Proteomic Identification of IPSE/alpha-1 as a Major Hepatotoxin Secreted by Schistosoma mansoni Eggs

The flatworm disease, schistosomiasis, is a major public health problem in sub-Saharan Africa, South America and East Asia. A hallmark of infection with Schistosoma mansoni is the immune response to parasite eggs trapped in the liver and other organs. This response involves an infiltration of cells that surround the parasite egg forming a “granuloma.” In mice deprived of T-cells, this granulomatous response is lacking, and toxic products released by eggs quickly cause liver damage and death. Thus the granulomata protect the host from toxic egg products. Only one hepatotoxic molecule, omega-1, has been described to date. We set out to identify other S. mansoni egg hepatotoxins using liver cells grown in culture. We first showed that live eggs, their secretions, and pure omega-1 are toxic. Using a physical separation technique to prepare fractions from whole egg secretions, we identified the presence of IPSE/alpha-1, a protein that is known to strongly influence the immune system. We showed that IPSE/alpha-1 is also hepatotoxic, and that toxicity of both omega-1 and IPSE/alpha-1 can be prevented by first mixing the proteins with specific neutralizing antibodies. Both proteins constitute the majority of hepatotoxicity released by eggs

Repurposing Design Process

The fashion industry has innumerable damaging impacts to the environment (Zaffalon, Text World 16:34, 2010). Presently, the vast majority of all textile-based products, including clothing and home good fashions, end up in landfills (Kozlowski et al. J Clean Prod 183:197-207, 2018). Consumers often purchase new clothing because the style is outdated rather than because of lack of functionality. In other words, what consumers discard can still be functional and valuable in another form. The current phenomenon of fast fashion and increased turnover of merchandise has led to an abundant quantity of functional production-level textile waste and secondhand clothing (Fletcher, Sustainable fashion and textiles design journeys. Earthscan, London, 2008). It has been suggested that the greatest opportunity for reclaimed fashion goods is to repurpose them into new products (Hawley, Recycling in textiles. Woodhead Publishing Limited, Cambridge, 2006a; Hawley, Cloth Text Res J 24: 262, 2006b). Design efforts that employ reuse, repurposing, or upcycling techniques could assist in assigning renewed value from unwanted yet still functional, discarded clothing. In this chapter, the term “repurposing” is used to describe the process that utilizes discarded textiles to create new fashion (textile-based) products. Textile “recycling,” described by Lewis et al. (Int J Fash Des Technol Educ 10:353-362, 2017), is the process of returning a textile product back into its original fiber form and is not covered in this chapter. Repurposing researchers (Irick, Examination of the design process of repurposed apparel and accessories: An application of diffusion of innovations theory. Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, 2013); (Irick & Eike, Teaching the repurposing mindset: The introduction of a repurposing project into an advanced apparel construction course. International Federation for Home Economics Conference. Sligo, 2017) have identified four levels of repurposing: (1) re-style to repurpose, (2) subtractive repurposing, (3) additive repurposing, and (4) intentional patternmaking to repurpose. This chapter provides analysis of the four repurposing levels through case study application to detail the creative design process employed by select designers for the purpose of repeatability and advancing research connected to repurposing. Case studies walk the reader through research and discovery, sampling of techniques, descriptions of full-scale design, and reflection to share learned experiences alongside detailed images of completed repurposed fashion designs. The chapter concludes with a cross-case analysis of all repurposed designs and suggests future directions to advance “repurposing” endeavors for industry and/or academic design scholars

Functionality and morphology: identifying si agricultural tools from among Hemudu scapular implements in eastern China

This is the publisher's version of an article published by Springer Verlag.Most Chinese archaeologists assume that the scapular implements used in the Hemudu culture in eastern China (7000–5000 BP) were the si agricultural implements (tools for breaking ground and turning soils over to assist in seeding) recorded in ancient Chinese literatures and, accordingly, assume the Hemudu culture was a farming society. However, ethnographic and historical literatures worldwide have suggested inconclusive functions for similar implements. We conducted a range of experiments under realistic conditions, including hide and plant processing and earth-working, followed by use-wear analysis, to identify the functions of the Hemudu scapular implements. The results suggest that no more than half of the implements were employed as si and that their penetrability and durability were rather limited. These findings help explain why Hemudu should not be labeled as a farming society. Through experimentation and use-wear analysis, we produced relatively large datasets that make a significant contribution to the identification of soil-derived wear patterns on bone tools. We also included quantitative measurements of soil properties to ensure similarities in use contexts between our experimental and archaeological analogies in order to reach reliable functional identifications. Our approaches and results, therefore, provided a solid base for re-evaluating previous research as well as building a standardized database of scientific value for future evaluation and adjustment, even if that future research is done in isolation and in different soil contexts.This research was funded by a Henry R. Luce Foundation Dissertation Fellowship/American Council of Learned Societies grant (no. 943101180401-7301) and the Haury Dissertation Fellowship from the School of Anthropology at the University of Arizona awarded to the senior author

Folklore’s Timeless Past, Ireland’s Present Past, and the Perception of Rural Houses in Early Historic Ireland

This study examines how the archaeology of historic Ireland has been interpreted. Two approaches to the history and archaeology of Ireland are identified. The first, the timeless past, has its roots in a neo-Lamarckian view of the past. This perspective was particularly developed in the work of geographer and ethnographer, Estyn Evans. The second view, associated in particular with a nationalist approach to Ireland's past, looked to the west of the country where it was believed the culture had been preserved largely unchanged and in its purest form. The continuing impact of these frameworks upon the interpretation of rural settlement in the period 1200-1700 is examined. It is argued that historians and archaeologists alike have underestimated the quality of buildings. © 2011 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC