University of Rouen

About: University of Rouen is a education organization based out in Rouen, France. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Receptor. The organization has 7299 authors who have published 13209 publications receiving 313477 citations.

The liberating role of conflict in group creativity: A study in two countries

Abstract: Researchers of group creativity have noted problems such as social loafing, production blocking, and especially, evaluation apprehension. Thus, brainstorming techniques have specifically admonished people ‘not to criticize’ their own and others’ ideas, a tenet that has gone unexamined. In contrast, there is research showing that dissent, debate and competing views have positive value, stimulating divergent and creative thought. Perhaps more importantly, we suggest that the permission to criticize and debate may encourage an atmosphere conducive to idea generation. In this experimental study, traditional brainstorming instructions, including the advice of not criticizing, were compared with instructions encouraging people to debate—even criticize. A third condition served as a control. This study was conducted both in the United States and in France. Results show the value of both types of instruction, but, in general, debate instructions were superior to traditional brainstorming instructions. Further, these findings hold across both cultures. Results are discussed in terms of the potential positive value of encouraging debate and controversy for idea generation. Copyright # 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Correlation between Density of CD8+ T-cell Infiltrate in Microsatellite Unstable Colorectal Cancers and Frameshift Mutations: A Rationale for Personalized Immunotherapy

Abstract: Colorectal cancers with microsatellite instability (MSI) represent 15% of all colorectal cancers, including Lynch syndrome as the most frequent hereditary form of this disease. Notably, MSI colorectal cancers have a higher density of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL) than other colorectal cancers. This feature is thought to reflect the accumulation of frameshift mutations in sequences that are repeated within gene coding regions, thereby leading to the synthesis of neoantigens recognized by CD8(+) T cells. However, there has yet to be a clear link established between CD8(+) TIL density and frameshift mutations in colorectal cancer. In this study, we examined this link in 103 MSI colorectal cancers from two independent cohorts where frameshift mutations in 19 genes were analyzed and CD3(+), CD8(+), and FOXP3(+) TIL densities were quantitated. We found that CD8(+) TIL density correlated positively with the total number of frameshift mutations. TIL densities increased when frameshift mutations were present within the ASTE1, HNF1A, or TCF7L2 genes, increasing even further when at least one of these frameshift mutations was present in all tumor cells. Through in vitro assays using engineered antigen-presenting cells, we were able to stimulate peripheral cytotoxic T cells obtained from colorectal cancer patients with peptides derived from frameshift mutations found in their tumors. Taken together, our results highlight the importance of a CD8(+) T cell immune response against MSI colorectal cancer-specific neoantigens, establishing a preclinical rationale to target them as a personalized cellular immunotherapy strategy, an especially appealing goal for patients with Lynch syndrome.

Density and rotational temperature measurements of the OH° and NO° radicals produced by a gliding arc in humid air

Abstract: The predominant reactive species of a gliding arc in humid air, 50% relative humidity (50% RH), are identified from emission spectroscopy measurements to understand and explain the glidarc plasma interaction with aqueous solutions. The rotational temperatures of the main particles (i.e., the OH° and NO° radicals) are derived from comparing experimental and synthetic spectra at various locations in the plasma stream with different airflow rates. The temperatures decrease rather moderately downstream from the starting section of the arc (the neck) and they rather steeply increase with increasing the mass flow rate. Density measurements are also performed for the same experimental conditions to determine their evolution in the non-equilibrium zone. Although they are quasi-constant along the plasma jet axis, the OH° density is much higher than the NO° one. The chemical processes, which may lead to a constant regeneration of these prevailing reactive particles in a humid air gliding arc plasma, are also discussed. The complex composition of the plasma gas makes other chemical processes fairly possible, which may result in abundant species depending on the compound proportions.

Microbial inactivation using plasma-activated water obtained by gliding electric discharges.

Abstract: Aim: To evaluate the microbial disinfection efficacy of a plasmachemical solution obtained by the activation of water with gliding electric discharges. Methods and Results: Distilled water was activated for 5 min by a nonthermal quenched plasma of the glidarc type operating in humid air and at atmospheric pressure. The plasma-activated water (PAW) was then used to treat planktonic and adherent cells of Staphylococcus epidermidis, Leuconostoc mesenteroides (as models of Gram-positive bacteria), Hafnia alvei (a Gram-negative bacteria) and Saccharomyces cerevisiae (as a yeast model). The treatments were less efficient on adherent cells than on planktonic cells in the case of bacteria, but not of S. cerevisiae. Inactivation was more effective for bacteria than for the yeast. Conclusions: Significant reductions in microbial populations were achieved in all cases, demonstrating the effectiveness of this new approach to treat contaminated media. Significance and Impact of the Study: PAW is a promising solution with potential application to the decontamination of equipment and surfaces.