The Same Old New Normal

Journal #14 from Media Rise's Quarantined Across Borders Collection by Ryan Arron D'Souza. From United Arab Emirates. Quarantined in United States, Florida.Media Rise Publications. Quarantined Across Borders Collection. Edited by Dr. Srividya "Srivi" Ramasubramanian.The author tries to make sense of the ideas and practices normalized during quarantine

Arab hip-hop and politics of identity : intellectuals, identity and inquilab

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI)Opposing the culture of différance created through American cultural media, this thesis argues, Arab hip-hop artists revive the politically conscious sub-genre of hip-hop with the purpose of normalising their Arab existence. Appropriating hip-hop for a cultural protest, Arab artists create for themselves a sub-genre of conscious hip-hop – Arab-conscious hip-hop and function as Gramsci’s organic intellectuals, involved in better representation of Arabs in the mainstream. Critiquing power dynamics, Arab hip-hop artists are counter-hegemonic in challenging popular identity constructions of Arabs and revealing to audiences biases in media production and opportunities for progress towards social justice. Their identity (re)constructions maintain difference while avoiding Otherness. The intersection of Arab-consciousness through hip-hop and politics of identity necessitates a needed cultural protest, which in the case of Arabs has been severely limited. This thesis progresses by reviewing literature on politics of identity, Arabs in American cultural media, Gramsci’s organic intellectuals and conscious hip-hop. Employing criticism, this thesis presents an argument for Arab hip-hop group, The Arab Summit, as organic intellectuals involved in mainstream representation of the Arab community

Communication and Citizenship: Reflections on Classroom Practice

This essay reflects on a semester-length classroom activity designed to give students an opportunity to practice their citizenship skills. We approach the problem of lack of citizen participation as a communication challenge and present our adaptation of Deliberative Polling to provide students with opportunities to: 1) research alternatives on an issue related to citizenship, 2) hone their research and critical thinking skills, and 3) participate in communication on issues related to citizenship with focused reflection on the communication processes involved. Because the topic is citizenship, students discuss issues related to political participation (e.g. voting) and are asked to reflect on their own practice of citizenship throughout the process. The activity allowed students to experience an alternative to the “either/or debate” perception of politics and gave them tools to participate in politics differently, and in more satisfying ways

Effect of high intratesticular estrogen on global gene expression and testicular cell number in rats

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The identification of estrogen receptors alpha and beta and aromatase in the testis has highlighted the important role of estrogens in regulating spermatogenesis. There is a wealth of information on the deleterious effects of fetal and neonatal exposure of estrogens and xenoestrogens in the testis, including spermiation failure and germ cell apoptosis. However, very little is known about gene transcripts affected by exogenous estradiol exposure in the testis. The objective of the present study was to unveil global gene expression profiles and testicular cell number changes in rats after estradiol treatment.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>17beta-estradiol was administered to adult male rats at a dose of 100 micrograms/kg body weight in saline daily for 10 days; male rats receiving only saline were used as controls. Microarray analysis was performed to examine global gene expression profiles with or without estradiol treatment. Real time RT-PCR was conducted to verify the microarray data. In silico promoter and estrogen responsive elements (EREs) analysis was carried out for the differentially expressed genes in response to estradiol. Quantitation of testicular cell number based on ploidy was also performed using flow cytometry in rats with or without estradiol treatment.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We found that 221 genes and expressed sequence tags (ESTs) were differentially expressed in rat testes treated with estradiol compared to the control; the microarray data were confirmed by real time RT-PCR. Gene Ontology analysis revealed that a number of the differentially expressed genes are involved in androgen and xenobiotic metabolism, maintenance of cell cytoskeleton, endocytosis, and germ cell apoptosis. A total of 33 up-regulated genes and 67 down-regulated genes showed the presence of EREs. Flow cytometry showed that estradiol induced a significant decrease in 2n cells (somatic and germ cells) and 4n cells (pachytene spermatocytes) and a marked increase in the number of elongated and elongating spermatids.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This study provides a novel insight into the molecular basis for spermiation failure and apoptosis caused by 17beta-estradiol and it also offers new mechanisms by which adult exposure to environmental estrogens can affect spermatogenesis and fertility.</p

Congenital Absence of Uvula: Case Report

Traditional Uvulectomy has been an age-long practice throughout Africa and certain parts of the Middle East. It is performed as a treatment to prevent throat infections for centuries and is carried out usually during infancy and childhood. Uvula is a fleshy projection hanging at the back of the throat from the posterior margin of the soft palate. Congenital absence of uvula has been observed to be associated with other congenital abnormalities such as cleft palate. This case report concerns a 26 year old male from Nigeria, examined at a health fair conducted at All Saints University School of Medicine in Dominica who on an incidental finding was diagnosed with the absence of uvula without any other abnormality nor a history of uvulectomy. To the best of our knowledge, we report the first case in medical literature of the congenital absence of uvula in a patient with no other known abnormalities

Prevalence of Eye Defects Among Medical Students in Dominica

This study therefore aimed at recognizing the prevalence of common eye defects such as myopia, hypermetropia, colour blindness (daltonism) and astigmatism as well as identifying various factors responsible for the occurrence of these visual defects. A total of 200 medical students (aged 14 to above 40 years) in Dominica were examined. Refractive error and colour blindness were checked by using standard rudimentary tests. Additional demographical data was obtained through self-administered questionnaire.Among the students tested, 49.5% presented with at least one eye defect. Prevalence of myopia, hypermetropia, colour blindness and astigmatism were 61 (30.5%), 24 (12.0%), 6 (3.0%) and 67 (33.5%) respectively. The occurrence of eye defects among medical student tend to be alarming and student awareness scheme should be structured to help contain more cases of eye defect among medical students.The rate of visual impairment has been on a steady increase with several implicating factors. This has led to a more detailed attention in the trend of occurrence of visual defects and diagnosis. Among several reports, it has been recorded that medical students tend to have the most reported visual defects among other professions. Medical schools at Singapore, Taiwan, Denmark and Norway showed prevalence of eye defects among their students at the rate of 89.8%, 90%, 50% and 50.3% respectively.

Biodiversity baselines : tracking insects in Kruger National Park with DNA barcodes

Reflecting their species richness and ecological diversification, insects play a central role in terrestrial ecosystems but difficulties in species-level assignments have restricted large-scale analysis of their community structure. Employing South Africa’s largest national park as a model system, we demonstrate that DNA barcoding can break this barrier. A year-long deployment of Malaise traps at 25 sites in Kruger National Park (KNP) generated 1000+ weekly collections containing about 800,000 specimens. Insect biomass averaged 1.05 g per trap-day but varied by up to 2-fold between months, being lower in the dry than wet season. Nearly 370,000 specimens were individually analyzed to reveal 19,730 Barcode Index Numbers (BINs; species proxy), a count equal to 43% of the known insect fauna of southern Africa. There was clear differentiation in insect richness and composition between KNP’s two ecoregions, but little among the vegetation types comprising them. The spatial gradient in annual rainfall explained more than half of the variation in compositional similarity among sites with less similarity among samples in the wet season, particularly among those in high rainfall areas. These results suggest that the factors organising insect communities in KNP are not fine-scale vegetation differences, but larger-scale processes associated with ecoregions and rainfall. Estimates of sample coverage indicate that the species not collected are rare, comprising only 4% of the individuals in the community. With a well-parameterized DNA barcode reference library in place, metabarcoding can be used to assess future shifts in the insect fauna of KNP rapidly and inexpensively.http://www.elsevier.com/locate/bioconpm2021Paraclinical Science

Antimicrobial resistance among migrants in Europe: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: Rates of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) are rising globally and there is concern that increased migration is contributing to the burden of antibiotic resistance in Europe. However, the effect of migration on the burden of AMR in Europe has not yet been comprehensively examined. Therefore, we did a systematic review and meta-analysis to identify and synthesise data for AMR carriage or infection in migrants to Europe to examine differences in patterns of AMR across migrant groups and in different settings. METHODS: For this systematic review and meta-analysis, we searched MEDLINE, Embase, PubMed, and Scopus with no language restrictions from Jan 1, 2000, to Jan 18, 2017, for primary data from observational studies reporting antibacterial resistance in common bacterial pathogens among migrants to 21 European Union-15 and European Economic Area countries. To be eligible for inclusion, studies had to report data on carriage or infection with laboratory-confirmed antibiotic-resistant organisms in migrant populations. We extracted data from eligible studies and assessed quality using piloted, standardised forms. We did not examine drug resistance in tuberculosis and excluded articles solely reporting on this parameter. We also excluded articles in which migrant status was determined by ethnicity, country of birth of participants' parents, or was not defined, and articles in which data were not disaggregated by migrant status. Outcomes were carriage of or infection with antibiotic-resistant organisms. We used random-effects models to calculate the pooled prevalence of each outcome. The study protocol is registered with PROSPERO, number CRD42016043681. FINDINGS: We identified 2274 articles, of which 23 observational studies reporting on antibiotic resistance in 2319 migrants were included. The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or AMR infection in migrants was 25·4% (95% CI 19·1-31·8; I2 =98%), including meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (7·8%, 4·8-10·7; I2 =92%) and antibiotic-resistant Gram-negative bacteria (27·2%, 17·6-36·8; I2 =94%). The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or infection was higher in refugees and asylum seekers (33·0%, 18·3-47·6; I2 =98%) than in other migrant groups (6·6%, 1·8-11·3; I2 =92%). The pooled prevalence of antibiotic-resistant organisms was slightly higher in high-migrant community settings (33·1%, 11·1-55·1; I2 =96%) than in migrants in hospitals (24·3%, 16·1-32·6; I2 =98%). We did not find evidence of high rates of transmission of AMR from migrant to host populations. INTERPRETATION: Migrants are exposed to conditions favouring the emergence of drug resistance during transit and in host countries in Europe. Increased antibiotic resistance among refugees and asylum seekers and in high-migrant community settings (such as refugee camps and detention facilities) highlights the need for improved living conditions, access to health care, and initiatives to facilitate detection of and appropriate high-quality treatment for antibiotic-resistant infections during transit and in host countries. Protocols for the prevention and control of infection and for antibiotic surveillance need to be integrated in all aspects of health care, which should be accessible for all migrant groups, and should target determinants of AMR before, during, and after migration. FUNDING: UK National Institute for Health Research Imperial Biomedical Research Centre, Imperial College Healthcare Charity, the Wellcome Trust, and UK National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit in Healthcare-associated Infections and Antimictobial Resistance at Imperial College London