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Abstract In application of the European Water Framework Directive, the water development and management plan, Schéma d'aménagement et de gestion des eaux (Sage) for the Lys (Lily) watershed area sets out general objectives for the use, development, and quantitative and qualitative protection of water resources and aquatic environments. The Lys Sage issues include the pollution of aquatic media and a provision for reducing the impact of discharges from on‐site sanitation devices. The prioritization of public authority action on on‐site sanitation requires the definition and identification of zones with environmental issues. The objective is to identify priority areas for the rehabilitation of noncompliant on‐site sanitation devices in case of a proven risk of pollution. These zones have been identified and mapped following the development and application of a methodology based on current regulations, feedback, and an innovative approach. It is based on the risk assessment of on‐site sanitation. To do this, a hazard (source hydraulic flow) was crossed with the vulnerability of the environment (target flow impact on stream quality). In addition to vulnerability assessed by the chemical quality of watercourses, the concept of zones of ecological interest was introduced.

The visible and infrared Moon And Jupiter Imaging Spectrometer (MAJIS), aboard the JUpiter ICy Moons Explorer (JUICE) spacecraft, will characterize the composition of the surfaces and atmospheres of the Jupiter system. Prior to the launch, a campaign was carried out to obtain the measurements needed to calibrate the instrument. The aim was not only to produce data for the calculation of the radiometric, spectral, and spatial transfer functions but also to evaluate MAJIS performance, such as signal-to-noise ratio and amount of straylight, under near-flight conditions. Here, we first describe the setup implemented to obtain these measurements, based on five optical channels. We notably emphasize the concepts used to mitigate thermal infrared emissions generated at ambient temperatures, since the MAJIS spectral range extends up to 5.6 µm. Then, we characterize the performance of the setup by detailing the validation measurements obtained before the campaign. In particular, the radiometric, geometric, and spectral properties of the setup needed for the inversion of collected data and the calculation of the instrument's calibration functions are presented and discussed. Finally, we provide an overview of conducted measurements with MAJIS, and we discuss unforeseen events encountered during the on-ground calibration campaign. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Appropriate prescription of Proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) remains an important concern amid the rising overuse. A gap exists in the literature regarding the benefit of PPI prophylaxis and the consequences of underprescription in patients at risk for upper gastrointestinal bleeding (UGIB). Aims: This study aims to describe the characteristics of hemorrhage in relation to PPI use in patients experiencing UGIB, with a focus on high-risk individuals requiring gastroprotection. Methods: Data from a French multicentric cohort of patients experiencing UGIB were analyzed. Patients using PPI were compared to those without PPI considering bleeding etiologies and outcomes of peptic ulcer disease (PUD)-related hemorrhage. The rate of PPI use and its effect on bleeding characteristics in high-risk populations, defined based on international guidelines, were also assessed. Results: Among 2497 included patients, 31.1% were on PPI at bleeding onset. PPI users exhibited a significantly lower rate of PUD-related bleeding in comparison with those without PPI (24.7 vs 40.8%, respectively, p < 0.0001). Similar difference was observed in high-risk populations, of whom, only 40.3% had gastroprotection with PPI before bleeding onset. PPI prophylaxis, however, did not influence the severity of bleeding in the general study population or in high-risk groups. Multivariate analysis identified age, comorbidities, and having more than two anti-thrombotic agents as predictors of severe bleeding. Conclusions: PPI users appear to have a lower rate of bleeding ulcers compared to non-users. However, underprescription in high-risk groups raises the need for standardized care to ensure appropriate PPI use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to design a convenient, specific, sensitive, and continuous lipase activity assay using natural long-chain triacylglycerols (TAGs). Oil was extracted from Parinari glaberrimum seed kernels and the purified TAGs were used as a substrate for detecting low levels of lipase activities. The purified TAGs are naturally fluorescent because more than half of the fatty acids from Parinari oil are known to contain 9,11,13,15-octadecatetraenoic acid (parinaric acid) in its esterified form. The presence of detergents (sodium taurodeoxycholate, CHAPS, Sulfobetaine SB12, Tween® 20, Brij® 35, Dobanol®, n-dodecylglucoside) above their critical micellar concentration dramatically increases the fluorescence of the parinaric acid released by various lipases. This increase in the fluorescence intensity is linear with time and proportional to the amount of lipase added. This new method, performed under non-oxidative conditions, was applied successfully to detecting low lipase levels in crude protein extracts from plant seeds and could be scaled down to microtiterplate measurements. Quantities as low as 0.1 ng of pure pancreatic lipase could be detected under standard conditions (pH 8). Lipase activity can also be assayed in acidic media (pH 5) using human gastric lipase. This simple and continuous assay is compatible with a high sample throughput and might be applied to detecting true lipase activities in various biological samples.—Beisson, F., N. Ferté, J. Nari, G. Noat, V. Arondel, and R. Verger. Use of naturally fluorescent triacylglycerols from Parinari glaberrimum to detect low lipase activities from Arabidopsis thaliana seedlings.

Wrinkled1 (AtWRI1) is a key transcription factor in the regulation of plant oil synthesis in seed and non-seed tissues. The structural features of WRI1 important for its function are not well understood. Comparison of WRI1 orthologs across many diverse plant species revealed a conserved 9 bp exon encoding the amino acids "VYL". Site-directed mutagenesis of amino acids within the 'VYL' exon of AtWRI1 failed to restore the full oil content of wri1-1 seeds, providing direct evidence for an essential role of this small exon in AtWRI1 function. Arabidopsis WRI1 is predicted to have three alternative splice forms. To understand expression of these splice forms we performed RNASeq of Arabidopsis developing seeds and queried other EST and RNASeq databases from several tissues and plant species. In all cases, only one splice form was detected and VYL was observed in transcripts of all WRI1 orthologs investigated. We also characterized a phylogenetically distant WRI1 ortholog (EgWRI1) as an example of a non-seed isoform that is highly expressed in the mesocarp tissue of oil palm. The C-terminal region of EgWRI1 is over 90 amino acids shorter than AtWRI1 and has surprisingly low sequence conservation. Nevertheless, the EgWRI1 protein can restore multiple phenotypes of the Arabidopsis wri1-1 loss-of-function mutant, including reduced seed oil, the "wrinkled" seed coat, reduced seed germination, and impaired seedling establishment. Taken together, this study provides an example of combining phylogenetic analysis with mutagenesis, deep-sequencing technology and computational analysis to examine key elements of the structure and function of the WRI1 plant transcription factor.

Un colloque sur les lipides de plantes et les oxylipines s’est tenu à Strasbourg les 10 et 11 juillet 2001, dans le cadre des Journées de la Société Française de Physiologie Végétale. Plus de 85 chercheurs ont participé à ce colloque et 45 communications ont été faites. La plupart ont porté sur la synthèse des stérols et des isoprénoïdes, le métabolisme des lipides, les relations entre le stress thermique et les lipides membranaires ainsi que sur les oxylipines. Les conférences plénières ont été données par le Pr Heinz sur les cérébrosides et les stérols glucosides, le Dr R. Verger sur les lipases et le Dr I. Feussner sur les oxylipines. Une table ronde s’est tenue pour discuter de la constitution d’un réseau réunissant les spécialistes des lipides des plantes en France. L’idée a été accueillie favorablement par tous les participants et il a été envisagé de créer un site « web » contenant un annuaire des chercheurs, des cahiers de protocoles et une base de données bibliographiques. Ceci se fera en collaboration étroite avec les chercheurs européens et américains de la spécialité.