Experimental investigations in eight open drainage ditches and furrows from central France were carried out to analyse the dispersal of floating metacercariae of two digenean species by running water and to determine the outcome of larvae which settled on Nasturtium officinale (watercress). The frequencies of larvae found after their transport by water ranged from 33% to 49.7%, thus indicating that more than half of the metacercariae used in this experiment had fallen to the bottom of the water during this transport. The nature of the site (furrow, or ditch supplied by a spring) had a significant effect on the distribution of floating larvae, while the digenean species had no effect. Low percentages of metacercariae on watercress were noted in furrows (3.5–4.3% of larvae) and ditches (0.8–1.3%). When the watercress grew, most larvae that had settled on leaves and stems died but there were always several living metacercariae on this plant (0.7–1.5% of larvae for Fasciola hepatica and 0.2–0.5% for Paramphistomum daubneyi). The weak buoyancy of these floating cysts on running water limited their dispersal and, consequently, led to a real diminution of risks incurred by definitive hosts towards these metacercariae.

As part of the evaluation of the French plan for the elimination of measles and rubella, we conducted a seroprevalence survey in 2013, aimed at updating seroprevalence data for people 18–32 years old. A secondary objective was to estimate measles incidence in this population during the 2009–2011 outbreak, and thus estimate the exhaustiveness of measles mandatory reporting. We used a cross-sectional survey design, targeting blood donors 18–32 years old, living in France since 2009, who came to give blood in a blood collecting site. We included 4647 people in metropolitan France, 806 people in Réunion Island and 496 in the French Caribbean. A further 3942 individuals were interviewed in the south-east region of metropolitan France to estimate the exhaustiveness of measles mandatory reporting. One of the main findings of this survey is that the proportion of people 18–32 years old susceptible to both measles and rubella infections remained high in France in 2013, 9.2% and 5.4%, respectively, in metropolitan France, even after the promotion campaigns about vaccination catch-up during and following the major measles epidemic in 2009–2011. Applying our results to French census data would suggest that around 1 million people aged 18–32 years old are currently susceptible to measles in France, despite this age group being one of the vaccination targets of the national measles elimination plan. Another important finding is that only an estimated 45% of the true number of cases in this age group was actually notified, despite notification being mandatory.

The nonlinear dynamics of energetic-particle (EP) driven geodesic acoustic modes (EGAM) is investigated here. A numerical analysis with the global gyrokinetic particle-in-cell code ORB5 is performed, and the results are interpreted with the analytical theory, in close comparison with the theory of the beam-plasma instability. Only axisymmetric modes are considered, with a nonlinear dynamics determined by wave–particle interaction. Quadratic scalings of the saturated electric field with respect to the linear growth rate are found for the case of interest. As a main result, the formula for the saturation level is provided. Near the saturation, we observe a transition from adiabatic to non-adiabatic dynamics, i.e. the frequency chirping rate becomes comparable to the resonant EP bounce frequency. The numerical analysis is performed here with electrostatic simulations with circular flux surfaces, and kinetic effects of the electrons are neglected.

Synchrotron-based micro-X-ray fluorescence (μXRF) equipment has been used to analyze impurities in polar ice. A customized sample holder has been developed and the μXRF equipment has been adapted with a thermal control system to keep samples unaltered during analyses. Artificial ice samples prepared from ultra-pure water were analyzed to investigate possible contamination and/or experimental artefacts. Analyses of polar ice from Antarctica (Dome C and Vostok) confirm this μXRF technique is non-destructive and sensitive. Experiments can be reproduced to confirm or refine results by focusing on interesting spots such as crystal grain boundaries or specific inclusions. Integration times and resolution can be adjusted to optimize sensitivity. Investigation of unstable particles is possible due to the short analysis time. In addition to identification of elements in impurities, μXRF is able to determine their speciations. The accuracy and reliability of the results confirm the potential of this technique for research in glaciology.

Inversing the STICS crop model with remote-sensing-derived leaf area index (LAI) and yield data from the previous crop is used to retrieve some soil permanent properties and crop emergence parameters. Spatialized nitrogen (N) fertilization recommendations are provided to farmers, for the second and third N applications, following the screening of eleven N application rates under a range of possible forthcoming climates, with the objective to maximize of the gross margin while respecting some environmental constraints. As a first field validation, we show (1) the improvement brought by the assimilation of LAI and yield into STICS to simulate crop and soil variables and (2) the interest of site specific application to maximize both the gross margin and the agro-environmental criterion.

The objective of this study was to assess the effectiveness of a catheter-related bloodstream infection (CR BSI) reduction programme and healthcare workers' compliance with recommendations. A 3-year surveillance programme of CR BSIs in all hospital settings was implemented. As part of the programme, there was a direct observation of insertion and maintenance of central venous catheters (CVCs) to determine performance. A total of 38 education courses were held over the study period and feedback reports with the results of surveillance and recommendations were delivered to healthcare workers every 6 months. A total of 6722 short-term CVCs were inserted in 4982 patients for 58 763 catheter-days. Improvements of compliance with hand hygiene was verified at the insertion (87·1–100%, P < 0·001) and maintenance (51·1–72·1%, P = 0·029) of CVCs; and the use of chlorhexidine for skin disinfection was implemented at insertion (35·7–65·4%, P < 0·001) and maintenance (33·3–45·9%, P < 0·197) of CVCs. There were 266 CR BSI incidents recorded with an annual incidence density of 5·75/1000 catheter-days in the first year, 4·38 in the second year [rate ratio (RR) 0·76, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0·57–1·01] and 3·46 in the third year (RR 0·60, 95% CI 0·44–0·81). The education programme clearly improved compliance with recommendations for CVC handling, and was effective in reducing the burden of CR BSIs.

The B fields in OB stars (BOB) survey is an ESO large programme collecting spectropolarimetric observations for a large number of early-type stars in order to study the occurrence rate, properties, and ultimately the origin of magnetic fields in massive stars. As of July 2014, a total of 98 objects were observed over 20 nights with FORS2 and HARPSpol. Our preliminary results indicate that the fraction of magnetic OB stars with an organised, detectable field is low. This conclusion, now independently reached by two different surveys, has profound implications for any theoretical model attempting to explain the field formation in these objects. We discuss in this contribution some important issues addressed by our observations (e.g., the lower bound of the field strength) and the discovery of some remarkable objects.

Studying exoplanets with their parent stars is crucial to understand their population, formation and history. We review some of the key questions regarding their evolution with particular emphasis on giant gaseous exoplanets orbiting close to solar-type stars. For masses above that of Saturn, transiting exoplanets have large radii indicative of the presence of a massive hydrogen-helium envelope. Theoretical models show that this envelope progressively cools and contracts with a rate of energy loss inversely proportional to the planetary age. The combined measurement of planetary mass, radius and a constraint on the (stellar) age enables a global determination of the amount of heavy elements present in the planet interior. The comparison with stellar metallicity shows a correlation between the two, indicating that accretion played a crucial role in the formation of planets. The dynamical evolution of exoplanets also depends on the properties of the central star. We show that the lack of massive giant planets and brown dwarfs in close orbit around G-dwarfs and their presence around F-dwarfs are probably tied to the different properties of dissipation in the stellar interiors. Both the evolution and the composition of stars and planets are intimately linked.

The present study investigated the effects of maternal plasma iodine concentration on twin- and triplet-born lamb plasma thyroid hormone concentrations, rectal temperature and maximal heat production. On pregnancy day 68 (P68), 16 twin- and 14 triplet-bearing ewes were randomly chosen from ewes that were injected intramuscularly with 1·5 ml of iodized peanut oil and ewes that were not. Selected ewes were grazed on ad libitum pasture from P68 until parturition. After parturition, lamb blood samples were collected within 5 min of birth and at 3, 12 and 24–36 h after birth. Lamb rectal temperatures were measured within 5 min of birth and at 1, 3 and 12 h after birth. Lamb body weight, crown–rump length and thoracic-girth circumference were recorded at 3 h of age, and the capability of the lamb to produce heat at 24–36 h of age was measured using indirect open-circuit calorimetry. Maternal iodine supplementation successfully increased plasma iodine concentrations of twin- and triplet-bearing ewes throughout pregnancy, but had no effect on the rectal temperature, thyroid hormone concentration and maximal heat production of twin- or triplet-born lambs. Compared with twin-born lambs, triplet-born lambs had lower birth weights, rectal temperatures and plasma T4 and T3 concentrations within 5 min of birth. Overall, under the conditions of the present study, maternal iodine supplementation offered no benefit in improving lamb heat production.

During the five years of the mission, the Gaia spectrograph, the Radial VelocitySpectrometer (RVS) will repeatedly survey the celestial sphere down to magnitudeV ~ 17–18. This talk presents: (i) the system which is currently developed withinthe Gaia Data Processing and Analysis Consortium (DPAC) to reduce and calibrate thespectra and to derive the radial and rotational velocities, (ii) the RVS expectedperformances and (iii) scientific returns.

The current study investigated the effect of offering concentrate supplement to ewes in late pregnancy on twin- and triplet-born lamb heat production at 24–36 h old and performance from birth until lactation day 94 (L94). Twin- (n=40) and triplet-bearing (n=28) ewes were grazed on a 60 mm sward height from day 70 of pregnancy (P70) until L94. From P100, half of the ewes from each litter size were offered 400 g/ewe/day of concentrate sheep pellets. Ewe liveweight and body condition were recorded on P50, 100, 130, 135 and 140. Ewe blood samples were also collected on P130, 135 and 140, and ewe herbage intake was estimated from P133–136 using the n-alkane method. Lamb measurements included liveweight and body size at birth, production of heat using indirect open-circuit calorimetry at 24–36 h old and liveweight at L94. Blood samples were also collected from lambs at 24–36 h old and directly before and after calorimetry measurements. While estimates of ewe herbage intake suggested that substitution of herbage for concentrate did not occur, offering concentrate supplement failed to improve ewe liveweight gain, or birth weight of lambs. Offering concentrate supplement, however, did have a positive effect (P<0·05) on the maximal amount of heat a triplet-born lamb can produce on a per kg of body weight basis (concentrate 21±1·3 W/kg, non-concentrate 17±0·6 W/kg). It also had a positive effect (P<0·05) on lamb square-root-transformed plasma gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT) concentrations, an indicator of colostrum uptake (concentrate 46±3·1 U/l, non-concentrate 38±2·9 U/l). Irrespective of lamb birth rank, offering concentrate supplement had a positive effect (P<0·01) on liveweight gain per day from birth until L94 (concentrate 261±5·7 g/day, non-concentrate 239±5·8 g/day), although there was no effect on the total weight of lamb reared/ewe. Supplementation with concentrate resulted in triplet-born lambs that produced more heat which may have positive effects on the ability of the newborn lamb to deal with cold stress and potentially its survival. Offering concentrate supplement also produced greater lamb growth in twin- and triplet-born lambs.

Trypanosoma cruzi specific sequences were amplified by the polymerase chain reaction from total blood of human chagasic patients and normal individuals. A 330 bp fragment originating from kinetoplast DNA was specifically detected in most chagasic individuals. We tested the sensitivity and specificity of this method in normal and affected individuals attending the Evandro Chagas Hospital, Rio de Janeiro. The results of these tests were compared with serological diagnosis performed using standard techniques, and in some cases with xenodiagnosis. We found that none of the serologically negative individuals gave any specific amplification product, whereas 55 out of 61 patients previously serodiagnosed as chagasic were positive using the PCR method (sensitivity: 90%). Xenodiagnosis, which is currently considered to be the most sensitive parasitological technique for Chagas' disease diagnosis, detected only 12 out of 28 serologically positive patients (sensitivity: 43%). The usefulness of the PCR method was further investigated with chagasic patients who had received anti-parasite treatment with benznidazole. It has always been difficult to evaluate the incidence of cure in such cases by serology, since a humoral response against T. cruzi antigens may remain for years even in the absence of the parasite. We observed a positive amplification result in only 9 out of 32 treated patients who remained reactive when tested using classical serology. These observations suggest that PCR is the most sensitive technique available for direct detection of T. cruzi in chagasic patients and that it can be a very useful instrument for the follow-up of patients after specific treatment.

Camille Flammarion's observatory, located in Juvisy-sur-Orge in the suburbs of Paris, has been idle since 1962. Property of the Société Astronomique de France (SAF), it was made available to the city of Juvisy-sur-Orge since 1971, and contains a unique collection of objects and books currently being sorted out. The observatory is being restored by the SAF, thanks to the support of the city of Juvisy-sur-Orge, the French Académie des Sciences and the “Amis de Camille Flammarion” association. In 2006, the Maxime Goury Laffont foundation funded the refurbishment of the 240 mm refractor and in 2007 funds were obtained to restore the dome and central building. The main aim of the project is to make this historical place a popular observatory dedicated to astronomy and the sciences which Camille Flammarion enjoyed and contributed to. It constitutes a unique example in France of synergies linking associations, municipality, regional- and national-level institutions.

We present the results of the continuation of our magnetic survey with FORS 1 at the VLT of a sample of B-type stars consisting of confirmed or candidate β Cephei stars and Slowly Pulsating B stars. Roughly one third of the studied β Cephei stars have detected magnetic fields. The fraction of magnetic Slowly Pulsating B and candidate Slowly Pulsating B stars is found to be higher, up to 50%. We find that the domains of magnetic and non-magnetic pulsating stars in the H-R diagram largely overlap, and no clear picture emerges as to the possible evolution of the magnetic field across the main sequence.

We present recent work undertaken by the Evolution and Seismic Tools Activity (ESTA) team of the CoRoT Seismology Working Group. The new ESTA-Task 3 aims at testing, comparing and optimising stellar evolution codes which include microscopic diffusion of the chemical elements resulting from pressure, temperature and concentration gradients. The results already obtained are globally satisfactory, but some differences between the different numerical tools appear that require further investigations.

This paper deals with the introduction of a nonlinear term into Darcy's equation to describe inertial effects in a porous medium. The method chosen is the numerical resolution of flow equations at a pore scale. The medium is modelled by cylinders of either equal or unequal diameters arranged in a regular pattern with a square or triangular base. For a given flow through this medium the pressure drop is evaluated numerically.

The Navier-Stokes equations are discretized by the mixed finite-element method. The numerical solution is based on operator-splitting methods whose purpose is to separate the difficulties due to the nonlinear operator in the equation of motion and the necessity of taking into account the continuity equation. The associated Stokes problems are solved by a mixed formulation proposed by Glowinski & Pironneau.

For Reynolds numbers lower than 1, the relationship between the global pressure gradient and the filtration velocity is linear as predicted by Darcy's law. For higher values of the Reynolds number the pressure drop is influenced by inertial effects which can be interpreted by the addition of a quadratic term in Darcy's law.

On the one hand this study confirms the presence of a nonlinear term in the motion equation as experimentally predicted by several authors, and on the other hand analyses the fluid behaviour in simple media. In addition to the detailed numerical solutions, an estimation of the hydrodynamical constants in the Forchheimer equation is given in terms of porosity and the geometrical characteristics of the models studied.

Hypoplastic left heart syndrome is the term introduced by Noonan and Nadas1 to describe a spectrum of cardiac anomalies characterized by varying degrees of significant underdevelopment of the left heart and aortic arch. These cardiac anomalies include mitral valvar disease, left ventricular hypoplasia, aortic stenosis at subvalvar, valvar, and supravalvar levels, hypoplasia of the ascending aorta and aortic arch, and aortic coarctation. Although descriptive, hypoplastic left heart syndrome suffers from being a very unspecific term, since it encompasses multiple degrees and combinations of abnormalities involving the left sided structures. In an attempt to provide gradings of severity, Kirklin and Barratt-Boyes2 categorized these patients falling into the syndrome into four classes, according to whether obstruction was found at one, two, or more levels, or whether there is aortic atresia. Then, in 1998, Tchervenkov and colleagues3 introduced the term hypoplastic left heart complex to describe a set of patients falling within the spectrum of hypoplasia of the left heart, but in the absence of intrinsic aortic or mitral valvar stenosis, this concept subsequently being endorsed by the International Committee established by the Society of Thoracic Surgeons, together with the European Association of Cardiothoracic Surgery, to rationalize the approach to nomenclature and databases.4 The analysis offered by Tchervenkov et al.3 showed that, in certain circumstances, there are potentially patients considered to have hypoplasia of the left heart who might be candidates for biventricular repair. If this is the case, then it is important to establish how this subset can be recognized, and how they are best treated.

In this Supplement, and at its associated Symposium “Controversies of Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome”, various contributors presented a variety of topics regarding “state of the art” treatments for hypoplastic left heart syndrome. The extent of the differences within these various presentations attests to the very significant challenges that remain in optimizing care of these patients, and related ones with other types of functionally univentricular hearts. Of these challenges, the initial surgical approach, be it staged palliation or cardiac transplantation, has been a hotly debated issue, with diametrically opposed schools of thought.1 Today, with further experience, technical advances, and dramatically improved outcomes, there seems to be an emerging complimentary role for both options, favoring a staged reconstructive approach in the majority of circumstances. We review here the salient issues that have lead to this position, and discuss strategies for maintaining a program offering both staged palliation and transplantation for patients with hypoplasia of the left heart.

After repair of tetralogy of Fallot, many patients present in need of reoperative surgical reconstruction of the right ventricular outflow tract. The predominant physiologic lesion is pulmonary insufficiency, but there may also be varying degrees of obstruction of the right ventricular outflow tract. In the past, it has been felt that patients tolerate pulmonary insufficiency reasonably well. In some patients, however, the long-term effects of pulmonary insufficiency and subsequent right ventricular dilation and dysfunction are associated with poor exercise tolerance and increased incidence of arrhythmias and sudden death.1,2 Numerous studies support replacement of the pulmonary valve as treatment for pulmonary insufficiency in order to improve performance, optimize hemodynamics, and better control arrhythmias.3–10 The indications for reconstruction of the right ventricular outflow tract in this setting, nonetheless, as well as the operative strategy, continue to evolve. There are multiple surgical options for replacement of the pulmonary valve for these patients, including aortic and pulmonary homografts, stented and stentless porcine valves, porcine valved conduits, bovine jugular venous conduits, and even mechanical valves and mechanical valved conduits.11–32 It was a less than ideal experience with these currently available options that stimulated our interest into employing alternative materials and techniques. Favorable experimental and clinical experience with valves made of a polytetrafluoroethylene monoleaflet33–36 encouraged us to consider a new method of reconstruction with this material, using a bifoliate polytetrafluoroethylene valve. In this work, we review our indications for replacement of the pulmonary valve after repair of tetralogy of Fallot, the surgical options available, and our experience reconstructing the right ventricular outflow tract with a new surgically created bifoliate polytetrafluoroethylene valve.