Southeastern France Research Articles

Blind broad-band (0–10 Hz) numerical prediction of the 3-D near field seismic response of anMW6.0 extended fault scenario: application to the nuclear site of Cadarache (France)

SUMMARYIn this paper, physics-based numerical simulation (PBS) is employed to render a broad-band (0–10 Hz) realization of the near-field seismic response of the experimental nuclear site of Cadarache, located nearby the active Middle Durance Fault (southeastern France). The sensitivity of the earthquake numerical model to geological features is investigated by comparison with geophysical measurements and past aftershock and by highlighting the amplification induced by the soft sediments below Cadarache. The blind prediction of an MW6 target earthquake is approached by synthesizing four different finite-fault scenarios. The outcome is compared to the standard ground motion prediction equations (GMPEs), unveiling a possible GMPE overestimation of the pseudospectral acceleration ordinates at short natural periods, supporting the actual need to integrate synthetic and empirical predictions when direct observations are not available.

Postnatal diagnosis of congenital heart defects in Southeast of France: An audit of prenatal ultrasonographic practices and can we improve fetal screening by adding AI (artificial intelligence) solutions?

Most congenital heart defects (CHD) are detected during pregnancy in developed countries. Several causes such as maternal and pregnancy characteristics and quality of screening practices are well known to be barriers to prenatal screening for such malformations. The aims of our study are: 1/to perform an audit in Southeast France of prenatal ultrasonographic practices of CHD diagnosed postnatally and requiring an intervention during the first year of life and analyzing causes for such misdiagnosis and 2/to evaluate the potential use of an AI program to improve the detection of those cases. Between 01/01/2020 and 12/31/2021, 104 children ( n = 104) are referred in our tertiary pediatric cardiologic center with a postnatal diagnosis of CHD requiring surgical or percutaneous intervention in their first year of life. Postnatal diagnosis includes among others: transposition of the great arteries ( n = 5), tetralogy of Fallot (7), and total abnormal pulmonary venous return ( n = 11). Focus will be on the number and quality of the prenatal ultrasonographic images and their adequation with ISUOG practice guidelines. AI programs will subsequently be tested in its ability to cope with these technical problems, heighten the sensitivity of the screening and improve detection of such missed CHD. Parental and obstetrician's consent has been obtained. Our study will allow us to understand better the reasons for the under-diagnosis of CHD in southeastern France and to test the possible role of AI programs in this perspective.

Anything of Which a Woman is Capable: A History of the Sisters of St. Joseph in the United States, Volume 1—The Foundations by Mary M. McGlone, and: Called Forth by the Dear Neighbor: A History of the Sisters of St. Joseph in the United States, Volume 2—from 1860–2010 by Mary M. McGlone

Reviewed by: Anything of Which a Woman is Capable: A History of the Sisters of St. Joseph in the United States, Volume 1—The Foundations by Mary M. McGlone, and: Called Forth by the Dear Neighbor: A History of the Sisters of St. Joseph in the United States, Volume 2—from 1860–2010 by Mary M. McGlone Mary Helen Kashuba SSJ Anything of Which a Woman is Capable: A History of the Sisters of St. Joseph in the United States, Volume 1—The Foundations. By Mary M. McGlone, CSJ. U.S. Federation of the Sisters of St. Joseph, 2017. 547 pp. $21.99. Called Forth by the Dear Neighbor: A History of the Sisters of St. Joseph in the United States, Volume 2—from 1860–2010. By Mary M. Glone, CSJ. U.S. Federation of the Sisters of St. Joseph, 2020. 458 pp. $24.99. These two volumes cover a period of nearly 400 years, from the founding of the Sisters of St. Joseph in 1650 to their presence in the United States during the early years of the twenty-first century. Pioneers among non-cloistered religious, the Sisters of St. Joseph originated in Le Puy, France and spread to the United States in 1836. Their story is dramatic, narrated in many gripping details by Mary McGlone. She follows them from their humble beginnings in a French orphanage through the log cabins of the American mid-west to well-established motherhouses across the United States. [End Page 70] Volume I begins with mid-seventeenth-century France and explores both the traditional and newly discovered and somewhat controversial sources of the congregational foundations. After spreading throughout southeastern France, the sisters' work was halted by the French Revolution. Mother St. John Fontbonne restored the congregation in Lyon in 1808 and sent eight sisters to St. Louis, Missouri in 1836. Their story during the nineteenth and into the early twentieth century occupies the rest of this volume. It is a story of courage and determination, along with conflict and frustration. In the mid-nineteenth century, America was mission territory for the Catholic Church. McGlone paints a vivid picture of settlers in need of religious education and clergy determined to offer it to them. The First Plenary Council of Baltimore in 1852 strongly urged the establishment of Catholic schools, and bishops strove to enforce it by recruiting women religious. At their invitation, sisters moved frequently to new assignments. Within the first two decades of their arrival, the Sisters of St. Joseph went to Philadelphia in 1847, to St. Paul, Minnesota in 1851, Wheeling, West Virginia in 1853, and Canandaigua, New York in 1854. From there they continued to move across the United States as far as California in 1912, and eventually to missions abroad. The author notes two major challenges that faced the sisters: personnel and finances. After the first sisters came from France, the American Sisters of St. Joseph were on their own. Local women slowly came to join them, often opening new missions with little training either in religious life or in the classroom. Their numbers were always insufficient to fill the repeated invitations they received. In addition, their accommodations seldom provided the necessities, if at all. Yet these pioneer women rose to the occasion, many becoming leaders in new foundations, establishing schools, orphanages, and hospitals, and attracting more young women to the congregation. Another problem that faced these pioneers was their relationship with the clergy. The Constitutions of the congregation specified the local bishop as their primary superior. However, the degree of his authority [End Page 71] differed according to the various versions of the rule. It also depended on the bishop or pastor's interpretation. Some congregations, notably Carondelet and Philadelphia, obtained papal approval of their Constitutions, which gave them relative independence. Others chose to remain diocesan communities. Some enjoyed harmonious relations with the local clergy. However, the stories of conflicts between superiors and clergy provide suspenseful reading, which McGlone amplifies with numerous quotations from letters and memoirs. The outcome is sometimes surprising! In the second half of the nineteenth century, it was not unusual for the sisters to move back and forth from one diocese to another. They went...

O2-1 Improving diet and physical activity in older adults living at home: protocol for the ALAPAGE cluster randomized controlled trial

BackgroundAdequate nutrition and regular physical activity (PA) are key elements in healthy aging. In France, behavioural interventions promoting healthy eating and PA in older adults consist mainly in collective workshops organised by pension and health insurance funds. After analyzing pre-existing workshops, we designed the co-constructed project ALAPAGE to improve these workshops and assess their impact on diet and PA.MethodsALAPAGE is a cluster randomized controlled trial; 60 collective workshops in southeastern France will be randomized in a 2:1 (intervention/control) ratio. We will recruit 900 autonomous older adults (? 60 years) living at home and will make specific efforts to recruit socially isolated and/or economically vulnerable people. In the intervention group, collective workshop period will include 7 sessions (1 session/week): 1 introductory, 4 diet and 2 PA (to teach principles of functional dual-task exercise focused on strength, flexibility and physical functioning). During the following 3-months, participants will be recommended to perform exercises as often as possible and will participate in post-workshop activities. The control group will first participate to other types of workshops and then to a diet and PA workshop (waiting-list design).ResultsThe dietary practices (using experimental economics), physical activity (battery of field test and habitual PA), quality of life, and cost-effectiveness will be assessed at the first and last session, and 3 months later.ConclusionResults will guide decision-makers to organize actions and their dissemination. Transferability to other regions will be facilitated by the fact that key stakeholders involved in ALAPAGE belong to structured national networks.

Plastic pollution on Durance riverbank: First quantification and possible environmental measures to reduce it

Plastic pollution is one of the most pressing issues of our time, with negative impacts on natural ecosystems, human health, and the climate system. The identification of top litter items discarded in the environment is essential to prioritize environmental policies to prevent plastic leakage and promote a circular economy. Here, we present the first quantification of macrolitter on three sites along Durance riverbank and one site on Lake Serre-Ponçon's beach, in the Région SUD–Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, southeastern France. Data were collected through citizen science between 2019 and 2020 in three sampling occasions (autumn, winter, spring) on Durance riverbank and in 22 occasions on Lake Serre-Ponçon. A total of 25'423 litter items were categorized, of which 82% were plastics. Single-use plastic items correspond to 8.13% of total, while single-use plastic bottles are among the top 10 litter items at each site. Median litter abundance across all samples is 2,081 items/100 m survey, two orders of magnitude higher than European precautionary threshold value for marine litter (20 items/100 m survey). The majority of items (74.83%) were small and non-identifiable. Pieces of polystyrene, soft plastics and rigid plastics represented the majority of litter items in total (56.63%) and at S1 (89.28%), S2 (58.95%) and S3 (79.60%). Glass pieces corresponded to 15.83% of total litter items. Soft plastic pieces are the most abundant litter category overall and correspond to 58.85% of litter items at sampling site along Durance riverbank located in an agricultural zone, suggesting their source from agricultural plastic mulch films. Among the identifiable items, the most abundant were plastic biomedia used in waste water treatment plants and single-use beverage bottles in plastic and in glass. The development of extended producer responsibility schemes for plastic mulch films and plastic biomedia and of deposit return schemes for single-use beverage bottles is suggested as a way to prevent leakage in the environment. This work confirms the opportunity to use citizen science to gather relevant data on macrolitter items and to monitor the effectiveness of environmental regulations to reduce plastic pollution.

New evidence of Neandertal butchery traditions through the marrow extraction in southwestern Europe (MIS 5-3).

Long bone breakage for bone marrow recovery is a commonly observed practice in Middle Palaeolithic contexts, regardless of the climatic conditions. While lithic technology is largely used to define cultural patterns in human groups, despite dedicating research by zooarchaeologists, for now butchering techniques rarely allowed the identification of clear traditions, notably for ancient Palaeolithic periods. In this paper, we test the hypothesis of butchery traditions among Neandertal groupsusing the bone assemblages from three sites in southwestern Europe. These sites are located in southeastern France and northern Italy and are dated to the Late Middle Palaeolithic: Abri du Maras (Marine Isotopic Stages (MIS) 4-3, Ardèche), Saint-Marcel (MIS 3, Ardèche), and Riparo Tagliente (MIS 4-3, Verona). The detection of culturally-induced patterns of bone breakage involves differentiating them from intuitively generated patterns. To tackle this issue, we used a zooarchaeological approach focusing on the percussion marks produced during the bone breakage process. Statistical analyses as the chi-square test of independence were employed to verify if percussion mark locations were randomly distributed, and if these distributions were different from the intuitive ones. For femurs and humeri, our results demonstrate that Neandertal groups occupying the Abri du Maras (levels 4.1 and 4.2) and the Saint-Marcel Cave (levels g and h) sites in France applied butchery traditions to recover yellow marrow. However, the traditions developed at each site were different. On the contrary, in Riparo Tagliente, in Italy, several groups or individuals of a same group did not share the same butchery traditions over time. Regarding the Abri du Maras and Saint Marcel Cave assemblages, our research demonstrates that Neandertal groups applied intense standardized bone breakage, far from the intuitive practice observed experimentally and related to bone density and/or skeletal morphology. These standardized patterns, which are systematic and counter-intuitive, can be interpreted as culturally induced for the Abri du Maras and Saint Marcel Cave. The diversity of Neandertal traditions should be considered by taking into account the butchery, in particular the practice of bone marrow extraction, and not only technological behaviours and types of tool kits.

Study protocol for a pragmatic cluster randomized controlled trial to improve dietary diversity and physical fitness among older people who live at home (the “ALAPAGE study”)

BackgroundDiet and physical activity are key components of healthy aging. Current interventions that promote healthy eating and physical activity among the elderly have limitations and evidence of French interventions’ effectiveness is lacking. We aim to assess (i) the effectiveness of a combined diet/physical activity intervention (the “ALAPAGE” program) on older peoples’ eating behaviors, physical activity and fitness levels, quality of life, and feelings of loneliness; (ii) the intervention’s process and (iii) its cost effectiveness.MethodsWe performed a pragmatic cluster randomized controlled trial with two parallel arms (2:1 ratio) among people ≥60 years old who live at home in southeastern France. A cluster consists of 10 people participating in a “workshop” (i.e., a collective intervention conducted at a local organization). We aim to include 45 workshops randomized into two groups: the intervention group (including 30 workshops) in the ALAPAGE program; and the waiting-list control group (including 15 workshops). Participants (expected total sample size: 450) will be recruited through both local organizations’ usual practices and an innovative active recruitment strategy that targets hard-to-reach people. We developed the ALAPAGE program based on existing workshops, combining a participatory and a theory-based approach. It includes a 7-week period with weekly collective sessions supported by a dietician and/or an adapted physical activity professional, followed by a 12-week period of post-session activities without professional supervision. Primary outcomes are dietary diversity (calculated using two 24-hour diet recalls and one Food Frequency Questionnaire) and lower-limb muscle strength (assessed by the 30-second chair stand test from the Senior Fitness Test battery). Secondary outcomes include consumption frequencies of main food groups and water/hot drinks, other physical fitness measures, overall level of physical activity, quality of life, and feelings of loneliness. Outcomes are assessed before the intervention, at 6 weeks and 3 months later. The process evaluation assesses the fidelity, dose, and reach of the intervention as its causal mechanisms (quantitative and qualitative data).DiscussionThis study aims to improve healthy aging while limiting social inequalities. We developed and evaluated the ALAPAGE program in partnership with major healthy aging organizations, providing a unique opportunity to expand its reach.Trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT05140330, December 1, 2021.Protocol version: Version 3.0 (November 5, 2021).

Underlying Châteauneuf-du-Pape is a salt diapir and the still active Nîmes Fault of southeastern France

Underlying Châteauneuf-du-Pape is a salt diapir and the still active Nîmes Fault of southeastern France

Grazing intensity gradient inherited from traditional herding still explains Mediterranean grassland characteristics despite current land-use changes

Grazing is well-known to shape plant populations and plant communities and to affect several compartment characteristics of grazed ecosystems. Semi-natural grassland conservation depends on the maintenance of traditional extensive grazing systems which can exist for centuries, even millennia. However, very few studies have concomitantly investigated the effect of grazing management on plant, forage, litter and soil compartments and the implications of their potential interactions for conservation after recent changes in grazing practices.This study thus aimed to identify the concomitant effects of sheep grazing on the latter compartments of Mediterranean grasslands. We further investigated the effects of a recent change from millenia-old traditional herding to contemporary fenced free grazing. We also sought to determine how this change may impact the agronomic and ecological value of these grasslands.Surveys were carried out at 6 different study sites paired by the two different grazing practices in a French Mediterranean sub-steppic vegetation (“Crau” plain in Southeastern France).Using linear models and distance-based redundancy analysis, effects of grazing intensity, grazing practices and their interactions were tested on plant community, forage, litter and soil physicochemical properties. Our results show that, there was a significant effect of grazing intensity on the four studied compartments, with significantly higher species richness and evenness at moderate grazing intensity. Biomass was also significantly higher at moderate grazing intensity. Digestibility of forage, litter quality and soil fertility decreased significantly under less intensive grazing. Significant differences were also found in the relative size of the areas covered by each plant communities. Recent fenced free grazing led to significantly more intensively grazed zones, with more mesophilous/nitrophilous vegetation. Conversely, in zones traditionally less intensively grazed, the contemporary free grazing led to higher plant species-richness but again with more mesophilous species. Implications for conservation management are that the legacy of millennia-old traditional herding still compensates partly for the effects of changing practice to contemporary fenced free grazing on plant community composition but not on their relative sizes. This indicates an increase in grazing intensity in the remotest zone which could lead to grassland plant community homogenization.

The heteromorph ammonite genus Ammonitoceras Dumas, 1876 (Ancyloceratidae) in the lower Aptian (Lower Cretaceous) of the Les Ferres Aptian Basin (southeastern France)

Ammonitoceras Dumas, 1876 is a genus of heteromorph ammonites characterized by the presence of a peculiar ontogenetic stage in its inner whorls: the Ammonitoceras stage. But in spite of its wide paleogeographic and biostratigraphic extension throughout the Aptian (Lower Cretaceous), this genus remains poorly known. In the present work we study specimens of Ammonitoceras from the lower Aptian Deshayesites multicostatus (Deshayesites deshayesi Zone) to Dufrenoyia furcata (Dufrenoyia furcata Zone) subzones of the Les Ferres Aptian Basin (southeastern France). The results are as follows: (1) representatives of Ammonitoceras from this area are regarded dimorphic with criocone macroconchs and ancylocone microconchs, (2) their ontogenetic sequence is described, (3) their intraspecific variability is significant and concerns the adult size and the duration of the ontogenetic stages, especially the Ammonitoceras stage, (4) two species are recognized: the earlier Ammonitoceras ucetiae Dumas, 1876, characterized by a brief Ammonitoceras stage on average, and the latter Ammonitoceras lahuseni (Sinzow, 1906), characterized by a longer Ammonitoceras stage on average. The sample of the Deshayesites grandis Subzone (Deshayesites deshayesi Zone) is composed of specimens too fragmentary to be identified at species level.

Ecological restoration of solar park plant communities and the effect of solar panels

The construction of solar parks leads to soil degradation and the destruction of vegetation. Solar panels change the microclimate affecting plant survival and vegetation development. The increasing solar energy production requires solutions for ecological restoration from the beginning of electricity production. We compared three methods to restore Mediterranean dry grasslands as a target community not affecting solar energy production: seed material transfer, sowing of the target species Brachypodium retusum and an increase in soil organic matter by compost addition. The experiment was set up in a solar park located in South-Eastern France, both outside and below solar panels (SP). After four years, seed material transfer was the best method to initiate plant succession towards the reference community. SP hampered restoration success and strongly reduced plant species richness, in particular of species from the reference community. B. retusum survival decreased by 50% and phytometabolic indices revealed a light stress under SP. However, the species still maintained growth similar to plants outside SP suggesting shade tolerance. Long-term monitoring is required to evaluate whether communities better adapted to light reduction under panels need to be taken into account for successful restoration.

The effect of ozone on pine forests in South-Eastern France from 2017 to 2019

The effect of ozone on pine forests in South-Eastern France from 2017 to 2019

Family Caregiver's Loneliness and Related Health Factors: What Can Be Changed?

Background: Loneliness is a public health issue that may affect the entire population. Loneliness is associated with depression, sleep disorders, fatigue, and increased risk of obesity and diabetes. Risk factors for loneliness include having a poor social network and poor physical and mental health. The main objective was to study factors related to loneliness of family caregivers caring for independent older people. Methods: We performed a non-interventional observational cross-sectional study in south-eastern France. Family caregivers caring for people aged 70 and over and living at home were included. These older people were independent, without long-term conditions, and had applied for professional social assistance for daily living. Data were collected through a questionnaire, administered face-to-face or by telephone. Loneliness and perceived health status were measured through a single-question. Burden was assessed through the Mini-Zarit Scale, and frailty was measured through the Gerontopole Frailty Screening Tool. Results: Of the 876 family caregivers included, 10% felt lonely often or always. They reported more physical and mental health issues than those who did not feel loneliness (p < 0.001). Family caregivers with loneliness were more likely to be looking after a parent and were twice as likely to have a moderate to severe burden (OR = 2.6). They were more likely to feel anxious (OR = 5.6), to have sleep disorders (OR = 2.4), to be frail (OR = 2), and to view the status of their health as poor or bad (OR = 2). Conclusions: Loneliness has a negative impact on health, causes frailty, and places a burden on family caregivers. Means must be implemented to anticipate the consequences of the loneliness felt by family caregivers, notably by orienting them towards the relevant services.

Upper upper Albian ( Mortoniceras rostratum Zone) cephalopods from Clansayes (Drôme, south-eastern France)

We document an upper upper Albian ( Mortoniceras rostratum Zone) cephalopod assemblage from Clansayes (Drôme, south-eastern France). Although fossils are rare in local exposures and in the single sampled level, a decade of intensive fossil collecting yielded 290 ammonite and 5 nautilid specimens. In total, we describe 1 species of nautilid and 24 species (within 17 genera) of ammonites, including 13 heteromorphs. Only two of these ammonite taxa were previously recorded from the upper upper Albian at Clansayes, which demonstrates the value of this fauna with regard to taxonomy, palaeobiology and palaeobiogeography. Based on morphological and biometric analyses performed on an extensive material (104 specimens), we discriminate two species for the heteromorphic ammonite genus Mariella Nowak, 1916 within the Mortoniceras rostratum Zone. In addition, we investigate shell chirality patterns in Mariella from the late Albian of southern France. Upon comparison of the Clansayes material with older material from the immediately underlying upper Albian Mortoniceras fallax Zone at the neighbouring Salazac locality, we identify an increase in the proportion of sinistral specimens. This observed increase in the frequency of sinistral Mariella specimens may hypothetically be part of a global evolutionary pattern, considering that nearly all documented younger Cenomanian Mariella (and more generally Cenomanian turrilitids) are sinistral.

Hydrometeorological evaluation of two nowcasting systems for Mediterranean heavy precipitation events with operational considerations

Abstract. Heavy precipitation events and subsequent flash floods regularly affect the Mediterranean coastal regions. In these situations, forecasting rainfall and river discharges is crucial especially up to 6 h, which is a relevant lead time for emergency services in times of crisis. The present study investigates the hydrometeorological skills of two new nowcasting systems: a numerical weather model AROME-NWC and a nowcasting system blending numerical weather prediction and extrapolation of radar estimation called PIAF. Their performance is assessed for 10 past heavy precipitation events that occurred in southeastern France. Precipitation forecasts are evaluated at a 15- min time resolution and the availability times of forecasts, based on the operational Météo-France suites, are taken into account when performing the evaluation. Rainfall observations and forecasts were first compared using a point-to-point approach. Then the evaluation was conducted from an hydrological point of view, by comparing observed and forecast precipitation over watersheds affected by floods. In general, the results led to the same conclusions for both evaluations. On the very first lead times, up to 1 h 15 min and 1 h 30 min of forecast, the performance of PIAF was higher than AROME-NWC. For longer lead times (up to 3 h) their performances were generally equivalent. An assessment of river discharges simulated with the ISBA-TOP coupled system, which is dedicated to Mediterranean flash flood simulations and driven by AROME-NWC and PIAF rainfall forecasts, was also performed on two exceptional past flash flood events. The results obtained for these two events show that using AROME-NWC or PIAF rainfall forecasts is promising for flash flood forecasting in terms of peak intensity, timing, and first wave of discharge, with an anticipation of these phenomena that can reach several hours.

SIMETHIS-Flore-CBNMed - Database of Southeastern France vegetation

The SIMETHIS-Flore-CBNMed database (GIVD EU-FR-006) is a regional database managed by the Conservatoire Botanique National Méditerranéen dealing with occurrence data of the vascular flora of Southeastern France. It covers the following departments: Pyrénées-Orientales, Aude, Hérault, Gard, Lozère, Vaucluse, Bouches-du-Rhône, Var and Alpes-Maritimes. It includes around 19,300 phytosociological relevés of various vegetation types from the mediterranean coastal area to the alpine vegetation belt. Vegetation plots are unpublished relevés as well as digitized data from bibliographic sources (around 310 references). Almost all relevés are geolocalized. The oldest ones date from 1915 and the most recent from 2021 and the integration of new data is done continuously. The taxonomical scheme follows the French national taxonomic repository TAXREF (currently v.15). The database is part of the European Vegetation Archive under semi-restricted regime and will be updated every year. Some of the bibliographic data featured in SIMETHIS-Flore-CBNMed may also be present in SOPHY database (EU-FR-003). All the bibliographic data of SIMETHIS-Flore-CBNMed undergo a curation process regarding georeferencing, taxonomic nomenclature updates and syntaxonomic interpretation. Abbreviations: CBNMed: Conservatoire Botanique National Méditerranéen.

Prevalence of overweight, obesity, and early adiposity rebound in nursery school children in southeastern France

BackgroundThe aim of the present study was to assess the prevalence of overweight, obesity, and early adiposity rebound in nursery school children aged 3.5–4.5 years and to evaluate associations with deprivation. MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted in the Bouches-du-Rhône department in southeastern France. Data for all nursery school children aged 3.5–4.5 years were collected during systematic medical examinations. The prevalence of overweight and obesity was determined using French, International Obesity Task Force (IOTF), and World Health Organization reference values. A French ecological deprivation index was used to assess associations with deprivation. ResultsAmong 19,295 children included in the study, the prevalence of overweight (IOTF-25 < BMI < IOTF-30) was 9.1% and the prevalence of obesity (BMI > IOTF-30) was 2.6%. Children attending nursery schools in the most disadvantaged areas were 4.3 times more likely to be affected by obesity than those from schools in the most advantaged areas (OR: 4.32; 95% CI: 2.98–6.25, p < 0.001), after adjusting for gender, age group, and school status. Early adiposity rebound was observed in 2131 of 9872 children (21.6%). ConclusionPrograms to prevent childhood overweight and obesity in France should be intensified and take account of major persistent social inequalities. Medical practitioners should learn to systematically assess BMI curve dynamics and early adiposity rebound.

Towards delimitation of the Echinococcus multilocularis parasite's southernmost range in France.

Alveolar echinococcosis is a severe, potentially fatal, parasitic disease caused by ingestion of microscopic eggs of Echinococcus multilocularis. The lifecycle of the parasite is essentially sylvatic, and based on a prey-predator relationship between red foxes and small rodents. A westward expansion from the eastern historical focus has been reported in France, though the parasite has also been detected in the southern Alps. While the focus in the Auvergne region (central France) was described in the 1980s, the southern delimitation of the actual endemic area, especially in the south, was unknown in the absence of dedicated surveys. Red fox samples were collected from 2013 to 2020 in the framework of other transversal epidemiological studies in five sampling areas from southwestern and southeastern France. One hundred and seven intestines were analysed by SSCT, and 221 faecal samples from intestines were analysed by copro-qPCR. None of the 328 foxes exhibited E. multilocularis worms or DNA. Although the presence of E. multilocularis cannot be totally excluded in the departments from the study areas, the sample size tested argues for an absence of the parasite in these studied areas, which is in accordance with the currently known endemic situation in France. These new data are helpful in determining the southernmost limit of E. multilocularis distribution in France. The warm, dry Mediterranean climate in the southeastern areas is less favourable to the transmission of E. multilocularis and especially to the survival of eggs in the environment than the climate in the French Alps or Liguria (Italy) climate where the parasite is present. The intermediate area between the southwestern study areas and the historical focus of Auvergne, which is separated by around 150km, will be investigated in the coming years. Moreover, an ongoing national surveillance programme on E. multilocularis in foxes is targeting French departements along the edge of the known endemic area both in the southeast and southwest. The data produced will supplement the results of this study, thus greatly helping to define the current distribution of E. multilocularis in France and to target prevention measures to reduce human exposure.

Who Were Hospitalized Deceased Patients from COVID-19 During the First Year of Pandemic? Retrospective Analysis of 1104 Deceased Patients in South of France

IntroductionFollowing the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, a complete analysis of the characteristics of the deceased hospitalized patients was performed, to identify factors related to premature mortality and to compare patient profiles according to the epidemic periods.MethodsRetrospective analysis of 1104 deceased patients in two University Hospitals in South-eastern France, between March 1, 2020 and March 12, 2021 from Hospital’s electronic medical records was performed.ResultsMean age was 80 years (± 11.1) and 10% of the deceased were younger than 65 years with specific comorbidities, e.g., genetic conditions, metastatic cancer, or massive obesity. Among the three clusters identified, two clusters (75% of deceased patients) include very elderly patients with numerous comorbidities, and differ by their proportion of dependent institutionalized patients. The third cluster is made up of younger patients with fewer but severe comorbidities. Deceased patients’ profiles varied according to the epidemic periods: during the first period (March–June 2020), more patients were institutionalized. The second period (September–December2020) coincided with a higher mortality rate.ConclusionsThis study confirmed that most patients hospitalized and dying from COVID-19 were frail, i.e., elderly and/or highly comorbid and that the small proportion of young patients had severe comorbidities.

First rearing records of Bloodiella andalusica Nowicki, 1935 (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea, Trichogrammatidae) in France, from the eggs of Labidostomis taxicornis and Macrolenes dentipes (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae, Clytrini)

Bloodiella andalusica is a solitary egg-parasitoid with a body length of 0.5–0.7 mm, recorded from mainland France for the first time. Specimens were reared in Var, in the Provence-AlpesCôte d'Azur region of South-eastern France, from egg clusters of two leaf beetle species: Labidostomis taxicornis (Fabricius, 1792) and Macrolenes dentipes (Olivier, 1808). This is the first record of B. andalusica from L. taxicornis, M. dentipes having been recorded as a host previously in Italy. DNA barcode sequences of B. andalusica were obtained and deposited in Genbank. Our observations on this species are summarised and illustrated.