Les otolithes des Téléostéens du Plio-Pleistocène belge

The study of approximately twenty three thousand otoliths from Plio-Pleistocene sites in the harbour region of Antwerp, as well as a critical revision of already published material allowed us to identify a teleostean fauna with fourty seven species (including two subspecies and seven species in open nomenclature). Two of these, Ophidion springeri and Uranoscopus septentrionalis are new to science. The fauna is typical for coastal waters slightly warmer than those of the actual North Sea and caracterized by the predominance of Gadidae. Biostratigraphically this fauna is well individualized with respect to preceeding ones (only seven species in common with the Miocene fauna) and those following twenty-three species in common with the extant fauna). The following biostratigraphical subdivision has been recognized in the Upper Miocene and the Plio-Pleistocene of the Antwerp region: (1) an association with «genus? Macrouridarum labiatus, Trisopterus sculptus, Gadiculus benedeni and Trisopterus luscus spectabilis, in the Sands of Deurne (Upper Miocene); (2) an association with Gadiculus benedeni and Merlangius pseudaeglephinus, in the Formation of Kattendijk (Pliocene); (3) an association with Gadiculus verticalis and Merlangius pseudaeglefinus in the Formation of Lillo (Plio-Pleistocene); (4) an association with Gadus morhua and Merlangius pseudaeglefinus in the so called «Icenian deposits not present in Belgium but found in the Netherlands.     

Mérieux很可能买下Transgène

法国的Rhone-Poulenc(巴黎)在里昂的保健行业分公司Institut Merieux去年以超过8亿美元的价钱买下加拿大多伦多的Connaught Biosciences.今年要是谈判顺利的话,还要买下本国斯特拉堡的Transgène公司.Institut Merieux是世界上最大的疫苗厂商之一,占全球市场的30%,且因Wellcome(伦敦)刚刚退出这一行业,可能统治欧洲市场.Transgène本身在1989年的收入仅为1千     

Première biozonation du Pléistocène Européen,principal résultat biostratigraphique de l'étude des Rhinocerotidae (Mammalia,Perissodactyla) du Miocène terminal au Pléistocène supérieur d'Europe Occidentale

For the Uppermost Miocene the already known zones MN 9 to MN 13 are used without any change; they prove to be particularly useful for the study of fossil rhinocerotids. The Plio-Villafranchian age corresponds to the zones 14 to 19, the definition of the first five being completed and the last being new. Middle to Upper Pleistocene age deals with the zones 20 to 26, all being new and defined following the same principles.     

Le Plio-Pléistocène de Camerota(Italie méridionale): Géomorphologie et Paléoflores

Geomorphological investigations have been carried out in Camerota surroundings where marine microfaunas have been discovered. So, we can separate the Late Pliocene deposits from Calabrian and post-Calabrian levels. Preliminary palynological results show a vegetational evolution in relation with the climate. Leaf-remains give informations on the structure of the vegetation.     

Impuissance sexuelle iatrogène et responsabilité médicale

Medical responsibility means that the Doctor must assume his acts. It enables not only to repair prejudices met but also discourage prejudiciable acts to society by sanctioning them. Its founding is based on the principle of error, of the damage caused and the establishing of a cause link between error and damage. The authors report a clinical case observed during a medical expertise of an iatrogenic accident (priapism) secondary to the treatment of a psychogenic impotence with papaverine injection in intracavernous. It’s a 27 year old patient, single, teacher, without pathological antecedents, who, after a psycho-affective shock (break with his girl-friend), showed a diminished sewal desire and erectile power. These complaints led him to consult an urologist, who prescribed a hormonal check-up and a medical treatment based on Yohimbine^* for two weeks. Seeing no improvement of his state, he consulted another urologist who gave him an intracavernous Papaverine chlorydrate injection (40 mg). The immediate main consequen?s were a priapism necessitating a surgical intervention (caverno-spongious anastomosis), practised one day after the injection. Following the intervention, the patient complains of a persistant impoten?, which led him to sue his Doctor for a professional error having led to a permanent sexual prejudice. The error retained against the Doctor consists in a bad control of his patient, which led to delay in taking the latter in charge, a classical complication resulting from the treatment prescribed. Because of the existence of an error, a damage caused and a cause link, the responsibility of the Doctor is in question. From this case, the authors insist on the necessity of a psychologic evaluation prior to every medicinal treatment of a psychogenic impotence.     

Contribution à la connaissance des occupations préhistoriques au Pléistocène supérieur en Tunisie

The Upper Pleistocene in Tunisia is characterized by cyclic climatic alternations between rainy and arid phases. The steppic landscape occupies a large area of the country, in particular in the Centre and the South. Even during the humid phases, the savannah landscape still dominant. The Upper Pleistocene prehistoric sites in Tunisia, such as Oued el Akarit, Aïn Mhrotta, Oued el Bey, El Guettar, Aïn Métherchem and Aïn el Guettar, which are the subject of this study, are all open-air sites, located mainly in Central and southern Tunisia, usually to the south of the springs that are still functioning today, or on the border of the wadis from which their names derive. Prehistoric occupations and human behavior are mainly subject to the climatic shifts occurred during the Upper Pleistocene.     

Bryozoaires cheilostomes nouveaux du Miocène supérieur du Bassin d'Alboran (Méditerranée occidentale)

Three new species and one new subspecies, Tremogasterinacookae, Cribrilina messiniensis, Emballotheca mediterranea and Herentia thalassae alboransis (Bryozoa, Cheilostomata) are described from various Messinian deposits (Uppermost Miocene) of the Mediterranean province of Alboran: Algeria, Morocco, Spain.     

Prostasomes, dérivés actifs de l’oxygène et sperme humain

Prostasomes are particular lipid vesicles secreted by the human prostate and found in the semen. No specific action has yet been attributed to prostasomes, but they appear to act at various levels. For example, prostasomes enhance sperm motility in vitro and participate in the immunomodulation properties of seminal plasma. Excessive production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in human semen has a negative influence on the functional capacities of spermatozoa. The presence of leukocytes in semen is associated with increased production of ROS that can be harmful to sperm cells, under certain conditions. Previous results tend to suggest a possible role of prostasomes on ROS production in human semen. After reviewing the literature concerning the structural and functional characteristics of prostasomes and the role of ROS in human semen, we report our results concerning the influence of prostasomes on ROS production and the consequences on semen. We have demonstrated that prostasomes exert an antioxidant function in human semen. This function is effective both on polymorphonuclear neutrophils and on sperm cells. The mechanism of action of prostasomes is unusual, as they act on ROS production mainly on the plasma membranes of neutrophils. They induce a decrease of NADPH-oxidase activity associated with rigidification of the plasma membrane. Prostasomes protect the functional capacities of spermatozoa during an oxidative stress created by the presence of NADPH in the incubation medium.     

Le phénomène de superparasitisme chez les parasites oophages des punaises des blés

Résumé L'étude du superparasitisme chez les parasites oophages desAelia a été réalisée avec 3 espèces d'Ooencyrtus: O. fecundus Ferr. & Voeg.,O. nigerrimus Ferr. & Voeg., etO. telenomicida Vass. Ces 3 espèces apparaissent comme ayant un pouvoir de discrimination leur permettant d'éviter le superparasitisme lorsqu'elles ont suffisamment d'h?tes à leur disposition. Dans le cas contraire ou lorsque le nombre de femelles dans un même tube de ponte s'accro?t, la tendance au superparasitisme augmente. Le superparasitisme se traduit par une baisse de la fécondité, une diminution de la taille et une modification du taux sexuel de la descendance.

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Summary The study of superparasitism in the oophagous parasites of theAelia spp has been realized with 3Ooencyrtus species:O. fecundus Ferr. & Voeg.,O. nigerrimus Ferr. & Voeg. andO. telenomicida Vass. These 3 species appeared to have a discriminating ability which enable them to avoid superparasitism when the host population at their disposal is sufficient. In the opposite case or, when the number of females increases in the same tube, superparasitism tends to increase. Superparasitism results in a decrease in fecundity as well as in size and the sex-ratio of the offspring.

     

Gène CFTR et infertilité masculine en 2001 Conseil génétique, diagnostic prénatal, diagnostic pré-implantatoire

As the vas deferens is also absent in the majority of CF (cystic fibrosis) males, it has been proposed that CBAVD (Congenital Bilateral Absence of Vas Deferens) males may present an incomplete or mild form of CF. Many studies using more extensive mutation analysis have confirmed the role of CFTR gene defects: 80% of CBAVD patients carry one or two mutations. Each patient with a diagnosis of CBAVD should also be examined for pulmonary and pancreatic signs, and sweat tests should be performed. In couples with CBAVD linked to CFTR mutations, the risk of having children with CF or infertility is increased if the female is also a carrier. The woman should be screened for the most frequent CFTR mutations according to her ethnic background. After screening for 80% of the mutations responsible for CF, the residual risk of being a carrier with negative screening is: Z=h(1?a)/(1?ah)=1/120 considering a carrier frequency of 1/25 in the general population. In the case of positive screening, antenatal diagnosis by chorionic villus sampling may be proposed. However, in some situations it is difficult to predict the phenotypic consequences for the child, particularly when a severe transmutation of a variable allele is identified. As these couples require medically-assisted reproduction techniques, pre-implantation genetic diagnosis appears to be more appropriate than antenatal diagnosis. Only embryos that inherit the non-mutated maternal CFTR allele are replaced in the uterus. Examination of childre born to couples with CBAVD is mandatory: immunoreactive trypsinogen assay at 3 days of age, sweat test at 3 months and clinical examination, especially looking for signs of CF. Identification of CFTR mutations in a CBAVD patient has important consequences for his family. Each sibling has a 50% risk of being a carrier and a 25% risk of inheriting the same genotype. The genetic counsellor must inform these siblings about the possible risk of having CF children if they carry CFTR mutations and if their partner is also a carrier.     

Végétation et climat au Pléistocène inférieur et moyen à La Pineta (Isernia,Italie)

Palynological investigation from the Lower Palaeolithic site of La Pineta (Isernia, Molise) reports the environmental and climatic conditions of an old human occupation site in Italy, between the end of the Lower Pleistocene and the beginning of the Middle Pleistocene. The pollen record shows that the end of the Lower Pleistocene was marked by an arid episode. This is related to change in the climatic cycles periodicity from 41 to 100 ka, which occurred between 900 and 800 ka. The post-archaeological layers show new favourable moisture conditions at the beginning of the Middle Pleistocene, when the 100 ka cycles prevail. To cite this article: V. Lebreton, C. R. Palevol 1 (2002) 11–17.     

Le Paléocène supérieur a Ranikothalia bermudezi et l'Éocène inférieur (Ilerdien basal) a Nummulites fraasi et N. Deserti du Tadémait-E et Tinrhert-W

The Upper Paleocene of E-Tademaït and W-Tinrhertis characterized by a new macrofauna and the appearance of Ranikothalia bermudezi. This is followed by Lower Eocene (Lowermost Ilerdian) Nummulites fraasi and N. deserti, in E-Tademaït.We note in relation with the uplifting of Saharo-Nubianshelf a regressive evolution towards the North, where successively later Nummulites species (deserti, globulus, rollandi, gizehensis) appear during the Lower Eocene.     

Elements pour une théorie statistique du tableau phytosociologique homogène

Summary A new model, based on information theory, for determining the equation of Raunkiaer frequency curves in a homogeneous phytosociological table is proposed. The forms of these curves are explained in relation to the geographical area covered by the relevés of the phytosociological table involved. The statistical distribution of species in a syntaxon (and the variability of a syntaxon as measured, by (E/E _m)-1, where E is the total number of species in the table, and E _m is the average number of species per relevé) are closely correlated with the size of the distribution area of relevés. Many examples are given and several consequences for the phytosociological method are indicated.

     

Les premiers vertébrés et les premières étapes de l’évolution du crâne

The earliest vertebrates and the first steps of the evolution of the skull. Vertebrates are one of the few metazoan taxa, which display a well-corroborated phylogenetic pattern, a good and anatomically informative fossil record, and a relatively slow ontogenetic development. They are thus a favourite taxon for illustrating evolution as a historical process, although the stem of the vertebrate tree remains poorly documented by fossils, except for some Early Cambrian forms. Therefore, the characterization of the vertebrates now rests essentially on a small number of developmental characters, mostly involved in the rise of the skull, and whose precursors may occur in other chordates. The tree of the crown-group vertebrates also shows some major morphological gaps due to early extinctions, but a number of Palaeozoic stem gnathostome taxa helps in documenting the agnathan-gnathostome evolutionary transition. However, stem cyclostomes remain elusive.     

«Noir de Diaminobenzidine»: Une nouvelle méthode histochimique de révélation du fer exogène

Résumé Une nouvelle réaction de mise en évidence histochimique du fer exogène, utilisé comme traceur pour l'étude des connexions dans le système nerveux central, est décrite. Elle comporte la transformation du fer en bleu de Prusse, lequel est utilisé comme catalyseur de l'oxydation de la diaminobenzidine par l'eau oxygénée. La diaminobenzidine oxydée précipite sous forme d'un produit insoluble de couleur brun-noir. Cette réaction présente une sensibilité et un contraste nettement supérieurs à ceux de la réaction classique de Perls.

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Diaminobenzidine black as a new histochemical demonstration of exogenous iron

Summary A new reaction for the histochemical demonstration of exogenous iron, used as a tracer for the study of connectivity in the central nervous system, is described. It consists of, first, the conversion of iron into Prussian blue, which acts secondarily as a catalyst for the oxidation of diaminobenzidine by hydrogen peroxide. The oxidized diaminobenzidine precipitates by polymerization and gives rise to a brown-colored insoluble reaction product. This reaction has a strikingly better sensitivity and contrast than the classical Perls's reaction.