Paul Sabatier University

About: Paul Sabatier University is a education organization based out in Toulouse, France. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Catalysis. The organization has 15431 authors who have published 23386 publications receiving 858364 citations.

A global emission inventory of carbonaceous aerosol from historic records of fossil fuel and biofuel consumption for the period 1860–1997

Abstract: Country by country emission inventories for carbonaceous aerosol for the period 1860 to 1997 have been constructed on the basis of historic fuel production, use and trade data sets published by the United Nation's Statistical Division UNSTAT (1997), Etemad et al. (1991) and Mitchell (1992, 1993, 1995). The inventories use emission factors variable over time, which have been determined according to changes in technological development. The results indicate that the industrialisation period since 1860 was accompanied by a steady increase in black carbon (BC) and primary organic carbon (POC) emissions up to 1910. The calculations show a moderate decrease of carbonaceous aerosol emissions between 1920 and 1930, followed by an increase up to 1990, the year when emissions began to decrease again. Changes in BC and POC emissions prior to the year 1950 are essentially driven by the USA, Germany and the UK. The USSR, China and India become substantial contributors to carbonaceous aerosol emissions after 1950. Emission maps have been generated with a 1°×1° resolution based on the relative population density in each country. They will provide a helpful tool for assessing the effect of carbonaceous aerosol emissions on observed climate changes of the past.

Using functional traits and phylogenetic trees to examine the assembly of tropical tree communities

Abstract: 1 Niche theory proposes that species differences underlie both coexistence within communities and the differentiation in species composition among communities via limiting similarity and environmental filtering However, it has been difficult to extend niche theory to species-rich communities because of the empirical challenge of quantifying niches for many species This has motivated the development of functional and phylogeny-based approaches in community ecology, which represent two different means of approximating niche attributes 2 Here, we assess the utility of plant functional traits and phylogenetic relationships in predicting community assembly processes using the largest trait and phylogenetic data base to date for any set of species-rich communities 3 We measured 17 functional traits for all 4672 individuals of 668 tree species co-occurring in nine tropical rain forest plots in French Guiana Trait variation was summarized into two ordination axes that reflect species niche overlap 4 We also generated a dated molecular phylogenetic tree based on DNA sequencing of two plastid loci (rbcL and matK) comprising 97% of the individuals and 91% of the species in the plots 5 We found that, on average, co-occurring species had greater functional and, to a lesser extent, phylogenetic similarity than expected by chance 6 We also found that functional traits and their ordination loadings showed significant, albeit weak, phylogenetic signal, suggesting that phylogenetic distance provides pertinent information on niche overlap in tropical tree communities 7 Synthesis We provide the most comprehensive examination to date of the relative importance of environmental filtering and limiting similarity in structuring tropical tree communities Our results confirm that environmental filtering is the overriding influence on community assembly in these species-rich systems

Cystatin C: current position and future prospects

Abstract: Cystatin C is a low-molecular-weight protein which has been proposed as a marker of renal function that could replace creatinine. Indeed, the concentration of cystatin C is mainly determined by glomerular filtration and is particularly of interest in clinical settings where the relationship between creatinine production and muscle mass impairs the clinical performance of creatinine. Since the last decade, numerous studies have evaluated its potential use in measuring renal function in various populations. More recently, other potential developments for its clinical use have emerged. This review summarises current knowledge about the physiology of cystatin C and about its use as a renal marker, either alone or in equations developed to estimate the glomerular filtration rate. This paper also reviews recent data about the other applications of cystatin C, particularly in cardiology, oncology and clinical pharmacology.

Late Cenozoic deformation and uplift of the western flank of the Altiplano: Evidence from the depositional, tectonic, and geomorphologic evolution and shallow seismic activity (northern Chile at 19°30′S)

Abstract: [1] We analyze the west vergent thrust system (WTS) along the western flank of the Altiplano in northern Chile (18°S–21°S). In our study area (19°20′S–19°50′S), the WTS consists of three thrust propagation monocline folds (flexures) developing growth strata. The relative uplift accommodated by the flexures is rapid between 26 and 8 Ma (0.1 mm/yr), diminishing to 0.02 mm/yr after 8 Ma. Approximately 2000 m of relative surface uplift was accommodated by the flexures since the late Oligocene. Sedimentological and geomorphological analysis shows that westward tilting of the forearc occurred after 10 Ma, coeval with the shifting of deformation from the Altiplano to the sub-Andean zone, where the underthrusting of the Brazilian Craton would have resulted in crustal thickening, surface uplift in the orogen, and westward ductile subcrustal flow. Forearc tilting is accommodated by east vergent thrusts (ETS) issued from the Benioff zone beneath the Central Depression emerging into the Western Cordillera, contributing 500–1400 m of surface uplift. The WTS connects the ETS in the brittle-ductile crustal transition (∼25 km depth), continuing farther east as the Altiplano low-velocity zone, configuring the western Altiplano as a crustal-scale fault bend fold. Forearc tilting would be caused by westward ductile flow in the lower crust pushing the rigid forearc in the ETS. Meanwhile, between 19°S and 21°S, the WTS accommodates dextral strike slip, and ∼3 km of N-S shortening occurred in the Coastal Cordillera. Transcurrence and strain partitioning are probably the result of slight plate convergence obliquity, strong coupling within the interplate zone, westward continental concavity, and high elevation opposing horizontal contraction.