Combined Mitochondrial and Nuclear Markers Revealed a Deep Vicariant History for Leopoldamys neilli, a Cave-Dwelling Rodent of Thailand

in PLoS ONE (2012), 7(10), 47670

Background: Historical biogeography and evolutionary processes of cave taxa have been widely studied in temperate regions. However, Southeast Asian cave ecosystems remain largely unexplored despite their ... [more ▼]

Background: Historical biogeography and evolutionary processes of cave taxa have been widely studied in temperate regions. However, Southeast Asian cave ecosystems remain largely unexplored despite their high scientific interest. Here we studied the phylogeography of Leopoldamys neilli, a cave-dwelling murine rodent living in limestone karsts of Thailand, and compared the molecular signature of mitochondrial and nuclear markers. Methodology/Principal Findings: We used a large sampling (n = 225) from 28 localities in Thailand and a combination of mitochondrial and nuclear markers with various evolutionary rates (two intronic regions and 12 microsatellites). The evolutionary history of L. neilli and the relative role of vicariance and dispersal were investigated using ancestral range reconstruction analysis and Approximate Bayesian computation (ABC). Both mitochondrial and nuclear markers support a large-scale population structure of four main groups (west, centre, north and northeast) and a strong finer structure within each of these groups. A deep genealogical divergence among geographically close lineages is observed and denotes a high population fragmentation. Our findings suggest that the current phylogeographic pattern of this species results from the fragmentation of a widespread ancestral population and that vicariance has played a significant role in the evolutionary history of L. neilli. These deep vicariant events that occurred during Plio-Pleistocene are related to the formation of the Central Plain of Thailand. Consequently, the western, central, northern and northeastern groups of populations were historically isolated and should be considered as four distinct Evolutionarily Significant Units (ESUs). Conclusions/Significance: Our study confirms the benefit of using several independent genetic markers to obtain a comprehensive and reliable picture of L. neilli evolutionary history at different levels of resolution. The complex genetic structure of Leopoldamys neilli is supported by congruent mitochondrial and nuclear markers and has been influenced by the geological history of Thailand during Plio-Pleistocene. [less ▲]

Investigation of eighteenth-century Prussian blue pigments by PDF analysis

Poster (2012, October 30)

Prussian blue, a hydrated iron(III) hexacyanoferrate(II) complex, is a synthetic pigment discovered in Berlin in 1704. Because of both its highly intense color and its low cost, Prussian blue was widely ... [more ▼]

Prussian blue, a hydrated iron(III) hexacyanoferrate(II) complex, is a synthetic pigment discovered in Berlin in 1704. Because of both its highly intense color and its low cost, Prussian blue was widely used as a pigment in paintings until the 1970's. The early preparative methods were rapidly recognized as a contributory factor in the fading of the pigment [1], a fading already known by the mid-eighteenth century. The eighteenth-century methods are based on the calcination of dried blood to produce a potassium hexacyanoferrate complex, which is the first of two essential reactants for synthesizing Prussian blue. The second reactant is an iron salt. We successfully reproduced two typical eighteenth-century empirical recipes [2]. The resulting pigments were of variable color quality, ranging from intense blue to blue-gray or blue-green, and exhibit broadened or inexistent Bragg peaks. High-energy powder X-ray diffraction experiments were performed at the ID11 beamline at ESRF, Grenoble, France. The pair distribution function (PDF) of the pure Prussian blue pigments was refined with a three-phase model, in order to take into account the vacancy distribution in the unit cell of Prussian blue. In certain ancient Prussian blues, the PDF analysis revealed the presence of nanocrystalline ferrihydrite, Fe10O14(OH)2, and also identified the presence of alumina hydrate, Al10O14(OH)2, with a particle size of ca. 15 Å. Paint layers prepared from these ancient pigments subjected to accelerated ageing showed a tendency to turn green, a tendency that was often reported in eighteenth- and nineteenth-century books. The presence of particles of hydrous iron(III) oxides was also observed in a genuine Prussian blue sample obtained from an eighteenth-century polychrome sculpture. [1] Kirby, J.; Saunders, D. The National Gallery Technical Bulletin 2004, 25, 73. [2] Dossie, R. The Handmaid to the Arts; Nourse, J.: London, 1758; Le Pileur d'Apligny, M. Traité des couleurs matérielles et de la manière de colorer relativement aux différents arts et métiers; Saugrain et Lamy: Paris, 1779. [less ▲]

De openbare financiering van de erediensten en (of?) de levensbeschouwingen

Scientific conference (2012, October 30)

This lecture was about the relations between worldviews (religions and philosophical communities) and public authorities in Belgium. It covers the theoretical bases, a description and an analysis of the ... [more ▼]

This lecture was about the relations between worldviews (religions and philosophical communities) and public authorities in Belgium. It covers the theoretical bases, a description and an analysis of the current system and ends with some concluding remarks. [less ▲]

Auf dem Weg zu einer neuen institutionellen Technologiefolgenabschätzung. TA in der Wallonie

Conference (2012, October 30)

Seit den offensiven Flämischen Technologie-Förderprogrammen in den achtziger Jahren, hat sich der technologische Graben zwischen dem Norden Belgiens und der von Deindustrialisierung stark betroffenen ... [more ▼]

Seit den offensiven Flämischen Technologie-Förderprogrammen in den achtziger Jahren, hat sich der technologische Graben zwischen dem Norden Belgiens und der von Deindustrialisierung stark betroffenen Wallonie weiter entwickelt. Hinzu kommt, dass Flandern im Jahre 2000 eine para-parlamentarische TA Institution eingeführt hat. Ein solches Unterfangen befand sich bis vor kurzem nicht auf der politischen Agenda der Wallonischen Entscheidungsträger. Zwischen 1994 und 2002 missglückte ein erstes TA Experiment, das sich sehr stark an das Baden-Württembergische Regional-TA Modell anlehnte. Zu diesem Zeitpunkt waren die Wallonischen Institutionen noch sehr jung und vor allem mit der Staatsreform befasst. Außerdem war das Interesse der traditionellen Sozialpartner (sprich Arbeitgeber- und Arbeitnehmerverbände) für TA nur bedingt vorhanden und der Bezug zur parlamentarischen Arbeit sehr begrenzt. Wir werden historisch nachverfolgen, wie es zu einer gemeinsamen Regierungserklärung des sozialistischen Ministers für Wirtschaft, Kleinunternehmen, Außenhandel und Neue Technologien sowie Hochschulwesen Jean-Claude Marcourt und des Grünen-Ministers für nachhaltige Entwicklung, öffentliche Ämter, Energie, Wohnungswesen und Forschung Jean-Marc Nollet kam, welche die Gründung eines Instituts für TA vorsieht. Diese ist teilweise zurückzuführen auf eine prospektive Aktionsforschung an der Universität Lüttich aus dem Jahr 2008 die ein weites Spektrum von Innovationsakteuren zu ihrer Haltung gegenüber institutionalisierter TA in der Wallonie befragt hat. Bei der Vorstellung dieser Studie, haben sich eine Reihe von Regionalabgeordneten für die Schaffung eines Instituts für TA ausgesprochen und wenig später eine parlamentarische Resolution verabschiedet. Wir werden auf die organisatorischen und programmatischen Aspekte, wie sie in den Regierungsplänen vorgesehen sind, eingehen. Die Originalität des Wallonischen Projekts ist u.a. der besondere Fokus auf wirtschaftliche Missionen. Mit dem ökonomischen Sektor als Adressaten soll u.a. die Wallonische Wirtschaft in strategischen Technologiebereichen unterstützt werden. Dabei wird viel Hoffnung in das Management von sozial-technologischen Kontroversen und in Wissenschaftskommunikation gesteckt. Neu ist auch der Ansatz, die Tradition der belgischen Sozialkonsultation auf gewisse Stakeholder-Gruppen auszuweiten und die Ambition partizipatorische Methoden zu nutzen, die im Wallonischen Kontext noch wenig verbreitet sind. Das aktuelle Projekt ist jedoch nicht frei von gegenwärtigen politischen Spannungen. Diese hängen sehr stark von parteipolitischen Ansichten sowie unterschiedlichen Positionen der zuständigen Ministerkabinette zur Staatsreform ab. Ferner gilt es auf die Eigenheiten eines solchen Instituts einzugehen und dessen formelle und informelle Adressaten sowie die Verbindung zu weiteren wissenschaftlichen, politischen und administrativen sowie zivilgesellschaftlichen Akteuren zu erläutern. Zuletzt werden wir auf die Besonderheiten der belgischen politischen Institutionen eingehen um besondere Risiken und Herausforderungen einer jungen TA Institution zu skizzieren. [less ▲]

The dynamics of Children’s Rights and Global Capitalism. The case of Child Labour in Sub-Saharan Africa

Scientific conference (2012, October 29)

Alternative possible à la production traditionnelle du coton en Afrique dans une perspective de développement durable? Le cas du système de production biologique et équitable au Mali

Doctoral thesis (2012)

SUMMARY The general objective of this work is to analyze the viability of the culture of organic fair trade cotton in comparison with that of conventional cotton. The study was conducted with a sample of ... [more ▼]

SUMMARY The general objective of this work is to analyze the viability of the culture of organic fair trade cotton in comparison with that of conventional cotton. The study was conducted with a sample of 45 farms with 15 farms per system, and following a systemic approach at three levels: the land of cotton cropping systems based on cotton and across the operation. At the cotton, whatever the socio-economic producer, cotton compared to conventional cotton has lower average yields, work time higher and smaller plots (0.85 ha production organic fair against 2.35 and 1.76 ha respectively in conventional production calendar and thresholds. organic fair trade cotton generates less revenue because of smaller plots. Nevertheless, the cotton is organic fair identified two broad categories of farms: farms with high levels of resources have an important livestock farms and poor with little means of production, for which the organic fair trade cotton is one of the few alternatives for income money. It should be noted that the level of these poor farms, it is often women and dependent operations manager who practice organic cultivation of cotton. Only farms with high level of resources that have a herd can derive significant profits from the cultivation of organic fair trade cotton. The alternative organic fair this effect allows access to land and access to the culture of cotton formerly marginalized groups, including women, unlike conventional cotton where only the manager manages the cultivation of cotton. There is thus improving the status of women. However, the lack of sustained management of soil fertility and nutrient compromises obtaining better yields - which is a key success factor to be and remain competitive. Level of cropping systems, comparative analysis of the performance of cropping systems confirms that productivity and valuation levels of the working day cultures and cultivation systems based on organic fair trade cotton are lower than obtained by conventional production. At the farm level, conventional production systems produce between 29% (SPCca) and 43% (SPCs) more grain from the organic production system. Reflecting the fragility of food security in the region in case of massive conversion to organic production. Regarding environmental sustainability, it appears that the most important contribution of organic cotton is safe for human health and the environment of the inputs used. [less ▲]

Cardiac surgery and acute kidney injury: retrospective study

Conference (2012, October 27)

Background: In cardiac surgery, acute kidney injury (AKI) is a severe postoperative complication and associated with increased rates of mortality, morbidity, and length of stay in intensive care units ... [more ▼]

Background: In cardiac surgery, acute kidney injury (AKI) is a severe postoperative complication and associated with increased rates of mortality, morbidity, and length of stay in intensive care units (ICU). It occurs in 5% to 30% of patients depending on the definition used [1] [2] [3]. The aim of this study is to present an overview of AKI following cardiac surgery associated or not with cardiopulmonary bypass, in our center. Methods: This retrospective study includes patients treated by cardiac surgery from April 1st, 2008 to March 31th, 2009 in a single center. We selected patients who underwent on-pump coronary artery bypass surgery (CABG), off-pump CABG (OPCAB), aortic valve replacement, mitral valve repair or replacement and aortic valve replacement combined with CABG. Patients undergoing renal replacement therapy preoperatively were excluded. The RIFLE classification (Risk, Injury, Failure, Loss and End stage kidney disease) allowed stratifying the patients into the 3 grades of AKI severity. The stratification was based on the most pejorative element observed within 7 days after surgery: increased serum creatinine level or decreased urine output, or decreased glomerular filtration rate according to criteria of Bellomo [4]. Occurrence of AKI was studied by type of cardiac surgery as its impact on the length of stay in ICU and in the hospital. Proportions were compared by the Chi-square test and median values by the Mann-Whitney U test. Results were considered significant at p < 0.05. Results: Four hundred and thirty-four patients were included: median (IQR) age 69.0(60.0-76.0) year, 30.2% females, 2.76% urgent/emergent cases. Fifty-eight patients (13.4%) underwent OPCAB, 182(41.9%) on-pump CABG, 104(24.0%) aortic valve replacement, 44(10.1%) mitral valve repair or replacement and 46(10.6%) aortic valve replacement combined with CABG. AKI occurred in 213(49.1%) patients: 79(37.1%) “Risk”, 108(50.7%) “Injury” and 26(12,2%) “Failure”. Distribution of AKI by type of surgery was equal to 36.2% among OPCABG, 44.0% on-pump CABG, 49.0% aortic valve replacement, 52.3% mitral valve surgery and 82.6% aortic valve replacement combined with CABG, respectively. AKI occurrences differed significantly according to the type of surgery (p<0.0001). Lengths of stay in ICU were significantly longer (p<0.0001) in AKI group compared with non AKI group: 3(2-4) days versus 2(2-3) days. However, no difference (p = 0.65) was observed between the two (AKI and NON-AKI) groups in hospital length of stay: 13(10-18) days versus 12(10-16) days. Conclusions: The incidence of AKI is very high in this population as compared to the literature. This may be due to the fact that the three elements of the RIFLE classification for all the population studied have been used. This study emphasizes the need for clear definition of AKI in order to compare different studies adequately. AKI after cardiac surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass would be further studied in order to develop more appropriate preventive measures. [less ▲]

Memories of Near-Death experiences are they memories of imagined events?

Poster (2012, October 27)

Background: The phenomenon of Near-Death Experiences (NDEs) has always intrigued but is still not fully explained despite numerous theories and studies. Since reports of NDEs are proposed to be imagined ... [more ▼]

Background: The phenomenon of Near-Death Experiences (NDEs) has always intrigued but is still not fully explained despite numerous theories and studies. Since reports of NDEs are proposed to be imagined events (French, 2001), and since memories of imagined events have, on average, fewer phenomenological characteristics than real event memories (e.g. Johnson et al., 1988), we here compared phenomenological characteristics of NDEs reports with memories of imagined and real events. Methods: We included 3 groups of coma survivors (8 patients with NDE as defined by the Greyson NDE scale – the “NDE memory group”- , 6 patients without NDE but with memory of their coma – the “coma memory group” – and 7 patients without memories of their coma – the “no memory group”) and a group of 18 age-matched healthy volunteers. Five memories were assessed using Memory Characteristics Questionnaire (MCQ – Johnson et al., 1988): target memory (NDE for NDE memory group, coma memory for coma memory group, and first childhood memory for no memory and control groups), old and recent real event memories and old and recent imagined event memories. Results: In NDE group, NDE memories showd more characteristics than memories of imagined and real events (p<0.02). These memories contain more self-referential and emotional information and have better clarity than memories of coma (all p<0.02). Conclusion: The present study showed that NDE memories contain more characteristics than real event memories and coma memories. Thus, they cannot be considered as classic imagined event memories. On the contrary, their physiological origins could lead them to be really perceived although not lived in the reality. Further work is needed to better understand this phenomenon [less ▲]

Interference of a secondary task on procedural learning in children

in Belgian Brain Congress 2012: Abstract Book (2012, October 27)

Introduction Procedural learning is generally considered as involving different learning phases, with cognitive resources playing an important role only during the initial learning step. Through repeated ... [more ▼]

Introduction Procedural learning is generally considered as involving different learning phases, with cognitive resources playing an important role only during the initial learning step. Through repeated practice, the skill becomes progressively more automatic and the involvement of controlled cognitive functions is progressively reduced (Anderson, 2000;Doyon and Benali, 2005;Beaunieux et al., 2006). This view has been supported by studies in which the mirror-tracing paradigm was used to evaluate procedural learning, demonstrating the implication of the executive mechanisms in the first phase of perceptuomotor learning (Rouleau, 2002;Brosseau et al., 2007). However, from a developmental perspective, little is known about the progression of learning in procedural tasks, as well as about the role played by the explicit cognitive processes during learning in children. We recently showed that the cognitive mechanisms involved during the procedural task differed between age groups (Lejeune et al., in press). Indeed, we observed that 7-year-old children performed the procedural task in a less controlled fashion than 10-year-olds, who used a more conscious strategy, which permits them to reach better performance levels. The aim of the present study was to confirm the differential implication of explicit mechanisms in procedural learning in children by using a dual-task paradigm. Objective The present study used a dual-task paradigm in order to further investigate the role played by explicit mechanisms during the early and final stages of procedural learning in two ages-groups (7- and 10 year-olds). An auditory interference task was introduced at the beginning and at the end of the procedural learning phase. According to Sun, Merrill, and Peterson (2001), the introduction of an interference task should affect more the explicit processes than the implicit processes, the latter being more automatic. Thus, we predict that performance would be altered by in the dual-task condition only during the first phase of learning, and not during the automation phase. Furthermore, considering that the cognitive mechanisms underlying procedural learning would be different between 7- and 10-year-old children, we predicted that the impact of the dual-task would differ between the two aged-groups: the dual-task condition should affect performance in 10-year-old children but not in the 7-year-old group. Method Seventy-six children were presented with a Mirror Tracing task under single or dual-task conditions. For the Mirror Tracing task, we conformed to the procedure used in previous studies in children (Vicari et al., 2005;Prehn-Kristensen et al., 2009) and we opted for a 5 points star with the double outline of 1 cm. The instruction was to follow the contour of the figure in order to “catch” different picture without leaving the limits of the contour. There were two learning sessions; the task included 10 trials, with a short break (2 min) between trials, and a second 10 trial session was conducted after a one-week delay. In dual-task condition, participants had to perform the procedural learning task while performing at the same time the interference auditory task (which consisted to answer to questions presented continuously). Results Results showed that completion time and accuracy during the mirror tracing task improved with each successive trial in both groups: all children learned the procedural skill regardless of their age and the experimental condition. As predicted, results showed that the impact of the dual-task differed between aged-groups during the first learning phase. While 10-year-old children were significantly slower and less accurate in the dual-task condition than 10-year-old children in the single-task condition, no difference between learning conditions was revealed in the 7-year-old group. Interestingly, at the end of learning (trials 19 and 20), the interference effect had disappeared: there was no impact of the secondary task on procedural performance, whatever the age-group. Discussion In this study, we explored with a dual-task paradigm the role played by explicit mechanisms during the early and final stages of procedural learning in two age-groups (7- and 10 year-olds). During the first learning step, 10-year-old children in the single-task condition used a conscious strategy to perform the task, which permits them to reach better performance levels than 10-year-old children in the dual-task condition (which prevents them from using their controlled cognitive processes). On the contrary, no impact of the interference task was observed in 7-year-old children, who performed the mirror tracing task similarly in the single- and dual-task conditions. This result supports our hypothesis that, in the beginning of a perceptuo-motor learning task, youngest children perform the procedural task in a more implicit fashion comparatively to older children. Thus, while performance of 10-year-old children is congruent with a top-down conception of procedural learning (i.e., performance in the first learning stages would be sustained by high-level explicit mechanisms), this is not the case for youngest children whose explicit mechanisms are not yet mature. So, our results confirm that the involvement of explicit learning mechanisms is not a “necessary condition” for motor skill learning to occur, a point of view supported by the bottom-up skill learning approach which postulates that explicit declarative knowledge is not necessarily associated with procedural skill learning and that the knowledge acquired could be stored in an implicit mode from the beginning of learning (Karmiloff-Smith, 1992;Sun et al., 2001). [less ▲]

Does processing speed protect from age-related decline in cognitive control?

in Frontiers in Human Neuroscience (2012, October 27)

Age-related difficulties have been reported on proactive control whereas reactive control seems to remain intact (Braver, Gray, & Burgess, 2007; Braver, 2012). This study investigated the potential ... [more ▼]

Age-related difficulties have been reported on proactive control whereas reactive control seems to remain intact (Braver, Gray, & Burgess, 2007; Braver, 2012). This study investigated the potential influence of speed of processing abilities on the age-related decline in proactive control. We used a working memory recognition paradigm involving proactive or reactive cognitive control by manipulating the interference level across items. 80 young adults (18-29 years old) and 80 healthy older adults (60-89 years old) were included. The main results revealed significant effects of age on sensitivity to interference. As expected, reactive control performance remained intact with aging (similar interference effect in the two groups). In contrast, we observed a larger interference effect in the proactive condition in aging. Finally, when the groups are matched according to their processing speed (assessed by the Code task of the WAIS III, with both younger and older adults having a score comprised between 60 and 93), the effect of age on sensitivity to interference disappeared. In other words, when younger and older adults had similar speed of processing abilities, no age-related proactive control decline was observed. In conclusion, beyond the fact that this study confirms the selective age-related decline in proactive control, it also indicates that speed of processing, a measure considered as reflecting the integrity of cognitive functioning during aging (Salthouse, 1996), influences the efficiency of proactive control in that population. [less ▲]