199 research outputs found
International Female Migration to Atlantic Canada through Internet Mediated MatchMaking Agencies
In this paper we draw on post-colonial feminism in order to analyze the complex ways in which gender, race, class, nationality, and education affect women who have migrated to Atlantic Canada via the international Internet matchmaking industry. We discuss power which is a recurring theme identified in the data.
RƩsumƩ
Dans cet article, nous nous fondons sur le fĆ©minisme post-colonial afin dāanalyser les faƧons complexes par lesquelles le genre, la race, la classe, la nationalitĆ© et lāĆ©ducation affectent les femmes qui ont Ć©migrĆ© au Canada Atlantique par le biais de lāindustrie dāentremetteur internationale par internet. Nous discutons du pouvoir, qui est un thĆØme rĆ©current identifiĆ© dans les donnĆ©es
(En)Gendering Vulnerability: Immigrant Service Providersā Perceptions of Needs, Policies, and Practices Related to Gender and Women Refugee Claimants in Atlantic Canada
As part of a multi-phased study exploring the experiences of refugee claimants in Atlantic Canada, this article focuses on the experiences and perceptions of immigrant service providers in relation to gender and women refugee claimants. Given the paucity of research on refugees in Atlantic Canada and on the particular perspectives of service providers, we have located this part of our research in the intersection of state policies and civil society practices, in particular service providersā and NGO practices vis-aĢ-vis refugees and refugee claimants. To contextualize our study we briefly trace global and national trends in migration and refugee issues, specifically increasing refugee deterrence policies that restrict claimantsā access to protection and settlement services. Findings highlight the recognition of gender-specific needs but also the lack of a gendered analysis of women refugee claimants, uneven accessibility to support services across the Atlantic region, challenges in navigating services, low cultural competence of institutional social and health service providers, and the rise of a punitive deterrence culture.Dans le cadre dāune eĢtude en plusieurs phases explorant les expeĢriences des demandeurs dāasile dans les provinces maritimes du Canada, cet article se penche sur les expeĢriences et les perceptions des employeĢs des services de lāimmigration en relation avec lāappartenance sexuelle et les femmes demandeuses dāasile. EĢtant donneĢ la pauvreteĢ des recherches sur les reĢfugieĢs dans ces reĢgions, et sur les perceptions de ces employeĢs, cette eĢtape de la recherche se concentre sur lāinteraction entre les politiques dāEĢtat et les pratiques de la socieĢteĢ civile, particulieĢrement les pratiques de ces employeĢs et des ONG aĢ lāeĢgard des reĢfugieĢs et des demandeurs dāasile. Afin de mettre la question en contexte, on consideĢre les tendances nationales et internationales dans le domaine de la migration et de lāasile, et plus particulieĢrement des strateĢgies croissantes visant aĢ restreindre lāacceĢs des demandeurs dāasile aux services de protection et dāeĢtablissement. Les reĢsultats mettent en lumieĢre les besoins speĢcifiques lieĢs aĢ lāappartenance sexuelle, mais eĢgalement le manque dāeĢtudes sur les besoins particuliers des femmes demandeuses dāasile, lāineĢgaliteĢ de lāacceĢs aux services de soutien dans la reĢgion atlantique, les difficulteĢs de sāorienter dans les diffeĢrents services, le manque de compeĢtences culturelles des employeĢs des diffeĢrents services sociaux et de santeĢ, ainsi que lāessor dāune culture de dissuasion punitive
Targeted disruption of the heat shock protein 20āphosphodiesterase 4D (PDE4D) interaction protects against pathological cardiac remodelling in a mouse model of hypertrophy
Phosphorylated heat shock protein 20 (HSP20) is cardioprotective. Using human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hiPSC-CMs) and a mouse model of pressure overload mediated hypertrophy, we show that peptide disruption of the HSP20āphosphodiesterase 4D (PDE4D) complex results in attenuation of action potential prolongation and protection against adverse cardiac remodelling. The later was evidenced by improved contractility, decreased heart weight to body weight ratio, and reduced interstitial and perivascular fibrosis. This study demonstrates that disruption of the specific HSP20āPDE4D interaction leads to attenuation of pathological cardiac remodelling
Bioinspired detoxification of blood: The efficient removal of anthrax toxin protective antigen using an extracorporeal macroporous adsorbent device
Whilst various remedial human monoclonal antibodies have been developed to treat the potentially life-threatening systemic complications associated with anthrax infection, an optimal and universally effective administration route has yet to be established. In the later stages of infection when antibody administration by injection is more likely to fail one possible route to improve outcome is via the use of an antibody-bound, adsorbent haemoperfusion device. We report here the development of an adsorbent macroporous polymer column containing immobilised B. anthracis exotoxin-specific antibodies, PANG (a non-glycosylated, version of a plant-produced human monoclonal antibody) and Valortim (a fully human monoclonal N-linked glycosylated antibody), for removal of anthrax protective antigen (PA) from freshly frozen human plasma and human whole blood. In addition, we have demonstrated that continuous extracorporeal blood recirculation through a Valortim-bound haemoperfusion column significantly reduced the blood plasma concentration of anthrax PA over 2 hours using an in vivo PA rat infusion model. This work provides proof-of-concept evidence to support the development of such alternative detoxification platforms
Regulation of endothelial-specific transgene expression by the LacI repressor protein in vivo
Genetically modified mice have played an important part in elucidating gene function in vivo. However, conclusions from transgenic studies may be compromised by complications arising from the site of transgene integration into the genome and, in inducible systems, the non-innocuous nature of inducer molecules. The aim of the present study was to use the vascular system to validate a technique based on the bacterial lac operon system, in which transgene expression can be repressed and de-repressed by an innocuous lactose analogue, IPTG. We have modified an endothelium specific promoter (TIE2) with synthetic LacO sequences and made transgenic mouse lines with this modified promoter driving expression of mutant forms of connexin40 and an independently translated reporter, EGFP. We show that tissue specificity of this modified promoter is retained in the vasculature of transgenic mice in spite of the presence of LacO sequences, and that transgene expression is uniform throughout the endothelium of a range of adult systemic and cerebral arteries and arterioles. Moreover, transgene expression can be consistently down-regulated by crossing the transgenic mice with mice expressing an inhibitor protein LacI(R), and in one transgenic line, transgene expression could be de-repressed rapidly by the innocuous inducer, IPTG. We conclude that the modified bacterial lac operon system can be used successfully to validate transgenic phenotypes through a simple breeding schedule with mice homozygous for the LacI(R) protein.CEH and KIM acknowledge funding support from NH&MRC Project Grant #471421
p75 neurotrophin receptor regulates energy balance in obesity
Obesity and metabolic syndrome reflect the dysregulation of molecular pathways that control energy homeostasis. Here, we show that the p75 neurotrophin receptor (p75NTR) controls energy expenditure in obese mice on a high-fat diet (HFD). Despite no changes in food intake, p75NTR-null mice were protected from HFD-induced obesity and remained lean as a result of increased energy expenditure without developing insulin resistance or liver steatosis. p75NTR directly interacts with the catalytic subunit of protein kinase A (PKA) and regulates cAMP signaling in adipocytes, leading to decreased lipolysis and thermogenesis. Adipocyte-specific depletion of p75NTR or transplantation of p75NTR-null white adipose tissue (WAT) into wild-type mice fed a HFD protected against weight gain and insulin resistance. Our results reveal that signaling from p75NTR to cAMP/PKA regulates energy balance and suggest that non-CNS neurotrophin receptor signaling could be a target for treating obesity and the metabolic syndrome
Probing the Formation of Reactive Oxygen Species by a Porous Self- Assembled Benzophenone Bis-Urea Host
Herein, we examine the photochemical formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) by a porous benzophenone-containing bis-urea host (1) to investigate the mechanism of photooxidations that occur within the confines of its nanochannels. UV irradiation of the self-assembled host in the presence of molecular oxygen generates both singlet oxygen and superoxide when suspended in solution. The efficiency of ROS generation by the host is lower than that of benzophenone (BP), which could be beneficial for reactions carried out catalytically, as ROS species react quickly and often unselectively. Superoxide formation was detected through reaction with 5,5- dimethyl-1-pyrroline N-oxide in the presence of methanol. However, it is not detected in CHCl3, as it reacts rapidly with the solvent to generate methaneperoxy and chloride anions, similar to BP. The lifetime of airborne singlet oxygen (ĻĪairborne) was examined at the airāsolid outer surface of the host and hostĀ·quencher complexes and suggests that quenching is a surface phenomenon. The efficiency of the host and BP as catalysts was compared for the photooxidation of 1-methyl-1-cyclohexene in solution. Both the host and BP mediate the photooxidation in CHCl3, benzene, and benzene-d6, producing primarily epoxide-derived products with low selectivity likely by both type I and type II photooxidation processes. Interestingly, in CHCl3, two chlorohydrins were also formed, reflecting the formation of chloride in this solvent. In contrast, UV irradiation of the hostĀ·guest crystals in an oxygen atmosphere produced no epoxide and appeared to favor mainly the type II processes. Photolysis afforded high conversion to only three products: an enone, a tertiary allylic alcohol, and a diol, which demonstrates the accessibility of the encapsulated reactants to oxygen and the influence of confinement on the reaction pathway
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