Subalternity and counter-revolution: the social drivers of the Egyptian state transformation

Many scholarly works address extensively the causes of revolution, but surprisingly little work has been done to develop a theory on counter-revolution. Generally, counter-revolution has been understood simply as the failure of revolution; counter-revolution is rarely considered as a process in its own right. This thesis argues that counter-revolution is an important form of the transformation of state–societal relations that should be investigated in its own right, and not merely regarded as ‘failed revolution’ or as the restoration of the pre-revolutionary order. Between 2011 and 2013, Egypt experienced two uprisings. In 2011, the mass uprising led to the resignation of Mubarak and put his 30-year rule to an end, while in 2013 a second mass uprising allowed the military to take full control of the country. Therefore, Egypt provides an excellent example, and the opportunity for a better understanding, of counter-revolution. Revolutionary studies have failed to explain why the Egyptian revolution was so fragile. What was a promising start to the democratisation process, with free parliamentary and presidential elections, came to an abrupt end and remained misunderstood as counter-revolution. To address an important question regarding the study of the Egyptian counter-revolution, this thesis builds on the work of Antonio Gramsci, by reinterpreting its concept of subalternity – social groups who lack political power. This new interpretation of the concept of subalternity allows this thesis to argue that the Egyptian counter-revolution was not the result of a top-down restoration process due to the exclusion of civil society; rather, that it was the result of the shifting alliance between civil society groups and the military. This work aims to make a threefold contribution: (1) to establish a model that explains counter-revolution as the outcome of the open-ended revolutionary process depending on the interaction of the state transformation and the autonomy of civil society. I argue that the counter-revolution was the result of the power dynamics between the military, the Muslim Brotherhood, and the revolutionary movements. (2) To apply the concept of subalternity to the case of counter-revolutionary Egypt. This thesis identifies the main weaknesses that characterise the fragility of the revolutionary process. By comparing the strategies used by different social groups during the 2011 uprising, I seek to show that the strategy of cooperation used by the Muslim Brotherhood, while initially successful, failed to conquer political power because it excluded the confrontational strategy of revolutionary movements. (3) To reconsider state–society relations in Egypt. The post-coup state is not based on form of corporatism as was the case pre-2011; rather, Sisi’s regime attempts to allow a meaningful participation of social forces in the formation of the counter-revolution state. By looking at the social drivers of the counter-revolution in Egypt through the lens of subalternity, this thesis offers a better understanding of the relationship between structure and agency during counter-revolutions that could be applied beyond the case of Egyp

Towards an integrated approach for red mud valorisation: a focus on titanium

AbstractIn this work red mud, a highly alkaline waste product generated during alumina production process, was valorised as a source of valuable metals and as an adsorbent material. A hydrometallurgical process was developed in order to recover titanium from red mud. By a leaching step with hydrochloric acid followed by ammonia precipitation and a further purification step by solvent extraction with Cyanex 301 using toluene as a solvent, quantitative recovery of titanium with a high purity level (> 95%) was achieved. Red mud adsorption properties were also tested for metal removal from aqueous solutions. The results showed the red mud potential in applications such as environmental remediation. The adsorption order was found to be: iron > lead > copper > manganese, zinc. Red mud can be thus potentially valorised both as a source of secondary titanium and as an adsorbent material, according to the principles of Circular Economy which promote waste reduction and the preservation of natural resources

Efficient Continuous Beam Steering for Planar Arrays of Differential Microphones

Performing continuous beam steering, from planar arrays of high-order differential microphones, is not trivial. The main problem is that shape-preserving beams can be steered only in a finite set of privileged directions, which depend on the position and the number of physical microphones. In this letter, we propose a simple and computationally inexpensive method for alleviating this problem using planar microphone arrays. Given two identical reference beams pointing in two different directions, we show how to build a beam of nearly constant shape, which can be continuously steered between such two directions. The proposed method, unlike the diffused steering approaches based on linear combinations of eigenbeams (spherical harmonics), is applicable to planar arrays also if we deal with beams characterized by high-order polar patterns. Using the coefficients of the Fourier series of the polar patterns, we also show how to find a tradeoff between shape invariance of the steered beam, and maximum angular displacement between the two reference beams. We show the effectiveness of the proposed method through the analysis of models based on first-, second-, and third-order differential microphones

Exploring the G-quadruplex binding and unwinding activity of the bacterial FeS helicase DinG

Despite numerous reports on the interactions of G-quadruplexes (G4s) with helicases, systematic analysis addressing the selectivity and specificity of each helicase towards a variety of G4 topologies are scarce. Among the helicases able to unwind G4s are those containing an iron-sulphur (FeS) cluster, including both the bacterial DinG (found in E. coli and several pathogenic bacteria) and the medically important eukaryotic homologues (XPD, FancJ, DDX11 and RTEL1). We carried out a detailed study of the interactions between the E. coli DinG and a variety of G4s, by employing physicochemical and biochemical methodologies. A series of G4-rich sequences from different genomic locations (promoter and telomeric regions), able to form unimolecular G4 structures with diverse topologies, were analyzed (c-KIT1, KRAS, c-MYC, BCL2, Tel23, T30695, Zic1). DinG binds to most of the investigated G4s with little discrimination, while it exhibits a clear degree of unwinding specificity towards different G4 topologies. Whereas previous reports suggested that DinG was active only on bimolecular G4s, here we show that it is also able to bind to and resolve the more physiologically relevant unimolecular G4s. In addition, when the G4 structures were stabilized by ligands (Pyridostatin, PhenDC3, BRACO-19 or Netropsin), the DinG unwinding activity decreased and in most cases was abolished, with a pattern that is not simply explained by a change in binding affinity. Overall, these results have important implications for the biochemistry of helicases, strongly suggesting that when analysing the G4 unwinding property of an enzyme, it is necessary to investigate a variety of G4 substrates

Fighting the Huntington's Disease with a G-Quadruplex-Forming Aptamer Specifically Binding to Mutant Huntingtin Protein: Biophysical Characterization, In Vitro and In Vivo Studies

A set of guanine-rich aptamers able to preferentially recognize full-length huntingtin with an expanded polyglutamine tract has been recently identified, showing high efficacy in modulating the functions of the mutated protein in a variety of cell experiments. We here report a detailed biophysical characterization of the best aptamer in the series, named MS3, proved to adopt a stable, parallel G-quadruplex structure and show high nuclease resistance in serum. Confocal microscopy experiments on HeLa and SH-SY5Y cells, as models of non-neuronal and neuronal cells, respectively, showed a rapid, dose-dependent uptake of fluorescein-labelled MS3, demonstrating its effective internalization, even in the absence of transfecting agents, with no general cytotoxicity. Then, using a well-established Drosophila melanogaster model for Huntington's disease, which expresses the mutated form of human huntingtin, a significant improvement in the motor neuronal function in flies fed with MS3 was observed, proving the in vivo efficacy of this aptamer

First results of the ALOS PALSAR verification processor

Among the several applications that will take advantage of the newly available data from the ALOS PALSAR instrument, considerable interest is in the peculiar features that derive from the penetration and polarimetric capabilities of the system. These capabilities, new for a single spaceborne sensor, need specific software tools for the processing of the different acquisition modes. This paper presents a verification processor, developed under ESA contract, for the generation of polarimetric, interferometric and polarimetric-interferometric geocoded products derived from ALOS PALSAR data. The processor, developed with a modular approach, contains the following main elements: - Phase-preserving fine resolution processor; - Phase-preserving ScanSAR processor; - Interference removal tools; - Polarimetric calibration tools; - Polarimetric analysis tools; - Fine resolution interferometric processor; - ScanSAR interferometric processor; - Polarimetric-interferometric processor; - Geocoding; - Atmospheric modelling tools. The processor architecture is presented; highlights are given on specific modules and algorithms. Early results are shown, in particular of the processing of polarimetric and polarimetric-interferometric data over different test sites

Truncated Analogues of a G-Quadruplex-Forming Aptamer Targeting Mutant Huntingtin: Shorter Is Better!

Two analogues of the MS3 aptamer, which was previously shown to have an exquisite capability to selectively bind and modulate the activity of mutant huntingtin (mHTT), have been here designed and evaluated in their physicochemical and biological properties. Featured by a distinctive propensity to form complex G-quadruplex structures, including large multimeric aggregates, the original 36-mer MS3 has been truncated to give a 33-mer (here named MS3-33) and a 17-mer (here named MS3-17). A combined use of different techniques (UV, CD, DSC, gel electrophoresis) allowed a detailed physicochemical characterization of these novel G-quadruplex-forming aptamers, tested in vitro on SH-SY5Y cells and in vivo on a Drosophila Huntington’s disease model, in which these shorter MS3-derived oligonucleotides proved to have improved bioactivity in comparison with the parent aptamer

Coverage of high biomass forests by the ESA BIOMASS mission under defense restrictions

The magnitude of the global terrestrial carbon pool and related fluxes to and from the atmosphere are still poorly known. The European Space Agency P-band radar BIOMASS mission will help to reduce this uncertainty by providing unprecedented information on the distribution of forest above-ground biomass (AGB), particularly in the tropics where the gaps are greatest and knowledge is most needed. Mission selection was made in full knowledge of coverage restrictions over Europe, North and Central America imposed by the US Department of Defense Space Objects Tracking Radar (SOTR) stations. Under these restrictions, only 3% of AGB carbon stock coverage is lost in the tropical forest biome, with this biome representing 66% of global AGB carbon stocks in 2005. The loss is more significant in the temperate (72%), boreal (37%) and subtropical (29%) biomes, with these accounting for approximately 12%, 15% and 7%, respectively, of the global forest AGB carbon stocks. In terms of global carbon cycle modelling, there is minimal impact in areas of high AGB density, since mainly lower biomass forests in cooler climates are affected. In addition, most areas affected by the SOTR stations are located in industrialized countries with well-developed national forest inventories, so that extensive information on AGB is already available. Hence the main scientific objectives of the BIOMASS mission are not seriously compromised. Furthermore, several space sensors that can estimate AGB in lower biomass forests are in orbit or planned for launch between now and the launch of BIOMASS in 2021, which will help to fill the gaps in mission coverage

Calorimetric and spectroscopic investigation of biomolecules for therapeutic applications

Molecular recognition is the key for all biological processes. Such phenomena can be either intermolecular, as for the biding of a ligand to a macromolecule, or intramolecular, as for the denaturation of proteins or nucleic acids. In recent decades, DNA-ligand, protein-ligand or protein-DNA interactions have been the subject of numerous physico-chemical studies. The understanding of the energetics both of biomolecules stability and of their binding with other (bio)molecules is extremely interesting in biochemistry, biotechnology, and especially in the pharmaceutical field for a targeted structure-based drug design. Calorimetric and spectroscopic methodologies, combined to computational studies and biological assays, are essential for drug discovery. Indeed, thermodynamic stability of macromolecules as well as the energetics of their interaction with potential drugs are an essential complement to structural data for the optimization of lead compounds. Specifically, in this Ph.D. thesis, studies have been addressed to investigate: Physico-chemical factors affecting drug bioavailability (Chapter 3). Thermodynamic stability of G-quadruplexes (G4s) in oncogene promoters and their interactions with ligands (Chapter 4). Effects of epigenetic modifications on G4s stability (Chapter 5). Chapter 3 describes how the combination of the appropriate pH, solvent, temperature, and mixing time can improve the complexation between quercetin, a natural compound characterized by interesting pharmacological activities, and hydroxypropyl--cyclodextrin, a commonly used drug carrier. Chapter 4 focuses on the energetics of the interaction between KRAS proto-oncogene G4 and new putative anticancer drugs. This study led to the identification of a series of molecules able to selectively interact with G4s and characterized by cytotoxic activity on cancer cell lines. Finally, in Chapter 5, it was investigated, through mass spectrometry experiments, the capability of two modified sequences of KIT proto-oncogene, containing 5-methylcytosine and 5-carboxylcytosine, to fold into G4. The results proved that, despite the epigenetic modifications, these sequences were able to fold into G4, even though with a slower kinetics, as the unmodified sequence