In addition to the spicules typically produced by sponges, about twenty hypercalcified species belonging to both classes Demospongiae and Calcispongiae secrete a massive basal calcareous skeleton composed of calcite or aragonite. Skeletal growth rates and growth mechanisms are still poorly known in those hypercalcified Calcispongiae. In situ calcein staining experimentation on the Mediterranean calcisponge Petrobiona massiliana revealed a mean annual growth rate of the massive skeleton of 236 µm/y (±90). Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed that some spicules are entrapped within the massive skeleton (a solid mass forming apical crests with multidirectional growth axes) during its formation. Whole actines were observed within the massive skeleton of fractured specimens, indicating that they do not dissolve after entrapping. Calcein incorporation bands seen through epifluorescence microscopy and SEM morphological observations of the skeletal surface revealed cone shaped protuberances corresponding to active growth areas. A spatially discontinuous growth was highlighted, but the annual growth rates were similar at the tip of crests and at the bottom of depressions separating them. The skeleton of P. massiliana is composed of magnesium calcite with strontium as the main trace element. Significant differences in skeletal chemistry of specimens collected in different Mediterranean locations revealed a possible temperature dependence of Mg/Ca. Although such temperature signature exists in the massive skeleton of P. massiliana, its use as an accurate environmental recorder is limited by several factors including multidirectional and spatially discontinuous growth.

In the European Union, the definition of a GMO is technology-based. This means that a novel organism will be regulated under the GMO regulatory framework only if it has been developed with the use of defined techniques. This approach is now challenged with the emergence of new techniques. In this paper, we describe regulatory and safety issues associated with the use of oligonucleotide-mediated mutagenesis to develop novel organisms. We present scientific arguments for not having organisms developed through this technique fall within the scope of the EU regulation on GMOs. We conclude that any political decision on this issue should be taken on the basis of a broad reflection at EU level, while avoiding discrepancies at international level.

Control over the 1.5 µm emission from erbium is desirable for communication and computational technologies because the erbium emission falls in the window of maximum transmission for silica based fiber optics. Tunable, narrow, directional, and enhanced erbium emission from silicon based 1-D photonic bandgap structures will be demonstrated. The structures are prepared by anodic etching of crystalline silicon and consist of two highly reflecting Bragg reflectors sandwiching an active layer. The cavities are doped by electro-migrating the erbium ions into the porous silicon matrix, followed by high temperature oxidation. By controlling the oxidation temperature, porosity, and thickness of the structure, the position of the erbium emission is tuned to emit in regions where the normal erbium emission is very weak. The erbium emission from the cavity is narrowed to a full width at half maximum (FWHM) of 12 nm with a cavity quality factor Q of 130, highly directional with a 20 degree emission cone around the normal axis, and enhanced by more than one order of magnitude when compared to its lateral emission. Erbium photoluminescence (PL) from porous silicon 2-D photonic bandgap structures is also demonstrated.

The tuning of one-dimensional photonic band gap structures based on porous silicon will be presented. The photonic structures are prepared by applying a periodic pulse of current density to form alternating high and low porosity layers. The width and position of the photonic bandgap are determined by the dielectric function of each layer, which depends on porosity, and their thickness. In this work we show that by controlling the oxidation of the porous silicon structures, it is possible to tune the photonic bandgap towards shorter wavelengths. The formation of silicon dioxide during oxidation causes a reduction of the refractive index, which induces the blue shift. The photonic band gap is determined experimentally by taking the total reflection of the structures. In order to understand the tuning of the photonic band gap, we developed a geometrical model using the effective medium approximation to calculate the dielectric function of each of the oxidized porous silicon layers. The two key parameters are the porosity and the parameter β, defined as the ratio between the silicon dioxide thickness and the pore radius before oxidation. Choosing the parameter β, to fit the experimental photonic band gap of the oxidized structures, we extract the fraction of oxide that is present. For example, the measured 240 nm blue shift of a photonic bandgap that was centered at 1.7 microns corresponds to the transformation of 30% of the structure into silicon dioxide. A similar approach can be used for oxidized two-dimensional porous silicon photonic structures.

Haemangiopericytoma (HPC) is a rare vascular tumour produced by proliferation of pericytes. One hundred and thirty-three cases of HPC have been reported in the nose and the paranasal sinuses. We present two more cases. Wide surgical excision via lateral rhinotomy, midfacial degloving, or endonasal removal is the treatment of choice. Radiotherapy has been used post-operatively in cases of incomplete removal. Life-long follow-up is required to evaluate local recurrence and late metastases.