Publications by authors named "Robert J"

Spectral broadenings due to Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interactions (DMI) were assessed with respect to the decoherence they induce through increased spin-spin interactions, as the role of DMI in developing magnetoelectric spin-chirality qubits is gaining recognition. The structurally related spin triangles [FeO(PhCOO)(py)]ClO·py (Fe) and [CrO(PhCOO)(py)]ClO·0.5py (Cr) were studied as frozen py-d solutions with various pulsed Electron Paramagnetic Resonance (EPR) spectroscopy experiments, and under identical experimental conditions.

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Lipase B from Candida antarctica (CalB) is the most widely used lipase, including in many industrial sectors, such as in biodiesel and pharmaceuticals production. CalB has been produced by heterologous expression using Pichia pastoris under PGK constitutive promoter (named LipB). Here, we have studied the structural features of commercial CalB and LipB enzymes using circular dichroism and fluorescence under different conditions.

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Takayasu arteritis is a chronic inflammatory arteriopathy of the large vessels, mainly the aortic arch and its branches. The disease progression varies, ranging from a rapid progression to quiescence reached within 2 years. The activity of the disease is evaluated by biochemical markers, but at times, there is a discrepancy between the clinical picture and biochemical markers.

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In 2017 in France, we treated a patient with knee septic arthritis caused by Erwinia billingiae after trauma involving a palm tree. This rare pathogen could only be identified through 16S rRNA gene sequencing. For bacterial infections after injuries with plants, 16S rRNA gene sequencing might be required for species identification.

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Objectives: The oral route is becoming increasingly important in the panel of anti-cancer therapeutics, but it generates difficulties (adherence, management of adverse effects...

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Cancers impose a significant health and economic burden. By harnessing the immune system, current immunotherapies have revolutionized the treatment against human cancers and potentially offer a long-term cure. Among others, innate-like T (iT) cells, including natural killer T cells, are promising candidates for immunotherapies.

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The conditions that lead to antitumor or protumor functions of natural killer T (NKT) cells against mammalian tumors are only partially understood. Therefore, insights into the evolutionary conservation of NKT and their analogs-innate-like T (iT) cells-may reveal factors that contribute to tumor eradication. As such, we investigated the amphibian Xenopus laevis iT cells and interacting MHC class I-like (XNC or mhc1b.

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Immunosuppressive challenge after transplantation has dual objectives, namely, to efficiently inhibit immune populations involved in acute, chronic, humoral or cellular transplant rejection while minimizing the effect on immune integrity toward pathogens. The current immunosuppressive strategies show limited efficacy and remain associated with strong side effects, and thus, it is essential to develop new strategies. The use of Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitors is one of the new strategies focusing on cytokine pathways.

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Background: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is defined by amyloid beta (Aβ) plaques and neurofibrillary tangles and characterized by neurodegeneration and memory loss. The majority of AD patients also have Aβ deposition in cerebral vessels known as cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA), microhemorrhages, and vascular co-morbidities, suggesting that cerebrovascular dysfunction contributes to AD etiology. Promoting cerebrovascular resilience may therefore be a promising therapeutic or preventative strategy for AD.

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Two species of the clawed frog family, and , are widely used as tools to investigate both normal and disease-state biochemistry, genetics, cell biology, and developmental biology. To support both frog specialist and non-specialist scientists needing access to these models for their research, a number of centralized resources exist around the world. These include centers that hold live and frozen stocks of transgenic, inbred and mutant animals and centers that hold molecular resources.

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Bedaquiline is recommended by the World Health Organization for the treatment of multidrug-resistant (MDR) and extensively drug-resistant (XDR) tuberculosis (TB). We pooled data from 5 cohorts of patients treated with bedaquiline in France, Georgia, Armenia, and South Africa and in a multicountry study. The rate of culture conversion to negative at 6 months (by the end of 6 months of treatment) was 78% (95% CI 73.

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A family of bi- and tetrametallic gold(I) phosphine dithiocarbamate complexes were synthesized, starting from cyclam and dimethylcyclam polyazamacrocycles, respectively, along with their monometallic gold(I) chloridophosphine precursors. Their antiproliferative properties were evaluated on two cancer cell lines (A549 and NSCLC-N6-L16). Most of the mono- and bimetallic complexes displayed strong activities and, in particular, one bimetallic derivative showed antiproliferative properties in the low micromolar range.

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Besides the central role of classical Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC) class Ia-restricted conventional Cluster of Differentiation 8 (CD8) T cells in antiviral host immune response, the amphibian critically rely on MHC class I-like (mhc1b10.1.L or XNC10)-restricted innate-like (i)T cells (iVα6 T cells) to control infection by the ranavirus Frog virus 3 (FV3).

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Purpose Of Review: We review current knowledge regarding HDL and Alzheimer's disease, focusing on HDL's vasoprotective functions and potential as a biomarker and therapeutic target for the vascular contributions of Alzheimer's disease.

Recent Findings: Many epidemiological studies have observed that circulating HDL levels associate with decreased Alzheimer's disease risk. However, it is now understood that the functions of HDL may be more informative than levels of HDL cholesterol (HDL-C).

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Although aquatic vertebrates and humans are increasingly exposed to water pollutants associated with unconventional oil and gas extraction (UOG), the long-term effects of these pollutants on immunity remains unclear. We have established the amphibian Xenopus laevis and the ranavirus Frog Virus 3 (FV3) as a reliable and sensitive model for evaluating the effects of waterborne pollutants. X.

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The effect of gene dosage on the production of Candida antarctica lipase B (CalB) in the methylotrophic yeast Komagataella phaffii, at high densities in a simple medium containing crude glycerin as the sole carbon source, is described. The use of crude glycerin, the main by-product of biodiesel production from vegetable oils, will reduce the production cost of the bioprocess. Two K.

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Although Pseudomonas aeruginosa has a non-clonal epidemic population structure, recent studies have provided evidence of the existence of epidemic high-risk clones. The aim of this study was to assess the molecular epidemiology of P. aeruginosa isolates responsible for infections in French ICUs, regardless of resistance patterns.

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In addition to the effect of cytochrome P450 (CYP) 2D6 genetic polymorphisms, the metabolism of tamoxifen may be impacted by other factors with possible consequences on therapeutic outcome (efficacy and toxicity). This analysis focused on the pharmacokinetic (PK)-pharmacogenetic evaluation of tamoxifen in 730 patients with adjuvant breast cancer included in a prospective multicenter study. Plasma concentrations of tamoxifen and six major metabolites, the genotype for 63 single-nucleotide polymorphisms, and comedications were obtained 6 months after treatment initiation.

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High-density lipoproteins (HDL) are known to have vasoprotective functions in peripheral arteries and many of these functions extend to brain-derived endothelial cells. Importantly, several novel brain-relevant HDL functions have been discovered using brain endothelial cells and in 3D bioengineered human arteries. The cerebrovascular benefits of HDL in healthy humans may partly explain epidemiological evidence suggesting a protective association of circulating HDL levels against Alzheimer's Disease (AD) risk.

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Background: In 2018, the World Health Organization reported that depression is the most common cause of disability worldwide, with over 300 million people currently living with depression. Depression affects an individual's physical health and well-being, impacts psychosocial functioning, and has specific negative short- and long-term effects on maternal health, child health, developmental trajectories, and family health. The aim of these reviews is to identify evidence on the benefits and harms of screening for depression in the general adult population and in pregnant and postpartum women.

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As we reread Mary Shelley's Frankenstein at two hundred years, it is evident that Victor Frankenstein is both a mad scientist (fevered, obsessive) and a bad scientist (secretive, hubristic, irresponsible). He's also not a very nice person. He's a narcissist, a liar, and a bad "parent.

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