Cuatro caras de Hermes en la obra narrativa de Flavia Company

DE LA TESIS DOCTORALCuatro caras de Hermes en la obra narrativa de Flavia CompanyEl objeto de estudio es la obra narrativa de Flavia Company Navau escrita hasta el año 2000. En la introducción también se comenta brevemente la obra poética, dos cuentos para niños, un libro de prosa poética y otro de relatos cortos publicados en prensa. El propósito es doble: por un lado, descubrir las características temáticas fundamentales de la narrativa de la autora y, por otro, determinar si existe una separación nítida entre la obra narrativa anterior a la novela Melalcor y las posteriores a ella. El material se estructura en una introducción metodológica y otra de introducción al tema ("Acercamiento biográfico y literario a Flavia Company")., seguidas por cuatro capítulos. Cada uno de ellos está relacionado con cuatro características del dios Hermes: la capacidad para mentir, el oficio de mensajero de los dioses, la relación con la alquimia y su vertiente andrógina y/o hermafrodita. En el primer capítulo, "El rostro y la máscara. (Mundos ficcionales, estética de la recepción, verdad y mentira en la novelística de Flavia Company)", se aplican estudios de hermenéutica, estética de la recepción y teorías sobre mundos ficcionales a la obra narrativa de la autora. En el segundo capítulo, ("La carta en la producción narrativa de Flavia Company"), la bibliografía está especializada en las cartas personales. Para la redacción del tercero, ("Alquimia, mito y ritos de iniciación en algunas novelas de Flavia Company"), se han consultado fuentes que se enmarcan en la escuela de Eranos y que realizan un acercamiento hermenéutico-simbólico o, según otras definiciones, antropológico-imaginario a los textos estudiados, y también estudios sobre alquimia. En el cuarto capítulo, ("La mariposa y el tábano: de Dame placer a Melalcor"), se aplican a los textos estudiados teorías sobre el género y lo queer, así como bibliografía especializada y novelas dedicadas al tema de la androginia y/o el hermafroditismo. En la conclusión de la tesis se enumeran las características temáticas de la narrativa de Flavia Company: marcado carácter confesional e intimista, reflexión sobre el amor, el paso del tiempo y la muerte; la mentira, la defensa de la libertad y el llamamiento a la tolerancia, la abolición de un único punto de vista, la utopía, el erotismo, la ruptura de tópicos aplicados a los conceptos de masculino y femenino, el interés por establecer contacto con el lector, el cuestionamiento de las barreras que teóricamente separan lo real y lo imaginario, los sueños, la obsesión por un pasado doloroso, la añoranza del paraíso perdido de la infancia, la dinamitación del concepto tradicional de familia, la incomunicación que marca las relaciones entre los seres humanos y la incapacidad para perdonar y perdonarse, la parodia de elementos bíblicos y el azar frente al destino. También en la conclusión se determina la existencia de dos etapas en la obra narrativa de la autora:, una anterior y otra posterior a Melalcor, basándome en la aparición en esta última novela de un mayor realismo, con pérdida de la vertiente simbólica que caracteriza a muchas novelas de la primera etapa; el paso de novelas de interior, centradas en la intimidad de los personajes, a novelas de exterior, en las que se observa un intenso deseo de reforma de estructuras e instituciones sociales; la desacralización de la muerte y del amor, lo cual provoca (aparte del paso del erotismo a una visión del sexo más descarnada, que roza lo pornográfico) un descenso en la intensidad emocional de la trama y una clara aceptación de lo cotidiano. Esta aceptación, por su parte, conlleva la superación del pesimismo vital característico de las novelas anteriores. No podemos hablar, sin embargo, de ruptura entre ambas, sino más bien de intensificación de elementos que eran muy secundarios o que sólo se insinuaban en algunas de las obras precedentes. PHD THESISThe Four Sides of Hermes in Flavia Company's Narrative WorkThe purpose of this thesis is the study of Flavia Company Navau's narrative work written until the year 2000. In the introduction, her poetic work is also briefly mentioned, as well as two children's tales, one poetic prose book and another one of short stories published in the press.It answers a double goal: on the one side, to discover the main characteristic themes in the author's narrative work and, on the other side, to determine if it is possible to identify a clear division between the narrative work previous to the novel Melalcor and the ones written after it.The thesis is organized in a methodological introduction and an introduction to the subject ("Acercamiento biográfico y literario a Flavia Company", translated as "Biographic And Literary Approach To Flavia Company"), followed by four chapters. Each one of them is related to four characteristics of god Hermes: his ability to lie, his role as the messenger of the gods, his relation with alchemy and his androgynous and/or hermaphrodite side.In chapter one, ("El rostro y la máscara" (Mundos ficcionales, estética de la recepción, verdad y mentira en la novelística de Flavia Company), translated as "The Face And The Mask" (Unreal worlds, Reader-response Criticism, Truth And Lies In Flavia Company's Novels)) studies on hermeneutics, on reader-response criticism and theories about unreal worlds have been used on the study of the author's narrative work. In chapter two ("La carta en la producción narrativa de Flavia Company" translated as "The Letter in Flavia Company's Narrative Works"), the bibliography is based on personal letters. To write chapter three ("Alquimia, mito y ritos de iniciación en algunas novelas de Flavia Company" translated as "Alchemy, Myth And Initiation Rites In Some Flavia Company's Novels"), some sources have been consulted in the frame of the Eranos group which approach the analysed texts with a hermeneutic-symbolic focus or, according to other definitions, an anthropologic-imaginary focus. Studies on alchemy have also been used to approach these texts. In chapter four, ("La mariposa y el tábano: de Dame placer a Melalcor" translated as "The Butterfly And The Horsefly: From Give Me Pleasure To Melalcor") theories on gender and the queer theory are applied on the texts, as well as specialised bibliography and novels which deal with subjects such as androgyny and/or hermaphroditism.In the conclusion of the thesis, the characteristic themes of Flavia Company's works are listed: strong confessional and intimist nature, reflections on love, the passage of time and death; lying, the defence of liberty and a call to tolerance, the abolition of a single point of view, the utopia, eroticism, the rupture of topics applied to male and female concepts, the interest to establish contact with her readers, the questioning of barriers which are supposed to divide real and fiction, dreams, the obsession for a painful past, the feeling of grieve for the lost paradise of childhood, the demolishment of the traditional concept of family, the lack of communication which defines the relationships between human beings and the inability to forgive others and to forgive oneself, the parody of Bible elements and the concept of chance opposite to destiny.Also in the conclusion, the existence of two stages in the author's narrative works is stated: one stage before Melalcor and the other after it. This statement is based on the greater realism which appears in this novel, together with a loss of the symbolic aspects which distinguish many novels of her first stage; the change from inner novels, based on the character's intimacy, to external novels, in which one can see an intense desire of reforming structures and social institutions; the desanctification of love and death, which causes (apart from a change from eroticism to a harder vision of sex, bordering pornography) a drop in plot's emotional intensity and a clear acceptance of quotidian. This acceptance, on its side, carries with it the idea to overcome the vital pessimism which characterized her latest novels. We can not talk, however, of a rupture of both stages, but rather of an intensification of those elements which were very secondary or were only implied in some precedent works

Diabetic and dyslipidaemic morbidly obese exhibit more liver alterations compared with healthy morbidly obese

Background & aims: To study the origin of fat excess in the livers of morbidly obese (MO) individuals, we analysed lipids and lipases in both plasma and liver and genes involved in lipid transport, or related with, in that organ. Methods: Thirty-two MO patients were grouped according to the absence (healthy: DM−DL−) or presence of comorbidities (dyslipidemic: DM−DL+; or dyslipidemic with type 2 diabetes: DM+DL+) before and one year after gastric bypass. Results: The livers of healthy, DL and DM patients contained more lipids (9.8, 9.5 and 13.7 times, respectively) than those of control subjects. The genes implicated in liver lipid uptake, including HL, LPL, VLDLr, and FAT/CD36, showed increased expression compared with the controls. The expression of genes involved in lipid-related processes outside of the liver, such as apoB, PPARα and PGC1α, CYP7a1 and HMGCR, was reduced in these patients compared with the controls. PAI1 and TNFα gene expression in the diabetic livers was increased compared with the other obese groups and control group. Increased steatosis and fibrosis were also noted in the MO individuals. Conclusions: Hepatic lipid parameters in MO patients change based on their comorbidities. The gene expression and lipid levels after bariatric surgery were less prominent in the diabetic patients. Lipid receptor overexpression could enable the liver to capture circulating lipids, thus favouring the steatosis typically observed in diabetic and dyslipidaemic MO individuals.This research has received funding from the Fondo de Investigación Sanitaria del Instituto de Salud Carlos III of the Spanish Ministry for Health and Consumer Affairs (PI030024, PI030042, PI070079 and PI11/01159

Genome-wide Analyses Identify KIF5A as a Novel ALS Gene

To identify novel genes associated with ALS, we undertook two lines of investigation. We carried out a genome-wide association study comparing 20,806 ALS cases and 59,804 controls. Independently, we performed a rare variant burden analysis comparing 1,138 index familial ALS cases and 19,494 controls. Through both approaches, we identified kinesin family member 5A (KIF5A) as a novel gene associated with ALS. Interestingly, mutations predominantly in the N-terminal motor domain of KIF5A are causative for two neurodegenerative diseases: hereditary spastic paraplegia (SPG10) and Charcot-Marie-Tooth type 2 (CMT2). In contrast, ALS-associated mutations are primarily located at the C-terminal cargo-binding tail domain and patients harboring loss-of-function mutations displayed an extended survival relative to typical ALS cases. Taken together, these results broaden the phenotype spectrum resulting from mutations in KIF5A and strengthen the role of cytoskeletal defects in the pathogenesis of ALS.Peer reviewe

Comorbilitats associades a l'obesitat mòrbida i la seva evolució amb la cirurgia bariàtrica: diabetis, dislipèmia i esteatosi hepàtica

[cat] L'obesitat mòrbida (índex de massa corporal superior a 40 kg/m2) és una malaltia amb una elevada prevalença a la societat occidental, que es troba associada amb nombroses comorbilitats (diabetes, dislipèmia, fetge gras, apnea obstructiva del son, malalties cardiovasculars, determinats tipus de càncer, etc). Són nombrosos els tractaments que s'han proposat per combatre l'obesitat mòrbida, des de modificacions en l'estil de vida (dieta i exercici físic), passant per tractaments farmacològics o la cirurgia bariàtrica en les seves diferents modalitats. De tots ells, només la darrera ha resultat un mètode efectiu per tractar la malaltia en aquest tipus de pacients, alhora que s'ha vist que també millora moltes de les comorbilitats que l'acompanyen. L’objectiu del treball és estudiar des d'un punt de vista antropomètric, bioquímic i sempre que sigui possible genètic, les alteracions del metabolisme lipídic i glucidic en l'obès mòrbid i la seva evolució fins un any després d'un bypass gàstric en Y-de-Roux, dut a terme a l'Hospital Universitari de la Vall d'Hebron, centrant-nos en l'anàlisi del plasma, el teixit adipós blanc subcutani i visceral i el fetge. Amb aquest estudi hem pogut concloure que: 1. El teixit adipós dels obesos es troba hipertrofiat i inflamat. El dèficit de capacitat d'emmagatzematge del teixit adipós, reflectit per la dislipèmia aterogènica que pateix aquest tipus de pacient, faria que els lípids s'acumulessin en altres teixits, promovent d'aquesta manera l'aparició de les comorbilitats metabòliques que acompanyen l'obesitat. 2. L'esteatosi hepàtica present en els obesos es podria veure afavorida per l'expressió anòmala d’LPL en aquest teixit. En l'activació d'aquesta expressió hi podria intervenir TNF-alfa. 3. El bypass gàstric en Y-de-Roux és una tècnica de cirurgia bariàtrica útil per aconseguir reduccions de pes sostingudes en el temps en aquest tipus de pacients. Aquesta reducció es deu principalment a la pèrdua de greix corporal. 4. La reducció de l'excés de pes comporta la millora de les comorbilitats que acompanyen l'obesitat mòrbida: a. La millora de la insulinoresistència s'aconsegueix molt abans d'obtenir la pèrdua de l'excés de pes desitjada. b. El perfil lipídic dels individus es normalitza en la majoria dels casos, de manera que la dislipèmia remet i el risc cardiovascular que comporta disminueix. Aquesta millora es podria deure, en part, a la normalització gairebé total de la funcionalitat del teixit adipós i el fetge.[eng] Morbid obesity (BMI greater than 40 kg/m2) is a disease with a high prevalence in Western society, and is associated with numerous comorbidities (diabetes, hyperlipidemia, fatty liver disease, obstructive sleep apnea, cardiovascular diseases, certain cancers, etc.) Many treatment have been proposed to combat morbid obesity, from lifestyle changes (diet and physical exercise) or drug treatments to bariatric surgery. Of these, only the latter has been proved as an effective way to treat the disease in these patients. Moreover, it also improves many of the comorbidities accompaning morbid obesity. We want to study from an anthropometric, biochemical and whenever it has been possible genetic point of view the alterations in lipid and carbohydrate metabolism in the morbidly obese and their evolution at one year follow-up period after an Roux-en-Y gastric bypass conducted at the Hospital Vall d'Hebron, focusing on the analysis of plasma, subcutaneous and visceral white adipose tissue and liver. In this study we have concluded that: 1. Adipose tissue of obese is hypertrophied and inflamed. The shortage of adipose tissue storage capacity, reflected by the atherogenic dyslipidemia observed in this type of subjects, would make that lipids accumulate in other tissues, thus promoting the emergence of metabolic comorbidities that accompany the obesity. 2. The present hepatic steatosis in obese could be favored by the abnormal expression of LPL in this tissue. In the activation of this expression could mediate TNF-alpha. 3. Roux-en-Y gastric bypass is a surgery technique useful for obtain sustained weight reductions over time in morbidly obese subjects. Principally, this reduction is due to the loss of body fat. 4. Reducing excess weight leads to an improvement in comorbidities: a. The improvement in insulinoresistance is achieved much earlier than the excess weight loss desired. b. The lipid profile of individuals is normalized in most cases, so dyslipidemia and cardiovascular risk involved decrease. This improvement could be due in part to the almost complete normalization of the adipose tissue and liver functions

Cuatro caras de Hermes en la obra narrativa de Flavia Company

The Four Sides of Hermes in Flavia Company's Narrative WorkThe purpose of this thesis is the study of Flavia Company Navau's narrative work written until the year 2000. In the introduction, her poetic work is also briefly mentioned, as well as two children's tales, one poetic prose book and another one of short stories published in the press.It answers a double goal: on the one side, to discover the main characteristic themes in the author's narrative work and, on the other side, to determine if it is possible to identify a clear division between the narrative work previous to the novel Melalcor and the ones written after it.The thesis is organized in a methodological introduction and an introduction to the subject ('Acercamiento biográfico y literario a Flavia Company', translated as 'Biographic And Literary Approach To Flavia Company'), followed by four chapters. Each one of them is related to four characteristics of god Hermes: his ability to lie, his role as the messenger of the gods, his relation with alchemy and his androgynous and/or hermaphrodite side.In chapter one, ('El rostro y la máscara' (Mundos ficcionales, estética de la recepción, verdad y mentira en la novelística de Flavia Company), translated as 'The Face And The Mask' (Unreal worlds, Reader-response Criticism, Truth And Lies In Flavia Company's Novels)) studies on hermeneutics, on reader-response criticism and theories about unreal worlds have been used on the study of the author's narrative work. In chapter two ('La carta en la producción narrativa de Flavia Company' translated as 'The Letter in Flavia Company's Narrative Works'), the bibliography is based on personal letters. To write chapter three ('Alquimia, mito y ritos de iniciación en algunas novelas de Flavia Company' translated as 'Alchemy,DE LA TESIS DOCTORALCuatro caras de Hermes en la obra narrativa de Flavia CompanyEl objeto de estudio es la obra narrativa de Flavia Company Navau escrita hasta el año 2000. En la introducción también se comenta brevemente la obra poética, dos cuentos para niños, un libro de prosa poética y otro de relatos cortos publicados en prensa. El propósito es doble: por un lado, descubrir las características temáticas fundamentales de la narrativa de la autora y, por otro, determinar si existe una separación nítida entre la obra narrativa anterior a la novela Melalcor y las posteriores a ella. El material se estructura en una introducción metodológica y otra de introducción al tema ('Acercamiento biográfico y literario a Flavia Company')., seguidas por cuatro capítulos. Cada uno de ellos está relacionado con cuatro características del dios Hermes: la capacidad para mentir, el oficio de mensajero de los dioses, la relación con la alquimia y su vertiente andrógina y/o hermafrodita. En el primer capítulo, 'El rostro y la máscara. (Mundos ficcionales, estética de la recepción, verdad y mentira en la novelística de Flavia Company)', se aplican estudios de hermenéutica, estética de la recepción y teorías sobre mundos ficcionales a la obra narrativa de la autora. En el segundo capítulo, ('La carta en la producción narrativa de Flavia Company'), la bibliografía está especializada en las cartas personales. Para la redacción del tercero, ('Alquimia, mito y ritos de iniciación en algunas novelas de Flavia Company'), se han consultado fuentes que se enmarcan en la escuela de Eranos y que realizan un acercamiento hermenéutico-simbólico o, según otras definiciones, antropológico-imaginario a los textos estudiados, y también estudios sobre alquimia. En el cuarto capítulo, ('La mariposa

Hepatic and Visceral Adipose Tissue 11bHSD1 Expressions are Markers of Body Weight Loss After Bariatric Surgery

Cortisolemia and 11βHSD1 in liver and adipose tissue are altered in obesity. However, their participation in the development of obesity remains unclear. This study analyzed these parameters in the transition from morbid to type 1 obesity after bariatric surgery

Hepatic CD36 downregulation parallels steatosis improvement in morbidly obese undergoing bariatric surgery

[Background] The notion that hepatic expression of genes involved in lipid metabolism is altered in obese patients is relatively new and its relationship with hepatic steatosis and cardiometabolic alterations remains unclear. [Objective] We assessed the impact of Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery (RYGB) on the expression profile of genes related to metabolic syndrome in liver biopsies from morbidly obese individuals using a custom-made, focused cDNA microarray, and assessed the relationship between the expression profile and hepatic steatosis regression. [Materials and methods] Plasma and liver samples were obtained from patients at baseline and 12 months after surgery. Samples were assayed for chemical and gene expression analyses, as appropriate. Gene expression profiles were assessed using custom-made, focused TaqMan low-density array cards. [Results] RYGB-induced weight loss produced a favorable reduction in fat deposits, insulin resistance (estimated by homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR)), and plasma and hepatic lipid levels. Compared with the baseline values, the gene expression levels of key targets of lipid metabolism were significantly altered: CD36 was significantly downregulated (−40%; P=0.001), whereas APOB (+27%; P=0.032) and SCARB1 (+37%; P=0.040) were upregulated in response to surgery-induced weight reduction. We also observed a favorable reduction in the expression of the PAI1 gene (−80%; P=0.007) and a significant increase in the expression of the PPARA (+60%; P=0.014) and PPARGC1 genes (+36%; P=0.015). Notably, the relative fold decrease in the expression of the CD36 gene was directly associated with a concomitant reduction in the cholesterol (Spearman’s r=0.92; P=0.001) and phospholipid (Spearman’s r=0.76; P=0.04) contents in this tissue. [Conclusions] For the first time, RYGB-induced weight loss was shown to promote a favorable downregulation of CD36 expression, which was proportional to a favorable reduction in the hepatic cholesterol and phospholipid contents in our morbidly obese subjects following surgery.This work was funded by the Ministerio de Sanidad y Consumo, Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII) FIS grants CP13/00070 (to JJ) and PI11/01159 and PI15/00190 (to JP-O), and FEDER ‘Una manera de hacer Europa’; and by LaMarató 2016 (303/C/2016) (to JJ). JJ is recipient of a Miguel Servet Type 1 contract (CP13/00070; ISCIII). KAM-L is recipient of a AGAUR grant FI-DGR2014 (Generalitat de Catalunya). CIBER de Diabetes y Enfermedades Metabólicas Asociadas (CIBERDEM) is a project of the Instituto de Salud Carlos III. Institut de Recerca de l'Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau is accredited by the Generalitat de Catalunya as Centre de Recerca de Catalunya (CERCA).Peer reviewe

Irisin as a Novel Biomarker of Subclinical Atherosclerosis in Severe Obesity

Severe obesity (SO) can accelerate atherosclerosis and the onset of acute cardiovascular events. The diagnosis of atherosclerosis in the context of a high body mass index (BMI) can be challenging, making the identification of biomarkers clinically relevant. We aimed to assess the usefulness of irisin as a biomarker for subclinical atherosclerosis in participants with SO. This prospective observational study included 61 participants undergoing bariatric surgery for SO, defined as a BMI >40 kg/m2 or >35 kg/m2 with at least one comorbidity. Atherosclerotic plaques were detected by ultrasound. Plasma samples were obtained 1 month before and at 6 and 12 months after bariatric surgery to measure irisin by ELISA. Additionally, subcutaneous samples of adipose tissue were taken and genotyped to identify irisin polymorphism rs3480. Irisin levels were positively correlated with BMI (r = 0.23, p = 0.0064), negatively correlated with atheroma-related parameters (e.g., carotid intima-media thickness), and lower in subjects with atheroma (p < 0.0002). Irisin also showed good overall accuracy for discriminating plaque presence (AUC, 0.81; 95% CI, 0.6956–0.9156). However, the rs3480 polymorphism correlated with neither the irisin levels nor the presence of atheromas. Iirisin could identify subclinical atherosclerosis in SO and might facilitate clinical diagnosis