Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD American Society for Microbiology
Résumé : International audience
Molecular diagnosis of congenital toxoplasmosis or disseminated toxoplasmosis is based mainly on PCR. The repeated DNA element rep529 has become the main DNA target used in most PCR methods, whether laboratory developed or commercial. In this multicenter study, we evaluated the Toxoplasma ELITe MGB (Elitech) commercial kit by comparison with three reference quantitative PCR assays (RAs) used routinely in three proficient laboratories of the French National Reference Center for Toxoplasmosis network, using Toxoplasma calibrated suspensions diluted to obtain a range of concentrations from 0.1 to 10,000 parasites/ml. These suspensions were extracted with either the DNA extraction kit (EXTRAblood; Elitech) recommended by the manufacturer or the QIAamp DNA minikit (Qiagen). The Toxoplasma ELITe MGB assay was also evaluated on a panel of 128 clinical samples, including 56 amniotic fluid samples, 55 placenta samples, and various other samples, of which 95 originated from patients with proven toxoplasmosis. The ELITe MGB assay amplified low-concentration replicates (<10 parasites/ml) of calibrated suspensions less frequently than the RAs of 2/3 laboratories. Additionally, the combination of EXTRAblood and Toxoplasma ELITe MGB yielded poorer sensitivity than the combination of QIAamp DNA minikit and ELITe MGB for low parasite concentrations (P < 0.001 for 1 parasite/ml). On clinical samples, the sensitivity and the specificity of the commercial assay were 89% and 100%, respectively. The sensitivity ranged from 79% (placenta samples) to 100% (amniotic fluid samples). Overall, this study shows that the Toxoplasma ELITe MGB assay is suitable for the diagnosis of toxoplasmosis from non-cell-rich or non-hemoglobin-rich samples and that the EXTRAblood kit is not optimal.
ISSN: 0095-1137

hal-01526432
https://hal-univ-rennes1.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01526432
https://hal-univ-rennes1.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01526432/document
https://hal-univ-rennes1.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01526432/file/Evaluation%20of%20the%20Toxoplasma.pdf
DOI : 10.1128/JCM.02379-16

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Public Library of Science
Résumé : International audience
BACKGROUND: Dengue fever is the most important arboviral infection that affects humans, particularly in tropical and subtropical regions. Here, we provide the first comprehensive overview of the severity of dengue epidemics in French Guiana. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We monitored hospitalized cases between 2008 and 2013. Detailed clinical features and biological parameters were collected on a daily basis from all cases. Among the 1,356 cases, 216 (16%) were classified according to the WHO 2009 classification as dengue without warning signs (WS), 926 (68%) were classified as dengue with WS and 214 (16%) were classified as severe dengue. The severity rates were similar between the three major epidemics that occurred during the study period, whereas the hospitalization rate was highest in 2013. Fluid accumulation, aspartate aminotransferase (ASAT) counts>193 IU/L and platelet counts<75,000 cells/mm3 were associated with dengue severity. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Our findings provide a recent epidemiological description of the severity of dengue epidemics in French Guiana. These results highlight the potential impacts and consequences of implementing the WHO 2009 classification on hospital activity. Future studies should include virological and immunological investigations of well-documented serum samples.
ISSN: 1932-6203

hal-01477201
https://hal-univ-rennes1.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01477201
DOI : 10.1371/journal.pone.0172267
PUBMED : 28196111

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins
Résumé : International audience
BACKGROUND: People in developed countries are widely exposed to low levels of organochlorine pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs). Seafood is a major contributor to PCB exposure. Toxicity of those various pollutants to reproductive and endocrine functions raises questions about possible effects on fertility. We explored whether serum levels of these pollutants and seafood consumption were associated with the fertility of couples enrolled in a French birth cohort (PELAGIE). METHODS: Time-to-pregnancy was investigated in 3,421 pregnant women by asking how many months they had taken to conceive. Levels of 14 organochlorine pesticides, 12 PCBs, and 10 PBDE compounds were measured in cord blood serum from a random subcohort (n = 394). Mercury concentrations measured in maternal hair were considered as a potential coexposure. Fecundability odds ratios (ORs) were estimated from multivariate discrete-time Cox proportional hazard models. RESULTS: Shellfish consumption was associated with longer time-to-pregnancy (fecundability OR ≥twice/week vs. 0.410 µg/L vs. <0.266 µg/L, fecundability OR = 0.46 [0.32-0.66]). In multiple sensitivity analyses, reduced fecundability was most consistently associated with shellfish consumption, p,p'-DDE, total PCBs, PCB153, and PCB187. Models that simultaneously included multiple coexposure factors led to similar conclusions. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings were robust in sensitivity analyses, including analysis restricted to primiparous women. These results suggest that PCBs, p,p'-DDE, and other shellfish contaminants may impair human fertility.
ISSN: 1044-3983

inserm-00826533
http://www.hal.inserm.fr/inserm-00826533
DOI : 10.1097/EDE.0b013e31827f53ec
PUBMED : 23348067

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Wiley
Résumé : International audience
Well-designed and effectively managed networks of marine reserves can be effective tools for both fisheries management and biodiversity conservation. Connectivity, the demographic linking of local populations through the dispersal of individuals as larvae, juveniles or adults, is a key ecological factor to consider in marine reserve design, since it has important implications for the persistence of metapopulations and their recovery from disturbance. For marine reserves to protect biodiversity and enhance populations of species in fished areas, they must be able to sustain focal species (particularly fishery species) within their boundaries, and be spaced such that they can function as mutually replenishing networks whilst providing recruitment subsidies to fished areas. Thus the configuration (size, spacing and location) of individual reserves within a network should be informed by larval dispersal and movement patterns of the species for which protection is required. In the past, empirical data regarding larval dispersal and movement patterns of adults and juveniles of many tropical marine species have been unavailable or inaccessible to practitioners responsible for marine reserve design. Recent empirical studies using new technologies have also provided fresh insights into movement patterns of many species and redefined our understanding of connectivity among populations through larval dispersal. Our review of movement patterns of 34 families (210 species) of coral reef fishes demonstrates that movement patterns (home ranges, ontogenetic shifts and spawning migrations) vary among and within species, and are influenced by a range of factors (e.g. size, sex, behaviour, density, habitat characteristics, season, tide and time of day). Some species move <0.1–0.5 km (e.g. damselfishes, butterflyfishes and angelfishes), <0.5–3 km (e.g. most parrotfishes, goatfishes and surgeonfishes) or 3–10 km (e.g. large parrotfishes and wrasses), while others move tens to hundreds (e.g. some groupers, emperors, snappers and jacks) or thousands of kilometres (e.g. some sharks and tuna). Larval dispersal distances tend to be <5–15 km, and self-recruitment is common. Synthesising this information allows us, for the first time, to provide species, specific advice on the size, spacing and location of marine reserves in tropical marine ecosystems to maximise benefits for conservation and fisheries management for a range of taxa. We recommend that: (i) marine reserves should be more than twice the size of the home range of focal species (in all directions), thus marine reserves of various sizes will be required depending on which species require protection, how far they move, and if other effective protection is in place outside reserves; (ii) reserve spacing should be <15 km, with smaller reserves spaced more closely; and (iii) marine reserves should include habitats that are critical to the life history of focal species (e.g. home ranges, nursery grounds, migration corridors and spawning aggregations), and be located to accommodate movement patterns among these. We also provide practical advice for practitioners on how to use this information to design, evaluate and monitor the effectiveness of marine reserve networks within broader ecological, socioeconomic and management contexts.
ISSN: 1464-7931

Droits : http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/
hal-01334353
https://hal-univ-perp.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01334353
https://hal-univ-perp.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01334353/document
https://hal-univ-perp.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01334353/file/Green_et_al-2015-Biological_Reviews.pdf
DOI : 10.1111/brv.12155

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
Abstract View references (38)Silicalite-1 (S-1) and ZSM-5 membranes prepared by secondary growth on tubular ceramic supports were tested using a pervaporation set up for the desalination of aqueous solutions containing NaCl in concentrations corresponding to brackish (0.3-1wt%), sea (3.5wt%) and brine (7.5-15wt%) water. ZSM-5 membranes delivered higher water fluxes when compared with S-1 membranes due to enhanced hydrophilicity of the Al-rich zeolite structure leading to fluxes as high as 11.5kgm -2h -1 for 0.3wt% NaCl feed solutions at 75°C. At higher salt concentration the water flux decreased alongside with the salt rejection rate, however the hydrophilic ZMS-5 membrane became more susceptible to performance loss, particularly at high temperatures. Detailed stability experiments carried out for up to 560h showed the dissolution of both S-1 and ZSM-5 top layers. This was attributed to the combined effects of ion exchange and water dissolution mechanisms. Interesting though, the MFI structure zeolite was still observed on the XRD patterns whilst EDX depth profile showed the presence of silica up to 30μm depth into the support. These results suggest the formation/infiltration of a compact amorphous phase in the substrate, derived from the aggregation of the dissolved silicate species and possibly together with the arrangement of MFI nano-slabs during the desalination tests. Despite generating lower water fluxes, the S-1 membrane exhibited relatively high robustness under the long term testing conditions which included temperature cycling, delivering salt rejections from initial >99% to <80% at the end of the testing period (560h). © 2012 Elsevier B.V.
ISSN: 0376-7388

hal-01683201
https://hal.univ-antilles.fr/hal-01683201
DOI : 10.1016/j.memsci.2012.05.074

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Public Library of Science
Résumé : International audience
BACKGROUND:Dengue fever is the most important arboviral infection that affects humans, particularly in tropical and subtropical regions. Here, we provide the first comprehensive overview of the severity of dengue epidemics in French Guiana.METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS:We monitored hospitalized cases between 2008 and 2013. Detailed clinical features and biological parameters were collected on a daily basis from all cases. Among the 1,356 cases, 216 (16%) were classified according to the WHO 2009 classification as dengue without warning signs (WS), 926 (68%) were classified as dengue with WS and 214 (16%) were classified as severe dengue. The severity rates were similar between the three major epidemics that occurred during the study period, whereas the hospitalization rate was highest in 2013. Fluid accumulation, aspartate aminotransferase (ASAT) counts>193 IU/L and platelet counts<75,000 cells/mm3 were associated with dengue severity.CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE:Our findings provide a recent epidemiological description of the severity of dengue epidemics in French Guiana. These results highlight the potential impacts and consequences of implementing the WHO 2009 classification on hospital activity. Future studies should include virological and immunological investigations of well-documented serum samples
ISSN: 1932-6203

inserm-01481447
http://www.hal.inserm.fr/inserm-01481447
http://www.hal.inserm.fr/inserm-01481447/document
http://www.hal.inserm.fr/inserm-01481447/file/2017%2C%20Flamand%20-%20Epidemiological%20assessment%20of%20the%20severity%20of%20dengue%20epidemics%20in%20French%20Guiana.pdf
DOI : 10.1371/journal.pone.0172267.t003

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
Résumé : International audience
Background: Glycol ethers (GE) are widely used organic solvents. Despite the potential neurotoxicity of several families of organic solvents, little is known about the impact of GE on the neurodevelopment of infants and children. Objectives: We investigated the relation between urinary concentrations of GE metabolites in pregnant women and neurocognitive abilities in their 6-year-old children in the PELAGIE mother-child cohort. Methods: Five GE metabolites were measured in first morning void urine samples of 204 French pregnant women in early pregnancy (<19 weeks of gestation). Psychologists assessed the neurocognitive abilities of their 6-year-old children with the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children IV (WISC) and the Developmental Neuropsychological Assessment (NEPSY). We analyzed the results with linear (WISC) and Poisson regression models (NEPSY), adjusted for potential confounders, including child's stimulation at home. Results: GE metabolites were detected in 90-100% of maternal urine samples. The WISC Verbal Comprehension score was significantly lower for children with the highest tertile of urinary phenoxyacetic acid (PhAA) [beta (third vs. first tertile)=-6.53; 95% CI: -11.44, -1.62]. Similarly, the NEPSY Design Copying subtest score was lower in those with the highest tertile of urinary ethoxyacetic acid (EAA) [beta (third vs. first tertile)=-0.11; 95% CI: -0.21, 0.00]. The other GE metabolites we studied were not significantly associated with WISC or NEPSY scores. Conclusions: Prenatal urine concentrations of two GE metabolites were associated with lower WISC Verbal Comprehension Index scores and NEPSY Design Copying subscale scores, respectively, at age 6 years. PhAA is the primary metabolite of 2-phenoxyethanol (EGPhE), which is commonly found in cosmetics, and precursors of EAA are frequently used in cleaning agents. Additional research is needed to confirm our findings and further explore potential effects of prenatal GE exposures on neurocognitive performance in children.
ISSN: 0091-6765

hal-01519256
https://hal-univ-rennes1.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01519256
DOI : 10.1289/EHP39
PUBMED : 27740510