Nonspecific protease and elastase activities in rat leukocytes

Extracts were prepared from rat peritoneal leukocytes obtained 4 h after glycogen injection and assayed for proteolytic enzyme activities against various substrates. The substrates used included acid-denatured bovine hemoglobin, bovine serum albumin, a partially purified preparation of rat pulmonary basement membrane, bovine neck ligament elastin, and an artificial substrate with elastase specificity. A high level of activity was observed when hemoglobin was used as the substrate. The serum albumin and basement membrane preparation were also readily hydrolyzed by the leukocyte extract. In contrast, the native elastin and synthetic elastase substrate were much more resistant. Although the leukocyte extract demonstrated little intrinsic elastase activity, when it was mixed with a commercial hog pancreatic elastase preparation, it greatly potentiated the elastolytic activity, suggesting the activation of a latent enzyme.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/44534/1/10753_2004_Article_BF00916242.pd

A theory on reports of constructive (real) and illusory posttraumatic growth

It has been suggested that self-reported posttraumatic growth could sometimes be considered as a way for people to protect themselves from the distress of trauma. In this case, reports of posttraumatic growth could be illusory. We suggest a theory on self-reported constructive (real) posttraumatic growth and illusory posttraumatic growth by using Rogers’s (1959) theory and the work by Vaillant (1995). Through this theoretical framework we attempt to explain when reports of posttraumatic growth are likely to be constructive and real and when such reports are likely to represent aspects of illusions. We will also consider the implications for research practice

A person-centered perspective on working with people who have experienced psychological trauma and helping them move forward to posttraumatic growth

Over the past decade posttraumatic growth (PTG) has become a major topic for theory, research and practice in mainstream trauma psychology. The aim of this paper is to discuss the implications of PTG for the person-centered approach. It is argued that PTG provides a new non-medical language for understanding psychological trauma that is consistent with the person-centered approach. Person-centered personality theory provides an explanation for how PTG arises and leads to new testable predictions for research into how person-centered therapy may be able to facilitate PTG

Inhibition of HIV-1 infectivity and epithelial cell transfer by human monoclonal IgG and IgA antibodies carrying the b12 V region

Both IgG and secretory IgA Abs in mucosal secretions have been implicated in blocking the earliest events in HIV-1 transit across epithelial barriers, although the mechanisms by which this occurs remain largely unknown. In this study, we report the production and characterization of a human rIgA(2) mAb that carries the V regions of IgG1 b12, a potent and broadly neutralizing anti-gp120 Ab which has been shown to protect macaques against vaginal simian/HIV challenge. Monomeric, dimeric, polymeric, and secretory IgA(2) derivatives of b12 reacted with gp120 and neutralized CCR5- and CXCR4-tropic strains of HIV-1 in vitro. With respect to the protective effects of these Abs at mucosal surfaces, we demonstrated that IgG1 b12 and IgA(2) b12 inhibited the transfer of cell-free HIV-1 from ME-180 cells, a human cervical epithelial cell line, as well as Caco-2 cells, a human colonic epithelial cell line, to human PBMCs. Inhibition of viral transfer was due to the ability of b12 to block both viral attachment to and uptake by epithelial cells. These data demonstrate that IgG and IgA MAbs directed against a highly conserved epitope on gp120 can interfere with the earliest steps in HIV-1 transmission across mucosal surfaces, and reveal a possible mechanism by which b12 protects the vaginal mucosal against viral challenge in vivo

Retelling racialized violence, remaking white innocence: the politics of interlocking oppressions in transgender day of remembrance

Transgender Day of Remembrance has become a significant political event among those resisting violence against gender-variant persons. Commemorated in more than 250 locations worldwide, this day honors individuals who were killed due to anti-transgender hatred or prejudice. However, by focusing on transphobia as the definitive cause of violence, this ritual potentially obscures the ways in which hierarchies of race, class, and sexuality constitute such acts. Taking the Transgender Day of Remembrance/Remembering Our Dead project as a case study for considering the politics of memorialization, as well as tracing the narrative history of the Fred F. C. Martinez murder case in Colorado, the author argues that deracialized accounts of violence produce seemingly innocent White witnesses who can consume these spectacles of domination without confronting their own complicity in such acts. The author suggests that remembrance practices require critical rethinking if we are to confront violence in more effective ways. Description from publisher's site: http://caliber.ucpress.net/doi/abs/10.1525/srsp.2008.5.1.2

Doing research in immigration removal centres: ethics, emotions and impact

Immigration Removal Centres (IRCs) are deeply contested institutions that rarely open their doors to independent research. In this article we discuss some of the complications we faced in conducting the first national study of everyday life in them. As we will set out, research relationships were difficult to forge due to low levels of trust, and unfamiliarity with academic research. At the same time, many participants had unrealistic expectations about our capacity to assist while most exhibited high levels of distress. We were not immune from the emotional burden of the field sites. Such matters were compounded by the limited amount of published information about life in IRCs and a lack of ethical guidelines addressing such places. Drawing on related literature from prison sociology, we use our experiences in IRCs to set out a methodological account of understanding, ethics, and impact within these complex sites

When the world collapses : Changed worldview and social reconstruction in a traumatized community

Background: Traumatic experience can affect the individual’s basic beliefs about the world as a predictable and safe place. One of the cornerstones in recovery from trauma is reestablishment of safety, connectedness, and the shattered schema of a worldview. Objective: This study explored the role of negatively changed worldview in the relationship between war-related traumatization and readiness for social reconstruction of intergroup relations in a post-conflict community measured by three processes: intergroup rapprochement, rebuilding trust, and need for apology. It was hypothesized that more traumatized people are less supportive of social reconstruction and that this relationship is mediated by the changed worldview. Method: The study included a community random sample of 333 adults in the city of Vukovar, Croatia, that was most devastated during the 1991–1995 war. Six instruments were administered: Stressful Events Scale, Impact of Event Scale-Revised, Changed Worldview Scale, and three scales measuring the post-conflict social reconstruction processes: Intergroup Rapprochement, Intergroup Trust and Need for Apology. Results: Mediation analyses showed that the worldview change fully mediated between traumatization and all three aspects of social reconstruction. Conclusions: In a population exposed to war traumatization the worldview change mediates post-conflict social recovery of community relations

Lactation and neonatal nutrition: defining and refining the critical questions.

This paper resulted from a conference entitled "Lactation and Milk: Defining and refining the critical questions" held at the University of Colorado School of Medicine from January 18-20, 2012. The mission of the conference was to identify unresolved questions and set future goals for research into human milk composition, mammary development and lactation. We first outline the unanswered questions regarding the composition of human milk (Section I) and the mechanisms by which milk components affect neonatal development, growth and health and recommend models for future research. Emerging questions about how milk components affect cognitive development and behavioral phenotype of the offspring are presented in Section II. In Section III we outline the important unanswered questions about regulation of mammary gland development, the heritability of defects, the effects of maternal nutrition, disease, metabolic status, and therapeutic drugs upon the subsequent lactation. Questions surrounding breastfeeding practice are also highlighted. In Section IV we describe the specific nutritional challenges faced by three different populations, namely preterm infants, infants born to obese mothers who may or may not have gestational diabetes, and infants born to undernourished mothers. The recognition that multidisciplinary training is critical to advancing the field led us to formulate specific training recommendations in Section V. Our recommendations for research emphasis are summarized in Section VI. In sum, we present a roadmap for multidisciplinary research into all aspects of human lactation, milk and its role in infant nutrition for the next decade and beyond

Ambiguous loss and incomplete abduction narratives in Kosovo

Ten mothers of men and boys who were abducted and listed as missing during the war in Kosovo in 1998/1999 were interviewed in Kosovo in the spring of 2012. Although the missing are presumed dead by the authorities, the mothers continue to live in a state of emotional ambiguity where a presumption of death is balanced with the hope of being reunited. In the absence of absolute proof, finding the remains of their loved ones becomes a major preoccupation. Using a social phenomenological approach, this study explored the social and political complexities existing within the life-world of these women. The findings suggest that they live in a continual state of psychological distress, and even when remains are returned, the unknown elements of the narrative of their abduction and murder only add to their distress and force many into self-imposed emotional exile away from community and close family