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A series of studies investigated the toxicities of tannery-derived complex mixtures, i.e. vegetable tannin (VT) from Acacia sp. or phenol-based synthetic tannin (ST), and wastewater from tannin-based vs. chromium-based tanneries. Toxicity was evaluated by multiple bioassays including developmental defects and loss of fertilization rate in sea urchin embryos and sperm ( Paracentrotus lividus and Sphaerechinus granularis), and algal growth inhibition ( Dunaliella tertiolecta and Selenastrum capricornutum). Both VT and ST water extracts resulted in hormetic effects at concentrations ranging 0.1 to 0.3%, and toxicity at levels ≥1%, both in sea urchin embryo and sperm, and in algal growth bioassays. When comparing tannin-based tannery wastewater (TTW) vs. chromium-based tannery effluent (CTE), a hormesis to toxicity trend was observed for TTW both in terms of developmental and fertilization toxicity in sea urchins, and in algal growth inhibition, with hormetic effects at 0.1 to 0.2% TTW, and toxicity at TTW levels ≥1%. Unlike TTW, CTE showed a monotonic toxicity increase from the lowest tested level (0.1%) and CTE toxicity at higher levels was significantly more severe than TTW-induced toxicity. The results support the view that leather production utilizing tannins might be regarded as a more environmentally friendly procedure than chromium-based tanning process.

We claim that Operational Research and Artificial Intelligence, while proposing different approaches to scheduling, seem to offer complementary techniques rather than antithetic ones.

We have demonstrated that Rhizobium leguminosarum strain LPR1105 contains a heat stable and a heat labile glutamine synthetase (EC 6.3.1.2) activity similar to those described for other Rhizobiaceae. Most of the activity is heat stable when this strain is grown on glutamine as sole nitrogen source, but most is heat labile when grown on nitrate. Using a gene bank of R. leguminosarum DNA we have isolated two clones, which code for heat stable (p7D9) and heat labile (p4F7) glutamine synthetase activity, by complementing the glutamine auxotrophy of Klebsiella pneumoniae glnA mutants. Cross-hybridization of p7D9 with a fragment of the glnA gene of K. pneumoniae was observed, but no cross-hybridization between p7D9 and p4F7 was found. Since these two regions hybridize to genomic DNA of R. leguminosarum they are probably the structural genes for GSI and GSII, and the availability of these genes will make it possible to test this hypothesis. Clone p4F7 complements an ntrC+ but not an ntrC K. pneumoniae glnA mutant, suggesting that the ntrC gene is required for the complementation of the glutamine auxotrophy by this plasmid.

Background Ingenol-mebutate has been used for the treatment of actinic keratosis. It has been shown that ingenol-mebutate inhibits the growth of cancer cells or induces tumor cell death through pro-apoptotic effects. Keloids are benign skin tumours and are the effect of a deregulated wound-healing process in genetically predisposed patients. Increased cell proliferation, which accounts for the progressive and hypertrophic nature of keloids, correlates with the failure of apoptosis and plays a role in the process of pathological scarring. Keloid cells show a mutated p53 gene resulting in functionally inactive p53 protein which cannot control genomic integrity. They tend to escape from apoptosis which leads to keloid development by means of accumulation of continuously proliferating cells. Currently, the treatment of keloids remains a challenge for high recurrence rates. However, the design and the development of pro-apoptotic therapeutic strategies would be beneficial to keloids treatment. Case presentation A 55-year-old caucasian woman presented recurrent keloids on a presternal scar. Standard surgical intervention was used to treat the scar. However, this was unsuccessful and a year later the patient sought treatment again, but only by alternative means as the patient refused further surgical intervention. Consequently, based on past research and experience, the authors attempted to treat these lesions with ingenol mebutate gel, due to the pro-apoptotic effects. Conclusion After 1 month, there was a clinical resolution of lesions, with a slightly squamous, post-inflammatory erythema. A cutaneous biopsy proved the absence of residual keloids and deregulated expression of molecular markers. The last follow-up of the patient, 1 year after treatment, showed that the patient was still free of keloids recurrence. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13104-015-1429-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Objectives: We sought to delineate the role of cochlear implantation in the management of vestibular schwannoma or other cerebellopontine angle tumors in the only hearing ear. Methods: We performed a retrospective analysis in a quaternary referral skull base center of all patients who were affected by vestibular schwannoma (or other lesions of the cerebellopontine angle) in the only hearing ear and received a cochlear implant before or after tumor treatment (surgery or radiotherapy) or during the wait-and-scan follow-up. We also performed a systematic review of the English-language literature. Results: The clinical and audiological results of 10 patients are reported. All patients were managed with contralateral cochlear implantation. In 7 patients, cochlear implantation was performed before tumor removal, while hearing in the ear with the tumor was still present. In 3 patients, the implant was placed after curative surgery. Nine of the 10 patients routinely use their implant with subjective benefit and fairly good auditory performance (median disyllabic word recognition, 90%; median sentence comprehension, 75%). The literature search retrieved no major series with assessment of the long-term efficacy of cochlear implantation in this rare clinical scenario. Conclusions: Patients affected by vestibular schwannoma in their only hearing ear may significantly benefit from a cochlear implant on the contralateral side prior to tumor removal. Recent and significant hearing deterioration and tumor growth represent the main indications for cochlear implantation.

International audience; Ces derniers mois, un mot familier des éditeurs a souvent résonné, celui de contamination; sinon dans le même sens, du moins avec la même valeur dépréciative. En médecine comme en philologie, il exprime un contact périlleux, qui réclame la mise à l'écart des individus contaminés, personnes ou manuscrits. C'est cette valeur négative qu'on aimerait interroger ici, dans le seul champ de la critique textuelle. Comme beaucoup d'autres notions de cette discipline, la contamination peut s'envisager de deux manières, descendante ou remontante, claire ou énigmatique, selon qu'on l'aborde à partir du copiste qui la produit, ou de l'éditeur qui s'y affronte. Selon la première approche, un copiste s'écarte de son modèle initial et emprunte des leçons à un second modèle, concurrent du premier. Le texte qui en résulte est donc hybride, métissé: il rejoint tantôt l'un tantôt l'autre, sans compter les inévitables écarts propres, volontaires ou non, par lesquels ce copiste innove et diverge de l'un et l'autre modèles, qu'il les corrige ou lise mal. Selon la seconde approche, la situation est la même, mais l'éditeur la découvre à tâtons et à contre-cœur. Il bute sur une anomalie, qui déjoue ses attentes: un manuscrit ou un groupe de manuscrits, au lieu de se laisse ranger sagement dans un ensemble plus vaste, emprunte ses leçons tantôt à une famille tantôt à une autre. Ou plutôt - car décrire l'énigme comme je viens de le faire, c'est déjà presque l'avoir résolue - un désordre affecte une partie de la tradition manuscrite, en sorte que les frontières vacillent entre manuscrits ou groupes de manuscrits: on ne sait plus très bien alors ce qui est généalogie stable, rencontres de hasard ou recompositions délibérées. Dès lors - et c'est le sens de cet article - tout l'enjeu de la contamination consiste à remonter du second point de vue au premier, à reconstituer, à partir de traces brouillées ou même effacées, les tours et détours de la diffusion manuscrite d'un texte, sans tomber dans les pièges qu'elle tend. Ceux-ci sont de trois sortes: l'ignorer là où elle existe, l'imaginer là où elle n'est pas, l'interpréter de travers quand on l'a justement décelée.