Terres Univia

CHRONOS is a multicenter, retrospective, cohort study involving acute graft-versus-host disease (aGvHD) adult patients with gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms, steroid- and ruxolitinib refractory, who initiated third-line therapy between 30 May 2019 and 30 September 2024. Primary endpoints were all-organ overall response rate (ORR) and GI-specific ORR (GI-ORR) around 28 days after treatment initiation. Secondary endpoints included duration of response, real-world progression-free survival (rwPFS) of underlying malignancy, and overall survival (OS). Fifty-nine patients from 16 sites in Europe were included. On Day 28, ORR was 36% (95% CI: 24-49%), GI-ORR was 37% (95% CI: 25-51%); 29% (95% CI: 11-49%) of responders lost response within 30 days, and 52% (95% CI: 29-72%) within 90 days. Median rwPFS and median OS were both 86 days (95% CI: 54-128 days). Median OS was higher in responders than in non-responders (186 versus 45 days). Over the 12-month follow-up period, 41 patients died, mainly due to aGvHD progression (n = 25), and infectious complications (n = 9). Within 3 months, Grade ≥ 2 infectious events occurred in 51% of patients; Grade 3-4 thrombocytopenia and neutropenia in 64% and 32%, respectively. These findings demonstrate limited effectiveness of third-line therapy in this cohort of steroid- and ruxolitinib-refractory aGvHD patients with GI symptoms.

Molten Salt Thermal energy storage (TES) is essential for concentrating solar power (CSP) plants, enhancing their capacity factor and dispatchability to ultimately reduce electricity costs. This technology is becoming more important for other technologies including nuclear power, thermal-electrical storage, and concentrating solar thermal (CST). While molten salt TES tanks have been successfully deployed in lower-temperature parabolic-trough plants, the current state-of-the-art central receiver systems operating at temperatures up to 565 degrees Celsius have experienced costly and frequent failures. These failures are associated with the immaturity of the technology and problems in tank design, fabrication, commissioning and, sometimes, aggressive operation. A primary contributing factor is the absence of a dedicated technical standard for high-temperature molten nitrate TES tanks; designers must currently rely on existing codes like API 650 and ASME Section II, which are insufficient because they fail to account for the unique demands of high temperatures, thermal cycling, and transient conditions. In March 2024, NLR released the Failure Analysis for Molten Salt Thermal Energy Tanks for In-Service CSP Plants report (NREL/TP-5700-89036) that summarized the failure mechanism and factors contributing to these failures. This report presented detailed information on the molten salt tank model formulation and validation and the employment of the model to evaluate the temperature, stress, and deformation distribution in a representative tank design for typical plant operation conditions. The report also presented a set recommendations for future work to improve tank's reliability including the consideration of new base materials and welding fillers, salt distribution ring optimization, feasibility analysis of post weld heat treatment, reevaluation and enhancement of welding procedure specification, and implementation of safety operation protocols. This report, part of the DOE SETO-funded project, agreement DE-EE0038475 - 'Failure analysis of molten salt tanks for in-service CSP plants,' investigates the efficacy of the new CSP industry hypothesis to use smaller TES tanks with thicker floors to reduce failure susceptibility. It was found that while residual stress and distortion from welding fabrication are independent of the tank diameter, a significant reduction in stress during operation was achieved with the smaller, thicker-floored design, thereby providing evidence to support this new CSP plant hypothesis. The preheating analysis results, in turn, are still in an early stage and require further research to provide an accurate quantification of the effect of this process on residual stress and distortion in the tank floor. Resolving failures in molten salt TES tanks is crucial not only for CSP, but also for other applications considering these TES technologies, including nuclear, geothermal, and direct heat thermal energy storage for industrial processes.

Waterborne pathogen detection is challenging, requiring effective target organisms enrichment to enable reliable and accurate monitoring of pathogens which could be present at low numbers. However, existing processes are manual, require operator expertise and are optimised for particular applications, e.g. a certain approach for viruses and another for bacteria etc. This study presents the design, development, and optimisation of an easy-to-use automated Rexeed™ dead-end filtration system tailored for concentrating multiple waterborne pathogens including viruses, bacteria and protozoa within a single unit. Knowing the variability in recovery rates across filtration technologies due to factors such as filter type, pre-treatment chemicals, backflush volumes, and flow rates, this system was engineered to optimise pathogen recovery and improve consistency in sample processing, generating a system that reduces manpower requirements and worked well across viruses, bacteria and protozoa. System parameters were investigated, including flow rates of filtration from 0 to 1200mL/min, backflush volumes ranging from 0 to 500mL, chemicals used for backflush water enhanced with surfactants and chemical dispersants. Additionally, pre-treatments with sodium polyphosphate (NaPP) and bovine serum albumin (BSA) were investigated using fluorescent beads as proxies for pathogens. Key results indicate that high flow rates (≥ 900mL/min), backflush volume of 250mL containing NaPP, Tween and antifoam achieved significantly higher recovery rates. Validation using fluorescent particle counting and turbidity measurements confirmed that this automated setup yields recovery rates in line with existing filtration methods. By enabling simultaneous concentration of diverse pathogens, this automated system offers a practical solution for comprehensive waterborne pathogen monitoring, demonstrating that one automated filtration unit can effectively concentrate multiple pathogens.

European agriculture faces major challenges in adapting and transforming current farming and food systems to become more sustainable. Agroecology is one transition pathway. However, what is lacking is assessing this transition with adequate tools and methodology. Here, we present the Original Agroecological Survey and Indicator System (OASIS) tool and apply it to farms in Belgium, France, and Italy as an illustration of its functionalities. In total, 53 conventional and organic farmers of three farming systems [crop production (CP); livestock production (LP), and mixed crop–livestock production (CLP)] were interviewed and data were collected for a large range of indicators (scoring from 1 to 5) across five dimensions: agroecological farming practices, economic viability, socio-political aspects, environment and biodiversity, and resilience. Overall, organic farms had slightly higher scores compared to conventional farms for the five dimensions. However, for the adoption of different agroecological practices, a clear difference was found, often with clearly higher scores for organic farms. There were also similar differences regarding most biodiversity and environment indicators and indicators for revenue and income sources. Farms that had higher overall farm scores also obtained a generally significantly higher mark for economic viability. Farmers described many parameters among the socio-political aspects dimension criteria, including several constraints that resulted in lower scores. Contrasting results for different criteria were found for the dimension of resilience, with some farms scoring higher for autonomy and independence from inputs and market, while others scored lower. As an operational result, overall, the OASIS tool proved applicable and useful in assessing agroecology at the farm level and some links beyond. However, further development could improve the tool.

Le projet de la galerie de dérivation de la Tinée, dans les Alpes-Maritimes, a été lancé en 1988/1989, pour faire face aux risques liés au très grand glissement de terrain de La Clapière, à Saint-Étienne-de-Tinée. Ce glissement, évalué à environ 50 millions de m3, menaçait les infrastructures et la population depuis de nombreuses décennies. Il a fait l’objet d’une auscultation très complète à partir des années 1980, qui a permis de mieux comprendre les mécanismes des mouvements et en a révélé l’ampleur avec des vitesses de déplacements de plusieurs centimètres par jour. Une accélération très inquiétante enregistrée vers la fin de la décennie 1980 a conduit les autorités à lancer des études d’évaluation des risques consécutifs à une phase paroxysmique du glissement, qui ont montré qu’un scénario possible était la création d’un barrage naturel dans la vallée par accumulation des terres éboulées, le remplissage de la retenue par le débit de la rivière, puis la rupture ou la submersion de ce barrage conduisant à une inondation de toute la vallée sur des dizaines de kilomètres à l’aval. Différentes méthodes, préventives ou curatives, de prévention de ces risques ont été étudiées dans l’urgence, qui se sont conclues par la décision de construire une galerie de dérivation de la rivière, longue de 2,8 km environ, pour éviter le remplissage du barrage naturel créé par le glissement. Le creusement de cette galerie, entre 1989 et 1991, a rencontré une multitude de difficultés géologiques, dans des terrains hétérogènes (sols meubles, gneiss, grès et sables, pélites, cargneules, gypses, etc.), aux comportements très variés, dans un contexte général fortement tectonisé, et avec des conditions hydrogéologiques complexes (fortes charges, circulations fissurales et karstiques, etc.). L’article décrit à la fois la gestion du risque lié au glissement de terrain, en interaction avec les autorités et la population, ainsi que la gestion des difficultés majeures auxquelles a eu à faire face le creusement de la galerie, ce avec 30 années de recul sur ce qui s’est passé.

Acidentes e complicações relacionados à exodontia de terceiros molares inferiores são comuns na literatura, este estudo aborda a fratura mandibular como uma complicação relevante. Objetiva-se descrever o caso de uma fratura iatrogênica ocorrida no ângulo da mandíbula de uma paciente durante a extração cirúrgica de um terceiro molar parcialmente irrompido. Para tanto, a metodologia incluiu a revisão de literatura e a análise de procedimentos cirúrgicos inadequados que podem contribuir para essa complicação, como aplicação de força excessiva, manejo incorreto dos instrumentais e técnica cirúrgica inadequada. Desse modo, observa-se que fatores como a subestimação da dificuldade de extração, falta de odontossecção correta e realização de osteotomias extensas podem aumentar o risco de fraturas iatrogênicas. Isso permite concluir que a qualificação técnica e a cautela na execução da exodontia de terceiros molares inferiores são essenciais para minimizar riscos, reforçando a necessidade de melhores práticas cirúrgicas e do planejamento adequado do procedimento.

Plant metabolism is a key feature of biodiversity that remains underexploited in functional frameworks used in agroecology. Here, we study how phytochemical diversity considered at three organizational levels can promote pest control. In a factorial field experiment, we manipulated plant diversity in three monocultures and three mixed crops of oilseed rape to explore how intra- and interspecific phytochemical diversity affects pest infestation. We combined recent progress in metabolomics with classic metrics used in ecology to test a box of hypotheses grounded in plant defence theory. According to the hypothesis of ‘phytochemically mediated coevolution’, our study stresses the relationships between herbivore infestation and particular classes of specialized metabolites like glucosinolates. Among 178 significant relationships between metabolites and herbivory rates, only 20% were negative. At the plant level, phytochemical abundance and richness had poor predictive power on pest regulation. This challenges the hypothesis of ‘synergistic effects’. At the crop cover level, in line with the hypothesis of ‘associational resistance’, the phytochemical dissimilarity between neighbouring plants limited pest infestation. We discuss the intricate links between associational resistance and bottom-up pest control. Bridging different levels of organization in agroecosystems helps to dissect the multi-scale relationships between phytochemistry and insect herbivory.

Agroecological transition requires that innovative and diversified cropping systems be developed. Conducting system experiments is an approach well-suited to the analysis of performance of cropping systems when subjected to soil, weather and biotic stresses. Conducting system experiments nevertheless gives rise to methodological challenges. Using the Syppre network of experiments, consisting of five sites in France, we present an original case study that provides valuable methodological and agronomic lessons on system experiments. The innovative cropping systems tested there are based on crop diversification (including oilseeds and protein crops), as well as flexible tillage, technical innovations and optimized crop management. From a methodological standpoint, we show that (i) mixed models are adapted to a range of experimental questions and constraints; (ii) multifactorial analysis enables the characterization of relationships between performance indicators; (iii) a multisite experimental network is an efficient approach not only for answering agronomic questions, but also for addressing methodological issues. From an agronomic standpoint, we showed that reconciling multiple indicators of performance is still challenging. Overall, innovative and diversified systems improved the performance of input utilization and environmental impacts, but with lower productivity and profitability. Introducing legume crops is a promising strategy because this contributes significantly to reductions in mineral N fertilizer use, energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, without major trade-offs against other performance indicators. Finally, we showed that the nature of the production situation had a major influence on the performance profile. This led us to be cautious in making overall analyses especially with regard to general conclusions.