut protein synthesis and losses. Ileal digestibility values may be expressed as apparent ileal digestibility (AID), standardized ileal digestibility (SID), or true ileal digestibility (TID). These terms are used to specify how ileal endogenous AA losses are reflected in digestibility values. Ileal endogenous AA losses may be separated into basal losses, which are not influenced by feed ingredient composition, and specific losses, which are induced by feed ingredient characteristics such as levels and types of fiber and antinutritional factors. Values for AID are established when total ileal outflow of AA (i.e., the sum of endogenous losses and nondigested dietary AA) is related to dietary AA intake. A concern with the use of AID values is that these are not additive in mixtures of feed ingredients. This concern may be overcome by correcting AID values for defined basal endogenous losses of AA, which yields SID values. Furthermore, if the AID values are corrected for basal and specific endogenous losses, then values for TID are calculated. However, reliable procedures to routinely measure specific endogenous losses are not yet available. It is recommended that basal ileal endogenous losses of AA should be measured in digestibility experiments using a defined protein-free diet and that these losses are reported with observed AID and SID values. It is suggested that SID values should be used for feed formulation, at least until more information on TID values becomes available.

Metabolic changes associated with inflammatory processes and immune response can modify protein and AA requirements. Improved knowledge of these processes will provide opportunities for nutritional intervention to sustain growth and animal defense at the same time. The objective of the study was to identify AA whose metabolism is affected by chronic lung inflammation. Six pairs of littermate piglets were selected at 28 d of age on the basis of their BW. After catheterization of the jugular vein, one littermate received complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA) intravenously, whereas its littermate was injected with a sterile saline solution (CON). Piglets within a litter were pair-fed in order to avoid confounding effects of feed intake and inflammation on plasma AA concentrations. Blood samples were taken after an overnight fast and 2 h after the morning meal for 9 d. Rectal temperature, food consumption, weight gain, plasma haptoglobin, and AA concentrations were measured. The CFA injection decreased food intake, and increased body temperature and plasma haptoglobin concentration. Plasma tryptophan, glutamine, proline, glycine, tyrosine, ornithine, total AA concentrations, and the ratio of tryptophan to large neutral AA were less in CFA than in CON (P< 0.05), independent of time and meal. In contrast, plasma histidine concentration was higher (P< 0.05) in CFA than in CON pigs. Plasma serine, arginine, alanine, asparagine, and total AA concentrations were lower in CFA than in CON pigs only in the fed state (P< 0.05). Among essential AA, only plasma tryptophan concentration was lower (P< 0.01) in CFA than in CON pigs in both fasted and fed state. These results show that chronic lung inflammation affects individual AA differently and suggest that the utilization of some AA increased during chronic lung inflammation in pigs. Activation of tryptophan catabolism enzyme indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase seems a relevant hypothesis to explain the increased tryptophan utilization, although its incorporation in acute-phase proteins and the existence of other catabolic pathways cannot be excluded.

This study has been conducted within the "Fonds pour la formation de chercheurs et l'aide à la recherche (FCAR) - Action concertée RADARSAT" program. The study shows the potential of RADARSAT-1 standard mode data (S1 and S7 beams) for mapping natural and exploited wetlands in southern Quebec. The best period for the acquisition of S1 beam data is during the growing season. However, an S7 beam mode image acquired in February (winter) can help to discriminate different vegetation densities within wetlands. With a maximum likelihood classification method, the data set giving the best results is the winter S7 image and two summer S1 images (May 7 or June 11 and July 28 or August 3). The large wetlands can be easily classified amongst other areas (i.e., agricultural, open water, forest, etc.) by this method and data set, but the different categories of vegetation communities within wetlands cannot be well discriminated. However, the use of a texture parameter (mean, 7 × 7 windows) can significantly improve the classification accuracy. It also permits to distinguish exploited wetlands from natural wetlands and forest areas with an average precision of 89% (for training sites). Furthermore, a neural network classification approach has been adapted to classify radar images for three categories of natural wetlands (i.e., woody wetlands, shrubby wetlands and woody shrubby wetlands). The best classification results (i.e., 86% accuracy) were obtained using a neural network trained by 18 texture channels derived from six RADARSAT-1 images (three S1 and three S7). However, using only two images (one S1 and one S7) gave a similar level of accuracy (84% on test sites and 90% on training sites).

Incidence of diarrhea at weaning in commercial pigs is an important problem, and diet is thought to be a predisposing factor. The aim of this study was to determine the impact of switching from milk-based to cereal-based diets on the morphology and function of the small intestine of piglets using a model of delayed weaning to isolate the influence of the diet from that of environmental and social factors.

Forty-three batches of cereals (10 of wheat, 10 of triticale, 5 of barley, 5 of rye, 7 of maize and 6 of sorghum) were analysed and studied for their nitrogen (N) and amino acid (AA) ileal digestibility. Each batch was tested on four castrated male pigs, weighing between 30 and 90 kg, and fitted with an end-to-end ileo-rectal anastomosis. Ileal true digestibility (TD) of AA was calculated by correcting ileal apparent digestibility (AD) for basal endogenous AA losses, measured by means of a protein-free diet. Ileal real digestibility (RD) of AA was calculated by correcting AD for total endogenous AA losses, estimated by a multiple regression model. TD of N and most AA decreased ($P < 0.001$) from wheat, triticale and maize, to barley and sorghum and to rye (90.3, 88.7, 89.9, 85.4, 83.7 and 80.1% , respectively, for the sum of all AA). Estimates of endogenous N losses decreased ($P < 0.001$) from triticale, sorghum and wheat, to maize, barley and rye (on average 3.10, 2.93, 2.63, 2.43, 2.27 and 2.16 g N$\cdot$kg$^{-1}$ DM ingested, respectively). Barley excluded, there was a trend toward increasing endogenous AA losses with increasing dietary acid detergent fibre (ADF) concentration ($r = 0.57$, $P < 0.001$). Barley caused low endogenous N losses relative to its ADF concentration.

Contributions of erythrocytes and plasma to threonine and lysine transport across the PDV and the liver were determined in growing pigs successively fed a threonine deficient diet and a control well-balanced diet (experiment 1) or a lysine deficient or a well-balanced diet (experiment 2). The animals were surgically prepared for insertion of chronic catheters in the mesenteric vein (MV), the portal vein (PV), a hepatic vein (HV) and the carotid artery (CA). Plasma and whole blood AA concentrations in PV, HV and CA and PV and HV blood flows were determined during 6 hours of para-aminohippuric acid constant infusion. During this period the pigs were continuously fed (1 meal per hour). The contribution of plasma to lysine and threonine transport was higher in pigs fed the well balanced diets. More than 50% of threonine and lysine appearing in the PV and in the HV are transported by the plasma. Our results suggest that erythrocytes are probably little involved in lysine and threonine transfer across the liver and digestive tract of pig continuously fed.

Dairy products provide abundant, accessible calcium for humans, while some calcium sulfate-rich mineral waters could provide appreciable amounts of calcium. But there is little evidence that this calcium is as available as milk calcium for making bone. The availability of calcium was studied by monitoring bone parameters in 2-month-old pigs fed restricted amounts of calcium (70% RDA) for 2.5 months. The 3 main ($\geq 50\%$ Ca intake) Ca sources were either CaCO$_3$ or CaSO$_4$ or skim milk powder (29% of the diet). The bones of the pigs fed the "milk" diet had higher ($P<0.01$ ) ash contents, breaking strength and density (DEXA) than those of the two others groups, in which the bone values were similar. Thus, the calcium provided by a diet containing milk appears to ensure better bone mineralization than do calcium salts included in a non-milk diet. The calcium restriction may have enhanced some milk properties to stimulate calcium absorption in these young, rapidly growing pigs.

An experiment was carried out to determine the effects of feeding level, body weight, and time after surgery on basal ileal endogenous amino acid (AA) and N losses in growing pigs. Three pairs of littermate pigs were surgically prepared with ileo-rectal anastomoses. One pig in each pair was anastomosed at 38 kg BW, and the remaining pigs were anastomosed at 67 kg BW. Each pig received at different periods 50, 70, or 90 g of dry matter per kilogram of BW·75of a protein-free diet according to a Latin square design involving three pigs starting at 45 kg BW and involving six pigs starting at 77 kg BW. For most AA, the time after surgery × feeding level interaction was significant. The basal endogenous losses (in g/d) increased linearly with feeding level at both BW. At the higher BW, the basal endogenous losses (in g/kg DMI) were constant regardless of feeding level, whereas at the lower BW they responded quadratically. At the low feeding level, the endogenous losses were higher than at the medium or high feeding level. We concluded that the basal endogenous losses are proportional to DMI when the feeding level is higher than 70 g/kg BW·75. The AA profile was not influenced by these three variables, but there was a large animal effect. These results suggest that, in digestibility trials, an assessment of the basal ileal endogenous AA losses must be performed on each pig to correct the apparent ileal AA digestibility data.

We conducted an experiment to determine the efficiency of dietary tryptophan (Trp) for protein and Trp accretion in 4-kg (live weight) pigs. Five Trp-deficient diets were fed for 18 d after weaning. The basal diet contained 23.4% protein and .14% Trp. The four other diets were similar to the basal diet but were supplemented with .06 or .12% free or protected crystalline Trp. No differences were found between the two crystalline Trp forms for all variables under study. Equal amounts of all diets were fed by intragastric tube feeding. Daily weight gain (P< .10), gain:feed (P< .05), and daily protein retention (P< .01) increased linearly as dietary Trp increased. Similarly, retention and gross efficiency (retained: intake) of almost all amino acids increased. Tryptophan retention also increased linearly (P< .05), but gross efficiency was maximal (40.1%) with protein-bound Trp from the basal diet, and it decreased linearly as dietary Trp increased. This important reduction was the result of a low marginal efficiency for crystalline (13.6 ± 3.3%) free or protected Trp.