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Urban agriculture has myriad benefits for those who participate in it, but it's not guaranteed to be more climate-friendly than conventional agriculture. That said, there are some very specific steps urban farmers can take to slash carbon emissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a lack of data on resources used and food produced at urban farms. This hampers attempts to quantify the environmental impacts of urban agriculture or craft policies for sustainable food production in cities. To address this gap, we used a citizen science approach to collect data from 72 urban agriculture sites, representing three types of spaces (urban farms, collective gardens, individual gardens), in five countries (France, Germany, Poland, United Kingdom, and United States). We answered three key questions about urban agriculture with this unprecedented dataset: (1) What are its land, water, nutrient, and energy demands? (2) How productive is it relative to conventional agriculture and across types of farms? and (3) What are its contributions to local biodiversity? We found that participant farms used dozens of inputs, most of which were organic (e.g., manure for fertilizers). Farms required on average 71.6 L of irrigation water, 5.5 L of compost, and 0.53 m2 of land per kilogram of harvested food. Irrigation was lower in individual gardens and higher in sites using drip irrigation. While extremely variable, yields at well-managed urban farms can exceed those of conventional counterparts. Although farm type did not predict yield, our cluster analysis demonstrated that individually managed leisure gardens had lower yields than other farms and gardens. Farms in our sample contributed significantly to local biodiversity, with an average of 20 different crops per farm not including ornamental plants. Aside from clarifying important trends in resource use at urban farms using a robust and open dataset, this study also raises numerous questions about how crop selection and growing practices influence the environmental impacts of growing food in cities. We conclude with a research agenda to tackle these and other pressing questions on resource use at urban farms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the rapid growth of professional intra-urban agriculture (PIUA) projects in the Global North, sponsors, projects leaders, and experts developing these projects are seeking to evaluate their sustainability. As existing assessment tools are not adapted to PIUA projects, they establish their own assessment practices. Our study examines these practices to identify their original features, criteria, and indicators used. To this end, we analysed 19 case studies of different PIUA projects. We identified four dimensions underpinning sustainability assessment, namely, internal sustainability, external sustainability, the project leader's credibility, and the innovative nature of the project. We also shed light on the wide diversity of the 67 assessment criteria identified, as well as the qualitative nature of 78% of indicators used. In addition, our study highlights that assessment practices evolve over time as the project progresses from ideation to implementation, according to the variety of assessment situations. Our study is the first to provide an in-depth exploration of PIUA stakeholders' sustainability assessment practices and to shed light on their specific features. Our results afford a better understanding of the way the sustainability of PIUA projects is assessed and contribute to reflection on the design of a flexible assessment tool, considering the diverse criteria and practices used by stakeholders to assess the sustainability of PIUA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Primary hyperoxaluria type 1 (PH1) is a rare genetic form of calcium oxalate kidney stone disease. It is caused by a deficiency in the liver-specific enzyme, alanine:glyoxylate aminotransferase (AGT), a pyridoxal-5′-phosphate (PLP)-dependent enzyme involved in the metabolism of glyoxylate. The excessive endogenous synthesis of oxalate that ensues leads to hyperoxaluria, and the crystallization of the poorly soluble calcium salt of oxalate is responsible for a severe kidney stone disease, which can progress to end-stage renal disease, systemic deposition of oxalate and death. Knowledge about metabolic precursors of glyoxylate and oxalate, molecular pathology of AGT and analytical methods for diagnosis and clinical assessment have allowed a better understanding of the mechanisms underlying PH1 and opened the door to new therapeutic strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite extensive literature on the socio-cultural services of urban open spaces, the role of food-producing spaces has not received sufficient attention. This hampers advocacy for preserving and growing urban agricultural activities, often dismissed on justifications that their contributions to overall food supply are negligible. To understand how the social benefits of urban agriculture have been measured, we conducted a systematic review of 272 peer-reviewed publications, which drew on insights from urban agriculture sites in 57 different countries. Through content analysis, we investigated socio-cultural benefits in four spheres: engaged and cohesive communities, health and well-being, economic opportunities, and education. The analysis revealed growth in research on the social impacts of gardens and farms, with most studies measuring the effects on community cohesion and engagement, followed by increased availability and consumption of fruits and vegetables associated with reduced food insecurity and better health. Fewer studies assessed the impact of urban farming on educational and economic outcomes. Quantifying the multiple ways in which urban agriculture provides benefits to people will empower planners and the private sector to justify future investments. These findings are also informative for research theorizing cities as socio-ecological systems and broader efforts to measure the benefits of urban agriculture, in its many forms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Primary hyperoxaluria type II is a recessive genetic disorder caused by mutations in the GRHPR gene. Although several dozen mutations have been described, all affect coding or transcript splicing. A man suspected of having primary hyperoxaluria type II was heterozygous for a novel single-nucleotide deletion (c. 694delC) in GRHPR affecting Gln232, which introduced a pre-mature termination (p. Gln232Argfs*3). Two 5′untranslated region ( UTR) variants of unknown significance were also noted. We show that these two variants occur in cis, on the opposite allele, and introduce - immediately upstream of the canonical translation initiation site - a novel out-of-frame translational start site. In vitro studies using the GRHPR 5′ UTR fused to a luciferase reporter show that the variant start site pre-empted initiation at the canonical translational start site, and this was corroborated within the broader context of 1.3 kb of the GRHPR proximal promoter. This latter mechanism may be underappreciated in general; reports of clinically significant functional variation of this type are extremely rare. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Primary hyperoxaluria is a severe disease for which the best current therapy is dialysis or organ transplantation. These are risky, inconvenient, and costly procedures. In some patients, pyridoxine treatment can delay the need for these surgical procedures. The underlying cause of particular forms of this disease is the misrouting of a specific enzyme, alanine:glyoxylate aminotransferase (AGT), to the mitochondria instead of the peroxisomes. Pharmacoperones are small molecules that can rescue misfolded proteins and redirect them to their correct location, thereby restoring their function and potentially curing disease. In the present study, we miniaturized a cell-based assay to identify pharmacoperone drugs present in large chemical libraries to selectively correct AGT misrouting. This assay employs AGT-170, a mutant form of AGT that predominantly resides in the mitochondria, which we monitor for its relocation to the peroxisomes through automated image acquisition and analysis. Over the course of a pilot screen of 1,280 test compounds, we achieved an average Z′-factor of 0.72±0.02, demonstrating the suitability of this assay for HTS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Primary hyperoxaluria 1 (PH1; Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man no. 259900), a typically lethal biochemical disorder, may be caused by the AGTP11LG170R allele in which the alanine:glyoxylate aminotransferase (AGT) enzyme is mistargeted from peroxisomes to mitochondria. AGT contains a C-terminal peroxisomal targeting sequence, but mutations generate an N-terminal mitochondrial targeting sequence that directs AGT from peroxisomes to mitochondria. Although AGTP11LG170R is functional, the enzyme must be in the peroxisome to detoxify glyoxylate by conversion to alanine; in disease, amassed glyoxylate in the peroxisome is transported to the cytosol and converted to oxalate by lactate dehydrogenase, leading to kidney failure. From a chemical genetic screen, we have identified small molecules that inhibit mitochondrial protein import. We tested whether one promising candidate, Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved dequalinium chloride (DECA), could restore proper peroxisomal trafficking of AGTP11LG170R. Indeed, treatment with DECA inhibited AGTP11LG170R translocation into mitochondria and subsequently restored trafficking to peroxisomes. Previous studies have suggested that a mitochondrial uncoupler might work in a similar manner. Although the uncoupler carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenyl hydrazone inhibited AGTP11LG170R import into mitochondria, AGTP11LG170R aggregated in the cytosol, and cells subsequently died. In a cellular model system that recapitulated oxalate accumulation, exposure to DECA reduced oxalate accumulation, similar to pyridoxine treatment that works in a small subset of PH1 patients. Moreover, treatment with both DECA and pyridoxine was additive in reducing oxalate levels. Thus, repurposing the FDA-approved DECA may be a pharmacologic strategy to treat PH1 patients with mutations in AGT because an additional 75 missense mutations in AGT may also result in mistrafficking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Primary hyperoxaluria Type 1 is a rare autosomal recessive inborn error of glyoxylate metabolism, caused by a deficiency of the liver-specific enzyme alanine:glyoxylate aminotransferase. The disorder results in overproduction and excessive urinary excretion of oxalate, causing recurrent urolithiasis and nephrocalcinosis. As glomerular filtration rate declines due to progressive renal involvement, oxalate accumulates leading to systemic oxalosis. The diagnosis is based on clinical and sonographic findings, urine oxalate assessment, enzymology and/or DNA analysis. Early initiation of conservative treatment (high fluid intake, pyridoxine, inhibitors of calcium oxalate crystallization) aims at maintaining renal function. In chronic kidney disease Stages 4 and 5, the best outcomes to date were achieved with combined liver–kidney transplantation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Blackleg- Leptosphaeria maculans-is a major worldwide pest for oilseed rape. Blackleg is an airborne pathogen spreading over several kilometres and surviving for at least 3-5 years on crop residues. In oilseed rape, the classical control strategy against blackleg is varietal resistance. However, genetic diversity is decreasing in agricultural crops. Moreover, at the farm level, management of oilseed resistance to blackleg must be adapted to take into account specific farm household objectives and organisation. Therefore, the different types of oilseed management should be identified. Here, we built a typology of oilseed rape management focusing on blackleg management. We used a methodology based on expert knowledge to analyse 32 farms of three French regions. Our results show that eight types of oilseed rape management were identified and can be discriminated according to the risk of blackleg resistance breakdown. We thus identified three categories, high, low, and medium risks. High risk management types have both a low level of oilseed rape management flexibility and a high level of inputs. Low risk systems are systems where oilseed rape is only a minor part of farmer sales and where inputs are minimised. Medium risk systems are systems where oilseed rape is integrated in the rotation, and where input use is optimised by taking into account the short rotation and the expected revenue. Our typology therefore allows to define practices not only on classical agronomic criteria but also on crop sales part in the farm and on input levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Primary hyperoxalurias (PH) are inborn errors in the metabolism of glyoxylate and oxalate. PH type 1, the most common form, is an autosomal recessive disorder caused by a deficiency of the liver-specific enzyme alanine, glyoxylate aminotransferase (AGT) resulting in overproduction and excessive urinary excretion of oxalate. Recurrent urolithiasis and nephrocalcinosis are the hallmarks of the disease. As glomerular filtration rate decreases due to progressive renal damage, oxalate accumulates leading to systemic oxalosis. Diagnosis is often delayed and is based on clinical and sonographic findings, urinary oxalate assessment, DNA analysis, and, if necessary, direct AGT activity measurement in liver biopsy tissue. Early initiation of conservative treatment, including high fluid intake, inhibitors of calcium oxalate crystallization, and pyridoxine in responsive cases, can help to maintain renal function in compliant subjects. In end-stage renal disease patients, the best outcomes have been achieved with combined liver-kidney transplantation which corrects the enzyme defect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Primary hyperoxalurias (PH) are inborn errors in the metabolism of glyoxylate and oxalate. PH type 1, the most common form, is an autosomal recessive disorder caused by a deficiency of the liver-specific enzyme alanine, glyoxylate aminotransferase (AGT) resulting in overproduction and excessive urinary excretion of oxalate. Recurrent urolithiasis and nephrocalcinosis are the hallmarks of the disease. As glomerular filtration rate decreases due to progressive renal damage, oxalate accumulates leading to systemic oxalosis. Diagnosis is often delayed and is based on clinical and sonographic findings, urinary oxalate assessment, DNA analysis, and, if necessary, direct AGT activity measurement in liver biopsy tissue. Early initiation of conservative treatment, including high fluid intake, inhibitors of calcium oxalate crystallization, and pyridoxine in responsive cases, can help to maintain renal function in compliant subjects. In end-stage renal disease patients, the best outcomes have been achieved with combined liver-kidney transplantation which corrects the enzyme defect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The deposition of calcium oxalate crystals in the kidney and bone is a hallmark of primary hyperoxaluria type 1 (PH1). We report here an evaluation of the bone status of 12 PH1 children based on bone biomarkers [parathyroid hormone, vitamin D, fibroblast growth factor 23 (FGF23)] and radiological assessments (skeletal age, three-dimensional high-resolution peripheral quantitative computed tomography, HR-pQCT) carried out within the framework of a cross-sectional single-center study. The controls consisted of healthy and children with chronic kidney disease already enrolled in local bone and mineral metabolism studies. The mean age (±standard deviation) age of the patients was 99 (±63) months. Six children suffered from fracture. Bone maturation was accelerated in five patients, four of whom were <5 years. The combination of new imaging techniques and biomarkers highlighted new and unexplained features of PH1: advanced skeletal age in young PH1 patients, increased FGF23 levels and decreased total volumetric bone mineral density with bone microarchitecture alteration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tacrolimus is known to potentially lead to adverse events in recipients with diarrhoea and/or calcium channel blocker (CCB) co-administration. We report a renal transplant recipient who suffered from severe nephrotoxicity related to a toxic tacrolimus trough concentration in both conditions, diarrhoea and CCB co-administration, and with genotyped CYP3A system and P-glycoprotein (P-gp) polymorphisms. To our knowledge, this is the first case to be investigated for such polymorphisms. Clinicians should be reminded of the possibility of highly increased levels of tacrolimus in situations of diarrhoea and/or co-administration of CCBs. It also highlights the key role in tacrolimus pharmacokinetics of the CYP3A system and P-gp polymorphisms, and their influence in high-risk situations when enzyme activity is already affected by enterocyte damage due to diarrhoea and CCB competition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This phase I, open-label, single-dose study evaluates the effects of severe renal impairment and end-stage renal disease (ESRD) requiring hemodialysis on the pharmacokinetics, safety, and tolerability of sunitinib and its primary active metabolite, SU12662. Subjects with normal renal function (creatinine clearance > 80 mL/min), severe renal impairment (creatinine clearance < 30 mL/min), and ESRD requiring hemodialysis receive a single dose of sunitinib 50 mg. Serial blood samples are collected for quantification of plasma concentrations using a validated liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry assay. Safety is monitored. Twenty-four subjects complete the study. Pharmacokinetics in subjects with severe renal impairment appear similar to those with normal renal function. Plasma exposure to sunitinib and SU12662 appears lower in subjects with ESRD compared with subjects with normal renal function or severe renal impairment. Single-dose sunitinib 50 mg is well tolerated regardless of renal function. The currently approved starting dose of sunitinib 50 mg on Schedule 4/2 is expected to be appropriate for patients with renal impairment; any subsequent dose modifications should be based on patients' ability to tolerate treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Renal transplantation (Tx) is the treatment of choice for end-stage renal disease. The incidence of acute rejection after renal Tx has decreased because of improving early immunosuppression, but the risk of disease recurrence (DR) is becoming relatively high, with a greater prevalence in children than in adults, thereby increasing patient morbidity, graft loss (GL) and, sometimes, mortality rate. The current overall graft loss to DR is 7–8%, mainly due to primary glomerulonephritis (70–80%) and inherited metabolic diseases. The more typical presentation is a recurrence of the full disease, either with a high risk of GL (focal and segmental glomerulosclerosis 14–50% DR, 40–60% GL; atypical haemolytic uraemic syndrome 20–80% DR, 10–83% GL; membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis 30–100% DR, 17–61% GL; membranous nephropathy ∼30% DR, ∼50% GL; lipoprotein glomerulopathy ∼100% DR and GL; primary hyperoxaluria type 1 80–100% DR and GL) or with a low risk of GL [immunoglobulin (Ig)A nephropathy 36–60% DR, 7–10% GL; systemic lupus erythematosus 0–30% DR, 0–5% GL; anti-neutrophilic cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated glomerulonephritis]. Recurrence may also occur with a delayed risk of GL, such as insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus, sickle cell disease, endemic nephropathy, and sarcoidosis. In other primary diseases, the post-Tx course may be complicated by specific events that are different from overt recurrence: proteinuria or cancer in some genetic forms of nephrotic syndrome, anti-glomerular basement membrane antibodies-associated glomerulonephritis (Alport syndrome, Goodpasture syndrome), and graft involvement as a consequence of lower urinary tract abnormality or human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) nephropathy. Some other post-Tx conditions may mimic recurrence, such as de novo membranous glomerulonephritis, IgA nephropathy, microangiopathy, or isolated specific deposits (cystinosis, Fabry disease). Adequate strategies should therefore be added to kidney Tx, such as donor selection, associated liver Tx, plasmatherapy, specific immunosuppression protocols. In such conditions, very few patients may be excluded from kidney Tx only because of a major risk of DR and repeated GL. In the near future the issue of DR after kidney Tx may benefit from alternatives to organ Tx, such as recombinant proteins, specific monoclonal antibodies, cell/gene therapy, and chaperone molecules. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Uric acid may be involved in the development and progression of kidney diseases. Hyperuricemia is a common feature in adult liver transplant recipients but there is limited information in children. In order to estimate the incidence, predictors of hyperuricemia in pediatric liver transplant recipients, and to assess whether hyperuricemia may impact long-term renal function determined by measured GFR, we reviewed data of 70 children who received a first liver transplant between 1991 and 2005 (median follow-up 7.1 yr). Renal function tests performed annually included uric acid concentration, inulin and uric acid clearances. The cumulative incidence of hyperuricemia was 32% at 10-yr post-transplantation, mainly because of decreased urate excretion. The only factor significantly associated with an increased risk of hyperuricemia was older age. After adjustment for donor and recipient age, gender, primary liver disease, immunosuppression, and post-operative acute renal failure, hyperuricemia as time dependent variable tended to predict (p = 0.05) subsequent CRI. The control of serum urate concentration in eight of the 21 hyperuricemic patients either by nutritional management or by allopurinol was not followed by a significant GFR improvement. Hyperuricemia after liver transplantation in children is a frequent problem which needs further investigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Renal involvement is frequent in children with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and carries significant short and long-term morbidity. Treatment strategy in proliferative glomerulonephritis relies mainly on studies in adult patients where conventional treatment regimens including high doses of cyclophosphamide (CYC) and steroids may cause severe side effects. New strategies including sequential therapies of various combinations of low dose CYC, calcineurine inhibitors (cyclosporine or tacrolimus), mycophenolate mofetil, azathioprine, rituximab are now under investigation in adult patients with very few data in children. Organization of international registries and controlled trials in children with lupus nephritis is mandatory to determine long term prognosis and to validate less toxic therapy regimens in childhood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to evaluate the interest of beginning the selection process on a new genetic characteristic, cleistogamy, to manage gene flow in oilseed rape. The first step was to introduce this characteristic in an existing model of gene flow between oilseed rape populations in time and space, GeneSys- Rape. The second step was to evaluate the parameters of the model linked to this characteristic using field experimentations. Cleistogamous oilseed rape was shown to have an autogamy rate as high as 94% and to emit 10 times less pollen than an open-flowered oilseed rape in the same conditions. But the cleistogamous character was also shown to be unstable in the genotypes tested. The third step was to evaluate the interest of cleistogamy using simulations comparing several genotypes with or without cleistogamy in two different cropping systems. These simulations showed that an oilseed rape both dwarf and cleistogamous was interesting to limit gene escape and that a 99%-autogamous oilseed rape was interesting to limit both gene escape from and harvest contamination of the 99%-autogamous oilseed rape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Primary hyperoxaluria type 1, the most common form of primary hyperoxaluria, is an autosomal recessive disorder caused by a deficiency of the liver-specific enzyme alanine: glyoxylate aminotransferase (AGT). This results in increased synthesis and subsequent urinary excretion of the metabolic end product oxalate and the deposition of insoluble calcium oxalate in the kidney and urinary tract. As glomerular filtration rate (GFR) decreases due to progressive renal involvement, oxalate accumulates and results in systemic oxalosis. Diagnosis is still often delayed. It may be established on the basis of clinical and sonographic findings, urinary oxalate ± glycolate assessment, DNA analysis and, sometimes, direct AGT activity measurement in liver biopsy tissue. The initiation of conservative measures, based on hydration, citrate and/or phosphate, and pyridoxine, in responsive cases at an early stage to minimize oxalate crystal formation will help to maintain renal function in compliant subjects. Patients with established urolithiasis may benefit from extracorporeal shock-wave lithotripsy and/or JJ stent insertion. Correction of the enzyme defect by liver transplantation should be planned, before systemic oxalosis develops, to optimize outcomes and may be either sequential (biochemical benefit) or simultaneous (immunological benefit) liver–kidney transplantation, depending on facilities and access to cadaveric or living donors. Aggressive dialysis therapies are required to avoid progressive oxalate deposition in established end-stage renal disease (ESRD), and minimization of the time on dialysis will improve both the patient’s quality of life and survival. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study is part of the research about the influence of the thermal gradient on the composition and the stability of fluids in geological environments. This paper presents modelling results of oscillatory convection in a porous medium using the METSOR code. The model solves the heat and mass transport equations in a porous medium and takes into account the Sorer effect (mass transport under thermal gradient). Oscillatory convection may occur in pure fluids and in binary mixtures (as a consequence of the Soret effect). Experimental data confirm the existence of this phenomenon in porous media. Here, the outputs of the METSOR code are verified against existing analytical solutions. A first modelling attempt of oscillatory convection in mixtures is presented (salt aquifer). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Il Nuovo Cimento: B is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Il Nuovo Cimento: B is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

A procedure is described that is suitable for the radioimmunoassay (RIA) of 9-[(l,3-dihydroxy-2-propoxy)-methyl]guanine (DHPG) in plasma or serum at concentrations as low as 0.7 ng/ml (2.75 × 10 M). Antiserum was prepared by coupling DHPG monohemisuccinate to bovine serum albumin and immunizing rabbits with the resulting conjugate. The antibodies did not show significant cross-reactivities with structurally related endogenous compounds. For RIA, tritium-labeled DHPG was used as the tracer and charcoal-dextran was used to separate the free and bound fractions. No purification of samples was required prior to RIA. The accuracy of the method was assessed by adding known quantities of DHPG to DHPG-free plasma and determining the ratio of measured to added analyte. Linear regression analysis for the concentration range 0.0007 to 15.0 µg/ml yielded the following equation; y = 0.90 x + 0.033 ( r = 0.999). Additional validation was obtained from studies in which DHPG was administered to a monkey, mice, dogs, and rats, and plasma-clearance profiles were determined by RIA and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The results obtained by RIA were in good agreement with those obtained by HPLC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a TIPM paper published in 1992, the authors presented a simple model of thermogravitational diffusion in packed columns (TPC). Though qualitatively in agreement with the experimental results, this model exhibited a systematic discrepancy with respect to the magnitude of the permeability of maximum separation in the TPC experiments. Here, the results of a re-examination of the classical phenomenology of irreversible thermodynamics in porous media, applied to TPC, are described. Through the interpretation of additional TPC experiments, we show that the effective thermal diffusion coefficient in TPC includes a dependency upon the fluid velocity. This dependency is consistent with a nonlinear extension of irreversible thermodynamics, and the model so amended accounts for a correct re-interpretation of the experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The thermogravitational effect may induce large concentration contrasts, particularly in porous media. This phenomenon arises from a coupling of the Soret effect and convection currents in a temperature field. The present study of this phenomenon is motivated by the safety assessment of nuclear waste repositories, which are sources of thermal energy. Here, we present a modelling approach of laboratory experiments carried out at the University of Toulouse. The results of this model, though more adequate than the analytical solution to account for the influence of permeability, remain far from the experimental ones. In conclusion, it appears that the research must now focus on both a comprehensive phenomenology of the transport processes and experiments with new dimensional constraints. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Kidney stone disease is increasing in prevalence, and the most common stone composition is calcium oxalate. Dietary oxalate intake and endogenous production of oxalate are important in the pathophysiology of calcium oxalate stone disease. The impact of dietary oxalate intake on urinary oxalate excretion and kidney stone disease risk has been assessed through large cohort studies as well as smaller studies with dietary control. Net gastrointestinal oxalate absorption influences urinary oxalate excretion. Oxalate-degrading bacteria in the gut microbiome, especially Oxalobacter formigenes, may mitigate stone risk through reducing net oxalate absorption. Ascorbic acid (vitamin C) is the main dietary precursor for endogenous production of oxalate with several other compounds playing a lesser role. Renal handling of oxalate and, potentially, renal synthesis of oxalate may contribute to stone formation. In this review, we discuss dietary oxalate and precursors of oxalate, their pertinent physiology in humans, and what is known about their role in kidney stone disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The last few years have seen an exponential development of urban agriculture projects within global North countries, especially professional intra-urban farms which are professional forms of agriculture located within densely settled areas of city. Such projects aim to cope with the challenge of sustainable urban development and today the sustainability of the projects is questioned. To date, no set of criteria has been designed to specifically assess the environmental, social and economic sustainability of these farms at the farm scale. Our study aims to identify sustainability objectives and criteria applicable to professional intra-urban farms. It relies on a participatory approach involving various stakeholders of the French urban agriculture sector comprising an initial focus group, online surveys and interviews. We obtained a set of six objectives related to environmental impacts, link to the city, economic and ethical meaning, food and environmental education, consumer/producer connection and socio-territorial services. In addition, 21 criteria split between agro-environmental, socio-territorial and economic dimensions were identified to reach these objectives. Overall, agro-environmental and socio-territorial criteria were assessed as more important than economic criteria, whereas food production was not mentioned. Differences were identified between urban farmers and decision makers, highlighting that decision makers were more focused on projects' external sustainability. They also pay attention to the urban farmer agricultural background, suggesting that they rely on urban farmers to ensure the internal sustainability of the farm. Based on our results, indicators could be designed to measure the sustainability criteria identified, and to allow the sustainability assessment of intra-urban farms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]