On the benefits of self-taught learning for brain decoding.

Context: We study the benefits of using a large public neuroimaging database composed of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) statistic maps, in a self-taught learning framework, for improving brain decoding on new tasks. First, we leverage the NeuroVault database to train, on a selection of relevant statistic maps, a convolutional autoencoder to reconstruct these maps. Then, we use this trained encoder to initialize a supervised convolutional neural network to classify tasks or cognitive processes of unseen statistic maps from large collections of the NeuroVault database.

Platelet components associated with adverse reactions: predictive value of mitochondrial DNA relative to biological response modifiers.

Background: Biological response modifiers (BRMs), secreted by platelets (PLTs) during storage, play a role in adverse events (AEs) associated with transfusion. Moreover, mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) levels in PLT components (PCs) are associated with AEs. In this study we explore whether there is a correlation between pathogenic BRMs and mtDNA levels and whether these markers can be considered predictors of transfusion pathology.

Extension of the sorting instructions for household plastic packaging and changes in exposure to bioaerosols at materials recovery facilities.

The aim of this study was to assess how extending the sorting instructions for plastic packaging would affect the exposure of workers working at materials recovery facility (MRF) to dust, endotoxins, fungi and bacteria, taking into consideration other factors that could have an influence on this exposure. Personal sampling was carried out at four MRFs during six sampling campaigns at each facility, both in sorting rooms and when the workers were involved in "mobile tasks" away from the rooms. The data was analysed by describing the extension of sorting instructions both using a qualitative variable (after vs before) and using data for the pots and trays recycling stream, including or excluding plastic film.

A computerized prediction model of hazardous inflammatory platelet transfusion outcomes.

Background: Platelet component (PC) transfusion leads occasionally to inflammatory hazards. Certain BRMs that are secreted by the platelets themselves during storage may have some responsibility.

Methodology/principal Findings: First, we identified non-stochastic arrangements of platelet-secreted BRMs in platelet components that led to acute transfusion reactions (ATRs).

Toxoplasma seroprevalence in a rural population in France: detection of a household effect.

Background: Toxoplasma gondii, the agent of toxoplasmosis, has a complex life cycle. In humans, the parasite may be acquired either through ingestion of contaminated meat or through oocysts present in the environment. The importance of each source of contamination varies locally according to the environment characteristics and to differences concerning human eating habits and the presence of cats; thus, the risk factors may be determined through fine-scale studies.

Heterozygosity and parasite intensity: lung parasites in the water frog hybridization complex.

In hybridogenetic systems, hybrid individuals are fully heterozygous because one of the parental genomes is discarded from the germinal line before meiosis. Such systems offer the opportunity to investigate the influence of heterozygosity on susceptibility to parasites. We studied the intensity of lung parasites (the roundworm Rhabdias bufomis and the fluke Haplometra cylindracea) in 3 populations of water frogs of the Rana lessonae-esculenta complex in eastern France.

Contact rates and exposure to inter-species disease transmission in mountain ungulates.

The risk for a pathogen to cross the species barrier depends on the rate of efficient contacts between the species. However, contact rates between species have rarely been estimated from observations. Here we estimate contact rates and exposure of chamois Rupicapra rupicapra and Alpine ibex Capra ibex exposed to domestic pasteurellosis and brucellosis carried by sheep or cattle herds summering in mountain pastures.

Are hybridogenetic complexes structured by habitat in water frogs?

The success and the evolutionary fate of hybridogenetic lineages are explained by both a generalistic heterosis hypothesis and an alternative hypothesis, the habitat segregation hypothesis. Because such hypotheses have rarely been tested at the level of whole habitats, our aim was to compare performances of two taxa within a hybridogenetic complex across diverse natural habitats. We took advantage of the waterfrog hybridogenetic complex (Rana esculenta and R.

Incidence and persistence of classical swine fever in free-ranging wild boar (Sus scrofa).

Although veterinary authorities aim to limit persistence of classical swine fever (CSF) in wild boar (Sus scrofa), to avoid potential transmission to pigs, factors influencing CSF transmission and persistence are not clearly understood. Here we analyse incidence and persistence in a CSF epidemic that occurred in the French Vosges Forest. Higher incidence was found in large forests compared to smaller isolated ones, being highest near the starting point of the epidemic, but poorly related to the local density.

Long-term monitoring of classical swine fever in wild boar (Sus scrofa sp.) using serological data.

In the European Community, epizootics of classical swine fever (CSF) in the wild boar (Sus scrofa) are compulsorily monitored because transmission may occur between wild boars and domestic pigs, causing heavy economic losses to the pork industry. The estimation of incidence in populations of wild boars is generally based on viroprevalence. However, viral isolation becomes rare when the incidence is low because the virus cannot be detected for more than a few weeks following infection.

Disease propagation in connected host populations with density-dependent dynamics: the case of the Feline Leukemia Virus.

Spatial heterogeneity is a strong determinant of host-parasite relationships, however local-scale mechanisms are often not elucidated. Generally speaking, in many circumstances dispersal is expected to increase disease persistence. We consider the case when host populations show density-dependent dynamics and are connected through the dispersal of individuals.

Serosurvey for Newcastle disease and avian influenza A virus antibodies in great cormorants from France.

Inland great cormorants (Phalacrocorax carbo) culled in France were examined in the winter of 1997-98 and 1998-99 for antibodies to Newcastle disease (ND) and influenza A strains H5 and H7 by the hemagglutination inhibition test. Antibodies to influenza A group antigen were tested by agar gel precipitin test. Ten of 53 adult individuals were seropositive for ND virus.

Parasite richness and abundance in insular and mainland feral cats: insularity or density?

Hosts living on islands carry few parasite species, and the prevalence and intensity of directly transmitted parasites are often higher in insular than in mainland populations. However, it is unclear whether density or other features of insular populations can be responsible for the pattern observed. We compared the parasite richness, prevalence and intensity of parasites between 2 feral populations of cats living either at low density on an island (Kerguelen) or at high density on the mainland (Lyon).

Prevalence and pathogenicity of retroviruses in wildcats in France.

Feline leukaemia virus (FeLV) and feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) are frequently encountered in domestic cats (Felis catus) and in wild felids, but only FeLV has been previously identified in wildcats (Fellis silvestris). Thirty-eight wildcats, either captured alive or found dead, were sampled in eastern and central France. Nine of them (23.

Dynamics of a feline retrovirus (FeLV) in host populations with variable spatial structure.

The predictions of epidemic models are remarkably affected by the underlying assumptions concerning host population dynamics and the relation between host density and disease transmission. Furthermore, hypotheses underlying distinct models are rarely tested. Domestic cats (Felis catus) can be used to compare models and test their predictions, because cat populations show variable spatial structure that probably results in variability in the relation between density and disease transmission.

Retroviruses and sexual size dimorphism in domestic cats (Felis catus L.).

Hochberg and co-workers have predicted that an increase in host adult mortality due to parasites is balanced by an earlier age at first reproduction. In polygynous species we hypothesize that such a pattern would lead to diverging selection pressure on body size between sexes and increased sexual size dimorphism. In polygynous mammals, male body size is considered to be an important factor for reproductive success.

Modelling the feline leukemia virus (FeLV) in natural populations of cats (Felis catus).

A compartmental model was built in order to study the circulation and impact of Feline Leukemia Virus (FeLV) in populations of domestic cats. The model was tested with data from a long-term study of several feline populations. The study of stability shows that FeLV is maintained in the population with a stable equilibrium and a slight reduction of population size.

Dynamics of two feline retroviruses (FIV and FeLV) within one population of cats.

We present a deterministic model of the dynamics of two microparasites simultaneously infecting a single host population. Both microparasites are feline retroviruses, namely Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (FIV) and Feline Leukaemia Virus (FeLV). The host is the domestic cat Felis catus.