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Camel milk: White gold and its contribution to the sustainable development goals—A review
No full textInternational audienceCamel milk plays a multifaceted and significant role in contributing to sustainable development goals (SDGs). This review aims to explore its impact on SDG 1 (No Poverty), SDG 2 (Zero Hunger), SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being), SDG 5 (Gender Equality), SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth), SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production), and SDG 13 (Climate Action). Camel milk alleviates poverty by providing crucial income and job opportunities for pastoral communities where alternative livelihoods are limited. Its rich nutritional value enhances food security, particularly in regions suffering from hunger and low agricultural productivity. Furthermore, its nutritional and medicinal properties contribute to public health and well-being, particularly in communities affected by food insecurity. The expanding camel milk industry promotes decent work and economic growth by fostering market diversification and growth while empowering women by creating economic opportunities within local communities. Camel milk production aligns with sustainable consumption and production patterns by requiring fewer resources and minimizing waste, and it strengthens resilience to climate change in vulnerable regions. Despite its potential, the camel milk industry faces hurdles such as high production costs, inadequate infrastructure, and limited market access. This article emphasizes the need for targeted efforts to overcome these challenges and highlights the potential of camel milk as a key driver of sustainable development in some of the world's most fragile regions and its contributions to sustainable development and improving the livelihoods of vulnerable communities worldwide. This article emphasizes the need for targeted efforts to overcome these challenges and highlights the potential of camel milk as a key driver of sustainable development in improving the livelihoods, especially of vulnerable communities across the world's most fragile regions
High pressure and heat-induced potato protein nanocomplexes as carriers for curcumin: influence of pH and curcumin addition pathway
No full textInternational audienceThis study aimed to assess the potential of high hydrostatic pressure (HHP) and heat treatment (HT) in facilitating the formation of nanoassemblies of potato proteins (PPs) and curcumin to protect this sensitive bioactive compound. Curcumin was introduced into patatin-rich protein dispersions (4% wt/wt) according to two pathways: before (pathway 1) or after (pathway 2) HHP treatment (400 or 600 MPa for 8 hr at pH 6 and pH 7) or HT (55 • C for 5 min at pH 6) to optimize curcumin-protein complexation efficiency (CE). Treatments increased PP surface hydrophobicity which facilitated curcumin binding and protein aggregation, as confirmed by protein particle size increase. The highest CE was obtained with pathway 1 at 600 MPa pH 7, while HT limited curcumin complexation. Whatever the pathway, the antioxidant activity of the processed dispersions treated at 600 MPa for 8 hr or 55 • C for 5 min was increased compared to untreated ones and preserved after 10 days of storage at 4 • C. These nanocomplexes could potentially be applied in functional foods.</div
Conservation paradoxes and challenges in invasive alien species with economic costs
No full textData availability: The data generated within this study and the code to generate them are publicly accessible on the following GitHub repository: https://github.com/MarineRobuchon/invacost_consparadox. This GitHub repository has been paired with a Zenodo repository (Robuchon et al., 2025).International audienceHighlights: • 10 invasive alien species (IAS) with economic costs are also threatened. • 27 IAS with economic costs are among the most distinctive species of their group. • One IAS with economic costs, the koala, is both threatened and distinctive. • Those 36 IAS with economic costs are in need of priority protection in their native ranges. • Coordinated management at population-level would maximise conservation outcomes.Abstract: Several studies have revealed species that constitute conservation paradoxes because they are invasive in some areas and threatened in others. However, those studies only considered ecological impacts of invasions and species' threat category as a criterion that makes them conservation priorities. Here, our aim was to highlight further species that cause economic costs because of their invasiveness in some areas while being in need of priority protection in their native ranges. We used the InvaCost database to calculate an economic cost for each invasive alien species (IAS) in this database and explored the threat category, as well as the phylogenetic and functional distinctiveness of these IAS. We also focused on the costliest IAS to reveal their threat category and distinctiveness. Among the 355 species of mammals, birds, and plants constituting IAS with sufficient data on economic costs, we found that 10 species are also conservation priorities because they are threatened in their native range, therefore constituting conservation paradoxes. We further found that 27 IAS with economic costs are also conservation priorities because they are among the most phylogenetically or functionally distinctive, thus constituting conservation challenges. One IAS with economic costs is a conservation priority both because it is threatened in its native range and phylogenetically distinctive: the koala. Finally, we found three conservation paradoxes or challenges among the costliest IAS. Our work stresses to an unprecedented level that some species simultaneously need to be controlled in their invasive range and protected in their native range
Reasonable Precaution or Unjust Discrimination? Applying a Lexical Utility Model of the Precautionary Principle to Moral Choices
No full textInternational audienceIn some applications to human beings, the precautionary principle seems to raise specific ethical concerns. For instance, it has been used by a business owner in a court of justice to justify his refusal to hire applicants with a certain geographical origin for safety reasons. Or in public management, the precautionary principle has been used to exclude men who have sexual relations with men from donating blood on the basis of a higher HIV prevalence in this group. Does not the precautionary principle here amount to justifying a form of discrimination? To help analyze what is at stake from a decision-theoretic viewpoint and to consider the possibility of ethical catastrophes, we offer a lexical utility model of the precautionary principle, which generalizes a previous model by Bartha and DesRoches (Synthese 199:8701-8740, 2021), Steel and Bartha (Risk Anal https:// doi. org/ 10. 1111/ risa. 13892, 2022). Traditional expected utility theory also comes out as a special case of the model. Our proposal opens new perspectives for considering ethical dilemmas within a precautionary approach. It is intended to serve as a guiding tool for management teams in socially responsible companies, public institutions, and government agencies
Revisiting Stackelberg in his own light
No full textThis paper revisits Heinrich F. von Stackelberg's original description of leader-follower games under incomplete information, exploring how learning dynamics shape strategic interaction. The leader iteratively updates its conjecture about the follower's reaction function before choosing the activity level that maximizes its payoff. The follower, in turn, responds optimally to each activity level, revealing information that the leader uses to refine its conjecture. Assuming linear conjectures, a smooth updating process à la Jean- Marie and Tidball (2006), and quadratic payoff functions, we establish conditions for which the learning process converges asymptotically. We characterize the outcomes of the learning process in terms of activity levels and payoffs, within both a sequential partnership game and a sequential duopoly game with quantity competition. Moreover, we compare these outcomes to those of the complete information solution and the cooperative solution. In the process, we uncover conditions under which the lack of information, and resulting strategic ambiguity, leads to higher joint payoffs, and under which usual intuitions about the first mover advantage need qualifications
Toward Brague river flood modelling 3: the impact of culvert representation
No full textInternational audienceThe Brague River (south-east France) has historically been subjected to significant flooding events, notably recently in 2011, 2015 and 2019. This research primarily focuses on the 2015 flood event, which resulted in human loss and significant damage. In the study domain, several hydraulic structures across the river (e.g., under the A8 highway), which can hinder the river flow during extreme flood events. Our objective in this work is to assess the influence of culvert representation within the domain on hydraulic discharge, particularly beneath roadways, and to examine the resultant variations in flood extents and water depth. To this goal, the TELEMAC-2D hydraulic modelling software is used to simulate a range of modelling approaches that account differently for the flow in the culvert areas, such as opened or closed topography or using culvert discharge equations. Five scenarios concerning the highway culverts are proposed. The numerical results are analysed and intercompared with field observations. The results reveal a significant reduction in culverts flow rate upon the formation of logjams, while the highway overflow increases. These studies' findings could help in guiding management policies and practices, offering a scientific foundation for decision-making in the context of flood events involving hydraulic structures
β-Lactoglobulin and sorghum phenolic compounds molecular binding: Interaction mechanism and thermal stability impact
No full textInternational audienceThe mechanism of molecular interaction between (3-lactoglobulin ((3-lg) and sorghum bran phenolic compounds from 4 genotypes was studied. Catechin (CA) and ferulic acid (FA) were used as model systems. Higher affinity for (3-lg:FA interaction (Ksv ti 105 M-1) compared with (3-lg:CA interaction (Ksv ti 104 M-1) was revealed, with different preferable binding sites identified through molecular docking. Nevertheless, regarding the molecular interaction between the proteins and the complex extracts of phenolic compounds, Ksv in the magnitude order of 104 M-1 were observed. Antioxidant capacity progressively increased after protein-phenolic interaction, indicating a potential synergistic effect. Concerning the thermal stability of the phenolic compounds, epimerization as the primary response of CA to thermal treatment (90 degrees C / 10 min) was identified, but the addition of (3-lg exerted a protective effect against CA degradation (-7 % in (3-lg:CA complexes); however, proteins were not able to protect complex phenolic matrices (e.g. sorghum extracts)
Cohesive granular material in a rotating drum: flow regimes and size effects
No full textInternational audienceIn this article, we investigate the behaviour of a cohesive granular material in a rotating drum. We use a model material with tuneable cohesion and vary the dimension of the drum in the radial and axial directions. The results show that the geometry of the drum may play a crucial role in the material dynamics, leading to significant changes in the surface morphology and flow regime. We attribute this behaviour to the fact that an increase in cohesion causes the grains to feel the sidewalls at a greater distance. Finally, we rationalize the results by introducing two dimensionless characteristic lengths, defined as the ratio of the drum dimensions to a cohesive length, which allow for the interpretation of the variation in the surface morphology and of the different flow regimes observed experimentally
Optimal Separation of Two Microbial Species Competing for Two Substitutable Resources. Species Selection in Minimum-Time
No full textInternational audienceWe address a selection problem between two microbial species by controlling the dilution rate in a continuous stirred tank reactor. Unlike earlier studies, we focus on the competition between species for two substitutable substrates instead of a single limiting resource, with each species capable of dominating the culture. The selection of the most suitable strain is formulated as a minimum time optimal control problem. After examining the reachability of the target set, we conduct a thorough analysis of optimal solutions and singular arcs, using Pontryagin's Maximum Principle and geometric control theory. Notably, unlike studies involving a single substrate, the target is not always reachable, and we construct a counterexample to prove it. In the case where the target can be reached, we highlight that optimal solutions exhibit turnpike-like phenomena by combining the approach with a direct optimization method, and these properties differ from those in the single substrate case. Although there is no natural static optimization problem associated with a minimum time control problem, our analysis enables us to characterize the turnpike point as the solution to a static optimization problem associated with an auxiliary Lagrange-type optimal control problem. These results are extensively illustrated throughout this work using direct optimization
Global Marine Flyways Identified for Long‐Distance Migrating Seabirds From Tracking Data
No full textInternational audienceAim: To identify the broad-scale oceanic migration routes (‘marine flyways’) used by multiple pelagic, long-distance migratory seabirds based on a global compilation of tracking data.Location: Global.Time Period: 1989–2023.Major Taxa Studied: Seabirds (Families: Phaethontidae, Hydrobatidae, Diomedeidae, Procellariidae, Laridae and Stercorariidae).Methods: We collated a comprehensive global tracking dataset that included the migratory routes of 48 pelagic and long-distance migrating seabird species across the Atlantic, Indian, Pacific and Southern Oceans. We grouped individuals that followed similar routes, independent of species or timings of migration, using a dynamic time warping clustering approach. We visualised the routes of each cluster using a line density analysis and used knowledge of seabird spatial ecology to combine the clusters to identify the broad-scale flyways followed by most pelagic migratory seabirds tracked to-date at an ocean-basin scale.Results: Six marine flyways were identified across the world's oceans: the Atlantic Ocean Flyway, North Indian Ocean Flyway, East Indian Ocean Flyway, West Pacific Ocean Flyway, Pacific Ocean Flyway and Southern Ocean Flyway. Generally, the flyways were used bidirectionally, and individuals either followed sections of a flyway, a complete flyway, or their movements linked two or more flyways. Transhemispheric figure-of-eight routes in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, and a circumnavigation flyway in the Southern Ocean correspond with major wind-driven ocean currents.Main Conclusions: The marine flyways identified demonstrate that pelagic seabirds have similar and repeatable migration routes across ocean-basin scales. Our study highlights the need to account for connectivity in seabird conservation and provides a framework for international cooperation