Trace element uptake by macroalgae: Organic colloids as a source of metals, including Fe and rare earth elements.

We determined the concentrations of trace elements including Fe, Al, rare earth elements and Y (REY), in Ascophyllum nodosum, one of the most abundant brown macroalgae in the North Atlantic. Samples were collected in the Bay of Brest (Brittany, France) and in the estuary of its main contributing river. The Y/Ho, Al/Ga, and Zr/Hf ratios display values distinctive from seawater, but similar to the continental crust; an observation which we show cannot be explained by the incorporation of terrigenous particles, nor inorganic colloids.

Qubit analog with polariton superfluid in an annular trap.

We report on the experimental realization and characterization of a qubit analog with semiconductor exciton-polaritons. In our system, a polaritonic condensate is confined by a spatially patterned pump laser in an annular trap that supports energy-degenerate vortex states of the polariton superfluid. Using temporal interference measurements, we observe coherent oscillations between a pair of counter-circulating vortex states coupled by elastic scattering of polaritons off the laser-imprinted potential.

Sequence Length Controls Coil-to-Globule Transition in Elastin-like Polypeptides.

It appeared certain that elastin condensates retain liquid-like properties. However, a recent experimental study demonstrated that their aggregate states might depend on the length of hydrophobic domains. To gain microscopic insight into this behavior, we employ atomistic modeling to assess the conformational properties of hydrophobic elastin-like polypeptides (ELPs).

Stochastic circular persistent currents of exciton polaritons.

We monitor the orbital degree of freedom of exciton-polariton condensates confined within an optical trap and unveil the stochastic switching of persistent annular polariton currents under pulse-periodic excitation. Within an elliptical trap, the low-lying in energy polariton current states manifest as a two-petaled density distribution with a swirling phase. In the stochastic regime, the density distribution, averaged over multiple excitation pulses, becomes homogenized in the azimuthal direction.

Practical guidelines for representing and interpreting rare earth abundances in environmental and biological studies.

This paper summarizes the main guidelines for representing rare earth element (REE) abundance patterns, along with a review of the common mistakes or omissions that can alter REE plots and bias interpretations. It is specifically designed for ecotoxicologists and biologists, for whom the study of these elements has become an important field of research in recent years. Prior to applying REE diagrams to the study of living organisms, it is important to understand the rationale that led geochemists and cosmochemists to develop them.

Trace element variations in mussels' shells from continent to sea: The St. Lawrence system, Canada.

Rare Earth Elements (REE) and several trace elements abundances in mussel's shells collected along the St. Lawrence River, the Estuary, and the Gulf of St. Lawrence (EGSL) reveal coherent chemical variations, with a sharp contrast between freshwater and seawater bivalves.

On De Gennes narrowing of fluids confined at the molecular scale in nanoporous materials.

Beyond well-documented confinement and surface effects arising from the large internal surface and severely confining porosity of nanoporous hosts, the transport of nanoconfined fluids remains puzzling in many aspects. With striking examples such as memory, i.e.

Permanent shear localization in dense disordered materials due to microscopic inertia.

In this work using computer simulations of 3D model of dense disordered solids we show, for the first time, the appearance of shear localization in the stationary flow under homogeneous driving conditions. To rationalize our simulation results we develop a continuum model, that couples the dynamics of the local flow to the evolution of a kinetic temperature field related to the local inertial dynamics. Our model predicts that the coupling of the flow field to this additional destabilizing field appears only as a necessary condition for shear localization, a minimum system size is necessary to accommodate the flow instability.

A National Survey of Prehospital Care Services of United Kingdom for Use, Governance and Perception of Prehospital Point of Care Ultrasound.

Point of care ultrasound (POCUS) has become a common practice in prehospital care over the last 10 years. There is lack of literature on its use and governance structure in United Kingdom (UK) prehospital care services. We aimed to survey the use, governance of prehospital POCUS among UK prehospital services and perceptions of clinicians and services regarding its utility and barriers to its implementation.

Short-Time Transport Properties of Bidisperse Suspensions of Immunoglobulins and Serum Albumins Consistent with a Colloid Physics Picture.

The crowded environment of biological systems such as the interior of living cells is occupied by macromolecules with a broad size distribution. This situation of polydispersity might influence the dependence of the diffusive dynamics of a given tracer macromolecule in a monodisperse solution on its hydrodynamic size and on the volume fraction. The resulting size dependence of diffusive transport crucially influences the function of a living cell.

Are strongly confined colloids good models for two dimensional liquids?

Quasi-two-dimensional (quasi-2D) colloidal hard-sphere suspensions confined in a slit geometry are widely used as two-dimensional (2D) model systems in experiments that probe the glassy relaxation dynamics of 2D systems. However, the question to what extent these quasi-2D systems indeed represent 2D systems is rarely brought up. Here, we use computer simulations that take into account hydrodynamic interactions to show that dense quasi-2D colloidal bi-disperse hard-sphere suspensions exhibit much more rapid diffusion and relaxation than their 2D counterparts at the same area fraction.

Filter Papers to Collect Blood Samples from Dogs: An Easier Way to Monitor the Mass Vaccination Campaigns against Rabies?

Rabies is a deadly viral disease present mainly in low-income countries of Africa and Asia. Dogs are the main reservoir and the source of human deaths. Mass vaccination campaigns of dogs are pivotal to achieve rabies elimination.

Temperature dependence of thermodynamic, dynamical, and dielectric properties of water models.

We investigate the temperature dependence of thermodynamic (density and isobaric heat capacity), dynamical (self-diffusion coefficient and shear viscosity), and dielectric properties of several water models, such as the commonly employed TIP3P water model, the well-established four-point water model TIP4P-2005, and the recently developed four-point water model TIP4P-D. We focus on the temperature range of interest for the field of computational biophysics and soft matter (280-350 K). The four-point water models lead to a spectacularly improved agreement with experimental data, strongly suggesting that the use of more modern parameterizations should be favored compared to the more traditional TIP3P for modeling temperature-dependent phenomena in biomolecular systems.

Half-life and initial Solar System abundance of Sm determined from the oldest andesitic meteorite.

The formation and differentiation of planetary bodies are dated using radioactive decay systems, including the short-lived 146Sm-142Nd (T½ = 103 or 68 Ma) and long-lived 147Sm-143Nd (T½ = 106 Ga) radiogenic pairs that provide relative and absolute ages, respectively. However, the initial abundance and half-life of the extinct radioactive isotope 146Sm are still debated, weakening the interpretation of 146Sm-142Nd systematics obtained for early planetary processes. Here, we apply the short-lived 26Al-26Mg, 146Sm-142Nd, and long-lived 147Sm-143Sm chronometers to the oldest known andesitic meteorite, Erg Chech 002 (EC 002), to constrain the Solar System initial abundance of 146Sm.

Experimental Infection of Captive Red Foxes () with .

In Europe, animal tuberculosis (TB) due to involves multi-host communities that include cattle and wildlife species, such as wild boar (), badgers () and red deer (). Red fox () infections have also been recently reported in some TB endemic regions in the Iberian Peninsula and France, with some of the infected animals shedding in urine and feces. In order to understand the pathogenesis of infection in foxes and the associated risk of transmission, 12 captive foxes (6 females and 6 males) were inoculated orally with 2 × 10 colony-forming units of a French field isolate of .

Trace element determinations in Fe-Mn oxides by high resolution ICP-MS after Tm addition.

In order to propose an optimal analytical procedure specific to ferromanganese (Fe-Mn) oxides, we investigated different modes of data acquisition using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The results of trace element and Rare Earth Element (REE) determination in eight Fe-Mn nodules and crusts (FeMn-1, GSMC-1, GSMC-2, GSMC-3, GSPN-2, GSPN-3, NOD-A-1 and NOD-P-1) are presented here. The analytical procedure involves chemical dissolution of the Fe-Mn oxides and addition of a thulium (Tm) spike.