University of Lorraine

About: University of Lorraine is a education organization based out in Nancy, France. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Context (language use). The organization has 11942 authors who have published 25010 publications receiving 425227 citations. The organization is also known as: Lorraine University.

Cell membrane electroporation- Part 1: The phenomenon

Abstract: Each biological cell, trillions of which build our bodies, is enveloped by its plasma membrane. Composed largely of a bilayer (double layer) of lipids just two molecules thick (about 5 nm), and behaving partly as a liquid and partly as a gel, the cell plasma membrane nonetheless separates and protects the cell from its surrounding environment very reliably and stably. Embedded within the lipid bilayer, also quite stably, are a number of different proteins, some of which act as channels and pumps, providing a pathway for transporting specific molecules across the membrane. Without these proteins, the membrane would be a largely impenetrable barrier. Electrically, the cell plasma membrane can be viewed as a thin insulating sheet surrounded on both sides by aqueous electrolyte solutions. When exposed to a sufficiently strong electric field, the membrane will undergo electrical breakdown, which renders it permeable to molecules that are otherwise unable to cross it. The process of rendering the membrane permeable is called membrane electroporation. Unlike solid insulators, in which an electrical breakdown generally causes permanent structural change, the membrane, with its lipids behaving as a two-dimensional liquid, can spontaneously return to its prebreakdown state. If the exposure is sufficiently short and the membrane recovery sufficiently rapid for the cell to remain viable, electroporation is termed reversible; otherwise, it is termed irreversible. Since its discovery [1]���[3], electroporation has steadily gained ground as a useful tool in various areas of medicine and biotechnology. Today, reversible electroporation is an established method for introducing chemotherapeutic drugs into tumor cells (electrochemotherapy) [4]. It also offers great promise as a technique for gene therapy without the risks caused by viral vectors (DNA electrotransfer) [5]. In clinical medicine, irreversible electroporation is being investigated as a method for tissue ablation (nonthermal electroablation) [6], whereas in biotechnology, it is useful for extraction of biomolecules [7] and for microbial deactivation, particularly in food preservation [8]. This article, the first in a series of three focusing on electroporation, describes the phenomenon at the molecular level of the lipid bilayer, and then proceeds to the cellular level, explaining how exposure of a cell as a whole to an external electric field results in an inducement of voltage on its plasma membrane, its electroporation, and transport thorough the electroporated membrane. The second article will review the most important and promising applications of electroporation, and the third article will focus on the hardware for electroporation (pulse generators and electrodes) and on the need for standards, safety, and certification.

Human coronaviruses: insights into environmental resistance and its influence on the development of new antiseptic strategies.

Abstract: The Coronaviridae family, an enveloped RNA virus family, and, more particularly, human coronaviruses (HCoV), were historically known to be responsible for a large portion of common colds and other upper respiratory tract infections. HCoV are now known to be involved in more serious respiratory diseases, i.e. bronchitis, bronchiolitis or pneumonia, especially in young children and neonates, elderly people and immunosuppressed patients. They have also been involved in nosocomial viral infections. In 2002–2003, the outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), due to a newly discovered coronavirus, the SARS-associated coronavirus (SARS-CoV); led to a new awareness of the medical importance of the Coronaviridae family. This pathogen, responsible for an emerging disease in humans, with high risk of fatal outcome; underline the pressing need for new approaches to the management of the infection, and primarily to its prevention. Another interesting feature of coronaviruses is their potential environmental resistance, despite the accepted fragility of enveloped viruses. Indeed, several studies have described the ability of HCoVs (i.e. HCoV 229E, HCoV OC43 (also known as betacoronavirus 1), NL63, HKU1 or SARS-CoV) to survive in different environmental conditions (e.g. temperature and humidity), on different supports found in hospital settings such as aluminum, sterile sponges or latex surgical gloves or in biological fluids. Finally, taking into account the persisting lack of specific antiviral treatments (there is, in fact, no specific treatment available to fight coronaviruses infections), the Coronaviridae specificities (i.e. pathogenicity, potential environmental resistance) make them a challenging model for the development of efficient means of prevention, as an adapted antisepsis-disinfection, to prevent the environmental spread of such infective agents. This review will summarize current knowledge on the capacity of human coronaviruses to survive in the environment and the efficacy of well-known antiseptic-disinfectants against them, with particular focus on the development of new methodologies to evaluate the activity of new antiseptic-disinfectants on viruses.

Contact killing and antimicrobial properties of copper.

Abstract: With the emergence of antibiotic resistance, the interest for antimicrobial agents has recently increased again in public health. Copper was recognized in 2008 by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as the first metallic antimicrobial agent. This led to many investigations of the various properties of copper as an antibacterial, antifungal and antiviral agent. This review summarizes the latest findings about 'contact killing', the mechanism of action of copper nanoparticles and the different ways micro-organisms develop resistance to copper.