The induced damage in the hepatopancreas of Orchestia species after exposure to a mixture of Cu/Zn—An ultrastructural study

The hepatopancreas of crustaceans species has been recognized as an essential target organ to assess trace elements' effects. Due to its dynamic and capability of detoxifying trace metal, this organ often indicates distinct pathological disturbances. In the present work, we intend to evaluate the bioaccumulation of trace metal in three Orchestia species (Orchestia montagui, Orchestia gammarellus, and Orchestia mediterranea) living in symmetry in the banks of Bizerte lagoon (37°13′8″N 09°55′1″E) after their exposure during 14 days to a mixture of copper and zinc, and to highlight the effect of these metals on their hepatopancreas ultrastructure using transmission electron microscopy. At the end of the experiment, results showed that the mortality and the body mass varied according to the used nominal concentrations. Significant alterations were noted in all the treatment groups. The degree of these alterations depends on the used concentration, and they are represented especially by the cells remoteness and the border lyses, the reduction of the nuclear volume, the increase in the cytoplasm density with the presence of trace metal in the nucleus as well as in the vacuole, the disorganization and the destruction of microvilli, the condensation of the majority of cellular organelles and mitochondria swelling. Through this study, Orchestia genus could be an attractive candidate for the biochemical study of trace metal toxicity in Tunisian wetlands.     

Analyse des fonctions des protocoles ipsec et leur intégration dans un réseau privé virtuel

Many approaches may lead to integrate security functions in the intranet/internet services. These functions may be placed at the application layer or at lower OSI layers. IPsec suite protocols were specified by IETF in order to integrate security functionality at network layer. This paper describes the features of IPESC protocols and identifies the aspects which are not standardized. The network translation address (nat) functionality used by routers and firewalls is not always compatible with IPESC. We describe and discuss some solutions for the compatibility of ipsec and nat. The last part of this paper describes a typical architecture for ip vpn based on IPSec technology.     

Quality control in the optical industry: From a work analysis of lens inspection to a training programme, an experimental case study

A cognitive work analysis of quality inspection in the optical industry has been carried out in order to devise a training programme. The task concerned the inspection of high quality human eyeglass lenses. We conducted an experimental investigation of defect detection and acceptability decision-making tasks in 18 experts and novice inspectors. Detection and decision-making were investigated together and separately in two experimental sessions. We showed the effect of expertise on reaction times and errors, and we described the cognitive processes of novice inspectors. On the basis of the processing differences between the two groups, a training programme for new inspectors was devised and described. Finally, training effects were tested.     

Impact of Ethanol on Benzene Plume Lengths: Microbial and Modeling Studies

Recent legislation in several states has called for the removal of methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) from gasoline. In order to comply with Federal Clean Air Act requirements for carbon monoxide and ozone attainment, ethanol is being considered as a replacement for MTBE. The objective of this study is to evaluate the potential impact of ethanol on benzene plume lengths in subsurface environments following accidental spills of ethanol-blended gasoline. Two types of studies were conducted here. First, laboratory studies were performed using a pure culture indigenous to a gasoline-contaminated aquifer to evaluate the effect of ethanol on the rate of benzene biodegradation under aerobic conditions. Results from microbial studies showed that the biodegradation of 25 mg/L benzene was severely inhibited in the presence of 25 mg/L ethanol. While the enzymes responsible for benzene biodegradation by the culture were inducible, ethanol degradation appeared to be constitutive. Second, a two-dimensional model was developed to quantify the impact of ethanol on benzene plume lengths using weighted-average aerobic and anaerobic biodegradation rates for benzene in the presence and absence of ethanol. Model simulations indicated that benzene plume lengths are likely to increase by 16–34% in the presence of ethanol.     

Physiological and behavioral responses of Orchestia gammarellus (Amphipoda,Talitridae) towards trace elements contamination soil

Effects of trace elements on the hepatopancreas ultrastructure and on the locomotor activity rhythm were investigated in the amphipod talitrid Orchestia gammarellus collected from Bizerte lagoon banks situated in the north of Tunisia. Animals were exposed to a series of contaminated soil with different concentrations of cadmium and zinc. The locomotor activity rhythm was studied under constant darkness. Histopathological analysis showed that the trace elements, especially the Cd, induced significant changes in the morphology and in the ultrastructural organization of hepatopancreatic cells. The significant alterations obtained were dose dependent. Concerning the behavioral response, results revealed the presence of two components whatever the experimental conditions. In addition, a great inter-individual variability of the locomotor rhythm was observed. Patterns were in majority bimodal for the control individuals and became unimodal and multimodal when exposed under Cd and Zn, respectively. Furthermore, ultradian and circadian periods were determined. The circadian period lengthened after Zn exposure. In addition, the locomotor activity rhythm was more stable for control individuals. However, those exposed to Cd were less active.     

Improving packet filters management through automatic and dynamic schemes

The development of complex access control architectures raises the problem of their management. In this article, we describe an architecture providing packet filters automatic configuration in Internet based networks. Our architecture improves existing proposals in three different fields. It suppresses the security officer interactions with the management architecture when topology changes occur thus preventing temporary security holes. Moreover our architecture proposes three optimisations to provide the access control processes with efficient configurations. Simulations show that the complexity of these configurations is close to the complexity found in configurations created by hand. Finally we describe how the notion of access control integrity can be incorporated in our management architecture at a reasonable cost.     

Simple iterative receivers for MIMO LP-OFDM systems

In this paper,Lp-ofdm is combined with differentMimo schemes in order to improve performance in terms of diversity gain and to exploit capacity brought by theMimo channel. The original contribution is the development of a generic iterative receiver designed forLp mimo transmission able to work whatever the antenna configuration and the spatial coding scheme. By using a globalMmse criterion, interference terms coming from space-time coding and linear precoding are jointly treated leading to a very good trade-off between performance and complexity compared to trellis based detectors particularly for high order modulations, high number of antennas and/or large size of precoding matrices.     

Evaluation of trace element contamination using Armadillo officinalis Duméril, 1816 (Crustacea,Isopoda) as a tool: An ultrastructural study

To estimate trace element bioaccumulation in Armadillo officinalis, specimens were collected from Ghar El Melh lagoon then exposed for 3 weeks in contaminated sediments with copper, zinc, and cadmium. From the first week until the end of the experiment, a decrease in A. officinalis growth related to the increase of Cd concentration in the sediment was recorded. However, a mass gain was highlighted under Cu and Zn exposures. At the end of experiment, body metal concentrations were measured using flame atomic emission spectrometry. Results of the bioaccumulation factor showed that the species could be considered as a macroconcentrator of copper (BAF > 2) and a deconcentrator of zinc (BAF < 2). Microscopy observations of hepatopancreas cells showed morphological and histological changes even at the lowest concentration. They consisted in the microvillus border destruction, lipid droplets modifications, trace element accumulation, and the condensation of the majority of cellular organelles. The degree of these alterations was found to be dose‐dependent. Through these results, the isopod A. officinalis could be used as relevant monitor organisms for soil metal contamination.