Αντιπαραβολική ανάλυση γραμματικών (Ιταλία 12ος-15ος αι.)

Αντικείμενο μελέτης της μεταπτυχιακής διπλωματικής εργασίας με τίτλο «Αντιπαραβολική ανάλυση Γραμματικών (Ιταλία 12ος - 15ος αι.)» αποτέλεσαν οι γραμματικές των Μανουήλ Χρυσολωρά, Κωνσταντίνου Λάσκαρη, Δημητρίου Χαλκοκονδύλη, Θεοδώρου Γαζή και Μανουήλ Μοσχόπουλου, που εκδόθηκαν στην Ιταλία της Αναγέννησης. Εξετάστηκαν συνολικά 34 διαφορετικές εκδόσεις προκειμένου να καταδειχθούν οι λόγοι που οδήγησαν στη σύνταξη ελληνικών γραμματικών, σ’ ένα περιβάλλον που καλλιέργησε το ενδιαφέρον για τη μελέτη της ελληνικής γραμματείας στη Δύση και την εκμάθηση της γλώσσας από Ιταλούς. Επιπλέον, αναδεικνύεται και η συμβολή της τυπογραφίας στην έκδοση αυτών των γραμματικών, μέσα από την εκδοτική δραστηριότητα Ελλήνων και Ιταλών τυπογράφων. Επιχειρείται η καταγραφή των χαρακτηριστικών τους, με βάση τον χρονισμό της συγγραφής και έκδοσης της κάθε γραμματικής και στη συνέχεια εξετάζονται συγκριτικά, προκειμένου να διαπιστωθούν συγκλίσεις, αποκλίσεις και πιθανές επιδράσεις από προγενέστερες γραμματικές Ελλήνων αλλά και Λατίνων συγγραφέων. Η μελέτη έχει ως στόχο την ανάδειξη της επιρροής που άσκησαν διαφορετικοί παράγοντες στη συγγραφή αυτών των βιβλίων Γραμματικής, αλλά και στην έκδοσή τους. Αναδεικνύεται η ομοιομορφία των εξεταζόμενων συγγραμμάτων καθώς ακολουθούν παλαιότερα πρότυπα των πρώτων γραμματικών εγχειριδίων και κυρίως στη Γραμματική Τέχνη του Διονυσίου του Θράκα και εμφανίζουν αναγνωρίσιμες ομοιότητες με το θεωρητικό λεξιλόγιο του συγκεκριμένου έργου. Κοινό χαρακτηριστικό των περισσοτέρων από τις γραμματικές που εξετάστηκαν είναι ότι υιοθετούν τη μέθοδο των ερωταποκρίσεων, ήδη διαδεδομένη στο Βυζάντιο, αλλά και σε παλαιότερες λατινικές γραμματικές, που υιοθετήθηκε και στην Ιταλία από τον Μανουήλ Χρυσολωρά για την δημιουργία ενός απλού και εύχρηστου διδακτικού εργαλείου. Μολονότι οι γραμματικές, διαθέτουν συγκεκριμένη δομή που δεν επιτρέπει εύκολα την αποτύπωση του προσωπικού ύφους του συγγραφέα, παρατηρήθηκαν υφολογικές διαφορές οι οποίες φαίνεται να σχετίζονται περισσότερο με τις επιλογές του κάθε συγγραφέα. Μέσα από τη μελέτη του περιεχομένου των υπό εξέταση γραμματικών διακρίνονται εμφανείς διαφορές, κυρίως ως προς τον τρόπο γραφής και διατύπωσης, τον βαθμό της αναλυτικότητάς τους, καθώς και τη σειρά με την οποία τα διάφορα δεδομένα καταχωρούνται στην κάθε γραμματική. Διαφορές παρατηρούνται ακόμη και σε ίδιες γραμματικές διαφορετικών εκδόσεων. Οι γραμματικές αυτές, παρά τα ερωτηματικά που εγείρονται για την αποτελεσματικότητά τους, διευκόλυναν ένα ευρύ κύκλο λογίων στην Ιταλική χερσόνησο, συνέβαλαν στην επιβίωση και την διάδοση των κλασικών γραμμάτων και αποτέλεσαν πρόδρομο για την επόμενη γενιά νεοελληνικών γραμματικών.The object of study of the MSc thesis entitled "Comparative analysis of Grammars (Italy 12th-15th ce.) has been the grammars by Manuele Chrysoloras, Konstantinos Laskaris, Dimitrios Chalkokondylis, Theodoros Gazis and Manuele Moschopoulos, that were printed in Italy of Renaissance. A total of 34 different editions were examined in an attempt to demonstrate the reasons that led to the compilation of Greek grammars, in a landscape that cultivated interest in the study of Greek literature in the West and the learning of the language by Italians. Additionally, the contribution of typography on the publication of these grammars, through the activity of Greek and Italian publishers, is highlighted. A recording of the characteristics of these grammars is attempted, based on the timing of the writing and publication of each grammar and a comparative analysis is conducted in order to identify convergences and discrepancies, but also influences by previous grammars of Greek and Latin authors. The aim of the study is to highlight the influence of different factors on the compilation and publication of these Grammar books. Uniformity of the grammars examined is revealed, as they follow older prototypes of the first grammatical manuals and especially the Art of Grammar of Dionysios Thrax, and recognizable similarities are found with the theoretical vocabulary of the aforementioned grammar. A common feature of most of the grammars examined is that they adopt the method of questions and answers, which was already widespread in Byzantium, but also in older Latin grammars, which was also adopted in Italy by Manuel Chrysoloras to create a simple and easy-to-use teaching handbook. Although grammars, as a textbook, have a specific structure that does not easily allow the depiction of the author's personal style, stylistic differences were observed which seem to be more related to each author's choice of the style. Through the study of the content of the grammars under consideration, obvious differences can be discerned, mainly in the way they are written and formulated, the degree of their analyticity, as well as the order in which the various elements appear in each grammar. Differences are observed even among different versions of the same grammar. These grammars, despite the questions raised about their effectiveness, facilitated a wide circle of scholars on the Italian peninsula, contributed to the survival and dissemination of classical literature and served as a forerunner for the next generation of modern Greek grammars

FSH prevents depletion of the resting follicle pool by promoting follicular number and morphology in fresh and cryopreserved primate ovarian tissues following xenografting

Background: Cryopreservation and transplantation of ovarian tissue is one option for re-establishing ovarian function, but optimal conditions for graft sustainment and follicular survival are still considered experimental. The present study aims to analyze the effect of FSH treatment on the resting follicle pool in fresh and cryopreserved primate ovarian tissues following xenografting. Methods: Ovarian tissues from adult marmosets were grafted freshly or following cryopreservation to ovarectomized nude mice treated with FSH 25 IU twice daily post transplantation or left untreated as controls. Grafts were retrieved 2 or 4 weeks after transplantation to evaluate the number and morphological appearance of follicles. Results: Early start of FSH treatment within 1 week following transplantation partly prevents primordial follicle loss in fresh and frozen-thawed tissues, whereas after a 3 weeks time interval this effect is present only in fresh tissues. A similar positive effect of early, but not later FSH treatment on primary follicles is seen in fresh tissues compared to only marginal effects in frozen-thawed tissues. The percentage of morphologically normal follicles is generally increased in FSH treated tissues, whereas the percentage of primary follicles over all primordial and primary follicles is increased by FSH only in freshly-grafted tissues. Conclusions: FSH treatment alleviates depletion of the resting follicle pool and promotes normal follicular morphology both in freshly and frozen-thawed grafted tissues. In previously cryopreserved tissues, applying to most of the tissues intended for clinical use in fertility preservation attempts, its positive effect on primordial follicle numbers and potential graft sustainment is dependent on an early start of treatment within one week of transplantation

DYSTOCIA DUE TO PEROSOMUS HORRIDUS MONSTER IN A SAHIWAL COW - A CASE REPORT

The present case study reports dystocia due to Perosomus horridus monster in a Sahiwal cow and its successful management through per-vaginal delivery

Functional analysis of mce4A gene of Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv using antisense approach

Antisense strategy is an attractive substitute for knockout mutations created for gene silencing. mce genes have been shown to be involved in mycobacterial uptake and intracellular survival. Here we report reduced expression of mce4A and mce1A genes of Mycobacterium tuberculosis using antisense technology. For this, 1.1 kb region of mce4A and mce1A was cloned in reverse orientation in pSD5 shuttle vector, resulting into antisense constructs pSD5-4AS and pSD5-1AS, respectively. In M. tuberculosis H37Rv approximately 60% reduction in Mce4A and 66% reduction in expression of Mce1A protein were observed. We also observed significantly reduced intracellular survival ability of both antisense strains in comparison to M. tuberculosis containing pSD5 alone. RT-PCR analysis showed antisense did not alter the transcription of upstream and downstream of mceA genes of the respective operon. The colony morphology, in vitro growth characteristics and drug susceptibility profile of the antisense construct remained unchanged. These results demonstrate that antisense can be a promising approach to assign function of a gene in a multiunit operon and could be suitably applied as a strategy

FSH prevents depletion of the resting follicle pool by promoting follicular number and morphology in fresh and cryopreserved primate ovarian tissues following xenografting

Background: Cryopreservation and transplantation of ovarian tissue is one option for re-establishing ovarian function, but optimal conditions for graft sustainment and follicular survival are still considered experimental. The present study aims to analyze the effect of FSH treatment on the resting follicle pool in fresh and cryopreserved primate ovarian tissues following xenografting. Methods: Ovarian tissues from adult marmosets were grafted freshly or following cryopreservation to ovarectomized nude mice treated with FSH 25 IU twice daily post transplantation or left untreated as controls. Grafts were retrieved 2 or 4 weeks after transplantation to evaluate the number and morphological appearance of follicles. Results: Early start of FSH treatment within 1 week following transplantation partly prevents primordial follicle loss in fresh and frozen-thawed tissues, whereas after a 3 weeks time interval this effect is present only in fresh tissues. A similar positive effect of early, but not later FSH treatment on primary follicles is seen in fresh tissues compared to only marginal effects in frozen-thawed tissues. The percentage of morphologically normal follicles is generally increased in FSH treated tissues, whereas the percentage of primary follicles over all primordial and primary follicles is increased by FSH only in freshly-grafted tissues. Conclusions: FSH treatment alleviates depletion of the resting follicle pool and promotes normal follicular morphology both in freshly and frozen-thawed grafted tissues. In previously cryopreserved tissues, applying to most of the tissues intended for clinical use in fertility preservation attempts, its positive effect on primordial follicle numbers and potential graft sustainment is dependent on an early start of treatment within one week of transplantation

Single nucleotide polymorphism in the genes of mce1 and mce4 operons of Mycobacterium tuberculosis: analysis of clinical isolates and standard reference strains

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The presence of four mammalian cell entry (<it>mce</it>) operons in <it>Mycobacterium tuberculosis </it>suggests the essentiality of the functions of the genes in these operons. The differential expression of the four <it>mce </it>operons in different phases of <it>in vitro </it>growth and in infected animals reported earlier from our laboratory further justifies the apparent redundancy for these genes in the genome.</p> <p>Here we investigate the extent of polymorphism in eight genes in the <it>mce1 </it>and <it>mce4 </it>operons of <it>M. tuberculosis </it>from four standard reference strains (H37Rv, H37Ra, LVS (Low Virulent Strain) and BCG) and 112 clinical isolates varying in their drug susceptibility profile, analysed by direct sequencing and Sequenom MassARRAY platform.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We discovered 20 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the two operons. The comparative analysis of the genes of <it>mce1 </it>and <it>mce4 </it>operons revealed that <it>yrbE1A </it>[<it>Rv0167</it>] was most polymorphic in <it>mce1 </it>operon while <it>yrbE4A </it>[<it>Rv3501c</it>] and <it>lprN </it>[<it>Rv3495c</it>] had the highest number of SNPs in the <it>mce4 </it>operon. Of 20 SNPs, 12 were found to be nonsynonymous and were further analysed for their pathological relevance to <it>M. tuberculosis </it>using web servers PolyPhen and PMut, which predicted five deleterious nonsynonymous SNPs. A mutation from proline to serine at position 359 of the native Mce1A protein was most deleterious as predicted by both PolyPhen and PMut servers. Energy minimization of the structure of native Mce1A protein and mutated protein was performed using InsightII. The mutated Mce1A protein showed structural changes that could account for the effects of this mutation.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our results show that SNPs in the coding sequences of <it>mce1 </it>and <it>mce4 </it>operons in clinical isolates can be significantly high. Moreover, <it>mce4 </it>operon is significantly more polymorphic than <it>mce1 </it>operon (p < 0.001). However, the frequency of nonsynonymous substitutions is higher in <it>mce1 </it>operon and synonymous substitutions are more in <it>mce4 </it>operon. <it>In silico </it>modeling predict that nonsynonymous SNP at <it>mce1A </it>[<it>Rv0169</it>], a virulence gene could play a pivotal role in causing functional changes in <it>M. tuberculosis </it>that may reflect upon the biology of the bacteria.</p

Diagnosis of urinary bladder diseases in dogs by using two-dimensional and three-dimensional ultrasonography

Abstract Aim: The objective of this study was to obtain and compare two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) ultrasonographic images of the urinary bladder in different disease conditions. Materials and Methods: The present study was conducting on total 10clinical cases of the urinary bladder in dogs. The ultrasound (US) machine used for this study was 3D US machine (Nemio-XG: Toshiba, Japan) having a four-dimensional volumetric probe. Results: In the present study, the inflamed thickened wall was clearly visible with the distinction of different layers of the urinary bladder wall in some of the cases of cystitis using 2D ultrasonography. In 3D sonogram, the urinary bladder was visualized as a large anechoic structure with no distinction of different layers of the bladder wall. The cystoliths were clearly visible as hyperechoic structures with distal acoustic shadow in 2D sonogram and appeared as a bright echogenic area in 3D sonogram. In case of urinary bladder neoplasia in 2D ultrasonogram, the bladder lumen was found to be occluded with a large growth imaged as focal anechoic areas in the tissue of mixed echogenicity with small hyperechoic dots in this tissue parenchyma. In 3D ultrasonogram, a tissue of mixed echogenicity of pus was also observed. Conclusion: From the present study it was concluded that 2D and 3D ultrasonography is very helpful for diagnosis of different clinical conditions of the urinary bladder such as cystitis, cystoliths, and urinary bladder neoplasia. The cavity of urinary bladder was more clearly visualized in 3D ultrasonography, but the distinction of different layers of the bladder wall was visualized only in 2D ultrasonography. The distinct shadow of pus and cystoliths were visible in 2D ultrasonogram. The visualization of pus in 3D ultrasonography was done for the first time in present study

Automated office blood pressure measurements in primary care are misleading in more than one third of treated hypertensives: The VALENTINE-Greece Home Blood Pressure Monitoring study

Abstract Background This study assessed the diagnostic reliability of automated office blood pressure (OBP) measurements in treated hypertensive patients in primary care by evaluating the prevalence of white coat hypertension (WCH) and masked uncontrolled hypertension (MUCH) phenomena. Methods Primary care physicians, nationwide in Greece, assessed consecutive hypertensive patients on stable treatment using OBP (1 visit, triplicate measurements) and home blood pressure (HBP) measurements (7 days, duplicate morning and evening measurements). All measurements were performed using validated automated devices with bluetooth capacity (Omron M7 Intelli-IT). Uncontrolled OBP was defined as ≥140/90 mmHg, and uncontrolled HBP was defined as ≥135/85 mmHg. Results A total of 790 patients recruited by 135 doctors were analyzed (age: 64.5 ± 14.4 years, diabetics: 21.4%, smokers: 20.6%, and average number of antihypertensive drugs: 1.6 ± 0.8). OBP (137.5 ± 9.4/84.3 ± 7.7 mmHg, systolic/diastolic) was higher than HBP (130.6 ± 11.2/79.9 ± 8 mmHg; difference 6.9 ± 11.6/4.4 ± 7.6 mmHg, p Conclusions In primary care, automated OBP measurements are misleading in approximately 40% of treated hypertensive patients. HBP monitoring is mandatory to avoid overtreatment of subjects with WCH phenomenon and prevent undertreatment and subsequent excess cardiovascular disease in MUCH