Inhibition of polyphenoloxidase activity by mixtures of heated cysteine derivatives with carbonyl compounds

It had previously been shown that soluble Maillard reaction products (MRP) made from thiol compounds and glucose or fructose contained powerful inhibitors of various fruit and vegetable polyphenoloxidase (PPO) activity. In MRP from cysteine and glucose, the amount of hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) formed increased with the increase in glucose concentration (0-1 M), particularly under acidic (pH 2) conditions. Using model mixtures containing a preheated cysteine-derived compound and a carbonyl component, especially HMF, furfural and benzaldehyde, we showed that the neoformed compounds produced exhibited a stronger inhibitory potency toward PPO activity of eggplant, apple, and mushroom than former MRP. Optimal reaction conditions for the formation of inhibitory compounds when HMF reacted with preheated cysteine were investigated. It was found that a reactants molar ratio of 1:1 and a reaction time exceeding 1 h were the most efficient reaction conditions to generate inhibitory compounds. The stability of the newly formed products, evaluated during storage, showed that their inhibitory potency was globally kept at 4, 21, and 37 degrees C for 72 h but was unstable when stored at -20 degrees C and lost when exposed to UV radiations for 24 h.     

Criticality qualification of a new Monte Carlo code for reactor core analysis

In order to accurately simulate Accelerator Driven Systems (ADS), the utilization of at least two computational tools is necessary (the thermal–hydraulic problem is not considered in the frame of this work), namely: (a) A High Energy Physics (HEP) code system dealing with the “Accelerator part” of the installation, i.e. the computation of the spectrum, intensity and spatial distribution of the neutrons source created by (p, n) reactions of a proton beam on a target and (b) a neutronics code system, handling the “Reactor part” of the installation, i.e. criticality calculations, neutron transport, fuel burn-up and fission products evolution. In the present work, a single computational tool, aiming to analyze an ADS in its integrity and also able to perform core analysis for a conventional fission reactor, is proposed. The code is based on the well qualified HEP code GEANT (version 3), transformed to perform criticality calculations. The performance of the code is tested against two qualified neutronics code systems, the diffusion/transport SCALE-CITATION code system and the Monte Carlo TRIPOLI code, in the case of a research reactor core analysis. A satisfactory agreement was exhibited by the three codes.     

Differential reactivity of TCR Vbeta10 alleles to a mouse mammary tumor virus superantigen

Mouse mammary tumor virus (MMTV) expresses a superantigen (SAg) which plays a critical role in the viral life cycle. We have recently described the new infectious MMTV (SIM) encoding a Vbeta4-specific SAg in mice with a TCR-Vbeta(b) haplotype. We have now compared the SAg activity of this virus in BALB/c mice harboring the TCR-Vbeta(a), TCR-Vbeta(b) or TCR-Vbeta(c) haplotypes which differ by a central deletion in the TCR-Vbeta(a) and TCR-Vbeta(c) locus and by mutations in some of the remaining Vbeta elements. Injection of MMTV (SIM) led to a strong stimulation of Vbeta4+ CD4+ T cells in TCR-Vbeta(b) mice, but only to a weak stimulation of these cells in TCR-Vbeta(a) or TCR-Vbeta(c) mice. A large increase in the percentage of Vbeta10+ cells was observed among CD4+ T cells in mice with the Vbeta(a) or Vbeta(c), but not the Vbeta(b) TCR-Vbeta haplotype. Vbeta10+ cells dominated the response when Vbeta10(a/c) and Vbeta4 subsets were present together. This is the first report of a viral SAg interacting with murine Vbeta10+ cells. Six amino acid differences between Vbeta10(a/c) and Vbeta10(b) could account for the gain of reactivity of Vbeta10(a/c) to the MMTV(SIM) SAg. No mutations were found in the hypervariable region 4 (HV4) of the TCR. Mutations at positions 22 and 28 introduce into Vbeta10(a/c) the same amino acids which are found at these positions in the MMTV(SIM)-reactive Vbeta4. Tridimensional models indicated that these amino acids lie close to HV4 and are likely to be important for the interaction of the SAg with the TCR.     

Seismology with a Fourier-transform spectrometer: applications to giant planets and stars

A method to detect the acoustic oscillation spectrum of giant planets and stars exploits the multiplex properties of a Fourier-transform spectrometer (FTS). It is based on measurement of the small Doppler shift related to the oscillation of the atmosphere measured from all the lines in a portion of the planetary or the stellar spectrum directly from the interferogram. The resulting amplitude modulation of the output signal is recorded continuously over several consecutive nights at a fixed path difference selected from criteria of optimum efficiency. Hence the Fourier transform of this signal yields the pressure-mode spectrum of the object. Applications to Jupiter, Saturn, and Procyon, observed in this mode with the step-scan FTS installed in the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope, are presented. Future projects are discussed.     

A method for delineating riparian forests using region-based image classification and depth-to-water analysis

Riparian formations are often narrow strips of vegetation near the banks of streams governed by good water availability. With the advent of high-resolution satellite imagery, the study of riparian forests using space-borne remote sensing has gained more attention. However, the sole use of remotely sensed data is seldom sufficient to delineate riparian forests and their special hydrological and geomorphological context should also be considered. In this study, we propose a twofold method to delineate riparian forests in a Brazilian savannah context. Four sites on the banks of the Pandeiros River were used to test our approach, each in a different hydrological context. In our approach, the hydrographic network and a digital surface model are processed using the depth-to-water analysis to create a mask of the riparian zone, then the riparian forests are extracted using region-based image classification. Both steps are fully explained. Three region-based image classification programs (e-Cognition, Sistema de Processamento de Informações Georeferenciadas (SPRING), and MAGIC (map-guided ice classification)) are briefly described and tested. A special validation scheme was created using the independent interpretation of five photo-interpreters to test the accuracy of the results. All three programs achieved a success rate of over 90%. The approach is also tested on a much larger area of the Pandeiros River to assess its applicability in a more operational context. The discussion focuses on methodological issues and the advantages and drawbacks of the approach.     

Crystal structure and optical properties of oxynitride rare-earth tantalates RTa-(O, N) (R = Nd, Gd, Y)

X-ray absorption and photoluminescence were used to investigate the structure of rare-earth tantalum oxynitrides RTa-(O, N) (R = Nd, Gd, Y). Owing to the size of the rare-earth element, the crystal structure tends towards the pyrochlore or defect fluorite-type structure. EXAFS suggested neodymium and yttrium atoms are coordinated either by 6 + 2 or 6 oxygen/nitrogen atoms in the Nd or Y respective oxynitrides although the coordination number of tantalum is six in both compounds. Photoluminescence for 5 at.% doped europium showed the spectra compatible with the point symmetry C_3v lower than O_h in fluorite and D_3d in pyrochlore structure type for both the Gd and Y tantalum oxynitrides. These measurements supported that their structure types were basically pyrochlore for Nd and Gd tantalum oxynitrides and defect fluorite for Y tantalum oxynitride but they are highly defective.     

Enhancing the audience experience during sport events: real-time processing of multiple stereoscopic cameras

From video acquisition to 3D rendering, most of the hardware and software modules required for stereoscopy are currently available in academic or industrial R&D laboratories. Some are even features of open-source libraries. However, designing a stereoscopic architecture able to perform this acquisition followed by geometrical calibration and colour correction, disparity maps computation, multi-view coding and transmission for several cameras into one dedicated server remains a challenge. This was achieved for the SkyMedia project which aimed at providing an enhanced experience for the audience, organising staff and performers of an event. Compromises were required, from lower-resolution depth estimation to limited MultiView Coding predictions, but in the end the project system was fit to the task and delivered contents to the various people evolving around the 2012 Turin Marathon.