Suchergebnisse

À l'échelle nanométrique, l'imbrication entre savoirs et savoir-faire est telle que la distinction entre nanosciences et nanotechnologies devient artificielle, le Comité entendant à travers les "nanotechnologies" la profonde continuité qui prévaut au sein des sciences fondamentales et des technologies. Le Comité a dressé un panorama des applications avérées et potentielles des nanotechnologies dans le domaine de l'agriculture et de l'alimentation, y compris dans les pays du Sud, tout en identifiant plusieurs difficultés dans cette démarche, liées à la définition même des nanoproduits, à l'incertitude entourant leurs développements industriels ou à l'insuffisance des cadres réglementaires qui les régissent. S'appuyant sur l'analyse des pratiques à l'Inra et au Cirad, le Comité a souligné le caractère pluridisciplinaire des recherches qui visent notamment à exploiter de nouvelles interfaces, entre sciences physiques et biologiques, entre sciences fondamentales et sciences de l'ingénieur. Par les nanotechnologies, le chercheur développe de nouveaux rapports avec le matériel biologique (y compris les produits de l'agriculture) : à l'exploitation des propriétés que l'approche "descendante", procédant plutôt par miniaturisation, met à jour (propriétés optiques, électriques, magnétiques, catalytiques, etc.), s'ajoute l'approche "ascendante", désignant l'assemblage maîtrisé de nanostructures, dites "biomimétiques" ou "bio-inspirées", lorsqu'elles imitent ou s'inspirent des systèmes biologiques. Les nanotechnologies ne procèdent pas d'une volonté d'obtenir une meilleure représentation de la nature. La motivation des chercheurs semble beaucoup plus pragmatique : l'accès à une échelle de grandeur nanométrique ouvre un éventail de phénomènes et de possibilités à exploiter, qui sont démultipliés par l'existence d'une convergence entre plusieurs secteurs de recherche. Les nanotechnologies ne remettent donc pas en cause directement les catégories à l'aide desquelles nous pensons le monde, mais celles avec lesquelles nous pensons notre rapport au monde, notre façon d'agir dans le monde, notre mode d'agir technique. Frappé par le décalage important entre le discours tenu à propos des nanotechnologies et les pratiques effectives menées par les chercheurs dans leurs laboratoires, le Comité s'est interrogé sur ce qui fait l'unité des nanotechnologies et comment on peut y situer les pratiques en cours. Les nanotechnologies sont indissociables de projets politiques fédérateurs et mobilisateurs, avec comme conséquence une projection constante dans le futur, le discours sur les nanotechnologies étant souvent celui de la promesse, critiquable sur le plan éthique. Les nanotechnologies faisant émerger des propriétés inconnues et imprévisibles, la question des risques doit être abordée avec soin. Cependant, la démarche éthique ne se réduit pas à l'appréciation des risques et de leurs conséquences pour l'action. Du fait que l'unité des nanotechnologies est principalement liée à celle d'une politique, elles ne peuvent pas faire l'objet d'une éthique prescriptive qui énonce des règles. La recommandation du Comité est donc celle d'une éthique d'accompagnement réflexif du travail des chercheurs qui les invite à développer une nouvelle culture de l'objet, avec des conséquences aussi bien dans la définition des rapports à l'intérieur de la communauté scientifique, que dans l'insertion de cette communauté et de ses projets dans la société civile. Cela implique une prise en compte à la fois de la place des nanotechnologies dans l'éthique de la science (liberté et responsabilité des chercheurs) et des questions éthiques posées par une politique scientifique globale (la question de l'innovation responsable).

Requestor: European CommissionQuestion number: EFSA-Q-2015-00126 ; The Scientific Panel on Genetically Modified Organisms of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA GMO Panel) has evaluated the overall safety of genetically modified (GM) carnation SHD-27531-4 cut flowers to be imported into the European Union (EU) for ornamental use. The genetic modification results in the flowers having purple petals. The stability of the new colour trait was observed over multiple vegetative generations. The purple colour of the petals comes from the altered expression levels of anthocyanins, common pigments found in edible fruits and vegetables. Considering the intended use of the GM carnation and the possible routes of exposure, the EFSA GMO Panel did not find indications that the genetic modification will increase the risk of allergy among those coming into contact with carnations. Overall there are no reasons for safety concerns of carnation SHD-27351-4 for humans. The EFSA GMO Panel also considered whether viable seed or pollen from GM carnation cut flowers could be dispersed into the environment and whether GM carnation can be propagated by rooting. Owing to the limited environmental exposure and the biology of the plant, the EFSA GMO Panel did not identify any environmental safety concerns and agrees with the scope of the post-market environmental monitoring plan. The EFSA GMO Panel concludes that the import, distribution and retailing of the GM carnation will not cause adverse effects on human health or the environment.

Requestor: European CommissionQuestion number: EFSA-Q-2015-00126 ; The Scientific Panel on Genetically Modified Organisms of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA GMO Panel) has evaluated the overall safety of genetically modified (GM) carnation SHD-27531-4 cut flowers to be imported into the European Union (EU) for ornamental use. The genetic modification results in the flowers having purple petals. The stability of the new colour trait was observed over multiple vegetative generations. The purple colour of the petals comes from the altered expression levels of anthocyanins, common pigments found in edible fruits and vegetables. Considering the intended use of the GM carnation and the possible routes of exposure, the EFSA GMO Panel did not find indications that the genetic modification will increase the risk of allergy among those coming into contact with carnations. Overall there are no reasons for safety concerns of carnation SHD-27351-4 for humans. The EFSA GMO Panel also considered whether viable seed or pollen from GM carnation cut flowers could be dispersed into the environment and whether GM carnation can be propagated by rooting. Owing to the limited environmental exposure and the biology of the plant, the EFSA GMO Panel did not identify any environmental safety concerns and agrees with the scope of the post-market environmental monitoring plan. The EFSA GMO Panel concludes that the import, distribution and retailing of the GM carnation will not cause adverse effects on human health or the environment.

Requestor: European CommissionQuestion number: EFSA-Q-2015-00126 ; The Scientific Panel on Genetically Modified Organisms of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA GMO Panel) has evaluated the overall safety of genetically modified (GM) carnation SHD-27531-4 cut flowers to be imported into the European Union (EU) for ornamental use. The genetic modification results in the flowers having purple petals. The stability of the new colour trait was observed over multiple vegetative generations. The purple colour of the petals comes from the altered expression levels of anthocyanins, common pigments found in edible fruits and vegetables. Considering the intended use of the GM carnation and the possible routes of exposure, the EFSA GMO Panel did not find indications that the genetic modification will increase the risk of allergy among those coming into contact with carnations. Overall there are no reasons for safety concerns of carnation SHD-27351-4 for humans. The EFSA GMO Panel also considered whether viable seed or pollen from GM carnation cut flowers could be dispersed into the environment and whether GM carnation can be propagated by rooting. Owing to the limited environmental exposure and the biology of the plant, the EFSA GMO Panel did not identify any environmental safety concerns and agrees with the scope of the post-market environmental monitoring plan. The EFSA GMO Panel concludes that the import, distribution and retailing of the GM carnation will not cause adverse effects on human health or the environment.

Requestor: European CommissionQuestion number: EFSA-Q-2015-00126 ; The Scientific Panel on Genetically Modified Organisms of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA GMO Panel) has evaluated the overall safety of genetically modified (GM) carnation SHD-27531-4 cut flowers to be imported into the European Union (EU) for ornamental use. The genetic modification results in the flowers having purple petals. The stability of the new colour trait was observed over multiple vegetative generations. The purple colour of the petals comes from the altered expression levels of anthocyanins, common pigments found in edible fruits and vegetables. Considering the intended use of the GM carnation and the possible routes of exposure, the EFSA GMO Panel did not find indications that the genetic modification will increase the risk of allergy among those coming into contact with carnations. Overall there are no reasons for safety concerns of carnation SHD-27351-4 for humans. The EFSA GMO Panel also considered whether viable seed or pollen from GM carnation cut flowers could be dispersed into the environment and whether GM carnation can be propagated by rooting. Owing to the limited environmental exposure and the biology of the plant, the EFSA GMO Panel did not identify any environmental safety concerns and agrees with the scope of the post-market environmental monitoring plan. The EFSA GMO Panel concludes that the import, distribution and retailing of the GM carnation will not cause adverse effects on human health or the environment.

International audience ; Hypertension, a major cardiovascular risk factor, may reach a global prevalence of 1.56 billion by 2025. Much research has been conducted in this field, but few bibliometric studies have been performed. We aimed to analyse the changes in scientific output relating to hypertension over the past two decades. We analysed, via PubMed and Web of Science, the scientific output relating to hypertension from 1997 to 2016. Quantitative (number of publications) and citation (top 1 and 10%) analyses were performed for output globally and by major countries/regions, with a particular focus on the European Union. In total, 100 789 articles relating to hypertension were identified in Web of Science. The number of publications increased by 52.7% (3989 in 1997, 6092 in 2016). Of the 100 789 articles, 38% had authors from the European Union, 32.1% had authors from the USA, and 26.7% had authors from Asia, with a marked increase in contributions from China over the period analysed. Articles appeared in more than 400 journals and were cited nearly 2 556 000 times. The relative weights of different research fields have also changed over time. Combined use of PubMed and Web of Science enabled robust bibliometric analysis of the studies into hypertension published in the period 1997-2016, including assessment of the contributions from major countries, particularly those in the European Union. This study also allowed us to validate our methodology, which could be used to evaluate research policies and to promote international cooperation.

International audience ; Hypertension, a major cardiovascular risk factor, may reach a global prevalence of 1.56 billion by 2025. Much research has been conducted in this field, but few bibliometric studies have been performed. We aimed to analyse the changes in scientific output relating to hypertension over the past two decades. We analysed, via PubMed and Web of Science, the scientific output relating to hypertension from 1997 to 2016. Quantitative (number of publications) and citation (top 1 and 10%) analyses were performed for output globally and by major countries/regions, with a particular focus on the European Union. In total, 100 789 articles relating to hypertension were identified in Web of Science. The number of publications increased by 52.7% (3989 in 1997, 6092 in 2016). Of the 100 789 articles, 38% had authors from the European Union, 32.1% had authors from the USA, and 26.7% had authors from Asia, with a marked increase in contributions from China over the period analysed. Articles appeared in more than 400 journals and were cited nearly 2 556 000 times. The relative weights of different research fields have also changed over time. Combined use of PubMed and Web of Science enabled robust bibliometric analysis of the studies into hypertension published in the period 1997-2016, including assessment of the contributions from major countries, particularly those in the European Union. This study also allowed us to validate our methodology, which could be used to evaluate research policies and to promote international cooperation.

International audience ; Studying and protecting each and every living species on Earth is a major challenge of the 21 st century. Yet, most species remain unknown or unstudied, while others attract most of the public, scientific and government attention. Although known to be detrimental, this taxonomic bias continues to be pervasive in the scientific literature, but is still poorly studied and understood. Here, we used 626 million occurrences from the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF), the biggest biodiversity data portal, to characterize the taxonomic bias in biodiversity data. We also investigated how societal preferences and taxonomic research relate to biodiversity data gathering. For each species belonging to 24 taxonomic classes, we used the number of publications from Web of Science and the number of web pages from Bing searches to approximate research activity and societal preferences. Our results show that societal preferences, rather than research activity, strongly correlate with taxonomic bias, which lead us to assert that scientists should advertise less charismatic species and develop societal initiatives (e.g. citizen science) that specifically target neglected organisms. Ensuring that biodiversity is representatively sampled while this is still possible is an urgent prerequisite for achieving efficient conservation plans and a global understanding of our surrounding environment.

International audience ; Studying and protecting each and every living species on Earth is a major challenge of the 21 st century. Yet, most species remain unknown or unstudied, while others attract most of the public, scientific and government attention. Although known to be detrimental, this taxonomic bias continues to be pervasive in the scientific literature, but is still poorly studied and understood. Here, we used 626 million occurrences from the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF), the biggest biodiversity data portal, to characterize the taxonomic bias in biodiversity data. We also investigated how societal preferences and taxonomic research relate to biodiversity data gathering. For each species belonging to 24 taxonomic classes, we used the number of publications from Web of Science and the number of web pages from Bing searches to approximate research activity and societal preferences. Our results show that societal preferences, rather than research activity, strongly correlate with taxonomic bias, which lead us to assert that scientists should advertise less charismatic species and develop societal initiatives (e.g. citizen science) that specifically target neglected organisms. Ensuring that biodiversity is representatively sampled while this is still possible is an urgent prerequisite for achieving efficient conservation plans and a global understanding of our surrounding environment.

International audience ; Studying and protecting each and every living species on Earth is a major challenge of the 21 st century. Yet, most species remain unknown or unstudied, while others attract most of the public, scientific and government attention. Although known to be detrimental, this taxonomic bias continues to be pervasive in the scientific literature, but is still poorly studied and understood. Here, we used 626 million occurrences from the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF), the biggest biodiversity data portal, to characterize the taxonomic bias in biodiversity data. We also investigated how societal preferences and taxonomic research relate to biodiversity data gathering. For each species belonging to 24 taxonomic classes, we used the number of publications from Web of Science and the number of web pages from Bing searches to approximate research activity and societal preferences. Our results show that societal preferences, rather than research activity, strongly correlate with taxonomic bias, which lead us to assert that scientists should advertise less charismatic species and develop societal initiatives (e.g. citizen science) that specifically target neglected organisms. Ensuring that biodiversity is representatively sampled while this is still possible is an urgent prerequisite for achieving efficient conservation plans and a global understanding of our surrounding environment.

International audience ; Studying and protecting each and every living species on Earth is a major challenge of the 21 st century. Yet, most species remain unknown or unstudied, while others attract most of the public, scientific and government attention. Although known to be detrimental, this taxonomic bias continues to be pervasive in the scientific literature, but is still poorly studied and understood. Here, we used 626 million occurrences from the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF), the biggest biodiversity data portal, to characterize the taxonomic bias in biodiversity data. We also investigated how societal preferences and taxonomic research relate to biodiversity data gathering. For each species belonging to 24 taxonomic classes, we used the number of publications from Web of Science and the number of web pages from Bing searches to approximate research activity and societal preferences. Our results show that societal preferences, rather than research activity, strongly correlate with taxonomic bias, which lead us to assert that scientists should advertise less charismatic species and develop societal initiatives (e.g. citizen science) that specifically target neglected organisms. Ensuring that biodiversity is representatively sampled while this is still possible is an urgent prerequisite for achieving efficient conservation plans and a global understanding of our surrounding environment.

International audience ; Studying and protecting each and every living species on Earth is a major challenge of the 21 st century. Yet, most species remain unknown or unstudied, while others attract most of the public, scientific and government attention. Although known to be detrimental, this taxonomic bias continues to be pervasive in the scientific literature, but is still poorly studied and understood. Here, we used 626 million occurrences from the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF), the biggest biodiversity data portal, to characterize the taxonomic bias in biodiversity data. We also investigated how societal preferences and taxonomic research relate to biodiversity data gathering. For each species belonging to 24 taxonomic classes, we used the number of publications from Web of Science and the number of web pages from Bing searches to approximate research activity and societal preferences. Our results show that societal preferences, rather than research activity, strongly correlate with taxonomic bias, which lead us to assert that scientists should advertise less charismatic species and develop societal initiatives (e.g. citizen science) that specifically target neglected organisms. Ensuring that biodiversity is representatively sampled while this is still possible is an urgent prerequisite for achieving efficient conservation plans and a global understanding of our surrounding environment.

International audience ; Studying and protecting each and every living species on Earth is a major challenge of the 21 st century. Yet, most species remain unknown or unstudied, while others attract most of the public, scientific and government attention. Although known to be detrimental, this taxonomic bias continues to be pervasive in the scientific literature, but is still poorly studied and understood. Here, we used 626 million occurrences from the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF), the biggest biodiversity data portal, to characterize the taxonomic bias in biodiversity data. We also investigated how societal preferences and taxonomic research relate to biodiversity data gathering. For each species belonging to 24 taxonomic classes, we used the number of publications from Web of Science and the number of web pages from Bing searches to approximate research activity and societal preferences. Our results show that societal preferences, rather than research activity, strongly correlate with taxonomic bias, which lead us to assert that scientists should advertise less charismatic species and develop societal initiatives (e.g. citizen science) that specifically target neglected organisms. Ensuring that biodiversity is representatively sampled while this is still possible is an urgent prerequisite for achieving efficient conservation plans and a global understanding of our surrounding environment.

International audience ; The Human Microbiome, as well as the exploration of the microorganisms inhabiting the human body, are not only integral to the field of microbiology but represent an intrinsic part of all human beings. Consequently, along with scientists, artists have been inspired by the microbiome: transforming it in to tangible artefacts in order to critically question, reflect on and break down the barrier between humans and their microcohabitants. By artistic means, artists help us to understand how microbial research topics are inevitably affected by societal influences, including (health) politics, economics and the arts. Fifty Percent Human is a multidisciplinary artistic research project that aims to reshape our understanding of the human body and its environment as well as to explore possibilities for conscious coexistence in order to bridge the gap between science and society.

International audience ; The Human Microbiome, as well as the exploration of the microorganisms inhabiting the human body, are not only integral to the field of microbiology but represent an intrinsic part of all human beings. Consequently, along with scientists, artists have been inspired by the microbiome: transforming it in to tangible artefacts in order to critically question, reflect on and break down the barrier between humans and their microcohabitants. By artistic means, artists help us to understand how microbial research topics are inevitably affected by societal influences, including (health) politics, economics and the arts. Fifty Percent Human is a multidisciplinary artistic research project that aims to reshape our understanding of the human body and its environment as well as to explore possibilities for conscious coexistence in order to bridge the gap between science and society.