Some news from the front !!! We had a lot of contacts and discussions this week. We have identified several technical points that we think are interesting to share with you.
I created this post so that we could regroup the more technical points related to the Laigret project.
In a few days, I hope to be able to summarize all the elements contained in the documents we have already collected.
Grougrou, thank you for checking that I do not say too much nonsense ....
So here, I start:
1) A few weeks ago, we got closer to a laboratory of the INRA of Montpellier which conducts research on subjects close to the Laigret project. We managed to discuss together last Friday and a lot of points were mentioned:
- First of all, I do not hide the fact that the person I had was very surprised by what I told him about, but as the institute and Dr Laigret are serious people, he could only deepen the subject with the following remarks;
- The strain: according to him, we must find the exact strain to have the best chance of success but given the number of different perfringens, he thinks that it can be difficult. He told me that it may have to discuss with the Pastor Institute of Tunis because they were able to keep the strain (I'll come back a little later);
- The medium: In most substrates, there is a fierce competition between micro-organisms (especially in sewage sludge) and nothing that this element can block the development of the bacterium as interesting and effective as it is . But, as a reminder, Dr. Laigret states that he used perfringens alone, so he sterilized in one way or another the substrates on which he worked before inserting the perfringens.
- The oils and their residues: it is the ideal substrate to start because it is a quasi sterile environment naturally. Indeed, as he rightly pointed out to me, an oil could be kept for years without mold.
- The lab: according to him, even if the perfringens is not necessarily very dangerous, there will be constraints related to its pathogenic aspect. According to him, you need a P2 lab and that they do not have today. I told him that we had to see in which framework we could eventually complete the infrastructure of his lab.
- In conclusion he is surprised and would like to have a little doc to watch all that.
2) We had a contact also with ESAIP whose 3th years are very recent. They have a scientific project to do so the teaching team will propose the subject to engineering students. They will be able to deepen the documentary aspects and especially to seek if other schools / universities / labs work on a similar subject. They know that there is a lab at IUT Angers working on oil mill residues. They seek to value them from yeast so they certainly have the equipment and skills to conduct experiments. Case to follow ...
3) Finally, we had a contact with the Pasteur Institute of Tunis. Initially, it was mainly a question of whether they had kept the A 5029 strain. From threads to needles, we learned a lot of interesting things about perfringens:
- First of all, the Pasteur Institute of Tunis is still working on the Perfringens. Unfortunately, they do not have a type A strain, so they do not have the A 5029.
- Perfringens is classified in several types (from A to E). The one that interests us belongs to category A. What characterizes the type is the pathogenic aspect of the bacterium. For A (this confirms what we already know), it is the bacterium responsible for gas gangrene. Once the type established, the strains are classified according to their toxicity that is to say according to the volume of rejected secretions. Maybe the strain A 5029 is more efficient than the others but can be that we can find another equivalent. This leaves hope if we can not find the exact strain.
- They confirm that working on oil residue would be interesting because we do not really know what to do today. Especially in Tunisia where the production of olive oil is very important.
- Pasteur Institute of Tunis works on both the medical aspects and on the environmental aspects and surprise !!! They would be very interested to work with us on the subject !!! It might be interesting to work with them because they master the perfringens, they have appropriate infrastructure and probably almost all the necessary equipment.
4) For its part Grougrou has contacted many schools and / or universities that do the environment, they may have equipped labs on which we are likely to support us. We are anxiously waiting for them to come back to him. He also found a supplier of bacteria / bacilli. We will very quickly know if they have this bacteria in reserve.
That's it, you know everything, and that seems to me to be good news.
It also brings other questions aspects licensing / protection of works and financing / project structure.
Looking forward to reading you,
). So, I polluted the pot !!!
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