Permeability of polydisperse solid foams.

The effect of polydispersity on foam permeability is investigated by numerical simulations. Foam structures are first generated by Laguerre tessellations via the Neper software and relaxed to minimize the surface energy via the Surface Evolver software. The fluid flow and permeability are then calculated by means of pore-network simulations, by considering either fully open-cell foams or foams with randomly selected closed windows.

Uncertainty quantification of TMS simulations considering MRI segmentation errors.

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a non-invasive brain stimulation method that is used to study brain function and conduct neuropsychiatric therapy. Computational methods that are commonly used for electric field (E-field) dosimetry of TMS are limited in accuracy and precision because of possible geometric errors introduced in the generation of head models by segmenting medical images into tissue types. This paper studies E-field prediction fidelity as a function of segmentation accuracy.

Nematic liquid crystalline elastomers are aeolotropic materials.

Continuum models describing ideal nematic solids are widely used in theoretical studies of liquid crystal elastomers. However, experiments on nematic elastomers show a type of anisotropic response that is not predicted by the ideal models. Therefore, their description requires an additional term coupling elastic and nematic responses, to account for aeolotropic effects.

Uncertainty quantification of TMS simulations considering MRI segmentation errors.

Objective: Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) is a non-invasive brain stimulation method that is used to study brain function and conduct neuropsychiatric therapy. Computational methods that are commonly used for electric field (E-field) dosimetry of TMS are limited in accuracy and precision because of possible geometric errors introduced in the generation of head models by segmenting medical images into tissue types. This paper studies E-field prediction fidelity as a function of segmentation accuracy.

Why women choose at-home abortion via teleconsultation in France: drivers of telemedicine abortion during and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic.

Objectives: In an attempt to understand the demand and main drivers of telemedicine abortion, we analysed the requests that Women on Web (WoW), an online telemedicine abortion service operating worldwide, received from France throughout 2020.

Methods: We conducted a parallel, convergent, mixed-methods study among 809 consultations received from France at WoW between 1 January and 31 December 2020. We performed a cross-sectional study of data obtained from the WoW consultation survey and a manifest content analysis of anonymised email correspondence of 140 women consulting with the WoW helpdesk from France.

Multiscale prediction of acoustic properties for glass wools: Computational study and experimental validation.

This work is concerned with the multiscale prediction of the transport and sound absorption properties associated with industrial glass wool samples. In the first step, an experimental characterization is performed on various products using optical granulometry and porosity measurements. A morphological analysis, based on scanning electron imaging, is further conducted to identify the probability density functions associated with the fiber angular orientation.

Infectious Zika virus in vaginal secretions from an HIV-infected woman, France, August 2016.

A woman with controlled HIV infection developed in late August 2016 a pruritic rash with fever and conjunctival hyperaemia after a trip to the French Caribbean islands. On day 3 after symptom onset, Zika virus RNA was detected in plasma, urine and vaginal samples with respective viral loads of 3.8, 6.

Five cases of acute Zika virus infection in French women of reproductive age returning from Central and South America.

Introduction: The favorable season for Aedes albopictus circulation has started in Europe and may lead to autochthonous transmission of Zika virus. Health care providers should be familiar with evocative clinical presentations and able to give updated information to women of reproductive age infected by Zika virus.

Observations: We report five laboratory-confirmed Zika virus infections imported to metropolitan France from Central and South America between January and April, 2016.

Stochastic hyperelastic constitutive laws and identification procedure for soft biological tissues with intrinsic variability.

In this work, we address the constitutive modeling, in a probabilistic framework, of the hyperelastic response of soft biological tissues. The aim is on the one hand to mimic the mean behavior and variability that are typically encountered in the experimental characterization of such materials, and on the other hand to derive mathematical models that are almost surely consistent with the theory of nonlinear elasticity. Towards this goal, we invoke information theory and discuss a stochastic model relying on a low-dimensional parametrization.

Complementation of Seed Maturation Phenotypes by Ectopic Expression of ABSCISIC ACID INSENSITIVE3, FUSCA3 and LEAFY COTYLEDON2 in Arabidopsis.

ABSCISIC ACID INSENSITIVE3 (ABI3), FUSCA3 (FUS3) and LEAFY COTYLEDON2 (LEC2), collectively the AFL, are master regulators of seed maturation processes. This study examined the role of AFL in the production of seed reserves in Arabidopsis. Quantification of seed reserves and cytological observations of afl mutant embryos show that protein and lipid but not starch reserves are spatially regulated by AFL.

RLK7, a leucine-rich repeat receptor-like kinase, is required for proper germination speed and tolerance to oxidative stress in Arabidopsis thaliana.

The leucine-rich repeat class of receptor-like kinase (LRR-RLKs) encoding genes represents the largest family of putative receptor genes in the Arabidopsis thaliana genome. However, very little is known about the range of biological process that they control. We present in this paper the functional characterization of RLK7 that has all the structural features of a receptor-like kinase of the plant-specific LRR type.

ATR3 encodes a diflavin reductase essential for Arabidopsis embryo development.

*The Arabidopsis genome possesses two confirmed Cytochrome P450 Reductase (CPR) genes, ATR1 and ATR2, together with a third putative homologue, ATR3, which annotation is questionable. *Phylogenetic analysis classified ATR3 as a CPR-like protein sharing homologies with the animal cytosolic dual flavin reductases, NR1 and Fre-1, distinct from the microsomal CPRs, ATR1 and ATR2. Like NR1 and Fre-1, ATR3 lacks the N-terminal endoplasmic reticulum (ER) anchor domain of CPRs and is localized in the cytoplasm.

Interplay between the NADP-linked thioredoxin and glutathione systems in Arabidopsis auxin signaling.

Intracellular redox status is a critical parameter determining plant development in response to biotic and abiotic stress. Thioredoxin (TRX) and glutathione are key regulators of redox homeostasis, and the TRX and glutathione pathways are essential for postembryonic meristematic activities. Here, we show by associating TRX reductases (ntra ntrb) and glutathione biosynthesis (cad2) mutations that these two thiol reduction pathways interfere with developmental processes through modulation of auxin signaling.

The alpha-N-acetyl-glucosaminidase gene is transcriptionally activated in male and female gametes prior to fertilization and is essential for seed development in Arabidopsis.

Sugar residues in proteoglycan complexes carry important signalling and regulatory functions in biology. In humans, heparan sulphate is an example of such a complex polymer containing glucosamine and N-acetyl-glucosamine residues and is present in the extracellular matrix. Although heparan sulphate has not been found in plants, the At5g13690 gene encoding the alpha-N-acetyl-glucosaminidase (NAGLU), an enzyme involved in its catabolism, is present in the Arabidopsis genome.

AtCXXS: atypical members of the Arabidopsis thaliana thioredoxin h family with a remarkably high disulfide isomerase activity.

The Arabidopsis thaliana thioredoxin subgroup h III is composed of four members and includes the two monocysteinic (CXXS) thioredoxins encoded by the genome. We show that AtCXXS1 is the ortholog of monocysteinic thioredoxins present in all higher plants. In contrast, unicellular algae and the moss Physcomitrella patens do not encode monocysteinic thioredoxin.

Characterization of leafy cotyledon1-like during embryogenesis in Theobroma cacao L.

Theobroma cacao L., an economically important crop for developing countries, can be experimentally propagated by somatic embryogenesis. Because of their potential roles in embryogenesis, a gene candidate strategy was initiated to find gene homologues of the members of the leafy cotyledon family of transcription factors.

The first zygotic division in Arabidopsis requires de novo transcription of thymidylate kinase.

Re-activation of cell division after fertilization involves the specific regulation of a set of genes. To identify genes involved in the gametophytic to sporophytic transition, we screened Arabidopsis T-DNA insertion lines for early seed abortion at the zygote (zeus) or one-cell embryo stages (cyclops), and characterized a sporophytic zygote-lethal mutation, zeus1. ZEUS1 encodes a thymidylate kinase (AtTMPK) that synthesizes dTDP and is involved in the regulation of DNA replication.

A bona fide La protein is required for embryogenesis in Arabidopsis thaliana.

Searches in the Arabidopsis thaliana genome using the La motif as query revealed the presence of eight La or La-like proteins. Using structural and phylogenetic criteria, we identified two putative genuine La proteins (At32 and At79) and showed that both are expressed throughout plant development but at different levels and under different regulatory conditions. At32, but not At79, restores Saccharomyces cerevisiae La nuclear functions in non-coding RNAs biogenesis and is able to bind to plant 3'-UUU-OH RNAs.

QQT proteins colocalize with microtubules and are essential for early embryo development in Arabidopsis.

During Arabidopsis embryogenesis, the control of division between daughter cells is critical for pattern formation. Two embryo-defective (emb) mutant lines named quatre-quart (qqt) were characterized by forward and reverse genetics. The terminal arrest of qqt1 and qqt2 embryos was at the octant stage, just prior to the round of periclinal divisions that establishes the dermatogen stage .

AKRP and EMB506 are two ankyrin repeat proteins essential for plastid differentiation and plant development in Arabidopsis.

EMB506 is a chloroplast protein essential for embryo development, the function of which is unknown. A two-hybrid interaction screen was performed to provide insight into the role of EMB506. A single interacting partner, AKRP, was identified among a cDNA library from immature siliques.

A network of local and redundant gene regulation governs Arabidopsis seed maturation.

In Arabidopsis thaliana, four major regulators (ABSCISIC ACID INSENSITIVE3 [ABI3], FUSCA3 [FUS3], LEAFY COTYLEDON1 [LEC1], and LEC2) control most aspects of seed maturation, such as accumulation of storage compounds, cotyledon identity, acquisition of desiccation tolerance, and dormancy. The molecular basis for complex genetic interactions among these regulators is poorly understood. By analyzing ABI3 and FUS3 expression in various single, double, and triple maturation mutants, we have identified multiple regulatory links among all four genes.

Genetic analysis of two Arabidopsis DNA polymerase epsilon subunits during early embryogenesis.

Accurate DNA replication is one of the most important events in the life of a cell. To perform this task, the cell utilizes several DNA polymerase complexes. We investigated the role of DNA polymerase epsilon during gametophyte and seed development using forward and reverse genetic approaches.

DOMINO1, a member of a small plant-specific gene family, encodes a protein essential for nuclear and nucleolar functions.

Arabidopsis embryos carrying the domino1 mutation grow slowly in comparison with wild type embryos and as a consequence reach only the globular stage at desiccation. The primary defect of the mutation at the cellular level is the large size of the nucleolus that can be observed soon after fertilization in the nuclei of both the embryo and the endosperm. The ultrastructure of mutant nucleoli is drastically different from wild type and points to a fault in ribosome biogenesis.