Search

International audience; IMPORTANCE Blood transfusion is a mainstay of therapy for trauma-induced coagulopathy, but the optimal modalities for plasma transfusion in the prehospital setting remain to be defined. OBJECTIVE To determine whether lyophilized plasma transfusion can reduce the incidence of trauma-induced coagulopathy compared with standard care consisting of normal saline infusion. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS This randomized clinical trial was performed at multiple centers in France involving prehospital medical teams. Participants included 150 adults with trauma who were at risk for hemorrhagic shock and associated coagulopathy between April 1, 2016, and

Increasing evidence indicates that fruits contain functional bio-active compounds that have several preventive and therapeutic health benefits. Our group has recently conducted studies to assess the potential effects of cranberry polyphenolic fractions on intestinal Caco-2/15 epithelial cells and a substantial reduction in oxidative stress and inflammation was observed. The aim of the present work was to determine the polyphenolic species most likely responsible for the observed biological activity. Low, medium, and high molecular weight cranberry fractions were generated with a Sephadex LH-20 column by elution with 60% MeOH, 100% MeOH, and 70% acetone, respectively. The total phenolic content in these fractions was determined by the Folin–Ciocalteu method. A combination of LC–MS and MALDI-TOF methods were used to characterize the nature of polyphenolic compounds in the cranberry extracts. High resolution mass spectrometry was used to generate empirical formulae for the detected species. The low molecular weight fraction was essentially constituted of small phenolic acids (hydroxycinnamic and hydroxybenzoic acids). The medium fraction was mostly composed of anthocyanin, flavonols (quercetin, myricetin, isorhamnetin, kaempferol), procyanidins monomers (epicatechin, catechin), dimers, and few small oligomers. The heavy fraction was devoid of phenolic acids and anthocyanins, and it contained for the most part oligomers and polymers of procyanidins. Proanthocyanidins oligomers up to n = 22 were detected, which is, to our knowledge, the largest individual polymers reported to date. With this approach, it was also possible to distinguish between the A-type and B-type linkages.

Diets rich in fruits and vegetables may reduce oxidative stress (OxS) and inflammation via several mechanisms. These beneficial effects may be due to their high polyphenol content. The aims of the present study are to evaluate the preventive and therapeutic aspects of polyphenols in dried apple peel powder (DAPP) on intestinal inflammation while elucidating the underlying mechanisms and clinical benefits. Induction of intestinal inflammation in mice was performed by oral administration of the inflammatory agent dextran sulfate sodium (DSS) at 2.5% for 10 days. Physiological and supraphysiological doses of DAPP (200 and 400 mg/kg/day respectively) were administered by gavage for 10 days pre- and post-DSS treatment. DSS-mediated inflammation caused weight loss, shortening of the colon, dystrophic detachment of the epithelium, and infiltration of mono- and poly-morphonuclear cells in the colon. DSS induced an increase in lipid peroxidation, a down-regulation of antioxidant enzymes, an augmented expression of myeloperoxidase (MPO) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), an elevated production of prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) and a shift in mucosa-associated microbial composition. However, DAPP normalized most of these abnormalities in preventive or therapeutic situations in addition to lowering inflammatory cytokines while stimulating antioxidant transcription factors and modulating other potential healing pathways. The supraphysiological dose of DAPP in therapeutic situations also improved mitochondrial dysfunction. Relative abundance of Peptostreptococcaceae and Enterobacteriaceae bacteria was slightly decreased in DAPP-treated mice. In conclusion, DAPP exhibits powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory action in the intestine and is associated with the regulation of cellular signalling pathways and changes in microbiota composition. Evaluation of preventive and therapeutic effects of DAPP may be clinically feasible in individuals with intestinal inflammatory bowel diseases.

Cranberry fruit has been reported to have high antioxidant effectiveness that is potentially linked to its richness in diversified polyphenolic content. The aim of the present study was to determine the role of cranberry polyphenolic fractions in oxidative stress (OxS), inflammation and mitochondrial functions using intestinal Caco-2/15 cells. The combination of HPLC and UltraPerformance LC®-tandem quadrupole (UPLC-TQD) techniques allowed us to characterize the profile of low, medium and high molecular mass polyphenolic compounds in cranberry extracts. The medium molecular mass fraction was enriched with flavonoids and procyanidin dimers whereas procyanidin oligomers (DP > 4) were the dominant class of polyphenols in the high molecular mass fraction. Pre-incubation of Caco-2/15 cells with these cranberry extracts prevented iron/ascorbate-mediated lipid peroxidation and counteracted lipopolysaccharide-mediated inflammation as evidenced by the decrease in pro-inflammatory cytokines (TNF-α and interleukin-6), cyclo-oxygenase-2 and prostaglandin E2. Cranberry polyphenols (CP) fractions limited both nuclear factor κB activation and Nrf2 down-regulation. Consistently, cranberry procyanidins alleviated OxS-dependent mitochondrial dysfunctions as shown by the rise in ATP production and the up-regulation of Bcl-2, as well as the decline of protein expression of cytochrome c and apoptotic-inducing factor. These mitochondrial effects were associated with a significant stimulation of peroxisome-proliferator-activated receptor γ co-activator-1-α, a central inducing factor of mitochondrial biogenesis and transcriptional co-activator of numerous downstream mediators. Finally, cranberry procyanidins forestalled the effect of iron/ascorbate on the protein expression of mitochondrial transcription factors (mtTFA, mtTFB1, mtTFB2). Our findings provide evidence for the capacity of CP to reduce intestinal OxS and inflammation while improving mitochondrial dysfunction.

The paraoxonase (PON) gene family is composed of three members (PON1, PON2, PON3) that share considerable structural homology and are located adjacently on chromosome 7 in humans. By far the most-studied member is PON1, a high-density lipoprotein-associated esterase/lactonase, also endowed with the capacity to hydrolyze organophosphates, but all the three proteins prevent oxidative stress and fight inflammation. They therefore seem central to a wide variety of human illnesses, including atherosclerosis, diabetes mellitus, mental disorders and inflammatory bowel disease. The major goal of this review is to highlight the regulation of each of the paraoxonase components by diverse nutritional molecules and pharmacological agents as well as a number of pathophysiological events, such as oxidative stress and inflammation. Considerable and detailed cell-based studies and animal model experiments have been provided to allow a thorough scrutiny of PON modulation, which will increase our understanding and ability to target these genes in order to efficiently increase their transcriptional activity and decrease the risks of developing different disorders.

For all the euphoria that marked Canadians' reaction to Barack Obama's accession to the U.S. presidency, the Canada–U.S. relationship promises to remain complicated. To make sense of the situation, a sharp distinction must be made between public opinion and the policy orientations of governments. Thus, throughout the Bush years, bilateral relations in key policy areas remained close—and even grew closer—at the same time that hostility of Canadians toward the U.S. administration was extreme. Conversely, several factors—not including broad hemispheric issues, which count for little in the Canada–U.S. relationship—seem likely to dampen bilateral policy enthusiasm through much of Obama's first term, despite his great personal appeal and his better fit near the center of the Canadian political spectrum. Parallel and competing domestic priorities can have adverse effects on bilateral trade, which accounts for a large part of the Canadian economy; the partnership is far from natural between the Obama White House and the Conservative government of Prime Minister Stephen Harper, and while Obama is ramping up U.S. military engagement in Afghanistan, Canada is seeking to get out. Still, Canadians seem ready to absorb important policy differences in the face of what they overwhelmingly believe to be the big picture: that Barack Obama is good for the United States and for the world. A pesar de toda la euforia que acompano la reaccion de los canadienses en la toma de posesion de Barack Obama a la presidencia estadounidense, la relacion entre Canada y Estados Unidos promete seguir complicada. Para entender la situacion, debe hacerse una gran distincion entre la opinion publica y las orientaciones politicas de los gobiernos. Asi, durante los anos con Bush, las relaciones bilaterales en areas clave de la politica se mantuvieron cercanas—y se acercaron todavia mas—a la vez que la hostilidad de los canadienses hacia la administracion estadounidense fue extrema. Por otro lado, varios factores—que no incluyen los asuntos hemisfericos, mismos que importan poco en la relacion Canada–EU—parecen desalentar el entusiasmo por la politica bilateral durante la mayor parte de la primera gestion de Obama, a pesar de su carisma personal y de encajar mejor al centro del espectro politico canadiense. Cabe notar, que las prioridades domesticas paralelas y concurrentes pueden tener efectos adversos en el comercio bilateral, el cual abarca gran parte de la economia canadiense; la convivencia entre la Casa Blanca de Obama y el gobierno Conservador del Primer Ministro Stephen Harper esta lejos de ser natural, y mientras que Obama aumenta el compromiso militar en Afganistan, Canada busca salirse de ahi. Aun asi, los canadienses parecen estar dispuestos a absorber las diferencias en politicas importantes ante lo que ellos abrumadoramente creen es el asunto mayor: que Barack Obama es bueno para Estados Unidos y para el mundo.

Cet article etudie la relation entre la formation de L'Etat canadien et la construction des identites amerindiennes, au moyen de la fonction legitimante des commissions d'enquete, pour la periode allant de la Loi constitutionnelle, 1982 au rapport de la Commission royale sur les peuples autochtones en 1996. Nous examinons, en particulier, dans quelle mesure le rapport de la CRPA « normalise » des narratifs de politique amerindienne deja presents, les stabilisant en une hierarchie rigide de revendications qui s'appuie sur le modele de la nation. L'analyse se concentre sur le positionnement problematique des Amerindiens urbains et des Indiens sans statut face a la « nation », ce qui mene a leur marginalisation dans les debats politiques actuels. This paper examines the relationship between Canadian state formation and the construction of Aboriginal identities via the legitimating function of the public inquiry, for the period from the adoption of the Constitution Act, 1982 to the Report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples (1996). Specifically, we examine the extent to which the RCAP Report “normalizes” pre-existing narratives regarding Aboriginal politics into a rigid hierarchy of claims privileging the nation model and those Aboriginals with a land base. We argue that the nation model is reinforced, legitimized and publicized through the RCAP Report's function as a legitimating tool of the state.

Cet article offre une analyse des pratiques etatiques du gouvernement Klein en Alberta en vue de contribuer a la comprehension de la place de l'Etat dans le contexte actuel de mondialisation de l'economie. Le gouvernement Klein est d'abord situe au sein du projet politico-culturel de la nouvelle droite, puis le concept de «regulation morale» est introduit comme principe d'interpretation de la pratique gouverne-mentale. La restructuration des secteurs de la sante, de l'education et des services sociaux est ensuite analysee, de meme que l'interet que porte le gouvernement Klein aux enjeux de «la loi et l'ordre» ainsi que ceux des droits de la personne. L'article pretend que, en Alberta comme ailleurs> alors meme que sa pratique est profondement restructuree, l'Etat demeure le partenaire irremplacable du capital. The state practices of Alberta's Klein government are analysed with respect to the issue of whether the state becomes powerless in the current wave of capitalist globalization. The Klein government is first situated within the political/cultural project of the new right, and the concept of “moral regulation” is introduced to make sense of the government's overall practice. The restructuration of education, health care and social services in the province is then analysed, along with the government's interest in law and order, and human rights issues. It is claimed that, in Alberta as elsewhere, while the state is undergoing a deep restructuring, it retains its importance as capital's irreplaceable partner.

This paper seeks to problematize the conceptual and political relationships between what are considered different kinds of security—national, public/private, and human—and other concepts such as human rights and the rule of law. A concern with public security is often associated with conservative political forces—the “law and order” outlook; the reciprocal concern with human rights tends, for its part, to be associated with the left. In the current political and social climate of Mexico, this polarization is unnecessarily detrimental to human rights work. Indeed, this polarization need not happen; the human rights agenda need not be trumped by public security. As with many other issues in Mexico today, the murders of young women in Ciudad Juarez have a lot to tell us about getting out of the dilemma. The paper will show that, when taken together, the concepts and concerns of public security and human rights lead to a strong concept of human security, linked to the establishment of the rule of law....

This article concerns itself with what happens to the universal/particular character of citizenship in the context of North American regionalization. It takes as a starting point several incidents where Canadian citizens have called on their government to help them through crisis situations abroad, and then taken it to task for not helping enough. The cases analysed involve Canadian tourists in Mexico who died violently and whose families have used the media to pressure the Canadian government to obtain justice from Mexico. Mass calls for help following natural disasters and war, and the case of Maher Arar, a Canadian citizen “rendered” by the United States to Syria where he was tortured, are also considered to conceptualize “citizens in trouble abroad” claims. The article finds that such claims reinforce a Canadian sense of citizenship where political identity remains rooted firmly with(in) the nation-state, despite the country's engagement in a deep regionalization project. Maher Arar is a Canadian citizen.1

The purpose of this ethnographic comparative study of the Jeux de l'Acadie, the Jeux franco-ontariens and the Alberta Francophone Games is to explore further how minority youth identities are produced and manifested in Canada's francophonies. Through interviews, drawings and questionnaires adolescents express and give meaning to their francophoneness in the context of the Games. The analysis reveals that francophone identities are reproduced as a component of hybrid identities. This hybridity refers to youths' integration of once distinct francophone and anglophone cultural identities into a "hybrid" identity. This paper examines the different configurations of these hybrid cultural and linguistic identities, where some youths spontaneously and mostly live in French but insist on their hybridity, while other youths perform predominantly as anglophones but remain attached to their francophoneness. Indeed, Acadian youths primarily perform a singular francophone identity while Franco-Ontarian and Alberta francophone youths manifest a rather complex and asymmetrical melange of francophoneness and anglophoneness.

The hematopoiesis-specific RhoH gene is thought to be deregulated in B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (B-NHL), by either a chromosomal translocation or mutations, which affect its 5' regulatory region. The encoded Rho protein, always GTP-bound in vivo, was hypothesized to behave as a Rac antagonist. Extensive expression analysis allowed the detection of RhoH transcripts in all hematopoietic lineages (lymphoid, erythroid, myeloid), with a high level in lymphoid cells. To initiate investigations on the molecular mechanisms that regulate RhoH gene expression, Race-PCR and primer extension were conducted in the B-cell line Raji, which allowed (i) the establishment of RhoH complex intron/exon organization and (ii) the detection of several transcription initiation sites. In addition, a high 5' end heterogeneity of RhoH mRNAs was observed, due to alternative splicing of some 5' exons and to the use of these different transcription start sites. RT-PCR analysis led to the identification of this 5' end heterogeneity in different hematopoietic lineages. Discrepancies were particularly observed between B and T cells, due to an alternative splicing of one 5' exon (1b), which might be an important element in RhoH gene regulation. Such specific features have never been described for any Rho family member gene. They provide a molecular basis to study complex mechanisms involved in the control of RhoH expression.

The AML1 gene, situated in 21q22, is often rearranged in acute leukemias through t(8;21) translocation, t(12;21) translocation, or less often t(3;21) translocation. Recently, point mutations in the Runt domain of the AML1 gene have also been reported in leukemia patients. Observations for mutations of the Runt domain of the AML1 gene in bone marrow cells were made in 300 patients, including 131 with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), 94 with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), 28 with blast crisis chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), 3 with atypical CML, 41 with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), and 3 with essential thrombocythemia (ET). Forty-one of the patients had chromosome 21 abnormalities, including t(8;21) in 6 of the patients with AML, t(12;21) in 8 patients with ALL, acquired trisomy 21 in 17 patients, tetrasomy 21 in 7 patients, and constitutional trisomy 21 (Down syndrome) in 3 patients. A point mutation was found in 14 cases (4.7%), including 9 (22%) of the 41 patients with AML of the Mo type (MoAML) (none of them had detectable chromosome 21 rearrangement) and 5 (38%) of the 13 myeloid malignancies with acquired trisomy 21 (1 M1AML, 2 M2AML, 1 ET, and 1 atypical CML). In at least 8 of 9 mutated cases of MoAML, both AML alleles were mutated: 3 patients had different stop codon mutations of the 2 AML1 alleles, and 5 patients had the same missense or stop codon mutation in both AML1 alleles, which resulted in at least 3 of the patients having duplication of the mutated allele and deletion of the normal residual allele, as shown by FISH analysis and by comparing microsatellite analyses of several chromosome 21 markers on diagnosis and remission samples. In the remaining mutated cases, with acquired trisomy 21, a missense mutation of AML1, which involved 2 of the 3 copies of the AML1 gene, was found. Four of the 7 mutated cases could be reanalyzed in complete remission, and no AML1 mutation was found, showing that mutations were acquired in the leukemic clone. In conclusion, these findings confirm the possibility of mutations of the Runt domain of the AML1 gene in leukemias, mainly in MoAML and in myeloid malignancies with acquired trisomy 21. AML1 mutations, in MoAML, involved both alleles and probably lead to nonfunctional AML1 protein. As AML1 protein regulates the expression of the myeloperoxidase gene, the relationship between AML1 mutations and Mo phenotype in AML will have to be further explored.

The LAZ3(BCL6) gene on chromosome band 3q27 is nonrandomly disrupted in B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma (B-NHL) by chromosomal translocations clustered within a 3.3-kb MTC (major translocation cluster) located between the two first noncoding exons. These translocations generally result in the expression of a chimeric mRNA transcript between the LAZ3 gene and sequences derived from the partner chromosome. Using RACE RT-PCR, we previously demonstrated fusion of LAZ3 with the RhoH/TTF gene, a hemopoietic cell-specific small GTPase involved in cytoskeleton organization, and with the BOB1/OBF1 gene, a B-cell-specific coactivator of octamer-binding transcription factors, following translocations t(3;4)(q27;p13) and t(3;11)(q27;q23), respectively. Here we report the identification of the L-Plastin(LCP1) gene as a novel LAZ3 partner in chimeric transcripts resulting from a t(3;13)(q27;q14) translocation, in two cases of B-cell lymphoma. As a consequence of the translocation, the 5' regulatory region of each gene was exchanged, creating both LCP1-LAZ3 and reciprocal LAZ3-LCP1 fusion transcripts in one case, and only a LCP1-LAZ3 fusion transcript in the other. The 13q14 chromosome region is frequently disrupted in various proliferative disorders, and the LCP1 gene defines a new breakpoint site in this region. This gene encodes an actin-binding protein and is the second LAZ3 partner gene, with the RhoH/TTF gene, involved in actin cytoskeleton organization. Genes Chromosomes Cancer 26:97-105, 1999.

The replication region of a 100-kb desulfurization plasmid (pSOX) from Rhodococcus sp. strain X309 was localized to a 4-kb Kpn I fragment, and its sequence was determined. The amino acid sequence of one of the predicted open reading frames (ORFs) was related to the putative replication (Rep) protein sequences of the mycobacterial pLR7 family of plasmids. Three of the five predicted ORF products were identified by radiolabelling with the Escherichia coli T7 polymerase/promoter system. In E. coli , the Rep protein of pSOX was apparently synthesized in a shortened form, 21.3 kDa instead of the predicted 41.3 kDa, as a result of an internal initiation. This situation is reminescent of that for some bacterial Rep proteins. A shuttle plasmid was constructed with the pSOX origin, pBluescript II KS−, and the chloramphenicol resistance (Cm r ) gene from pRF29. This new shuttle plasmid was used to demonstrate expression of the Bacillus subtilis sacB gene in a strain of Rhodococcus , rendering it sensitive to the presence of sucrose.

Resistance to stress-induced apoptosis was examined in cells in which the expression of hsp70 was either constitutively elevated or inducible by a tetracycline-regulated transactivator. Heat-induced apoptosis was blocked in hsp70-expressing cells, and this was associated with reduced cleavage of the common death substrate protein poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP). Heat-induced cell death was correlated with the activation of the stress-activated protein kinase SAPK/JNK (c-Jun N-terminal kinase). Activation of SAPK/JNK was strongly inhibited in cells in which hsp70 was induced to a high level, indicating that hsp70 is able to block apoptosis by inhibiting signaling events upstream of SAPK/JNK activation. In contrast, SAPK/JNK activation was not inhibited by heat shock in cells with constitutively elevated levels of hsp70. Cells that constitutively overexpress hsp70 resist apoptosis induced by ceramide, a lipid signaling molecule that is generated by apoptosis-inducing treatments and is linked to SAPK/JNK activation. Similar to heat stress, resistance to ceramide-induced apoptosis occurs in spite of strong SAPK/JNK activation. Therefore, hsp70 is also able to inhibit apoptosis at some point downstream of SAPK/JNK activation. Since PARP cleavage is prevented in both cell lines, these results suggest that hsp70 is able to prevent the effector steps of apoptotic cell death. Processing of the CED-3-related protease caspase-3 (CPP32/Yama/apopain) is inhibited in hsp70-expressing cells; however, the activity of the mature enzyme is not affected by hsp70 in vitro. Caspase processing may represent a critical heat-sensitive target leading to cell death that is inhibited by the chaperoning function of hsp70. The inhibition of SAPK/JNK signaling and apoptotic protease effector steps by hsp70 likely contributes to the resistance to stress-induced apoptosis seen in transiently induced thermotolerance.

Resume Cette recherche explore les relations entre le bien-etre psychologique des personnes âgees et un ensemble de dimensions se rapportant aux activites, aux caracteristiques personnelles et au milieu de vie. On y examine plus particulierement la frequence et le type d'activites ainsi que l'autonomie ou le controle percu dans l'accomplissement de ces activites. Cent quatre-vingt-deux personnes âgees (M = 72,4 ans) ont ete rencontrees individuellement a leur domicile. Outre le bien-etre et l'activite, l'etude comporte des mesures de l'autonomie psychologique, des evenements stressants, de la resignation apprise ainsi que des echelles de satisfaction touchant la sante, le revenu, le logement et le quartier. Les resultats revelent que si l'activite sociale joue un role important, la resignation apprise et l'autonomie psychologique apparaissent cependant comme des variables cles. Ces attitudes modulent les effets des activites quotidiennes et ceux des facteurs personnels et environnementaux (sante et condit...

The Drosophila Cut and mammalian Cut-like proteins contain, in addition to the homeodomain, three other DNA-binding regions called Cut repeats. Cut-like proteins, therefore, belong to a distinct class of homeodomain proteins with multiple DNA-binding domains. In this study, we assessed the DNA-binding specificity of the human Cut repeats by performing PCR-mediated random oligonucleotide selection with glutathione S-transferase fusion proteins. Cut repeat 1, Cut repeat 3, and Cut repeat 3 plus the homeodomain selected related yet distinct sequences. Therefore, sequences selected by one of the fusion proteins were often, but not always, recognized by the other proteins. Consensus binding sites were derived for each fusion protein. In each case, however, some selected sequences diverged from the consensus but were confirmed to be high-affinity recognition sites by electrophoretic mobility shift assay. We conclude that Cut DNA-binding domains have broad, overlapping DNA-binding specificities. Determination of dissociation constants indicated that in addition to the core consensus, flanking sequences have a moderate but significant effect on sequence recognition. Evidence from electrophoretic mobility shift assay, DNase footprinting, and dissociation constant analyses strongly suggested that glutathione S-transferase/Cut fusion proteins bind to DNA as dimers. The implications of these findings are discussed in relation to the DNA-binding capabilities of Cut repeats. In contrast to other studies, we found that the human Cut-like protein does not preferably bind to a site that includes an ATTA homeodomain-binding motif. Here we demonstrate that the native human Cut-like protein recognizes more efficiently a site containing an ATCGAT core consensus flanked with G/C-rich sequences.

International audience; This paper explores the dynamic properties of price-based policies in a model of competition between two jurisdictions. Jurisdictions invest over time in infrastructure to increase the quality of the environment, a global public good. They are identical in all respects but one: initial stocks of infrastructure. This is a dynamic type of heterogeneity that disappears in the long run. Therefore, at the steady state, usual intuitions from static settings apply: identical jurisdictions inefficiently underinvest, calling for public subsidies. In the short run, however, counterintuitive properties are established: (i) the evolution of capital stocks can be nonmonotonic and (ii) one jurisdiction can be temporarily taxed, even though it should increase its investment, whereas the other is subsidized. It is shown how these phenomena are related to initial conditions and the kind of interactions between infrastructure capitals, complementarity or substitutability.

Compte rendu et analyses, Séminaire PUCA, 22 novembre 2012, Paris La Défense.

In B-cell malignancies, the t(11;14)(q13;q32) at the 11q13 BCL1 locus is characterized by a scattering of breakpoint sites along a 100 kb genomic region, between the BCL1 major translocation cluster (MTC) and the PRAD1 (also termed cyclin D1 or CCND1) gene. Recently, the 11q13 breakpoint region was extended on both sides, centromeric to the MTC and telomeric to PRAD1. We report here the molecular cloning of a new t(11;14) breakpoint site, 20 kb centromeric to the MTC, from a patient with prolymphocytic leukemia. We subcloned a non-repetitive DNA fragment near the breakpoint and mapped this new 11q13 probe (pHO11c) relative to already identified breakpoint sites, using long- and short-range physical mapping within the BCL1 locus. Rearrangements in the BCL1 locus are associated with deregulation of the PRAD1 gene, which is often overexpressed, particularly in mantle-cell malignancies. The detectable but weak PRAD1 expression in the case we present suggests that this breakpoint centromeric to the MTC still lies inside the BCL1 locus boundaries. We think that attention should be focused on this region centromeric to the BCL1-MTC, where the investigation of previously unidentified translocations may increase understanding of the PRAD1 gene deregulation in t(11;14) associated pathologies.

This paper examines the optimal environmental policy in a mixed oligopoly when pollution accumulates over time. Specifically, we assume quantity competition between several private firms and one partially privatized firm. The optimal emission tax is shown to be independent of the weight the privatized firm puts on social welfare. The optimal tax rule, the accumulated stock of pollution, firms’ production paths and profit streams are identical irrespective of the public firm’s ownership status.

Diffusion du document : INRA Unité Mixte de Recherche LAMETA Laboratoire montpelliérain d'Economie théorique et appliquée 2 place Viala 34060 Montpellier Cedex 1 (FRA) Diplôme : Dr. d'Universite; Le mouvement coopératif traverse une crise d'identité profonde. Cette crise se manifeste dans les tentatives de redéfinitions de l'objet des sociétés coopératives proposées par l'Alliance coopérative internationale. Elle motive les récentes révisions du statut juridique des sociétés coopératives dans les pays de l'Union et, en particulier, la France. L'objet de la thèse est de proposer un cadre de réflexion permettant d'évaluer les bouleversements en cours et les réformes juridiques proposées. L'étude porte sur la coopération agricole. Les sociétés coopératives ont bénéficié d'un soutien important de la part du décideur public. Aujourd'hui, ce soutien est remis en question. En particulier, la Commission européenne stigmatise les dérives anticoncurrentielles des grands groupes coopératifs, ce qui tend à indiquer qu'il existe aujourd'hui peu de différence entre les pratiques d'une société coopérative et d'une firme de droit commun.

Introduction: Chromosomal translocations involving the chromosome 3q27 region are common in B-cell non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL), mainly diAuse large cell lymphoma (DLCL) and less often in follicular lymphoma. Most of these rearrangements involve the same major translocation cluster (MTC) on the 3q27 region, disrupting the LAZ3/BCL6 gene. Some of those translocations are diAcult to detect by cytogenetic analysis and/or Southern-blot analysis. In the present report we used a FISH assay to improve the detection of LAZ3/BCL6 rearrangements. Methods: We isolated a YAC clone (803g3), containing the BCL6 gene, in order to analyze by FISH 19 cases of B-cell non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma with cytogenetically detectable 3q27 rearrangement, including reciprocal translocation in 11 cases, deletion in two cases, and addition of undefined chromosomal material on 3q27 in six cases. Results: In the 11 cases with reciprocal translocation, FISH results confirmed cytogenetic data and showed disruption of the LAZ3 region: four t(3;4)(q27;p13), two t(3;11)(q27;q23.1), four t(3;14)(q27;q32) and one t(2;3)(p12;q27). In two of the cases, reciprocal t(3;14) was associated with other cytogenetically detectable abnormalities of 3q27, but FISH showed that they did not aAect the LAZ3 gene region. FISH demonstrated a reciprocal translocation with LAZ3 gene rearrangement in two of the six patients with add 3q27: one t(3;11) and one t(3;14). In the two patients with del(3q27), one had two 3q27 FISH signals and one had only one 3q27 FISH signal, but no LAZ3 gene rearrangement was observed. Conclusion: We have identified a YAC containing the LAZ3/BCL6 gene. This YAC probe could be useful in clinical practice to demonstrate LAZ3 rearrangements by FISH analysis on tumor samples in NHL. The Hematology Journal (2000) 1, 117‐125

The cloned sulfur oxidation (desulfurization) genes (sox) for dibenzothiophene (DBT) from the prototype Rhodococcus sp. strain IGTS8 were used in Southern hybridization and PCR experiments to establish the DNA relatedness in six new rhodococcal isolates which are capable of utilizing DBT as a sole sulfur source for growth. The ability of these strains to desulfurize appears to be an exclusive property of a 4-kb gene locus on a large plasmid of ca. 150 kb in IGTS8 and ca. 100 kb in the other strains. Besides a difference in plasmid profile, IGTS8 is distinguishable from the other strains in at least the copy number of the insertion sequence IS1166, which is associated with the sox genes.

The RhoH / TTF ( ARHH ) gene encodes a new member of the Ras superfamily of small GTPases. The gene was identified by fusion to the BCL6 / LAZ3 oncogene in an initially described t(3;4)(q27;p11) translocation in a non-Hodgkin's lymphoma cell line. The predicted amino acid sequence of the RhoH / TTF gene product includes Rho-like GTPase structural motifs. The RhoH / TTF gene is restrictively expressed in hematopoietic cells and tissues. Mutations in the human RAS genes have been shown previously to be tumorigenic; in the search for a potential implication of the RhoH / TTF gene in hemopoietic malignancies, we established its genomic structure. The RhoH / TTF gene spans 35 kb and contains two exons, with the second bearing the entire amino-acid-coding region. Chromosomal mapping, by FISH experiments, places the RhoH / TTF gene on the short arm of chromosome 4, band p13.